Business Pulse: Runaway bride toast a hot eBay item
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Think of this not as the beginning of Business Pulse, but as the beginning of a journey. It’s a journey where you will find many opportunities, many doors to open, and it’s up to you to seize those opportunities to the best of your ability.
OK, so that’s enough graduation speak for today’s column because it’s time to talk about the runaway bride. This is a story which captivated the country for a couple weeks and it’s popped up again because a New Jersey man etched a picture of the runaway bride, Jennifer Wilbanks, on a piece of burnt toast and then put the toast on eBay.
By the time the auction ended, the piece of toast had fetched a price of $15,400. What this tells me is I should quit writing so many stories and start etching on burnt toast.
However, there has been a catch. The man who submitted the winning bid says he will not pay. I guess you could say that’s a real crumby thing to do.
Toast artist Perry Lonzello denies he got hungry and ate the toast. He said he might put the item back on eBay or, you guessed it, pursue legal action against the man who won’t pay.
As for other odds and ends, regular Business Pulse readers may have noticed how I like new inventions. This mainly stems from the fact most of these new inventions are headed for certain failure, including the new Your Turn Washing Machine.
This washing machine is designed to make sure household chores are distributed evenly. Upon making their happy purchase, a husband and wife register their fingerprints in the Your Turn Washing Machine. After that, the device will not operate using the same person’s fingerprint twice in a row.
I think if such a concept takes off, it should be implemented on other items like the lawnmower. That way everything can be perfectly even.
Or how about this: “Honey, I fixed the toilet last time. Now it’s your turn.”
Or how about this item which is ready to hit the market designed by up-and-coming inventor James Larson. It’s mood-based silverware that’s been developed for the dating crowd.
The fork and spoon will change colors depending on a person’s level of stress and contentment. Therefore, a person will be able to tell if their date is having a good time, is just pretending to have fun, or is genuinely miserable.
Hmmm, I wonder what would happen if a couple bought both items, the washing machine and the silverware. Then when they sat down to eat, the wife could see her husband’s aggravation at having to do half the laundry.
Post office has jobs available
For weeks upon weeks I’ve been writing about jobs leaving Warren County. Here is finally some relief. It’s not necessarily local jobs, but the Nashville district of the U.S. Postal Service is currently accepting applications.
For people seeking a good-paying job, this is an open-door invitation. Anyone interested has until this Tuesday, May 17 at midnight to apply for a Battery 473 Examination, which is required for all prospective post office employees.
You can apply on the Internet at www.usps.com/employment, or you can apply on the phone using the interactive voice response system by calling 1-800-601-8953. The following examination number is required: 124981.
Using the Internet to apply takes less than two minutes. The telephone application system takes eight to 15 minutes.
“Not a day goes by that someone doesn’t call me and ask for a job,” said McMinnville postmaster Charles Bogle. “This is something the post office hasn’t done in six or seven years.”
I should stress the jobs aren’t necessarily for McMinnville’s post office, but for post offices in the whole Nashville district which includes Cookeville, Murfreesboro, etc. If a local resident was given a job at an out-of-town post office, they could request a transfer here after working one year.
And here’s the great news: The jobs start at $14.52 an hour up to $17.69 an hour. They top out at over $23 an hour, which is what I consider a lot of money.
After applying by phone or via the Internet, applicants will be sent a packet that includes the time, place and date for them to take the Battery 473 Exam. To complete the exam, and fill out accompanying forms, will take approximately 3 hours and 30 minutes. Good luck.
New shopping center looking positive
Folks have been asking me about the progress of a proposed shopping center on Old Shelbyville Road near the bypass. Business deals like this one take time, sometimes lots of time, but it appears things are headed in the right direction.
Of course “the right direction” depends on your point of view. Since I’d love to see a new shopping center in town, I’m calling that the right direction. I realize that’s not necessarily fair to the people who want to keep a new retail development out, but oh well.
Developer John Forster with The Shopping Center Group says he’s been receiving positive feedback from the retail giant that will be the backbone, the anchor, of this new shopping center. John says at this point, it’s up to this one store whether the deal is successful or whether it falls through.
