Retirees considering where to spend their golden years might want to consider Tennessee.

That’s according to Bankrate.com, the personal finance website, which this week ranked Tennessee at the top of its list of the 10 best states for retirement. The site’s analysts crunched numbers in several categories, including cost of living, taxes, health care, crime and climate.

2. Workshop Will Teach Business Fundamentals - Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Steve Jobs could do it. Fred Smith did it. So do the chief executives of businesses large and small, from retail to technology to medicine.

3. Single-Handed Success Story - Friday, April 05, 2013

SINGULAR PERFORMANCE. The White Station Class of 1966, the year ahead of mine, had two Academy Award winners – one you’ve heard of and one you haven’t.

That was some class. Physicist, gray matter repository and best-selling author Alan Lightman was in it. Federal judge and arbiter of public education’s future in Shelby County Hardy Mays was in it. John Vergos, former courageous city council maverick and scion to Rendezvous rib royalty, was in it. Academy Award-winning actress Kathy Bates was in it.

4. Lofty Company - Thursday, April 04, 2013

For creating the overnight package-delivery business four decades ago, and for everything his company has done since, FedEx Corp. founder Fred Smith has been placed among an elite group of chief executives by the business magazine Barron’s.

5. FedEx Earnings Could Indicate Shipping Trends - Tuesday, March 19, 2013

NEW YORK (AP) – FedEx Corp. wants businesses and consumers to buy more express-delivery shipping services, and the company could indicate whether that’s happening yet when it reports fiscal third-quarter results before the market opens Wednesday.

6. A Higher Order of Sausage - Friday, March 01, 2013

GOD’S SAUSAGE. (When you see this column, it’s the 40 Days of Waffle Shop again, so strike while the iron is hot.)

“You might just be a copywriter,” Brick Muller said, staring down at the piece of paper I’d just handed him. On it was an ad idea I’d just pounded out on the 1948 Royal typewriter he was paying me to use as a copywriter. The fact that this was his first recognition that I might be one was gratifying since I’d already been there for nine months.

7. Local Efforts Make Small-Business Inroads - Saturday, February 09, 2013

Cash mobs and MEMshop and angels and mentors and launches – they are all part of an atmosphere in our city that encourages small-business development in the shadow of a historic recession.

FedEx CEO and founder Fred Smith late last year put small-business development and its role in perspective, saying it is large corporations that drive the global economy with many small businesses created in the orbit or supply chain of those large business entities.

8. It’s Personal - Friday, February 01, 2013

IT’S NOT BUSINESS ANYMORE. IT’S PERSONAL. This is our town, and you’re not welcome here.

So pack a plane with all your meaningless spin, all your lackeys and suck-ups, all your apologists, all your legal but unethical tactics, all your eye popping price gouging, all your cold and calculated manipulation of lives, your own employees’ lives, and a city’s pride and get the hell out. There’s so much of all of that in the massive fuel dump you just dropped on Memphis that I’m sure it’ll take more than one plane to haul it all off and we may never be rid of the stench it’s leaving behind.

9. Turning the Page - Saturday, December 29, 2012

It’s that time of year again. It’s that time when journalists across the fruited plain collectively try and make God laugh – with our prognostications, of course, about the year ahead and of what might be.

10. FedEx Reports 12 Percent Earnings Drop - Thursday, December 20, 2012

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. on Wednesday, Dec. 19, reported second quarter net income of $438 million, down 12 percent from last year’s $497 million. The company attributed the income drop to several factors, including weakness in global markets, higher fuel costs and disruptions resulting from Superstorm Sandy.

11. Louisville Game Opportunity to Widen Margin for Error - Friday, December 14, 2012

There are several ways to measure the magnitude of a college basketball game. First, will the outcome echo through the rest of the season and resonate with the NCAA Tournament Committee come March?

12. Timely Delivery - Saturday, December 08, 2012

On Dec. 10 FedEx Corp. is expected to have its busiest day in the 40-year history of the global shipping company.

Each year, the corporation plots out the day when shipments across its portfolio of services are expected to reach their peak for the year, which always occurs during the holiday shopping season.

13. FedEx Sets Terms for Buyouts - Thursday, December 06, 2012

FedEx Corp. took another step Tuesday, Dec. 4, in its reaction to a slow growth global economy as well as its own desires to make major changes to the oldest division of the Memphis-based global corporate giant.

