Recovery of Retail

Rachel Elias Wein (Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Wein Plus) joins Richard K. Green (Director, USC Lusk Center for Real Estate) to discuss the retail sectors returning as states continue to reopen and vaccine rates climb. Wein traces the pandemic's impact on retail, including growth in grocery delivery, pet stores, and ecommerce as well as areas that struggled like malls and mid-sized brands. As for the future of retail, Wein notes that an overall decrease in restaurant sales towards lower-cost grocery foods puts more cash in the average consumer's pocket, which may open an opportunity for post-pandemic spending in retail, hospitality, and travel.   Green and Wein discuss how work-from-home will impact retail, particularly weekday spending habits in urban and office hubs as an estimated 20% of the average work week (one day per week) may take place from home. Additionally, they also cover how an aging population's spending habits may favor geographic regions, the feasibility of transitioning customer-based retail locations to more industrial-style fulfillment centers, and how the ubiquity of malls will continue to decline.   More: https://lusk.usc.edu/perspectives