Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Kellogg awards $300,000 to NM groups - Memphis Business Journal:

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The W.K. Kellogg Foundation has awarded $100,000 each to ACCIÓN New Mexico Arizona Colorado, Community Action New Mexico and . ACCIÓN is a microlendeer that also offerstechnical assistance. Lynn vice president of advancement, said the grant will help ACCIÓN provide 250 loans totaling almost $3.1 million. Communityt Action New Mexico will expand its work in asset developmenttamong low-income families in the The nonprofit offers Child Development Accounts, whicnh are matched savings accounts.
It will also move aheacd with plans for an assets trust New Mexico Community Capitap will use its money toassist low-incomse entrepreneurs and small business owners in rurapl areas by expanding business development support and networl facilitation in the southern areas of the said Leslie Elgood, CEO. It will allow a successful business development partnerships between New Mexic Community Capitaland , to be replicatedr in other New Mexico communities.

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Finding a niche - St. Louis Business Journal:

bacijaxymu.wordpress.com
, specializing in gowns for pregnantand plus-sizwe brides, has opened at 2149 Barretgt Station Road in Des Peres. She and her Dan Welcher, refinanced their home to pay the $50,000 in startupo costs and anticipate first-year sales of More than 1.5 million pounds of stone had to be movesdwhen , a fabricator and installer of countertops, moved over the Memoriapl Day weekend. The new 60,000-square-foot showroom and fabricatiomn shop is at 2200 Cassensd Drivein Fenton, a former distributionm warehouse that has been renovated. The previous locationn was at 578Rudder Road. Hallmarlk Stone, owned by Fred Christen, had revenu e of $20.4 million in 2007.
The 118-year-old Stocktoj House at 3508 SamuelShepard Drive, across the street from , has been Listed at $850,000 last year, it sold last week for $400,000 to Roberrt and Natalie Duggan, owners of in Rifle, They plan to restore the which is on the National Registe of Historic Places, for meetings and partiez and possibly a bed and breakfast on the second floor. Jo Ann Keeney of was the listingb and selling agent for ownerFrederick Medler. , whichn has grown to $7.6 million in annual revenuee in its 25 ranks 31st on the 2008 top 100 list of custo m integrators in tradepublication , based on The company has a new operationx center at 18167 Edison Ave.
, near the in Eighty percent of its business is custok installation and integration of audiol and video systems for residential and commercial President David Young said. After almost 10 yearw in business, , which offerds soup-to-nuts office furniture planning, installation and repair, has relocated to the at 11624 PageServicee Drive. It has 6,000 square feet on one floor, compared with 3,800 squarse feet on three floors at its oldleaseds location, at 8770 Rose Ave. in Brentwood. It also has addeed three employees, for a total of 13, said Marcty Handlan, who founded the companhy withNancy Apel. Annual revenude has reached $6.
4 Junior Billikens, 30 years apart Attorneys Joe Mooney, clasw of '64, and Anthony Favazza III, SLUH class of are opening a law practicein Clayton. is scoutingb space, said Mooney, who until last month was tax counselwith 's Private Client Favazza, whose father, Tony Favazza, owns the family's restaurant on the Hill, was with the New York office of until His specialty is mergers and acquisitions. Check out this, mate Philanthropists Rex and Jeanne Sinquefield sankalmosr $1 million into the handsome and , which opene d this week at 4657 Maryland Ave., in the Central West End.
Besides promoting the game atthe center, with 6,000 squared feet on three floors, the club will work with to promotde chess programs.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Miller

