going to end it that way. yes. the people behind the scenes have done a remarkable job. the true heroes of the last two days of this show. >> putting up with you. >> guys, melissa lee. >> all right. thank you for watching fast money live in miami. mad money starts right now. >> my mission is simple to make you money. i'm here to level the playing field for all investors. there's always a bull market somewhere, and i promise to help you find it. mad money starts now. hey i'm cramer, welcome to mad money. welcome to cramerica. other people make friends i'm just trying to save you some money here. my job is not just to entertain but try to explain all this stuff. so call me at one 800 743 cnbc or tweet me jimcramer. fraught. that's the word we use in the office for days like today when so much seems to be going wrong. even if the averages weren't that terrible. dow declining 137

points s&p slipping 0.47% nasdaq losing 0.51%. we did catch a late day rally in the averages. now we've got a budding revolt against some of the magnificent seven. that makes me feel like we're getting closer to the end of the movie. maybe only three of the seven make it out. pessimistic. we've got a fed that seems to be backing off from its optimism about inflation. the economy is too strong to justify rate cuts. pessimistic. oh, and there's some incredibly solid action in the health care stocks, the telcos, the banks, the transports and the travel leisure stocks. aerospace is on fire. by the way people that's a huge percentage of the market. but who cares, right? we only care about tech and tech tech tech. i think that that's wrong. let's break them down. because if this market feels like a minefield, it's a minefield of our own choosing. there are plenty of areas with clear paths if you're willing to look. first, let's take the fed today. jay powell once again made it clear that he's looking at the data to figure out what to do next. sure, a few months ago, they thought that the economy was slowing in an inordinate

pace. they spoke about needing to be vigilant because they feared they would fall behind if the economy really took a header. but the economy didn't take a header. instead, i think the fed didn't and couldn't predict the burst of economic activity that came with the election of president trump. you know, it's a little uncanny. is it kind of like a switch was flicked? the optimism came out of nowhere. but the business community was very happy about the election and their optimism was palpable. big change from how they felt under biden. that's why the fed chief told us today he can't stay as concerned about a slowdown as he said today. we don't need to be in a hurry to do anything at another time. we'd be thrilled to hear that message. but there are still tons of investors betting that the fed will keep cutting rates as the year goes on. they forget that the fed is data dependent, and right now the data says do nothing. they thought more rate cuts were inevitable. so then what do they do? they sell stocks like crazy and then they don't hear that the fed is in a hurry. remember my view? as long as the fed is willing to cut if the economy

deteriorates, we're in a good moment. we have good earnings, and for that matter, more than matters more than monetary policy to be good earnings makes stocks go higher. good profits combined with a benign fed equal higher stock prices. optimistic glass half full. you know i hate this press conference after the fed speaks. i mean that's because the press has to ask the most provocative questions, mostly referencing president trump's statements about the need to get interest rates down. at one point, i had a job like these reporters. i was early in my career penniless, living in the back of my car. i always tried to make some sort of wave, something that's so threw off the person leading the press conference that i knew my pathetic bosses would be thrilled. they always were. i, as they say, no longer pay for dinner. i don't need to make a splash or even a ripple. i just want to tell the story. and the story is the fed's going to have our backs if things get weak, not going to be intimidated by the president. economy gets too strong. fed won't help us. i see inflation potentially coming down because i think housing costs are coming down. supermarkets getting slightly better. oil is pulling back, auto prices going lower. that's

the data. i like the data. here's what the press and many investors don't seem to realize. the delusional people want more rate cuts, but the fed is only willing to give us that in a situation where the economy is falling apart. fortunately, we're not in that situation. optimistic. think about how strong some sectors are when the fed slows its rate cuts. that's nirvana for banks. that's where they make the most money. you see those stocks. health care has been lagging far behind. now i think it's playing catch up. travel and leisure i mean what a bull market. no top which leaves the mag seven. we always talk about these stocks as if they're invincible. as someone who shared in the creation of the term mag seven, all i can say is remember that eli wallach, his goons, gunned down a bunch of them, maybe near the end of the movie, and some of the good guys, james coburn, maybe robert vaughn have met their demise. how about the ones that reported tonight? microsoft delivered a strong overall quarter, but the most closely watched figure is the constant currency revenue growth for azure, their cloud infrastructure business that missed oh so slightly. in truth, the success of the quarter will be determined by microsoft's guidance. and that should come at the end of the earnings call,

which is going on right now. i ain't cuffing it. anyone trading the stock before? that's putting the cart before the horse. as for tesla, as long as elon musk is behind the driver's seat, i want to own the stock. he put up soft numbers tonight, but a terrific forecast for 2025. i'll go with that. musk delivers. moreover, he makes cars that could become our nation's de facto autonomous vehicle king if his close associate, the president of the united states, opens the federal interstate highway system to tesla. if only to keep us competitive with china. the best report of the night was easily meta. platforms, which delivered a colossal top and bottom line beat tremendous free cash flow. meta also offered a conservative outlook lower than expected revenue for the current quarter, but after a quick pullback, investors ignored the guidance, which you have to do, and sent the stock higher in after hours trading. interesting what zuckerberg did in that latest quarter. i think it's right to look past any conservative forecasts. which brings me back to the dilemma of nvidia. right now we're trying to figure out what's really going on. is the president going to take action against china banning the export of nvidia chips? so far, that seems to have created a mother necessity situation, where chinese companies say they've developed software that gets much more out of a single chip.

