It’s holiday season.

Online sales are booming. UPS and FedEx can’t get enough vans to keep up with deliveries. Even though Black Friday may have been lackluster for many brick-and-mortar retailers, I did see LOTS of people carrying Zara and Nike shopping bags on 5th Avenue.

NYC has also never looked more sparkly. I especially love what Hudson Yards has done with their lights this year – over 2 million of them. It goes a long way to making us all feel happier and more optimistic as we head into 2021.

And On that note, pls Scroll down for this week’s Top 10.

1. Hudson Yards Is Lit!! A Must-See!

BEST in NYC!! Over 2 million golden lights draw shoppers in like moths to a flame. Major upgrade from last year. Now hopefully some of those shoppers will turn into buyers.

And a major highlight at Hudson Yards: Peak Restaurant

• If you make it to Hudson Yards, highly recommend you book a late lunch or early dinner at the newly opened Peak restaurant on the 101st Floor (overlooking the Edge, all of NYC, and if you’re lucky, an amazing sunset).
• Peak offers spectacular food, service, and, of course, views for miles.
• Major shout out to General Manager, Chris Nelson. Bringing all of this together at any time would be extraordinary, doing it mid-pandemic, is pure genius.
• And thank you, Joseph Stadelmeier, for being such a willing explorer.

Strolling around NYC on Black Friday

BRYANT PARK

2. XMAS TREE SALES UP 50%

Anybody else notice that trees and decorations are going up earlier this year? And for once, NOBODY is complaining!

“The season is running approximately six to seven days ahead of what we’ve seen in the past. We’ve never seen the demand like we’ve had this year.”

McKenzie Cook, Owner, McKenzie Farms Oregon & Happy Holiday Christmas Trees in NC – shipping 2 million trees a year. (Source: Fox News)

What’s going on?

• The Christmas Tree Promotion Board says industry research tells them many people who put up an artificial tree last year plan to buy a real tree this year. Most are citing the pandemic as the reason (typically 75- 80% of Americans use artificial trees but this year the “real tree” experience is catching on).
• Oregon is the nation’s No. 1 supplier of fresh-cut trees and they expect to ship nearly 6 million evergreens this season. Other top tree exporters are Washington state, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
• The fresh-cut tree industry in 2018 launched a social media campaign called “It’s Christmas. Keep It Real!” to attract young families and millennials.
• Dimitri Gatanas, the owner at Urban Garden Center in Harlem, says in comparison to this time last year, his sales are up 50%, selling about 100 trees in just one day. (Source: CBS News)

3. Livestream selling is taking off, including thru TikTok (Source: AP, Mashable)

Stores may be closed (again) because of the pandemic but entrepreneurs are not letting that get in the way of connecting with their customers. Livestreaming is expected to ring up $5 billion in sales in 2020 and reach $25 billion in 2023 (Source: retail data firm Coresight Research).

@abbyhorchata

SWAMP ASS CANDLES DROPPING NOV 27TH! they smell so good omg #shrek #candle #candles #allstar #fyp #candlemaking #wap #onion #bootyquake

♬ Original Sound – Unknown

Livestream selling has been big in China for years but now it is finally catching on in the U.S.

• Abby and Nuvia Zepeda, two sisters in El Paso, Texas, run a small company called Oddball Candles which they created to show off their “weirdo” personalities.
• Their aptly named “Swamp Ass” candle started as a joke but after uploading the sample candles to TikTok (see above), they got 3 million views and more than 7,000 comments. It went on sale on Black Friday and sold out immediately at $30 a pop.
• CommentSold, which makes the software that more than 4,000 stores use to Livestream, expects users to sell $1 billion worth of goods this year, more than triple last year.
• Most Livestream shoppers (apart from TikTok) tend to be women over the age of 35, who chat with each other in the comments about which outfits they like or what they want to buy.
• Many women watch up to 30 hours of live sales a month, spending about $50 a week on tops, jewelry, or smartphone chargers. They appreciate seeing how clothing fits on real people. They also like that the hosts call out their names when they ask questions or comment on an outfit.
• Amazon has been experimenting with livestreaming for five years. Last year it offered a free app allowing businesses that sell goods on their site to Livestream from their smartphones. During its two-day Prime Day sales event last month, Amazon aired 1,200 livestreams.

4. Interdisciplinary Artistic Collaborations

Businesses (of all kinds) are establishing an unprecedented number of partnerships with artists.

Artist Daniel Arsham on the vanguard of this trend

• The Cleveland Cavaliers recently hired artist Daniel Arsham to serve as the franchise’s creative director, an unprecedented partnership between a visual artist and an NBA team.
• Grant Gilbert, director of brand strategy for the Cleveland Cavaliers, has become an evangelist for the crossover between art and sports. 
• Citing the work that Virgil Abloh, Kanye West, and Pharrell have done in the fashion realm as inspiration, Grant says he is “obsessed” with interdisciplinary collaboration.
• Arsham also just linked up with Japanese workwear label Toraichi to celebrate the first anniversary of their Tokyo-based studio 2G.

