This Week's Chicago Deal Sheet

The Black Friday of yore was already in flux before the coronavirus pandemic. As consumers shifted to online shopping, the enticement to stand in a line in the wee morning hours for a $99 flat-screen waned. Why go through all that when you can just stay home and shop online?

But while online shopping gradually reshaped Black Friday over the years, the coronavirus has rapidly changed what’s perhaps the central element of the day. 

“Black Friday was always about getting as many people in the stores as possible, but now it’s almost the opposite,” said Michael Baker, a retail analyst with D.A. Davidson Cos.

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In Case You Missed It...

This series asks rising stars in commercial real estate about their thoughts on some of the biggest issues facing the industry, including inequality, climate change and technology.

For Built-ID Director of Community Engagement Bridget Wilkins, the real estate sector faces a stark choice. Change, and change fast, or risk becoming irrelevant to the next generation of talented young workers.

“Many of us are driven primarily by a social purpose, and as a result, prioritise having a positive impact over other more traditional aspirations, like financial success and long-term job security,” she said when asked how her generation of property professionals differs from those that have gone before. “We are now competing in a global war for talent and unless CRE accelerates its focus on engaging and employing diverse people, rather than just meeting reporting targets, we will continue to lose brilliant, passionate people to competing industries.”

Read the full story here.