Hello, friends and Fortune readers.
It feels to me like this has been a week of watching. Monday, Americans were feverishly watching the newswires waiting for news from the Supreme Court (more on that below.) Today, of course, we’ll be waiting and watching for U.S. men’s national soccer team to take the field against Belgium in Brazil. And over the course of Wednesday and Thursday we’ll all be watching the clock, waiting for when we can escape to the beach for the long weekend. But, alas, the world moves forward, and here are five things you need to know about business today:
1. Hormel is buying Muscle Milk
Pepperoni and protein shakes — what a deliciously meaty combination. Hormel Foods is buying CytoSport, which makes the popular protein shake Muscle Milk, apparently within the next 30 days. The purchase will be for around $450 million, and is designed to allow Hormel to reach younger customers, who apparently love Muscle Milk. Who knew?
2. June car sales look soft, but not too soft
Today is July 1 (Happy Canada Day to our neighbors to the North!), which means that we’ll get to find out how many cars people bought last month. May was, to put it lightly, an auto bonanza. Compared to that, June will likely be more tame. Expect a slight dip from June of last year, but nothing too alarming. The automakers will still be on pace to sell the most cars since before the financial crisis, and hopefully only some of them will end up being recalled.
3. July should be a big month for Apple
According to Fortune’s own Tim Cook whisperer Philip Elmer-DeWitt, July tends to be the biggest month for sales for Apple products. Why? Mainly back-to-school sales. So if you don’t care about the fact that the new iPhone 6 may be coming out at the end of the summer, join the masses and get thee to an Apple store.
4. Things are getting heated between American Apparel and Dov Charney
Is there a stranger man in business than Dov Charney? I just don’t see anyone out there who brings the same mix of alleged sleazy behavior, hubris and Dahmer glasses to the table. Well, things are getting even crazier over at American Apparel as the board of directors takes steps to prevent the ousted Charney from retaking the reins.
5. Americans have spent nearly 1,000 years looking at FIFA content since June 1
Finally, I’d be remiss if the final story today weren’t about GO, GO USA! According to FIFA, Americans have spent a total of 847 years engaged with various FIFA digital platforms since June 1. That is, apparently, more than any other country. Hopefully, that’s a good omen for today’s game.
