It was announced today that Wal-Mart will be the exclusive vendor for Bruce Springsteen's latest hits compilation.
It's hard enough for local record stores to survive with the increasing digitization of music, but it becomes nearly impossible when bankable artists like Springsteen, AC/DC and the Eagles start selling their music exclusively at Wal-Mart.
I don't begrudge these guys for doing so. However, Springsteen has fashioned himself as a friend of the working man and takes every opportunity to show his concern for the little guy and rip conservatives and corporations. The reality is that Springsteen is a corporate entity that is only concerned about his bottom line. Again, there's nothing wrong with that, but don't tell us how we should live our lives then.
He had a chance to help independents by selling the disc exclusively through them, but there must not have been as much money in that.
Monday, January 19, 2009
The death of Harry W Schwartz Books
I wish I could say that the announcement regarding the closing of Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops was a surprise, but I feel that it's merely a casualty of the digital age we now live in. Even Oprah, one of the saviors of the book, threw dirt on the grave with her endorsement of the Amazon Kindle.
We are a Member of OurMilwaukee which is a group designed to support local business and Schwartz was a founding member. To be sure, competition from Barnes and Noble and Borders probably didn't help Schwartz and it would be nice to see more people seek out their bookstores, but it's hard to blame the big boxes on this one.
Perhaps Schwartz had a flawed business model. They operated 4 bookstores so it was difficult to make one a true destination spot like Powell's in Portland. They located their stores (with the exception of the Brookfield store) in non-traditional spots. They took a risk on opening a Bay View location when it was clear to anyone familiar with the area that it wouldn't work.
In any event, the march towards digital media continues. It will not be much longer until the newspaper is not delivered and the CD goes the way of the dodo bird. I thought books might be different. After all a book is a very tangible thing and while the Kindle is a cool looking device I'm not sure how it replaces that feel of holding onto a book. That said, it's been selling like crazy and will continue to be improved.
Two of the stores will remain open under new ownership, but I fear they will only be able to tread water. It's hard to stop the changes in media that have happened.
We are a Member of OurMilwaukee which is a group designed to support local business and Schwartz was a founding member. To be sure, competition from Barnes and Noble and Borders probably didn't help Schwartz and it would be nice to see more people seek out their bookstores, but it's hard to blame the big boxes on this one.
Perhaps Schwartz had a flawed business model. They operated 4 bookstores so it was difficult to make one a true destination spot like Powell's in Portland. They located their stores (with the exception of the Brookfield store) in non-traditional spots. They took a risk on opening a Bay View location when it was clear to anyone familiar with the area that it wouldn't work.
In any event, the march towards digital media continues. It will not be much longer until the newspaper is not delivered and the CD goes the way of the dodo bird. I thought books might be different. After all a book is a very tangible thing and while the Kindle is a cool looking device I'm not sure how it replaces that feel of holding onto a book. That said, it's been selling like crazy and will continue to be improved.
Two of the stores will remain open under new ownership, but I fear they will only be able to tread water. It's hard to stop the changes in media that have happened.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Estate Tax Likely to Stay
The Estate tax law has been one of the more interesting aspects of the Bush tax cuts of 2001. At the time Bush wanted to repeal the Estate tax, but lacked the congressional support to do so. As a compromise the exclusion amount for Estate taxes has been raised over the decade and the tax completely goes away in 2010 before returning in 2011 with the same rules it had it 2001.
Confused?
I certainly know that Estate planning has become more difficult because no one has known for sure what will happen with the law.
President Elect Obama has come out in support of keeping the Estate Tax with an exclusion amount of $3,500,000 and a tax rate of 45%. Given the current makeup of the congress, this is likely what we'll be looking at. I'd like to see the tax repealed, but at least we know what direction things are heading in.
Confused?
I certainly know that Estate planning has become more difficult because no one has known for sure what will happen with the law.
President Elect Obama has come out in support of keeping the Estate Tax with an exclusion amount of $3,500,000 and a tax rate of 45%. Given the current makeup of the congress, this is likely what we'll be looking at. I'd like to see the tax repealed, but at least we know what direction things are heading in.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Sick Pay and Heinemann's
Heinemann's restaurant has closed its doors after being a signature Milwaukee business for decades. In listening to the radio this morning it would appear that the sick pay law that was passed in Milwaukee was the thing that caused them to shutter the doors.
While I am against the sick pay law as much as anyone I think people need to be careful in blaming the law for the closing of a business. Heinemann's shut their doors without warning to their customers and their employees which suggest that they had reached the point where they could no longer pay their bills. The sick pay law had NOTHING to do with them shutting down, but the owner did throw that excuse out there as if to make her feel a bit better about being at the head of a failing business. You don't shaft your employees the way Heinemann's did if you didn't have major operating problems.
We can't cry wolf regarding the sick pay law. Some businesses simply fail. That's the way it goes. If there is an outcry every time a business like Heinemann's shutters its doors it will allow proponents of the law to say that business is using the law as a convenient excuse to mask their own failings.
Businesses will close, and many more will relocate, because of this law. It would be wise to save the outrage for those instances where the law is a critical factor in the decision making process rather then falsely blaming it this time.
While I am against the sick pay law as much as anyone I think people need to be careful in blaming the law for the closing of a business. Heinemann's shut their doors without warning to their customers and their employees which suggest that they had reached the point where they could no longer pay their bills. The sick pay law had NOTHING to do with them shutting down, but the owner did throw that excuse out there as if to make her feel a bit better about being at the head of a failing business. You don't shaft your employees the way Heinemann's did if you didn't have major operating problems.
We can't cry wolf regarding the sick pay law. Some businesses simply fail. That's the way it goes. If there is an outcry every time a business like Heinemann's shutters its doors it will allow proponents of the law to say that business is using the law as a convenient excuse to mask their own failings.
Businesses will close, and many more will relocate, because of this law. It would be wise to save the outrage for those instances where the law is a critical factor in the decision making process rather then falsely blaming it this time.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
