In the News

While the coronavirus pandemic has created even more uncertainty for the already volatile retail industry, the lucrative holiday shopping season remains the biggest question yet.

As the holidays quickly approach, many early-bird consumers have already begun rounding up items on their holiday lists, eager to beat the holiday rush. But as any retailer knows, there will inevitably be plenty of shoppers who need a little — or perhaps a lot — of help making that final dash to get their holiday shopping wrapped up.

Travel spending has steadily been improving since Memorial Day weekend, research shows. Now that the summer has come to an end, the industry can get a clearer picture of the effect the pandemic had on summer travel. Cardlytics, which tracks consumer spending, found that travel spending slowly improved from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend

While the COVID crisis ravaged the dining and restaurant sector of the US economy, it was a very different story for many QSR brands within that segment. 

Plenty of restaurants have scrambled to better accommodate their restaurants for more dine-in guests, including by expanding outdoor seating. However, any on-premise traffic improvements could be negatively impacted as fall and winter weather set in.

It’s 11 p.m. on a weeknight and you’re hungry. Already in your pajamas, you unlock your smartphone and open a delivery app to scroll through a virtual buffet of options. One listing catches your eye: Fisher & Son’s Fish and Chips. Maybe you’ve never heard of the place, but the food, clearly displayed in enticing photos, looks solid. You add a two-piece fried cod with fries ($14.95) to your cart and hit order. A message pops up: DELIVERY ETA 25-40 MIN.