text
stringlengths
12
27.8k
Click the “Shipping” tab. Set shipping and handling prices in the boxes provided.
Click the “Publish Your Storefront” tab. If you’re publishing the storefront to MySpace or TypePad, select the corresponding option. Otherwise, leave “Just give me the HTML so I can do it myself” option selected and click the “Publish Storefront” button to generate the HTML code for the storefront.
Copy and paste the HTML code into your website.
Product images should be 188 x 168 pixels.
Update or change an existing storefront by clicking on it on the main storefront page. If you need to suspend your storefront for travel or any other reason, click the “Store open or closed” tab and click the “The store is closed temporarily” option.
Michael, Jacob. "How to Use PayPal Storefront." Small Business - Chron.com, http://smallbusiness.chron.com/use-paypal-storefront-47728.html. Accessed 20 April 2019.
Squeezed between flat wages and rising prices, many middle-class consumers are feeling poor.
The recession forced many people to change their ways as nearly 9 million Americans lost their jobs and home foreclosures hit record highs.
As a result, many stuck their credit cards in a drawer, cut back on spending and hunkered down.
Now, five years after the recession ended, the economy appears to be improving, but middle-class consumers still haven't bounced back.
In fact, a recent Federal Reserve report found that more than a third of American households say they're worse off now than in 2008, and nearly 40 percent said they're "just getting by" or struggling to do so.
Rampant spending isn't dead, but today's consumer is more prudent, looking for ways to save money, buying cheaper brands and spending a larger share of income on necessities. Midyear retail sales were so disappointing that many national retailers lowered expectations for the rest of 2014.
"We really are a little bit scared — memories of how catastrophic it was and how much worse it could have been in 2007-2008," said James A. Roberts, a marketing professor at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, who has studied consumer behavior for 25 years. "I think we all still see an economy that we don't trust — that ...
That's how 25-year-old Dallas resident Marty Martinez feels.
"In terms of spending, I have really reeled it all the way back because I don't know what the future will hold for me," said Martinez, who launched a digital marketing business in February. "Starting your own business, there's always uncertainty. I rarely buy anything that's full price."
He estimates his annual income will be about $40,000 this year. Martinez plans to drive his 2002 Honda Civic "into the ground" to delay having a car payment on top of his student loan payment of $475 a month.
Consumer spending drives the economy, accounting for nearly 70 percent of the nation's economic output. So if more people live within their means, like Martinez, that's not necessarily good for the economy. Some policymakers and economists worry that changing consumer spending patterns could slow economic growth at a c...
The middle class matters because it's such a large group — estimated to make up nearly two-thirds of U.S. households. There is no single definition of the middle class, but one measure says it's household income of about $40,000 to roughly $100,000. Other estimates place the top income higher.
"Families are not feeling that they're getting ahead," said Elise Gould, a labor market economist for the Economic Policy Institute in Washington, D.C. "During and since the Great Recession, we've seen wages have been flat or falling. That's a serious problem."
Most Americans have seen their incomes shrink since the end of the recession in mid-2009 and even farther back. Income consists of wages but can also include stock gains, Social Security payments and income from rental property or other sources.
"Middle-class household incomes, adjusted for inflation, are down significantly from five years ago," said Gordon Green, a former U.S. Census Bureau official who is a partner in Maryland-based Sentier Research. "If people's incomes are significantly lower than where they were five years ago, they don't have the same bu...
Using census data adjusted for inflation and seasonal variations, Sentier calculated that U.S. median household income — what families earn at the midpoint of all income levels — fell 3 percent to $53,891 in June from $55,589 when the recession ended. That income was down nearly 5 percent from when the recession began ...
Moreover, the nation's wealth gap has widened in the last decade. While the median household net worth rose for the top 40 percent of income distribution from 2000 to 2011, it fell for the other 60 percent, according to a recent census report.
Income inequality is hurting U.S. economic growth by discouraging investment and hiring, hindering social mobility and producing a less-educated workforce, according to a recent report by Standard & Poor's. Last month, the credit rating agency lowered its 10-year U.S. growth forecast to 2.5 percent, down from 2.8 perce...