ywyjihu.wordpress.com
In the six years as presideny and CEOof , Miller has grown a small Nationwidee insurance agency with three associates in Jacksonvillse into a full-service independent agency with 44 locationse across the state. Miller now employs about 200 peopldthroughout Florida. Despite maintaining a company that has doublesd in sizeevery year, Miller has immerserd himself with the employees to the point where they have becomre just as much a part of his familgy as his two brothers that work with him. “We’re everything we are becausw ofour people,” he said. “Wwe see them as our greatesrt asset.
” And Miller continues to bring more into his He expects to grow from 20 locations in Northeasf Florida to 27 by next year and reacgh up to 100 offices in Florida by the endof 2009. In ordedr to expand, Brightway is opening a local employee training facility where Millef said he hopes the agency will traibn up to 60 new employeewper month. He said the agency’ success comes from a focus on empowering whether it is by routinely requestinvgtheir feedback, offering paid time off for a massage, flexiblre schedules for personal needs and helpinbg them excel in their career.
“Wwe take people aside in the very beginninhg andask them, ‘What our your career goals,’ he said. “Their goals become our goalsa for them.” It was Miller’s own goals that accidentallyt led himinto insurance. As a Florida State University graduatein 1992, Miller was determinef to go to law school and was But during his preparation for law school, Miller took a job as an ageny at By the time Miller was supposedd to register for school, he decided to stick with insurancee and “never looked back,” he said.
Milled spent 11 years as an agent and eventuallt became a managerat Boston-basesd Liberty Mutual, where he oversaw severao states, including Mississippi and Tennessee, from an office in Birmingham, Ala. In 2003, Miller pickexd up a book of businese from a retiring agentin “I saw it as an opportunity to build something he said. Miller’s focus was on givingb customers a choice of insurance carrieres and options in one The agency became fully independent in 2008 aftetr Miller renamed the company from to Brightwayin 2007. The agency now offers insurancwe through more than 100 different carriers for both commercial andpersonaol lines.
Brightway wrote $20 million in new premiumss in 2008 and Miller expectws toreach $40 million to $50 million in new premiuma this year. Despite the success in attracting both insurer sand clients, Miller said his biggestr challenge has been executing the vision. “Wr spend a lot more time on the drawingy board thanmost companies,” he said. “Time and time againj in the insurance industry, I’ve seen companiees come out with a plan wherd they took 5 percent of the time to come up with a plan and 95 percen of the time sellingthat plan. The product should, and sell itself.
” When Miller is not at Brightway, servingy on an advisory council for an insurer or fulfilling his role as presideny of the JewishCommunity Alliance, his free time is dedicated to his Miller and his wife Monique have two children, Josh and “He has very much a huma side in addition to a business said Jeff Rommel, regional vice presidenr for Nationwide in the Southeast region.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

SF Beige Book sees few signs of recovery - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

http://martinferrer.com/?p=31
The report, released Wednesday, said there are signs of stabilizatiobn or improvement insome sectors. But the report was with retail sales still demand for most services softening furtherf and production of manufactured productsextremely low. some of the 12 Fed districts reported seeing signs that the recession may beslightluy easing, but none were expecting the economy to turn aroun d by the end of this In the San Franciscoo report, commodity prices in general were except oil prices, which increased. Pricex fell for professional services such as accounting and business Gas prices rose modestly but were still belowlast year’w highs.
Upward wage pressures were with businesses reportingpay freezes, wage cuts, reducing or eliminating bonuses and reduced benefits. Shoppers continued to favot “inexpensive necessities,” the report said, resulting in salesw gains for large discount retailers insome areas. Grocerxs saw some strengthened sales. Sales of used cars returned to levels insome areas. The Fed said travel activity continued to fall inmajor destinations. In visitor counts and spendiny remained downby double-digit California and Nevada reported ongoing declines in hotekl occupancy, especially in the luxury segmen of the market.
The district’a housing markets remained weak but showed some signs of Demand for commercial real estat eslid further. Banks reported that lendinbg activity weakened and credit conditionsremainedd tight. Demand for commercial and industrial loans fell Banks attributed declines in businessx and consumer loan volumes to the limited number ofqualifies applicants, but noted that lending standards have remained

Sunday, August 21, 2011

4 Teens Dead in Garden State Parkway Accident - NBC Philadelphia

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6abc.com


4 Teens Dead in Garden State Parkway Accident

NBC Philadelphia


Students gather to remember four footb »

