Main

Food and drink

February 08, 2012

Amazon to open real-world store this year: report

Amazon doesn’t need any PR bumps, but let’s give it one anyway, shall we?

A_com_logo_RGBMy favourite Amazon story goes like this: one weeknight in 2010, I caught a late-night showing of The Social Network. Certainly, it was the year’s best movie, and so inspired was I that I came home and said, Hey, I oughtta read the book that was made from.

So sometime after midnight, well into the a.m., I placed an order for Ben Mezrich’s “The Accidental Billionaires.” Before the end of the next work day, it was at my door.

I’m not a paid Amazon advocate, just a fan of its convenience. So why, then, would a service as punctual as the web retailer actually open its own bricks-and-mortar store?

Continue reading »

Posted at 12:36 PM in Consumer news, Current affairs, Shopping | | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

October 25, 2011

What do you make of Tim Hortons' new lasagna?

Where reviews are concerned right now, much of the world is pondering the fate of The Rum Diary  or last night’s Game 5 of the World Series.

4FD414DBDE521FD87A3A85D3F4C2FCanadians? Well, we won’t stop until we’ve assessed one thing, above all: Tim Hortons’ new beef lasagna.

Surely, as MSN highlighted Tuesday, much of the country is abuzz over the coffee chain’s new menu add, which is either the greatest thing since McPizza or an ill-advised step from the franchise’s comfort zone.

What do the initial reviews of the pasta dish say? Of course, they are mixed.

Continue reading »

Posted at 01:39 PM in Consumer news, Current affairs, Food and drink | | Comments (124) | TrackBack (0)

September 12, 2011

Is being drunk ever an excuse for anything?

Whether it's an embarrassing text sent or breaking all those windows when the team loses the big one, it’s not hard to pinpoint something dumb you simply wouldn't do while sober.  

GlassAnd while there are lots of myths as to how alcohol affects us and what to do about it, there's really only one question: Why do people do such stupid things when they’re drunk?

University of Missouri researchers have found alcohol dulls the brain signal that warns people when they’re making a mistake, ultimately reducing self-control.

Continue reading »

Posted at 06:45 AM in Behaviour, Food and drink, Science | | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)

August 10, 2011

Do more expensive wines actually taste better?

While many wine lovers will tell you otherwise, the most dominant flavour in that glass of Merlot may its price tag.

Wine That's the opinion of Robin Goldstein, whose paper detailing more than 6,000 blind tastings maintains that “individuals who are unaware of the price do not derive more enjoyment from more expensive wine.”

Goldstein argues that most people buy wine based on image rather than smell and taste and that our expectations do influence our taste sensations.

As a result, when most people are given wine without seeing the label, they prefer cheap wines just as much or more than expensive wines.

Continue reading »

Posted at 02:14 AM in Buying behaviour, Buying tips, Food and drink, Marketing | | Comments (13) | TrackBack (0)

February 02, 2011

Time for wine to flow freely across provincial borders?

Like many of us, Shirley-Ann George likes a glass of Canadian wine now and then. No problem there – unless, as George found out, you try to bring your favourite vintage across a provincial border. That's because it's actually illegal to transport even a single bottle from one province to another.

WineRealizing she couldn't bring back a bottle from her favourite B.C. winery or even  join a local wine club that would have sent her a few mix-and-match samples every month, George wanted to fight back.

"If I read about some wine in a wine column, or visit a winery, I want to be able to go online and order their wine – right now," George told the Ottawa Citizen recently.

But thanks to the prohibition-era Importation of Intoxicating Liquors Act bringing a few bottles back from out of province has actually been against the law for more than 80 years.

Continue reading »

Posted at 08:03 AM in Business news, Economic news, Food and drink, Shopping | | Comments (14) | TrackBack (0)

October 28, 2010

Are grocery prices set to take off?

Over the past six decades, the amount of money a family spent on food has almost increased roughly five fold, from $1,130 to $5,347 annually.

During this same time frame, however, average family income has increased at a much more rapid pace, from $4,237 to $50,302.

These are a few of the interesting stats to be found in "Grocery Spending Habits,” an infographic from BillShrink looking at income, supermarket spending, and other household expenditures since the 1950s.

