The coronavirus pandemic is driving holiday shoppers in the U.S. online — and they’re expected to spend a record $12.7 billion on Cyber Monday. Crain’s Chicago Business reporter Danny Ecker has details.

Black Friday online sales hit a new record this year as pandemic-wary Americans filled virtual carts instead of real ones.

After an unprecedented year, we take a hard look at the pandemic-ravaged economy, as businesses gear up for the all-important holiday retail season. 

As 2020 comes to a close, the events of this unprecedented year have devastated Chicago’s small businesses. Why it’s more important than ever to support neighborhood shops.

“Black Friday has been around for a long time, but what has been missing is the Blackness,” said the creators of the program, which encourages people to support Black-owned businesses in Chicago this holiday season.

How the local business Blossom Inspirations is building bridges between American and Latino cultures through artisan crafts.

Demand for toilet paper has been so high during the pandemic that in order to keep their shelves stocked, retailers are buying up foreign toilet paper brands, mostly from Mexico.

There’s a very real anxiety that Chicago’s main shopping districts are on the precipice of falling apart. And without the revenue generated from those areas, the city faces a potentially disastrous fiscal future.

A flood of farmers markets are getting ready to open, but visitors should expect a different experience in 2020. For starters, there will be no picking through produce and dawdling will be discouraged. 

It was the first neighborhood to feel the economic impact of COVID-19. Months later, on the eve of the city’s move into phase four, the enduring message is that Chinatown is still here, and it is open for business.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Monday that Chicago will move into phase four of its reopening plan Friday, along with the rest of the state, but continued to hammer home her themes of vigilance and caution.

Like many other commercial corridors across the city, Milwaukee Avenue suffered extensive damage just as businesses were about to start welcoming shoppers inside once again.

With consumers seeking personal protective equipment and companionship amid the coronavirus pandemic, the Better Business Bureau is reporting a surge in scams for fake masks, gloves and even puppies.

What to do with groceries has been the source of much debate. But the amount of the virus that survives on surfaces is a tiny fraction of the original material, experts say. 

Masks are now mandatory in a handful of states, but Gov. J.B. Pritzker has not yet followed suit in Illinois. He does, however, recommend that shoppers should “absolutely” wipe down anything they buy from stores.

How much food should you be buying per trip? How to draw the line between hoarding and stocking up? A Chicago dietitian shares her advice for grocery shopping during the pandemic.