Kenny Scharf tapped by Dior For its Pre-Fall Collection (Source: WWD)

• Since taking over as artistic director of men’s collections at Dior (and now Fendi), Kim Jones has made art collaborations a central feature of his design process, with a preference for artists that cross over into pop culture, such as Kaws, Daniel Arsham, Hajime Sorayama, and Raymond Pettibon.
• Now it’s Kenny Scharf’s turn. His cartoon-like paintings, a mainstay of the New York art scene in the Eighties, have provided inspiration for the Dior pre-fall line.
• The line will be unveiled online on Dec. 8 on dior.com due to ongoing travel restrictions. The brand will, however, host an exclusive event in Beijing to mark the reveal.
• Scharf has previously collaborated with Swatch, Levi’s, and Zara. He’s represented by global licensing agency and creative consultancy Artestar.

Perrier x Murakami

• Guests celebrated the launch of PERRIER x MURAKAMI at Design Miami/ Podium Rooftop Garden.
• The world-renowned Japanese contemporary artist Takashi Murakami reimagined Perrier’s iconic green bottles and cans for a limited-edition line. As always joyful, amazing, and fun!

Louis Vuitton premieres its whimsical men’s collection with an animated Zooom installation (Source: Miami Herald)

• Virgil Abloh, LV Artistic Director has set up a Temporary Residency at Miami Design District’s Jungle Plaza (Dec. 4-Jan 25).
• The collection is showcased within the lively universe of The Adventures of Zoooom with friends, a fantastical crew of characters conceptualized by Abloh and animated by Reggie Know.

5. Rye or Bourbon for your Manhattan?

The Manhattan has become my cocktail of the pandemic. I’m even dialing up my connoisseurship by figuring out if I prefer it with rye (classic) or bourbon. And if that’s not enough, the cocktail cognoscenti are now challenging us about our vermouth choices. It looks like a “perfect” Manhattan is going to be perfect for me!

In Other boozy news: the US is set to overtake China in online alcohol sales by the end of 2021. (Source: Spirits business)

• The value of the online alcohol channel is expected to grow by 42% in 2020. (And I’ll be the first to admit I didn’t get the potential of Drizly when I first met the founder.)
• The total global value of alcohol e-commerce is forecast to exceed US$40bn by 2024.
• China is currently the world’s largest online alcohol market, but its growth rate has slowed compared to the UK, the US, Australia, and Brazil. However, China is still excepted to grow by 23%.
• Between 2019 and 2024, total alcohol e-commerce value in the US will grow six-fold to nearly double China.
• In the US, 44% of alcohol e-shoppers only started buying alcohol online in 2020, compared to 19% in 2019.
• RTD products will represent 20% of US alcohol e-commerce value by 2024, compared to 5% in 2019. This would make RTDs a bigger online business than beer in the US.
• Tequila, mezcal, and US whiskey are also experiencing growth across the e-commerce channel.

6. Pickleball has had a 650% increase over the last six years (Source: NBC News)

I’ve heard it described as the fastest-growing sport you’ve never heard of. But thanks to Sebastian Maniscalco talking it up on Joe Rogan’s podcast, it’s now on my radar. And despite Rogan’s jesting that it’s only for “grandmas,” it is catching on outside of the “senior” set.

• For the uninitiated, pickleball is a mix of tennis, racquetball, and ping pong. Players use special paddles and a Wiffle ball, and games take place on tennis courts with specific pickleball lines. Nets and court sizes are smaller than their tennis counterparts, and the most common game is doubles, although singles is also an option.
• According to Justin Maloof, executive director of the USA Pickleball Association (USAPA), the biggest subset of growth is not in the over-60 crowd, but the younger set.
• When the sport first caught on in the sunbelt states in 2009, it was at 55-plus centers and RV communities. But these days, there are many municipalities and parks and rec departments that are setting up courts, making it accessible to a younger crowd.

7. Dick’s to launch ‘Public Lands,’ an “elevated” retail concept, in 2021. (Source: Retail Wire, Retail Dive, Gear Junkie)

Everything “outdoors” is off the charts since the pandemic hit. Will the trend continue once the vaccine is available? Industry pundits say yes, but only time will tell.

• REI, in late October, said demand for products like bikes and outdoor furniture has been “off the charts” and sales of winter gear like cross-country skis and snowshoes were already up more than three to four times from last year.
• Two Public Lands stores are planned to test the concept. One in Pittsburgh, the other in Columbus, Ohio. They will take over former Field & Stream stores.
• The branding reflects the environmental focus: “We think it’s important to protect our public lands, to protect the environment. And this concept will really be focused on that.”
• As Dick’s retreats from firearms, it is switching its outdoor focus from hunters to campers, kayakers, and other outdoor enthusiasts.
• The announcement follows a growing trend among big-box stores — like Walmart — to add higher-quality and accessible gear to accommodate a growing number of outdoor lovers.

8. “100% of Americans that want the vaccine will have had the vaccine by June.” (Source: MarketWatch)

Fingers crossed he’s right!! Based on the latest priority list, I would be in 1C or 2. Please let that be true!