“It’s gotten to where all our eggs are in one basket and I wish it hasn’t come to that but it has,” said John. “But everything we’ve heard from them in the last two weeks has been real positive. If it had been negative, we probably would have just told the landowners we can’t do anything at this time and taken back the contract offer.”
John says he’s working hard to bring this store to McMinnville, along with another major restaurant chain. He listed Ruby Tuesday’s, Chili’s and O’Charley’s as possibilities.
“Those three restaurants will consider smaller markets where other restaurants like Red Lobster and Olive Garden want larger towns,” said John. “I’m really surprised a town your size that has liquor by the drink doesn’t have another restaurant that serves liquor other than Applebee’s.”
John was referring to the chain restaurants and meant no offense to the Mexican restaurants, which are the only other ones with liquor licenses.
“So many communities have voted in liquor by the drink in the last five years I guess the restaurants haven’t had a chance to catch up,” said John. “Cookeville just exploded with restaurants when liquor by the drink passed. That’s probably the best example of that happening.”
I’ll have another progress report in a couple months with hopefully good news to bring.
Need to fix your car? Then rent a bay
Here’s an interesting business concept I haven’t seen around these parts. Eldon Currey and his son, Rodney Currey, have come up with the idea of a business called Rent-A-Bay. It works like this.
If you need a place to work on your car, you can stop by their new business on S. Chancery Street and rent one of their bays. They will offer a tool kit if you need one and Eldon, a certified mechanic, will be on hand to point you in the right direction.
“If they have a problem, I’ll try to work them through it,” said Eldon. “I’ve been a heavy equipment mechanic all my life.”
While Eldon will be around, the idea is not for him to do the work. If he was going to do that, he would charge full mechanic rates. Rather, it’s to give people a place to work on their vehicles who don’t have access to a garage. If there’s a problem that stumps Eldon, Rent-A-Bay has Internet access and can try to look up possible solutions online.
Rodney said he and his dad got the idea while working on a vehicle for a friend.
“He told us if he had a place to work, he would do it himself,” said Rodney. “We figure this should work in Warren County with all the shade-tree mechanics we have here.”
The business will open this Saturday and Eldon says he hopes to have a lift installed in the next two weeks. Compressor lines will be available and people can bring their own tools or rent a basic tool kit.
It will cost $25 to rent a bay for a four-hour block. There will also be daily and weekly rates for people needing a place to perform major repairs.
It’s certainly an interesting idea and one I hope will work for the Curreys. Rent-A-Bay is located next to Hickory Creek Wedding Chapel in the building that’s probably best known as the old Woodcarver facility. For more information, call 668-RENT.
Sherry Taylor opens Cuttin’ Up
If Sherry Taylor wanted a business location with heavy traffic, she found it on N. Chancery Street with the opening of her new salon, Cuttin’ Up.
Sherry and her crew formerly cut hair at His and Hers Barbershop on S. Chancery Street but decided to leave as a group and open a new business. I think there must have been some sort of big controversy there, although Sherry refused to talk about the ordeal. Instead, she had only nice things to say, which aren’t nearly as fun as insults.
“We’re working ourselves to death, staying real busy and enjoying this location,” said Sherry. “We get a lot more walk-through traffic here.”
The staff at Cuttin’ Up includes Janie Osment, Michelle Fults, Janeeta Reece, Mary Brock Womack, and nail tech Andrianne Layne. The phone number is 473-2888.
A Supreme addition
Reece Moore graduated from UT-Martin over the weekend and is joining the staff at Supreme Building Products in a full-time capacity.
Reece majored in economics with a concentration in finance and will be learning the operations first-hand from his dad and owner David Moore. He’ll eventually work into the role of purchasing commodities like lumber and building materials.
“Reece will definitely be an asset to our growth strategy,” said his brother and Supreme vice president Ryan Moore.
That’s all folks
As we close another chapter of Business Pulse, think of this not as an ending, but as a new beginning. Equipped with your new knowledge of local businesses, go forth and tackle the world.
And don’t forget to give me a call with more business news at 473-2191.