Things are roaring back to life in my neck of the woods. Personally, I’m experiencing a wave of “fresh start” energy and I’m happily celebrating all those who are in the throes of reinvention.

One of my big aha moments came this week when I realized that what we focus on becomes our reality.

• I don’t want to come off sounding like some kind of Pollyanna. I know NYC has way more crime and homelessness and people leaving the city than before the pandemic, but I am a firm believer in the power of positive thinking and gratefulness.
• And both positivity and gratitude came into perfect focus for me this week while having lunch at the newly-opened Dante Restaurant in the West Village. It was a glorious day, the restaurant is exquisite, and my fellow diners were all so clearly happy to be supporting a local business owner. I was grateful to be out among New Yorkers who were powering thru the pandemic and in the process making us feel somewhat normal, perhaps even better than normal!

And with that sentiment as a central theme, Scroll down for this week’s Top 10 List.

1. A new shopping normal with E-Commerce booming (Source: World Economic Forum)

This week’s numbers from Target and Walmart were stellar and very consistent with the shopping trends that came out of China post-lockdown.

Data and analysis of the first half of 2020 from JD.com (the largest retailer in China) reveal the following trends (all of which pertain to the US market as well):

• A big step forward in online shopping habits. E-commerce sales leapfrogged the norm by up to two years (especially in grocery).
• More family responsibilities for young consumers. 70% of consumers born after 1995 shifted from “buying only for themselves” to “buying necessities for the whole family.” Additionally, young people returning home from major cities helped their families engage with online shopping – and drove the penetration of brand, quality, and authentic products into lower-tier city markets.
• Shopping frenzy led by Livestream. This innovative way to shop bolstered sales for international brands and local businesses and is the biggest emerging trend in the post-COVID market. Canadian fashion brand PORTS did a 9-hour Livestream on JD Live, featuring young celebrities and the fashion editor of Elle magazine. Over 1.3 million customers visited the Livestream and PORTS’ sales surpassed $1.4 million on that day. On the local business side, Livestream is playing an important role in supporting direct sales for farmers and local factories who have been hit hard by the pandemic. NOTE: Richard Kestenbaum also wrote a great piece about shoppable livestreaming for Forbes this week.
• Value for money, comfort, and the new normal. Although work and life have resumed in China, people are shopping with the aim of adapting to the new normal, e.g., with mandatory mask-wearing, sales of lipstick have gone down while sales of eye make-up have gone up; bicycles/electric motorcycles have experienced explosive growth; demand is also growing for home and pet products.

2. Bar/Restaurant Innovation and Creativity (Source: Bloomberg)

Blown away by what Ryan Clift, chef-owner of Singapore’s Tippling Club, a buzzy restaurant/bar that holds the No. 17 spot on the list of Asia’s 50 Best Bars, came up with during COVID.

The delivery cocktails were “huge.” We added a giant ice cube with an order of drinks like a Negroni. We also revived the Happiness cocktail, with alcohol-containing gummi bears. Seven hundred orders in two months, for a bag of f—ing gummi bears, and people paid $10 to have them delivered.”

Ryan Clift, Chef/Owner The Tippling Club

Clift predicts there will be some big changes in the next six to eight months.

“There is definitely a group of established chefs and aspiring chefs that have listened to the market and have spent the last couple of months formulating ideas that are cool. Some might work, some might flourish, some might be franchises all over the world. There is going to be a little burst of some really interesting things that happen. In the end, the restaurants that are strong and creative can pivot and will do just fine. It’s almost inspiring to roll with the punches.”

Ryan Clift, Chef/Owner The Tippling Club

3. The Newly Opened Maker Hotel in Hudson, NY

Major shout out to my friend Keith Kancar for putting The Maker on my radar. Keith has been ensconced/working in Upstate NY during COVID but posted images from a birthday dinner at the Maker. It looked absolutely fabulous. I immediately googled it but don’t think I will be staying there (it’s a little spendy with rooms starting at $350 with a 4-day minimum) but definitely worth checking out for drinks and dinner.

