The Goods (U.S. Edition) – Hooked on a Peeling
Welcome back to The Goods! This week we’re discussing the normalization of renting clothes, banana’s big break, and Burger King’s new AI assistant, “Patty.”
Insights from our ESG Advisory Team
The European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, better known as CSRD, is one of the most significant sustainability regulations in the world right now, and impacts reporting requirements for many multinational retail and consumer companies.
If you haven’t been living and breathing EU policy, here’s the headline: CSRD dramatically expands what companies have to disclose about their environmental and social impacts, and how rigorously they can back it up. Our ESG & Sustainability Advisory Team at FTI Consulting has developed this CSRD readiness guide, including our proprietary compliance timeline and steps companies can take to prepare.
What’s In: This Week’s Trends
- Leaving So Spoon? The brightly colored bowls of cereals like Froot Loops and Lucky Charms may soon be fading from retailers’ shelves. Target says it will only carry cereals made without certified synthetic colors by the end of May, citing sales data and customer research for the decision. The move follows Walmart’s pledge last fall to remove synthetic dyes from its store-brand foods. While many food companies have pledged to remove synthetic dyes from their portfolios by 2026 or 2027, Target says it is working closely with national brands and owned-brand partners to reformulate products where necessary.
- Something Borrowed: Once popular for special occasions, clothing rentals are now a part of daily dressing. Urban Outfitters’ clothing rental platform Nuuly surpassed $500 million in revenue in the past year and now counts more than 420,000 subscribers – with nearly 70% of users renting clothing for the first time. Nuuly’s success in creating a new cohort of renters suggests that younger shoppers are looking for savvy ways to refresh their closets on a budget. Investors are also taking notice of this trend, with newer startups like Vivrelle and Pickle raising tens of millions of dollars over the past year.
- In The Publix Eye: The grocery wars are expanding into new territory. Publix is pushing into Cincinnati-based Kroger’s home turf, planning to open about a dozen Kentucky stores by the end of the year and challenging the nation’s largest grocer in the process. The rivalry is already heating up, with Kroger cutting prices and ramping up promotions as Publix leans on its service-heavy store experience and fan-favorite items like the “pub sub.” As the grocers fight not only each other, but national retailers like Walmart, new market expansions are triggering hyperlocal price wars that shoppers are happy to take advantage of.
Cash or Card: Consumer Behavior
What’s going on with the consumer these days? This week we talk about the growing distance between the affluent and budget-conscious gym-goers, banana’s big break, and the buying power of women in today’s economy.
- A Weight Divide: The K-shape economy is showing up for leg day. Premium chain Life Time saw revenue climb 12.3% to $745.1 million in the fourth quarter as affluent members spent on personal training, spa services, and in-club dining. Meanwhile, budget chain Planet Fitness also added 1.1 million members in 2025 but lowered its 2026 outlook, warning that its more price-sensitive base is showing signs of strain. The contrast underscores a broader consumer shift where higher-income Americans are willing to invest in high-end wellness experiences, while others are sticking to value options.
- Hooked on a Peeling: Could 2026 be the year banana goes from staple to standout? From coffee to desserts, the flavor is popping up on the menus of national chains. Dunkin has called banana “the flavor of the season” and is rolling out banana syrup and banana cold foam this spring, which will be featured in more than a dozen banana-forward drinks. Meanwhile, Starbucks rolled out Banana Protein Cold Foam in September, Dairy Queen launched a Savannah Bananas Split Shake last month, and Nothing Bundt Cakes has brought back its Banana Pudding Cake. We can’t wait to see who goes bananas next.
- Girl Power: A new . The number of jobs added from women in 2025 was nearly three times the rate of men, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as hiring persisted in female-dominated sectors like private education and healthcare. However, wages are not rising as quickly as before, and weaker labor market conditions continue to weigh on spending. The report found that women are leaning more heavily toward “value,” with the shift being seen most prominently in apparel.
Making Moves: Industry Transformations & Innovation
ICYMI, even industry icons need to reinvigorate their brand presence through unique and creative ways. Here are some new brand moves that you should know about:
- Bread-y or Not: Panera Bread is entering the value wars with its new “Mix & Match” menu, a build-your-own deal featuring 10 curated half-portions of sandwiches, salads, and soups priced at $4.99 each, with a two-item minimum. The streamlined lineup – which includes a choice of baguette, chips, or an apple, plus rotating seasonal items – is designed to win back price-conscious diners and drive incremental visits. Roughly three out of four diners today say daily specials, discounts, or value promotions influence where they choose to eat or order takeout.
- Patty Patrol: Burger King parent Restaurant Brands International is testing AI-powered headsets in 500 U.S. restaurants that act as a real-time copilot for crews. The voice assistant known as “Patty” can walk employees through recipes, flag low inventory, alert managers to customer complaints, and pull sold-out items from digital menus on the fly. It even tracks mentions of key service cues like “welcome” and “thank you” to give managers insights and help reinforce hospitality. Rolling out nationwide later this year as part of the BK Assistant platform, the headset turns a simple device into a hands-free training and inventory tool.
Capital Markets Corner
What consumer news is moving the market this week? Our investor relations experts break down this week’s trends and headlines.
- In a Jam: M. Smucker reached an agreement with activist Elliott Investment Management to appoint two independent directors to its board amid recent operational challenges. The packaged-food company has been grappling with elevated coffee costs and weak sales in its Hostess business, which it acquired in 2023. Joining the board are Woo-Sung (Bruce) Chung, CFO at NRG Energy, and David Singer, former CEO of Snyder’s-Lance. The additions follow “constructive engagement” with Elliott, which has urged Smucker to boost sales, enhance profitability, and reinforce disciplined capital allocation. In an effort to improve operations, Smucker has already trimmed Hostess SKUs by 25% and announced the closure of a Hostess manufacturing facility in Indianapolis.
- Retail-ity Check: Retailers reporting 4Q25 results reinforced that consumers remain cautious, citing pressured same-store sales and shoppers’ continued focus on innovation, digital offerings, and value:
- Under new CEO Michael Fiddelke, Target is pursuing a strategic reset, which includes a sharpened focus on core categories like grocery and beauty, acceleration of technology investments, and expansion of higher-margin non-merchandise items such as memberships and delivery.
- Best Buy is navigating uneven demand for high-ticket items, with value-oriented tech outperforming expensive appliances, as its primarily in-store model lags competitors with strong digital platforms.
- Abercrombie & Fitch Co. posted modest sales gains from strong brand partnerships and digital expansion, while On Holding AG beat top- and bottom-line expectations, but disappointed investors with conservative guidance and profit pressures which highlighted broader consumer softness.
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