STORES Magazine - April 2008 - (Page 110)

POSTSCRIPT thelastlaugh Love Is a Many-Splintered Thing CHOOSING to get married in a chapel is so run of the mill. Far be it from Gaylan Whitwer and Francine Brickner-Whitwer of Gibbon, Neb., to choose something so ordinary. Last month, the couple got hitched in the kitchen display area of the local Menards home improvement store. The Whitwers had their first date there and couldn’t think of a better place to begin “building” their life together, especially since they remodel homes as a hobby. “This is where we spend all our spare time, where we spend all our spare money,” Gaylan told the local newspaper. The nuptials — a second go-round for both — were a secret from family and friends. The couple invited only the minister, their two attendants, a photographer and a videographer. There were, however, plenty of shoppers who wandered by and offered wishes — including one who wondered aloud if Francine would divorce the groom when he left the toilet seat up in the bathroom fixtures department. catch food items in Fogle’s pants, and if they catch fattening foods, the pants enlarge. Pet Palate FOOD TASTERS and wine connoisseurs are a dime a dozen. Simon Allison is a senior food technologist for Marks & Spencer. His specialty: testing pet food. On any given day, Allison can be seen sniffing at the product he’s testing, then sampling a smidgen as he notes the blend of flavors and aromas. Only when he is completely satisfied will Marks & Spencer deem the food suitable for Rover or Tiger. Allison insists he relishes the task and has trained his palate to detect the delicacies preferred by dogs and cats — and their owners. “I love my job. It is a brilliant area, and eating the product is a fundamental part” of the job, he says. Allison reports that most pet food is actually “quite bland,” but is quick to point out that, while dogs enjoy all food universally, cats can be very choosy. While there is no denying that Allison loves his job, he does not swallow the pet food — saying he would put on too much weight if he ate everything he tasted. Dying to know if he has a favorite? You bet. It’s the organic luxury chicken dinner with vegetables for cats. “It has the taste and aroma of chicken and some gutsy, savory notes,” he says. Tour de Pants JARED FOGLE’s “fat pants,” that is. In celebration of a decade of sustained weight loss by its long-time spokesman, Subway is hitting the road on a 12-city tour to promote Fogle’s new childhood obesity prevention plan. The six-month journey, called Tour de Pants, focuses attention on what Subway refers to as a three-point plan to provide funding for school nutrition and fitness programs and give parents the tools to make healthy food choices for their children. New York Giants defensive end Michael Strahan is partnering with Fogle to promote the plan, and Subway hopes to raise $2 million through donations and fund-raising efforts. During the tour, people can take pictures of Fogle with his “fat pants,” collect an Upper Deck Fogle trading card and obtain tips for healthy eating when dining out. An online game called Pants Dance lets people keep Fogle’s pants slim by catching better-foryou food. Players use their mouse to 110 STORES / APRIL 2008 WWW.STORES.ORG © The New Yorker Collection 1990 Robert Mankoff from cartoonbank.com. All Rights Reserved. http://WWW.STORES.ORG

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of STORES Magazine - April 2008

STORES Magazine - April 2008 Contents Executive Editor's Page President's Page More Retailers Bagging Monthly Comp-Store Reports Time-Warner Center's Economy-Defying Results What Shoppers Think 10 Things You May Have Missed Numbers Worth Counting Full Price/Markdown Retail People Eating Locally Grocery Concept2Watch Restaurants Online Services Marketing Human Resources Product Lifecycle Management E-Commerce: Peer Reviews Drive Online Buyers Kiosks Recycling Operations Payment Systems POS Logistics E-Commerce: Getting Personal Website Management LOEB Retail Letter Arts Update Point of View NRF News Retail Industry Calendar Last Laugh

STORES Magazine - April 2008

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