CINCINNATI, Ohio (AP) -- Macy's Inc. is turning to star power this holiday season to fight disappointing sales and resistance to its takeover of local department stores.
Macy's hopes ads staring celebrities such as Jessica Simpson and Sean "Diddy" Combs will lure shoppers.
more photos » Macy's launched star-packed ads featuring celebrities such as Donald Trump and R&B singer Usher, made changes in merchandise including exclusive alliances with well-known designer brands and returned to more promotions at some locations.
The changes are meant to drive traffic and win over shoppers in some markets where the Macy's name replaced local favorites it absorbed as part of its acquisition of the May Department Stores Co. in 2005.
"They've started in the right direction," Wendy Liebmann, president of WSL Strategic Retail, said. "Now they have to deliver on the new message and the quality of their merchandise."
Macy's says its exclusive home furnishings collection by domestic entrepreneur Martha Stewart that debuted in September is off to a good start.
"There will be more Martha Stewart product in the stores for the holiday, and we're optimistic about it," Macy's spokesman Jim Sluzewski said.
Macy's recently announced deal to be the exclusive department store retailer for the Tommy Hilfiger U.S.A. brand of men's and women's sportswear in the United States, won't begin until fall 2008, but the designer appears in current TV ads.
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Saturday, November 10, 2007
Monday, November 5, 2007
Luggage Tips for Safer Travel
Luggage Tips for Safer Travel
Author: William Manor
Ever had your luggage lost during a trip? Heard horrors stories about lost luggage from others? Well, losing your luggage is not the only thing that can happen to your bags and their contents while traveling. Your luggage could be broken, broken into or, even, stolen. To minimize the risk of these things happening to your bags and ruining your trip, follow the luggage tips below.
The first thing to consider is the type of luggage you use. While the idea of traveling light is appealing, you should give priority to luggage that is sturdy and durable. Checked luggage is not always handled appropriately. This may result in parts of the suitcase breaking or opening unexpectedly.
Even with sturdy luggage, avoid over packing. The pressure may lead to a broken zipper or busted seam, especially if dropped. As an extra safety measure, place a protective strap around each bag.
You should never pack valuables such as jewelry, money or travelers cheques in your checked luggage. Extra glasses or medications should be packed in your carryon or placed in your briefcase or purse.
If you will be traveling with sensitive or proprietary documents, double envelope the information and hand carry it. Placing such important items in your checked luggage would place them at risk of being lost or stolen.
To facilitate the return of your luggage in case it is lost during your trip, put your name and address inside each bag. Also, be sure that your luggage is tagged with covered tags that protect your address from open observation. If possible, use a business address and telephone number to avoid exposing your personal information.
All bags should be locked with Transportation Security Administration (TSA) approved luggage locks. Travel Sentry and Safe Skies have an arrangement with TSA to supply “accepted and recognized” locks.
If you travel with more than one suitcase, use a different combination for each piece of luggage. For bags with double locks, set each lock to a different combination.
Check with the airline and/or your personal insurance company regarding any lost luggage coverage. Research the airline you plan to use concerning procedures for recuperating lost luggage. This way, if it happens, you will know exactly where to go and what to expect.
Finally, you should never leave your bags unattended. Don't even turn your back to your luggage. It only takes a few seconds for someone to steal your bag and disappear in the crowd.
By following the tips above, you greatly decrease the chances of problems with your luggage and increase your chances of a safer, more enjoyable journey.
Where to Get a Passport provides step-by-step application information and reviews of travel visa and quick passport expediters. You can also browse a wide selection of popular and name-brand luggage at discounted prices.
More on Luggage................
Carryonlive.com
Author: William Manor
Ever had your luggage lost during a trip? Heard horrors stories about lost luggage from others? Well, losing your luggage is not the only thing that can happen to your bags and their contents while traveling. Your luggage could be broken, broken into or, even, stolen. To minimize the risk of these things happening to your bags and ruining your trip, follow the luggage tips below.
The first thing to consider is the type of luggage you use. While the idea of traveling light is appealing, you should give priority to luggage that is sturdy and durable. Checked luggage is not always handled appropriately. This may result in parts of the suitcase breaking or opening unexpectedly.
Even with sturdy luggage, avoid over packing. The pressure may lead to a broken zipper or busted seam, especially if dropped. As an extra safety measure, place a protective strap around each bag.
