Latest / Kentucky Business News / 12.18.25

Transcript

12.18.25 · Kentucky Business News

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  Speaker 1: Hello. Today, I'll be reading from business sources in Lexington
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  and Louisville, including The Lane Report and others from around
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  the Commonwealth. A reader today is Julia Shane. As a reminder,
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  RADIOI is a reading surface intended for people who are
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  blind or who have other disabilities that make it difficult
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  to read printed material. Our first article comes from the
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  December fifteenth, twenty twenty five edition of The Lane Report
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  and is titled Young Food Trends Report reveals emotion control
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  redefining how people eat what they crave. Young Brands has
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  released its first ever trends report in collaboration with its
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  internal strategy agency, collet Or Lab. The twenty twenty six
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  Food Trends Report, What's Next in Dining uncovers the cultural
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  and consumer shifts shaping how and what people will eat
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  in twenty twenty six, offering insights on the evolving expectations
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  of modern diners. With more than sixty two thousand restaurants worldwide,
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  Yum has an unmatched view into what's happening across the
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  global food culture, making this an unprecedented inside industry look.
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  People are turning to food not just for convenience, but
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  for experiences. That give a sense of control by reflecting
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  individual tastes and moods through personalization and hands on engagement.
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  Drawing on research, behavioral insights, and learnings from Yum's four
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  iconic global brands KFC, Pizza, Hut, Taco, Bell and Habit
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  Burger and Grill, the twenty twenty six Food Trends Report
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  shows how consumers are increasingly using food to reclaim a
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  sense of agency in a fast changing world. Our global
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  footprint gives us unique visibility into the ever changing ways
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  people order and experience food, said Ken Munch, chief marketing
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  officer for Yum's Brands, Incorporated and co founder of Colder Lab.
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  The twenty twenty six Food Trends Report helps us see
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  where culture is headed and gives our brands a clearer
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  path to creating more moments of joyful, flavorful ownership for customers.
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  Below is a snapshot of three trends highlighted in the report.
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  The me Me Me economy. Consumers are reshaping dining around
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  personal expression and autonomy. Foods once meant for social gatherings
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  are being redesigned for one, reflecting a shift toward food
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  that matches individual identity and mood. It's about me even
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  when it's we There's a need for personalization and autonomy
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  even when dining with others. Personal sized pieces are outperforming
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  with gen Z and millennials, and thirty one percent of
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  custom orders are made within customer groups of two. Solo
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  dining as self care. Solo orders have grown by fifty
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  two percent since twenty twenty one, making up forty seven
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  percent of QSR dining occasions compared to thirty one percent
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  in twenty twenty one. With people opting out of group
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  meals to instead treat themselves, sixty eight percent of solo
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  diners choose not to take advantage of a deal, and
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  over half spend ten to thirty dollars plus during a visit,
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  suggesting diners are willing to pay more when dining alone,
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  satisfying a craving, validating that meals can reflect individual tastes
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  rather than the groups. Research shows that twenty four percent
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  of solo diners are out to satisfy a craving choice therapy.
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  In a world that can feel chaotic, consumers are gravitating
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  towards small sensory decisions that create moments of emotional grounding.
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  Build your own power boxes and bundles are becoming symbols
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  of control. Concepts that let consumers create their own meals
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  consistently outperform convenience led ideas Taco Bell build your own
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  taco offerings generated seventy two percent positive sentiment. Sauces as
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  emotional excitement. Sauces can be a top tool for an
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  emotional reset, with consumers saying that sauces are two point
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  four times more likely to bring excitement to the everyday
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  compared to other food items. Flavor tweaks as empowerment, whether dipping, shaking,
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  or fine tuning spice levels, small rituals are giving consumers
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  a sense of agency. At KFC, seventy one percent of
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  its top performing menu item tests had specific sauces, reinforcing
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  how influential customizable flavors have become vibe mathing As consumers
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  navigate rising costs and endless choices, they are now approaching
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  food through emotional value rather than just logic. Items that
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  feel uplifting or esthetically satisfying increasingly impact decisions as much
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  as the price tag, reflecting a shift towards what feels
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  good in the moment, Cool counts the number one attribute
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  driving momentum for quick service restaurant brands is whether a
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  brand is very cool, even out ranking whether a restaurant
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  has craveable food every day little luxuries. People are craving
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  pick me ups throughout the week, with sixty eight percent
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  of afternoon snack occasions think fries or sweet treats happening
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  on weekdays. Consumers are looking for products that deliver a
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  mood boost, with one in four young consumers aged eighteen
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  to twenty nine seeing a trip to QSR as a
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  special occasion. Drinks for dopamine. Modern beverages have emerged as
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  low stake indulgences with high emotional return. Drinks are small
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  but accessible joys, with forty three percent of specialty beverages
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  purchase stand alone without the customer buying any food. Together,
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  these three trends capture the shifting dynamics of choice, value,
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  and experience across the food landscape. The twenty twenty six
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  Food Trends Report puts Yum Brands Incorporated at the forefront
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  of the evolution. Through its global scale and coletter labs
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  Cultural Foresight, the company brings clarity to the forces shaping
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  consumer behavior and the innovations that will guide dining's next chapter.
