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 Friday
Facts - Archives -
Month of August 2006Current
Week
August 25, 2006
Retailer of the Year Nominations
From the Campaign Trail
Member Services Update Workers Comp Survey off to a Good
Start!
Retail News & Notes
Today marks the deadline for any member that would like to
nominate a retailer for our Retailer of the Year.
There is still time, however, to send your nominations in.
If your nomination is postmarked with todays date, it will be
accepted.
If you have not done so, please consider nominating a
retailer for our Retailer of the Year.
If you have any last minute questions or need more
information, please call Cathy in our office today. Cathy can
be reached at 860-527-1044 or by email,
cathy@crmaonline.com
Our Retailer of the Year will be honored at our Annual
Meeting and luncheon which will be held on October 19th at the
Bushnell in Hartford. More details about that event will be
sent to members shortly.
From the Campaign Trail
This week the Secretary of State certified the official
signatures that U.S. Senator Joe Lieberman submitted as
required under the law to allow him to run as an independent.
The Lieberman line will be lower on the ballot, but as his
campaign spokesman noted I dont think name recognition will
be an issue.
Liebermans name will be under the heading Connecticut for
Lieberman.
Meanwhile the Governors race continues to be a non race.
The latest Q poll has Governor M. Jodi Rell leading her
Democratic opponent New Haven Mayor John DeStefano by an
overwhelming 64% to 32%
Both Rell and Lieberman were together this week for a
ceremony marking the one year anniversary of the saving of the
Groton Sub-Base.
On the way to the event, Governor Rell remarked, I told Joe
I wasnt going to hug him and I wasnt going to give him a
kiss.
One final note from the Lamont /Lieberman race the UAW
officially endorsed Lamont this week.
Member Services Update Workers Comp
Survey Off to a Good Start!
Last week we informed you of our desire to form a self
insured workers compensation trust to help all retailers lower
their workers compensation rates.
This week we are happy to report that a number of retailers
have responded to our request for information and we are on
our way to reaching the critical threshold needed to conduct
an actuarial study.
As of today, more than 15 members have committed a
willingness to participate in the survey.
The information regarding the study in no way binds the
member to commit to participate in the group if one is formed.
We know that the insurance companies are profiting with your
policy. We are trying to establish a group so that the profits
go back to the members.
Thanks to those who have offered to help. It is an important
project that could have long term positive impact on members
and the Association.
If you are interested in participating in the study, please
call or email us today.
Retail News & Notes
Backpacks go high-tech as a response to students'
increasingly digital lives, backpacks now come equipped with
cord ports for MP3 players, solar panels to power electronic
gadgets and iPod pockets. While messenger bags and rolling
backpacks remain hot trends, retailers expect the high-tech
versions to continue to grow in popularity.
The Tennessean (Nashville) /Washington Post (8/24)
Pier 1 has designs on younger, urban consumers in a bid to
revitalize sales and woo younger consumers, Pier 1 Imports is
jumping on the affordable-design bandwagon, led by such
retailers as IKEA, Target Corp. and Crate and Barrel's CB2,
featuring new contemporary collections with hip names like
Brownstone, Micro-Pod and the new Loft 21.
The
Boston Globe (8/24)
Oprah mention sparks a franchise The Santa Monica, Calif.,
gourmet burger joint The Counter is getting ready to go
national, but founder Jeff Weinstein is focused on maintaining
the original culture of the brand and setting strict controls.
Potential franchisees will be required to commit to opening at
least five units in the same geographic area. The eatery
gained a widespread following when its burgers were mentioned
on the "Oprah Winfrey Show."
Business Week (8/24)
August 18, 2006
Sales Tax Free Week
Are you the Retailer of the Year for 2006?
Workers Comp Survey
CT Politics Hit The Big Time Sort Of
Retail News and Notes
Greetings from the Friday Facts crew after an extend summer
hiatus.
There is a lot to talk about and we plan on keeping you
up-to-date form here on in.
But between meetings, vacation, and well just trying to
enjoy the summer; we have been away for a little while.
But we are back! So lets get started.
Sales Tax Free Week
Sunday kicks off another year of sales tax free week.
Remember the sales tax free week, the first in the region by
the way, applies only to clothing and footwear up to $300.