so we have the political pressure and earnings pressure from the possibility that companies won't need as many expensive nvidia chips if chinese software gets more out of them than ours. we don't know what's worth. we can't figure out the price earnings multiple. so many are heading for the hills. the only problem? we're going to step on a landmine between here and the hills. i say that nvidia and apple are becoming two of the most hard stocks to own. i myself regard this as one of those moments thomas payne talked about. these are indeed the times that try men's souls for both nvidia and apple shareholders. is there a crisis at apple? no. it's just facing a belief that an earnings and more important, its forecast will give tomorrow night, that it gives tomorrow. it will be rough. it'll be actually terrible. >> sell sell sell. >> nvidia i fear that. >> order cancellations are trying to get they're trying to be priced into the stock. i don't know if it's done yet. when it does the stocks will buy. i just can't divine that level without more information. i'm not even going to make a claim that i have it. they're not. i'd say they're not so magnificent. six maybe the okay

five why don't we wait and see? but the bottom line if you stop focusing exclusively on big tech, then we've got a great market going. and if all you care about is the mag seven, remember the movie, make sure you have the survivors and trust that more. make it out of the village than we saw in the original. let's go to don in illinois. don. >> hi, jim. thank you for taking my call. i'll cut to the chase. my question about is about eaton. we all know about all the things that have been said about the data centers. and recently there's a chevron and some partners planning for energy for them. what i don't know is, is eaton still a good buy at this price? >> well, we bought some earlier during the cataclysm of selling for the trust but lower the stock has made a comeback. they do report on friday. i don't want to play that game of putting a gun to my head and say

how they'll do. it's a long term, terrific story, and i'm not going to be distracted from the idea that one of their businesses, of the five megatrends that are involved in it, has gotten a little bit weaker. let's go to megan in california. megan. >> hi, jim. how are you? >> i am good, megan. >> thank you for taking my call. of course. and thank you for all your help. i'm a first time caller and i'm a member of the club. thank you. and my question is, with all this noise about the deep sea, are you still as enthusiastic about dell as you used to be? >> that is such a great question. i think about dell and hpe constantly. like i think about marvell. dell has come down a huge amount. i have faith in michael dell. but you know what? i also have faith in waiting to see and learning more. and we've got a very fluid situation where all those who claim that they know exactly what's going to happen with nvidia or dell or hpe are,

frankly, as delusional as the people that i referenced earlier. you can't know the answer. it's unknowable. and that's where we are. look, despite the uncertainty we're facing around big tech, there's still a lot to like in this market. let's not let's stay focused on all stocks, not just seven. well, maybe tonight, chili's parent company, brinker, there's a good example. soared to a new high on its earnings beat. i'm sitting down with the ceo to see what sparked the big appetite for the stock today. then i kicked off my morning with behind the counter exclusive. yes, i went behind the counter with kava's founder and ceo. don't miss this. look at what's shaping kava's post ipo growth. it's terrific. and later on, controversial. levi's is on the move after earnings market right now. doesn't like it. i think the market might be wrong. i've got the company's top brass to break down the quarter. and let's not claim what we know when we don't. stay with cramer. >> don't miss a second of mad

money follow jimcramer on twitter. have a question. tweet cramer hashtag mad mentions. send jim an email to madmoney.cnbc.com. or give us a call at one 800 743 cnbc. miss something. head to something. head to madmoney.cnbc.com. (♪♪) the booking app i used didn't have agentforce. so an ai agent didn't know to move my reservations inside... ...or know what i like to eat, which is not that. what's up, my brother? oh, hey, bud! we really needed this rain. right? [car splashing rain water] agentforce helps restaurants prevent dining disasters. paddle on over! it's what ai was meant to be. we got you, brother.

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there's a smarter way to save. comcast business mobile. you could save up to an incredible 70% on your wireless bill. so you don't have to compromise. powering smarter savings. powering possibilities. switch and save with comcast business internet and mobile. find out how to pre-order and get the new samsung galaxy s25+ on us with a qualifying trade in. call, click or visit an xfinity store today. for free. visit otter.ai or download the app. >> when you look at these. >> incredible numbers from brinker international, one of my faves, the parent company of chili's and maggiano's, i've been pounding the table on this one for well over a year, because chili's gives people great value in an environment where the consumer has become very sensitive to price. but even i didn't expect results this good today. brinker reported a monster top and bottom line beat fueled by mind blowing 31%. same store sales growth for the core chili's brand. i didn't know that was possible. extra impressive when you consider that the analysts were looking for 20.5% growth, which is not a low number. yeah,