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  Yum Brands Incorporated, based in Louisville, and its subsidiary franchise
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  operate a system of over sixty two thousand restaurants in
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  more than one hundred and fifty five countries and territories
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  under the concepts KFC, Taco, Bell, Pizza Hut, and Habit
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  Burger and Grill. The next article from the Lane report
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  is titled Ford will take sole ownership of EV battery
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  plant in Kentucky. Wall Street Journal partnership with Korea's sk
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  On reported to be ended. The Wall Street Journal reports
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  Ford Motor and sk Group are ending their joint effort
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  to produce electric vehicle batteries in the United States, with
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  Ford taking sole ownership of twin plants in Hardin County, Kentucky,
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  and sk On taking ownership of a large EV battery
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  manufacturing site that is nearing completion near Memphis, Tennessee. One
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  of the two Kentucky plants, announced as a five point
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  eight billion dollar project in twenty twenty one that was
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  referred to as the single largest business investment in state history,
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  has been completed and began limited production of EV truck
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  batteries in August. If fully built out, the Blue Oval
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  sk Park in Hardin County was slated to employee five
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  thousand and pay workers around six figures apiece. It is
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  part of the auto industry's retreat from EVS, which has
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  included the Trump administrations in da of incentives for EVS
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  and within the past week, a discontinuation of federal requirement
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  that vehicle makers meet higher average mileage standards across all vehicles.
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  Increased mileage rules are associated with policies that aim to
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  slow down climate change that President Trump has long characterized
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  as a hoax. According to The Wall Street Journal's reporting,
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  sk On, the battery division of South Korean conglomerate sk Group,
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  said it will take sole ownership of the joint venture's
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  battery plant in Tennessee and will supply batteries to Ford
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  while also produce stationary batteries for energy storage customers such
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  as utilities and data centers. The Tennessee plant is nearly
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  finished and the start of production remains flexible at this
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  time as it is tied to the ownership transition. An
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  sk ON spokesperson said. Ford posted a statement on its
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  corporate news site that said we are aware of s
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  CASECS disclosure and we have nothing further to share at
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  this time. The journal article reports Ford will take sole
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  ownership of the two side by side battery plants that
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  the joint venture built just south of Elizabethtown in Kentucky.
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  Sk On said one of those plants has been mothballed
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  with no equipment installed. The other plant began production this
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  year but is operating well below its design capacity. The
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  Ford sk partnership, called Blue Oval SK, was announced in
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  twenty twenty one with a plan to spend eleven billion
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  dollars on the plants. The Kentucky portion of the announcement
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  in twenty twenty one was presented as a five point
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  eight billion dollar investment, but the newspaper articles says the
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  second plant, just off I sixty five, is mostly an
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  empty building. Ford chief executive Jim Farley has said that
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  the company planned too much ev capacity and is pulling
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  back now that President Trump and Congress have ditched fuel
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  economy penalties and removed California's ability to set its own
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  stricter emissions rules. The next article from the Lane report
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  is titled EKU Aviation working to create public safety drone
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  monitoring concerns about flights and restricted airspace continue to grow
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  as drone usage among professionals and hobbyists becomes more common,
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  with the Federal Aviation Administration FAA reporting eight hundred twenty
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  two thousand, thirty nine drones registered as of July twenty
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  twenty five. Eastern Kentucky University is developing a public safety
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  protection program called drone Tag. Eku's Derek Paulson, dean of
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  the College of Justice, Safety and Military Science, leads drone
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  detection research to strengthen public safety research. Grants allow Paulson
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  to secure a drone tag, a device that detects and
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  identifies nearby aircraft. Paulson and Aaron Kus, assistant professor in
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  eku's School of Aviation, teamed up with students and the
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  EKU Police Department to test the device with a hands
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  on exercise in the campus space known as the Ravine.
