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The wedding boom is winding down but inflation is still driving up the cost to say ‘I do’

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The explosive wedding boom seen last year is winding down, but the average cost of nuptials is still going up, according to new data from Zola

Couples will shell out an average of $29,000 this year to say “I do” – up from $28,000 last year, the digital wedding planning platform found. In 2019, before the Covid pandemic created a congested wedding market, that number was closer to $24,700.

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The expected jump is in large part because of the rising, inflationary costs that vendors are facing, the company said. 

In a January survey of about 300 wedding vendors, 83% reported the cost to run their business will increase in 2023, 26% reported the cost of goods have gone up and 17% said couples have smaller budgets for services.

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More than 77% of vendors surveyed said they raised rates for 2023.

Emma Dykstra, the office manager of family-run Deborah’s Specialty Cakes in Athens, Georgia, said supplier costs have in some cases “tripled or worse,” forcing her team to raise prices twice in the last year. 

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“We’ve had to kind of adjust for that, and then also we want to make sure we pay our employees as well so we’ve had to up their hourly rates” said Dykstra, whose mom started the bakery. “That translates to slightly higher costs for the customer.” 

The bakery has had to raise prices by about a third or more, she said, which she says is leading more customers to shop elsewhere. Dykstra estimated that before costs jumped, one in 10 customers would take their business elsewhere because of pricing concerns — now she estimates it’s closer to one in five or one in six.

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“We haven’t raised our price in ages and we hate having to do that because we really want to be as accessible to people as possible, but we’re definitely having to cater to a higher income clientele,” she said. 

Couples held more than 2.6 million weddings in the U.S. last year, according to Emily Forrest, Zola’s director of communications. That number is coming down in 2023 as backlogs related to the Covid pandemic start to clear. 

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To mitigate rising costs, Forrest said she’s seeing more couples forgo typical traditions, shop on the secondhand market or even opt for a weekday or morning celebration.

“They’re really very eyes open about what the cost of a wedding is and what decisions they need to make that fit their personal style and fit the day that they’ve maybe been thinking about for a long time,” she said.

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Paige Thom, co-founder and lead planner of Weddings by Leigh, a Las Vegas-based wedding planning service, said she isn’t seeing many couples cut their budgets but noted many are far more focused on the value of services than they were in the past. 

Thom said couples are increasingly asking questions like, “What services am I getting? How much time am I getting? What is really the best bang for the buck right now?”

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“What am I getting for this and is it worth it?” 

Catering costs and other labor-intensive services are a particular pain point, Thom said, as vendors raise wages to support workers.

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“Florals or installations or anything that’s really decor-heavy that requires extra labor on site, those costs are rising dramatically,” she said.

“Everyone’s kind of feeling the hurt — rent, groceries and gas — so if you’re trying to keep a team, just like we are, you’re giving raises,” she continued. “The idea of cheap labor isn’t really a thing anymore.”

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Lululemon shares jump as holiday-quarter sales surge

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A Lululemon sign is seen at a shopping mall in San Diego, California, November, 23, 2022.
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Mike Blake | Reuters

Lululemon on Tuesday reported strong holiday-quarter sales, suggesting wealthier shoppers are still purchasing yoga pants and tops despite rising prices for essential goods.
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The company also issued upbeat guidance for its new fiscal year.

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Shares of Lululemon jumped about 11% in after-hours trading following the report. Through Tuesday’s close, the stock is about flat for the year, putting the company’s market value at $40.87 billion.

Here’s what the company reported for the three-month period ended Jan. 29, compared with Wall Street expectations based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:

  • Earnings per share: $4.40 adjusted vs $4.26 expected
  • Revenue: $2.77 billion vs. $2.7 billion expected

Lululemon’s fourth-quarter net income fell to $119.8 million, or 94 cents per share, from $434.5 billion, or $3.36 per share, a year ago. Excluding impairment and other charges related to the acquisition of Mirror, as well as other items, per-share earnings were $4.40.

Revenue rose to $2.77 billion from $2.13 billion a year ago.

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The company expects fiscal 2023 revenue of between $9.3 billion and $9.41 billion, topping Wall Street’s expectations of $9.14 billion, according to Refinitiv estimates. The company expects full-year profit of between $11.50 and $11.72 per share, compared with Refinitiv estimates of $11.26 per share.

“Looking ahead, we remain optimistic regarding our ability to deliver sustained growth and long-term value for all our stakeholders,” said Chief Financial Officer Meghan Frank in a statement.

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The Vancouver-based athletic apparel retailer said total comparable sales for the fourth quarter increased by 27%. Also called same-store sales, the metric includes sales from stores open continuously for at least 12 months.

“We believe that it is one of the few companies in the space that has a very long pathway for growth, and it’s also a very highly visible one,” said Rick Patel, managing director at Raymond James.