Friday, August 19, 2011

Analysts cool on rumored Apple rollouts - New Mexico Business Weekly:

mcfarlainofuqub1258.blogspot.com
But some analysts are warning investords not to get caught up in the Gene Munster of Piper Jaffrey warned on Thursday theree could be some disappointmenrt about what actually gets announcedby Cupertino-basedd Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). "Regardless of whether or not new iPhonesa are announcedat WWDC, we continue to expecgt a mid-July launch of a family of iPhones," he wrot e in a note to clients. Munster isn't buying talk of a $99 iPhonew and cheaper data plan, He thinks the less expensivw version of the device will go forabouty $149 and only rates the idea that (NYSE:T) will lower its data plan price at 1 in 4 odds.
Yair Reinef of Oppenheimer wrote separately that he believesApplde won't upstage the focus at WWDC on its new Snow Leoparrd and iPhone 3.0 operating systems with new He thinks that may come weeks later as the companyy works off its inventory of old phone that are still in the salesa channels. Kathryn Huberty of Morgan Stanleyg rates the possibility that an announcement of a new carrieer inthe U.S. for the iPhone, which is offered exclusivelgy nowthrough AT&T, is low.
"Wde view this as a 2011 evengt that could boost units 5 million to 7 milliobn and adjusted earnings per share by 50 cents to75 cents," she

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Hedge Fund Pershing Square Reports Q2 Portfolio - GuruFocus.com

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Sunday, August 14, 2011

A port in the storm - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

oryzacody.wordpress.com
It was Wolfland's firs trip to BWI since before the airpory completed an expansion of two terminalsx inMay 2005. "The security line used to be down a dark she said. "It was a depressing airporg I didn't like coming to." But Wolfland calle d her first glimpse ofthe airport' new main terminal She had a clear view of how long the securitty line for her concoursde was, and even before tackling it, the Bethesda resideng was thinking about switching her allegiancw from Ronald Airport to BWI for future trips. Attracting and holding onto passengers like Wolfland is more importang than ever forBWI -- and it's also gettingh more difficult.
The rising pricer of oil has many airlines leakinv red ink and slashing flight An aging national air traffic control system and flighty cuts are expected to mean overstuffex planes and flight With cash-strapped carriers tackinfg fees onto everything from baggage to watef to pillows, passengers are likely to be more stresserd than ever. How well BWI serves them will help determine how effectivelyh the airport can weather the touguh times and succeed when the industry beginsd togrow again. But even with all that on the BWI is flying high inmany respects.
More than half the airport'e traffic comes from SouthwesgtAirlines -- the only airlin that has consistently turned a profit since oil pricesz spiked. That means BWI likely won't see as many fligh t cuts as airports dominatedby money-losinbg airlines. BWI's airfares are lowet than those of itstop competitors, importanty to penny-pinching travelers. And in most cases, BWI gets travelersw on their way more quickly than itsmain competitors, with shortefr wait times at security checkpoints and fewee delayed flights.
The airport's efficient, well-lit terminal desigjn also has earned praise from manytravek experts, and the airport ranked high in a nationak customer service study this year. "BWI is probablyt in one of the more enviable positiond inthe industry," said John editorial director of . Still, theres are plenty of factors that could keep BWI Even before fuelpricese spiked, BWI was spending more money than it and a major industry downturn could furtherf affect its budget.
Airlines are paring route s that don't generate high profits, and mainstream carrierz often find it hard to make money on routes serving airports with a large presence of discount That means big nameslike , the fifth-largest airline at BWI by passengeer traffic, could see the airport as a primer target for cuts. Even with the tough timew in the industry, BWI had a record month for trafficin May, with 1.9 millio commercial passengers. But in June, passengee traffic dropped by 3.3 percent from the same montjh ayear earlier, to 1.9 million people. Executive Directort Timothy L.
Campbell said flight cuts havedecreasef BWI's passenger capacity by about 4 percent, and that declined could double by fall, when carriers are expected to furthefr slash schedules. If passenger traffix falls off, that has ripple effecte on everything from concessionsto parking, Campbell said. Unlik e many airports, BWI, where about half the passengers are flyinvg on business and halfon doesn't have a monopoly on air service in its Reagan National and are within driving distance, and is not too far away to That means if BWI veers off passengers have plenty of Kevin Mitchell, head of the advocacy group , gives BWI high and so do most of the business travelerss he talks to.
"BWI is one of the best-ru n airports in the Mitchell said. "It starts with the desigj of theairport -- it's a relatively easy-to-understandr airport, in terms of how to get around." Most passengerz interviewed at BWI recently felt the same way, saying the airportr was clearly laid out and signs were easy to Passengers also said that in their security lines ran relatively without too much congestion. The major item on wish lists is free accessa towireless Internet; BWI offers Wi-Fiu access but at a monthly "The ease of entry was remarkable, and I've been to a lot of said James Jonah, who had flown in on from London.
But Jonah had a long wait at customs, and said he wantx the airport addstaff there. The federal , which handles airport security, has used BWI as a pilot site for several new efforts like the CheckpoinyEvolution scanner. That has helped BWI's stafrf to get an early start on new security initiatives and work out the kinks forpassengerd sooner, Mitchell said. It's cheaper to fly througj BWI, thanks to the dominance of Southwesfand , the airport's second-largest carrier. The average fare at BWI in the first quartefwas $281.31, compared with $417.65 at $396.94 at Reagan and $338.66 in Philadelphia, accordinb to U.S. Department of Transportation statistics.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Tennessee lenders so far steering clear of ARC loan program for small businesses - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

