Daily Business Report-April 13, 2020
Bread makers, a top online consumer purchase in the pandemic.
The Pandemic Economy: What are
shoppers buying online during COVID-19?
The Fastest Growing and Declining E-Commerce Categories
The COVID-19 pandemic is having a significant impact on every aspect of life, including how people shop for their necessities, and their not-so-necessities.
With online retail sales estimated to reach an eye-watering $6.5 trillion by 2023, the ecommerce sector was already booming. But since the outbreak, online shopping has been catapulted into complete overdrive. Even the largest retailers on the planet are struggling to keep up with the unprecedented consumer demand—but what exactly are people buying?
To answer this question, retail intelligence firm Stackline analyzed ecommerce sales across the U.S. and compiled a list of the fastest growing and declining ecommerce categories (March 2020 vs. March 2019) with surprising results.
The Frenzy of Buyer Behavior
As people come to terms with their new living situations, their buying behavior has adapted to suit their needs. While panic buying may have slowed in some countries, consumers continue to stock up on supplies, or “pandemic pantry products”.
Many consumers are also using their newfound time to focus on their health, with 85% of consumers taking up some kind of exercise while in social isolation, and 40% of them saying they intend to keep it up when restrictions are lifted.
Officially the world’s largest retailer, Amazon has announced it can no longer keep up with consumer demand. As a result, it will be delaying the delivery of non-essential items, or in some cases not taking orders for non-essentials at all.
These changing behaviors have resulted in a number of product categories experiencing a surge in demand — and although a lot of them are practical, others are wonderfully weird.
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Ocean Aero gets multi-million-dollar federal
order for autonomous vehicles for ocean studies
Sorrento Valley-based Ocean Aero recently secured a multi-million-dollar order from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The company will deliver multiple copies of its autonomous swimming vehicles that can travel both on the surface of and under water.
Ocean Aero produces three models of 4-metre marine vehicle that all feature a retractable folding wingsail and solar panels that enable them to travel long distances.
The Navigator can transform from a USV into a fully autonomous underwater vehicle, capable of submerging to 200 meters depth and using an Inertial Navigation System (INS) coupled with a Doppler Velocity Log (DVL) to achieve precise underwater navigation, with propulsion coming from dual electric thrusters.
The Discovery is designed to collect vertical and horizontal profile data while submerging to a maximum depth of 100 meters.
The Scout is a fleet surface data collection vehicle that can submerge to the water surface level in order to provide greater protection against rough weather or decrease the detectability of the vehicle.
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Canceled conventions costing
San Diego $203 million — so far
Union-Tribune report
More than 20 large groups have canceled meetings originally planned for the San Diego Convention Center in March, April, May and June — a tsunami of lost business that is estimated to cost San Diego some $203 million in lost spending at hotels, restaurants, bars and other businesses, not to mention a regionwide economic impact hit of $345 million.
Comic-Con, San Diego’s single biggest convention, may be next. Comic-Con International, which fills hotel rooms to capacity every July — has yet to cancel, but it’s unlikely it will be able to hold its gathering of 135,000 given the kind of social distancing requirements that may well still be in place this summer, said Tourism Authority CEO Joe Terzi.
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Cal State San Marcos professor wins
$3 million federal grant for diversity work
Cal State San Marcos psychology professor Keith Trujillo has received a grant of more than $3 million from the National Institutes of Health to continue his longstanding work to increase diversity in the biomedical and behavioral sciences.
The grant of $3.2 million over five years from the NIH will establish a program called U-RISE@CSUSM, which will help CSUSM students prepare for graduate studies and careers in the sciences. The goal of U-RISE, a national program that stands for Undergraduate Research Training Initiative for Student Enhancement, is to develop a diverse pool of undergraduates who complete their baccalaureate degree, and transition into and complete biomedical, research-focused higher degree programs.
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Fortune names Scripps Health to 40
Best Workplaces in Health Care list
Fortune Magazine has ranked Scripps Health No. 4 on its 2020 list of the nation’ s 40 Best Workplaces in Health Care. Scripps is the only San Diego-based health care provider to make this year’s list, published April 9 on Fortune’s website, fortune.com.
To determine this year’s 40 Best Workplaces in Health Care list, Fortune and Great Place to Work analyzed anonymous survey feedback representing nearly 800,000 employees working in the health care and biopharma industries in the United States.
According to a recent survey by people analytics firm Great Place to Work, Fortune’s partner, 94 percent of Scripps employees say they are proud to tell others where they work. And 93 percent of Scripps employees say they feel good about the way they contribute to the community.
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Mama’s Kitchen records sixth consecutive
week of record meal deliveries
Mama’s Kitchen, the nonprofit meal delivery service, said Friday it hit its sixth consecutive week of record meal deliveries, working around the clock to maintain operations during the “shelter-in-place” mandate.
On Friday, Mama’s Kitchen delivered 7,284 meals to 607 clients. This is already a 40 percent increase from just a few weeks ago before the mandate was issued, the agency said.
As the coronavirus pandemic progresses in the San Diego region, the organization has seen an increase in demand for its services to provide home-delivered nutrition to critically ill individuals and families who are most at risk to the devastating complications from COVID-19 given their compromised immune systems and chronic illnesses.
The agency is still accepting referrals for new clients, and does not have a waiting list. As always, the organization’s goal is to never turn away a qualified individual.
The nonprofit is still accepting backup volunteer applications. Those interested in supporting Mama’s Kitchen’s efforts can visit mamaskitchen.org/volunteer to learn more.
Mama’s Kitchen has also established an Emergency Response Fund to support increased expenses due to the response efforts.
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California offers discounted hotel rooms
to health workers exposed to coronavirus
CalMatters
California health care workers may qualify for discounted hotel rooms under a new arrangement Gov. Gavin Newsom announced as part of the state’s ongoing effort to limit the spread of coronavirus.
More than 150 hotels around California have agreed to provide discounted rooms to help “a workforce that is deeply stressed out,” the governor said —health care workers treating COVID-19 patients who are worried that sleeping at home could expose their families to the virus.“
“Some of the nicest and finest hotel chains in the world are participating in this program, providing deep discounts to the state of California, and we will extend those deep discounts directly to our caregivers,” Newsom said. “They can stay closer to the needs in their communities.”
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Sempra Energy gets government OK
to sell equity interests in Peruvian businesses
San Diego-based Sempra Energy announcd that it has received all required governmental authorizations for the sale of the company’s equity interests in its Peruvian businesses. The sale to China Yangtze Power International (Hongkong) Co., Limited (CYP) will generate approximately $3.59 billion in total cash proceeds and is subject to customary post-closing adjustments. This transaction includes Sempra Energy’s 83.6 percent stake in Luz del Sur S.A.A. (Luz del Sur), as well as Tecsur, which provides electric construction and infrastructure services to Luz del Sur and third parties, and Inland Energy S.A.C., Luz del Sur’s generation business.
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Call for citizen scientists to
contribute to COVID-19 studies
by Heather Buschman | UC San Diego
The Microsetta Initiative, a crowdsourced research effort based at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine, has expanded its capabilities to now allow citizen-scientists around the world to help collect crucial information about SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus causing a COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are now positioned to collect data that will help drive epidemiological studies of where the virus is and isn’t, and help researchers determine who is at greatest risk, who is already immune, how the virus is transmitted and how it spreads through a population,” said Rob Knight, professor and director of the Center for Microbiome Innovation and co-founder of The Microsetta Initiative, which is run by his research lab at UC San Diego School of Medicine under Scientific Director Daniel McDonald.