You should never pack valuables such as jewelry, money or travelers cheques in your checked luggage. Extra glasses or medications should be packed in your carryon or placed in your briefcase or purse.
If you will be traveling with sensitive or proprietary documents, double envelope the information and hand carry it. Placing such important items in your checked luggage would place them at risk of being lost or stolen.
To facilitate the return of your luggage in case it is lost during your trip, put your name and address inside each bag. Also, be sure that your luggage is tagged with covered tags that protect your address from open observation. If possible, use a business address and telephone number to avoid exposing your personal information.
All bags should be locked with Transportation Security Administration (TSA) approved luggage locks. Travel Sentry and Safe Skies have an arrangement with TSA to supply “accepted and recognized” locks.
If you travel with more than one suitcase, use a different combination for each piece of luggage. For bags with double locks, set each lock to a different combination.
Check with the airline and/or your personal insurance company regarding any lost luggage coverage. Research the airline you plan to use concerning procedures for recuperating lost luggage. This way, if it happens, you will know exactly where to go and what to expect.
Finally, you should never leave your bags unattended. Don't even turn your back to your luggage. It only takes a few seconds for someone to steal your bag and disappear in the crowd.
By following the tips above, you greatly decrease the chances of problems with your luggage and increase your chances of a safer, more enjoyable journey.
Where to Get a Passport provides step-by-step application information and reviews of travel visa and quick passport expediters. You can also browse a wide selection of popular and name-brand luggage at discounted prices.
More on Luggage................
Carryonlive.com
Thursday, November 1, 2007
Is Wine Made in the Vineyard?
Is Wine Made in the Vineyard?
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007 at 12:44:53 PM
by Jim Gordon
Yesterday I moderated a panel discussion on red wine fermentation at the Napa Grape + Wine Expo, and got to pump two of the valley’s, maybe the world’s, most accomplished winemakers. With my questions, and a lot more from an audience of mostly younger winemakers and other industry folk, the winemakers revealed a lot about their philosophies of winemaking and actual techniques and practices.
Celia Masyczek makes wine for nine Napa Valley clients, and was the Staglin Family winemaker for about 10 years. Bob Levy heads winemaking for Harlan Estate, Bond and The Napa Valley Reserve.
I mentioned in my last post how one of Celia’s wines, the Rocca Family Cabernet, won a a cool accolade in Bordeaux a couple of weeks ago. Bob, likewise, has been in the news, as several of his high-flying, high-priced Cabernets from the 2004 vintage have gotten stratospheric scores from critics. Celia said her highest-priced wine is about $125, while Bob’s are all more expensive than that.
Since I’m the editor of the industry magazine, Wines & Vines, I was trying to bring out of the two winemakers as much useful, how-to advice as I could for the panel audience and our magazine audience. We went over everything from sorting tables to post-fermentation maceration. But to me one of the most interesting lines of discussion was how important the vineyard is compared to the work of the winemaker.
Is wine really made in the vineyard, as the winemakers mantra goes, or does the winemaker have a big influence? In response to an audience question, Bob said that choosing the vineyard site is by far the most important decision in winemaking.
But he also made the obvious point that there are many examples of vineyards selling grapes from the same site to different winemakers, and those wines do turn out differently. They may have a family resemblance, but you can easily taste the winemaker’s influence.
As a journalist covering wine, I get tired of hearing that the wine is made in the vineyard, even if it is true. It’s become a cliche. It seems like a marketing ploy sometimes. Our Wines & Vines columnist, Tim Patterson, thinks this line of rhetoric might hurt wineries in the long run.
If the vineyard did all the work, you’d never get wine, just raisins. The winemaker has to wave the wand or there’s no magic.
Our Partners
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007 at 12:44:53 PM
by Jim Gordon
Yesterday I moderated a panel discussion on red wine fermentation at the Napa Grape + Wine Expo, and got to pump two of the valley’s, maybe the world’s, most accomplished winemakers. With my questions, and a lot more from an audience of mostly younger winemakers and other industry folk, the winemakers revealed a lot about their philosophies of winemaking and actual techniques and practices.
Celia Masyczek makes wine for nine Napa Valley clients, and was the Staglin Family winemaker for about 10 years. Bob Levy heads winemaking for Harlan Estate, Bond and The Napa Valley Reserve.
I mentioned in my last post how one of Celia’s wines, the Rocca Family Cabernet, won a a cool accolade in Bordeaux a couple of weeks ago. Bob, likewise, has been in the news, as several of his high-flying, high-priced Cabernets from the 2004 vintage have gotten stratospheric scores from critics. Celia said her highest-priced wine is about $125, while Bob’s are all more expensive than that.