they blew the estimates out of the water. no wonder brinker stock rose more than 16%. it's now up more than 340% over the past year. that's real money to keep climbing. let's check in with kevin hoffman. he's the guy who did it all. the president and ceo of brinker international and president of chili's grill and bar. to get a better sense of the quarter. kevin, welcome to mad money. >> yeah. >> what a great day. >> i got just blown away. i mean, how do you do those numbers? i mean, honestly, i'm astonished. even as a restaurant owner, i don't know how you did it. tell us. >> well, number one, it's teamwork, right? we've got these amazing restaurant field teams. we've got an amazing restaurant support center at our home office. they're co-designing plans about how to make the restaurants easier to operate. they're co-designing plans on how we're going to create new food innovation and advertising to get new guests in. and it's all coming together and working, you know, progressively every quarter. our results are getting better and better. now they're being fueled by 19% traffic growth. and quite frankly, we think the sky's the limit. we don't think this is the end. we think this is just the beginning of the chili's turnaround. >> well, the analysts always

like, well. >> is this a flash in the pan? it has to end whatever. or maybe the ad campaign did it. you're the most consistent number getter in the whole industry. the other guys i'm worried about. i'm not worried about you. you were doing innovative things. like, for instance, everyone in the office knows about the triple dipper. they know it from tiktok. they know it from everything. you're you're pervasive and you're ubiquitous. >> yeah. you know, one of the things that we talked about in our investor day two years ago was how we were going to get back in culture. we were going to make chili's relevant again. that means having relevant food, having a relevant experience, as well as getting back into advertising and being in a place that people consider. where are we going to go tonight for drinks? are we going to go out for dinner? you know, that's taken hold. and what's happening is then we're in their consideration set. they're coming for the first time to chili's. and guess what they're saying. this is a great experience. we're coming back. it's part of our rotation now. and that's why you're going to see sustainable. you are seeing sustainable growth in our business. >> now when people say that there's the competition among some of the restaurants, for sure that's not your world. that's the value competition, just shooting at each other. i

want a dinner out and i want it and i want to spend that much money. >> yeah. you know, here's what i would tell you. so i had my vice president of operations on a call about three weeks ago, and i looked them in the eye and i was like, hey guys, who's worried about the new 99 999 deal from a big competitor? they all started laughing and i'm like, why are you guys laughing? and they're like, because we've been in the gym working out the last two years. we know our service and our experience is so much better than that. so they can undercut us all they want. nothing's going to happen to our business. and what's happened in the last quarter with that new offer, our business has accelerated. so we are not worried about being undercut because value is not just about low price, it's also about what you get in the experience. >> and how you know where to put the ads. it's obvious you got it. >> oh my god. well, we got these two guys, george felix and jesse johnson. they know how to place ads. they're really into live sports that don't get, you know, recorded. and so we're constantly getting tons of impressions. people think we spent a lot more on our advertising than we do, because those guys know how to pick shows.

>> but you know what? i was asking the office today. i said, what's he doing all this money? there was one guy who said, listen, you ought to remake the old stores. you're getting 4 million of average unit volume. i don't know if you need to. i mean, i think you answered the question pretty well. >> well, you know, we started this journey. we were $2.9 million auv. now we're at $4.2 million. you know, i always said, if we can just get the four these, these, these restaurants are going to operate a whole lot better. but here's the thing that's really exciting. we haven't touched reimaging our restaurants, and we've got 200 of our 1200 restaurant estate that they need some love. and we've got this new design that we're working on that we call the modern greenville that i think is really going to excite guests. we're going to start really reimaging next year, and it's going to take a couple years to get there. but that's all. >> that's all. okay. but i like my choice. >> why do i need it to look better? i never look bad to me. well. >> the most important thing well, i think the majority of our state looks great, right? but it's really important to look best on block. right? so it's not just about great food and great service, but an atmosphere that people want to hang out and they want to come back time and time again. you know, it's very clear post covid, people want a third place to come together. they do. and chili's is really answering that

call right now. >> now, nicole, you spent some time at maggiano. you're going to go for it, aren't you? >> so marciano is an exciting brand. so we got the unit economics a whole lot better. the average analyst does $10 million auvs, 18% margins. that's a lot of money on, you know, per marciano. so we think there's a ton of white space. marciano is the is the smallest brand that everybody thinks big. there's only 50 marciano's out there. so we've got a lot of white space to build. marciano and our president dominique berlin, that's exactly what he's working on right now is what's the new prototype to build our first marciano in over a decade? >> okay, we know that alcohol sales for you were roughly flat. most of them are down. down big. not you. should i go and have the resolution breaker? >> well, it's january, it's got a couple of days left, and in february will be a new one. but, you know, i'll tell you, that's been a real key to us, because at the end of the day, if you go to a, you know, a bar around here, you might pay $20 for a margarita. everybody knows you don't need an app, you don't need a coupon, you don't need to come for happy hour. you can always get a $6 margarita of the month of chili's, and it's always made with some premium tequila. and i got to tell you, that's something that our guests really appreciate about us, and they come to us for, and we're always going to be there with that $6 margarita. >> i did a lot of work on this