14. FedEx Unveils Terms of Employee Buyouts - Wednesday, December 05, 2012

FedEx executives announced terms Tuesday, Dec. 4, of an employee buyout expected to run from June 2013 through May 2014.

Employees in the Corporate, Express, Services and TechConnect divisions of FedEx in the U.S. with at least five years of continuous service at FedEx as of Nov. 30 will get buyout packets. Preference would go to those with the most seniority in their section if more employees in a section accept the offer than there are slots.

15. FedEx Unveils Employee Buyout Details - Tuesday, December 04, 2012

FedEx executives announced terms Tuesday, Dec. 4, of an employee buyout expected to run from June 2013 through May 2014.

Employees in the Corporate, Express, Services and TechConnect divisions of FedEx in the U.S. with at least five years of continuous service at FedEx as of Nov. 30 will get buyout packets. Preference would go to those with the most seniority in their section if more employees in a section accept the offer than there are slots.

16. Entrepreneurs, Create Your Own Maps - Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Entrepreneurialism is the last frontier – an uncharted region with unprecedented, unforeseen, unknown dangers, challenges and rewards.

All adventures begin with a new map, just like the territory you charted in your business plans. You drafted this plan in the ardor of a visionary impulse, tempered with a will to thrive as you grow.

17. Memphis Chamber to Host New York Times’ Sanger - Tuesday, November 06, 2012

Next week, the Greater Memphis Chamber is hosting a conversation in Memphis with the chief Washington correspondent for The New York Times.

David Sanger, who’s also the author of the new book “Confront and Conceal” and who has been at the vanguard of reporting on issues related to Iran for the Times, will be here as part of the chamber’s regular “A Conversation With …” series.

18. Connecting Tenants With Space Keeps Acker Robison Thriving - Monday, October 29, 2012

For 11 years now, Acker Robison Realty has been helping businesses around the Memphis area with their commercial real estate needs.

The boutique firm, founded by Michael Robison in 2001, handles the full gamut of commercial brokerage services, representing landlords and tenants, purchasers and sellers in the office, industrial and retail sectors.

19. Smith: Woes Accelerate FedEx Change - Friday, October 12, 2012

FedEx Corp. founder and CEO Fred Smith ended 10 hours of immersion for analysts and investors in changes at the Memphis-based corporation Wednesday, Oct. 10, by telling the group of 200, “I think maybe we arrived at a better strategy through the wrong process.”

20. FedEx Maps Out Changes for Express - Thursday, October 11, 2012

FedEx Corp. executives detailing the terms of the company’s goal of a $1.7 billion improvement in annual profitability over the next three-and-a-half years Wednesday, Oct. 10, put much of the emphasis on how FedEx is changing the way it does business.

21. FedEx Express Changes Mapped, Reaction Positive - Wednesday, October 10, 2012

FedEx Corp. executives fleshing out the terms of the company’s goal of a $1.7 billion improvement in annual profitability over the next three-and-a-half years Wednesday put much of the emphasis on how FedEx is changing the way it does business.

22. Smith Sets $1.7 Billion Profitability Goal For FedEx Over Three Years - Wednesday, October 10, 2012

FedEx Corp. has a goal of improving its annual profitability by $1.7 billion over the next three years and much of that improvement will come from cost reductions in the Memphis-based company’s Express and Services divisions.

23. FedEx Prepares to Roll Out Changes - Tuesday, October 09, 2012

FedEx executives head into a two-day investors and lenders meeting Tuesday, Oct. 9, with two key constituencies watching for details of changes to FedEx Express, the oldest division of the Memphis-based corporation.

24. Easy Money - Monday, October 08, 2012

When the Federal Reserve announced a few weeks ago its newest – i.e., third – round of quantitative easing intended to once again try to juice a sluggish economy, an employee of FTN Financial couldn’t resist a metaphor for the Fed’s open-ended commitment.

25. Ryan Raises $1 Million In Memphis Stop - Friday, September 28, 2012

Republican Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan raised approximately $1 million for the Romney-Ryan presidential ticket during a Thursday, Sept. 27, fundraiser at the Racquet Club in Memphis.

26. Speculation Mounts for FedEx Changes - Friday, September 21, 2012

The annual FedEx Corp. meeting with investors next month will be watched closely for what happens to FedEx Express, the oldest division of the Memphis-based company.