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  The simulated event involves students spreading out across campus and
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  flying drones toward the ravine as EKU police monitored the
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  airspace with a drone tag. The exercise was considered a
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  success as EKU police could pinpoint each student's drone. This
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  project helped me gain experience operating the uas experience working
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  on communication with a visual observer and other teams, and
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  knowledge on how some counter UAS operations work. Jackson Beardsley,
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  a junior majoring in UAS from Richmond, Kentucky, said when
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  a drone unexpectedly appears near a sporting event, parade, or
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  any large crowd, it can cause safety risks, delays, or
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  even evacuations. According to the FAA, reports of unmanned aircraft
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  system UAS sidings from pilots, citizens and law enforcement remain high,
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  with more than one hundred reported each month near airports.
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  Students are actively seeing the impact of their work, said Couster.
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  They get to network with individuals, talk to the subject
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  matter experts, and they learn by doing. Paulson first recognized
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  the need for this research through long standing relationships with
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  public safety agencies, including two decades of collaboration with the
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  Lexington Police Department. As many agencies look to expand their
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  use of drones, the question remains about how they identify
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  potentially harmful aircraft. We saw an area where we can
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  provide assistance, Paulson said. These agencies don't have the time
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  or the resources to do this, and this is one
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  of those ways we can help. It's part of our
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  mission to answer the questions public safety agencies have, citing
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  an opportunity to create benefits through collaborative research, EKU President
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  David McFadden said the university's renowned programs and aviation, justice
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  and safety come together to make a real impact for Kentucky,
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  enhancing public safety and serving communities. As the only university
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  based flight school in the state, EKU Aviation is on
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  the cusp of innovation with our UAS program and in
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  advancing solutions with emerging fields, McFadden said. Paulson says the
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  next phase of research involves putting the drone tech through
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  more hands on exercises and partnering with more agencies, including
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  both the Lexington and University of Kentucky Police departments. The
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  team will then share the results with agencies with the
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  end goal of creating safer communities. Eku's Bachelor of Science
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  and Aviation, the only program of its kind in Kentucky,
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  offers concentrations in aerospace management, aerospace technology, professional flight, and UAS,
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  giving students hands on experience that prepares them for a
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  wide range of career opportunities. Our next article comes from
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  the December sixteenth, twenty twenty five edition of Here Lexington
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  and is titled small Businesses in Lexington Prepare for Holiday Season.
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  Small businesses in Lexington are gearing up for the twenty
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  twenty five holiday season, focusing on adapting to evolving consumer
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  behaviors and economic challenges to maximize sales and customer engagement.
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  Key trends shaping the twenty twenty five holiday season early
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  holiday shopping. Consumers are initiating their holiday shopping earlier than
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  in previous years, with many beginning as early as September.
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  This shift is driven by a desire to avoid last
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  minute stress and secure desired products before they sell out.
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  Small businesses are advised to prepare inventory and marketing campaigns
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  ahead of time to capitalize on this extended shopping period.
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  Emphasis on personalization and AI integration Artificial intelligence AI is
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  playing a significant role in enhancing customer experiences. Small businesses
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  are leveraging AI for personalized product recommendations, tailored content delivery,
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  and efficient customer support through AI powered chatbots. This technology
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  helps create intuitive shopping experiences that resonate with customers. Social
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  commerce and mobile shopping social media platforms are increasingly becoming
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  direct sales channels with integrated shopping features facilitating real time purchases. Additionally,
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  mobile commerce continues to dominate, with a significant number of
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  consumers using smartphones to browse and buy gifts. Small businesses
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  should optimize their online presence and ensure mobile friendly websites
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  to meet these consumer preferences. Sustainability and eco conscious practices.
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  Consumers are prioritizing sustainability, favoring brands that adopt eco friendly
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  practices such as ethical sourcing and minimal packaging. Small businesses
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  can appeal to this demographic by highlighting their commitment to
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  environmental responsibility in their marketing efforts. Flexible and efficient fulfillment.
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  With rising expectations for fast and convenient delivery, small businesses
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  are adopting strategies like same day and next day shipping,
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  as well as offering in store pickup options. Implementing efficient
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  fulfillment processes is crucial to meeting customer demands and maintaining satisfaction.
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  Focus on customer retention building a long term customer relationship
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  is becoming more important than one time sales. Small businesses
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  are focusing on loyalty programs, personalized incentives, and exceptional customer
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  service to encourage repeat business and foster brand loyalty, economic considerations,
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  and consumer behavior. Despite a positive outlook, small businesses face
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  challenges such as rising costs, staffing issues, and economic uncertainties.
