Earlier this evening, having just read that Gap was planning to close approximately 200 stores over the next three years, I heard from my friend Jean that Urban Outfitters had decided not to renew the downtown Ann Arbor space that they’ve held for the past several decades. While I don’t suppose it’s that terribly surprising, […]
Tag Archives: White Dog Cafe
Pondering the death of retail as Urban Outfitters leaves Ann Arbor
Posted in Ann Arbor, Local Business, Marketing, Uncategorized Also tagged American Eagle, Anthropologie, BALLE, bankruptcy, Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, diversification, food and drink, Free People’s Store, Gap, George McGovern, J.C. Penney, Jean Henry, Judy Wicks, Lululemon, Macy’s, Philadelphia, Pizzeria Vetri, RadioShack, Ralph Lauren, Retail, retail in Ann Arbor, Richard Hayne, Sears, selling out, Shake Shack, store closing, travel, Urban Outfitters 38 Comments
BALLE founder Judy Wicks on the origins of Urban Outfitters, the birth of the Localist movement, and the necessity of local ownership
Recently, while in Grand Rapids, I had the occasion to meet Judy Wicks, the founder of the White Dog Cafe in Philadelphia, and the woman who, ten years ago, brought the Business Alliance for Living Local Economies (BALLE) into being. Since the meeting, we’ve been chatting by way of email… Here’s the interview. MARK: Having […]
Posted in Economics, Local Business, Locally Owned Business, Sustainability Also tagged 1983, American Sustainable Business Council, Amy Goodman, ASBC, BALLE, Ben and Jerry's, Ben Cohen, Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, buy local, Chelsea Green, Chiapas, corporations, corporatocracy, democracy, Eskimo, factory farming, Fair Food, fair trade, fast food, Free People’s Store, George McGovern, Going Local, Good Morning Beautiful Business, Guy Bazzanni, Helen Caldicott, Honest Tea, human scale, Jim Hightower, Jim Slama, Joel Soloman, Judy Wicks, Lester Brown, local economy, local food, local food production, Localist, Michael Shuman, national chains, Odawalla Juice, ownership, Philadelphia, re-localization, Richard Hayne, sense of place, single-payer system, social change, Social Venture Network, socially responsible business, Starbucks, Stoneyfield Farms, Ted Rouse, The Body Shop, Tom’s of Maine, universal health care, Urban Outfitters, Wicky Wacky Woods, Zapatistas 13 Comments
Accelerating Community Capital (part one)… at the BALLE 2012 conference
I spent the day in Grand Rapids, participating in a workshop on new models that are evolving for local businesses to raise capital from lenders, investors and donors, at the 10th annual conference of the Business Alliance for Living Local Economies (BALLE). What follow are my rough notes, for those of you who care about […]
Posted in Economics, entrepreneurism, Uncategorized Also tagged Awaken Café, BALLE, big box retail, biomimicry, Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, Capital Institute, Capitalism, Catskills, Co-op Power, co-ops, Common Market, cool local initiatives, Coop Power, credit unions, crowdfunding, CSA, Cutting Edge Capital, Direct Public Offerings, Don Shaffer, Equal Exchange, Erin Kilmer Neel, financial reform, financing local companies, general store, Harlem, investing, investing in the future, Jenny Kassan, Jobs Act, John Fullerton, JPMorgan Chase, liquidity, Little City Gardens, Local Economies Project, local economy, local investing, Localvesting, Lynn Benander, Marty Gay, Michael Shuman, Michelle Long, micro-financing, Move Your Money Project, move your money to a credit union, New World Foundation, Oakland, off-grid, personal finances, Port Townsend, Port Townsend LION, Quimper Mercantile Company, regenerative capitalism, resilience, resiliency, RSF Social Finance, SCOR, SEC, Securities and Exchange Commission, Slow Money, Small Company Offering Registration, South Bronx, startup investing, Sustainability, unaccredited investors, Washington State, what is wealth 13 Comments