27. Council Delays Anti-Discrimination Ordinance - Thursday, September 20, 2012

When the Memphis City Council got to the real intent this week of the latest version of an anti-discrimination ordinance it has been debating off and on for two years, it wasn’t just a decision about including “sexual orientation” in the wording.

28. FedEx Earnings Down 1 Percent - Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. reported Tuesday, Sept. 18, its net income for the first quarter ended Aug. 31 was down $5 million, or about 1 percent.

29. FedEx Net Income Drops on Shift From Express - Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. reported Tuesday, Sept. 18, its net income for the first quarter ended Aug. 31 was down $5 million or about 1 percent.

30. New Training Center Brings Employees To Logistics - Monday, September 10, 2012

After years of work and coordination, a training program for workers in transportation, warehousing and logistics begins in January at Sheffield Career and Technology Center.

The idea of training warehouse workers sounds simple, but the coordination of a career pipeline has been difficult.

31. FedEx Drops Earnings Projection - Thursday, September 06, 2012

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. dropped its first quarter earnings per share estimate two weeks before the company releases its earnings figures for the quarter ended Aug. 31.

32. FedEx Drops Earnings Estimate - Wednesday, September 05, 2012

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. dropped its first quarter earnings per share estimate two weeks before the company releases its earnings figures for the quarter ended Aug. 31.

33. FedEx to Begin Voluntary Buyouts - Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. is preparing for a voluntary employee buyout that will likely target workers in the company’s Express and Service units.

34. FedEx to Begin Voluntary Buyouts - Monday, August 13, 2012

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. is preparing for a voluntary employee buyout that will likely target workers in the company’s Express and Service units.

35. City’s Past Filled with Blueprint of Success - Monday, August 06, 2012

Go to any public meeting where plans for an area are being made, buzz words are flying, big sheets of paper are being written on and “stakeholders” are sitting in various clusters, and you will hear numerous people suggest that all the area needs are spaces for shops.

36. FedEx Cost Reduction Gains Attention - Friday, June 22, 2012

A few minutes into this week’s earnings conference call with analysts, FedEx Corp. founder and CEO Fred Smith used three words that came to define much of the rest of the nearly hour-long conversation – “cost reduction program.”

37. FedEx Earnings Up Amid Cost Increases - Wednesday, June 20, 2012

The permanent retirement of 24 jets in the FedEx Express fleet signals some headwinds in FedEx Corp.’s new fiscal year, which began June 1.

38. A Place of Their Own - Thursday, June 14, 2012

So far this year, FedExFamilyHouse has served as a home away from home for more than 800 families whose children have received treatment at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis.

Last year, the facility at 918 Poplar Ave. – located a short walking distance from the hospital – brought comfort to more than 4,000 individuals, including pediatric patients and their parents, grandparents and siblings.

39. AIRfair? - Monday, June 11, 2012

Two frequent-flyer businessmen booked side-by-side seats on Delta Air Lines flights from Minneapolis to St. Louis last month, with one of them getting charged a higher price than the other each time they tried booking it.

40. Dollar-a-Day Lessons - Tuesday, June 05, 2012

Last week we discussed three concepts from Daymond John’s recent presentation in Memphis: mentoring, everyday heroes, and the higher-cause influence. This week let us discuss three benefits of a program harnessing the energy and resources of Memphians to build community awareness, leadership and responsibility, and a pattern of charitable giving: GiVE 365.

41. Harnessing Strategic Business Growth - Thursday, May 03, 2012

If you’re not growing, you’re dying anonymous. Growth: That Crazy Talk. Call it the entrepreneurial instinct, innovation, business savvy, whatever you want: strategic growth is how business prospers.

42. Roots of Faith - Tuesday, May 01, 2012

The man who correctly predicted the stock market convulsion of 1987, a veteran hedge fund manager who today is one of the richest men in America, held up a notebook at a celebration in his honor late last week.

43. Cox Calls Southwest Arrival ‘Game-Changer’ - Thursday, April 19, 2012

Larry Cox did his best in the fight to keep Pinnacle Airlines Corp.’s headquarters near Memphis International Airport and avoid it moving to Downtown’s One Commerce Square.

44. Performance Of Memphis Public Cos. Varies Widely - Monday, April 16, 2012

Memphis is home to several publicly traded companies that have made an indelible mark on industries ranging from transportation to finance and manufacturing.

