Kickstart: A slowdown in staycation spending?

Throughout the pandemic, there has been a strong sales base for anything related to the home: decks, kitchen renovations, pools and other things that people could enjoy without leaving their bubble.

But there is one significant sign that the staycation economy may be slowing down. Peloton Interactive Inc., the New York-based maker of high-end home training bikes and treadmills, reported Nov. 5 that its sales dropped 17 percent for the July-September period vs. the same period in 2020.

"Gyms are available. People can get out of their house now — they're not locked down," Peloton CEO John Foley said during a conference call with analysts, our sister paper Crain's New York Business writes. "We knew that we weren't going to see those crazy elevated COVID engagement numbers forever."

Peloton lost $376 million for the quarter, compared with a $70 million profit during the same period last year, CNYB reported.

It's too early to say that it's a trend, of course. Some of the lower sales can be attributed to a price cut for some Peloton models, while supply chain shortages that slowed delivery times also may have an impact. But it's worth keeping a cautious eye out if other staycation success stories are impacted.

"It is clear that we underestimated the reopening impact on our company and the overall industry," Chief Financial Officer Jill Woodworth said in the call with analysts.

The materials mergers and acquisitions landscape is getting busy with some unexpected sales. DuPont Co., the company that created nylons, announced last week that it wants to sell its nylon business as it buys Rogers Corp.

And now Trinseo SA wants to sell its polystyrene business along with its 50 percent share in Americas Styrenics.

Frank Esposito has been following these stories and noted that analysts believe that for DuPont, the sale of a solid nylon business gives it a chance to grab a bigger market slice of a future technology.

Phil Karig of Mathelin Bay Associates, said DuPont "essentially is trading their long-standing and groundbreaking nylon business and others for what is looking like a safe bet on the transition away from internal combustion engines and associated auto parts for transportation."

Trinseo, meanwhile, is seeking to sell off its PS while it has been investing in acrylic sheet, latex binders and materials like ABS and polycarbonate.

"We will continue to prioritize investments in higher growth, higher margin and lower earnings volatility areas … with an ongoing focus on sustainability," CEO Frank Bozich said.

After multiple pandemic-related postponements, the Plastics Recycling Show Europe finally took place last weekend, giving the industry a chance to salute award winners as it gathered.

Sustainable Plastics has a rundown of all the winners, but here's a look at one example. Norwegian office furniture maker Flokk, based in Oslo, took plastic markers used along roadways to mark the path for snowplows and converted the polypropylene into the limited edition HÅG Capisco Puls chair.

Flokk worked with Norwegian research group Sintef to find a way to convert the markers into a high-end desired product. The chair's auburn hue was the result of the orange markers' color in the waste stream.

"HÅG hopes that all plastics — and many other materials — in all products will eventually be made of post-consumer material," said Christian E. Lodgaard, senior vice president of product and brands at Flokk, in a news release. "Our chairs will withstand a long lifetime of heavy use and enhance the health of workers all around the world, then after use, they can be recycled again. This is our circular design ambition."

Flokk has secured a steady supply of the markers and is planning more production.