Planet Money Our BOOK vs. the global supply chain
121 snips
Mar 26, 2026 
Tom Mayer, a W.W. Norton editor, takes listeners inside the making of a book. They trace how edits, design choices, pricing, and deadlines shape the final object. Then the story jumps to trade wars, cargo risks, deforestation rules, and the surprise logic behind printing in Indiana instead of overseas. Even a one-inch trim change causes chaos.
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Every Book Hides A Global Supply Chain
- A physical book is a tiny economic miracle built from global inputs, factory coordination, and nonstop industrial scale.
- At Lakeside, Alexi Horowitz-Gazi saw million-square-foot operations, imported paper and ink, security cages for embargoed titles, and output of roughly 600,000 to 750,000 books a day.
Why The Money Smell Cover Got Cut
- The team pitched playful gimmicks to make the Planet Money book feel like the show, then discovered manufacturing realities kill many clever ideas.
- Alex Goldmark wanted actual currency fabric; Alex Mayyasi pushed a money-smelling cover; Norton even tested Chinese scratch-and-sniff stickers that smelled wrong.
Tiny Extras Can Blow Up A Book Price
- Small production add-ons can dramatically raise retail prices because unit costs multiply across thousands of copies and affect demand.
- Tom Mayer said postcards, posters, and other extras could push the book above $40, so the team cut them to protect a roughly $30 price point.
