Spotlight on Industry Headlines
AMAZON’S LAUNCH INTO LUXURY FASHION
A QUARTER OF AMERICA’S MALLS WILL CLOSE OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS A recent report by Coresight Research estimates 25 percent of America’s roughly 1,000 malls will close over the next three to five years, with the pandemic accelerating a demise that was already un - derway before COVID-19 the new virus emerged. So, what is going to happen to America’s malls? Well that is a million-dollar question plaguing retailers and real estate developers. The consensus seems to be that these old retail spaces could be converted into new warehouses for large in - ternet-based companies like Amazon. However, even though it might seem like a logical solution, it might not be so easy to make the transformation even as demand for logistics buildings is skyrocketing as e-commerce sales balloon. The problems lie in the need to have properties re - zoned, which could be met with pushback from local municipalities and government regulators. A irline CEOs and labor unions are pushing for billions in additional federal aid as a ban on in- dustry job cuts is set to expire soon and a re - covery in travel demand hasn’t materialized, nor does it look like it will any time soon. Several airline executives plan to meet with White House chief of staff Mark Meadows to discuss the sit - uation with the industry looking for another $25 bil - lion that would preserve sector jobs through the end of next March. AIRLINES STILL HIT HARD BY
KRAFT HEINZ IS CUTTING THE CHEESE, SO TO SPEAK N ews that Amazon is getting into the luxury fash - ion sector as the latest blow this year to North American department stores, which have been hit especially hard by the coronavirus and reduced foot traffic in their stores on both sides of the border. Amazon announced the launch of a section on its mo- bile app called Luxury Stores, kicking off with items from designer Oscar de la Renta’s pre-fall and fall-win- ter 2020 collections. It said additional luxe fashion brands will be added to the app in the coming weeks. According to Amazon, for now only their Amazon Prime members will initially be able to shop this sec - tion by invitation however, invitations will be extend - ed to more customers over time. Amazon’s Luxury Stores will include interactive fea - tures like 360-degree viewing, which allows shoppers to see items on different body types and various skin tones. K raft Heinz announced it is selling part of its cheese business to Lactalis, which is the largest dairy products group in the world, and is the second largest food products group in France, behind Danone, in a $3.2 billion deal. Breakstone’s, Polly-O, Athenos, Hoffman’s, Knudsen and Cracker Barrel are included in the deal, accounting for $1.8 billion in net sales over the last twelve months. Additionally, Lactalis will be licensing the Kraft cheese brand. The deal is expected to close in the first half of next year and is subject to regulatory approval. It is said that Kraft Heinz will use the proceeds of the deal to pay down its debt.
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SEPTEMBER 2020 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • SEPTEMBER 2020
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