The retail and total sales tax number for Spokane County, for the first quarter, came out and they're at least positive. But the full story is: this is not yet a normal economy. Data show that Spokane say retail taxes up 2.7% and total sales…
Debit card PIN pads at five Western Washington Michaels stores are among 90 nationwide that show signs of tampering, the Texas-based crafts store chain said this week. Pads in stores in Tukwila, Marysville, Lynnwood, Kirkland and Everett were identified as having shown signs of tampering,…
The Spokane showroom of DirectBuy, a nationwide, members-only shopping club, closed this week. A spokeswoman at DirectBuy’s Indiana headquarters said the company is trying to find a new showroom for Spokane-area members but would not predict how soon that will be. Company spokeswoman Sara Butler…
If you or a good friend works at the West Plains Goodrich brake production site, watch this video. It will make you feel proud of American technology. The video, produced by Boeing and found on YouTube on Wednesday, shows what happens when the Boeing 747…
We do want to give some more space to the new Bug Chucker game released this week by Cyan Worlds. The entry below may have squashed the news slightly. Don't let that bug you. The game is a very affordable 99 cents at the iTunes…
This may be a coincidence of harmonic proportions. On more or less the same day, both Spokane's Cyan Worlds and Spokane Valley-based Rescue (also known as Sterling International) have debuted major new "bug" products. Cyan has released a new game app for the Apple platform,…
The Association of Washington Business Tuesday recognized two Spokane companies for community Service. Inland Northwest Health Services received the education award for companies with more than 100 employees. Inland created EMS Lite @ Nite, an interactive video-conferencing program that enables volunteer rural emergency medical service…
View Larger Map Montana based Glacier Restaurant Group announced it will build a second MacKenzie River Pizza location at the corner of 57th and Regal, in Spokane. It's going into the spot vacated by Hollywood Video on that corner. Last year the company said it…
Reports that Liberty Lake company SprayCool is shut down or out of business are wrong. Some local blogger ran a comment back in April stating that "Isothermal Systems Research (aka SprayCool) of Liberty Lake is out of business. At their peak, they employed up to…
The 50,000 unemployed Washington workers no longer receiving benefits are getting robocall reminders that free help with job searches is available at WorkSource offices. The Washington Employment Security Department today said the 30-second calls are a cost-effective way of reaching those who have been without…
Spokane’s Kimmel Athletic Supply has acquired a Redmond sports gear firm and will use that location as its West Side base, company president Bill Davis said. The company has retail stores in Coeur d’Alene, Yakima and in Spokane, and has had sales staff in the…
The average price of a Spokane home sold in April increased from March but remained below the level of a year ago. The median price fell slightly. On the 332 homes sold, the average price was $166,686, compared with $179,907 a year ago. The median…
The spot in River Park Square last used by Godiva Chocolatier will be taken over by another chocolate franchise. Rachelle and Aaron Blackmer, who run one Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory store on Sullivan Road in the Valley, will open their second area franchise inside River…
Last year the managers of the South Hill Manito Center said a new Ross Dress for Less store would open this summer, taking over the large, empty former Gottshalks building. Now the plan is to open the store before the start of the back-to-school shopping…
Seven Washington-based companies and one in Idaho are on this year's Fortune 500 list. The Washington state firms, along with their rank and revenues, are: 25. Costco Wholesale, Issaquah: $71.4 billion 36. Microsoft, Redmond: $58.4 billion 100. Amazon.com, Seattle: $24.5 billion 241. Starbucks, Seattle: $9.8…
Avista Corp. reported net income of $41.9 million, or 73 cents per share, for the first quarter of 2011, compared to $28.8 million, or 52 cents per share, for the first quarter of 2010. Chairman and CEO Scott Morris attributed the earnings increase to colder,…
Red Lion Hotels Corp. today reported first-quarter results that mirrored those for the same period in 2010. Total revenue was $34.27 million, compared with $34.3 million a year ago. The net loss for the period was $4.8 million, or 25 cents per share, a decline…
Clearwater Paper Corp. today reported first-quarter earnings, including a 41 percent increase in sales as the Spokane company melded newly-acquired Cellu Tissue Holdings Inc.'s operation into its results. Net earnings were $5.6 million, or 47 cents per share, compared with $500,000, or four cents per…
Liberty Lake app developer Gravity Jack has announced a recent deal with Seattle company ARToolworks. Gravity Jack, which was launched in 2009, will license its technology so ARToolworks can add it to a software development kit. A quote from Gravity Jack CEO Luke Richey, found…
Red Lion Hotels Corp. will sell its Hotel on Fifth Avenue in Seattle to an affiliate of Lowe Enterprises for $71 million, the Spokane-based hospitality company said today. The deal, expected for close this quarter, will maintain the Red Lion brand on the 297-room property,…
The Eastern Washington, North Idaho, Montana Better Busines Bureau sent out a warning related to ads by a company offering "Rich Dad" financial training sessions in Kennewick and in Spokane this week. The BBB email specifically notes that the company, RichDad Education, has earned an…
This graphic works well with the item below, which looks at the 2008-2009 slight increase in Spokane County's total personal income. This chart shows the historic rate of Washington's gross domestic product per capita, through 2009, measured against the GDP of the United States and…
The Bureau of Economic Analysis does periodic snapshots of counties and states, using the best numbers it can digest. It just released some per-capita incomes for counties across the U.S., going back to 2009. The notable and interesting tidbit, relative to Spokane, is that Spokane…
For reasons having to do with an uplift in "good news," the Dow Jones Economic Sentiment Indicator popped upward in April, wiping out the decline it measured in March. Back in February, the index -- which tries to measure upbeat or positive economic news --…
Western Systems & Fabrication Inc. is among three Washington state semifinalists for the 2011 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Award. The award given to 15 companies each year recognizes employers for their support of National Guard and Reserve members. They may support their deployed employees…
The Spokesman-Review business team follows economic development in Spokane and the Inland Northwest.
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