Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

Demand for Cord Retrofit Kits Soars

Wednesday, July 28th, 2010
CPSCPosted by: Diane Capuano

Increased public awareness of the child strangulation risk posed by cords on Roman and roll-up blinds has caused a dramatic rise in requests for free retrofit kits that alleviate the problem, according to the Window Covering Safety Council.

WCSC Executive Director Ralph Vasami reported that requests for the kits has risen significantly in the past two calendar years. “Prior to 2009, the average was 55,000-60,000 retrofit kits distributed per year. In 2009, we distributed 153,245 kits, which is nearly triple that rate,” he said.

For the first quarter of 2010, demand has still been high, with 32,489 retrofit kits requested. Demand is still high in the wake of a December 2009 announcement in which the U.S. Consumer Product Safety (more…)

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Future Fair Opens to SRO Crowds

Tuesday, May 4th, 2010
Kit-retouched for websitePosted by: Diane Capuano

The crowd at the PDRA Show at the National Hardware Show had its eyes squarely on the future, thanks to a trio of presentations from renowned speakers in the areas of retail trends, demographics and consumer marketing. Presentations drew standing-room-only audiences at the Future Fair Stage, located on the floor of the trade show (shown at right).

Speaker Doug Stephens of Retail Prophet Consulting told the audience about how to attract the post-crisis consumer. He observed that what all of these consumers are looking for is value, and those retailers who provide it will be in a better position than those who don’t. There is no such thing as an average consumer, (more…)

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Healthcare Reform: What Does It Mean for Small Businesses?

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

0519-1003-2415-0025_president_barack_obamas_signature_on_the_health_insurance_reform_bill_sPosted by: Tamela Adamson-McMullen

After months, years and even decades of political haggling, healthcare reform is a reality. Here’s a quick rundown of the new legislation and what small businesses can expect from it:

• The law provides healthcare to 32 million people who are currently uninsured, expands the reach of Medicaid, protects people with preexisting conditions from being denied coverage and allows children to remain on their parents’ insurance plans until they are 26 years of age.

• It also creates “insurance exchanges,” a type of insurance marketplace in which small businesses and individuals can band together and choose health insurance options (more…)

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Benjamin Moore Releases Statement On E-Commerce Entry

Wednesday, February 17th, 2010

Posted by: Diane Capuano

Much discussion has been generated by the Feb. 1 launch of Benjamin Moore’s new e-commerce initiative, whereby the Montvale, N.J., company is selling several of its paint products online and delivering them direct to consumers from its website. In response to press inquiries (including that of PDRA’s Paint & Decorating Retailer magazine), Benjamin Moore’s has issued the following statement, which is attributed to Ed Klein, the company’s vice president of retail & market development:

“Benjamin Moore announced February 1st that it had entered the world of e-commerce, selling select patented waterborne Gennex paints online, a decision that caught some of our retailers by surprise. We underestimated the reaction from many of our retailers, since our entry into (more…)

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Merit Group (Lancaster) Purchasing Five Star

Wednesday, January 6th, 2010
Hands015Posted by: Diane Capuano

The following is a press release provided to us by Lancaster regarding the pending acquisition of Five Star Products Inc.

The Merit Group, Inc., a Spartanburg, South Carolina-based corporation, has reached an agreement to purchase outstanding shares of Five Star Products, Inc., a distributor of paint supplies, hardware and related products headquartered in East Hanover, New Jersey. The closing of this agreement is anticipated to occur in the first quarter of 2010. (more…)

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