Fast Company June 2016

Fast Companyeditor Linda Tischler died on April 11 after a long illness. Linda started at the magazine in 2000 and pioneered its design coverage at a time when few, if any, mainstream publications paid attention to the subject. Through her exuberant stories, she highlighted both the business of design and its importance in business. It is much to her credit that design has evolved into a core business practice, embraced by companies large and small. Here, we asked some of those who knew and respected her to share memories of Linda. Gadi Amit FOUNDER, NEWDEALDESIGN “I met Linda at a Fast Company event, when the economy was in a rut. We started chatting and when I suggested that we should pay more attention to design for the middle class, she lit up. With…

The Richard Rodgers Theatre, on West 46th Street in Manhattan, has 1,321 seats. But you can’t sit in any of them—not unless you wait a really long time, or pay an extortionate amount of money. That’s because the theater is home to Hamilton, the hottest Broadway musical in modern memory. Despite eight shows per week—which amounts to more than 10,000 seats—demand is wildly stripping supply, with performances selling out as fast as the tickets go on sale. Those who carped that Broadway was dying, that craven movie adaptations had robbed the stage of its character, are eating their words. By injecting artful new energy into the story of the founding fathers, Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda has rewritten the script, launching a global brand that is animating students, musicians, marketers, and…

IT’S ALL ABOUT MI XIAOMI Two years ago, Xiaomi seemed untouchable. The Beijing-based startup had unseated Apple as the top smartphone maker in China, and the success of its strategy— high-end devices sold at ultrathin margins—helped it reach a $45 billion valuation. But in 2015, Xiaomi faced a slowing Chinese market and powerful new rivals such as Huawei Technologies. By the end of the year, Xiaomi had sold just 70 million mobile devices after initially forecasting 100 million. Now the company is working to expand its offerings, both to generate new revenue streams and to prove that it’s more than just an iPhone rival. In March, it released a smartphone-controlled rice maker that can automatically calculate cooking times. Though it might come off as a novelty product, the device is part of a…

1 Malibu by Anderson .Paak $9.99 Andersonpaak.com “Anderson .Paak’s new album Malibu is a great combination of genres—hip-hop, R&B, house, and classic soul. I’ve been listening to it a lot these days.” Reham Fagiri Cofounder, AptDeco 2 Stowaway Cosmetics From $10 Stowawaycosmetics.com “These tiny cosmetics are perfect for me. I love that the lipstick is so small it can easily slide into the side pocket of my chef coat.” Sarah Simmons Chef and founder, City Grit 3 Whistle pet tracker $79.95 Whistle.com “I use Whistle’s app and pet collar to let me know my golden retriever, Lola, has been taken out for a good, long walk with her dog walker.” Ben Fischman Founder, M.Gemi 4 Click and Grow indoor garden From $60 Clickandgrow.com “Click and Grow allows me to grow organic herbs at home with its LED light and pH-balanced smart soil. I just plug it in, add some water, and…

01 Lin-Manuel Miranda CREATOR AND STAR, HAMILTON For making history If you ever find yourself in a position to sit down with Lin-Manuel Miranda, know this: You never really “sit down” with Lin-Manuel Miranda. He is always in motion, on a mission; standing still really isn’t his thing. When the 36-year-old composer and lyricist was dreaming up the songs for Hamilton, the Broadway phenomenon that he wrote every line of and currently stars in eight times a week, he would often walk for hours through the streets of New York City, willing the words to come. Even now, he insists that the calmest he ever feels is during the 2 hours and 45 minutes of the show, when he gets to bound around onstage as Alexander Hamilton, “yelling and rapping at the top…

$60 million+ Gross Broadway ticket sales for Broadway’s Hamilton (as of April 1) $32 million Advance ticket sales for Hamilton before it hit Broadway in August 2015 $175,000 Advance reportedly paid to Miranda to write Hamilton No. 12 Billboard 200 debut position for the Hamilton original cast recording album on October 17, the highest for a cast recording since 1963 No. 1 Spot the cast recording album reached on the Billboard Rap Albums chart the week of November 28 and again the week of April 30 148,324,872 Total plays of the Hamilton soundtrack on Spotify (as of April 15) 4.3 million Number of views for the Hamilton Musical YouTube Channel 106 Number of different jewelry designs for sale on Etsy embossed with lyrics from Hamilton $1.5 million Amount committed by the Rockefeller Foundation to subsidize tickets so that 20,000 N.Y.C. students can see Hamilton for $10 apiece 24 Number…