Not sure why almost all of Tennessee is unavailable, but I can say that their prices here have risen astronomically. Our Taco Bell used to have a line around the building pretty consistently, now it’s essentially empty all the time.
2) Businesses charged more per person to sustain themselves.
3) Post-Covid people are buying less due to the higher prices so its sticky.
My local Qdoba is so expensive I won't eat there any more, but a few people do. What would happen if they dropped prices significantly and advertised that to bring people back? I don't know... There are only so many person-meals in a day, so people are eating somewhere, are they staying home? Are grocery sales up?
1) Initially
2) Absolutely
3) False. Consumer spending on non durable goods is still rising. Disposable income is still available. Durable goods spending exploded after COVID.
> Disposable income is still available. Durable goods spending exploded after COVID.
Only for some. Household debt is at an all time high, and evictions and utility disconnections are skyrocketing. Homelessness is at record highs. Hunger in the US is soaring too. 18 million households last year struggled at some point to secure enough food, the worst its been in nearly a decade. Many people are suffering under the outrageous prices companies are charging.
That's because people have more money than ever so they're using credit cards more. It's also partly due to inflation. Household debt-to-income ratios are not high.
> evictions and utility disconnections are skyrocketing
I don't believe this is true.
> Hunger in the US is soaring too.
This is true, but it's because the extended child tax credit from 2020 expired - so we can fix it anytime we want.
Just because spending is rising doesn't mean people are buying more things. Prices have increased, so people can be buying fewer goods and still spending more.
Spending on food is rising in real terms (that means counting for inflation), so people are actually buying more food, mostly because they're going to restaurants and using DoorDash more.
A lot of people have been priced out of some things, including fast food. I've got the cash to spend, but some prices are so high at this point that I can't order out like I used to without feeling ripped off, so I don't.
Another side effect of the pandemic is that spending habits changed and people realized how easily they could do without foods and products they were used to getting. When people weren't able to get the things they wanted they were forced to try alternatives, or even cooking for themselves in some cases, when they wouldn't have otherwise.
maybe people realized during covid time that it is actually so easy and faster to prepare less crappy tacos/quesadillas than Taco Bell at home from premade industrial tortillas that it isn't worth going out for a taco if you have no plan to eat a decent taco anyway.
MBAs aren't that stupid. Either they make more money by selling less at a higher price (consider, a 20% increase in price might be a 50% increase in profit), or they are sowing losses for tax purposes.
I'm not sure. I've seen too many businesses mismanaged into the ground. It's way too common for big businesses to act like they suddenly have a monopoly even though competition still exists, and then go all surprised Pikachu face when revenue dries up.
