New York Post - USA (2020-12-01)

New York Post, Tuesday, December 1, 2020

nypost.com

Cy ber

Monday

$pree

Holiday shoppers were ex-

pected to spend $13 million a

minute online on Monday —

more than twice as much as

on Black Friday — as they

rushed to ring up the final

sales of the biggest online

shopping day in history.

Spending was likely to hit as

much as $12.7 billion on Cy-

ber Monday, or 35 percent

more than last year, as hun-

kered-down shoppers do

more buying online than ever

amid the pandemic, accord-

ing to Adobe Analytics.

Most consumers believe

that Cyber Monday discounts

were steeper than those of

any other day of the holiday

shopping season. Among the

best deals were markdowns

of 30 percent on computers,

26 percent on other electron-

ics, 21 percent on appliances

and 20 percent on toys, ac-

cording to Adobe, which

tracks online shopping data

for 80 of the largest retailers.

“Cyber Monday is on track

to break all previous records

for online sales,” Taylor

Schreiner, director of Adobe

Digital Insights said in a

statement. “Consumers will

likely take advantage of the

best-discounted items, like

TVs, toys and computers, be-

fore price levels start creep-

ing back up throughout the

rest of the season.”

Lisa Fickenscher

A ‘Crood’

awakening

“The Croods: A New Age”

topped Thanksgiving box-

office expectations with a

five-day holiday debut of

$14 million, despite the

challenge of the pandemic.

Universal Pictures’ ani-

mated sequel about a pre-

historic family raked in

$38 million globally since it

debuted last Wednesday,

bringing in $17 million do-

mestically and $21 million

internationally, according

to Box Office Mojo.

The kids flick, which fea-

tures the voices of Ryan

Reynolds, Emma Stone and

Nicolas Cage, had the big-

gest opening three-day

haul, $10 million, of any

movie during the pandemic

since theaters re-opened.

Alexandra Steigrad

Nikola tumbles on GM pullout

Shares of Nikola plunged

27 percent after General Mo-

tors scrapped plans to buy a

stake in the electric-truck

manufacturer and produce

its Badger pickup truck.

A new, slimmer deal main-

tains the companies’ fuel-

technology partnership but

jettisons key components of a

tie-up that thrust Nikola into

the spotlight in September,

two days before a short-seller

leveled fraud allegations

against the firm and its

founder, Trevor Milton.

“This went from a game-

changer deal for Nikola to a

good supply partnership but

nothing to write home

about,” Wedbush Securities

analyst Daniel Ives said.

The news sent Nikola’s

stock price plummeting to

$20.41 Monday.

GM said it will no longer

pay $2 billion for an 11 per-

cent equity stake in Nikola

following the fraud claims

against Milton, who has also

been accused of sexually as-

saulting two women when

they were teenagers. Nikola

has contested the fraud alle-

gations and Milton has de-

nied the assault accusations.

GM didn’t explain why it

dropped plans for the Badger

and take an equity stake in

Nikola, but company execu-

tive Doug Parks called the

deal a recognition of GM’s

“leading fuel-cell technology

expertise and development.”

Noah Manskar

China OKs Tesla Y sales

Chinese officials have

given Tesla the green light

to sell Model Y SUVs made

at its Shanghai plant once

they start rolling off the as-

sembly line.

Beijing’s Ministry of In-

dustry and Information

Technology posted the ap-

proval on its Web site Mon-

day, clearing a regulatory

hurdle for Tesla as it ex-

pands its presence in the

world’s largest market for

electric cars.

The Elon Musk-led auto-

maker has been building up

the capacity to manufacture

the Model Y at its Chinese

plant, which opened about a

year ago and is already able

to produce 250,000 Model 3

sedans annually.

Tesla expects to start de-

livering Shanghai-made

Model Y’s next year.

Separately, S&P Dow

Jones Indices will add Tesla

to its benchmark S&P 500

index all at once when it

takes the action on Dec. 21.

Noah Manskar, Wires

We see an opening!

Restaurateurs press

on amid restrictions

By jennifer gould keil

W

ELCOME to our grand

opening — and yes, we will

probably be shutting down

soon.

