2006 April

Online businesses ship thousands of small packages every day. While there are many shipping choices ranging from trucking companies to bus lines to delivery services the over whelming majority of orders are delivered by either the United Parcel Service or the U.S. postal service.

Europe is a constantly growing market for online businesses in the U.S. and Canada but many North American merchants are missing out on the opportunity because they don’t understand some of the basic aspects of retailing to the European market.

It is, of course, well known that the day after Thanksgiving is just about the biggest retail-shopping day of the year, often called Black Friday. The day has become the ‘official,’start of the Christmas buying season. (The image of the Senate meeting in special session to declare the official beginning of the shopping season is an amusing one.)

The US Attorney

Paypal, the most prominent of payment provider companies, is bracing itself for an all out assault by Google. Since its inception in 1998 Paypal has been the preferred alternative payment method for millions of online shoppers and merchants alike. Paypal claims to have over 96 million customer accounts.

1. There is a lot of money being made in online retail. The department of commerce tells us that ecommerce makes up about 2.5% of all retail sales. This may not sound like much but the total retail sales in the US last year reached nearly $3.7 billion. So ecommerce was responsible for $93 million. The percent of retail purchases made online has doubled over the last couple of years …

While millions of resellers make use of Ebay everyday and get by acceptably making use of only the most basic of Ebay

For many Ebay resellers one of the most difficult aspects of operating their business is getting sales and other data from Ebay to their own bookkeeping software. Transcription errors and forgotten sales can lead to gross inaccuracies in a businesses

Nearly everyone is a least somewhat familiar with the stunningly popular NASCAR motor racing. Love it or hate it there is no denying that stock car racing is one the most enjoyed sporting events in the country. Millions of people keep track of the events with cult-like dedication and they spend millions of dollars to see the races and to purchase licensed memorabilia.

Guns have been in fairly common use since the 16 th century. Their invention spelled the inevitable end of the sword as a military tool but 500 years later they are still made, bought, and cherished. Military history buffs, renaissance fair attendees, martial artists, Lord of the Rings fans, and a surprisingly large number of people who make costumes for fantasy and historic reenactment all buy swords and knives of …

Everyone loves movies. No matter how crusty or persnickety someone is there’s a film somewhere that they cannot get enough of and will watch repeatedly. Whether it’s a tear jerking melodrama or pie throwing comedy millions of DVD players are fired up every night. The sell of DVDs is a worldwide multi-billion dollar industry. Nearly every retail department store Target to Sears offer DVD sections not to mention the major …

Any discussion about selling women’s accessories must start with handbags. Every woman needs at least one and most own several. Some have many, many more. Consider this in the United States alone there are roughly 122 million women over the age of twelve. If only two thirds of them bought one purse in a year well over eighty million bags would be sold.

Any discussion about selling women’s accessories must start with handbags. Every woman needs at least one and most own several. Some have many, many more. Consider this in the United States alone there are roughly 122 million women over the age of twelve. If only two thirds of them bought one purse in a year well over eighty million bags would be sold.

All around the world the electric scooter has become a transportation choice for millions of people. It isn’t difficult to understand why. Many major urban centers have become nightmares of gridlock and exhaust fumes. Gasoline prices are at record highs in the United States and elsewhere and show no signs of going down anytime soon. Given the pain and suffering associated with automobile traffic it is little wonder people are …

At the very end of 1879 Thomas Edison put the candle out of business with the invention of the electric light. It is probable that the cry of anguish from candle makers across the world echoed like thunder but their collective despair was premature. While the light bulb surely changed the candle maker’s business forever it certainly did not mark the end of the industry. Candles continue, even in the …