What I love the most about writing Fish Insights every month is that I get to pause for about 90 minutes to read interesting, newsworthy stories about industries I love (like restaurants and travel) and other industries I know nothing about (I’m embarrassed to say this includes beauty and home services 🙄). Let’s take this month, for example. I mean, who knew there were millions of people on TikTok chatting about a “Botox in a bottle” and that comb headbands were back? (I’m an older millennial, so have a deep appreciation for both of these.)
So, here’s my ask for this month: if you tend to scroll straight down to your industry and never read anything else, consider expanding your horizons this time around. I promise you won’t be disappointed!
Enjoy!
Restaurants
- Virtual brands are on the rise, but are they franchisable? (Nation’s Restaurant News)
- Restaurant owners in NYC are suing over the vaccine mandate. (The New York Times)
- Nando’s closed 45 restaurants in the U.K. over a shortage of its signature peri peri chicken. (CNN)
Travel & Hospitality
- Several airlines have banned fabric face masks on flights. (Travel + Leisure)
- More than 1.8 million people traveled by Amtrak in July, signaling a resurgence for train travel. (The Washington Post)
- Data shows that 25% of all domestic commercial airline flights since June have been either delayed or canceled. (NPR)
Fitness, Health, & Wellness
- The parent company of Gold’s Gym is opening a luxury gym in LA complete with rooftop pool and jacuzzi, events space and outdoor bar, a restaurant, spa, coworking space, and more. (The Hollywood Reporter)
- 22% of U.S. gyms closed permanently since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. (Club Industry)
- Fitness gear is getting a makeover, so get ready for your kettlebell to double as chic home décor. (Fast Company)
Retail
- Amazon its moving into the bricks-and-mortar department store space. (The Wall Street Journal)
- Amazon has officially dethroned Walmart as the world’s largest retainer outside of China. ()
- Retail sales declined 1.1% in July over consumers’ fears of the delta variant. (CNBC)
Beauty
- Y2K beauty trends are back, so it’s finally OK to break out all your 2000s-era butterfly clips and body glitter. (Nylon)
- The #botoxinabottle hashtag has more than 12 million views on TikTok — here’s what dermatologists are saying. (TODAY)
Home Services
- Home Depot’s shares dipped as fewer people visited its stores to shop for DIY projects. (CNBC)
- A recent survey reports that the home services industry’s revenue is expected to continue to grow in 2021. (Landscape Management)
As always, we’d love to hear what you think about Fish Insights. Feel free to shoot me an email at adavidson@fish-consulting.com if you love it or have ideas for how we can improve it.
