Restaurant And Hospitality News – October 30, 2017
By Christine Kern, contributing writer
In news this week, the new Global Travel Insights Report from Sojern highlights the latest travel trends for this holiday season; and Taco Bell and Forever 21 have teamed up to offer a unique and exclusive fashion line.
Report Reveal Travel Trends For The Holiday Season
In its latest Global Travel Insights Report, Sojern examines how the end of 2017 is shaping up for the travel industry by investigating the travel searches for October, November, and December and offer tips on what travel marketers can do now to influence early travel planners. The report found that the top five North American destinations are New York City, Miami, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, and Chicago. It also found that the top three departure dates searched were December 22, 23, and 21 in that order.
The report notes that since Christmas falls on a Monday in 2017, early planners are trying to determine the length of their visits, with some looking to depart as early as Thursday. Sojern suggests that travel sites “consider running packages and campaigns that entice travelers to extend their holiday getaways with specials starting on that Thursday or extending past the holiday on Monday.” Facebook Dynamic Ads are a good way to promote these specials to engage indecisive travelers by displaying real-time pricing for the dates they search.
The report also found that 50 percent of the long-haul travel and 17 percent of short-haul travel is for 12 or more days, while 38 percent of short-haul travel is for 4 to 7 days.
Taco Bell Teams With Forever 21 To Launch Fashion Collection
Taco Bell is mixing things up and making wardrobes “saucier” this fall, with its announcement that it is partnering with Forever 21 to launch a new limited edition fashion collection. The line premiered in Forever 21 stores and online on October 11.
According to Taco Bell, “Taco Bell and Forever 21 will come together this October to celebrate personal style and self-expression ahead of the launch of Taco Bell’s first fashion collection collaboration. The two like-minded brands, together at the intersection of culture and innovation, are joining forces to make fall wardrobes a whole lot saucier. While they’re at it, they’ll help fans keep the heat up and the fun on, in more ways than one.”
“We are excited about this partnership with Taco Bell,” said Linda Chang, Forever 21 Vice President of Merchandising. “Food, like fashion, is driven by trends and culture. Merging fashion and food in this collection gives our customers a new way to experience both our brands.”
The line is inspired by iconic graphics from both brands and vibrant prints. The line includes tops, bodysuits and cropped hoodies for women; sweatshirts, hoodies, and anorak jackets for men; and a line of graphic tees, pullovers, and hoodies for girls.
“We often think of Taco Bell as 'the fast fashion of food,’ given how we continuously introduce innovative limited edition products that everyone can enjoy, so when it came to our first-ever retail collaboration, we knew our partner had to be the leader in actual fast fashion," said Marisa Thalberg, Chief Marketing Officer at Taco Bell Corp. “We’ve seen our fans get individually creative in expressing their love for Taco Bell through fashion, and we believe this collection with Forever 21 is going to be everything they would expect from us in extending the Taco Bell lifestyle to fashion: original, affordable, creative a little quirky and definitely fun.”