A handful of New York City res-

taurateurs recently have been open-

ing new eateries, even as some ad-

mit they will likely close within days

or weeks as state officials impose

fresh pandemic restrictions.

A few, meanwhile, claim they’ve

found the secret sauce — negotiat-

ing favorable rents that they say will

keep them alive during the pan-

demic and beyond.

Last Wednesday, Gray Hawk Grill,

whose executive chef, Anthony Di-

Cocco, has cooked for celebs includ-

ing Jennifer Lopez, Sir Elton John and

Mary J. Blige, opened its doors at 1556

Second Ave. on the Upper East Side.

The American-style venue, whose

go-to items will include baked clams,

butternut squash soup and filet mi-

gnon, is the culmination of a 25-year

dream for veteran restaurant man-

ager Steve Millan.

“I wasn’t going to walk away from

something that I’ve dreamt of doing

for so many years,” Millan told Side

Dish.

The pandemic caught Gray Hawk

Grill by surprise. Millan signed the

lease a week before the March lock-

down.

Then came the construction build,

which took longer than planned be-

cause of the outbreak.

“We thought 25 percent indoor-

seating capacity would lead to 50,

then 75 and 100, and now it looks like

it will go back to zero,” Millan said, re-

ferring to recent warnings from Gov.

Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio that res-

taurant closures are likely coming.

Nevertheless, Millan says that

opening now, even with limited in-

door hours and capacity, is “better

than not opening” at all. When the

clampdown on indoor dining comes,

he plans to pivot to heated outdoor

dining and delivery.

He says he hopes the landlord —

who has been understanding so far —

will work with him.

“I’m in it for the long haul,” he said,

adding that he signed a 15-year lease

with a five-year extension option.

Other restaurateurs are taking an

even bolder approach, signing leases

even after the pandemic hit.

Garry Kanfer, owner of Japanese

restaurant chain Kissaki, says he sees

COVID-19 as a short-term problem

with long-term upside.

Kissaki opened its first location on

the Bowery before the pandemic hit.

After the first lockdowns began in

March, it opened an outpost in the

Hamptons. Now it also has locations

on the Upper West Side and in Long

Island City. In January, a Kissaki will

open in Greenwich, Conn. And by

April or May, Kanfer plans to add a lo-

cation in the Financial District and

more Long Island outposts, in Man-

hasset and East Hampton.

“The idea is to have low fixed costs,

like rent,” Kanfer said. “I was able to

negotiate great rents that would

probably have been 200 percent

higher before COVID.”

Kanfer claims his business is

“COVID-proof,” from the way he de-

signed the packaging to the logistics

and “how well sushi holds and trav-

els.” His focus on the Hamptons is

paying off, he says, because when his

customers leave the city, that’s where

they tend to go.

“We were so busy the Tuesday be-

fore Thanksgiving in the Hamptons

— and all through Thanksgiving

week,” he said.

On the Upper West Side, SA Hospi-

tality Group, which operates the pop-

ular Sant Ambroeus chain, as well as

Casa Lever, is in talks to open a new

restaurant called Felice on the Upper

West Side at 240 Columbus Ave.

Le Botaniste, an organic-food and

wine-bar chain founded in Belgium,

recently opened at 156 Columbus

Ave. And PlantShed, a plant shop at

209 W. 96th St., is adding an Upper

West Side PlantShed Cafe — a “floral

cafe and retail concept” around the

corner at 725 Amsterdam Ave.

In the East Village, Temakase, a Jap-

anese handroll bar at 157 Second Ave.,

opened in October after signing a

lease pre-pandemic. Owner Liron

Michaeli has stuck with plans to open

with eight people on staff, although

the eatery can seat just five people at a

time at 25 percent capacity. A bus stop

outside precludes outdoor seating.

Negotiations with the landlord

continue.

“We decided to go forward and see

how we could do with deliveries,”

Michaeli said. “We are taking all the

steps necessary, but we probably

can’t survive a shutdown.

“Only time will tell. I just have to re-

main positive.”

Dan Herrick

Owner Steve Millan says of

opening Gray Hawk Grill

(with chef-to-the-stars

Anthony DiCocco, inset) on

the Upper East Side amid

new shutdown risks: “I’m

in it for the long haul.”

Let’s do launch