Santa has run his company for centuries. It’s arguably the most admirable business in the world. But is it profitable?
Motley Fool senior analyst Bill Barker and Bill Mann, Chief Investment Strategist at Motley Fool Asset Management, break down the company’s revenue streams and discuss:
- Why KGE’s logistics are “state of the art”
- The relative negotiating power of Santa's elves
- How cryptocurrency may be boosting the bottom line
- Mismatched holiday-themed buddy cop pairings (Yes, really.)
Opening clip – “Money Train”
 
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You don’t start your own newspaper business when you’re in grade school unless you have entrepreneurship running through your veins. Fortunately for David Simnick, he had parents who indulged his ventures from an early age. Now the co-founder and CEO of Soapbox Soaps (one of the fastest-growing companies in America), David shares:
- The military career he came close to pursuing
- Early business ventures that failed
- How “money is a fuel to go after what really matters”
- Why he unabashedly loves his Shop-Vac

Opening clip – “Billions”

Go to ilovemarmar.com and use the promo code “MONEY” to get 10% off your limited-edition Holiday Gift Pack!

Use the promo code “MoneyUnplugged25” to get 25% off anything you order at Soapboxsoaps.com.

Send your questions and comments to [email protected]

Happy Thanksgiving!
Need a little break from your family & friends?
Take a walk or go for a drive as Chris Hill reveals how a listener email led him to spend an entire day in Atlanta with the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia. Plus, he shares:
- 3 big Thanksgiving traditions in the U.S.
- How two approaches to charitable giving (that have come up on the podcast) tie in to one of his favorite organizations, the Waterville Area Soup Kitchen
- Tina Fey’s opinion of the only true reward in life

Opening clip – “Wall Street”

Email [email protected] w/ your questions, suggestions, and more.

Long before he was a regular panelist on NPR’s popular show "Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!" and his writing was nominated for primetime Emmy Awards, Adam Felber was a Long Island kid with a voracious appetite for reading. Attending Tufts University he found his interest in writing, while outside the classroom he discovered a new love of comedy performance as one of the youngest members of ImprovBoston. Over a career that includes acting, creating television series, writing comic books (as well as regular books), Adam shares:

- His dad being great at his job but bad at money
- The incredible stock tip he gave his parents (but not himself)
- How the tv series Succession works better as a comedy
- Why it’s so important to “find your bliss”
Opening clip – “Kathleen Madigan: Gone Madigan”

Send your questions and comments to [email protected]
Want to find the best stocks and speed up your investing analysis?
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In middle school, Matt Koppenheffer figured out which neighbors would pay the most and which driveways were easiest to shovel — and planned his snow routes accordingly. That early instinct for value served him well. What came next served as a master class in learning things the hard way.
A UPenn economics grad, Matt lined up interviews at Goldman Sachs, Bear Stearns, and Credit Suisse — and walked into them knowing almost nothing about investment banking. At Credit Suisse, analysts who'd seen it all sniffed him out immediately and tore him apart. At Goldman Sachs, he told the interviewers he'd need to be placed in their West Coast office — because he wasn't going to leave the woman he loved. They looked at him like he'd lost his mind. He followed her to San Francisco anyway, landed at a boutique firm, and eventually found his way to the forefront of the AI revolution.
Now a writer and advisor covering AI and investing, Matt joins Chris Hill to talk about:
- Why the family that stiffed him on a blizzard-day shoveling job taught him more about negotiation than any class he took at Penn
- The stock market game that high school teachers love — and why it teaches young investors exactly the wrong lessons
- Why the AI financing world is "really incestuous" right now, and what that tells you about where we are in the cycle
- The unlikely movie that best captures how he thinks about money — and why both the character chasing wealth and the one rejecting it end up miserable

Want to find the best stocks and speed up your investing analysis? Try TIKR for free at tikr.com/unplugged
To get Matt’s latest insights on AI and more, go to MattKoppenheffer.com
Opening clip – “Good Fortune”

Artificial intelligence is reshaping industries—but what does it mean for long-term investors?
In this episode, veteran investor and portfolio manager at Bastion Fiduciary, John Rotonti joins Chris Hill to talk about investing in AI through a disciplined, long-term lens. Rather than chasing hype, John explains how investors can think clearly about innovation, competitive advantage, and risk when evaluating fast-moving technologies. They discuss:
- How to approach AI investing without speculation
- What long-term investors should look for beyond headlines
- The risks of hype-driven decision-making
- Why patience still matters—even in rapidly changing markets

Spice up your Thanksgiving with recipes from Dizzy Pig! Go to DizzyPigBBQ.com to get holiday recipes and 10% off when you use the promo code “money”.

