The odds of the economy sliding into a recession this year have dropped in recent months, but don’t tell America’s chief executives.
Choice Hotels, the company behind lower-cost brands like Comfort Inn and MainStay Suites, plans to announce next week that it’s launching a new mid-priced extended-stay hotel chain called Everhome Suites that it says can perform well even if the economy slows or heads south because of its heavily researched pricing and amenities, USA Today reports. Thirteen locations are set to open in the Los Angeles and Austin, Texas, areas over the next couple of years.
Some U.S. corporations and small businesses are bracing for the possibility of an economic slowdown or dip by launching more affordable and resilient products and services that can appeal to consumers even during a broad pullback in spending.
America’s largest retailers moved to insulate themselves from the next downturn early last decade after losing massive revenue during the Great Recession, says Marshal Cohen, chief industry adviser-retail for NPD Group, a consulting firm. Macy’s and Neiman Marcus started discount chains Macy’s Backstage and Last Call Studio, while Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom aggressively expanded their off-price outlets, Saks Off Fifth and Nordstrom Rack.
Small businesses are similarly launching less expensive offerings to brace for a possible slowdown. One example: OC Facial Care Center of Orange County, California, recently began offering a 30-minute version of its most popular 60-minute facial. The streamlined service cuts the price to $99 from $130 for members and to $150 from $350 for nonmembers. Read the full story.