before i saw you. it's everyone else is eight. the lowest i've seen is eight because i did a lot of work because of my wife's love. you are so underneath everybody in price and it's premium. i don't know how you do it. you're really just an amazing restaurant. >> you know, it's an important thing to make sure that guests, no matter how much money they have in their pocket, they can come and enjoy casual dining. >> they sure do. i want to congratulate you and your team. one of the few guys, let me say that i know the names of his team because he mentions them and he means it. and also, thank you for what you did for all the firefighters, which is very clear. that was very important to you in south bend. >> yeah. >> i appreciate you saying that again. >> i want to thank kevin hoffman, president ceo of brinker international. symbol e a t on a monster quarter. mad money is back. >> after the break. >> coming up, cramer's getting behind the counter at cava and catching up with the ceo to see if the chain can continue its growth in 2025. next. frank holland worldwide exchange weekdays, 5 a.m. eastern on cnbc. take the bull by the horns

every morning with jim's top ten. the biggest headlines, earnings reports and jim's hot stocks right to your inbox. sign up now for free at cnbc.com. slash top ten. >> welcome to cnbc's crypto world. >> cnbc's daily digital show has trading updates the latest headlines, a global perspective and high profile interviews. scan to watch cnbc's crypto world, sponsored by crypto.com. >> welcome to reinvented with accenture. today i'm here with margarita del valle, ceo of vodafone. you were employee 25 in vodafone italy. today you're the ceo of vodafone. what is your strategy and vision for the future? >> we are changing our culture to really focus on our customers. we need to acknowledge that change is hard, but if people understand it's for the right reason, then you get the power of the organization with you. at pony,

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huge from its highs, even if it's now rebounding. now, look, i think the stock simply took a breather. it was too hot and now it's running again. but don't take it from me. earlier today we got this terrific chance to speak with brett schulman. he's the co-founder and ceo of cava group. he gets it. take a look. brett, i am so glad you have us here. i want to thank you. >> yeah. thank you for coming. >> of course. now, what i see here is something that resonates. i see value, but i see premium. there is almost no one able to pull that off. why is it working so well for copper? >> well, i think. >> it starts with. our food. that unique mediterranean. cuisine where. >> taste and health unites. >> and it's really. >> at. the nexus of. >> these large. >> secular trends. we see where the country. >> is getting. >> more diverse. people are seeking. >> bolder, more. >> adventurous flavors. >> but they're becoming increasingly interested in modern. >> health and wellness trends. >> and the impact. >> that the food they're consuming is having on their body. and that's where our food comes in. mediterranean diet number one ranked diet for eight years running. well. >> you've got this special

store. and the reason i mentioned special store is you actually shot a commercial. and the commercial is for tiktok and for insta, and people are talking about as gabby thomas, i want you to tell us what it means. >> yeah. so right here at 350 hudson, we did our shoot with gabby thomas, who's our collaboration partner for our our new special curated bowls and pitas to start the new year. and the campaign is really about abundance, not restriction. and gabby is a world class athlete, a superfan, a health advocate, and just a world class human and an amazing representative of our brand. >> now, what she's doing, i think, is actually similar to what a lot of other people are doing, which is that they're taking in everything. this is not a transactional place. it's obviously a place of warmth. just give me the choreography of a conversation. >> yeah. so it goes to our mediterranean way. that's certainly our bold flavored food, but it's also that welcoming hospitality where we want to welcome everyone to our table. and it's something we're working on through something

called project soul, where we're really warming up our dining rooms with greenery, enhanced lighting, enhanced seating because we don't think about it as an either or. when you engage with us, either digital or physical, we think about it's an and we want you to have your channel of choice to come in. depending on what your need is in the world that day, whether you're in a hurry and you want to order on our digital channels, or you want to come in and have that walk the line experience and engage with our team members and have that great hospitality, and then share a meal in our dining room with us. it's funny. >> because. >> of course, people know that chipotle has a similar experience and they're always worth emulating. and we've got ron sheikh as part of the bloodlines here. so there are many good things before cava ever came. i don't want to talk short term numbers because that's here in the quiet period. but what you've done historically has produced well above average profit margins, incredible growth and something that i guess works everywhere. this is a regional to national story, and there are many more states and places to put new

cavas. >> yeah, that's what gets so is so exciting for us. we're in 26 states in the district of columbia. we're here in manhattan, we're in boston, but we're also in places like fayetteville, arkansas and fayetteville, north carolina. so it works in the city. it works in small towns. and look, i think it's a testament to the broad appeal of that cuisine where anyone can come in, whether you're looking to have a vegan or vegetarian diet or you just want spicy lamb meatballs and crazy feta, everybody can come in and be satisfied and walk out feeling better about what they ate. >> now, a lot of people are talking about technology and how it's making restaurants better. i like technology in order to be able to make it so that the make work people have an advantage. when things go down in terms of the amount of food they need. but beyond that, transaction and technology don't necessarily improve the experience. >> yeah, i think this is really important. we talk about technology. we're automation to enhance the human experience, not replace it. on our main serving line. you're going to see our human team members really delivering on that hospitality and having that human connection. because look,

as screens and automation and kiosks and all these things and technology infiltrate our everyday life and the front lines of many concepts, i think people are feeling that void of human connection, and they're gravitating to places that are able to deliver on that. and as i said earlier, it's not an either or for us. we think we can have that great interactive, physical, human experience. and then if you want to opt into a digital channel, we have that for you too. but we put the power in your hands to opt in to your channel of choice. >> do people have their own cover? >> yes. >> everybody's got their home cover. but more and more, as we spread across the country, we see them as they're in traveling or visiting family and friends somewhere else. they've got their go to cover that. they, when they see it, they know what kind of meal they're going to get. and so. >> that could also mean that they are loyal. you've got loyalty. and it's looking like that. that program is working spectacularly. >> yes. so we relaunched our reimagined loyalty program at the end of last year. it's something we've been wanting to do for a number of years, but we got to prioritize every year.