Here’s a snapshot of how those companies are faring at the moment. (For a detailed look at AutoZone, see related story, "The Fast Lane.")

45. Laffer Rails Against Tenn. Estate Tax - Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Art Laffer, a former economic adviser to President Ronald Reagan, once sketched a diagram on a cocktail napkin for a staffer in Gerald Ford’s administration – named Dick Cheney – to showcase what’s now known as the Laffer Curve.

46. Industry Leaders Gather at Aerotropolis Conference - Tuesday, April 10, 2012

A year ago this month, Memphis hosted the annual World Airport Cities Conference and Exhibition.

But Tuesday, April 10, on the University of Memphis campus, airport, economic development and logistics leaders from the area will meet to talk about the same concept that has dominated the recent World Airport Cities Conferences that were held in Beijing in 2010 and will be held this year in Denver.

47. FedEx Buys Polish Carrier Opek - Friday, April 06, 2012

FedEx Corp. has added another existing domestic ground network in Europe with the announcement of an agreement Thursday, April 5, for the Memphis-based cargo giant to acquire Polish courier Opek Sp.z.o.o.

48. FedEx Reports 126 Pct. Earnings Increase - Friday, March 23, 2012

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. reported net earnings for its third quarter of $521 million or $1.65 a share compared with $231 million in earnings a year ago or 73 cents a share.

49. FedEx Says Economy Isn't as Robust as It Hoped - Thursday, March 22, 2012

NEW YORK (AP) - FedEx says the global economy isn't growing as strongly as expected and customers are reacting by choosing cheaper means of shipping packages. The world's second-largest package delivery company is predicting a slower pace of growth this year for the U.S. and abroad than most economists.

50. Defining Memphis: The Wrap-Up - Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Last week we spotlighted more heartfelt responses to the question: “What does Memphis mean to you?” It has been amazing, over the last few weeks, to have Memphians share their personal thoughts and how they define our great city. This week let us offer one last set of colorful responses – but I encourage you to keep the conversation alive as we work together to create our Memphis narrative and spread it worldwide.

51. Waffle Shop Again Answers Prayers - Friday, February 24, 2012

GOD’S SAUSAGE. “You might just be a copywriter,” Brick Muller said, staring down at the piece of paper I’d just handed him. On it was an ad idea I’d just pounded out on the 1948 Royal typewriter he was paying me to use as a copywriter. The fact that this was his first recognition that I might be one was gratifying since I’d already been there for nine months.

52. 25 Reasons To Laugh - Friday, February 03, 2012

THE VOICES IN MY HEAD MAY NOT BE REAL, BUT THEY HAVE SOME GOOD IDEAS.

That line, aside from being an apt description of my entire career, is a paraprosdokian – a figure of speech in which the latter part of a phrase causes the reader to reframe the first part. The comedian Steven Wright makes a living off these things, and you probably have some living in your inbox right now.

53. Fuente Looks to Build Program the ‘Right Way’ - Friday, January 20, 2012

The coaching clock ticks ever faster, often with little or no regard for extenuating circumstances. Used to be, college football coaches could just about count on five years to build a program up, to prove what they could do with a team full of players that they had recruited and taught.

54. 'In the Middle' - Friday, December 30, 2011

Memphis executives and business owners moving their goods around the world this year kept a close eye on international developments like the Arab spring and the Greek government’s fiscal crisis.

55. Touch and Go - Monday, December 19, 2011

In the aviation industry, Memphis International Airport is considered a fortress hub, an airport where a single airline – in Memphis’ case, Delta Air Lines Inc. – handles 70 percent or more of the passenger flights.

56. FedEx Earnings Up 76 Pct. to $497M - Friday, December 16, 2011

FedEx Corp.’s earnings rose significantly during the quarter ended Nov. 30, spurred by a jump in e-commerce during the Thanksgiving weekend, the company has announced.

57. FedEx Earnings Up 76 Pct. to $497M - Thursday, December 15, 2011

FedEx Corp.’s earnings rose significantly during the quarter ended Nov. 30, spurred by a jump in e-commerce during the Thanksgiving weekend, the company announced Thursday, Dec. 15.

The Memphis-based company also announced a delay in the rollout of new domestic jets as it signed an order for other new jets as well as international changes to meet “weakness” in Asia.