The bottom line is if wages and incomes are down, people have less money to spend on goods and services.
Consumer spending dipped last year — the first decline in three years — as families cut back on clothing, entertainment, restaurants and charitable contributions, according to government data released last week. Consumers spent an average of $51,100 last year, compared with $51,442 in 2012.
It's not just a question of spending, but what kind of spending. A larger share of consumers' wallets today goes toward necessities like food, transportation and health care.
From 2009 to 2012, Americans' spending rose 21 percent for eggs, 19 percent for medical supplies and 26 percent on new cars. Some of the increase could be due to higher prices on certain items, such as milk and meat; aging baby boomers needing more medical care; and persistently high energy costs.
"We're seeing some shifting of spending," said Baylor's Roberts, who wrote the book "Shiny Objects: Why We Spend Money We Don't Have in Search of Happiness We Can't Buy." For example, sales of durable goods and autos are up this year because consumers "put off buying that refrigerator" because of previous job uncertain...
This shift in spending began about 20 years ago and has accelerated in the last decade as more people move toward a lifestyle based less on reckless spending and more on value.
Spending could continue to take a hit if prices continue to climb and interest rates rise next year, squeezing some consumers' pocketbooks, and if pent-up demand fades for durable goods like cars and washing machines.
Robert and Narcy Gonzalez of Plano, Texas, have seen customers spend more at their businesses as the economy has improved.
Robert's Fence Makeovers is doing well enough that he's moving to a bigger location with a warehouse. And Narcy's 3-year-old Polka Dot Bakery in the suburb of Addison has increased revenue about 10 percent a year.
"Addison is a bit more affluent," Narcy said. "The people who frequent my shop aren't as concerned about prices as the quality of the product."
The couple said their annual income of about $200,000 and the amount of money they spend hasn't changed much since before the recession.
"We spend so much time working … if there are things I need or want, finances allow me to do that," said Narcy, whose last personal purchase was a $400 Kate Spade purse.
David Lei, associate professor at Southern Methodist University's Cox School of Business, calls it the "hourglass phenomenon."
"Consumers at the bottom spend like an EKG chart — spending only when the paycheck comes in," Lei said. "The higher end recovered faster than everyone else. The real problem is the middle, which is a giant squeeze."
Experts disagree on whether the U.S. consumer is forever changed, which could lead to longer term economic issues, or if this is a temporary blip in commercialism.
Chris G. Christopher Jr., director of consumer economics for IHS Global Insight, is still counting on consumer spending to drive the bulk of future economic growth. He expects consumer spending to grow in the next two years.
Policymakers think job growth is the best way to spur consumer spending and economic growth.
But the Economic Policy Institute's Gould says job growth without wage growth isn't enough.
"We need to help regular people see wage growth," Gould said. "The answers are there. In states that increased their minimum wage in early 2014, wages actually rose slightly. Policy can matter. None of this is inevitable."
The U.S. minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, or about $15,000 a year. President Barack Obama has been pushing Congress to catch up to 13 states and some cities that have raised their minimum wage to as much as $15 an hour.
John Doggett, a senior lecturer in management at the University of Texas at Austin, sees more of a longer-lasting impact.
"This most recent recession was the deepest and longest" since the Great Depression, he said. "People feel that. I think we're looking at a midterm to long-term permanent shift in consumer behavior."
Dallas resident Marty Martinez has figured out a way to eat many of his meals for free, or at a deep discount.
He uses four free mobile apps to search for deals, such as free coffee and two-for-one dinners, at local businesses. He estimates he saves $50 to $60 a week.
• Foursquare.com: Click on "lunch" on the menu bar of this social network app and scroll down to "offering a special" to see options. Last week, Martinez got a free cup of coffee.
• Yelp.com: Type "deals" into the search bar of this business review and recommendation app and look for specials listed in green type. Last week, a restaurant offered $20 off a $40 dinner.
• TangoTab.com: One recent deal on this restaurant discount app was all-day happy hour.