More information about the rules that apply to the sales tax
free week are found at SN 2006(10), One-Week Sales and Use Tax
Exclusion in August for Clothing and Footwear Under $300.
We wish all of our members a good sales tax free week!
If you have any last minute questions before the holiday
begins, or during the week, please call us at 860-527-1044.
Are you the Retailer of the Year for
2006?
Earlier this summer, we sent a letter to all members asking
for nominations for our 2006 Retailer of the Year.
To date we have received some nominations but to ensure that
members have enough time to complete there nominations we have
extended the deadline for nominations.
The new deadline to nominate a retailer is Friday August 25.
We know that CT is full of some of the best retailers in
country and we also know that many folks have a hard time
nominating themselves.
But, dont let this opportunity slip by. CRMA is the voice
of retailing in CT, and we want to make certain that the
outstanding retailers here in CT get the recognition they
deserve.
Please submit your nomination today! For more information
regarding our retailer of the Year, please contact Cathy in
our office at 860-527-1044 or via email
cathy@crmaonline.com
Also, look for more details about our 2006 Annual Meeting
and Luncheon to honor this years recipient in future Friday
Facts.
Workers Comp Survey
For those of you that have been members for some time, you
may know that it has been a long time goal of ours to create a
self insured workers compensation program, similar to the one
that is place in Mass., and now New Hampshire.
This summer we have been quietly laying the ground work on
this important project.
What we need now is some help from members NOT A
COMMITMENT, just help in gathering the necessary information
to see if a self insured group of retailers can be formed to
help reduced rates for members.
There are a couple of different steps that have to be taken
before a group can be formed in CT, and the first is to get
enough members to share their workers compensation history
with us so that we can conduct a study to determine need and
potential rate.
CRMA is working again with ABI insurance and First Cardinal
Insurance, both of whom put together the Retailers Association
of Mass. and New Hampshires self insured groups.
They are experienced and professional insurance agents who
are committed to helping CRMA develop a self insured workers
comp group in CT.
KC Cook from ABI will be calling up members to see if they
are willing to help with the first stage of this important
project.
If you would like to participate again at this stage of
the project there is no commitment to joining the group
please call or email Cathy in our office at
cathy@crmaonline.com
or KC Cook from ABI at
kcook@abiagency.net .
CT Politics Hit The Big Time Sort Of
In case you havent heard, there was a primary last week in
CT for US Senate. Yes that was Chris Matthews reporting live
from the New Haven Green.
In fact, the CT primary is the talk of Washington and is
being used as a gauge to predict the outcome of the national
elections.
With the decision by Sen. Lieberman to continue his campaign
for reelection the race will continue to receive national
attention.
While the state and national media have focused on the US
Senate campaign, the race for Governor in CT has been an
afterthought.
New Haven Mayor John DeStefano won the Democratic primary
and in doing so now has earned the right to face off against
Gov. M. Jodi Rell this fall.
The latest polling data had Rell holding an overwhelming
lead against DeStefano.
As it stands today, it will take a major effort on the part
of the DeStefano campaign to beat Governor Rell. She is very
popular and very well funded. DeStefano is still a bit unknown
and spent a lot of money in defeating his Democratic opponent
Stamford Mayor Dan Malloy.
We will continue to monitor all the races, including some
interesting state legislative races, where the Democrats are
expected to once again hold control of both the House and the
Senate this year, throughout the fall campaign.
Retail News and Notes
Drop in clothing prices tempers inflation - A 1.2% dip in
apparel prices in July influenced core inflation, which
increased just 0.2%, giving The Street something to smile
about. Whether the Federal Reserve will push up interest rates
at its next meeting remains a mystery, but some economists
believe a slowing economy and a lower increase in core
inflation will be big deciding factors.
The Seattle Times /Associated Press (free registration)
(8/17),
Los Angeles Times (free registration) (8/17),
Women's Wear Daily (subscription required) (8/16)
Battery recall could hurt Dell's back-to-school sales
Consumers may shy away from purchasing a Dell computer over
concerns stemming from Dell's recall of 4.1 million notebook
batteries that are said to pose a potential fire hazard. While
Dell is not commenting on the possible impact on its sales,
some retail industry experts say everything hinges on Dell's
ability to effectively execute the battery recall.
The New York Times /Associated Press (free registration)
(8/16),
The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) (8/16)
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