58. USPS Cuts Will be Felt in Memphis - Friday, December 09, 2011

The recent set of U.S. Postal Service recommendations for closings would have a larger impact in Memphis than customers waiting two or three days instead of next-day service for letter and package delivery.

59. Throckmorton Ready For Changing Role at St. Mary’s - Friday, November 18, 2011

When the announcement was made during a chapel session to the St. Mary’s Episcopal School student body in mid-October that Albert Throckmorton would be the new head of school, applause broke out once the first syllable of his name was announced.

60. 'Memphians' Book Hits Bookstores - Tuesday, November 08, 2011

The new coffee-table book “Memphians” arrived in bookstores this week.

The 248-page book features notable Memphians in the categories of movies, TV and stage; music; sports; entrepreneurs; little-known Memphians; colorful characters; Memphis beauties; and more.

61. Site Selectors Hear City’s Red Carpet Pitch - Friday, November 04, 2011

A year ago this month, Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam won the governor’s race and suddenly found himself in the same room with 26 other newly elected governors.

The event was a nonpartisan orientation for the new governors to help get their bearings on the nuts and bolts of running a state government.

62. Memphis Cos. Seek Emerging Markets - Friday, October 14, 2011

Executives at the Memphis headquarters of International Paper Co. like to recount the corporate giant’s experience in Russia in the 1990s.

63. FedEx CEO: US Needs Corporate Tax Reform - Tuesday, October 04, 2011

FedEx founder Fred Smith said the United States’ corporate tax code needs to be reformed to get the economy moving again and that the nation’s energy policy, trade policy and new regulations are blocking the economy’s ability to grow.

64. Martin, Ramo to FedEx Board as Hyde Retires Position - Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Brad Martin and Joshua Cooper Ramo are the newest directors on the board of FedEx Corp.

65. FedEx Earnings Up, Outlook Lowered - Friday, September 23, 2011

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. increased its earnings per share for the first quarter of the fiscal year compared to the same quarter of 2010.

66. FedEx Earnings Up, Outlook Lowered - Thursday, September 22, 2011

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. increased its earnings per share for the first quarter of the fiscal year compared to the same quarter of 2010.

67. FedEx Says Consumer Confidence Drop Behind Demand Drop In Asia - Thursday, September 22, 2011

Memphis-based FedEx Corp. increased its earnings per share for the first quarter of the fiscal year compared to the same quarter of 2010.

68. FedEx CFO Points to ‘Positive Changes’ on Way - Friday, August 12, 2011

The chief financial officer of FedEx Express told analysts at a New York conference this week the Memphis-based shipping giant sees growth in international markets, especially China, Mexico and Latin America.

69. What It Means to Be An Executive - Monday, August 08, 2011

Steve Jobs meets with new vice presidents and tells them the difference between them and the janitor. He says that if an area is not clean, he will accept an excuse for why it happened. But once you are a vice president, he tells them, excuses are expected but not accepted.

70. Business: It’s About Time - Monday, August 01, 2011

Time is currency and never more so than in small business. How you and your employees use it may determine success or failure. It is instructive to note Bill Gates and Fred Smith had the same 24 hours in the day as us. They have global businesses. We have certain areas of Shelby County.

71. FedEx CEO's Total Pay Falls 2 Pct. in Fiscal '11 - Tuesday, July 26, 2011

FedEx’s CEO’s compensation fell 2 percent in 2011, mostly because his perks were worth less than in 2010, an Associated Press calculation shows.

Fred Smith, who also is the company’s chairman and president, received compensation valued at $7.3 million for the fiscal year that ended in May, down from $7.4 million in fiscal 2010, according to a filing the company made Friday, July 22 with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

72. Words of Warning - Wednesday, July 20, 2011

FedEx Express president and chief executive officer David J. Bronczek told a group of state legislators and elected leaders from 15 states that the U.S. needs an “oil strategy long term.”

Bronczek spoke Tuesday, July 19, at the closing session of the Southern Legislative Conference at The Peabody hotel about oil dependence as a national security issue.

73. Manipulation Won’t Fix Financial Woes - Monday, July 04, 2011

The stimulus was an attempt to fill the gap from recession to recovery. The statistics and other fiscal guidelines for determining whether we are still in a recession seem to say we aren’t. But that’s a tough argument to make to those who continue to lose their jobs and whose homes are still “underwater.”

