Sunday, January 27, 2013
A fee of up to 4 percent of a credit card purchase could be added to your bill come Sunday.
Think twice when you pull out your credit card today. A controversial federal court ruling last year has given retailers the go-ahead to tack bank surcharges for credit card purchases on customer bills—starting Sunday. Bank fees between 2 and 4 percent of a credit card purchase had traditionally been covered by retailers making the sales, but smaller businesses without the backing of major corporations usually felt the brunt of these charges. Ten states prohibit passing fees on to credit card users, but Maryland isn't one of them, according to an announcement issued by the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Regional Services Center. Customers can avoid the charges by paying with debit cards or prepaid cards. According to a Time Magazine report on the …
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
A massage parlor, fast food in the former KFC site are on deck, leasing agent says.
College Plaza could be losing an anchor, but it is gaining new tenants. The future of the Magruder’s, an anchor for the 110,500-square-foot shopping center on Frederick Road in Rockville, is uncertain. Employees of the local supermarket chain said Tuesday they have been told by the store’s corporate office it will close in coming weeks. Greg Hull, College Plaza’s leasing agent with Combined Properties, which owns the center, said Tuesday he knew nothing of Magruder’s plans. New businesses are on deck for the center, Hull said. A spa that practices reflexology techniques is set to move into space adjacent Nails For You and near Asia Taste Jumbo Jumbo Café in the pad site in the center’s parking lot. Asia Taste, which offers Chinese and …
Friday, November 23, 2012
Could you go cold turkey on consumerism for 24 hours?
Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Holiday Weekend Sales, Pre-Christmas Sales, Post-Hanukah Clearance Sales, and Kwanzaa Clearance Events—it’s enough to make you go crazy as a consumer. One organization, AdBusters, has a solution to help you retain your sanity—“Buy Nothing Day.” The group’s website touts that “the journey towards a sane sustainable future begins with a single step” and sees capping your consumption for an entire day as that step. AdBusters, which also publishes a monthly anti-consumerist magazine, is also a proponent of the Occupy movement, and offers online and printable ads to help spread the word. The website also features guides to organized protests like a Credit Card Cut Up, Zombie Walk and Whirl-Mart. AdBusters claims …
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Employees of the retail giant hope to take advantage of one of the year's busiest shopping days.
Employees of DC-area Walmart and Sam's Club locations are joining a national strike effort this Black Friday to protest what they view as low wages, poor scheduling practices, and worker intimidation on the part of the retail giant. The campaign, organized by Making Change at Walmart and linked with the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, is planning demonstrations outside dozens of stores nationwide on one of the busiest shopping days of the year. In the DC area, Nov. 23 protests are scheduled for Walmart and Sam's Club locations in Laurel, Hyattsville, Bowie, Gaithersburg, Woodlawn, Severn, Clinton, Abingdon, Alexandria, and Fairfax. (Both chains are owned by parent company Walmart Stores, Inc.) The strike action …
Monday, October 8, 2012
What's open? What's closed? Why do we celebrate Columbus Day, anyway?
Columbus Day remembers Italian explorer Christopher Columbus’ long journey across the Atlantic Ocean to the “New World." The voyage was victorious when land was first spotted on Oct. 12, 1492. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt is responsible for making the day a federal holiday in 1937. The day is also considered a celebration of Italian heritage, as well as a huge shopping day. Many banks and the U.S. Postal Service are closed today in observance of the holiday. In Montgomery County, local government offices and schools are open, though libraries are closed. Ride On and trash collection services will operate as usual today. MCPS has designated Columbus Day for schools to hold open houses, so many parents who are off work may be …
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Check out which items on which you can save 6 percent during Maryland's tax-free shopping week.
You may want to wait a couple more days to buy that new pair of jeans or go back-to-school shopping. Sunday, Aug. 12 through Saturday, Aug. 18, you’ll be able to save 6 percent on some clothing and footwear items during Maryland’s tax-free shopping week. Items that will be exempt from the 6 percent sales tax include clothing and footwear priced less than $100. Accessories, ranging from bowties and bracelets to purses and watches, are not exempt, according to the comptroller of Maryland. For a full list of taxable and tax-exempt items for the week of Aug. 12-18, check out our attached PDF. School starts on Aug. 20 for Prince George’s County and Aug. 27 for Montgomery County students, so next week is the perfect time to do all your back-to…
Friday, July 20, 2012
A concert, a circus celebration, a ballgame and more fun things to do around town.
Where/When: Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, MD 20852, 8 p.m., Friday. Why to go: Co-Presented with Blues Alley The best of the legendary Smooth Jazz Cruise stars, together on stage at Strathmore! Baltimore-born-and-raised soul singer extraordinaire, Maysa has a passionate following here, and no wonder: her ebony contralto is sensuously joyful (Kickmag.com). South African guitarist and singer Jonathan Butler exploded onto the American music scene in 1987, opening for Whitney Houston. Since then, this masterful musician has grooved new ground in R&B, jazz and soul with his soaring vocals and masterful guitar style (AllAboutJazz.com). Canadian saxophonist Warren Hill has topped the Smooth Jazz, Adult Contemporary and Top 40 …
Ray Whalen
10:17 am on Sunday, January 27, 2013
The cost of providing services is not a liberal or conservative issue. The consumer always pays for ALL costs or the vendor goes out of business. The question is in what manner the cost is passed through to the end user. The government should stay out of it completely. Retailers want customers and customers want goods and services. The market and competition will change the way business is done … more ›