sure, how many things we can do, but it's a new earning bank points model and it has a catalog of reward redemption options. so again, putting the power in your hands that you can earn and bank those points and then redeem them for your favorite item or some new other rewards that we're excited to bring to you later this year. >> now south florida. >> yeah. >> tell me about it. >> yeah, it's coming in 2025. we're excited. it's one of our new big markets. we're going to expand to we're we're currently up in orlando and tampa and jacksonville. we're going to move down into south florida later this year. and then we opened chicago last year, our first foray into the upper midwest and excited to have further expansion in the upper midwest this year. >> now i think you're still driving. of course, you're driving innovation, but i want to talk about the new menu items. what a steak. how's that working. >> steaks going? great. you know, we used to have grilled meatballs on the menu. we took it off and we knew that our guests viewed that there was a perceived gap, that they wanted a beef item, a lean protein that they could opt into. and so my partner, ted christos, he's our chief concept officer, my

co-founder, he leads our great exceptional culinary team. and they worked to deliver a phenomenal steak product that's been incredibly well received. and that is a permanent item on the menu. >> okay. so i think many people may say who is this brett? what is his background? actually you had kind of a back way to do it. you start with finance. you want to get things right. and that turned out to be a great way to be profitable. how come you went into the restaurant business? you got to go into goldman sachs. >> yeah, it's a long, winding road. and you know, i actually saw waiting tables help helping to pay my way through college. so me and the guys, my three co-founders are all sons of greek immigrants and all grew up kind of in the restaurant industry. and then after college, i went into finance for about ten years, but i wanted to do something more impactful and, and, you know, build something that could have a positive impact on the people around me. and i met the guys, as fate would have it, and they had started this brand out of a single, full service restaurant with similar philosophies, where they had mothers who worked in the restaurant industry and

experienced the stereotype of how people were treated poorly. and so we wanted to create a brand where our team members could grow personally and professionally and have a career, not just employment, while making this healthful, great food that's solving a problem for our guests and making a positive impact on the communities we serve. >> well, let's. >> talk about the line a lot of people feel, listen, i want to get in and get out. there is something to be said about a line and about sitting. it's not just a goal, it's this is a good experience. here. >> we say fast enough, right? >> fast enough. >> fast enough. it's, you know, it's money. >> that is worth thinking about for a second. fast enough is what people, they people are willing to pay a premium for fast enough. >> yeah. well, we you know, it's many people's first time interacting with our brand or eating mediterranean food, and we don't want them to feel rushed or hurried. we're also mindful in many of our restaurants. we have lines to the door, and we don't want people feeling like, oh, i can't go to covid today because the line is too long and it's going to take too long. so we also work behind the scenes to help our team members naturally move

that speed of service. but we say speed and service. we can't have that speed come at the expense of the service, so we're always trying to strike that balance. >> i just want to finish with the notion of health and wellness as something that people want in 2025, resonating more than ever. >> more than ever. and i think the key is people don't want to have to do it and make compromises or have restrictions. and that's where our cuisine comes in, where you can be satisfied, you can have this bold flavored food. and oh, by the way, you're eating better. well. >> i can tell you that the people at mad money may be your best customers. so thank you very much for offering what you do. brett shulman is co-founder ceo of cava group. thank you so much for your time. >> appreciate it. >> coming up, fresh off its earnings report, kramer is checking in with the ceo of levi strauss to see if the company's stock is still in style. next. >> it's not just about the ticket sales. it's maintaining that connectivity with her fans. >> the power of a fan base.

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talk about easier investing. today@hims.com. >> what do you make of these numbers from levi strauss and company? the iconic denim company? stock's been struggling since it reported a mixed quarter in early october. stabilized in recent weeks. so can this quarter change the narrative? tonight, levi's reported some of the best sales growth in years, up 12% year over year. real strength in the americas and europe, as well as the company's direct to consumer channels. they delivered a much higher than expected gross margin. i love that record number because of some elevated expenses, though, they only delivered a two cent earnings, beat off a 48 cent basis. i'll take that. more important, management's full year forecast for 2025. let's call it noisy top and bottom line numbers seemed a little weak, but a lot of that is from divestitures and currency fluctuations. tax rates shouldn't matter. i think it was good, but i'm not sure it was good enough. we got to talk to other people and see why don't we just talk to the ceo? how about that? let's talk to

