Chocolate fries a really bad idea
Firefighters and EMS personnel, at attention, as the body of Kenny Cox is rolled into Inman Ward Funeral home Thursday. (Deuce Niven photo)
Firefighters and EMS personnel, at attention, as the body of Kenny Cox is rolled into Inman Ward Funeral home Thursday. (Deuce Niven photo)
It will go down in history as one of the great product failures of all time.
It was about a year ago that food giant Heinz unveiled a new product called Funky Fries. The company grinned from ear to ear when it announced it would be selling chocolate French fries.
What I want to know is what executive out there would think chocolate French fries would be a hot seller? It sounds awful.
But apparently Heinz thought chocolate French fries would be such a great seller, the company is blaming disappointing sales of the product as one reason for its fourth-quarter profit miss.
And since we’re talking about French fries, how about that recent lawsuit involving McDonald’s – only this time McDonald’s is the one doing the suing.
McDonald’s of Italy is suing one of the country’s leading food critics for raking the restaurant over the coals. The bigger question is why was a food critic analyzing McDonald’s food? Was the Happy Meal a bit dry?
In a recent statement, McDonald’s of Italy said the comments were, “clearly defamatory and offensive to McDonald’s and to the more than 600,000 Italians who each day freely choose to eat in a McDonald’s restaurant.”
The lawsuit also calls into question McDonald’s line of thinking. Do they honestly believe a critic would rave about their food?
And in keeping with an international theme, let me take just a second more of your time to tell you about a German man who was arrested for DUI – on his lawnmower.
The 45-year-old man was fined $460 and was banned for driving all vehicles, including his lawnmower, for three months. After hearing that verdict, I say that’s a case of justice pushed just a bit far.
I mean it’s one thing to keep a man off the road. I stand behind that decision. It’s another thing to ban him from his riding lawnmower. Now who is going to cut his grass?
And what about his neighbors? They’re going to have to tolerate grass that’s 4 feet tall because this guy has been told by a judge not to get on his lawnmower for three months.
Now for things not so ridiculous, here is another installment of Business Pulse, your tried and true Sunday companion.
New store for the mall moving right along
Slowly but surely, the opening of Three Star Mall’s new anchor is inching closer. U.S. Factory Outlets is scheduled to open at the end of August or first of September.
“The contractors are supposed to have it finished and turned over by Aug. 1,” said mall manager Teresa Martin. “From there, it will probably take three or four weeks for U.S. Factory Outlets to stock it.”
Not only will the 44,000-square-foot store solidify one end of the mall, it will also bring about 60 jobs to the area. Teresa says she has applications available at the mall office, now in its new location next to the nail salon, and those applications are ready to be picked up.
“We’re excited and they’re excited,” said Teresa.
Anything else happening at the mall?
Well, since you asked, there is another store planning to locate at Three Star Mall. That store is Medical Aid of McMinnville. The store will be located behind the former Cookie Shop location.
Heath Griffith is the business owner. Some of you may know Health because his mother is none other than Susie Griffith, one of the hard-working ladies who keeps the mall running.
Health says he will carry the usual medical equipment such as walkers, wheelchairs, hospital beds, and oxygen. And he will make plenty of house calls.
“I really like getting out and meeting new people,” said Heath. “That’s probably the best thing. You’re not stuck in one place all the time.”
Heath is ready to go, he’s just waiting to get his Medicare number. He says he has already submitted his application and been told by the government it will be 30 to 60 days.
Boy you’ve just got to love government agencies. Imagine what would happen if someone asked you to do something and you replied, “That will take 30 to 60 days.” How long would you keep your job?
Best Value Inn is back in action
I know I was bummed out when I looked over one day and the Best Value Inn was out of business. It’s one of the nicer hotels in town and I hated to see it closed.
At the same time, I knew it wouldn’t be closed for long. That’s because I saw all the renovation work that had been done in that place and knew it was too good to leave closed.
It’s been open for about two weeks now under the ownership of the Patal family. It’s the same family which also owns McMinnville Inn on Sparta Highway.
For just opening back up, Best Value Inn is doing a pretty good business. Clerk Curt Anderson was busy Friday afternoon answering the phone and dealing with several hotel guests. Twelve rooms were booked over the weekend and next weekend, the 4th of July, is pretty full too.
Best Value Inn offers a free continental breakfast featuring bagels and cereal and donuts and juice and all of that great breakfast stuff. And in case you’re wondering about times around the world, Best Value Inn has four clocks in its lobby.
One clock is set to McMinnville time. The other three are set to New York time, London time and Tokyo time. It’s pretty neat really except the clock with London time is broken. But then again, who really needs to know what time it is in London?
If you’ve got relatives coming into town – and these are relatives you don’t necessarily want staying at your house – then give Best Value Inn a call.
Hair salon offers great new service
Women who are having trouble with their hair because of medical reasons such as chemotherapy can take comfort in knowing stylists at Designers, Ltd., have recently completed a two-day course to help with this problem.
Designers, Ltd., owner Gayle Yates and Wendy Beaty have completed a medical hair loss workshop and are ready to let their new talents benefit your head of hair.
The brochure for Medical Hair Loss Enhancements says, “The loss of hair due to medical reasons such as chemotherapy, radiation or alopecia is often one of life’s most traumatic experiences. Not only are we scared and confused by what we are diagnosed with, but our appearance to others becomes our second main concern.”
To make an appointment with the friendly folks at Designers Ltd., call 473-3074.
Eat Blizzards, give 10 cents
Throughout the month of July, Dairy Queen is extending its generosity. Well, that is provided you buy a Blizzard, which isn’t really much of a sacrifice now is it.
For every Blizzard sale in July, Dairy Queen will donate 10 cents to the local Children’s Miracle Network hospital. What this means is for all the folks trying to make excuses as to why they shouldn’t indulge in a Blizzard if they are perhaps watching their figure, this tosses all that out the window. Now buying a Blizzard actually helps charity.
There’s the always popular Cotton Candy Blizzard which Katelyn Pack and her little brother Austin couldn’t wait to dig into Friday afternoon. Judging by Katelyn’s reaction, that was one mighty good treat.
That’s all folks
Give me a call with your business news at 473-2191 or send me an e-mail at [email protected]. Just don’t drive your business tips over on a lawnmower if you’ve been drinking. Actually, that’s not a good idea period.