SmallBusinessExecutiveInforming, Inspiring and Connecting Businesses
Durbin to sponsor federal use-tax act
All but the smallest out-of-state online retailers would have to collect and remit a use tax to the states, under a planned federal act that Senators Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) are expected to introduce in Congress, according to news reports. In an editorial, the Chicago Sun-Times praised the concept of a national use tax [...]
Mobile phone providers reveal more on consumer data sharing
Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs apparently “lied” about the tracking file contained on iPhones and iPads when Rep. Joe Barton (R., Texas) asked him about the company’s data-collection practices last year, the Wall Street Journal reported. While the company today said it would stop collecting the location-based data when users request it, privacy advocates expressed [...]
Petite dessert trend has consumers buying more
By Alison Kessler Medill News Service – It seems you can have your cake and eat it, too. Desserts, unlike their main dish counterparts, have gained popularity by shrinking. The National Restaurant Association’s 2011 annual survey ranked bite-sized mini desserts No. 2 in the dessert trends category, and national chains and independents alike are making room [...]
Modest recovery will pick up: Bernanke
By Nicole Bowling Medill News Service – Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke dampened concerns about inflation and expressed optimism about further improvements in employment during his first-ever press conference Wednesday. Many factors contributing to the economic slowdown are “transitory,” Bernanke told reporters, echoing the Fed’s April statement released earlier in the day. “While the recovery [...]
Waukegan gaming company reports lower third-quarter sales, income
By Dave Cassilo Medill News Service – Waukegan-based slot machine maker WMS Industries reported third-quarter net income of $24.2 million, or 41 cents per share, down 27 percent from $33 million, or 55 cents per share, from the year-ago period. While the results were lower than the company’s projections, they were on par with analysts’ [...]
Sittercity’s expansion plans get boost with new venture capital
With an eye on expansion, Chicago-based Sittercity has raised $22.6 million in venture capital, the Chicago Tribune reported. Two Chicago-based venture capital firms, Baird Venture Partners and New World Ventures, led the investment round, which also included funds from the State of Wisconsin Investment Board and Western Technology Investment, the Tribune said. The company, which [...]
Through social media, small businesses connect, promote and learn
By Hillary Markow Jewish Business News – Six months before it opened its doors for business, Uva Spa & Wine Boutique had Facebook fans. Less than a year later, it was working with a daily-deal site to market its products and services. The company’s low-cost social media strategy paid off early on, with 60 percent [...]
Entrepreneurs’ motivation may determine job creation prospects
It pays to know the difference between “necessity” entrepreneurs and “opportunity” entrepreneurs, Eva Pereira suggests in a Forbes blog that explores entrepreneur-led economic development in Haiti, where the unemployment rate has been 75 percent. Pereira cites data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, a nonprofit research organization, suggesting entrepreneurs who sell their wares on the streets [...]
As silver nears $50 an ounce, coin merchants report short supply
With silver prices soaring, some Chicago merchants are struggling to keep coins and bars in stock. Photo by Jamie Coughlin. By Jamie Coughlin – Medill News Service The economy’s recovery has boosted demand for silver at local merchants as prices continue to rise. Silver closed at $47.15 an ounce Monday, up 2.4 percent, though the gains retreated after [...]
Privacy concerns mount as reports of cellphone tracking increase
Concerns over cellphone users’ privacy is growing amid new reports that Apple Inc., Google Inc. and Deutsche Telekom can track and save data on users’ whereabouts without notifying customers. New research by security analyst Samy Kamkar indicates an HTC Android phone collected location data every few seconds and transmitted the information along with a unique [...]
