VOL. 127 | NO. 19 | Monday, January 30, 2012
The Swiss-based ABB group of companies is acquiring Memphis-based Thomas & Betts Corp. in a $3.9 billion deal, according to a joint announcement from both companies late Sunday, Jan. 29.
SMALL BUSINESS SPECIAL EMPHASIS
As seniors retire, more turn to entrepreneurship
As the oldest of the baby boomers reach their mid-60s, a new mindset on the concept of retirement is maturing along with them, brought about by several factors including economic uncertainty and longevity of life.
Eaton Corp., which describes itself as a diversified power management company, is closing a distribution center in Memphis that will affect as many as 47 workers.
Southaven Mayor Greg Davis returned to public life in the North Mississippi town Monday, Jan. 30, by announcing he has “no intention of resigning,” despite a federal criminal investigation into his spending of taxpayer money and a critical review of the same expenses by the Mississippi auditor’s office.
There’s a growing breed of innovative for-profit entrepreneur that views positive social change as the foundation of business.
More than 75 top advisers and executives from Morgan Keegan & Co. Inc. are heading to the Florida headquarters of their company’s soon-to-be-official new owner, Raymond James Financial Inc.
The life sciences sector is getting a heavy push from John Threadgill, president of the Bartlett Area Chamber of Commerce.
Bob Vornbrock thought he was attending the Thursday, Jan. 26, American Advertising Federation Memphis meeting to hear a presentation from Fred’s Discount Stores about the marketing approach of brick-and-mortar retail.
Business consultant Dr. Joseph Michelli got pretty much the entire crowd on its feet during a private reception at the University of Memphis hosted by masterIT.
The real estate market isn’t projected to get back to the pre-bubble bursting days of 2007 anytime soon.
The last time many Shelby County Schools system parents remember this much turmoil about local education was when they were children nearly 40 years ago.
SMALL BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT
Cordova store Babytime specializes in high-quality furniture that adapts to accommodate growing babies.
Babytime is about more than business for owner Mike Harvey. He’s a man on a mission, literally.
LOCAL COLUMNISTS
There is a place of business I enjoy visiting on my trips to another city. The business is always well-stocked with interesting items, the employees are knowledgeable and friendly and the prices are reasonable. All in all, it looks as if they have come up with a pretty good formula for business success.
THE MEMPHIS NEWS
Local minority-owned businesses finding success but facing long road ahead
After retiring from her nearly 30-year career at FedEx, African-American business executive Edith Kelly-Green embarked on an entrepreneurial venture when she bought 11 Lenny’s Sub Shop locations.
What black businesses need is what all locally owned small businesses need – fewer bottlenecks and fewer middlemen steering out-of-town contractors and businesses to the “right people.”
Some performance groups go for gusto in the bleak midwinter months, but the Eroica Ensemble will greet 2012 with calmness, contemplation and some unfinished business.
Here it is, January 2012, marking 24 years that I have been reviewing restaurants and writing about the dining business in Memphis. Forgive me if I wax nostalgic.
Airline Estate Winery in Washington state’s Yakima Valley is owned by the Miller family: father Mike, who has been growing grapes since 1968; son Marcus, the winemaker; and daughter Lori, marketing director. I tasted a few of their wines recently and really come out in favor of the Airfield Estate Riesling 2010, Yakima Valley.
MEMPHIS AREA
MEMPHIS (AP) – The Memphis Symphony Orchestra presents the first in a series of free community programs Sunday.
STATEWIDE
NEW YORK (AP) – Specialty chemical company Eastman Chemical Co. is buying Solutia Inc. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about $3.38 billion to broaden its presence in the Asia Pacific region and other emerging markets while expanding its product offerings.
STATE GOVERNMENT
NASHVILLE (AP) – A bill proposes to make it easier for lobbyists to wine and dine lawmakers, a move that critics say would be a "step backward" from ethics reforms imposed on the General Assembly after the FBI's Tennessee Waltz bribery sting of 2005.
NASHVILLE (AP) – Sen. Roy Herron won't seek re-election in 2012, he announced last week. Instead, he will focus on helping more young people in Tennessee attend college.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S. economy grew at a 2.8 percent annual rate in the final three months of last year, the fastest growth in 2011.
BRUSSELS (AP) – The European Union is launching an investigation into whether three airlines belonging to the SkyTeam alliance are breaking EU antitrust rules with regard to flights between Europe and the United States.
NATIONAL GOVERNMENT
WASHINGTON (AP) – The Obama administration said Friday that will expand its signature foreclosure-prevention program to try to help those with heavy debt loads avoid losing their homes.
WASHINGTON (AP) – The federal government's plan to expand computer security protections into critical parts of private industry is raising concerns that the move will threaten Americans' civil liberties.
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Barack Obama has preached that all Americans should pay their fair share in taxes, but a government report finds that tens of thousands of federal employees – from staffers in Congress to federal agencies and even Obama's executive office – collectively owe the government billions in back taxes.
HEALTH CARE
WASHINGTON (AP) – America may be a technology-driven nation, but the health care system's conversion from paper to computerized records needs lots of work to get the bugs out, according to experts who spent months studying the issue.
TECHNOLOGY
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Twitter has refined its technology so it can censor messages on a country-by-country basis.
LOS ANGELES (AP) – Facebook could file regulatory papers as early as Wednesday for its highly anticipated initial public offering of stock, according to a newspaper report.