The Mainstream Adoption of Professional Wrestling is Upon Us
7-11 thoughts about change and retail as the holidays come to a close
Happy Holidays fam - Wishing you and your loved ones a soul+full season stacked with joy and good vibes!
With that, on to the show:
Acknowledge (W)WE - or at the very least, the OTC, your Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns, who headlines the debut episode of RAW on Netflix, a five billion dollar media rights deal. Reigns will battle his cousin, Solo Sikoa the impostor who stole the crown, or in this case, the ulu fala.
That’s huge but it will be in the rear-view quickly because pro wrestling is arguably producing some of its best work ever. But don’t worry, Reigns is considered the modern-day GOAT, having held the industry’s top title belt in a contemporary record of 1316 days. Title reigns don’t last that long unless you’re someone like Reigns and he’s so huge, he doesn’t need it because he’s been a part of creating one of the industry’s biggest storylines of all time - The Bloodline.
And with systems in place to develop talent, better creative, and more options for fans to consume, the product will continue to get better and better.
There’s also some awesome behind-the-curtain content on social media and with podcasts like “Insight with Chris Van Vliet” for the audience to learn more and connect with the people behind the character. If you’re new, I recommend checking out this awesome episode featuring multi-world champion, future hall of famer, and former MMA fighter, Bobby Lashley. You can also read the previous 7-11 thoughts about the subject here.
Switching pages a bit from Wrestling to a different type of boxing, I’ve seen a large influx of advertising for Boxing Day, an actual holiday that originated in the UK as a originally a way to giveback after Christmas. I want to say I think that I have heard of it but had no clue what it really was until I saw all the advertising this year. Am I the only one? I realize that I’ve lived on an island in the middle of an ocean and the coconut wireless never knew (and it’s not a holiday in the US) but it seems like there’s also more of a widespread push by brands to capitalize on it this holiday season.
What’s Five Billion Dollars Compared to One-Hundred Billion? I wouldn’t be surprised if Boxing Day advertising and sales increase as the years continue because it’s estimated this year’s holiday shopping is estimated to bring almost one-hundred billie in sales, despite higher prices.
And that’s probably why more brands will build around Boxing Day, and we probably won’t get a newly recognized holiday in the US because what is a holiday, when it comes to shopping, consumers are here for it. I can barely recall a time when only fast food chains, convenience stores, and Chinese Restaurants were open on Holidays. Now, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, and even Christmas has something open. With Holidays after Holidays mixing with our grind culture, I think we’ve reached the supercycle of the madness.
On the one-hand, I’m grateful, on the other, I miss the quiet and think we need the calm. Is this my get off my lawn moment? Sadly, I’ve probably had that and many more over the years.
But it’s like a collector’s badge to add as life continues. It’s also kind of beautiful in a way to realize there’s not only loved ones we’ll miss once gone, but that there are experiences, some we embrace while living, others we only realize their fullness once gone, expressions of life that we’ll never reclaim.
The Trick Is To Realize That Loss Clears the Way… for something new to enter with each new chapter. It’s up to each of us to cultivate the ability to leverage perspective and seek to find the beauty through all of it.
Now go enjoy the next few days before the next Holiday and the start of 2025. Thx for being out there!