17 Nov 2002

Local Retailers Can’t Grow in the Shadows of Supercenters

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Big box retailers are rapidly rolling out stores throughout Minnesota. Wal-Mart and Target are leading the pack with plans to build hundreds of new "supercenters" nationwide. These giant 200,000-square-foot stores are twice the size of a standard Wal-Mart and include general merchandise and a full supermarket, plus dozens of specialty vendors, from florists to gas stations. Wal-Mart is scouting locations for a supercenter on the North Shore of Lake Superior. Small townships like Lakewood are likely sites. Wal-Mart is already building a supercenter in Cloquet and plans to abandon its existing 100,000-square-foot outlet when the new store opens.… Read More
17 Nov 2002

Local Retailers Can’t Grow in the Shadows of Supercenters

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Local Retailers Can’t Grow in the Shadows of Supercenters By Stacy Mitchell Originally Published in the Duluth News Tribune, November 17, 2002 Big box retailers are rapidly rolling out stores throughout Minnesota. Wal-Mart and Target are leading the pack with plans to build hundreds of new “supercenters” nationwide. These giant 200,000-square-foot stores are twice the size … Read More
1 Nov 2002

Puerto Rico Challenges Wal-mart Acquisition

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A broad coalition has coalesced in Puerto Rico to block an attempt by Wal-Mart to buy Supermercados Amigo, the island’s largest supermarket chain. The deal would give the retailer, which already has $1.16 billion in sales at 19 Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club stores, a 40 percent share of Puerto Rico’s grocery sales.… Read More
1 Nov 2002

YAYA! Bike Co-op Charts Rapid Growth

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The number of businesses belonging to purchasing cooperatives has doubled in the last ten years, to about 50,000, according to Paul Hazen of the National Cooperative Business Association. In the hardware and grocery sectors, long-established co-ops like Ace Hardware, have provided an essential line of defense against large chains and made the difference between survival and failure for countless independent merchants. The co-op model is now spreading to other retail sectors. … Read More
1 Nov 2002

Tackling the Problem of Commercial Gentrification

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Rising commercial rents are generally a good thing; they are an indication of the health of a business district and encourage landlords and banks to invest in building improvements. But in some communities, commercial rents are rising too far too fast. Often this sudden run-up is driven by chain retailers, which discover the appeal of an area and sweep in by the dozens, offering above-market rents for choice spots and sparking a frenzy of speculation.… Read More
1 Nov 2002

Surveys Find Local Pharmacies Cheaper than Chains

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In October, the Maine Department of Human Services released its third annual survey of prescription prices for fifteen common drugs at 106 independent and chain pharmacies statewide. The ten lowest priced pharmacies (based on the cost of all fifteen drugs combined) were all locally owned drugstores. National chains, including Rite Aid, CVS, and Brooks, had among the highest overall costs.… Read More
1 Nov 2002

Big Box Opponents Win Two, Lose One on Election Day

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Home Depot suffered a resounding defeat at the ballot box in Talbot County, Maryland, on Tuesday in what residents hope will be the company’s final attempt to build one of its giant stores in this rural Eastern Shore community. In 1999, after Home Depot and other big box retailers proposed stores in the town of Easton, the City Council enacted a big box moratorium and subsequently adopted an ordinance barring stores over 65,000 square feet. … Read More
1 Nov 2002

Norfolk Neighbors Organize to Stop Walgreens

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In less than a week, residents of Norfolk, Virginia, have gathered nearly 400 petition signatures against a proposed Walgreen’s store. The chain plans to bulldoze a marble and tile building in the historic Ghent neighborhood and build a 14,500-square-foot store with a double drive-through and large parking lot.… Read More
1 Nov 2002

Critical Small Business Loan Program Cut

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The Bush Administration has cut the federal government’s largest and most important small business loan program by more than 60 percent. This year, the program will back only $4.4 billion in loans, compared to nearly $12 billion last year. The program, known as 7(a), is run by the Small Business Administration and guarantees loans of up to $2 million made to small businesses. It is the largest source of long-term working capital for small businesses in the nation, accounting for some 40 percent of available financing. … Read More

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