Continue reading »

Posted at 10:26 AM in Economic news, Food and drink, Shopping | | Comments (2) | TrackBack (0)

August 11, 2010

A tough welcome to the cupcake nation

Forget that bed-and-breakfast. Now there’s a new money pit for those who long to own their own business: the cupcake shop.

Nationwide, cupcake sales, according to the market research firm, Mintel, are projected to rise another 20 percent over the next five years at a time when other baked goods are expected to grow at less than half that.

It’s numbers like these that prompted sisters and business partners Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis to open their Georgetown Cupcake store in Washington two years ago. Armed with spirited business resolve and their grandmother's cookbook, the pair is now claiming to sell more than 5,000 cupcakes a day.

You can follow their lives and business challenges in DC Cupcakes, an unscripted series that’s now airing on TLC.

Continue reading »

Posted at 12:17 AM in Consumer news, Food and drink | | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)

July 14, 2010

Do you really know where your food comes from?

Realizing it may cost them more in the long run, consumers have begun taking a more critical look at where their food comes from, especially if it might originate from countries where safety standards may not be as rigorous.

There's a high probability, for instance, that your ‘Canadian’ apple juice is made from apples grown in such far-flung nations such as Chile or China. Deceptive? Not necessarily – but certainly misleading.

The fact is ‘Made in Canada’ simply means that 51% of the production cost was incurred here; the goods themselves can come from anywhere.

Corporations buy commodities from the cheapest source. In the case of apple juice concentrate, China has rapidly emerged as the world's lowest cost producer. It’s also a cheap source of cinnamon, garlic and, increasingly, processed fish – to name but a few items.

Continue reading »

Posted at 12:46 AM in Buying tips, Consumer news, Food and drink | | Comments (11) | TrackBack (0)

May 11, 2010

I think I’ll just have what she’s having

It’s no secret that we look to others for cues about to behave. Whether it’s saving or spending money what other people do and how they express their desires are strong influences.  

And, when it comes to eating out at least, what we order is affected by the body type of the other person eating, according to the Journal of Consumer Research.

Researchers at the University of British Columbia recruited female undergraduates to participate in study during which they watched a video clip while munching on M&Ms from a small bowl.

Before each subject took her share of candy, a plant, masquerading as a fellow participant, poured a stack  into a bowl of her own.

Continue reading »

Posted at 12:02 AM in Consumer news, Food and drink, Science | | Comments (3) | TrackBack (0)

May 10, 2010

Are store brands as good as the national brands?

National brand or store brand? The debate has continued for years, from researchers studying consumer behaviour to parents looking to save money on supermarket items.

Recent research suggests that 80 per cent of global consumers feel store brands are the same as, or better than, national brands at providing a variety of benefits, according to surveys conducted by Ipsos Marketing. 

There’s no denying that you can save a lot of cash at the store by buying store brand products instead of name brands. But do they taste as good?

For the most part, yes, says Consumer Reports, reaffirming the perception that store brands have morphed from bland, sub par products to true competitors for name brand foods.

Continue reading »

Posted at 12:15 AM in Consumer news, Food and drink, Saving tips, Shopping | | Comments (9) | TrackBack (0)

February 15, 2010

What are the actual odds of you becoming disabled?

Of all the types of insurance available, the one people seem to talk about the the least is disability coverage.

Yet relatively few people seem to have private, long-term coverage to replace their salary when they get hurt or become sick for an extended period. And many who do have some coverage through their work aren’t sure if they really have enough.

Which is a bit scary, particularly when you hear claims that disability is the number one cause of home foreclosures and bankruptcies in the United States.
 
But trying to calculate the odds of an injury or illness that would keep you out of work for that long is pretty tough to do, says New York Times columnist Ron Lieber, who accuses the insurance industry of trying to scare people half to death.

Continue reading »

Posted at 12:03 AM in Consumer news, Food and drink, Insurance | | Comments (13) | TrackBack (0)

advertisement

AUTHORS
Gordon PowersGordon Powers

A long-time fund company executive, Gordon Powers now heads up the Affinity Group, a financial services consulting firm. Gordon was a personal finance columnist for the Globe & Mail for many years, has taught retirement planning...

Jason BucklandJason Buckland

The modern-day MC Hammer of money, Jason can often be seen spending cash that isn’t his with the efficiency of a Wilt Chamberlain first date. After cutting his teeth as a reporter for the Toronto Sun, he joined the MSN Money team with...

TOP TAGS
ARCHIVES

More...