• Also, keep an eye out for black market vaccine shenanigans. According to the global police agency Interpol, coronavirus vaccines will be “equivalent of liquid gold to organized crime networks.”
• In a statement, the group warned its 194 member countries to be on high alert for organized crime networks attempting to infiltrate supply chains to get their hands on the vaccine. They also warned about the sale of fraudulent coronavirus vaccines. (Source: Forbes)

9. New survey forecasts 2021 travel recovery (Source: Travel Daily News)

The United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) released new findings (as of October 29, 2020) about post-COVID 19 plans for recovery and resumption of business.

• 69% of tour operators are confident guest bookings will increase in 2021.
• 63% reported an increase in new bookings in the last 60 days vs. 38% in August.
• 33% report new bookings for 1Q 2021, 69% for 2Q 2021, 92% for 3Q 2021 and 79% have new bookings for 4Q 2021.
• Cancellation/refund policy was the #1 most frequently asked question from travelers booking in the last 60 days, followed by health protocols and health/COVID insurance policies.
• The top international destinations travelers are booking include Italy (despite the pandemic!), Ireland, and tied for third, Germany, Greece, and the UK.
• Alaska, Arizona, and California tied for first as the top domestic destinations.
• Small group tours are the most popular travel product for 2021. Private groups ranked second, followed by FIT, river cruising, small ship cruising, and classic group tours (25+ passengers). Ocean cruising (medium to large ship) was named the least popular.

10. Meet Sara Caplan: The RoadTripper I wish I were!!

I am so thrilled to have had the opportunity to meet Sara (via FaceTime). She’s definitely my role model when it comes to being an intrepid traveler.

• I met Sara thru her mom, Karen Wagner, a co-founder of Lustre, a blog focused on modernized retirement. Over lunch, I shared how I canceled my September road trip because things were just getting too chaotic to make it worthwhile or fun.
• Karen then filled me in on how her 22-year old daughter was in the midst of a 4-month road trip around the country, camping out in college friends’ backyards and working on a farm in Montana for a month.
• I was pea-green with envy and asked if she could hook us up so I could find out more.
• This week, Sara and I FaceTimed and I can’t wait to meet her in person when she’s back in NYC.

Here’s what popped out at me about Sara’s road trip

• She started her trip on August 1st, accompanied by a friend who was going to visit her parents in Park City, Utah. Sara went on solo after Utah (in mid-September) and completed her trip in mid-November.
• Over the first few weeks of the trip, Sara and her friend camped out in friends’ yards in Nashville, Kansas City, and Boulder.
• Sara had originally planned to spend a month working on a farm in Oregon, arranged through WWOOF.org, which links to 1751 organic host farms in the USA. Those plans fell through due to wildfires but she was able to switch her plans to work/stay on a farm in Helena, Montana instead (pics below).
• Sara’s biggest concern while planning her trip was that she would be lonely. She couldn’t have been more wrong! Over 4 months, she met up with over 70 friends, plus she had long catch-up phone convos with friends that both kept her connected and also made the drive less tedious. Audiobooks were also a big hit – she plowed through all the Harry Potter books.
• I was curious to know what social media she used to document/share her trip. Not into it at all! However, she did use the 1 Second Everyday App which was new to me (check out her video at the end of this post). Super cool. I will use this in the future.
• The biggest surprise of the trip for Sara? How fabulous and cool many western, small towns turned out to be. I second that finding and had many of them on my itinerary as well (sigh).
• Sara was very COVID-careful on the trip and got tested numerous times before visiting friends and family along the way to make sure it was safe.

Lots of hiking and climbing along the way at “bucket list” destinations

She had a few sketchy car experiences

One or two nights sleeping in her car in Walmart parking lots (trying to decide how far to crack open a window while remaining safe) and then getting two flats in the middle of nowhere out of phone or internet range. She ended up driving with flat tires until she found a farmhouse where the owners allowed her to use their wifi so she could arrange for AAA to tow her car.

on the farm in Montana

and to recap: 1 Second Everyday – this is super cool. Thank you, Sara!!

And that’s a wrap.

The highlight of the week for me (besides Sara’s road trip) was my Black Friday trek around town, with my friend Joseph, ending up at Hudson Yards, and that amazing lunch at Peak.

I’m keeping a close eye on COVID vaccine distribution. It’s going to be a game-changer even if only 20 or 30% of the population get vaccinated by early next year. What a Xmas present that will be for all of us. Hopefully, Cuomo won’t screw it up with his hissy fits about not trusting the vaccines and how NYers are right to be skeptical about it. Perhaps that’s why New York is only getting an initial shipment of 170K doses while Texas is getting 1.4MM. Not only is he endangering NY lives, but he’s also out of step with Obama, Biden, Clinton, and Bush – all of whom have gone on record to say they’ll get vaccinated publicly to show that the vaccines are safe.

In the meantime, wishing everyone a great weekend. Stay safe and well. There is a light at the end of the tunnel and it’s definitely getting closer by the week!