State of the Consumer: Is Discretionary Spending Going Away?

Michelle Meyer is Mastercard’s chief economist and head of the Mastercard Economics Institute, a macro-economic think tank, enabling deeper and meaningful engagements with customers, partners, and policymakers. In this role, Meyer and her team are responsible for developing and delivering differentiated economic, financial, policy and market thought leadership globally for customers and Mastercard. Meyer oversees a team of economists, data scientists, visual artists and storytellers to develop public and proprietary economic reporting derived from Mastercard’s global network and proven external data sources.

Meyer joined Mastercard in 2022 as chief economist for North America, providing targeted insights and expertise for customers and businesses across segments in the region. Prior to joining Mastercard, Meyer was the head of U.S. Economics at Bank of America Global Research and was senior U.S. economist at Barclays Capital, experience that positions her strongly in this new role.

Mike Campellone is a senior credit analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. Mr. Campellone specializes in both investment grade and high yield consumer retail issuers.

He previously covered the media, broadcast and internet media sectors for Bloomberg Intelligence. Prior to Bloomberg Intelligence, he conducted capital structure research. Mr. Campellone graduated from The Johns Hopkins University with a Bachelor of Arts.

Julie Hung is a senior credit analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence specializing in consumer products, food, beverage and tobacco companies.

She has covered a range of industries across both high grade and high yield.  Prior to joining Bloomberg, she was a senior credit analyst at Bank of New York Mellon, covering pharmaceuticals, retail, consumers and oil & gas.  Previously, Julie worked at Citigroup and BNP Paribas.

Julie earned her Master of Business Administration in finance from New York University’s Stern School of Business and a Bachelor of Science degree from Cornell University.

Jody K. Lurie is a Senior Credit Analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. She covers companies the leisure, lodging, gaming, restaurant and rental car sectors, and her work is accessible to Bloomberg Terminal users. Jody received Bloomberg Intelligence’s 2Q 2021 Franchise of the Quarter award. Prior to joining Bloomberg, Jody worked in various roles at Janney Montgomery Scott in Investment Banking, Fixed Income Strategy & Research, and Portfolio Strategy. Prior to joining Janney, Jody worked at Citigroup-Smith Barney.

Jody has been quoted by most major news outlets, and is a sought-after speaker at events and on the air. In May 2016, she testified before the US Senate Finance Committee during the hearing “Debt versus Equity: Corporate Integration Considerations.” Jody is a 2018 recipient of the Philadelphia Business Journal’s Women of Distinction: Rising Star award. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charterholder and a member of the CFA Society of Philadelphia. She graduated magna cum laude from Bryn Mawr College, with degrees in Economics and Mathematics (with honors).

As a member of the Applied Data team at Bloomberg Second Measure, Andrew creates and distributes case studies on how to use alternative data sources in investment research workflows and helps clients interpret and apply that data to their own workflow.

Prior to joining Bloomberg, Andrew worked in a similar role at Earnest Analytics after the company acquired his startup Alpha Hat. Prior to getting into alternative data, Andrew was an equity research analyst at Evercore ISI, covering TMT companies. He holds a BA in Economics and Philosophy from Columbia University.

Frank Trentacoste is an Equity Market Specialist at Bloomberg based in New York. Frank brings a broad and impressive background in finance, with extensive experience across both the buy and sell sides of the industry.

He began his front office career at Deutsche Bank on the Securities Lending Desk before earning his MBA from NYU Stern. Over the next decade, Frank worked as a Long/Short Equity generalist, serving as a buyside analyst and portfolio manager. His frequent use of options in portfolio construction led him to a role as Managing Director at Macro Risk Advisors, where he specialized in developing single-stock and thematic strategies utilizing options-based execution.

Frank later transitioned into the alternative data space, holding roles at Similarweb and Bloomberg Second Measure. He joined Bloomberg in November 2022 and is a CFA charterholder.

Lindsay Dutch, CFA is a consumer hardlines and REIT equity analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence,  specializing in retail and industrial within commercial real estate sector.

Lindsay has been with Bloomberg for over 15 years, and a part of our research department, Bloomberg Intelligence, since 2010. Prior to covering commercial real estate (beginning in 2014) and consumer hardlines (2022), she covered property and casualty insurance as well as transportation companies. She earned her CFA charter in 2011, and graduated cum laude from Lafayette College in 2007 with a bachelor’s of science in mathematics and a minor in economics.

Jennifer Bartashus is a Senior Analyst covering food retail, mass merchants, and packaged food companies for Bloomberg Intelligence.

Ms. Bartashus has over 25 years of experience in the financial markets, and appears as a guest on TV and radio outlets worldwide where she discusses her research and industry insights. In previous positions she has focused on strategic operations, Latin American markets and the development of analytic and trading tools.

Brian Egger is a Senior Industry Analyst and Global Head of Financial Modeling at Bloomberg Intelligence, where he covers the gaming and lodging industries. He is a frequent television and radio commentator on gaming, sports betting, lodging and travel. Earlier in his career, Brian was a nationally-ranked gaming equity research analyst at Credit Suisse and BMO Capital Markets.

A former member of Institutional Investor’s “All-America Research Team,” Brian was recognized six times as a Wall Street Journal “Best on the Street” analyst. During a twenty-year career on Wall Street, he held positions of increasing responsibility at Goldman Sachs, Credit Suisse, BMO Capital Markets and Topeka Capital Markets.

Brian received a BS in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. He taught as an Adjunct Finance Professor at Columbia Business School and is the author of Social Media Strategies for Investing (Adams Media, Imprint of Simon & Schuster, 2014).

Jonathan Halvorson is a global marketing leader at the forefront of AI-powered creativity and digital transformation. As SVP of Consumer Experience & Digital Commerce at Mondelēz International, he is redefining how billion-dollar brands like Oreo, Cadbury, and Ritz connect with consumers across content, commerce, and media. Known for turning complexity into clarity, Jon has spearheaded breakthrough initiatives in generative AI, agency partnerships, and data-led storytelling that are shaping the future of advertising.

A former Ironman and current 15-handicap golfer (with big dreams off the tee), Jon brings unmatched energy, strategic vision, and a dry wit to everything he does. Whether he’s coaching rising marketing talent, driving enterprise-wide transformation initiatives, or shaping the agenda with C-suite leaders, Jon brings sharp strategic vision and a relentless focus on impact.
He believes in making marketing more meaningful — and a little more fun — every step of the way.

Nate Shenck is the Global Leader of BCG’s Retail Sector and a Senior Partner and Managing Director in the Washington, DC, office. He joined BCG in 2005, and his work focuses on partnering with major retailers and services companies to diagnose and drive significant strategic and operational change efforts.

Prior to joining BCG, Nate was a submarine officer in the U.S. Navy and a military professor at the U.S. Naval Academy. Nate holds an M.S. in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he was a C. S. Draper Fellow. He graduated with distinction from the U.S. Naval Academy with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering.