State of the Industry, EIDL Expansion, Back to Business Assistance Events

State of the Industry Mid-Year Report

This morning, the National Restaurant Association released the Mid-Year State of the Industry Update, which is a supplement to the annual SOI. Click here to download the free report.

The sales forecast has been revised up to $789 billion in 2021, an increase of $57.5 billion compared to the January 2021 SOI forecast. The increase reflects strong sales gains in the first seven months of the year.

Below are key findings from the report:

• Food and beverage sales in the restaurant and foodservice industry are projected to total $789 billion in 2021, up 19.7% from 2020.

• Despite a steady trend of job creation in the first half of the year, eating and drinking places are still nearly 1 million jobs, or 8%, below pre-pandemic employment levels and the restaurants and accommodations sector have one of the highest levels of unfilled job openings of any industry.

• As of June 2021, 39 states and the District of Columbia had reopened to 100% indoor dining capacity; 11 states and Puerto Rico are open at varying capacities ranging from 50% to 80%.

• Six in 10 adults have changed their restaurant use due to the rise in the delta variant

Chicago Tribune on Delivery Service Lawsuits

Yesterday, the Chicago Tribune editorial board shared an opinion piece applauding the city of Chicago for filing lawsuits against DoorDash and Grubhub last week.

"The dining apps need ethical reform," the editorial board writes. "For that reason alone, the city of Chicago was right to sue DoorDash and Grubhub on Friday in Cook County Circuit Court, with two separate lawsuits seeking “greater transparency and other key conduct modifications, restitution for restaurants and consumers hurt by these predatory tactics, and civil penalties for violations of the law.”

Click here to read the editorial.

The IRA agrees with the Tribune editorial board about the need for more fairness, transparency, and guardrails in the third party delivery space to protect Chicago's restaurant community. We have actively worked to address issues with third party delivery services since before the pandemic, and will continue to do so at the local and state levels.

The city of Chicago is conducting a survey of restaurants to gauge their experiences with delivery services. Click here to take the survey.

Expansion of EIDL Program Would Bring More Relief to Restaurants 

While we continue to push for Congress to replenish the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF), we’ve been working to identify other avenues for relief to pandemic-related revenue loss. Our partners at the National Restaurant Association have engaged the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to expand its Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program which was created to help small businesses struggling to cover business operations.

If the program expands, more restaurants would qualify for loans; amounts for loans would be higher; and the funds could be used to offset previous commercial/private debt.

For more information on how you can benefit from the EIDL program, check out this webinar led by the NRA earlier this summer and a group letter urging SBA Administrator Guzman to adopt changes to the EIDL program. 

Tomorrow - Ask the Experts Webinar on Back to Business Grants

Join the IRA and Allies for Community Business tomorrow, Wednesday, September 1 at 12:00 p.m. for a webinar providing guidance and insights on Back to Business grant applications. Matt Quinn, IRA Director of Government Relations & Communications, will be available for direct assistance with restaurant and bar owners.

Click here to register.

Rockford Register Star on Hospitality Industry Staffing Challenges

The Rockford Register Star recently covered how restaurants, bars, and hospitality businesses are facing ongoing staffing challenges - including limiting hours and operations.

“Do I think we will recover? Yes,” said IRA President & CEO Sam Toia. “But, I think it’s going to be a good few years before we get back to 2018 and 2019 numbers.”

Click here to read the article.

This Thursday - Back to Business Grant Applications Technical Assistance Event

Business owners seeking to apply for a Back to Business grant are invited to attend a Community Technical Assistance event Thursday, September 2 from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m. at Indo-American Center, located at 6328 N. California in Chicago.

Download the event flyer with more information in English, Mandarin, and Hindi.