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economy

Financing

Companies can still win in a tough environment, it's just harder

 By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 13, 2023

The Bottom Line: The owner of Papa Murphy’s says that consumers are getting “more demanding,” which is exactly what happens in a market when people are cutting back.

Financing

Restaurant prices keep rising faster than inflation

 By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 12, 2023

Food away-from-home prices continue rising faster than grocery prices, even as they are more muted from previous years’ increases.

Financing

The owner of Papa Murphy's says consumers are getting more demanding

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 11, 2023

The CEO of MTY Food Group said customers expect more from their restaurants. But they’re not demanding more discounts yet.

Consumer Trends

Want to see how the other half lives? Go to Olive Garden.

By Joe Guszkowski on Oct. 09, 2023

Full-service restaurant chains are the most socioeconomically diverse places in the U.S., according to new research. It could help them weather a tough economy.

Workforce

Restaurant and bar employment returns to pre-pandemic levels

By Peter Romeo on Oct. 06, 2023

New federal data show the sector added 61,000 jobs in September, or more than 1 of every 5 positions created economywide. The unemployment rate remained at 3.8%.

Financing

Despite a host of concerns, restaurants keep adding jobs

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 06, 2023

The Bottom Line: After 3.5 years, restaurants recovered the jobs it lost during the pandemic. And its monthly job growth shows just how resilient the industry is.

Financing

Higher-end consumers may be slowing their spending

By Jonathan Maze on Oct. 02, 2023

The Bottom Line: There is some evidence that higher-income consumers may be cutting back. Or maybe there was just some pent-up demand.

Financing

The Fed is almost done raising interest rates. Maybe

By Jonathan Maze on Sep. 26, 2023

The Bottom Line: Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari suggested a 60% chance of a soft landing with one more rate hike. But "meaningfully higher" rates are also possible.

Financing

If you're going to discount, tread carefully

By Jonathan Maze on Aug. 29, 2023

The Bottom Line: Consumers could easily shift into value mode as they start repaying student loans and run out of pandemic cash. But that doesn’t mean you should start slashing prices.

Financing

Here's another reason why sales might slow later this year

By Jonathan Maze on Aug. 18, 2023

The Bottom Line: U.S. consumers, which have kept spending at restaurants despite higher prices, are running out of excess pandemic savings. That might affect their spending.

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