CPR takes the pulse of the CRE Market in San Antonio
Author: Connie Raub
Posted on
Simple Gestures that make a Special Valentine’s Day
Get creative for your valentine this year! With flowers in limited supply and the steep increase in cost due to supply chain issues and shipment costs, florists are forced to get creative with their offerings this year.
Of course, the thought is what’s most important when it comes to expressing your affection. You can always opt for a nontraditional bouquet like a floral bear or edible chocolate rose bouquet. Then take your valentine to a nice meal and enjoy a fun outing together.
Planning a date can feel daunting at times, but what does any significant other want? To spend time with the person they love! So stop overcomplicating things and just figure out what each of you would enjoy doing together.
If art, wine, and chocolate sounds like the perfect date, then check out the events at Painting With a Twist. They have guided events with an experienced artist or you can purchase an at home kit.
With such beautiful, cool weather, an outside activity may be a great idea as well! Frisbee golf, tennis, golfing, fishing, or a quiet trail ride – everything ranging from high energy to calm and relaxing. There is no limit to the number of enjoyable outdoor events you can do together. Mix it up and include another couple to make it a double date or keep it intimate with just the two of you.
After you’ve worked up your appetite, pull out your picnic basket or go enjoy a meal out together. Keep things simple and focus on enjoying time together rather than putting on a production.
Retailers that are embracing ecommerce are excelling in the market today and vice-versa. Whereas those that are either one or the other, are not performing as well as they could. In the current market it’s all about adaptation. The businesses that adapt thrive and those that do not are closing their doors.
The athletic brand Fabletics is an excellent example of that. Launching in 2016 as strictly ecommerce retail, it established itself in the market and now has over 50 storefronts throughout the U.S. and is planning to have over 70 by the end of this year (Santana, 2021).
Brands are broadening their scope
Target and other department stores like Macy’s have begun partnering with other goods and services to broaden their scope. Target now has Ulta, Kohl’s has Sephora, and Macy’s has incorporated Toy’s. Retailers need to entice the consumer who comes in for an online order pickup to stay a while and leave with more than they intended. That is why stores with a larger footprint are broadening their scope (Levy, 2021, 22:00).
Typically, family’s idea of doing something together is often aligned with entertainment and retail. Some believe that America is over retailed, but today that may not be the case as it was 10 years ago. Statistically, the retail footprint has increased only 4% from 2010 to 2020 and retail sales have increased by 42% (Levy, 2021, 26:15). By these statistics, maybe we have balanced out what was previously an oversaturated market.
Rebranding: Process, Purpose, Profit & Permission
Brands that have been around for a long time are rebranding themselves in order to make themselves relevant to the current market. For instance, Levi’s has an ad showing the grandfather, father and son all wearing the Levi jeans. With this image imprinted on its audience’s mind, it effectually broadens the scope of the Levi brand (Levy, 2021, 27:14).
Guest Speaker Danan Telsey, CEO of Telsey Group, proposed the belief that incorporating process with purpose will lead to increasing profit as well (Levy, 2021, 28:00). This is because so many of those who are Gen Z, are more willing to put their money toward a cause or purpose. If they can purchase something for themselves and also support or help someone in need, it’s a win-win situation. Further breaking this idea down:
Process: observe other brands and see how you can update your brands offering.
Purpose: create a connection that gives your brand purpose.
Profit: incorporate these methods jointly to increase your profitability and overall success.
Permission: tenants need permission to try new things to increase their profitability.
During the height of the pandemic tenants were granted certain permissions, such as the use of sidewalk space (that were not written into their lease originally), which allowed them to make an offering for customers and in turn helped to bolster their business in uncertain times (Levy, 2021, 24:55). Now the companies that have worked to adapt their process and purpose are not only surviving, but excelling. The question still remains, how can landlords and tenants work together to keep their doors open and businesses thriving in this ever changing market?
Telsey also addressed the supply chain issues. This macro issue affecting retailers at this time, is another topic all together. Shipping from Vietnam or labor at ports in California have seen major setbacks with shipments. Some solutions depending on your budget may include:
Hiring airfreight
Ordering sooner
Hiring your own ship
Using different resources to meet your clients and customers needs (until your usual shipment arrives)
Each of these have varying costs, which are then passed on to the consumer. Unfortunately, this issue is not a quick fix and will not likely see any type of resolution until at least July of 2022 due to the complexity of international laws and existing regulations that must be addressed.
Point being, continuing to incorporate new tactics and thinking outside of the box is what will help landlords and tenants succeed as the constantly changing parameters for the new normal persist.
Santana, S. (2021, May 14). Kate Hudson-founded clothing brand to open first SA store. Bizjournals.com. Retrieved December 9, 2021, from https://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/news/2021/05/14/fabletics-to-open-first-store-in-san-antonio.html.
Women’s fight for parity in the workforce has been a long one. Since the 1840’s women have been battling to break the invisible glass ceiling that has long since loomed overhead, seeking equal rights, equal pay and equal opportunity for the past 181 years (Women’s Rights Museum). Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic has served a severe setback to women in the workforce. The service sector, which provides more jobs to females than males, was most severely hit (i.e. hotel, leisure & hospitality, etc.) according to American Progress. Moreover, the women are reported to have lost 5.4 million jobs out of the total 10.6 million job losses (Bureau of Labor). While these numbers appear to be almost an even split between men and women, the matter of grave concern is that many of these households impacted may have been living off of one income; the single mom. A study on population trends in America published by PRB stipulates that 56% of our population between the ages of 25-44 have children and 19% of them are single-parent homes.
For women, the struggle of maintaining the work life balance may serve to be the greatest barrier preventing them from returning to the workforce. A survey reported on Pew Research reveals that women’s perception of whether or not they should be working full time fell from 51% in 2019 to 44% in 2020; the belief that they should not work at all increased from 19% in 2019 to 29% in 2020; and the belief that they should not even work part time increased from 30% in 2019 to 29% in 2020. This may be due, in part, to mothers who feel it necessary to remain at home to help care for children and elderly family members who have become ill as the virus courses through our communities. Consequently, some households have decided to return to a more traditional style with one spouse working and the other remaining at home.
How this pandemic will affect women in the workforce long-term is yet to be seen. A poll reported in A Catalyst for Change: COVID-19’s Impact on Women in CRE, a recent Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) webinar, stated that 50% of women in the workforce have had a sudden shift in career priorities since March of 2020 and 74% of women have experienced a shift in their personal priorities. There are currently 10.9 million open positions waiting to be filled; it’s not likely finding a job will be the problem (Bureau of Labor). However finding one that will allow the flexibility desired might be the bigger issue. Flexibility in the workplace has drastically increased in desirability since work from home (WFH) was initiated due to COVID. Now, 94% of white-collar respondents who took part in a Deloitte survey, said they would benefit from flexible workplace offerings and 34% said it would help with maintaining their work life balance.
Currently, San Antonio ranks among the top five cities for the most women owned businesses in the United States, according to the CDC. Since the start of 2020 we have seen a rise in new businesses registered with the SBA, averaging about 1.3 million a quarter. Could we presume that some are turning to self-employment options and launching their own startup businesses to find the necessary workplace flexibility desired? While being a small business owner is by no means easy, maybe it and flexibility in the workplace will help women to maintain work life balance and remain in the workforce. Keep up the great work San Antonio, let’s make it to number one!