michelle voss. she's the president and ceo of levi strauss and company. learn more. miss voss. welcome back to mad money. >> hi, jim. great to be here. thanks for having me. >> well, michelle, it's been one year. it's been one year since you took the job. why don't you tell us what's accomplished in the first year and what you think can be accomplished next year? >> yeah. you bet. >> well, first, i'd say i couldn't be happier with how we're ending the year. you were just adding some comments around that. but we're finishing the year. strong reported sales up 12%. but as we're now reporting our organic growth of 8%. and that really is to take account of either one time events or things like foreign currency headwinds as you were just speaking to. so the 8% for us takes into account the exit of denison, exit of our footwear business. and importantly, this quarter, the impact of the 53rd week. by all measures, it was a strong quarter driven by the health of our dtc business, wholesale returning to growth,

strengthened men's business, women's business really across the board and doing all this. you know, as we complete this year, it really was a pivotal year for the company starting the next chapter for ellis and co as we become a full omnichannel retailer, rewire the company that way and importantly, not just be about great jeans but head to toe denim lifestyle. and it's working. our strategies are working. >> i think it is. i'm glad that you brought up the dtc. i was, you know, of course, perusing the site in advance of our interview, i saw a lot more than just jeans, particularly a lot of cool stuff for men. women, i don't know. i think some women who are in lulu ought to be thinking about wearing jeans. i want to get your sense of where the customers are coming from and whether they're liking your additional offerings besides just traditional denim. >> well, based on the numbers, jim, i think they like what we're offering. i mean, we really ramped up our innovation pipeline. we have a much more expanded what i'll call lifestyle offering, but it's

tops, it's bottoms, it's dresses, it's skirt, of course, all rooted in denim, but our consumers are giving us permission to play in a much broader market. and that's a lot of what's driving the women's business. i mean, the women's business was up 12% overall, 20% in our dtc channel, which is that's kind of the first mover. that's where we really get to bring the full expression of the brand. what's really driving the bottoms business is still loose and baggy. we're seeing that with women. we just introduced a new style called the xl wide leg for men. while that trend took a little longer, we're also seeing that now drive the men's business with some new fits as well, so we're on our way. i mean, when i think about our results, you know, certainly the top line, but we've also at the same time, jim, been focused on the structural economics of the business. right. as we make this pivot to dtc, you saw our gross margins record for the quarter at 60 plus percent, record for

the year, and we're planning for those to go even higher. so i would say this business is a lot stronger and healthier today than it was even a year ago. >> okay. i'm always concerned that i want more women's business because periodically all they do, they sometimes they only want one pair. i mean, they're probably aggravating for you in some ways. but you know, we watched the halftime show. we saw beyonce. it's so obvious that when you have a song called levi's jeans, it's a top of mind. what kind of wear? what's your ideal breakdown between men and women? what would make it so you're the most profitable? >> yeah, well, we're making progress. so today our women's business is about 36% of our total business. but that should be half right when we just think about the broader apparel landscape, 36 is up quite significantly from just a couple years ago. but there's so much runway ahead and it starts with bottoms. we are always going to start our business with great denim bottoms. but as we were

talking, there's so much more where we can go for both men and women. and that's what's exciting to see. even our tops business, which we've been on a big innovation journey on that front, growing in both men's and women's. and people historically haven't thought about levi's for tops. they are now. we're becoming a destination for it. >> well, yeah. i was going to ask you also about belts. i mean, i think when you this is something my wife was saying, listen, we're wearing wide now. i'm saying no, you're wearing skinny people in the office. just kidding. but if you're wearing wide, you need a belt. and i know that that beyonce is wearing a levi's belt. how can you make some money off those accessories? >> yeah, absolutely. when we talk about head to toe denim lifestyle, we do see accessories as an opportunity for us as well. you know, that's probably a little longer term, although we do sell belts today. but right now our focus is really on those key categories like tops and dresses, outerwear. you know we talked about the fourth quarter. but jim i would just say we had a great holiday. so

our holiday actually goes into q1 a little bit because our fiscal year ends in november. so november, december combined we were up 8%. and that was driven by the bottoms business, but also by everything else denim, including including tops and outerwear. like i said, you know, i have to also comment on your your comment about beyonce. we're early in our partnership with her. that's going to go throughout most of this year, and it's having an effect. i mean, these strong numbers we're posting, we are seeing a beyonce effect. so we're very happy about that. >> i have to believe that there will be a move away from from the lulus and toward you for both, for both tops and bottoms. where do you get your new customers from? when you see the women's position go higher? >> yeah. >> so i think there's a couple of opportunities. one is to continue to drive more frequency with our existing consumers. you know, we have data on them and there's still a lot of room for them to visit levi's 1 or 2 more

times a year. you know, the great news for levi's is we are fully omnichannel. we've got our stores, we've got e-commerce, and we have our wholesale partners. so you can get levi's in lots of great places. so we want to be there for our consumers anywhere. they want to buy a pair of jeans. so it's existing customers. and then to your point, new customers. and i think the real upside for us is the female customer, both existing and new and also the younger consumer. we've done a lot to drive relevance and we're seeing that play out. and so when we think about the trends, which, you know, i have to say right now in denim, it's sort of anything goes loose and baggy are trending. that started with that younger generation, but everybody's wearing loose and baggy yet, you know, there's still there's still room to wear skinny jeans on occasion. and we see our customers still gravitating to that. so it's important for us as the category leader to be driving the trends. and i'm happy to say we are. >> well, i got to tell you, i was very impressed with the numbers. i love that kind of

