Mainebiz

W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 13 JA N UA R Y 1 1 , 2 0 2 1 F O C U S 2 0 2 1 E C O N O M I C F O R E C A S T Looking back now, she says, "Cornerstone had a perfectly fine year from a business perspective and added more clients. e market drop pro- vided great tax planning opportuni- ties for clients, and we were very busy trading in portfolios." In 2021, she says the boutique firm she runs with Jill Boynton antici- pates continued growth and expects to keep busy: "While politics, the virus and massive unemployment make for uncertainty all over, the fact is that people need guidance with their money, their planning and their investments." Cornerstone has grown to a team of eight after adding a certified financial planner in Portland, with plans to add another in Portsmouth, N.H. Veligor predicts that remote working is here to stay, and that Cornerstone's financial planners will continue to work from home on occasion "even when the world is safe again." H O S P I TA L I T Y Workforce still matters B y M a u r e e n M i l l i k e n A year ago, Steve Hewins, CEO of HospitalityMaine, planned to launch workforce initiatives rang- ing from apprenticeship programs to English training for New Americans. But those plans gave way to trying to save the industry's hundreds of pandemic-crushed small businesses. "Workforce education is still critical, but the need has dramatically changed," Hewins says. "We now have to prepare workers for the new hospitality economy that will be a lot different than what got us to this point. " e biggest challenge is rebuild- ing the industry, which lost 30,000 jobs, he says. at will happen under someone else, though. Hewins has a new role, head of HospitalityMaine Educational Foundation, where he'll focus on workforce issues. ere's reason for optimism. Maine will come back quickly, he says. "And the pandemic has helped show the impor- tance of restaurants and hotels to the state's economy, and that the public truly values this industry." L O B S T E R A major shift in who is buying lobster B y L a u r i e S c h r e i b e r A year ago, Maine Lobstermen's Association President Kristan Porter was optimistic about the lobster industry's prospects for 2020. He pre- dicted the catch might go down a bit as the fishery emerged from a series of record catches — but prices would likely remain strong due to continued demand. Maine's 2020 landings haven't been tabulated yet. But even considering the impact of the pandemic — lost sales to restaurants, food service suppliers and the export market — Porter expects they will be about the same as 2019. e opti- mism is thanks to a shift to the home cooks buying more lobster. "As far as value, I think we'll probably be down," he says. "e price did rebound toward the end of the season, but for the beginning of the season and through some of the summer, it was 20% to 30% lower than the previous year." Early in the season, harvesting activ- ity was lower than usual as lobstermen waited to see what the market would do. "When the market started picking up, people saw there was a price where they could make a living," he says. For 2021? Porter said the hope is that, when traditional markets reopen, the retail home-cook market will remain strong and add more demand overall. F I L E P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y C O R N E R S T O N E F I N A N C I A L P L A N N I N G F I L E P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y B I L L K I T C H E N The market drop provided great tax planning opportunities for clients, and we were very busy trading in portfolios. — Susan Veligor Cornerstone Financial Planning Susan Veligor, principal at Cornerstone Financial Planning. Maine Lobstermen's Association's president, Kristan Porter

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