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Patel said his firm, which maintains a strong buy rating on the stock, sees upside in Lululemon’s international business and its men’s business, and that the worst of the company’s inventory struggles are in the past.

In December, Lululemon said inventories at the end of its third quarter were up 85% year-over-year. The company said Tuesday that as of the end of 2022, inventories were up 50%.

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Dollar General in settlement talks over workplace safety violations, federal agency says

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The exterior of a Dollar General convenience store is seen on March 16, 2023 in Austin, Texas.
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Dollar General is in settlement talks with federal regulators after the discount retailer was labeled a “severe violator” of workplace safety rules, according to a spokesperson for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
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The spokesperson said the “mandatory settlement proceedings” before the agency’s review commission would occur “pursuant to Commission rules.” OSHA is part of the Department of Labor.

Dollar General did not comment directly on the settlement talks. Until recently, the discount retailer was unwilling to engage with OSHA about the violations, according to federal officials who spoke to The New York Times under the condition of anonymity. 

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A Dollar General spokesperson told CNBC “we regularly review and refine our safety programs, and reinforce them through training, ongoing communication, recognition and accountability.”

“When we learn of situations where we have failed to live up to this commitment, we work to address the issue and ensure the company’s expectations regarding safety are clearly communicated, understood and implemented,” the spokesperson added. 

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Dollar General has been accused of exposing workers to fire hazards and other safety concerns, such as merchandise stacked at unsafe heights, leading to “chronic failures to meet federal safety requirements,” according to OSHA.

Since 2017, OSHA inspected over 270 Dollar General stores, finding more than 100 workplace safety violations. OSHA also issued Dollar General over $15 million in fines. The company operates more locations in the U.S. than Target and Walmart.

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Dollar General was the first company to be added to the “severe violators” list last fall after OSHA expanded the reach of one of its longstanding safety enforcement programs. That program, dubbed the Severe Violator Enforcement Program, was traditionally aimed at companies with notably unsafe working conditions, like manufacturers or construction firms. 

Under the program, OSHA officials can inspect a store at random, without a direct complaint about working conditions. 

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The Tennessee-based company rapidly expanded throughout the pandemic, opening thousands of new locations. Amid this growth and profitability, the company also faced criticism from other workers’ rights advocates, making it a logical target for the Biden administration

“Dollar General’s growing record of disregard for safety measures makes it abundantly clear that the company puts profit before people,” said OSHA regional administrator Kurt Petermeyer in a January news release. “These violations are preventable, and failing to prevent them shows a blatant disregard for the workers on whom they depend to keep their stores operating.” 

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Throughout the course of their inspections, OSHA officials have found everything from blocked fire exits to unstable stacked merchandise that could fall on workers. 



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Home prices cool in January, even falling in some cities, S&P Case-Shiller says

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A “For Sale” sign outside of a home in Atlanta, Georgia, on Friday, Feb. 17, 2023.
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Dustin Chambers | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Home prices cooled in January, up only 3.8% nationally than they were a year earlier, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index. That is down from 5.6% in December.
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Prices have been falling for seven straight months, but the decline was a bit smaller in January. That was likely due to a brief drop in mortgage rates and a resulting jump in sales.

The 10-city composite rose 2.5% year over year, down from 4.4% in December. The 20-city composite also rose 2.5%, down from 4.6% in the previous month.

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Home prices have been cooling due to higher mortgage rates. The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage set more than a dozen record lows during the first two years of the pandemic, briefly going below 2%, but it grew sharply. Since fall, the rate has been hovering in the high 6% range, although it’s been volatile in recent weeks due to several bank failures and the resulting stress on the overall banking industry.

“Despite this, the Federal Reserve remains focused on its inflation-reduction targets, which suggest that rates may remain elevated in the near-term,” said Craig Lazzara, managing director at S&P DJI, in a release. “Mortgage financing and the prospect of economic weakness are therefore likely to remain a headwind for housing prices for at least the next several months.”

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Prices were lower year over year in San Francisco (-7.6%), Seattle (-5.1%), Portland, Oregon (-0.5%) and San Diego (-1.4%). They were flat in Phoenix.

Miami, Tampa and Atlanta again saw the hottest annual price gains of the top 20 cities. Miami prices were up 13.8%, Tampa prices up 10.5%, and Atlanta prices rose 8.4%. All 20 cities, however, reported lower prices in the year ending January 2023 versus the year ending December 2022.

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Homebuyers may be seeing more flexible sellers this spring, but there are still too few homes available for sale. Mortgage lending may also tighten in light of pressure on the banking system.

“More expensive, less available borrowing, especially with an unclear economic outlook, is likely to continue to limit buyer demand. Though home sales are expected to rebound in line with seasonal trends, this spring’s sales pace is expected to remain lower than last year, as uncertainty and high costs limit activity,” said Hannah Jones, economic data analyst for Realtor.com.

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