Who wants to take over Ross Douthat’s NYT podcast?
Plus: A Glossier OG returns to the brand, George W. Bush's dog painting was vandalized, and more.
Good afternoon, everyone.
Rest in peace to one of my favorite French artists, Kavinsky. President Emmanuel Macron posted a tribute to the electronic musician this morning on Instagram. Pour one out and press play on “Nightcall.”
Last night, my friend Kareem took me to the New York premiere of A24’s “Tony.” Based on the trailer, I had my concerns about the Anthony Bourdain movie, which focuses on one pivotal seaside summer of his life. The movie was delightful! The soundtrack rocked (Mandy Mamlet, who also worked on “Challengers,” was the music supervisor). I walked out of the theater (passing by chefs who were in attendance, like Jonah Reider and Eric Ripert and Natasha Pickowicz) wanting a greasy slice of New England beach town pizza. Good job, Dominic Sessa, Antonio Banderas, Matt Johnson, and A24.
Today’s newsletter includes: George Bush’s paintings came down at a London Gallery as fast as they went up, Mark Zuckerberg is hiring a social media manager, Ross Douthat is leaving the Times for 60 Minutes, a Glossier OG returns to the business, a popular supplement brand is launching its own show, an AI insurance brand is opening three cafes in New York, and dermatologists claim that New York women are pulling back on Botox.
FOR YOUR CALENDAR
🌭 The Meat Hook and Ha’s Dac Biet are hosting a summer cookout. (July 30)
🎬 Sag Harbor Cinema’s Annual Benefit is this weekend at Bridgehampton Tennis and Surf Club. Silent auction items include Freddy Krueger’s striped sweater and an Autumn cruise around Sicily and Malta. (July 31)
📰 Michael Grynbaum and Derek Blasberg are discussing Condé Nast lore in East Hampton to celebrate the paperback release of Grynbaum’s Empire of the Elite. (August 1)
🦞 Léon 1909’s Chef Armond Joseph is hosting a Shelter Island-style clam bake in Manhattan with The James Beard Foundation. (August 4)
🎤 Substack and Shit You Should Care About are hosting a pop culture trivia show, with guests Brianna Chickenfry, Brian Park, and Eli Rallo. (August 5)
📖 Patio, a monthly reading series usually held at TJ Byrnes, is holding a reading at Oberon, the new restaurant in The New Museum. FWIW, best new selfie bathroom mirror in the city. (August 11)
So there’s an AI-powered insurance company called Corgi that is opening three cafes in New York City this year. Corgi, an insurance company that uses AI to generate estimates and plans for startups, started in Y Combinator in 2024. They made headlines last week when they raised a round of funding for the third time since May, bringing their valuation to $4 billion. In addition to building software, the company opened 24-hour cafes in Atlanta and SF. They occasionally serve sponsored drinks like “Brexspresso.” Sponsored drinks aren’t the worst idea, when you think about how Erewhon turned smoothies into billboards for brands like Hailey Bieber’s Rhode and Emma Chamberlain’s Chamberlain Coffee.
One Corgi Cafe customer posted in the Bay Area subreddit: “I went here on a Friday night at 8pm. Weirdest vibe, completely quiet except for a bunch of (presumably) GenZ kids typing furiously on their laptops with headphones on. The moment a friend and I walked in, they stared at us like we were alien freaks. Not a fun vibe.” Jury’s out on how the vibes will be at the new Tribeca, Chelsea, and NoMad locations.
Corgi’s head of brand, Erika Lee, told the SF Gazetteer, “It’s like the Capital One Café.” I’d like to talk to Erika, and see if we can dig deeper into these ideas. While an insurance company cafe might seem radical, all sorts of businesses – including Capital One, Ralph Lauren, and even Alaïa – have opened cafes over the last few years. But here’s the thing, whenever I see a startup going so hard on brand marketing channels so early in its life (2 years old), it tells me they’ve either exhausted all the more tactical, efficient marketing channels, or they didn’t try. Some people will say “this time is different,” and that AI companies need to jump right to brand marketing to thrust themselves upon the public, and maybe if that thrusting is done with “taste,” they’ll get very big very fast. We’ll see if that works.
What’s that you say? You want to know more about Corgi?
Two thirds of the first 30 hires have a corgi tattoo.
Corgi’s founder, Nico Laqua, sleeps 3-4 hours a night.
Don’t worry, London, you’re getting a Corgi Cafe in Shoreditch.
Billionaire Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square Foundation is building a 700,000-square-foot brain research institute in New York – the Ackman Oxman Institute. He spent $260 million on two West Side buildings, which will be developed in partnership with Mount Sinai.
One of my favorite buildings in Boerum Hill was listed this week for $5.7 million. I didn’t realize it was a multi-family – great opportunity for someone who wants a conversion project, or is an aspiring landlord.