Per Guest of a Guest:

This newest hot spot comes to us from the co-founders of Fresh, Lev Glazman and Alina Roytberg, and hospitality expert Damien Janowicz. It’s an intimate 11-room property spread across three of Hudson’s downtown historical buildings: an 1800’s Carriage House, a Georgian mansion, and a Greek Revival building.

4. WATCH: “Martin Margiella In His Own Words” (Link here)

My global trend scout friend, Kara Kassuba, alerted me to this documentary and I LOVED IT. It’s not so much about fashion as it is about the designer as artist and fashion as a true art form.

5. Sex In A Time of Covid: Solosexuals and Bators

This is not new but with so much “social distancing” going on, there’s a lot of buzz around it – and it’s certainly never been more relevant or timely!

How did I stumble onto this topic, you ask? Well, I was talking with one of my guy friends about Joe Rogan

I mentioned how inured he’s made me to the topic of masturbation because he and his guests constantly talk about it on his podcast. My friend, wasting nary a second, immediately identified it as the solosexual and “bators” trend. There is even a documentary in the works!!

And, by the way, if you google, “solo sexual,” you literally get a billion results.

• In doing research, I also discovered a slew of podcasts like The Bate Escape, all focusing on solo sexuality.
• I also found numerous sites offering the services of professional masturbation coaches!
• And, not surprisingly, online sales of sex toys are booming. The MoMA Design Store is even spotlighting a collection of sex toys designed by women for women. (Source: NYTimes)

6. The Art Scene is getting its groove back. But the gallery eco-system is undergoing a fundamental change!

I am super excited about galleries re-opening (more so than museums which are also scheduled to reopen later this month into September).

I LOVED the show currently at Howl Happening! (below) and the Katsu show at The Hole is fabulous as well (video below).

I’m also excited to check out all the new, younger galleries in the Two Bridges area, now considered Manhattan’s hottest new gallery hub (per artnet) – and I agree with them! I’ll be hitting up all of these in September.

• ATM Gallery, 54 Henry Street (opening September 2nd)
• Lyles & King, 21 Catherine Street
• Foxy Production, 2 E. Broadway
• M 2 3, 24 Henry Street
• Marinaro Gallery, 1 Oliver Street
• Situations, 127 Henry Street (check for re-opening details)
• Fierman, 127 Henry Street (re-opening TBD)
• Jack Barrett, 173 Henry Street (re-opening TBD)
• Svetlana, 77 Madison Street (re-opening TBD)
• Tramps, 75 E. Broadway (one of my all-time favorite downtown galleries)

The other major artist/gallery trend to keep an eye on:

Artists foregoing gallery representation in favor of running their own art practice. Or, as some seem to be doing, turning to talent agents instead of galleries. 3 recent examples suggest this is more than just a blip.

Artist Lucien Smith quit his galleries. 5 years later he has his first solo museum show.

Fed Up With Speculators, Artist Lucien Smith Quit His Galleries. Now He’s Been Rewarded With His First Solo Museum Show

My takeaway from Kirsty Cockerill ‘s excellent Op-Ed piece on the future of the artist/gallery relationship

1. With so much art viewing moving away from physical galleries to online, it is very likely that artists whose work translates best to on-screen will have a huge advantage. Galleries will be more inclined to prioritize the work of “Instagram-centric” artists. Look for this to also have a major impact on what kind of art gets created in the future.
2. With galleries moving more of their business online and with fewer art fairs, what is the advantage for artists to remain part of a gallery stable and hand over 50% of their sales? I would not be surprised if both emerging and mid-career artists strike out on their own. The more established artists will have the advantage of knowing their collectors and curators while younger, emerging artists will have the advantage of being social media savants. They will have the skills to promote themselves online more successfully than physical galleries are capable of doing.

“Art agents” disrupting the gallery model.