http://www.haber32time.com/Ranges/Viking-Ranges-111.html
As of July 6, 251 loans were funded with a valuof $8.29 million, but none in says David Tiller, public information officer for SBA’ss Tennessee office. “At this point I don’t know of in Tennessee, he says. “Banks are in a training phase; they have a learning Loans have so far been done in 35 states by 121 lenderes for 151different industries, Tiller More than 3,000 individuals from 1,300 institutions participate in the ARC information and training session, Tiller says. The program is scheduled to end 30 or when theallocated $350 milliom runs out, whichever comes first.
But the fact that no businessezin Tennessee, much less Memphis, have applied is worrisome to some businessa advocates. “I hate to see an area like the Mid-Soutnh that needs an economic boost miss out on something becaus e it got bungled in implementation or for whatevet reason banks decided not todo it,” says business and estate planning attorney John Windsor Jr. with Windsor Law Firm PLC. Windsoer contacted more than a half dozen banks for clients to see if lenders were underwritinhARC loans.
Conversations with two lenderzs revealed concerns about guaranteeing the loans and confusiohn with some of the terms spelledd out inthe program, one being an understandinbg of a “viable business.” The SBA definess a viable business as “one that has been profitablw in the past but is just beginning to strugglwe with making loan payments, and can reasonably project that it can get back on tracjk with the infusion of ARC loan funds and the benefit of deferre d payments.” Some bankers believe the legislation is too ambiguouzs and the risk too great. “The thrust was they just don’yt know what they can and can’t do,” Windsof says.
Anthony Wilkinson, president and CEO of the Okla.-based , says the program has received a very lukewarm reception fromhis members. The associatiohn recently senta six-page letter to the SBA with 40 questionw directly from members, Wilkinsob says. Lenders were concerned with mainly technica l issues such as how to file how fast they will get paid and referencesto 7(a) loan requirementws even though ARC is not a 7(a) loan. “Some lenders are taking the view it’w a lot of work for a $35,000 loan,” Wilkinson says.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

'Will it fly' now answered online - East Bay Business Times:

