CLOVIS – Clovis True Value, a new hardware store in Clovis, has announced its grand opening on Oct. 18 thru Oct. 20, 2013.  This new hardware store is located at 1890 Shaw Avenue, just east of Fowler. The 12,600-square-foot interior design reflects retail best practices and offers shoppers a compelling shopping environment complete with an [...]

OAKHURST – The Southgate Brewing Company in Oakhurst is holding a release party to help show off a new beer that helps mark the 150th Anniversary of the signing of the Yosemite Grant. The 1864 Ale, produced by brewmaster Rick Bouke, is an Oktoberfest style beer that will be available throughout the fall. Bouke said [...]

NORWALK, Conn., Sept. 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – As the economy continued to stabilize in 2012, wine consumption increased for the 19th straight year.  Overturned blue laws, relaxed restrictions on direct shipments, and customers trading up to more premium-priced wines all led to the industry’s success last year.  According to The Beverage Information Group’s recently released 2013 Wine Handbook, the wine industry [...]

ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 11, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Consumers are more pessimistic about the economy than they have been all year – and gas prices may not be the primary cause. For the first time this year, consumer pessimism increased over a 30-day period when gas prices fell. More than three in five consumers (61%) say that they [...]

WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ – Menthol cigarettes are much more likely to be used by youth and young adult smokers than older smokers and are undermining efforts to reduce smoking in the United States, according to a new study published today in the journal Tobacco Control .  The study also found that menthol smoking rates have increased among young [...]

FRESNO – Craig Scharton, business development director with the City of Fresno, is opening the doors of his new business venture, called Peeve’s Public House & Local Market, on Sept. 5 on the Fulton Mall in downtown Fresno. “It’s where Fresno Brewing Co. is,” Scharton said.  ”Fresno Brewing Co. is closing, and I’ll re-open as [...]

ORLANDO, Fla., Aug. 8, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — It’s that time of year again already: back-to-school season is upon us and with it comes a list of items necessary to prepare and equip your children. According to Deloitte’s annual “Back-To-School” and “Back-To-College” surveys, parents expect to pay an average of $428 on items for children in K-12, and $907 on items [...]

NEW YORK, July 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Consumers are giving the U.S. economy better grades this back-to-school season, but continue to hold tight to their purse strings and will rely heavily on online and mobile channels while they shop, according to Deloitte’s annual “Back-to-School” and “Back-to-College” surveys, released today. Shoppers are far more optimistic about the economy [...]

FRESNO – Jason McDonough and Alysia Sofios already had a love of wine tasting when they met about a year ago, and when the couple discovered that The Tasting Room in Fresno was up for sale they felt they had to buy it. The Tasting Room is a comfortable and fashionable place where people from miles away come [...]

CHICAGO, July 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — This August, retailers can expect that prepared parents will shop and spend more during the “back-to-school season” than they did last year. According to ShopperTrak – the world’s largest counter and analyzer of retail foot traffic – national retail sales, when compared to the same period last year, will rise 4.3 percent in [...]

YONKERS, N.Y., June 28, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ – Buying eyeglasses from the eye doctor’s office is convenient, but can be costly.  Comparison shopping among different types of eyewear stores including online and discount retailers takes time but can save consumers 40 percent or more.  Consumer Reports’ most recent survey about its readers’ eyeglass-shopping experiences found that Costco was a [...]

AUSTIN, Texas, June 10, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Offers.com, a leading coupon and deal site, is revealing our poll results of the top four Father’s Day gift ideas and what activities dads want to do this Father’s Day.  Results show the majority of shoppers are giving dad a wardrobe makeover this year. The Offers.com Father’s Day Savings Center helps shoppers find popular Father’s Day gifts at a [...]

WASHINGTON, June 3, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ – Driven by higher same-store sales and an improving outlook among restaurant operators, the National Restaurant Association’s Restaurant Performance Index (RPI) hit a 10-month high in April.  The RPI – a monthly composite index that tracks the health of and outlook for the U.S. restaurant industry – stood at 101.0 in April, up 0.4 [...]

NEW YORK, May 30, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – As online retailing has become a force to be reckoned with in the retail industry, a close look at how brand equity varies for brick and mortar vs. online brands beckons. Measuring many online retail brands for the first time in the 2013 Harris Poll EquiTrend® Study shows that where EquiTrend measures the [...]

 FRESNO – The 2013 Big Fresno Fair Exhibits Handbook is now available for the 2013 Fair, which runs October 2 – 14. All individuals desiring to participate competitively as a Big Fresno Fair exhibitor – such as 4-H and FFA members, bakers, craftsmen, cooks, gardeners, seamstresses, quilters, painters, photographers and others – can pick up [...]

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif., April 22, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – The new-vehicle retail sales pace in April remains in a healthy holding pattern as buyers continue to replace aging vehicles, according to a monthly sales forecast developed by J.D. Power and Associates’ Power Information Network® (PIN) and LMC Automotive. Retail Light-Vehicle Sales New-vehicle retail sales in April are projected to [...]

NEW YORK, April 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Even as the economy improves, 94 percent of Americans indicate they will remain cautious and keep their spending for food, beverage and household goods at its current level, according to Deloitte’s 2013 American Pantry Study. More than nine in 10 (92 percent) consumers surveyed indicate they have become more resourceful, and [...]

NEW YORK, April 16, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Does an uptick in the economy give people more reason to care about Mother Earth? That is what a March 2013 Harris Poll of 2,276 U.S. adults (ages 18+) interviewed online set to find out as Earth Day quickly approaches (full findings and data tables available here). Turns out [...]

CHICAGO, March 25, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — Today’s consumers have seemingly endless dining options, from hundreds of restaurants, to prepared foods purchased from stores, or even home-cooked meals. If restaurant operators want to successfully compete in this environment, they need an intimate understanding of the restaurant experience from a consumer perspective. To gain that understanding, Technomic developed its [...]

FRESNO – The long-awaited new Rue and Gwen Gibson Farm Market opened today on the Fresno State campus, which is nearly double the size of the previous market and is still offering its signature items, including delicious ice cream, sweet corn and olive oil. Among the attendees welcoming the market at the grand opening/ribbon cutting [...]