Despite Strong 2021 Figures, Expect Slower Growth Ahead
While the U.S. economy bounced back with resilience from 2020′s brief but devastating coronavirus recession, there may be trouble ahead in 2022. Despite the brief recession in 2020, the economy ended 2021 by growing at an unexpectedly brisk 6.9% annual pace from...
Shoppers Returned To Stores For The Holidays
Shopper traffic to physical retail stores has strongly rebounded from 2020. Data from Placer.ai, a company which measures shopper visits across a wide range of physical stores including grocery, apparel, big box, department and specialty, indicate that shoppers...
Starbucks Tests Cashierless Stores
Starbucks is exploring a new store format in partnership with Amazon that will allow customers to buy drinks, snacks and other items without waiting in line, utilizing automated checkout technology developed by the e-commerce giant. The first concept store opened...
The Absolute Simplest Explanation for America’s Supply Chain Woes
Supply chain problems have dogged the world economy all through the pandemic. Early on, panic hoarding and problems in particular industries, such as semiconductors, made it impossible for shoppers to get their hands on specific items like Clorox wipes or a new...
Halloween is Back on Track
Halloween is back on the schedule this year and Americans wanted trick-or-treaters, more decorations and new costumes – for us, the kids and our pets. When the totals are reported, consumers are expected to have spent a record $10.14 billion on Halloween this year,...
The Grocery Business Is Going To Get Much More Competitive
During the pandemic, home delivery and customer pickup of groceries exploded. Those changes are now significantly impacting the future of the grocery business, making the business harder and more competitive than before. There are two reasons why this is occurring:...
Why retail bankruptcies have stopped dead — for now
To appreciate the turnaround the entire retail industry has made over the past year, consider the months of July and August 2021 compared to July and August 2020. In 2020, over those two months, 11 major retailers filed for bankruptcy. Over the course of just seven...
This Amazon Fresh Store Is Only Blocks From A Whole Foods. Why?
The two grocery properties are in the same Washington, D.C., neighborhood. But the stores are on such different trajectories it may not matter. On a July day in Washington, D.C., the latest Amazon Fresh store opened. The checkout-free grocery concept allows customers...
The US has 8.4 million unemployed and 10 million job openings – Why?
A mystery sits at the heart of the economic recovery: There are 10 million job openings, yet more than 8.4 million unemployed are still actively looking for work. The job market looks, in some ways, like a boom-time situation. Business owners complain they can’t find...By Rob Samtmann
Managing Principal of Equity Retail Brokers – Specializing in Tenant Representation and Leasing