This time last year, we took a look at some of the big-name businesses that were facing a particularly trying 2021. With the COVID-19 pandemic still raging 12 months later, some have seen a jaw-dropping turnaround in their fortunes, others have had little luck – and one major player has gone totally out of business. Read on to discover which businesses have fought back, and which have floundered. Share prices correct as of 10 December 2021.
The world's largest cinema chain has been on a rollercoaster ride this year, almost worthy of its very own blockbuster action movie. Back in early January, AMC's cinemas were shuttered due to the pandemic, and the firm was left reeling after Warner Bros.' decision to stream its entire 2021 film schedule on HBO Max. As AMC desperately scrambled to borrow money to keep the business afloat, its share price plunged to a record low of $1.91. But then something remarkable happened...
Mobilised as a result of corporate investors short-selling the firm's stock, small-scale retail investors who congregate on the likes of social media network Reddit's r/wallstreetbets made AMC one of their so-called 'meme stock' darlings. Calling themselves the 'Ape Army', they bought AMC by the bucketload. This, coupled with the reopening of cinemas, pushed the share price to an all-time high, peaking at $72.62 in early June. The buoyant price has allowed the firm to borrow more money, ensuring its survival, and while the stock has since fallen back, it's nonetheless up 1,335% since January, with AMC's future looking much brighter.
At the start of 2021, the pandemic-ravaged low-cost airline Norwegian Air Shuttle (better known just as 'Norweigan') was on life support. Aid from the Norwegian government had dried up, legions of employees had been laid off, and the company had sought bankruptcy protection in Ireland where most of its fleet was held. The Oslo-based business was operating a skeleton service, mainly within Norway, and had also embarked on an ambitious restructuring programme.
In mid-January, Norwegian axed its long-haul services, and the following month saw the ailing company cancel an order for 88 aircraft. Further staff cuts followed and the firm exited bankruptcy protection in May. Since then, its fortunes have been improving, although the airline is much slimmed-down. Be that as it may, following a 68% rise in revenues for Q3 of this year, Norwegian is in the process of scaling up as demand for air travel bounces back (Omicron permitting, of course). However, its share price remains in the doldrums.
JCPenney, which had been on death's door even before the pandemic wrought havoc on bricks and mortar retail, kicked off 2021 under new ownership, having emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy as a smaller and more streamlined operation. The department store chain had been purchased by Brookfield Asset Management and Simon Property Group in September 2020 for around $800 million (£603m). By the end of March, interim CEO Stanley Shashoua expressed optimism about the future of the US department store chain, citing week-on-week improvements in the business.
That said, the chain's recovery remains a work in progress, and the closure of a further two stores was announced in September, bringing the total number of stores still open to 671, down from 846 stores before the pandemic. Still, the new owners are going all out to make the chain a success, introducing everything from an innovative inclusive beauty concept to AI technology. Plus, October saw the brand hire a stellar permanent CEO in the form of Marc Rosen, the former Levi's executive and e-commerce expert, who will hopefully work wonders to turn the business around.
With fitness fanatics forced to workout at home, the pandemic precipitated the collapse of a slew of the world's best-known gym chains, including 24 Hour Fitness and Gold's Gym. Like other key players in the industry, California-based LA Fitness had an appalling 2020. Up to its eyeballs in debt, the out-of-shape chain bagged a $300 million (£226m) government loan to help address a staggering debt load of $1.7 billion (£1.28bn).
Thankfully, 2021 has been a much better year for the business. While details of the privately held company's current debt levels have been kept under wraps, it looks like the firm is well on its way to recovery. It has been busily expanding and mopping up the struggling competitors: the chain has opened new gyms and recently acquired 171 Bally Total Fitness Clubs across 16 states, as well as in the District of Columbia. Be that as it may, the spread of the Omicron variant could end up stalling the company's comeback once more.