74. Manipulation Won’t Fix Financial Woes - Friday, July 01, 2011

The stimulus was an attempt to fill the gap from recession to recovery.

The statistics and other fiscal guidelines for determining whether we are still in a recession seem to say we aren’t. But that’s a tough argument to make to those who continue to lose their jobs and whose homes are still “underwater.”

75. Kroger Co. Focuses on Building What it Already Has - Friday, June 24, 2011

CINCINNATI (AP) – Kroger Co.'s CEO says the nation's largest grocery store operator is focused more on increasing sales from its existing customers than entering new markets or buying out competitors.

76. Bernanke, Smith Differ on Economy - Friday, June 24, 2011

The same day that the chairman of the Federal Reserve was saying economic problems could persist into 2012, the founder of Memphis-based FedEx was telling analysts growth was on the way and the economy was through a “soft patch.”

77. Strong Q4 Positions FedEx For Growth - Thursday, June 23, 2011

FedEx Corp. beat expectations with its fourth quarter and year-end earnings report on Wednesday, June 22, as founder, chairman and CEO Fred Smith struck a decidedly optimistic tone about the economy.

78. FedEx Revenues and Net Income Up - Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Memphis-based FedEx posted fourth quarter revenues of $10.55 billion, an increase of 12 percent for its fiscal year that ended in May. And it reported a net income of $558 million for the quarter, up 33 percent from the year before.

79. Kroger 1Q Profit, Revenue Jump; Raises Outlook - Friday, June 17, 2011

CINCINNATI (AP) – Kroger Co. rang up double-digit jumps in first-quarter revenue and net income, as the grocery chain's fuel stations and loyalty discounts helped draw more frequent shoppers when gas and grocery prices rose.

80. Military Training: A Business Primer - Monday, June 06, 2011

As a Navy veteran and having lived on a ship for two years, I learned lessons in discipline and efficiency that were excellent training for being a business owner. I suggest that such a learning experience, and any like it, while not college, seems as valuable as college, if not more so. Academia has no curriculums in discipline and character-building.

81. Grocery Chain Expands $1-a-Gallon Gas Discount - Monday, May 30, 2011

CINCINNATI (AP) – The Kroger Co. is pumping up its fuel discount program, more than tripling the number of grocery stores where regular shoppers can get up to a $1-a-gallon discount on a tankful of gas.

82. Price Only One Factor in Complex Gas Issue - Monday, May 30, 2011

Whatever the gas price is that begins to change habits other than how much we allocate to spend on the same priorities, we’re not there.

That’s the bottom line analysis in our cover story on the rise in gas prices.

83. Rejuvenating Sears Crosstown Building Needs Civic Vision - Friday, May 20, 2011

When it opened in 1927, the Sears Crosstown building employed more than 1,000 people and drew shoppers from at least three states to a store that sold everything from candy to horse harnesses to homebuilding materials.

84. Seminar to Tackle Globalization’s Impact - Friday, April 22, 2011

“The world is flat” is more than just a catchphrase that illustrates the increasing connectivity of the globe’s consumers, markets and economies.

The concept – brought to the forefront by Thomas Friedman’s 2005 book of the same name – is a foundational element of what Memphis’ economic development game plan needs to be if it’s going to remain competitive in the months and years ahead.

85. Flea Market as Business Incubator - Monday, April 11, 2011

There are MBA programs to make you a business Jedi, business degrees to educate you, incubators to learn from other businesses. And then there is the Tennessee Flea Market. More like the Flea Mall. It opened last week and is the largest indoor flea market in Tennessee.

86. Paris Trade Pact Comes As Conference Begins - Monday, April 11, 2011

The Airport Cities World Conference & Exhibition begins its three-day run Monday at The Peabody with Memphis and Paris leaders signing a trade pact.

The economic development part of the agreement links businesses around Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport to businesses around Memphis International Airport now and in the future.

87. Leaders Embrace Aerotropolis as Conference Nears - Friday, April 08, 2011

A group of 30 people gathered Wednesday evening in what used to be a church just across Airways Boulevard from a runway at Memphis International Airport.

The town hall meeting by Memphis Mayor A C Wharton Jr. was for airport employees, some still wearing uniforms from their jobs less than a mile away.

