NETL - Pandemic to accelerate growth in Sunbelt mid-sized cities: KKR's Campbell Roberts

KKR's Paula Campbell Roberts sees the pandemic catalyzing a number of changes in business and the economy in a KKR Viewpoints report titled, "The New Normal."She sees economic activity spreading to multiple metropolitan nodes beyond gateway cities and affirms her pre-COVID conviction around Sunbelt migration as well as above-average growth of medium-sized cities.In real estate, multifamily, industrial, and innovation offices will benefit, while retail and older office spaces in large central business districts are seen as short-term losers."Essentialism" should thrive, according to the report. Roberts expects in-person meeting to take place only when safe, necessary, or highly valued.This has implications for a wide range of industries including healthcare (telehealth), personal care, retail, entertainment, travel (less business travel, more domestic leisure travel), apparel, and real estate.Consumers are expected to consolidate their commodity spend among large retailers that have omnichannel service and delivery capabilities and offer competitive pricing.She sees tailwinds supporting smaller

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Pandemic to accelerate growth in Sunbelt mid-sized cities: KKR's Campbell Roberts