Professor Answers Your Supply Chain Panic – With Calm, Wit, and Toilet Paper Facts
Why are eggs suddenly a luxury item? And why did toilet paper pull a disappearing act like it was trying to avoid taxes? WIRED’s latest episode of Tech Support taps Harvard Business School’s Professor Willy Shih, a man who knows more about global trade than most of us know about our own Wi-Fi passwords, to unravel the mystery of the modern supply chain.
With wit, wisdom, and some seriously eye-opening numbers, Shih digs into everything from tariffs to why bringing manufacturing back to the U.S. isn’t as simple as waving an American flag. Want to know why the country imports strawberries despite drowning in farmland? Blame labor costs: $26.50/hour in California vs. $1.50/hour in Mexico.
Shih turns supply chain chaos into something actually entertaining, explaining how pirates, global ports, and even chicken feed are all messing with your grocery bill.
So if you’ve ever wondered whether we’re deep in a trade war (spoiler: yes) or why your next iPhone isn’t proudly made in America, this is the explainer you didn’t know you needed.
Watch it now — because the global economy is on fire, and you deserve to know why.