The Economics of Everyday Things
Freakonomics Network & Zachary Crockett
Who decides which snacks are in your office’s vending machine? How much is a suburban elm tree worth, and to whom? How did Girl Scout Cookies become a billion-dollar business? In bite-sized episodes, journalist Zachary Crockett looks at quotidian things and finds amazing stories.
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To get every show in the Freakonomics Radio Network without ads and a monthly bonus episode of Freakonomics Radio, start a free trial for SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.
Episodes
Mentioned books
32 snips
Mar 26, 2026 • 18min
25. Private Jets
Chuck Collins, inequality researcher and member of Patriotic Millionaires, critiques private-jet tax and environmental impacts. Anthony Tivnan, private aviation executive and Magellan Jets co-founder, explains services, pricing, and ownership models. They discuss how private flying works, who pays, environmental costs, and policy responses in a fast-paced, revealing conversation.
16 snips
Mar 23, 2026 • 16min
24. Pistachios
Sawyer Clark, pistachio farmer and asset manager at Gold Leaf Farming, shares life on large orchards and the economics of growing nuts. He talks about planting costs and the long wait for returns. He describes the intense six-week harvest and the processing race to preserve quality. He also covers how payments, market power, marketing, and water use shape the industry.
6 snips
Mar 19, 2026 • 16min
23. Cadavers - Part 2
In the final part of our series, Zachary Crockett talks to a man with a storied — and controversial — career in the body parts business. This episode was originally published on October 29th, 2023. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Mar 16, 2026 • 18min
22. Cadavers - Part 1
Kaylin Goodwin, VP of marketing at ScienceCare, explains how a for-profit body broker recruits donors and runs operations. Susan Lawrence, historian and professor, traces cadaver use from public dissections to modern donation laws. They discuss grave robbing turned industry, how bodies are sold and used, and the growth of wet labs and for-profit models.
42 snips
Mar 12, 2026 • 16min
21. Car Washes
Brian Cruz, owner of Sergeant Clean in Ohio, who turned rundown sites into modern, tech-driven car washes. Eric Wolf, CEO of the International Car Wash Association, who tracks industry trends and tech adoption. They discuss the car wash boom, AI and sensors in tunnels, water recycling and costs, subscription models and recurring revenue, and how automation and consolidation are reshaping the business.
8 snips
Mar 9, 2026 • 16min
20. Tattoo Parlors
A dive into how Instagram transformed tattoo careers and shop economics. Apprenticeships, licensing quirks, and the costs of starting out get examined. Artists debate commission splits, chair rents, and shifting shop strategies. Trends, niche specialties, tattoo removal, and the physical toll of the trade are all explored.
33 snips
Mar 5, 2026 • 14min
19. Pizza Boxes
Scott Wiener, pizza-box collector and founder of Scott's Pizza Tours, explains the curious history and design of corrugated pizza boxes. He covers Domino's standardization, how manufacturers shape supply chains, trade-offs like heat versus sogginess, recycling realities, and why clever redesigns rarely scale. He also reflects on collecting boxes while avoiding eating from them.
16 snips
Mar 2, 2026 • 19min
18. Mobile Home Parks
Paul Bradley, advocate for resident-owned communities and mobile home residents, and Frank Rolfe, investor and cofounder of Mobile Home University, discuss mobile home parks. They trace the history and scale of parks. They debate investor strategies, rising lot rents, infrastructure fixes, and resident land ownership. They cover resident cooperatives and market pressures reshaping parks.
22 snips
Feb 26, 2026 • 18min
17. Truffles
Jason McKinney, a chef and high-volume truffle buyer from The French Laundry, and Basart Marina, a truffle merchant who built a major U.S. import business, walk through the wild, secretive world of truffle commerce. They talk about hunting with dogs, theft and sabotage, global sourcing and shifting climates, short shelf life and rapid logistics, and the clandestine late-night deals that feed fine dining.
16 snips
Feb 23, 2026 • 19min
16. Prop Money
Rich Rappaport, longtime prop maker and owner of RJR Props in Atlanta, discusses crafting realistic film and TV prop money while navigating legal limits. He talks about design tweaks to fool the camera, interactions with federal reviewers, and why productions avoid real cash. The conversation also covers the flood of online prop notes and the industry challenges that follow.