• NightlifeTonight.com: Martinez helped create this social network app for 26 cities as a college student. It aggregates all of the specials from Foursquare, TangoTab and Yelp.
They look like giant cosmetic wipes. But really they are powerful devices that can slowly clean whole ponds and reduce river pollution.
To look at Mark Owen’s LilyPad water purifiers, you wouldn’t think they could do very much. They look like giant cosmetic wipes–the sort of thing you clean make-up with–not an invention that can break down serious contamination.
Well, looks can be deceiving. Owen says the one-meter diameter devices can clean whole ponds, reduce river pollution, and allow farmers to spray purer water onto their crops. The pads pack a fierce, albeit slow-moving, punch.
The LilyPads, which are plastic, contain a mesh with a nano-tech coating. When sunlight hits the surface, it spurs a reaction that breaks down material in the water nearby. The process is sufficient to eliminate E. coli and salmonella, and also helps trap heavy metals, Owen says.
Owen, who lives in Oregon, started working on the mesh seven years ago. While in Japan, he saw a “smog-eating” building (probably covered with titanium dioxide) and wondered if he could adapt the idea for water treatment. His material is related to the photo-reactive coatings seen on a growing number of high-rise build...
His company, Puralytics, first developed the SolarBag, which includes the same mesh. Treating up to three liters of water at a time, it’s since been sold in 60 countries. The LilyPad is still being trialled and doesn’t yet have a release date or price.
One possible application is to clean up ponds that aren’t worth dredging and refilling. The LilyPads could offer a speedier alternative to letting polluted water revive itself naturally. You can just leave the devices sitting on the surface for months at a time until they’ve done their thing.
Another potential application is in stormwater clean-up. Often, heavy rains in cities deliver a lot of unwanted chemicals and metals into streams and rivers. Puralytics is looking at ways to purify contaminated water before it enters, working with a $53,000 grant from Oregon BEST, a nonprofit that funds early-stage cle...
And then there’s agriculture. Puralytics is working with Driscoll Berry Farms in Mexico to see if the pads purify water used for spray irrigation. At the moment, because water is too contaminated, farmers have to employ flood irrigation (not spraying) which is much less efficient.
Owen says the pads will probably cost between $100 and $500 per square meter, though much will depend on how the Oregon and Mexico pilots work out. The LilyPad is also a finalist in USAID’s Securing Water for Food 2014 challenge, which will issue grants of between $100,000 and $3 million soon.
LONDON (Reuters) - The European Union’s move to allow EU firms temporary access to UK clearing houses after Brexit should give the London Metal Exchange time to secure approval for its operations, LME Chief Executive Matt Chamberlain said.
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) said earlier this year the exchange may not be able to submit an application to become a recognized third country clearing house until after Britain leaves the European Union.
This would mean six members in European Economic Area (EEA) countries would not be able to access LME Clear.
Earlier this week the EU Commission said it will allow companies in the EU bloc to temporarily use clearing services in the UK, even after a no-deal Brexit.
Chamberlain said he was grateful for the Commission’s decision to take a practical approach to the situation.
“This temporary transition period bridges us between being a EU clearing house and being able to get third country recognition,” Chamberlain told the Reuters Commodities Summit.
“Logically, the period would be long enough, but we need to see the detail,” he added.
However, he said that until there was a legally binding document on the table, it was still important that the LME, owned by Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd. (0388.HK), and its members had contingency plans.
Such plans could include affected members either moving their business to a UK subsidiary or becoming a client of a UK member of LME Clear.
London-based members with a large chunk of their business in Europe could deal with clients via an EU subsidiary but pass contracts to the London office, something which is allowed under EU regulation for contracts within a company.
Trading recognition in countries such as Germany, France, Netherlands and Ireland is also important for the LME, which has been speaking to regulators in those countries.
The exchange also needs the ESMA to classify LME contracts as exchange traded derivatives so they can be used EU members.
Private client consultation and dating introductions for the over 40s.
Please telephone David who is ‘Matchmaker Extraordinary’.
London/South East and East Anglia.