Since I’m the editor of the industry magazine, Wines & Vines, I was trying to bring out of the two winemakers as much useful, how-to advice as I could for the panel audience and our magazine audience. We went over everything from sorting tables to post-fermentation maceration. But to me one of the most interesting lines of discussion was how important the vineyard is compared to the work of the winemaker.
Is wine really made in the vineyard, as the winemakers mantra goes, or does the winemaker have a big influence? In response to an audience question, Bob said that choosing the vineyard site is by far the most important decision in winemaking.
But he also made the obvious point that there are many examples of vineyards selling grapes from the same site to different winemakers, and those wines do turn out differently. They may have a family resemblance, but you can easily taste the winemaker’s influence.
As a journalist covering wine, I get tired of hearing that the wine is made in the vineyard, even if it is true. It’s become a cliche. It seems like a marketing ploy sometimes. Our Wines & Vines columnist, Tim Patterson, thinks this line of rhetoric might hurt wineries in the long run.
If the vineyard did all the work, you’d never get wine, just raisins. The winemaker has to wave the wand or there’s no magic.
Our Partners
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Bruce Springsteen’s first album.................................
Review of Springsteen's new CD
Bruce Springsteen’s first album of original songs with the E Street Band since he lost the vote for change in 2004 starts with guitars --a wall of angry, droning treble that, for the three minutes of “Radio Nowhere,” is blessedly louder than the oceanic static of bent truths, partisan reporting and general bullshit that passes for life-and-death debate in the new wired order. Springsteen isn’t just pissed about the state of rock & roll radio --that’s like kicking a corpse --although he is blunt about what’s missing. “A thousand guitars . . . pounding drums,” he demands against the racing squall of his band. But “Radio Nowhere” is actually about how we speak and listen to each other through the murk --”Is there anybody alive out there?”he growls, over and over --and how a firm beat, some Telecaster sting and the robust peal of Clarence Clemons’ saxophone can still tell you more about the human condition than a thousand op-ed words. More...............
http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/16587992/review/16682049/magic
source: Rolling Stone Magazine
Music News
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Bruce Springsteen’s first album of original songs with the E Street Band since he lost the vote for change in 2004 starts with guitars --a wall of angry, droning treble that, for the three minutes of “Radio Nowhere,” is blessedly louder than the oceanic static of bent truths, partisan reporting and general bullshit that passes for life-and-death debate in the new wired order. Springsteen isn’t just pissed about the state of rock & roll radio --that’s like kicking a corpse --although he is blunt about what’s missing. “A thousand guitars . . . pounding drums,” he demands against the racing squall of his band. But “Radio Nowhere” is actually about how we speak and listen to each other through the murk --”Is there anybody alive out there?”he growls, over and over --and how a firm beat, some Telecaster sting and the robust peal of Clarence Clemons’ saxophone can still tell you more about the human condition than a thousand op-ed words. More...............
http://www.rollingstone.com/reviews/album/16587992/review/16682049/magic
source: Rolling Stone Magazine
Music News
Sitemap
Tuesday, March 6, 2007
Buying Diamonds Without Being Ripped-Off
Good article on Diamonds:
Diamond News
Buying Diamonds Without Being Ripped-Off
By: Sam Serio
Buying diamond jewelry can be fun, exciting and confusing. Whether you’re considering a gift of diamond jewelry for someone special or as a treat for yourself, take some time to learn the terms used in the industry. Here’s some information to help you get the best quality diamond jewelry for your money, whether you’re shopping in a traditional brick and mortar store or online.
Diamonds
A diamond’s value is based on four criteria: color, cut, clarity, and carat. The clarity and color of a diamond usually are graded. However, scales are not uniform: a clarity grade of “slightly included” may represent a different grade on one grading system versus another, depending on the terms used in the scale. Make sure you know how a particular scale and grade represent the color or clarity of the diamond you’re considering. A diamond can be described as “flawless” only if it has no visible surface or internal imperfections when viewed under 10-power magnification by a skilled diamond grader.