Send your questions and comments to [email protected]
Opening clip - "Succession"

Heather Boneparth's financial journey didn't start with a spreadsheet. It started with a fight with her grandfather at age 8 — and a lesson about money that took decades to unlearn.
The last thing her grandfather ever said to her was that all that matters in the world is your blood and your money. Growing up as the only child and grandchild on both sides of her family, Heather internalized early that money meant love — and that withholding it meant you weren't enough. Those messages followed her from South Jersey to the University of Florida, through law school, and into a career she chose not out of passion but out of a fierce need to never have to ask anyone for anything again.
The director of business and legal affairs at Bone Fide Wealth — and co-author of the new book Money Together, written with her husband Douglas — Heather talks with Chris Hill about:
- Why she chose law school over journalism, and what the 2008 financial crisis did to that plan
- Carrying more than $200,000 in student loan debt into a new relationship — with a man who happened to be a financial advisor — and the shame that came with it
- How the pandemic quietly rewrote the power dynamics in her marriage, and why money conversations are never a straight line
- What she wishes someone had told her earlier: that time is a greater currency than money

Check out Heather's new book Money Together.

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Opening clip - "Your Friend, Nate Bargatze"

Decades before he started KNA Capital, a boutique investment firm, Todd Wenning got an up-close look at the homes of the rich and famous as he cleaned their swimming pools. He takes a break from teaching finance at the University of Dayton to discuss:
 - Why his love of history resulted in a college degree from St. Joseph’s University but not a career
 - Getting a job at The Vanguard Group
 - Making his students study corporate fraud by reading “The Smartest Guys In The Room”
 - The movie scene he uses to teach his students about bank solvency
Opening clip – “The House”

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Check out Todd's blog Flyover Stocks!

Growing up with five siblings, Paul Ollinger vividly recalls the lengths to which his "frugal" parents would go to avoid spending money. While getting his MBA at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, he discovered his love of stand-up comedy after he’d taken out $80,000 in student loans. Now busy with his comedy career and hosting the podcast "Reasonably Happy", Paul shares:
- How he ended up as an executive at Yahoo and Facebook
- Why the opposite of broke is not rich
- An expensive item he bought that his friends just didn’t notice
- The 1 thing about money that “never stops”

Opening clip – “Wall Street”

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Some people come to investing later in life. But when Bryan Hinmon was a teenager, he was determined to make it his career. In choosing a college, he picked one of the few in the country that had a student-managed fund so he could get experience as quickly as possible. Now the Chief Investment Officer at Maridea Wealth Management, Bryan discusses:
- Why you don’t want to challenge him to a contest bagging groceries
- The 1st thing he looks for in an annual report
- Balancing money in his personal life
- What the hit comedy show “Arrested Development” can teach people about money

Opening clip – “Sinners”

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Try it for free at tikr.com/unplugged.
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Disclaimer The Lawyers Asked Us To Include
This episode features Bryan Hinmon, Chief Investment Officer of Maridea who is also an equity owner of the firm, an investment advisor representative providing investment advice to clients, and has the ability to execute transactions in the same securities for both himself personally and for his clients. These affiliations and circumstances create a conflict of interest, as Bryan Hinmon has a financial interest in the success of Maridea, his personal investment accounts, and may benefit from this podcast. As such, listeners should not construe his statements as impartial or unbiased. Prospective clients should consult with their own financial, legal, and tax advisors prior to making any investment decision.

Maridea wealth Management, LLC (“Maridea’) is an SEC registered investment adviser. SEC registration does not imply any specific level of skill or training. For additional information and important disclosures, please visit www.marideawealth.com.