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Week of July 17 |
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Friday, July 21, 2006
Super Market News
Everything
old is new again.
I have a friend
who lost a bundle on stock in a company called WebVan. An online
grocer, WebVan promised to revolutionize the way we fill our
pantries. A victim of the dot-com crash, the company, which served
customers in seven U.S. markets, filed for bankruptcy in 2001,
donating all of its perishable foods to local food banks. Its stock,
once worth $30 a share, at the end was worth about six cents.
An
industry analyst speculated that WebVan "may well have been 10 or 20
years ahead of its time."
From
every failure, a success can be born—or lessons, at least, learned.
Now, just five years later, into the virtual grocery breach leaps
Jeff Bezos with
Amazon Grocery. Launched in beta form in May, this super
market is now fully operational, offering more than 14.000
nonperishable items “available at a competitive price,” shipped free
on orders of $25 or more. Amazon says it’s working with
manufacturers to keep its per-unit costs down, so you may end up
buying items in bulk or larger packs than you’d see at a regular
grocery store. But, heck, you don’t have to carry them to the car;
UPS delivers to your door. They don’t carry perishable foodstuffs
YET, because they can’t ship them for free, they explain, but
they’re working to improve their inventory every day.
So far, Amazon’s grocery shelves are
stocked with an interesting assortment of stuff, from natural and
organic items to foreign goodies, as well as staples such as Jell-O
and Kraft’s Mac and Cheese. Regional favorites and hard-to-find
specialty items may find a new audience here. A “Movers & Shakers”
list tells you what America is buying and, presumably, eating: No. 1
when I checked was
SteviaPlus Fiber Packets. Huh? And there’s a useful Shopping
List, where you can jot down reminders of what you need and order
with the click of your mouse, as they say, when you’re ready to
purchase.
A
time saver for busy women on the run, Amazon Grocery may just catch
on where WebVan failed, as long as the site can keep its prices
competitive with what you’d find at your local grocery store. We’ll
pay only so much for convenience and the thrill of buying toothpaste
at midnight in our bunny slippers and bathrobe. Part of WebVan’s
problem may have been its name. A rose is a rose is a rose, as
Gertrude Stein once observed, but what’s a WebVan?
Amazon Grocery is offering $10 off orders
of $49 or more. Use coupon code "GROCERY2" to claim the discount.
Why not give this new super market a try. You might like it.
Prosper & enjoy,
Gail Harlow |
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Thursday, July 20, 2006
A Case of Mistaken Identity?
Back on
June 27 (“Score Scare”), I
wrote about why your credit score is so important and how I used
www.annualcreditreport.com to get a free credit report. The
information contained on your credit report is what is factored into
determining your credit score. When inaccurate information is
contained on your report, your score can be negatively impacted and
you may not even realize it’s happening. A low score means high
interest payments on loans and credit cards, so you’ve got to know
your score and fix it if it needs fixing.
My
free credit report just arrived and I spent a good part of the
afternoon yesterday filling out the form included with the report to
correct errors. My report contained an address where I never lived
in a state I’ve never even visited and an employer I never worked
for in an industry unrelated to my profession. These, I suspect,
date back to the time seven years ago when my wallet and identity
were stolen, allowing others to open accounts in my name. Most
disturbing, my report contained three American Express accounts that
didn’t belong to me. Also, I recently paid in full several of my
credit cards, and those payments were not reflected. Whenever you
pay off a card, make sure that the 0 balance is reflected on your
credit report.
Your
free credit report does not automatically contain your credit score;
you need to pay the credit bureau from whom you obtained your report
$5.95 to learn your score. If you do find errors, take the time to
fill out the enclosed form. You can also report errors online or by
phone. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the credit bureau that
issued the report is obligated to investigate any errors you report
and correct them if they are proven wrong. When corrections are
made, you can then ask the bureau to send your revised report to any
company that requested your file within the last six months.
Visit
www.ftc.gov/credit for more useful information about identity
theft, your credit rights and what happens when you dispute
inaccurate information.
Prosper & enjoy,
Gail Harlow
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Wednesday, July 19, 2006
The Incredible Shrinking Paycheck
All the
financial experts say that we should save our raises. Anytime your
salary gets a boost, or you get a bonus, or enjoy a windfall of some
kind (your rich auntie dies and leaves you an inheritance or you win
the lottery), you should “invest that money for your future,” they
will tell you. Increase the amount you’re saving in your 401(k) by
the amount of the raise, or open an IRA, if you’ve maxed out your
401(k). Well, lately, unfortunately, raises for those in the middle
and lower middle classes haven’t been keeping up with inflation. Pay
and benefits rose 3.1 percent in last year, while the Consumer Price
Index rose 3.4 percent. In fact, median household income has fallen
every year since 1999, according to the Census Bureau. So, as much
as we might like to stash the extra cash we get in the form of a
well-earned raise, we end up using that money just to get by. No
wonder the Nation’s savings rate has gone into the negative!
One
reason salaries aren’t keeping up with inflation is that companies
are funneling their profits from rising prices back to their
shareholders. Take-home lesson: invest a significant portion of your
savings in stocks that pay dividends, so you, too, can share in
rising corporate profits.