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  A recent survey indicates that small business confidence is at
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  its second lowest levels since tracking began, reflecting concerns about
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  sales expectations and operational hurdles. Consumers are also navigating economic pressures,
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  with many expressing concerns about rising costs and seeking bargains.
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  This trend underscores the importance for small businesses to offer
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  competitive pricing and value driven promotions to attract cost conscious shoppers.
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  Strategies for small businesses in Lexington optimize online presence, ensure
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  websites are mobile friendly, and optimize for AI driven search
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  results to capture early shoppers and those using AI tools
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  for gift research. Leverage social media. Utilize social commerce features
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  on platforms like Instagram and TikTok to engage with customers
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  and drive sales directly through social media channels. Highlight sustainability.
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  Communicate eco friendly practices and products to appeal to environmentally
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  conscious consumers. Enhance fulfillment options. Offer flexible shipping and delivery methods,
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  including expedited shipping and local delivery to meet customer expectations
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  for convenience, Implement loyalty programs, develop programs that reward repeat customers,
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  and encourage referrals to build a loyal customer base. By
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  embracing these trends and strategies, small businesses in Lexington can
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  navigate the complexities of the twenty twenty five holiday season,
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  fostering growth and strengthening their presence in the community. The
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  next article from here Lexington is titled Going Blue LLC
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  receives approval for medical cannabis operations in Jessamine County. The
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  Kentucky Office of Medical Cannabis has granted approval to Going
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  Blue LLC, a significant medical marijuana cultivator, to operate in
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  Jessamine County. This decision marks a pivotal development in the
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  state's medical cannabis industry, which is set to commence on
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  January one. Of twenty twenty six approval details. Going Blue LLC,
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  a Tier two cultivator, is authorized to cultivate up to
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  ten thousand square feet of medical cannabis. The company, led
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  by Lexington attorney Matthew Going, initially received its license for
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  Fayette County, but successfully petitioned to relocate its operations to
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  Jessamine County in December of twenty twenty four. This move
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  aligns with the state strategic distribution of cultivation facilities to
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  meet anticipated demand regulatory framework. Under Kentucky's Medical Cannabis Program,
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  cultivators are categorized into four tiers based on cultivation area size.
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  Tier two cultivators like Going Blue LLC, are permitted to
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  operate on cultivation areas up to ten thousand square feet.
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  The program stipulates that cultivation facilities must be situated at
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  least one thousand feet away from elementary schools, secondary schools,
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  or daycare centers to ensure community safety in compliance with
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  zoning laws. Applicants are responsible for verifying that their proposal
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  locations meet these requires aairements. Industry impact, the approval of
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  Going Blue LLC's operations in Jessmin County is expected to
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  significantly contribute to Kentucky's medical cannabis supply chain As the
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  state prepares for the launch of its medical cannabis program.
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  The establishment of cultivation facilities is crucial to ensure product
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  availability for registered patients. The program's regulations, including restrictions on
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  smoking and home cultivation aim to promote safe and responsible
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  use of medical cannabis background. In March of twenty twenty three,
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  Kentucky Senate Bill forty seven legalized medical cannabis in the state,
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  with provisions taking effect on January one, twenty twenty five.
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  The legislation established a framework for medical cannabis cultivation, processing,
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  and distribution, including licensing procedures and operational guidelines. The Vikie
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  Center for Cannabis Research, established in April of twenty twenty two,
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  plays a role in advancing the study of cannabis use
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  for medical treatments and contributes to the state's regulatory process.
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  Looking ahead, as Kentucky's medical cannabis program approaches its launch date,
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  stakeholders anticipate further developments and cultivation, processing, and distribution sectors.
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  The state's regulatory bodies continue to monitor and adjust policies
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  to ensure the program's success and compliance with legal standards.
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  The approval of Going Blue LLC's operations in Jessmin County
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  represents a significant step toward the realization of Kentucky's medical
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  cannabis industry. Our next article comes from the December sixteenth,
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  twenty twenty five edition of Louisville Business First and is
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  titled Gravely Brewing's New lou Opening is Set, written by
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  Zach Owens. Gravely Brewing Company will open its new Louisville
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  tapers this week, completing a month's long transition of its
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  public facing operations from Phoenix Hill to East Main Street.