As with other gems, diamond weight usually is stated in carats. Diamond weight may be described in decimal or fractional parts of a carat. If the weight is given in decimal parts of a carat, the figure should be accurate to the last decimal place. For example, “.30 carat” could represent a diamond that weighs between .295 - .304 carat. Some retailers describe diamond weight in fractions and use the fraction to represent a range of weights. For example, a diamond described as 1/2 carat could weigh between .47 - .54 carat. If diamond weight is stated as fractional parts of a carat, the retailer should disclose two things: that the weight is not exact, and the reasonable range of weight for each fraction or the weight tolerance being used.
Some diamonds may be treated to improve their appearance in similar ways as other gemstones. Since these treatments improve the clarity of the diamond, some jewelers refer to them as clarity enhancement. One type of treatment - fracture filling - conceals cracks in diamonds by filling them with a foreign substance. This filling may not be permanent and jewelers should
tell you if the diamond you’re considering has been fracture-filled.
Another treatment - lasering - involves the use of a laser beam to improve the appearance of diamonds that have black inclusions or pots. A laser beam is aimed at the inclusion. Acid is then forced through a tiny tunnel made by the laser beam to remove the inclusion. Lasering is permanent and a laser-drilled stone does not require special care.
While a laser-drilled diamond may appear as beautiful as a comparable untreated stone, it may not be as valuable. That’s because an untreated stone of the same quality is rarer and therefore more valuable. Jewelers should tell you whether the diamond you’re considering has been laser-drilled.
Imitation diamonds, such as cubic zirconia, resemble diamonds in appearance but are much less costly. Certain laboratory created gemstones, such as lab-created moissanite, also resemble diamonds and may not be adequately detected by the instruments originally used to identify cubic zirconia. Ask your jeweler if he has the current testing equipment to distinguish between diamonds and other lab-created stones.
Diamonds at Diamonds-360.com
Sitemap at Diamonds-360.com
Diamond News
Buying Diamonds Without Being Ripped-Off
By: Sam Serio
Buying diamond jewelry can be fun, exciting and confusing. Whether you’re considering a gift of diamond jewelry for someone special or as a treat for yourself, take some time to learn the terms used in the industry. Here’s some information to help you get the best quality diamond jewelry for your money, whether you’re shopping in a traditional brick and mortar store or online.
Diamonds
A diamond’s value is based on four criteria: color, cut, clarity, and carat. The clarity and color of a diamond usually are graded. However, scales are not uniform: a clarity grade of “slightly included” may represent a different grade on one grading system versus another, depending on the terms used in the scale. Make sure you know how a particular scale and grade represent the color or clarity of the diamond you’re considering. A diamond can be described as “flawless” only if it has no visible surface or internal imperfections when viewed under 10-power magnification by a skilled diamond grader.
As with other gems, diamond weight usually is stated in carats. Diamond weight may be described in decimal or fractional parts of a carat. If the weight is given in decimal parts of a carat, the figure should be accurate to the last decimal place. For example, “.30 carat” could represent a diamond that weighs between .295 - .304 carat. Some retailers describe diamond weight in fractions and use the fraction to represent a range of weights. For example, a diamond described as 1/2 carat could weigh between .47 - .54 carat. If diamond weight is stated as fractional parts of a carat, the retailer should disclose two things: that the weight is not exact, and the reasonable range of weight for each fraction or the weight tolerance being used.
Some diamonds may be treated to improve their appearance in similar ways as other gemstones. Since these treatments improve the clarity of the diamond, some jewelers refer to them as clarity enhancement. One type of treatment - fracture filling - conceals cracks in diamonds by filling them with a foreign substance. This filling may not be permanent and jewelers should
tell you if the diamond you’re considering has been fracture-filled.
Another treatment - lasering - involves the use of a laser beam to improve the appearance of diamonds that have black inclusions or pots. A laser beam is aimed at the inclusion. Acid is then forced through a tiny tunnel made by the laser beam to remove the inclusion. Lasering is permanent and a laser-drilled stone does not require special care.
While a laser-drilled diamond may appear as beautiful as a comparable untreated stone, it may not be as valuable. That’s because an untreated stone of the same quality is rarer and therefore more valuable. Jewelers should tell you whether the diamond you’re considering has been laser-drilled.
Imitation diamonds, such as cubic zirconia, resemble diamonds in appearance but are much less costly. Certain laboratory created gemstones, such as lab-created moissanite, also resemble diamonds and may not be adequately detected by the instruments originally used to identify cubic zirconia. Ask your jeweler if he has the current testing equipment to distinguish between diamonds and other lab-created stones.
Diamonds at Diamonds-360.com
Sitemap at Diamonds-360.com
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