Skip to main content
Morning Brew Daily

Phase or Forever? Toby’s Trends 2025 Mega Recap

36 min episode · 2 min read

Episode

36 min

Read time

2 min

Topics

Career Growth, Health & Wellness, Investing

AI-Generated Summary

Key Takeaways

  • Creatine resurgence: Supplement sales at Vitamin Shoppe surged 320% from 2019 to 2024, with women now comprising 30% of GNC creatine purchases versus 18% in 2020, driven by mental health research and influencer promotion.
  • Dubai chocolate phenomenon: TikTok video with 120 million views sparked global craze for pistachio-filled chocolate bars, pushing pistachio prices to $10 per pound (34% increase), with major brands like Hershey's, Trader Joe's, and IHOP launching versions.
  • Bar tab aversion: Gen Z increasingly closes tabs after each drink rather than keeping them open, creating friction for bartenders who absorb additional credit card swipe fees on every transaction while younger drinkers consume less alcohol overall.
  • Spicy food dominance: US restaurant chains launched 76 new spicy menu items from March to June, bringing 95% of restaurants to offer at least one spicy option, fueled by TikTok fire noodle challenges and mukbang content.

What It Covers

Morning Brew Daily reviews 2025's defining consumer trends across food, dining, fitness, and lifestyle, examining which behaviors represent lasting shifts versus temporary phases among Gen Z and younger demographics.

Key Questions Answered

  • Creatine resurgence: Supplement sales at Vitamin Shoppe surged 320% from 2019 to 2024, with women now comprising 30% of GNC creatine purchases versus 18% in 2020, driven by mental health research and influencer promotion.
  • Dubai chocolate phenomenon: TikTok video with 120 million views sparked global craze for pistachio-filled chocolate bars, pushing pistachio prices to $10 per pound (34% increase), with major brands like Hershey's, Trader Joe's, and IHOP launching versions.
  • Bar tab aversion: Gen Z increasingly closes tabs after each drink rather than keeping them open, creating friction for bartenders who absorb additional credit card swipe fees on every transaction while younger drinkers consume less alcohol overall.
  • Spicy food dominance: US restaurant chains launched 76 new spicy menu items from March to June, bringing 95% of restaurants to offer at least one spicy option, fueled by TikTok fire noodle challenges and mukbang content.

Notable Moment

Research tracking pedestrian behavior in major US cities found people walked 15% faster in 2010 compared to 1980, with fewer street interactions attributed to smartphone usage and rising opportunity costs in wealthier neighborhoods.

Know someone who'd find this useful?

Episode Transcript

The best b to b marketing gets wasted on the wrong people. In what possible world do I need the seven pound bag of wasabi peas that social media is obsessed with showing me? To reach the right professionals, use LinkedIn ads. LinkedIn has grown to a network of over 130,000,000 decision makers. You can target your buyers by job title industry and more. Spend $250 on your first campaign and LinkedIn will even give you a $250 credit on your next one. Just go to linkedin.com/mbd. That's linkedin.com/mbd. Terms and conditions apply only on LinkedIn ads. Good morning, BRU Daily Show. I'm Neil Freiman. And I'm Toby Howell. Today, what were the kids up to this year? I'll tell you in a supersized version of Toby's Trends. It's Tuesday, December 30. Let's ride. Now everyone's second favorite segment on the podcast behind Neil's numbers is Toby's trends. It's where I take a deep dive in the business world and emerge with the trend that will have your grandparents going, now how did you get so smart? For this special holiday week episode, the team and I went back and combed through every trend we talked about this year. Some of them are random. Six, seven. Some of them fit into a broader theme, but all of them will make you feel smart if you bring them up in front of your friends. So, Neil, are you ready to have your mind blown? Let's do it. But first, a word from our sponsor, Public. Neil, I have to talk to you about something. Toby, for the last time, I do not wanna hear about your golf trip last weekend. No. No. No. No. It's public. Before on public, you could build a multi asset portfolio of stocks, bonds, options, and crypto. But now in addition to that, they have generated assets, which allow you to turn any idea into an investable index with AI. You can type in any prompts like AI powered supply chain companies with positive free cash flow or defense tech companies growing revenue 25% year over year. Okay. That's legitimately cool. So with generated assets, you can create investable indexes, kind of like ETFs, but they are your own ideas. Yep. Completely customizable just like my golf swing. Get started at public.com/morningbrew and earn a uncapped 1% bonus when you transfer your portfolio. That's public.com/morningbrew. Paid for by Public investing, full disclosures, and podcast description. Neil, I tell you what, I must have been hungry picking some of these trends because a lot of them are food related. And when it comes to your guts, maybe the definitive trend of the year was creatine coming back with a force. The powder has had a glow up since your meathead friends were ripping it in between classes in high school. It's now one of the most popular and widely studied supplements in the world with links to improved cognition and memory benefits in addition to giving you …

Get the full transcript (7,234 words) + summary by email — free

One-time email with the complete transcript and AI summary of this episode. No account needed.

One email, no spam. We’ll also show you what SignalCast does.

Browse all Morning Brew Daily transcripts →

You just read a 3-minute summary of a 33-minute episode.

Get Morning Brew Daily summarized like this every Monday — plus up to 2 more podcasts, free.

Pick Your Podcasts — Free

Keep Reading

Books, tools, and gear mentioned in this episode

SignalCast may earn commission on purchases via these links.

company

  • major brands like Hershey's, Trader Joe's, and IHOP launching versions
  • major brands like Hershey's, Trader Joe's, and IHOP launching versions
  • Supplement sales at Vitamin Shoppe surged 320% from 2019 to 2024, with women now comprising 30% of GNC creatine purchases
  • women now comprising 30% of GNC creatine purchases versus 18% in 2020
  • major brands like Hershey's, Trader Joe's, and IHOP launching versions

More from Morning Brew Daily

We summarize every new episode. Want them in your inbox?

Similar Episodes

Related episodes from other podcasts

Explore Related Topics

This podcast is featured in Best News Podcasts (2026) — ranked and reviewed with AI summaries.

Read this week's Health & Longevity Podcast Insights — cross-podcast analysis updated weekly.

You're clearly into Morning Brew Daily.

Every Monday, we deliver AI summaries of the latest episodes from Morning Brew Daily and 192+ other podcasts. Free for one show.

Start My Monday Digest

No credit card · Unsubscribe anytime