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  The Louisville bas brewery announced the space will open Friday,
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  December nineteen at nine zero five East Main Street, inside
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  a ten thousand square foot redevelopment spanning nine zero one
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  and nine zero five East Main Street at the corner
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  of Maine and Campbell Streets. The move follows the November
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  twenty ninth closure of Gravely's Baxter Avenue tap room, where
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  the brewery launched in twenty seventeen. Gravely first announced plans
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  for the relocation in May, citing the need for a
• 23:39
  more efficient and updated tap room experience. While the tap
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  room has moved, all beer production will continue at the
• 23:46
  company's original five to one four Baxter Avenue facility. Eight
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  years in brewery years is a long time, and sometimes
• 23:54
  an old dog needs to learn new tricks. Founder and
• 23:58
  president Nathaniel Gravely said innis statement. This next chapter of
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  Gravely brewing is as much an evolution as it is
• 24:06
  a great opportunity to embrace Louisvillians in the area of
• 24:10
  town we love. The new lou location will serve as
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  Gravely's flagship and only tap room. The space was designed
• 24:17
  by Brooklyn based Sweatshop Studio, which also conceived the brewery's
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  original Wall of Sound concept, and includes a redesigned layout
• 24:27
  with increased natural light and a more streamlined customer flow.
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  Food service at the new tap room comes from Iliana's
• 24:35
  Honduran Cafe, which previously operated inside Gravely's Baxter Avenue location.
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  In announcing the opening, the company acknowledged broader challenges facing
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  the alcohol industry, but positioned the move as a strategic
• 24:50
  investment in hospitality and experience. Although alcohol is in a
• 24:55
  historically strange spot, we believe that delicious product, strong s service,
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  and an inviting atmosphere that caters to community are differentiators
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  in the craft beer industry, Gravely said in the release.
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  Gravely Brewing is Louisville's third largest brewery by volume, producing
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  twenty five hundred barrels of beer in twenty twenty four.
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  According to Louisville Business First Research. The company has said
• 25:21
  it intends to explore future gravely related uses for the
• 25:25
  Baxter Avenue property. The new Low Tap room is open
• 25:29
  Mondays through Thursdays from three pm to ten pm, Fridays
• 25:32
  from three pm to midnight, Saturdays from eleven am to midnight,
• 25:37
  and Sundays from eleven am to nine pm. The next
• 25:41
  article from Louisville Business First is titled Anthrow Energy to
• 25:45
  invest forty two million dollars in Louisville electrolyte facility, create
• 25:50
  one hundred ten jobs, written by Joel Stennentt. New details
• 25:56
  have been announced about a project that could boost Kentucky's
• 25:59
  manufacturing boom. San Jose, California based Anthrow Energy will invest
• 26:05
  forty two million dollars to establish an advanced electrolyte production
• 26:08
  facility in Louisville, creating one hundred and ten jobs. According
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  to a news release, it will be the first large scale,
• 26:16
  US owned and operated electrolyte facility of its kind. According
• 26:21
  to the release, Kentucky's manufacturing industry is setting the pace
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  of our historic economic momentum. Kentucky Governor Andy Basheer said
• 26:29
  in the release, we continue to see quality companies such
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  as Anthrow choose to expand and do business here in
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  the Commonwealth and create hundreds of great jobs along the way.
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  The update comes one year after Anthro announced plans to
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  bring a facility to Louisville. Thanks to a twenty four
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  point nine million dollar grant from the US Department of
• 26:51
  Energy's Office of Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains. ANTHROW Energy
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  plans to invest seventy million dollars in the new lul facility.
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  David macinnick, CEO of Anthrow, emailed Louisville Business First with
• 27:06
  the clarifying statement noting that the seventy million dollar figure
• 27:10
  was not certained and there was ongoing negotiation with the
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  US Department of Energy. It is not clear why the
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  two investment numbers are now different. Anthrow did not immediately
• 27:20
  respond to a request for comment for this story. The
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  new facility is expected to produce twelve thousand metric tons
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  of advanced electrolyte each year, to be used in lithium
• 27:31
  ion batteries for electric vehicles, defense, and consumer electronics. The
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  one hundred ten jobs created by the facility will include
• 27:40
  production manufacturing technicians, process and control engineers, facility managers, accounting roles,
• 27:48
  and maintenance in warehouse technicians. Anthrow's expansion in Louisville continues
• 27:54
  recent growth in the sector thanks to a location that
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  puts the city within a day's drive of two thirds
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  of the United Slime States. This concludes the reading of
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  the most recent business news in Lexington, Louisville, and around
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  the state. Your reader today has been Julia Shame. If
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  you have any questions or comments about this program, please
• 28:12
  give our Lexington studios a call at eight five nine
• 28:16
  four two two six three nine zero. Thanks for listening,
• 28:20
  and now please stay tuned for readings from the Kentucky
• 28:22
  series here on Radio I