In summer 2020, Virgin Atlantic filed for Chapter 15 bankruptcy. It also let go of a large chunk of its workforce and sold off aircraft in a bid to keep the company above water, while founder Sir Richard Branson went to the British government to seek financial aid for airlines, only for his pleas to go unanswered. The collapse of the airline, which lost over $862 million (£650m) last year, was however averted thanks to a $1.6 billion (£1.2bn) rescue package courtesy of owners and lenders.
Branson sold off shares in his space tourism company Virgin Galactic to prop up the business, and attempted to take the airline public this year. However, he has since opted to delay plans for an IPO until early 2022. Following the resumption of transatlantic flights in early November, the airline has reported booming sales for the Thanksgiving and Christmas periods. However, it still isn't entirely out of the woods, with Branson and part-owner Delta raising a fresh $530 million (£400m) cash injection to see it through the winter.
Last year, NPC International, one of America's largest fast food franchising firms and restaurant operators, encountered what CNN described as a "perfect storm of problems". Issues ranged from coronavirus-induced shutdowns and enormous debts to rising costs of labour and food. Combined, these led to the Wendy's and Pizza Hut franchisee's bankruptcy in July 2020.
The company, which was founded in 1962, closed 300 of its 1,200 Pizza Hut locations in a bid to help stave off total collapse. However, it ended up selling the entirety of its business to its rival franchise operator Flynn Restaurant Group for $816 million (£615m). The sale was completed in March and the 59-year-old firm was no more, making it one of the many corporate casualties of the pandemic.
Like its fellow US department store chain JCPenney, Sears has been fighting to survive amid the ongoing bricks and mortar retail apocalypse, with the struggle only intensifying during the pandemic. Last year, analysts warned that the historic chain could go bankrupt for a second time, but their fears haven't come to pass yet.
Nevertheless, Sears has closed significant numbers of its stores throughout 2021. Factoring in recent closures, there are just 21 full-line stores remaining in mainland America as of December, as well as seven other branded stores that sell a limited product range. Two stores in Puerto Rico also remain open. This is a shocking figure given that the chain operated in over 3,000 locations at its peak. While the retailer has survived, it has done so by the skin of its teeth and is arguably now a shadow of its former self.
Carnival, right now the world's largest travel leisure business, resumed operations in July, with two cruises departing from Miami and Texas following 16 torturous months that saw its ships held in ports. At the current time, 15 of the company's fleet are operating, including the new billion-dollar Mardi Gras, the firm's largest-ever ship, which features a theme park and the opulent-sounding French Quarter Zone.
Still, the company is bleeding cash, having trebled its debt over the past couple of years. Additionally, its share price, which was trending up during the first half of the year before falling and then recovering, is spiralling down yet again as the spread of the Omicron variant puts its recovery into doubt. This is in spite of a strong booking sheet for the latter half of 2022.
Last year saw Hudson's Bay, the oldest company in North America and Canada's leading department store chain, falter as its shops were shuttered due to the pandemic. The situation got so bad that the company stopped paying rent on various branches, including in Ontario and Quebec. However, things appear to be looking up for the venerable firm, which insists it's doing just fine: debt levels are the lowest they've been for five years and growth is in the double digits.
Earlier this year, the company split itself in two, creating a distinction between its physical department stores and its online platform. The bricks-and-mortar Hudson's Bay stores are now “discovery destinations” that are geared towards pushing traffic to the website, which has been rebranded to The Bay. Analysts have questioned the move, saying it could confuse customers. However, separating the business into two has the advantage of raising the valuation of the e-commerce arm, which could in turn help to attract investors.
German travel firm TUI has relied on three gargantuan government bailouts, and has had to close numerous retail stores and make significant staffing cuts to get it through the pandemic. Although the outlook for the business looks better now compared to this time last year, the firm still has a long way to go before it fully recovers from the disruption caused by COVID-19.
This is mirrored in the company's share price, which has seen lacklustre growth throughout 2021. Significantly, it took a tumble in early December after the Hanover-based business warned investors that the Omicron variant could slow its recovery. TUI was expecting capacity to hit 80% of pre-pandemic volumes this winter. It's now said that the figure could now be as low as 60% “if current sentiment prevails” and the impact of the variant hurts bookings.
