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The Danger of False Normalcy — Market Mad House
The world faces the danger of false normalcy as the COVID-19 pandemic ends.
False normalcy is the delusion that everything will return to normal fast after catastrophic change or massive disruption. People succumb to false normalcy because it is simple and comfortable.
An example of false normalcy is the belief that everybody will start going to the movies or shopping at the mall again when they make a coronavirus vaccine available. The reality, however, is that some people will return to the mall and the movie theater and others will not.
Yes, some shopping malls and movie theaters will survive coronavirus. Conversely, COVID-19 will kill some malls and movie theaters. Remember, many malls and movie theaters were dying long before coronavirus.
For instance, Statista estimates the number of movie theaters in America fell from 7,744 in 1995 to 6,100 in 2005 to 5,798 in 2020. Similarly, Coresight projects that 25% of America’s 1,000 malls will close by 2025.
My prediction is that healthy malls and movie theaters will recover from the pandemic. However, unhealthy malls and movie theaters will die faster or never reopen.