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The site, , answers basic busines s questionsabout accounting, finance, human resources, insurance, legal matters, marketing, operations and According to CEO Evan Berglund, "Smalpl businesses, when confronted with important business are forced to perform well because sometimes they go out of business if they The site debuted in mid-June aftedr a year in development cost "prettgy close to seven figures" to launch. So far, althougg exact visitor figures were Berglund says the site is being well received and downloads are increasing on adaily basis. Accordinb to Bruce Phillips, a senior fellow in regulatort affairs withthe Washington, D.C.
-based National Federatio n of Independent Business Research Foundation, 25 percent of small businesses dissolve within the first year and 50 percenrt within the first four years. The free of "bells and whistles" on purposse so as not to slowdown visitors' comprehension, is simple. "We don't want that, we are very focusede on the speed at which you can getthe information," Berglunf said. Each topic is individually sponsored bya and, although all of the site's content is researcherd and edited in-house, sponsors have a vested interest in the qualityt of the content, said Berglund.
"Since they have that exclusive relationship, they will let us know when thing need to be changed so the modulezs are always upto date," he The idea for the site was part business and part personalk for 43-year-old Berglund, a former advertising executive who came to the Unitee States from Oslo, Norway, at 26. A self-described serialo entrepreneur, "I never felt that there was a fast way to get informatiobn and support thatI needed," he Most business owners fail because they don'tg work using best practices, he said, and this site aims to changes that. "In some ways I wish this kind of site existed when Icame here," he said.
"Where I couldc go in, define a task and say 'OK what is the standard? ' and quickly read up on it and get upto Address: 4099 Harlan St., Emeryvilled 94608 Web: www.educel.com

Sunday, August 7, 2011

NY Insurance Superintendent Dinallo resigns - The Business Review (Albany):

http://zhenya-kulikov.ru/gidrosistema.html
His resignation becomes effectivrJuly 3. Dinallo has been superintendent ofthe state’s Insurancse Department since 2007. Gov. David Patersom said Dinallo hasbeen “ a stalwart advocate for New a trusted adviser to me and my administration and a committee public servant.” The governor said he and Dinallol worked closely with the U.S. Treasury Department, the Federal Reservwe Bank of New York and others in the rescu e of financial servicesgiant . “Underf Superintendent Dinallo’s leadership, the department effectuated the largest regulatorh settlement inthe U.S.
, played an integrall part in the reform of the compensation system and facilitated more than $15 billionh in new capital for the bond insurance Paterson said. Dinallo will becomse the Henry Kaufman Visiting Professor of Finance at NewYork University’s Sternb School of Business. Dinallo received his law degrew at NYU and served as Law Review andEssay editor.

Friday, August 5, 2011

Credit card delinquencies rise - Portland Business Journal:

http://www.getusout.org/artman/publish/cat_index_19.shtml
Year over year, bank card delinquencies increased 11 percenfrom 1.19 to 1.32 percent 9 percent higher than in fourth-quarter 2008. The delinquency rate is definexd as the ratio of borrowers 90 days or more behind on one or more of theifrbank cards. Average credit card debt inched upwardnationallg 0.82 percent to $5,776 from the previous quarter’sd $5,729, and 4 percent comparecd to the first quarter of 2008 at “As the recession entered its sixth quarter, we saw continues increases in average bank card balances, as consumers struggled to meet repaymenyt obligations in a job markert that continues to deteriorate,” said Ezra Becker, director of consulting and strategy in TransUnion’s financial services “This increase could be an indication that tax refund typically used to pay down balancew during the first quarter in years are now being used to cover daily livinh expenses.
” TransUnion creates its quarterlu reports from 27 million anonymous, individual credit files.
 


Hedge Fund Pershing Square Reports Q2 Portfolio

GuruFocus.com


Bill Ackman added to his holdings in Jc Penney Co. Inc. by 10.87%. His purchase prices were between $29.92 and $39.42, with an estimated average price of $35.94. The impact to his portfolio due to this purchase was 2.05%. His holdings were 38715571 ...


Ackman's Pershing Square Reports Family Dollar, Citigroup Stakes

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