The United States Economy took a massive hit in 2020 and 2022 is setting up to be more of the same. The World as a whole is facing levels of inflation that most people have never seen. With the global supply change still being broken and countries around the world announcing food shortages, we are looking at the perfect storm.
President Joe Biden admitted recently that the chance of food shortages are a very real threat.
Germany recently announced that food prices would be going up 20 – 50%.
Due to sporadic supply chains countries like Spain and Greece have already begun to ration certain food products.
Russia and Ukraine are 2 of the biggest wheat suppliers in the world. This has and will be disrupted due to the ongoing conflict in the region.
The United States is having to cull chickens in several states due to ongoing bird flu.
Even China is admitting that their winter wheat harvest will be one of the worst in history.
The United Nations World Food program and even Blackrock has warned that people should start getting prepared because we are facing challenges not seen since World War 2.
For those who don’t know, BlackRock is the world’s largest investment management company. They manage over 10 trillion dollars in assets and if they were a country, they would be the 3rd largest economy. Just behind China and the United States.
What does all this mean you may be asking. This means that most people who are already struggling to get by will be cutting back even more on unnecessary spending. Inflation in the United States is at an all time high and this means that most peoples money will get them less and less as time goes on.
Companies in our Top 10 are:
10. Belk
9. The Children’s Place
8. AMC Theaters
7. Capri Holdings
6. Brooks Brothers
5. Forever 21
4. Mattress Firm
3. GAP Inc
2. Peloton
1. Purdue Pharma
Belk is one of the oldest companies in the United States and has been in business for over 130 years. Their struggle has been keeping up with changes in the fashion market and staying relevant.
The Children’s Place became far too dependent on malls and has not been able to properly take advantage of online retail. This has been a disaster for The Children’s Place as they continue to close locations and lose customers to their competition.
AMC Theaters would have gone bankrupt in 2020 if it was not for retail investors bailing them out. When Wall Street Bets began taking on Hedge Funds, AMC just happen to get caught in the middle. But one thing that still has not changed is the level of competition they are now facing from all directions. People have far more options for entertainment. This is and will continue to be a thorn in AMC’s side unless they figure out a better way of bringing in customers.
Capri Holdings is not a household name but the brands under them are all well known. Jimmy Choo, Versace and Michael Kors are three of the biggest luxury brands in the world. But for most people all of the global turmoil currently happening, gives few people reasons to spend money on luxuries.
Brooks Brothers is another brand that has stood the test of time. They have made suits for some of the most powerful men and women in the world. As well as the average Joe who needs a suit for his next interview. Brooks Brothers is now in a position where they have a choice to slightly pivot and rebrand or go bankrupt. The pandemic has not been kind to them, with the rise of work from home.
Forever 21 is the company that built itself from scratch and is now destroying itself brick by brick. If you used a time machine to go back to the early 2000’s, Forever 21 was almost untouchable. But in 2022 they are just untouched. Many people will tell you that it is because of their poor cheap quality of their clothing. Forever 21 is also one of the only major companies that has not signed the Bangladesh Accord on Fire and Building Safety.
Mattress Firm has been suspected and even accused of being a front for money laundering for years. Although there is very little if any evidence of this, their is evidence of a company stuck in the past. Mattress Firm is stuck in their early days, when there were very few options when it came to buying a mattress. Today that is not the case and their competitors are slowly eroding their once massive monopoly in the mattress space.
Gap Inc is another brand that is facing similar problems to Forever 21. Gap Inc just has too many brands that sell very similar products. Their one brand that sells higher fashion items are just overpriced compared to what their competitors offer.
Peloton tried to do too much, too fast and without the infrastructure in place to maintain their ambitions. Peloton is the perfect example of an overnight success story gone horribly wrong.
The name Purdue Pharma has become a nightmare for many families around the world. What is worse than selling a product that is unsafe? Lying to your customers about how it is safe!
AC