The Mid-Month Update
Is the stimulus bill a ‘down payment’ on future restaurant industry support? A review of 2020’s hottest topics & An addendum to our 2021 trend report
Is the stimulus bill a ‘down payment’ on future restaurant industry support?
If the Chair of the National Restaurant Association for 2021, Brian Casey’s eloquently detailed viewpoint is any indication—then Yes. It most definitely is. ‘The RESTAURANTS Act is still needed to provide industry-wide relief,’ he begins, in an article penned for Nation’s Restaurant News, before proceeding to elucidate the informed opinion he has formed of the situation as an independent restaurant owner himself and unravelling the intricacies of the relief measures that are currently in force, as well as reiterating the ethos of unity and ingenuity that the industry must maintain.
As an independent restaurant owner, I can say without question the survival of my business depends on the changes I made to my business operations in 2020. Everything has been on the table, from administrative changes to streamlining delivery and from takeout options to working with suppliers to stay flexible on delivery dates and quantity estimates. Our ability to weather this storm is due in large part to the coordinated effort of the entire industry — from suppliers to operators, independents to chains. And like so many of my colleagues in restaurants of every type and size, without the most recent stimulus bill, our ability to make it through the winter would be greatly diminished.
In a time when Congress broke the record for passing the fewest number of bills in a calendar year, this bill is a win for restaurants.
The National Restaurant Association shares President-elect Joe Biden’s characterization that this stimulus bill is a “down payment” on future relief efforts. Most importantly, the expanded loan limits in the most recent stimulus allow for the renewed Paycheck Protection Program, or PPP, to provide short-term relief, so critically important to small businesses like mine. It also gives the association’s advocacy team more time to push for an industry-specific recovery fund.
—Read the full piece at nrn.com
The National Restaurant Association’s list of 10 trends that helped the industry survive 2020
The NRA estimates that the restaurant industry suffered a $240 billion loss due to the pandemic. As of January, two million industry employees remain out of work, according to the Department of Labor, and Foodservice was the sector that recorded the highest number of layoffs in December. A grim, but now ironically familiar picture. However, as we often reiterate in our writings, the scale and momentum with which innovation and adaptability progressed amid unprecedented times should not to be overlooked.
After a survey of over 6,000 restaurant operators and 1,000 adults for consumer preference, the association drew up a list of 10 trends across culinary trends, consumer preferences, innovation and more, that kept establishments afloat in 2020:
- Streamlined Menus
- Off-premises Taking Precedence
- Blended Meals
- Bundled Deals
- Meal Kits
- Meal Subscriptions
- Selling Groceries
- Alcohol-to-Go
- Comfort Foods
- Healthy & Diet-specific Foods
Read the detailed report, here.
The 2021 Restaurant Trends developed by the National Restaurant Association’s State of the Restaurant Industry report, will be available for download Tuesday, January 26 from here.
As we eagerly await their esteemed exposition for the new year, peruse our trend report to help you start 2021 off with a bang.
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