Macy's shares soared Tuesday morning after the company far exceeded profit estimates. The retailer also said it reached an agreement to sell some of its real estate assets to Brookfield Asset Management. Joining The Long and The Short to discuss is Melissa Gonzalez, CEO, and Founder of The Lionesque Group and Melissa Armo, Founder of The Stock Swoosh.
Armo says she's pleasantly surprised by Macy's gaining such a big lead at the beginning of the year. She believes tax reform will also help a lot of the retailers, including Macy's, throughout 2018. However, she thinks Macy's still needs to figure out a way to bring more foot traffic to the stores. Gonzalez is excited about Macy's improving e-commerce business and the decision to scale back the discounts and flash sales.
Plus, is real estate retail's next big asset? Gonzalez says it's a smart move to partner with Brookfield Asset Management and sell off some office space, similar to what Lord & Taylor did with WeWork. However, Macy's ultimately needs to bring more customer experiences to the store to compete with the elephant in the room, Amazon.
College enrollment rates for high school graduates in the U.S. has been on the decline since 2009. Sean Behr, CEO of Fountain a high-volume hiring platform, joined Cheddar News to discuss why high school graduates are benefitting from the value of attending a trade school, especially in today's economy.
Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing how people work, including in creative industries. The famous Tribeca Film Festival featured some projects recently that used A.I. that some filmmakers say make it more creative. Cheddar News took a peek at some of those films.
No one likes to have to take their clothes to the laundromat. But a new bar in Brooklyn, called Pearl Lee’s Washtub, is spicing up the chore by creating a laundromat that's also a full bar.