Argentina is advancing in negotiations with Israel for the purchase of the multi-purpose combat aircraft Kfir Block 60, which is supposed to replace the aging Mirage III, on service for over four decades.
According to the dialy 'Haaretz' an Argentine military delegation recently visited Israel to sign the deal to acquire the aircraft which have been “non operational for two decades and need refurbishing”.
The Israel daily reports that the Israel Air Industry accepted to update the avionics of the old aircraft to be sold to Argentina, despite the tension between both countries because of Argentina signing a memorandum of understanding with Iran to try and solve the AMIA 1994 bombing.
According to Haaretz, members from Israel defense industries said “the deal has been reached, and is waiting for the definitive signature”. Negotiations with Israel were re-launched last January. Apparently negotiations took off following the collapse of the deal to purchase 16 Spanish Mirage F1, fighter-bombers.
The Israel Kfir were designed and built in the seventies and eighties by Israel's Defense Industry with an approximate cost of 200 million dollars. Tens of these aircraft were sold to Air forces from Sir Lanka, Colombia and Ecuador, some of them with the advanced Elta radar.
If the deal is finally confirmed it would Argentina's second great purchase of Israel combat aircraft, following on the acquisition in 1978 of 39 second-hand Neshers, developed by Israel.
Also identified as the 'Daggers' in Argentina, the aircraft were particularly active during the Falklands conflict in 1982.
Categories: Politics, Argentina, International, Latin America.
Tags: AMIA, Argentina, Israel Air Industry, Kfir Block 60, Mirage.
Not really much of a story. They are entitled to purchase military equipment as is any sovereign country.
These aircraft are as old as the mirage jets that they will be replacing, the airframes will only have a limited number of flight hours left on them and argentina will have to keep them maintained something that they do not do with any of there technical military hardware!
Yep, not much of a story...decent enough plane - for its age. I'd be more interested in the purchase of any weapons platforms to fit to these, especially of the anti-shipping variety.
John Legend had a somber moment when he took the stage at the 28th Annual Producers Guild Awards on Saturday night, and addressed President Donald Trump's immigration ban.
"Our vision of America is directly antithetical to that of President Trump," the 38-year-old R&B artist declared. "I want to specifically tonight reject his vision and affirm that America has to be better than that."
"Los Angeles is the home of so many immigrants, so many creative people, so many dreamers," he continued. "Our America is big, it is free, and it is open to dreamers of all races, all countries, all religions."
After the event, Legend told ET's Deidre Behar that it was his wife, Chrissy Teigen, who encouraged him to speak out. "I wouldn’t have said what I said tonight if my wife wasn't encouraging me the whole time. She was like, ‘You gotta say something, John,’" he shared. "I appreciate her for encouraging me to say it. We l...
The "All of Me" singer added, "Our president is doing some things in our name that I think don’t represent the values of America. I want to speak out for what I believe."
ET also caught up with Teigen at the PGAs, who admitted that she feels "like there’s not much to be happy about right now."
"I think it’s very important to just have a voice," the 31-year-old model said. "I think a lot of people think that they can’t speak up and a lot of people are scared to speak up and a lot of people are frightened and they feel intimidated and they feel like they’re gonna get stepped on and I don’t think that’s OK."
"I think people need to speak up and show [support] when something's wrong," she continued. "You need to speak up and you need to be at those protests. I know a lot of people think that protests don’t matter ...but it does matter."
As with many of my compatriots, there are many things about Britain and the British people that I admire. As someone whose whole life has been linked with literature, cinema and theatre, I have the greatest appreciation for English literature and the arts, for its writers and playwrights, actors and directors. As someo...
Many Russians feel an affinity with many things English – from pubs and gardens to Scotch whisky and Welsh singing and luscious valleys. Ascot races, Chelsea flower shows, London museums and Stonehenge – many will have been or at least seen them on TV. Perhaps surprisingly, many entertain a lively interest in the Briti...
Today, as many of my compatriots, I am sad to see the state to which the relationship between our two countries has been reduced. While conflict situations can seldom be blamed on one party alone, I am convinced that the current deplorable and deepening crisis is primarily of London’s making.