Sales are increasing wherever you look in the pet sector. Toys, beds, grooming products, leashes, day care, you name it; the pet industry is experiencing double-digit increases in revenue. Better yet, there are few signs that consumer spending in this area will slow down anytime soon. As readers are aware, the retail sector has been one of the hardest hit as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. The pet care industry is an exception to that rule. In the past, I have written extensively about how recession-proof the pet industry can be. In both the 2001 and 2008 recessions, pet…
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BMM Articles
Few businesses sell
The goal for many business owners is to sell their company and retire with confidence. If that wasn’t a consideration of yours last year, it might be today. According to a Baker Tilly survey, as a result of the pandemic, 31 percent of business owners will accelerate their sale to a nonfamily buyer, and 24 percent will accelerate ownership to the next generation. Some readers probably won’t quickly sell their company, because they have failed to take the critical steps necessary to make it transferable. Selling isn’t enough — you need to attain maximum value first. Surveys by the Exit…
Riding the Blue Wave
Dalton, Mass. — A few weeks ago, I vetted the probabilities of how the upcoming U.S. presidential election could play out. The most likely scenario was that Vice President Biden would win the White House and Congress would stay the same (Republican Senate and Democratic House). The third most likely scenario was the proverbial “blue wave,” in which Biden wins, the Democrats keep the House and take the Senate. Online betting odds suggest that a blue wave is more likely than I had considered at the end of September. Those odds say that there is a 60 percent chance of a…
Investors reduce risk as stimulus talks fail
Hope springs eternal, but even the most strident bulls threw in the towel this week. American politics took precedence over the country’s economic well-being once again, as both political parties refused to compromise on a stimulus deal. But it wasn’t only politics that spooked investors. Across the Atlantic, investors watched as COVID-19 outbreaks escalated across Europe. Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, and Italy reported new records in infections, while France announced a curfew in order to stem their own skyrocketing cases. In the U.K., Londoners are now banned from mixing with other households indoors. In this country, despite denials by…
China leads global economic recovery
There is a saying on Wall Street, “first in, first out,” which aptly describes the experience of the world’s second-largest economy this year. The coronavirus was spawned in Wuhan, China late last year, but thanks to the country’s quick response, China has sprung back stronger than ever. By almost any economic measure, China has not only managed to avoid a recession this year, but will actually see its GDP grow by 1.6% in 2020. To put that growth in perspective, the world’s economy is expected to decline by 4.4% this year. The startling Chinese recovery in the face of ongoing…
One way or another, markets expect more stimulus
As the U.S. presidential elections approach, politics are becoming a bigger factor in what is moving the stock market. Some investors are already betting on the winner, and positioning their portfolios for an expected outcome. It is a risky bet to make. As of this week, many on Wall Street are positioning for what they expect will be a “Blue Wave” where both houses of Congress and the next presidency of the United States will be captured by the Democratic Party. What, you may ask, is their reasoning, aside from partisanship? Well, the number of polls that put Joe Biden…
U.S. moves to nail down strategic metals
Rare-earth minerals, with names like cerium, dysprosium and gadolinium have become ‘must have’ materials in the global race to win the technology battles of the future. The problem is that throughout the last 30 years, China has built a near monopoly in these strategic metals. Rare-earth elements (REEs), consisting of 17 different minerals, are used to make components in many high technology devices, including smart phones, digital cameras, computer hard discs, fluorescent and light-emitting-diode (LED) lights, flatscreen televisions, computer monitors, and electronic displays. China commands 35% of the world’s reserves of these minerals and produces more than 70% of all…
Trump contracts COVID-19. What does it mean for the market?