revenue growth. you're doing so much. that is right. one year in. congratulations. happy anniversary. michelle goss, president ceo of levi strauss i love it when you come on the show. >> thank you. >> thanks so much, jim. >> absolutely mad money will be. >> back after the break. >> coming up, lightning doesn't just strike twice in cramerica. >> we are jimmy choo. booyah! booyah! >> thanks for taking. >> my call. >> it strikes every day. cramer is back in a flash with your questions next. >> we teach you the right way to develop your own investment strategy. >> to more. >> disciplined and not making. irrational decisions. we stick to the strategy and continue to invest and stay long term. >> go to cnbc.com slash join jim. >> there is one. >> death from cancer. >> anywhere around the world. every three seconds. >> 75% of patients don't actually know that they have heart failure until they've gone into a clinical setting.

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>> it is time. >> it's time for the lightning round. buy buy buy sell. no sweat on my staff. we get a. sound and then the lightning round is over. are you ready, ski daddy? the lightning round. i'm going to start with jim in georgia. >> jim? hello, jim. i'm a club member, three time caller, infantry veteran, which will become that'll. you'll understand why i mentioned that in a minute. i, i started buying defense stocks back in late 23 and did pretty well. once president trump was elected, though, there came to be this situation where you've got ddos, on the one hand, looking for efficiency and nobody's ever caused the military industrial complex to be efficient. nobody's ever called them that. and at the same time, you know, it's a very dangerous world, and the defense needs to be caught up. so and the only thing we've

heard in specifics is the iron dome, which is i think is a great idea. >> and that's rtx. >> yes. and l3 harris, northrop grumman rtx and then lockheed martin, which i'm asking you about specifically. >> okay. well, first, jim, i want to thank you for your service. and i think your question and being a member of the club, your question is an intriguing one. lockheed martin is a stock that, frankly, has come down so much that it's getting hard for me to dislike it. with james taylor at the top, however, i think the administration is far more focused on the idea of a palantir like solution to procurement, and that would be very bad for all the companies you just mentioned. so i do not want to get in the way of the palantir buzz saw, because that's very close to elon musk, and that's where i am. let's go to dottie in florida. dottie. >> hi, jim. >> how are you? >> i am good, dottie. how about you? >> i'm great. first of all, i'd like to thank you for continually reminding us how to be good investors. >> that's all i want. that's all

i want. >> i bought adma biologics about 14. it proceeded to go up to about 24 and then came down to 16. it beat its earnings by a quarter. it guided up. it has strong buys and buys on it. shall i buy more sell. >> or hold. >> okay. so it does have earnings which is terrific. it's not that much of a spec and it does great blood plasma work. my problem is i don't have a catalyst. i think the stock at 40 times earnings is a little too rich. i would wait for it to come down before i would pull. >> the trigger. >> let's go to tom in ohio. tom. >> booyah! jim nice to talk to you again. >> yes it is. it's great to have you on. >> the show. >> yeah i was considering purchasing. >> a stock called novocure. and what. >> i. >> like about it is their pipeline. >> of pancreatic. >> cancer drugs. >> i know you're probably going to tell me to buy eli lilly, but i already own it. and i'm looking to diversify and get

some other biotech stocks. >> i'll tell you, i used to be a very big fan of this company. but you know what? i have watched them for years and years and they're not making money. and i just think that they should be making money. they've got good revenues, but they're kind of flat. let's see some money made by novocure and then we can get behind it. i need to go to ben in florida. ben. >> mr. cramer, did you have a good sunday afternoon? >> you bet i did. that was you bet i did. thank you for. >> referencing that. >> i know you're coming to new orleans or not, but make sure that you get nolan smith and jalen carr on that plane you don't want. >> i will be there. >> i will be there to thank the team and thank you. how can i help? >> listen, i've been sitting on keys, keys, keys for about two. years watching it go down. bought some more to even down my price. i'm now about dead even. should i hold on or. >> we want. >> this one. >> we want this one. this is a company that has solutions. first of all, it's not expensive. at all. and second,

anything that measures reminds me of like, godzilla. that's another one. like they are doing. i have a terrific business, niche business. i like it, and i think you should own it, and i think you should buy it. and that, ladies and gentlemen, the conclusion of the lightning round. >> the lightning round is sponsored by charles schwab. coming up as dry january comes to a close. is now the time to invest in the wine and spirits stocks? cramer's giving you his take next. tomorrow, kick off the trading day with squawk on the street live from post nine at the nyse. >> how it went from i don't even know. no, no, i can go to glassworks, to david, to david. just google. >> the road maps and you'll see where i'm going. you're on uber switch. >> he's going on uber. well, one thing. >> we do need i. >> to say. >> to say. >> what did j carl: what's up, carl nation! it's your #1 broker

with the best full-service wealth management skills in the biz. tech asst: actually i'm seeing something from schwab. (uh-oh) producer : yeah, schwab lets you invest and trade on your own. and if you want they can even manage it for you. not to mention, schwab has a team of specialists for taxes, insurance, and estate planning. both producers: all with low fees. carl: we're experiencing technical difficulties... uh, carl... schwab! schwab. a modern approach to wealth management. 25 in vodafone italy. today you're the ceo of vodafone. what is your strategy and vision for the future? >> we are changing our culture to really focus on our customers. we need to acknowledge that change is hard, but if people understand it's but if people understand it's for the right reason, then you it's time to grow your business.

