The window displays in New York City during the holiday season are one of the best reasons to visit the city during this time. The department store, Macy’s, typically leads the pack and goes all out in its displays. Its window spread for this year tells the story of “Santa Girl”, a young New Yorker who becomes obsessed with Santa Claus after the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, imagining herself as the jolly old man and toying with the idea of stealing his identity. Located in midtown New York, the store even did a special unveiling ceremony complete with music, fireworks and even elves. Some of the windows are interactive. In one display, visitors can play with a dog dreaming of being a reindeer.
The Fifth Avenue Association is a close second with its window displays showcasing the city at night. Louis Vuitton has adorned itself in a psychedelic arrangement of pastel lights. Bergdorf Goodman, also on Fifth Avenue, comes close in splendour. The seven windows are filled with old-fashioned fun — musical chairs, a slumber party, a scavenger hunt, even a giant pinball machine. A life-size chess game has two sparkling red- and green-sequinned queens going head to head with bishops and rooks, while a card game in another window shows a frog splashing about in a pond, an ace of spades clutched in one of his webbed feet.
Patti Smith at an event in Milan, Italy, on December 7 (AP photo)
Summer party
As the year draws to a close, residents in Los Angeles, California (and all over the country) are gearing up for the next big music festival: Richard Branson’s Virgin Fest. It is coming to LA on June 6-7, 2020 and it will feature multiple stages spread across the Banc of California Stadium and most of Exposition Park. The event is being touted as a huge party to kick off summer. We will not know the lineup until early next year, when tickets go on sale.
What stands out about this music festival in particular is its commitment to the environment. They will be banning single-use plastic (there will be a reusable cup deposit system), using biofuels and solar power, encouraging attendees to use Exposition Park’s nearby metro stations and only bringing aboard food vendors (local restaurants) that align with Virgin’s values. The fest also promises shade from the sun, comfortable seating and hydration stations, along with clear navigation — a particular point of pain for previous music fests held at this location and for most music festivals in general. Virgin Fest will double down on customer service — which they call “fan service” — at every point of the festival experience with the promise of a high ratio of helpful, vetted employees at the front gates and security.
The lineup may not be decided yet, but similar series of both paid and free-to-attend events have featured artists such as Jack White, M83, Patti Smith, Kanye West, The Black Keys, Bob Dylan and Deadmau5.
Time to shop
Christmas and the holiday season mean that it is time to give gifts. Thus, when Amazon Prime delayed its deliveries, people were far from happy. This is also the first year that Amazon will handle some of the busiest months without one of its major delivery partners, FedEx Ground. But this is not going to deter shoppers. Consumers said they plan to spend $1,048 on an average. Companies are hustling to bring in the revenue since they also know this is the busiest time of the year. Many Cannabidiol companies have the opportunity to reinvigorate sales and introduce new products.
Despite increasing online sales, most people still like to shop in person. Malls and physical stores will continue to play a significant role. At the same time, many stores are downsizing or reconfiguring. Some are completely closing.
Retailers are using stores more as places to pick up and return online-ordered merchandise. For example, Kohl’s has partnered with Amazon to provide pickups and allow returns of items bought on Amazon. Whole Foods offers expedited free delivery for Amazon Prime customers. Walgreens and others are experimenting with drone deliveries.
Yummy prospects
At the end of the year, connoisseurs usually begin to predict the biggest food trends of the upcoming year. This year saw a lot of hype around alcoholic seltzers, CBD-infused drinks, oatmilk, acai bowls and elaborate cheese boards. For 2020, more plant-based diets and sustainable eating have been predicted. Dunkin’ Donuts recently unveiled its plant-based sausage sandwich, and Burger King now has a plant-based burger called the Impossible Whopper.
When Whole Foods released its top 10 food trend predictions for 2020, sustainable farming and regenerative agriculture were at number one. This refers to everyone involved in food sourcing — farmers, the government, retailers and restaurants — being more conscious about biodiversity and carbon emissions. According to the Restaurant Association, there will be also be an uptick in locavores — people who focus on eating foods that are made with locally grown ingredients or that have been sourced from local farms.
Restaurants will reportedly continue to embrace open-concept designs that show guests how they are preparing food. There is a spotlight on the trendy kombucha — a drink made of fermented yeast and said to aid gut health. Similarly, Korean rice liquor, known as makgeolli, is also purported to be a frequent flyer on the bar menus.
One of the highlights is alcoholic gummies Source: Smith & Sinclair
A fun adult-themed candy store, Smith & Sinclair, offers unusual candy concoctions and activities such as drag bingo, alcohol-infused ice cream making and date nights co-hosted by the dating app, Bumble. One of the highlights is alcoholic gummies, four of which roughly equal the amount of alcohol found in a standard shot. The space also has a Christmas-themed photo booth and a confessional wall for sexy secrets. A neon sign on one wall reads, “I licked it so it’s mine”.