Dalton, Mass. — On the morning of Friday, Oct. 2, the world learned that U.S. President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump both contracted COVID-19. There has been no shortage of pundits telling us how this will affect the Nov. 3 presidential election. The opinions are mixed as to whom this news will benefit. For now, I don’t see any change in the four scenarios I ranked last week from most likely (Biden wins, Congress stays mixed) to least likely (Republican sweep). But that’s not today’s conversation. My assessment of highest-probability to lowest-probability outcomes has not changed since last week. Let’s focus…
October is living up to its name in the stock market
Stocks gave up the ghost on Friday after a week of gains and losses. Investors should expect more of the same as they could see even greater volatility ahead. Take your pick. Was it the announcement that President Trump was diagnosed with COVID-19 that sent stocks tumbling at the end of the week? It could have been that the September employment gains were a negative surprise, indicating a potential rolling over of the economy. But if you are looking for reasons, add in the disappointment among investors that there was no new stimulus deal forthcoming from Washington. The president’s coronavirus…
Halloween could be the holiday test case
As October begins, mountains of candy have become a fixture in every store and supermarket. Halloween is the first in a series of fall-into-winter holidays. The candy companies are hoping it’s going to be business as usual this year, but that depends on who comes to your door. Whether it is trick-or-treating or costume parties, no one wants a visit from this year’s most fearsome of monster—the coronavirus. Worried parents wonder if this unwanted guest will be hiding among those candy wrappers, or in the noses, hands and mouths of excited children (or the parents and guardians accompanying them). Will…
The economic fallout of Trump vs. Biden
Dalton, Mass. — A lot of people are asking me: Who is better for the economy, Trump or Biden? I always reply with a policy discussion. That annoys people because what they really want is for me to affirm their ideology. My answer to this question is bound to make some people mad. But that’s OK, so long as I make other people money. As I’ve said in these columns, I think we need much more fiscal stimulus. Without an emphasis on funding ailing cities and states, the U.S. economy risks dipping back into recession in 2021. However, that is not…
Markets feel the heat
First, the good news: there is only one more week until the end of the month. The bad news, however, is that October may not treat investors any better than did September. As my swabbie friends would say, is it time to “batten down the hatches.” Let me say, I take no joy in being right. During the last few weeks of writing, the volatility I predicted has come home to roost. This kind of correction is especially painful because in these times of great uncertainty, we could have at least pointed to the stock market, and our investments accounts,…
Back to the future in America’s kitchens
Whether it is recipes, groceries, home gardens, grilling, pots and pans or online cooking classes, Americans have rediscovered the kitchen, thanks to COVID-19. Where once an occasional meal at home, or a single-serve dish for the kid’s lunch was sufficient, times have changed. Home cooking has become a bigger business. Americans are cooking more and throwing out less food, according to the Food Marketing Institute, an organization that tracks grocery shopping trends. They saw a 40% uptick in home-cooked meals, and a 27% increase in those who were planning more meals in advance in 2020. However, cooking at home, many…
Sick of Election Day
Dalton — Let’s talk about when we might get a coronavirus vaccine, since that seems to be the best pathway to economic growth. There have been 6.8 million confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. and 31.1 million worldwide, with a mortality rate of about 3%. While it appears as if the virus has hits a peak in terms new daily infection rates (so long as we don’t get the dreaded “second wave”), the economy remains burdened by forced business shutdowns aimed to keep us socially distanced. The recent correction notwithstanding, one of the reasons the stock market has performed so…
Mind Your Business: Sell-and-stay
Do you want to get paid a bunch of money to sell your company but don’t want to stop working yet? A sell-and-stay strategy can help you monetize your lifelong work while allowing you to focus on the part of your job that you enjoy. A sell-and-stay strategy is a transaction that looks like a merger crossed with an outright transaction. It involves the seller getting paid upfront, instead of exercising a more conventional “earn-out,” which forces the seller to take on some payment risk. Instead of the owner walking away, she sticks around and gets paid as an employee…
Investors face a roller coaster ride
Volatility returned to the stock market this week as the level of uncertainty increased on several fronts. Unfortunately, there won’t be any definitive answers to what concerns investors for at least two months. It is September, after all, and this month is notorious for inflicting pain on investors. Historically, October is not much better, and in a presidential election year it can be worse. While the financial media will provide their thoughts on just why stocks drop or rise on any given day, it is not much use to you. The real reason for “why” will only be known after…