88. Early Voting Set in Race to Fill Ark. House Seat - Tuesday, April 05, 2011

Early voting is set to start to fill an Arkansas House seat vacated by a former Harlem Globetrotter.

Secretary of State Mark Martin says early voting in the primary race will start Tuesday for the Crittenden County seat held by Fred Smith. The former traveling basketball player resigned Jan. 26 after being convicted of felony theft of property delivered by mistake.

89. Brand Strategy - Tuesday, April 05, 2011

It was two years ago at a Five Guys Burgers and Fries franchisee conference when license rights to Memphis were up for grabs.

Mark Moseley, director of franchising for the Lorton, Va.-based burger chain and friend of FedEx Corp. founder Fred Smith, approached Alabama franchisee Seth Hargett about putting together a package and asked him if he wanted Memphis.

90. Gaining Altitude - Friday, April 01, 2011

April should be a busy month for officials with Memphis International Airport and the logistics industry as they promote the city’s transportation assets as a vital part of the local economy.

91. Former Interim Chef Kramer Back in Charge - Monday, March 21, 2011

“Interim” – a pause or interval in a succession of events

When the restaurant Wally Joe closed in January 2007, owner Fred Carl Jr., founder, president and CEO of Viking Range Corp., decided to keep a restaurant going while looking for a buyer for the space in the shopping center at South Mendenhall Road and Sanderlin Avenue. Appropriately, the temporary restaurant would be called Interim.

92. Optimistic Outlook - Friday, March 18, 2011

FedEx Corp. announced Thursday revenue of $9.66 billion for the quarter that ended Feb. 28. The revenue is up from $8.7 billion the previous year.

93. FedEx Reports $9.6B Quarterly Revenue - Thursday, March 17, 2011

FedEx Corp. announced Thursday revenue of $9.66 billion for the quarter that ended Feb. 28. The revenue is up from $8.7 billion the previous year.

Meanwhile, operating income of $393 million was down 6 percent from last year and the Memphis-based cargo and package giant announced a net income of $231 million for the quarter, down 3 percent from a year ago.

94. Sustainable Real Estate to be Subject of Conference - Thursday, March 17, 2011

Planners of an upcoming conference are hoping to put Memphis on the map even more so than it already is.

The Conference On Sustainable Real Estate is slated for March 24 to 26 at the University of Memphis. The conference – modeled after a similar program offered by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology – brings to Memphis internationally recognized leaders on sustainable real estate, land economics, land planning and Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, construction procedures.

95. Does Size Matter in Small Business? - Monday, February 21, 2011

The biggest of small businesses would be that of a professional athlete or movie star. These may be companies with just one employee but revenues of $20 million-plus. More importantly, the $20 million is net. Compare that with the salary of a CEO, a Fred Smith, who runs a global company with 300,000 employees for a mere $5 million salary.

96. Aerotropolis Initiative to Develop Master Plan - Friday, February 04, 2011

The Greater Memphis Chamber’s Dexter Muller has often said the word “aerotropolis” sounds like the place where Superman was born.

97. ATTN: Mayor Wharton - Monday, January 10, 2011

Memphians sound off on city’s most pressing needs.

Aaron Shafer
Founder of Skatelife Memphis; scientist at St. Jude Children’s Research Hosp.
Develop and promote a citywide mentoring campaign. We must heavily invest in the positive development of our children. Many of our Memphis children suffer not from a material poverty, but a poverty of healthy relationships and ultimately a poverty of possibility – of reaching their full potential. Each of us has had supportive network of mentors (“the village”) in our lives, be they our parents, teachers or friends, that have come along side of us to build our self-esteem and to help us navigate a path that moves us closer to realizing our potential.

98. Airport Closes Books On Stellar 2010 - Wednesday, December 22, 2010

A challenging year in transportation proved to be a banner year for Memphis International Airport, home to shipping giant FedEx Corp. and a hub for Delta Air Lines Inc.

99. CNBC Goes Local With FedEx Broadcast - Tuesday, December 21, 2010

It was a Memphis morning on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” program Monday, with FedEx founder Fred Smith guest hosting the show’s broadcast from Hangar 26 at FedEx’s SuperHub at Memphis International Airport.

100. Profit Down, Revenue Up at FedEx - Friday, December 17, 2010

FedEx Corp., the world’s second-largest package delivery company, said its profit fell 18 percent during the Memphis-based shipper’s fiscal second quarter.