Word: farm
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Kumin would later leave the Boston area to take up residence full-time at a Warner, N.H. farm that would come to be known as “Pobiz,” short for “Poetry Business.” The writings from Kumin’s “Pobiz” period reflect a keen awareness of the natural world that have led her work frequently to be compared to that of Robert Frost, who likewise studied here. (Frost, who enrolled at Harvard in 1897, withdrew from the College before ever receiving...
...chugs some coffee and feeds her animals--including 30 sheep, 14 chickens and a horse--before slipping on heels and heading to the bank she co-owns. After work, she and husband Mike Zang, a 54-year-old boat salesman, stay up late doing chores on their 150-acre farm in Burlington, Wis. "Yes, I do this for enjoyment," says Bakshis, 43, and laughs. Former suburbanites, the couple bought their century-old farm in 1993 and are learning as they go. When they have questions about lamb birthing, they call their neighbors. And when they need fencing materials...
Given the work required, hobby farming sounds a bit like hobby coal mining, but it turns out there are a lot of amateur sodbusters like Bakshis and Zang. Which is one reason TSC, based in Nashville, Tenn., expects sales to increase to $2 billion this year. In 2004 profits rose 10%, though in April quarterly net income fell. The company blamed higher costs. The stock, which has roughly doubled since 2003, tumbled briefly but recovered. "We have zeroed in on hobby farmers," says chairman Joe Scarlett. TSC has revived itself by expanding into exurban areas where there's a deepening...
...road to the ag lifestyle was not exactly a straight one. Tractor Supply Co. was founded in 1938 as a haven for farmers who needed tractor parts (hence the catchy name). Over the next four decades, TSC strayed off the farm and started peddling everything from sporting goods to Crock-Pots. In the 1970s, conglomerate Fuqua Industries acquired TSC, further diluting the retailer's focus. Scarlett participated in a leveraged buyout in 1982 and floated TSC as a public company in 1994; he owns 14.5% of the common stock, worth about $233 million today...
Bakshis and Zang like the fact that the store staff includes welders, farmers, horse owners and ranchers. "It's not only a hardware store but it's a farm store and a pet store," Bakshis says. She estimates that they spend about $3,000 a year at TSC. "It's a lifestyle. It's fun and frustrating and a lot of work--and very satisfying." And for the right kind of retailer, very profitable...