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tonight at ten eastern cnbc. >> just two more days. that's what the wine and spirits people must be thinking. as you approach the end of this disaster of a month, a month we call it dry january, but we never knew it was going to be as dry as death valley or the sahara. so we'll dry january leading to dry february. i don't know. i was praying that lvmh company represents the best of the best. we tell us they had a terrific wine and spirits quarter putting this story to bed, but sadly, that's not what happened last night. lvmh best of the best, reported a 36% decline in wine and spirits in 2020 for. >> no, no, no. >> that's a number that must send a shudder through anyone involved in the liquor business. these are practically prohibition numbers. and keep in mind, lvmh has some amazing brands hennessy, glenmorangie, chateau cheval blanc, colgin, the colgin, ardbeg, belvedere vodka. i'm giving them a pass on their high end champagnes dom

perignon, veuve clicquot, because these are holding up. but that's not enough to support this entire business. wow. of course, lvmh is not alone. the numbers from brown-forman, which owns jack daniels, woodford reserve, old forester, herradura, and the one we call el jimador are abysmal. diageo has been a horrendous stock, but it's a company that makes the johnnie walker and all his cousins, the captain tanqueray, don julio, casamigos, ketel one, crown royal and boy. the wine and spirits from constellation brands are so challenged. i wish they'd just sold the business a long time ago. just a very bad miss beer is holding up okay, but not enough to make wall street like the stock amid that stock. >> sell sell sell sell sell sell sell. >> my charitable trust. >> stuck with it. >> the worst thing about all of this is that for the most part, not one of these liquor companies is willing to admit that they could be facing an existential threat. like lvmh. they say we're experiencing a post-covid normalization because of excessive alcohol consumption during the pandemic. that's why i say they're holding their breath to see if the mocktails

and the zero alcohol beers quickly disappear by saturday, when january comes to an end. look, i think these companies are about to have a rude awakening when dry january turns into drier than expected february, and then we might even spiral from there. what's really happened to the alcohol business? okay, there's this litany of these companies ignore. first, cannabis is so darn cheap, and in many states it gives you a legal high without a hangover. we're no longer living in a smokey and the bandit world. the future belongs to harold and kumar. second, the surgeon general just told us that alcohol is linked to increased risk of seven types of cancer, including breast and liver cancer, among others. there's no safe level of alcohol consumption when we're talking cancer prevention. not good for the heavy social drinker. third, young people just don't like to drink as much as they used to. some profess health worries. others know that the liquor companies up prices during the pandemic and now refuse to take them down. fourth, ubiquitous glp one weight loss drugs can stop your craving for alcohol in his tracks. the studies are doing show that heavy drinkers seem to throttle back drinking

when they go on ozempic or manjaro. now that's a lot of serious negatives. so what's the hope? now? look, i once ran a bar and i've seen what's happened to my wife's mezcal. so my hope is that, like everything else, newness can crash through the ennui and the resistance. you have to create intriguing drinks. kind of like what they do with drinkers. you have to create. what's your choice? you have to craft something. you have to craft the craft. you must have a value price point. i don't think enough people in the industry realize that the good old days of endless price increases and no resistance and zero creativity are over. i do believe that social drinking will always have a place in our lives. there's no way that we're phasing out booze entirely. but rather than thinking that this is just post-covid normalization and expecting people to flock back after january, the much bigger fear is that alcohol joins tobacco on the list of things that can't be accepted by anyone trying to be healthy. i think alcohol dodged a real bullet when there was no skull and crossbones added to the label during the biden administration. who knows what bobby kennedy jr might do if he gets the health and human

services job no matter what. let's drop the normalization wrap, please. this is not normal. the liquor companies need to be clever, thoughtful and exciting, or they should just go find another business. alex roy's bull market summer. i promise i'll fight just for you promise i'll fight just for you right here on mad money ignited america's entrepreneurial spirit, and we're still blazing a trail. for those who take their fate into their own hands by working hard... i present to you swoveralls. -oh! [ laughs ] -my god. narrator: ...by working smart... the ultimate sleep solution that stops mouth-breathing in its tracks. narrator: ...by thinking big. spare's a virtual atm network using your mobile phone. narrator: we're celebrating a decade of dreams... christine: our dad was a boat refugee. he instilled a strong work ethic in each of us. ...and the dream continues now. we need your money. -what are your sales? -a dollar. -oh... -wow. i must have a third of your business. that's not a good "shark tank" deal.