Seasonalities Greetings

To all the "Why I Would Never Read an Economics Blog" fans, our time together is coming to an end. Perhaps it was the curious title of this blog or maybe your passionate interest in the field of economics that lead you to this temple of knowledge and excitement. At any rate, we must get on with these final economic words of wisdom. 

A beach. Photo

As summer approaches, most of us can't help but think about the warm beach days and times spent drinking a refreshing smoothie of some sort. Or maybe you're an avid boardwalk-goer who dreams of playing the impossible games and fried Oreos. Whatever your ideal summer looks like, chances are you will spend time at the beach and inevitably consume various goods. 

The simple fact is that without the thousands of businesses in every shore town, we wouldn't have our fried Oreos or mango pineapple smoothies. And as the summer season approaches, these businesses are doing everything they can to ensure the maximum amount of revenue for the crucial months when the coastal population swells. 

These businesses ultimately understand the concept of seasonality, which Investopedia defines as "the periodic fluctuations in certain brines areas that occur regularly based on a particular season," such as summer. This means that businesses will have to shut down for part of the year because they are not able to cover their variable costs. 

Yum. Photo

One of my favorite places to go when I was lifeguard at the beach was Sam's Pizza in Wildwood, NJ. Many claim to have the "best pizza in the world," but this unassuming establishment may actually take the title. Anyway, out of curiosity I looked up how much revenue they take in during their peak months of operation, and I found that number to be approximately $730,000. They also had around 15 employees. Pretty crazy to think about. 

During the winter, Sam's and many other business are forced to close. But the money they make in the summer must enough to cover the fixed costs of renting or paying for their property. 

This concept of seasonality also applies to businesses like Wal-Mart and Best Buy, as Investopedia points out, who may hire tens of thousands of temporary workers in response to the increased demand. And I bet the stores need all the help they can get to deal with the borderline roots that occur on days like Black Friday. This is just extra proof of how influential seasonality is on the labor market. Fun stuff!!!

Ahhh, so that's why they need extra workers. Photo

If you're a normal person, chances are as you're sitting on the beach this summer you won't be thinking of seasonality. But maybe when you buy your smoothie you'll think, "Hey, this reminds me of seasonality." Wow. That was cringe-worthy, so I'm going to end the blog here. Happy summer.