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Brick & mortar vs. Amazon
That "wheel" concept always seemed to me to be rather textbookish, but it does appear to describe the life cycle of retailers. A few have defied it, but in the main it goes that way. I'd like to add that K-Mart also bought Pace Membership Warehouses while on that acquisition binge. Pace was one of many Price Club clones that popped up regionally in the early 80's. While Pace started in the Denver area, it was actually a San Diego operation, with the initial investments and the personnel being local here. Its founder was Henry Haimsohn, who is related to the Haimsohn family that operates Lawrance Contemporary furniture in Hillcrest and Encinitas.— July 5, 2017 9:36 a.m.
La Jolla’s unsaintly mogul
Dougie is jumping through financial disclosure hoops to get confirmed by the Senate. Why all this effort to secure a seemingly-insignificant ambassadorship? There's a good chance that he can parlay the post into some benefit for his friends and himself. The Bahamas is one of the free-wheeling spots in the world for offshore financial shenanigans and for keeping bank secrecy (although that is rapidly eroding.)— July 5, 2017 8:02 a.m.
Tourists taking Uber assaulted by Yellow taxi
As an Americano, I'm utterly uninterested in the local politics that went into this dispute. What I would like to be able to do is go to TJ and feel secure. Guess what? For most of the almost-half century I've lived in SD county, there was no reason to feel secure there. Why that city, a made-for-use place on the border, has always been crime ridden and dangerous for everyone, cannot get its act together, I don't understand. It could be just the opposite, an attractive, safe and secure spot to visit Mexico, and it would be so much better off. It is probably due to the fact that TJ started out as a place for US types to find cheap vice. There was booze during Prohibition, gambling when it was outlawed in most of the US, horse racing when the legit tracks were shut down, and prostitution. And later on, drugs, drugs, and drugs. Why the wretched city is such a tourist attraction is a mystery to me. The only sorta-rational explanation for it is the city's dark side. In a perverse way, it is popular and sought out because it is dangerous. The cops are crooks--always have been, always will be--and there are many who prey daily on tourists, and not all of the vics are Americans. At one time things there were cheap. How about a full litre of Cuervo for $3? There was a time, but that time has passed. So dwbat has it right. Stay the hell out of TJ, and you'll live better. Sad to say it, but if the city ever gets its act together, it will be too late to rebuild its reputation. Right now the reputation is one of a human cesspool of a border city. No tourist should have to fear for his or her safety from marauding, disaffected taxi drivers, but that's the slimy city for you.— July 4, 2017 10:54 p.m.
CVS Pharmacy planned for Bankers Hill
When all this shakes out, there will be only two major players in the "drug store" retail segment, and those will be (already are, actually) CVS and Walgreens. Talk about overbuilt retail! It is reminiscent of the saturation of gas stations that happened in the 50's. Even in small cities and larger towns, there were many intersections that had such operations on all four corners. The thing that will prevent that from happening with drug stores is that there are only the big two. I've seen a few things that have me shaking my head. The intersection of Encinitas Blvd and Rancho Santa Fe Road in Olivanhain has a Rite-Aid that opened relatively recently. That puts the most downscale and struggling chain closest to uber-affluent Rancho Santa Fe! Why did the landlord go for Rite-Aid? I have no idea. Oh, the Walgreens in Vista on So Santa Fe Ave recently closed, less than a decade after it was built and opened there. There are other Walgreens in the area, one on Sycamore off Hwy 78, and another at Melrose and Cannon Road (technically in Oceanside.) CVS is everywhere in this area, it seems.— July 4, 2017 6:58 a.m.
At last, an easy way to get to Mission Valley
Yes, I'm sure it is far safer than the alternative routes, and I can just imagine what Texas Street is like for bicyclists. Commuters who bike to and from work have a tough row to hoe on the streets and highways in San Diego. So, while this is better, something else, and not at the edge of a freeway, would be far preferable. But where to put it, and how to pay for it would be most challenging.— July 4, 2017 6:36 a.m.
Brick & mortar vs. Amazon
Don, As we've previously discussed, Sears sold off literally everything it had that was successful in order to raise cash to keep its retail operations going. I've seen other corporations do something just like that, and it never made sense to me. Rather than try to keep its declining stores going in an ever-more-competitive economy, it should have kept its other assets, and gone out of the retail business. Had that approach been taken, today Sears would consist of (among other things) Allstate Insurance, Discover Card, Coldwell Banker, Dean Witter, Craftsman tools, Kenmore Appliances, and a few lesser operations. All of those could be prospering and succeeding today. In case you forget, Sears stores and K-Mart stores are operated by the same company, Sears Holdings. Both Sears and K-Mart went BK some years back, and the entity that emerged from the wreckage is Sears Holdings.— July 3, 2017 10:06 a.m.
Brick & mortar vs. Amazon
That move by Sears had me scratching my head. They're in the strongest and most popular mall in the county, one now undergoing massive upgrading, and they decide to leave. My only take is that the mall operator was going to raise the rent on Sears, perhaps massively, and Sears just decided it could not afford to stay. And then there's another possibility that Sears wasn't benefiting from the popularity of the mall. If Sears could make use of all that traffic, they would be inclined to stay. The type of customer that patronizes UTC is likely not the type of customer that likes Sears or its offerings. I find that move right up there with the decision of Nordstrom to pull out of Horton Plaza. Who'd a thunk it before it happened?— July 3, 2017 8:29 a.m.
Summer Stephan's fake NYT news experience
With all this negative baggage, which is all grist for the campaign manager's mill, some other candidate has a good chance of beating her. There are plenty of folks out here, like me, who would support (meaning I'd contribute money to his/her campaign) a decent alternative. The Crowe family despises her, and is very willing to publicly attack her. And let's all remember that Paulie Pfingst lost that office because of his wrongheaded prosecution, handled by none other than Summer. What's her agenda? What was the agenda of the BOS in appointing her? The local power structure doesn't want any DA who might look for corruption and/or collusion in high places. They've had such a DA in Dumanis, and want to keep it that way. And so Summer is the chosen one.— July 2, 2017 8:50 p.m.
At last, an easy way to get to Mission Valley
While this bike lane may be a safe route, it sure is not the sort of place I'd want to have to ride a bike. The noise from the freeway would be deafening, and there's nothing scenic or relaxing about the experience.— July 2, 2017 8:41 p.m.
Von Metzke "groomed" underaged girls by texting
In the foregoing posts I have heard about the involvement (or lack of it) by the mayor, city attorney, and attorney general. What about the DA? All of this seems to me to be the sort of criminal behavior that should be investigated and prosecuted by her. But now that "her" is resigning, and her hand-picked successor will assume the post, shouldn't all these concerned parents and others start to feed Summer S that sort of stuff? Or have they written her off? The parallels here to the Barton case and the Army and Navy Academy are many. He was, it was discovered later, accused of similar offenses and had negotiated a resignation from another such school years ago that buried any record of the real situation. But after the academy hired him, there were plenty of reports of his strange behavior. The police investigated him more than once and came up empty handed. Still, after he had been warned about any contact that might be seen as inappropriate, he was observed doing the very things he'd promised to avoid. Those were brought to the attention of the upper level administrators, and nothing was done. When that case broke open and he was indicted, the previous head of the school, a retired army brigadier general named Bliss was gone. (I don't recall how that happened, but I suspect he resigned under a cloud.) He was soon replaced by a retired army major general whose name I don't remember. The academy tries to claim that is acted as soon as it knew about Barton, but the truth is a far more bitter story. It now has the task of rebuilding its reputation and making parents think it can be trusted.— July 2, 2017 8:38 p.m.