This year has seen the troubled WeWork go all-out in a bid to slash its costs and save money. The shared workspace provider has left over a dozen of its buildings and renegotiated leasings on many more. The company finally went public in October this year via a merger with a special-purpose acquisition company or SPAC. While its first set of quarterly results as a public firm showed an improvement in net losses compared to the same period last year, its revenue was still $150 million (£113.2m) down.
The working from home revolution, which the pandemic has rapidly accelerated, is something of a double-edged sword for WeWork. While the overall demand for office space has declined, the rise of flexible working has opened up new opportunities, which the business is pinning its future on since it can offer shorter-term leases that are more adaptable than those from traditional providers. In fact, with occupancy rates projected to pick up, WeWork expects to turn a profit in the first half of 2022 based on one financial indicator.
Barnes & Noble, America's largest bookstore chain, suffered during the lockdowns of 2020 as it relies heavily on in-store transactions rather than online sales. Bizarrely, however, COVID-19 has actually turned out to be a blessing of sorts for the bookseller. The pandemic is fuelling a boom in print books, particularly among tweens and teenagers, who are descending on the firm's stores in their droves. Some stores have reported sales growth of up to 500%.
Barnes & Noble's management has been working diligently to reposition itself as an indie-style, local-focused brand. The 125-year-old business has been empowering its individual stores to stock their shelves with titles that appeal to the tastes of their particular customers and this, combined with the print book craze, has helped drive significant growth compared to 2019.
This time last year, we reported that Bayer's 2018 acquisition of controversial agrochemical firm Monsanto was continuing to be a millstone around its neck – and the purchase is still dogging the German pharmaceuticals company. The lawsuits around Roundup, the glyphosate-based Monsanto weedkiller, are still dragging on, although an end could finally be in sight.
Bayer has won two Roundup-related lawsuits this year and is hopeful that the US Supreme Court will consider one of the outstanding cases, which could effectively end all litigation surrounding the weedkiller and provide a boost to the company's stock. It has almost halved in value since the firm acquired Monsanto, and has been trending down all year, with the current price 5.5% lower than it was at the start of January.
And it doesn't end there. According to recent reports, Bayer is now facing a billion-dollar investor class action lawsuit in Germany, with over 250 investors believing the company misled them over the acquisition of Monsanto.
Having plunged to an all-time low in June 2020, Kraft Heinz's share price was on the rise until June of this year, when it began to decrease again. Top among the reasons for the poor stock performance is the rampant inflation of food prices, which has eaten into the company's profit margins. The firm is responding by passing on some of the increased costs to customers to protect profitability. However, this runs the risk of alienating a significant number of customers, who may not be willing to pay more for their mac-and-cheese or ketchup.
Despite the firm's ambitious turnaround plan, which is ongoing and involves everything from dropping less popular products to reinvesting in its big sellers, it's unlikely the stock will recover in any meaningful way until inflation is reined in. Related issues, such as supply chain problems and labour shortages, will also need to be alleviated. Frustratingly, however, these are headwinds that are likely to continue blowing for some time.
The UK-based sandwich chain Pret a Manger was understandably hit hard by the pandemic last year. Why? Because much of its core customer base – the office staff who would flock to its branches for their morning coffees and lunchtime treats – worked from home and stayed away. The firm responded by shedding jobs, closing underperforming locations, introducing a loyalty programme, and expanding its delivery services to feed the home-based masses.
The lifting of coronavirus restrictions in the UK (Pret's biggest market) in July sparked the chain's recovery and, at the end of November, sales in the country rose above their pre-pandemic levels for the first time. However, Omicron has pushed them back down again and sales in other important markets, such as the US, are still well below their pre-COVID levels. Still, the firm has landed a £100 million ($132.5m) investment and is aiming to double global revenue by 2026.
Now discover the people who were forced out of the companies they founded