-->

Retail

Net Lease Transactions Rise in Q1

Net lease transaction volume nationally for the year's first quarter were up during the first quarter, but that was before the major pain from COVID-19 hit the commercial real estate market. Transaction growth was on pace with 2019 volumes, which… more

Restaurant Industry Seeks Bailout From Congress

The restaurant industry has had widespread strife since stay-at-home orders were put into place in states across the country, and now the National Restaurant Association (NRA) lobbying group is asking Congress for funding. The group is reportedly asking Congress for… more

Cheesecake Factory Getting $200M Cash Infusion

Restaurant chain The Cheesecake Factory, with two prominent area locations, has received $200 million in financing from a private investment group. The company, based in California, has locations in the Country Club Plaza, as well as one on 119th Street… more

Best Buy Furloughs Hourly Employees

National electronics chain Best Buy, which operates eight stores in the Kansas City Metro area, is furloughing 51,000 hourly employees and nearly all of its part-time workers. The retailer switched to curbside-only business on March 22, due to COVID-19, and… more

Retail Sales Plunge in March

Retail sales in the United States fell 8.7 percent in March from the prior month and were down 6.2 percent year over year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.  The plunge was due to impact from COVID-19. Clothing and accessories… more

Unemployment Filings Top 6.6 Million

Unemployment claims were in excess of six million for the second week in a row, due to COVID-19, bringing the numbers to nearly 17 million over the last few weeks. For the week ended April 4, claims were 6.06 million,… more

CDC Issues Worker Guidance for COVID-19 Exposure

The CDC has issued guidance for critical infrastructure employees who might have been exposed to someone with COVID-19 to return to work. Critical-infrastructure employees are considered those who work in 16 different sectors, including those in law enforcement, janitorial staff,… more

Hallmark CEO Takes Pay Cut, HQ Hours Reduced

Hallmark CEO Mike Perry will reportedly take a 20 percent pay cut as the company grapples with the impact of COVID-19, as will other executives at the global Kansas City-based company. At the same time, workers' hours have been cut at… more

Employment Falls By 700,000 in March

Total payroll employment in March fell by 701,000 primarily due to COVID-19, according to a recent Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report, and the unemployment rate hit 4.4 percent, up 0.9 percent from the previous month. That marks the biggest… more

Unemployment Claims Unfortunately Break More Records

The unemployment picture in the United States has gotten a lot more grim, due to COVID-19 shock waves. For the week ended March 28, unemployment claims hit 6.448 million, a new record since the numbers have been tracked by the… more