Word: discounting
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...called deseasonalization," says Maura Chicarella, of Realize Tour in Rome. She says many Italians now opt for, say, a fortnight in summer, a week at Christmas, and a short trip in spring or fall. Others say they see a similar pattern, perhaps attributable to the rise of discount airlines. Horst W. Opaschowski, who heads Germany's Leisure Research Institute, says: "A second travel market of short trips and short distances is coming into being." Is this a good thing? In Spain, where the trend is similar if less marked, Madrid psychiatrist José Luis Carrasco Perera argues that tourists...
...though they may hide the shopping bags, well-off parents are also finding their way into discount stores when shopping for their children's everyday wear. There they will brush shopping carts with parents of moderate budgets, who are able to find stylish and durable kids' clothing for every occasion. In the past several years, Wal-Mart and Target have gone to great--and successful--lengths to improve the quality of their private-label children's wear. Jill Rice, 34, a stay-at-home mother in Atlanta, says that while she prefers to shop for church or special-occasion clothing...
...Discount chains have done a good job of seizing licensing opportunities. Target, for example, carries clothing emblazoned with Hello Kitty and Barney, while Wal-Mart has SpongeBob SquarePants and a line designed by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. The chains have been savvy in their marketing, particularly to Hispanics, who have surpassed African Americans as the largest minority group in the U.S. According to Susan Porjes, a retail analyst based in Honolulu, Hispanic parents spend a higher percentage of their income on children's clothing than other ethnic groups do. That helps explain why Target has licensed characters from...
...average investors and the companies themselves? The mergers are widely regarded as one sign of impending economic recovery, but few want them to signal a return to the hysterical days of the late 1990s, when companies eager to create value snapped one another up like shoppers at a discount outlet. Spurred on by investment bankers, consultants and their own hubris, firms used their own inflated stock as currency or took on massive debt to pay cash. It was an easy way to get big quick, to diversify holdings, eliminate competition, or even to outsource tasks such as research and development...
...Iraq market. What's hot? Satellite-phone guys roam the streets, charging a buck per minute of chatter. Satellite-dish salesmen line the highways from Jordan, hawking devices banned by Saddam. And some SUVs, pronounced "Jim-ses" (think GMCs), are coming in from Kuwait and selling at a discount. "Everything is a bit hectic right now," Ramadan says. But he and brother Zeyad, 31, plan to open a computer-training business in Baghdad by the end of the year...