The National Retail Federation is bullish on holiday spending, according to its annual prognostication. It says retail sales during November and December will grow between 6% and 8% year-over-year, peaking at $960 billion. Holiday sales have averaged an annual 4.9% increase the past 10 years.
“While consumers are feeling the pressure of inflation and higher prices, and while there is continued stratification with consumer spending and behavior among households at different income levels, consumers remain resilient and continue to engage in commerce,” federation President and CEO Matthew Shay said in a press release.
He said Americans will pursue a positive holiday season by dipping into savings and using credit to get through difficult times.
Retailers will hire 450,000 to 600,000 seasonal workers, the organization reported.
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Main Event food options
Main Event, the arcade-arama near Creekview Drive and Interstate 35, has upped the ante in its pursuit of customers, opening “Family Kitchen” on the premises to offer 50 options. A Main Event press release says the new restaurant features “hand-crafted, flavorful, and high-quality dishes” comparable to the best local restaurants. Sounds to me like a challenge.
Highlights include the Triple Lava Burger “made from three hand-smashed patties topped with American cheese, then smothered in cheese sauce and finished with caramelized onions,” the press release says.
The PBB&J Burger features peanut butter, blueberry jam, American cheese and crispy bacon on two hand-smashed burger patties. Then there is the crispy chicken sandwich, which the press release describes as “24-hour buttermilk brined.” Mega Pan Pepperoni Pizza offers a five-cheese blend topped with pepperoni, tomato sauce, garlic butter and boasting a crispy pan crust.
On the sweet side, “Family Kitchen” serves Mini Mason Jar Cheesecakes, with options including Oreo cookies, caramel apple and chocolate hazelnut.
Bellmead Chick-fil-A
Construction plans for a Chick-fil-A at North Loop 340 and the Interstate 35 frontage road in Bellmead, next to American Bank are making the rounds at Bellmead City Hall, officials there confirmed.
That intersection has undergone quite the transformation, American Bank razing its iconic round bank and replacing it with a smaller model with efficiencies, and a partially rounded facade and other design features intended to bring to mind its predecessor. The round bank, an architectural oddity, opened in 1979. Some scenes from “The Old Man and The Gun,” a movie starring Robert Redford and Sissy Spacek, were filmed there. Redford’s character robbed the place.
Caring Senior Service
A husband-and-wife team of physical therapists, Dustin and Rebecca Rauch, have opened a Caring Senior Service location in Waco, the 17th in Texas.
San Antonio-based Caring Senior Service is a non-medical provider of home care. Offices provide assistance to seniors and the disabled with everyday tasks such as bathing, running errands a preparing meals, according to a press release. The company was founded in 1991 and began franchising in 2002. It has more than 50 locations throughout the United States.
Founder Jeff Salter in 2021 sought to raise awareness of often overlooked aspects of senior care, including home modifications, by riding an electric bike more than 9,000 miles to each Caring Senior Service location.
“Our background in treating complex and chronic pain as physical therapists and my personal experience working with my mother’s caregiver made investing in Caring Senior Service a natural progression for us,” Dustin Rauch said in the press release. “We wanted to help seniors in our community remain healthy, happy and at home. Allowing seniors to not end up in a skilled nursing facility or other institutional setting is a goal my wife and I share.”
Their Waco office is at 1227 N. Valley Mills Drive.
New Lake Air Mall owner
Houston-based Property Commerce Dividend Fund has bought the Target-anchored Lake Air Mall at Wooded Acres Drive and Bosque Boulevard, as well as the Lake Air Court retail strip across from Target.
Clay Fuller, with Coldwell Banker Jim Stewart Realtors Commercial, brokered the deal. Laura Keller, an asset manager with the buyer, said by email that her team and Fuller “will be working to attract new tenants that fit with our existing users to provide a broad and well-rounded suite of goods and services for our customers. With Target as an anchor and the newly-renovated H-E-B across the street, this property presented a great opportunity for our investors to enter the Waco market.”
Bitty & Beau’s anniversary
Bitty & Beau’s Coffee is celebrating one year in Waco with a two-day anniversary celebration Nov. 12 and Nov. 13. Guests can expect drinks, dance parties on the hour, discounts, gift card raffles, karaoke sing-a-longs, “and a smile that is sure to last the whole day,” according to a press release.
Located on Franklin Avenue, near University Parks Drive, Bitty & Beau’s calls itself a human rights movement disguised as a coffee shop. Its locations are run primarily by people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“We created Bitty & Beau’s Coffee to show the world that people with disabilities should be valued, accepted and included members of society, especially in the workplace,” founder Amy Wright said in a press release. “It’s a place where diversity is not just appreciated, it’s celebrated.”
