The rumors were true: Panera Bread has found a new owner. JAB Holdings — the parent company of Krispy Kreme, Caribou Coffee, Peet’s Coffee & Tea, and Keurig Green Mountain — will buy the sandwich chain for $7.5 billion. [More]
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Panera Sold To Owner Of Krispy Kreme, Peet’s & Caribou For $7.5 Billion
By 4.5.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
Facebook Creeps Into Craigslist Territory With “Marketplace”
By 10.3.16
You’ve like seen it for years: “friends” using Facebook as their own personal garage sale to persuade you and others to purchase their belongings, apartments, cars, and other items on Facebook. Now, instead of seeing those posts littering your news feed, or in area “buy, sell, or trade” groups, the social media giant has created its own dedicated Craigslist clone, dubbed Marketplace. [More]
Colleges Are Now Required To List Textbooks During Class Registration
By 7.31.10
Finding the best textbooks prices just got a whole lot easier now that colleges are required to provide students with a list of required textbooks when they register for classes. The requirement was mandated back in the 2008 as part of the Higher Education Opportunity Act, but only took effect this year. [More]
Top 10 Cities Where Owning Is Cheaper Than Renting
By 6.23.10
As home prices continue to stagnate in many markets across the country, renters are facing some tough choices: should they take advantage of low prices and make the move into home ownership, or wait a while longer, on the chance that the market hasn’t yet hit bottom? In some cities, the choice is easier: prices have fallen so much that it’s cheaper to buy than it is to rent. [More]
Best Buy To Use Kitchens And Kids To Lure Female Shoppers
By 6.20.10
After listening to thousands of women, Best Buy has decided that its path to long-term profitability lies through redesigned showrooms that resemble kitchens and a loyalty program that lets women donate points to schools. The insights came from Best Buy’s Women’s Leadership Forums, local focus groups that let female Best Buy employees and regular gals like you send ideas to the suits upstairs. Some Best Buy executives were irked by the whole initiative. [More]
Either Have The Temerity To Hold Stocks Or Get Out Of The Market
By 8.9.09
One of the first studies of the recent market splat found that the investors most likely to be crushed thought they were investing for the long haul, only to be forced into cashing out at the worst possible time. According to the study, cleverly titled “When Everyone Runs for the Exit,” there are only two good ways to react to a liquidity crisis: hold onto your portfolio and trust that it will recover, or fold immediately to limit your losses.
The One Question To Ask Before Buying Fitness Equipment
By 8.1.09
Are you motivated? Because if you’re not, don’t bother. Put down your credit card, walk away from the pretty advertisements, you’re just going to waste money. Seem overly simplistic? Maybe it is, but it’s a reality most of us don’t have the courage to face. Paul Michael over at Wise Bread offers up his own story as proof…
Buy Safely Online With Virtual Credit Cards
By 7.27.09
Before buying from potentially unscrupulous merchants, call up your credit card company and ask for a virtual credit card number. The disposable numbers expire after a single use, preventing merchants from signing you up for added or recurring charges. Virtual numbers are available to Citi, Discover, PayPal, and Bank of America customers.
Let Supermarkets Help You Save Money
By 4.12.09
Consumer Reports is gearing up to release their supermarket ratings, but the preliminary results show that supermarkets are trying to help consumers by extending sales and rewarding loyalty. Inside, six ways to save a few bucks next time you fill up your shopping cart.
The Consumerist Hive Mind Helps You Buy A Diamond
By 4.7.09
I’d love to know what to look out for when buying a diamond. Do dealers change the grades of diamonds, lie about carats, etc? Where can I buy reasonably priced diamonds? There may be a huge mark-up in store, but am I going to get scammed online? Maybe just pointing in the direction of reliable user reviews of local or online retailers, since it’s so hard to know which reviews are genuine and which are the retailers inflating their stock these days.
Now Is A Good Time To Haggle Over A TV
By 3.29.09
Between weak holiday sales and the pending arrival of new models, this an excellent time to haggle with your local electronics store over the price of a new TV. In a normal year, prices dip before the holidays and again before the Super Bowl. This year, with the recession clamping down on bank accounts, nobody’s buying. With new models arriving soon, retailers just want to clear out their showroom space, meaning you can walk in and save a few hundred dollars on that dream set you’ve always wanted.
Invest In A New Freezer And Start Buying In Bulk
By 8.31.08
Freezer sales are heating up as thrifty consumers spend cash now so they can realize savings later by buying in bulk.
Are We Nearing The End Of Credit Card Consumerism?
By 8.12.08
Is it possible? Can this country’s insatiable appetite for consumer goods be slowing down? No! Surely not! US News & World Report’s Alpha Consumer, Kimberly Palmer took a look at consumer demand and its relationship to cheap credit.
20 Ways To Make The Most Of Your Groceries Without Spending An Extra Cent
By 7.13.08
Americans throw away a quarter of our food uneaten, which translates into serious wasted cash over time. The Guardian compiled an excellent list of ways to shop smarter so you end up buying what you need, and eating what you buy.
New Car? Put It On The Credit Card
By 6.1.08
Why should dealers tell you what you can and can’t charge to your credit card? Cars represent a jackpot of credit rewards that every consumer is entitled to collect. There’s nothing stopping from charging your new car straight to your credit card, if you storm the dealership armed with the right tools…
Shopping Begets Shopping
By 1.20.08
Put down the credit card, you unstoppable spending machine. Groundbreaking research shows that shopping leads to more shopping; not, as some predicted, happiness. Once you start buying, you build up what researchers call “shopping momentum,” and then you can’t stop.
What Are Your Buying Signals?
By 12.27.07
The USA Today quiz below, which makes a reference to a customer’s “buying signals,” got us wondering, what are our “tells” when we’re in the store? It turns out there are all sorts of places online to help us with this bit o’ self-knowledge.