7. Music Lessons Online Are Booming (Source: AZFamily)

Robert Martinez, a piano instructor in Gilbert AZ, set up a special home studio to teach students virtually amid the pandemic and his efforts are paying off. His business is booming and he’s even picking up students from outside AZ.

“I think people deserve to have a solution, even if it’s just one aspect of their life, even if it’s just music lessons. My initial goal was to make online lessons as good as the traditional lessons and I feel like I not only met that, but I surpassed that.”

Robert Martinez

• Martinez installed several monitors and a camera above his keyboard so the students can see his hands on the keys. He can also take notes on the sheet music that displays on the student’s computer.
• More students signed up for his lessons because more families are turning to homeschooling, which often requires a music fulfillment. Right now he has more than 40 students in three states and is accepting more.

8. James Lummus: one man’s journey of reinvention

I do not know James personally.

However, one of my Aussie friends (thank you Roma Julian) told me to follow him on Facebook for info about the fires then ravaging Australia. I did and it’s been a great way to see what’s happening in Australia from his perspective.

• James is an airline pilot and was among the first of my contacts to write about how devastating coronavirus would be for travel (and work in general).
• I’ve been incredibly impressed by his ability to pivot and reinvent himself. After being laid off/furloughed from his job at NetJets, he bought a drone that he was able to operate using his pilot’s license. From what I can see, he is killing it!! His footage is showing up on national news broadcasts and he’s also gotten jobs from real estate developers.
• He seems to primarily use Facebook to showcase his drone skills and the platform has worked well for him.
• It looks like he may have hit pay dirt this week with a huge (potential) drone project from a tech company. Fingers crossed!
• I’m a big fan of this young man. He’s wickedly funny, very insightful with a nose for change, and he’s big on learning new skills. I admire his gung-ho attitude and the fact that he’s not sitting on his butt waiting for things to return to “normal.” He’s a go-getter and making things happen for himself.

Here’s a small sample of his evolution from pilot to drone master over the last several months (in chronological order):

9. Offices are absolutely coming back!

Three more signs that the days of working from home are numbered.

1. A new survey by architectural firm Gensler found that fewer than 10% of lawyers across the US want to work from home full-time — a figure that likely applies in most other white-collar professions.
2. Amazon is betting on office-based work with its expansion in 6 major cities including 2,000 jobs in NYC at their newly acquired Lord & Taylor building on 5th Avenue.
3. RXR Realty just landed a 13,000-square-foot lease for a sprawling food hall at the Starrett-Lehigh Building at 601 W. 26th St. Tenants in the building (Ralph Lauren, McGarry Bowen, J&J, OXO), will finally have lunch options that don’t require long walks. NOTE: two other major eatery leases were just signed: a 10,000 square-foot Urbanspace food hall at 124 E. 14th St. and a third Avra seafood brasserie of 16,500 square feet at 1271 Sixth Ave. in the heart of corporate midtown. (Source: NY Post)

10. My birthday this week was the best ever thanks to my amazing friends!

I had zero expectations besides a lovely, low-key dinner with two of my best friends, Rodrigo and Elliott. Lo and behold, they turned it into one of the most wonderful surprise nights of my life. Everything about it was PERFECTION. So grateful!

And big thanks to Le Crocodile at the Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn for making it such a memorable night. Highly recommend.

• First, it is a beautiful location, the ambiance is fabulous and the food and service are very good.
• But perhaps most important, given we are, for the foreseeable future, going to remain in outdoor-only dining mode, Le Crocodile has a covered garden terrace so you can comfortably plan for dinner RAIN or SHINE!!! And we needed it, there was a torrential downpour towards the end of the night but it mattered naught to us. We were 100% protected under that beautiful covered terrace.

And with that, my friends, it’s a wrap for another week!

Wishing everyone a great weekend.

As I’ve said before and will say again, get out of your house and support your local businesses, restaurants in particular. Reconnect with your friends. The longer you stay in isolation, the more difficult and scary it will become to venture out.

Here’s to rejoining the world and getting our lives (prudently) restarted!