Word: zang
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 2000-2009
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...feel great," says Zang Lifang. "People in Guangdong are very nice." Indeed, Zang's boss has just drained a glass of beer in honor of the 61-year-old construction foreman and a dozen of his workmates, and handed each man a red envelope containing a New Year's gift of $70 in cash - one third of a month's salary. Their dinner table is loaded with such tasty holiday treats as lotus root, fresh shrimp and carp, and the hall is festively bedecked with red and gold banners. But Zang's sunburnt skin and his Mao suit and Lenin...
Looking for a great business opportunity? Step right up, ladies and gentlemen, and join the XanGo team. Pronounced zang-go, this powerful elixir comes from the mangosteen, a fruit grown in the jungles of Thailand. The juice is anti-inflammatory! Antidepressant! Antitumor! Now you too can be a distributor of this incredible formula for a one-time fee of just $35 plus $100 for the first four bottles. Not one of those claims has been conclusively proved, but similarly worded pitches--made in e-mails or other direct solicitations to independent marketers have helped XanGo pass $200 million in sales...
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...
...trip around Bakshis and Zang's home store in Burlington shows that TSC is clearly a sanctuary for the affluent lawn warrior. Horse-racing helmets are displayed near hummingbird feeders, and outdoor paint, in John Deere Green for antique tractor collections, fills the shelves. ATVs share the center aisle with shiny lawn mowers. Udder cream comes in pretty clover tins (women have discovered its charms for chapped lips), and lawn trinkets are the hot item for spring. In the pet center, an aluminum bin full of chirping baby chickens is adjacent to model plastic horses for the kids...
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...