Archive | 2020

consumer spending photo-1518458028785-8fbcd101ebb9

How Consumer Spending Fared So Far Through 2020: Not Well

By now, you’ve heard the news that the GDP contracted 32.9% in the second quarter on an annualized seasonally and inflation-adjusted basis, following a 5% decline in first quarter. Personal consumption makes up over two-thirds of the GDP and it dropped even more precipitously, down 34.6% on an annualized basis. This quarter marks the economy’s […]

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Empty Mall

A Reckoning Is Coming For Retail: Get Ready

“Make no mistake, it’s not revenge he’s after. It’s a reckoning.” That was one of Val Kilmer’s (as Doc Holliday) many memorable lines from the 1993 movie Tombstone, referring to Kurt Russell ‘s (Wyatt Earp) vendetta against the “cowboy” faction that killed his brother. I like to think I have an extensive vocabulary, but that […]

Bobbi Brown Cosmetics

Bobbi Brown Cosmetics Is Back and It’s about Time

Across the spectrum of beauty brands, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics is iconic. Everybody that is anybody knows it, but that isn’t saying everybody buys it. Part of Estée Lauder Companies’ $14.9 billion empire of beauty brands, it’s a brand that from an outside observer seems to be overshadowed by its bigger siblings, like M·A·C, the only […]

Post-pandemic American market

Prospects for Home Brands In Post-Pandemic World

The National Kitchen and Bath Association asked me to share research and perspectives on the future of home-related businesses is in the post-pandemic market. Here are my thoughts along with those from with Bill Darcy of the NKBA and J. Walker Smith of Kantar Consulting. And for a wider look across other segments in the […]

Neighborhood Goods Plano, TX AI0A9140 copy

With Department Stores on the Ropes, Neighborhood Goods Is Reinventing A Business Model That Actually That Works

Traditional department stores have been experiencing a slow and painful to watch death for years. The pandemic may be the final nail in their coffin. J.C. Penney and Neiman Marcus have declared bankruptcy. Sears and Lord & Taylor are all but gone, and Macy’s is hanging on by a thread. The data detailing department stores’ […]

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