Another option: purchase TIPS (Treasury Inflation Protected
Securities). Every portfolio needs a healthy mix of stocks and
bonds. Backed by “the full faith and credit of the U.S. Government,”
TIPS protect your money against inflation, because their interest
rates are linked to the Consumer Price Index. At the bond’s
maturity, if inflation has occurred and increased the value of the
security, Treasury pays you the higher, inflation-adjusted
principal. If deflation has occurred and decreased the value of the
security, you receive the original face value of the security.
Either way, you can’t lose. Though TIPS are subject to Federal
income tax, they’re exempt from state and local taxes. You can buy
TIPS directly from the Government at
www.treasurydirect.gov, or through your broker or bank. New
five- and 20-year TIPS have just become available.
And
here’s another tip: In the mood for a Treasure Hunt? Visit Treasury
Direct’s
Treasury Hunt, a database where you can find out if the
Government owes you any bond interest payments or whether that dead
auntie of yours might have owned securities that you could claim.
One
smart couple, looking for ways to stretch their paychecks, found an
innovative way to cut the cost of their wedding. They negotiated
sponsorship deals for the ceremony, held last month in the Brooklyn
Cyclones stadium. Given the state of the economy, this could become
a trend. (Okay, so the economy doesn’t explain Star Jones’
product-placement-laden nuptials.) How much longer before we see
sponsored home purchases? Think about it: wouldn’t you put a Home
Depot billboard on your lawn if the company gave you some dough for
your down payment?
Prosper & enjoy,
Gail Harlow |
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Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Ben & Jerry & Me
I attended a
barbecue this weekend and spotted a mini-trend: two of the people I
met were into franchises. One ran an Athlete’s Foot sneaker store;
the other was looking into opening a Curves fitness center. Having
just failed at starting my own business, my ears perked up when I
heard them talk about the benefits of opening a franchise store:
training, support, help with site selection and design, built-in
brand recognition, ready-made inventory and other resources from the
parent company. Opening your own business can feel like walking a
tightrope; opening a franchise must feel like walking a tightrope
with a net underneath.
Every 60 seconds a woman somewhere in this country is starting her
own small business, according to true trend spotter Faith Popcorn in
her book “EVEolution:
Understanding Women—Eight Essential Truths That Work in Your
Business and Your Life.” She doesn’t say how many fail every
60 seconds, but anything you can do to minimize the risk is a smart
move. Those of you thinking about saying goodbye to the corporate
life and becoming your own boss might find that opening a franchise
is just the right move for you.
Visit
www.franchise.com to read up on the basics about franchise
operation, download the Federal Trade Commission’s guide to buying a
franchise (an initial investment of $200,000 to $400,000 is
generally required, though some franchises can be found for under
$25,000), participate in discussion boards and learn about upcoming
seminars on the subject. There’s a franchise to match almost every
interest—from food to dancing, fitness to automobiles.
BestFranchiseOpportunities.com will give you some idea of
the range of possibilities. In our Nov/Dec ’03 issue, we profiled
two friends who pooled their money and partnered up to start a very
successful UPS Store. CLICK HERE
to download the issue from our archives and read our lively,
no-holds-barred interview with them.
With
the temperature hovering around 100 degrees in much of the country
today, a
Ben & Jerry’s franchise is sounding pretty good to me!
Prosper & enjoy,
Gail Harlow |
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Monday, July 17, 2006
What to Do the Next Time You’ve
Got the ‘Money Munchies’
Buying stuff you don’t need is like
having a snack attack, consuming unnecessary calories, when you’re
on a diet. One of the tricks of saving money is training yourself to
distinguish between wants and needs and recognizing the unnecessary
purchases you make when an attack of the “money munchies” strikes.
This
weekend I dropped unnecessary dough on:
1
energy bar (I was 2 miles from my house, where a full refrigerator
awaited, but I couldn’t wait to feed my face!)
2
Starbucks drinks
6-pack of bottled water (isn’t tap water good enough?)
The
Sunday New York Times (even though I can read most of it for
free online)
Popcorn and soda at the movies
All told, I figure I spent at least $25
that I didn’t need to spend. “Not bad,” you say? That’s what I’ve
been trying to tell myself, but a little voice inside keeps
whispering, “Twenty-five dollars every weekend for a month is a
hundred bucks—or $1,200 in a year.” Next time I think I “need”
something, I’m going to remind myself that I “want” to be rich!
Reality check: Whenever I do slip up and succumb to my craving for
mid-day coffee, I take heart that at least some of the money I’m
spending at Starbucks is going to support good causes. A friend of
mine just came back from Rwanda, where she was reporting on the
progress of coffee farmers in that war-torn country whose
communities have received grants from Starbucks. Visit
www.starbucks.com/aboutus/foundation.asp to learn more about the
projects here and abroad, including literacy and clean-water
initiatives, that Starbucks sponsors. It’s one of an increasing
number of socially responsible corporations in this country.
Come
to think of it, next time I have a yen for some java at my favorite
emporium I just might buy some stock in the company, instead. For
more news and information on investing in socially responsible
funds, visit
www.socialfunds.com.
Prosper & enjoy,
Gail Harlow
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If you like the blog, you’ll love the book.
For more savvy
finance advice, buy
“Making Bread: The
Ultimate Financial Guide for Women Who Need Dough,”
by Gail Harlow and Elizabeth Lewin, available on
Amazon.com and at your local bookstore |
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