Yarns by the Yard

April 8, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

It might be cool for activist investor Bill Ackman to hand out business cards that simply said: “William Ackman – Activist Investor.”

Seems the guy takes his role to heart.

One of the very few hedge funders who on occasion at least projects the appearance of humility – in February he famously issued an “I’m sorry” letter to participants in a Target-heavy fund that drastically underperformed – Ackman and his Pershing Square Capital are not shy about “what Target should do.”

April 6, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (1)

When something gets as big as Wal-Mart, it would be strange if there were no conflicting interpretations of its actions.

I recently I posted my reaction to the “Stimulus Package” that Walmart indicated its hourly employees would be receiving in various forms – bonuses, 401(k) increases, merchandise discounts – to a total of as much as $2 billion.

My reaction was positive.

The idea didn’t seem entirely unreasonable. After all, Wal-Mart is one of the retailers whose fortunes have been running counter to the market at large. On revenues o...Read More

March 30, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (0)

Dutch general merchandiser HEMA (which stands for Hollandse Eenheidsprijzen Maatschappij Amsterdam – thank you, Wikipedia!) sells a wide range of stuff at cheap prices and sports a perky ambiance.

Goods seem to be in the Wal-Mart/Kmart area of th...Read More

March 25, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (10)

Sometimes the world seems simple.

Last week, Walmart said it would cut a check for $2 billion payable to its hourly wage employees. How’s that for a stimulus package?

As reported by Andria Cheng at MarketWatch, the Walmart incentive plan will comprise more than $900 million in bonus payments –...Read More

March 24, 2009 | Link This | Email this | Comments (1)

And I thought felt was just boiled, compressed wool.

Turns out there is far more food for thought – and product inspiration – in the “Fashioning Felt” exhibit at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum on New York’s Museum Mile.

The Cooper-Hewitt, a branch of the Smithsonian, has with this show assembled the works o...Read More