The Daily Valet. - 6/8/22, Wednesday
✔️ They Spin and Spin, But Never Rise
Wednesday, June 8th Edition
I’m fancy, but not “bumps of caviar” fancy.
Cory Ohlendorf , Editor ⋯ @coryohlendorf
Today’s edition is presented by
Today’s Big Story
Untouchable Birds
Inflation is raising prices on almost everything, except rotisserie chicken
Few things are more tempting than a whiff of rotisserie chicken at your local grocery store. The aroma of the spices mingling with the juices basting those birds—it’s hard to resist. They’re an easy and affordable way to get dinner on the table—they can be eaten right off the bones or carved up and saved for leftovers and lunches.
Thankfully, while inflation is raising food prices at the fastest pace in decades, that beloved spit-roasted chicken is one staple that appears to be immune. According to CNN, rotisserie chickens remain $4.99 at Costco. At Sam’s Club they cost a penny less than that. And major chains like Meijer, Giant Eagle and Publix have all kept the same prices too.
That’s not to say the poultry industry isn't suffering from soaring costs. Chicken prices nationwide have increased 16.4% in the year to April, according to the Consumer Price Index. And pointing to the ongoing bird flu outbreak, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts wholesale poultry prices will increase 15-18% this year.
Ernest Baskin, an associate professor of food marketing at Saint Joseph’s University, tells NPR that it’s an example of loss leader pricing, a marketing strategy in which companies sell certain products below their market cost in order to get shoppers in the door—and, oftentimes, other higher-priced goods into their baskets.
This explains why Costco recently went on record saying that they would raise membership fees before raising the cost of their rotisserie chickens. The warehouse club has kept the price at $4.99 since 2009. It's an expensive move too, since it's widely believed that the company loses $30-$40 million per year selling those delicious, spinning chickens.
During an earnings call last month, the CEO of another wholesale club, BJ’s said the store has kept the low price “just because it’s such a meaningful thing to our members.” And even if shoppers are filling their carts with other goods that have gone up in price, he adds, they’re likely feeling somewhat better because they’ve saved money on at least one highly visible item.
↦ meanwhile: Advocates are asking Congress to revisit a food stamp rule dating back half a century that keeps recipients from paying for hot foods (like rotisserie chicken) with their government benefits.
Is a Recession Coming?
The World Bank says it will be hard to avoid
The global economy is likely to experience weak growth for years, and “for many countries, recession will be hard to avoid,” the World Bank said Tuesday. The group's Global Economic Prospects report predicts global growth will slow to 2.9% in 2022, from 5.7% in 2021.
The not surprising, but still grim report warned that the grinding war in Ukraine, supply chain chokeholds, COVID-related lockdowns in China, and dizzying rises in energy and food prices are exacting a growing (and unavoidable) toll on economies all along the income ladder.
In response, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warned that the U.S. is likely facing a prolonged period of elevated inflation. She said that the White House would likely revise upward its U.S. inflation forecast—which already showed prices rising this year at nearly twice the pre-pandemic rate.
According to CNBC, many on Wall Street are still expecting the combination of resilience in consumer spending and job growth to the keep the U.S. out of recession. But a widely followed Federal Reserve gauge is indicating that the U.S. economy could be headed for a second consecutive quarter of negative growth, meeting a rule-of-thumb definition for a recession.
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Punctuality Is Having a Moment
Has “fashionably late” fallen out of fashion?
I'm not exactly a punctual person. I don't arrive really late, but I'm never early. This drove my father crazy because, to him, “on time is at least 10 minutes early.” He always thought I considered myself too cool to show up on time. But really I just hated waiting around.
But apparently, being “fashionably late” is no longer fashionable—a change that seems to have arisen from a pandemic now in its third year.
According to the New York Times, when videoconferencing became the norm early on for many office workers, people who struggled with being on time found themselves no longer held up by commutes or workplace gossip sessions. And now that many of us are returning to the office, we're more conscious of our time.
Recently, the comedian Mike Birbiglia has emerged as a kind of spokesman for the virtues of punctuality. During his Netflix special, “Thank God for Jokes,” he asks the audience to clap if “you're a late person.” He then says, “What late people don't understand about us on-time people is that we hate you.” He actually delivers the line as latecomers are finding their seats. “Welcome to the show,” he quips.
↦ Change Your Ways: Want to be more punctual? LifeHack offers some tips on how to be on time every time.
Meet the New Floating Taco Bell
The novel restaurant concept is delivering tacos from above
Taco Bell's newest location ditches the dining room and has four drive-thru lanes instead. It looks like a bank (or maybe something out of Demolition Man) and promises to deliver food to your car faster through small, vertical elevator tubes.
The two-story restaurant concept, dubbed “Taco Bell Defy”, opened in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota on Tuesday. It uses technology to speed up service, with a “bold goal of creating a two minute or less drive-thru experience for customers of this concept,” according to Taco Bell President Mike Grams.
Three of the drive-thru lanes are dedicated to mobile or delivery orders and the fourth is a traditional drive-thru. Mobile order customers scan a QR code they received when placing their orders and pull forward to receive their food.
This modern upgrade is apparently all in response to the changing ways consumers have been ordering fast food since the pandemic began. From February 2020 through February 2022, digital orders grew by 117%, delivery orders by 116% and drive-thru orders increased by 20%, according to The NPD Group. I guess anything that promises my food faster and hotter is considered welcome progress, right?
↦ FYI: McDonald's and Chick-fil-A are among the fast-food restaurants with two drive-thru lanes for ordering at many locations, but in most cases, the lines merge with one location to pick up meals.
In Other News
↦ Matthew McConaughey Delivers Emotional Address Demanding Lawmakers Do Something About Gun Violence
Other Things We’re Talking About Today
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Menswear Finds on Sale
Inspired by the shorts in the '60s, the wale corduroy makes this pair ($79.50 / $39.50) durable and cozy enough to get a tan in. They come in five different shades, and with the promo code SPLASH, you can buy two pairs for practically the price of one.
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Today’s Deals
Ongoing Sale
Expires 6/10
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Morning Motto
Only worry about becoming a better you.
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That’s all for today...
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