Marielle Segarra

Senior Reporter

SHORT BIO

Marielle Segarra is a former reporter for Marketplace. She covers taxes and consumer psychology. She covered retail, consumer psychology and the economy. One topic she enjoyed exploring: how we shop – and the emotions that come up as we do. Pride. Guilt. Frustration. She also followed small businesses as they find their way in the pandemic and is always trying to show people how the ins and outs of the economy are relevant to their lives.

What was your first job?

Summer camp counselor to a bunch of 5-year-olds.

In your next life, what would your career be?

I think I would still want to create things. Maybe I'd be a chef. Or an interior designer. Or I'd write for a TV show.

Fill in the blank: Money can’t buy you happiness, but it can buy you ______.

Financial stability, which is a good start.

What’s the favorite item in your workspace and why?

My stash of chocolate.

Latest Stories (452)

President Trump plans to declare the opioid epidemic a national emergency. What would that do?

Oct 20, 2017
Next week, President Donald Trump has said he plans to officially declare the opioid epidemic a national emergency. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 91 Americans die from an opioid overdose every day. States were given nearly $500 million in additional funding for opioid addiction treatment earlier this year – so what would […]

Analysts predict double-digit growth for PayPal

Oct 19, 2017
PayPal reports its quarterly earnings today. Analysts expect double-digit revenue growth. Last quarter, revenues at the payment processor were more than $3 billion, with 6.5 million new customer accounts. In tech company years, PayPal is kind of old — it’s been around since the late ’90s and pioneered peer-to-peer payments online. But the company keeps managing to […]

How a mall-turned-public park saved downtown Columbus

Oct 12, 2017
The redevelopment project helped attract $400 million in investment and thousands of new residents.
Columbus Commons hosts more than 200 events a year, including a Harvest Fair on September 30, 2017. 
Marielle Segarra/Marketplace

It's hard being a retail worker in this economy

Oct 12, 2017
With 31,000 jobs cut in a year, even those still employed wonder how long they can hang on.
People walk by a Sears store in a nearly empty shopping mall on March 2017 in Meriden, Connecticut.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

If things are booming, does the economy need tax cuts?

Oct 11, 2017
In a tweet today, President Trump today took credit for the run-up in the stock market since the election. Then the president went on to say that “if Congress gives us the massive tax cuts (and reform) I am asking for, those numbers will grow by leaps and bounds.” Is there any evidence that the […]

Activist investor aims for a seat on P&G board

Oct 10, 2017
On Monday, General Electric gave a board seat to Ed Garden, co-founder of the $12.7 billion hedge fund Trian Partners. And this morning, when Procter & Gamble holds its yearly shareholder meeting, all eyes will be on another Trian partner, activist investor Nelson Peltz. Trian owns a 1.5 percent stake in the struggling Cincinnati-based consumer […]

How much influence does a president have over the economy? In the short term, not much.

Oct 5, 2017
President Donald Trump touted the state of the economy this morning in a tweet that read “Stock Market hits an ALL-TIME high! Unemployment lowest in 16 years! Business and manufacturing enthusiasm at highest level in decades!” Unemployment WAS at a 16-year-low in June. It’s gone up since then. And it’s unclear what numbers Trump is looking […]

New York is betting $155 million that it can cut evictions

Oct 2, 2017
A new law gives low-income residents access to free legal help in housing court.
Without a lawyer, tenants facing eviction are at a disadvantage, said Sergio Jimenez, an attorney at the nonprofit Brooklyn Defender Services.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images

More residents are expected to flee Puerto Rico, contributing to the brain drain

Sep 27, 2017
Hurricane Maria has devastated Puerto Rico’s already fragile economy.
People wait in line to get a flight out of the Luis Munoz Marin International Airport as they try to return home or escape the conditions after Hurricane Maria on September 26, 2017 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Macy's to hire fewer holiday workers, but more of them will pack online orders

Sep 19, 2017
It’s a holiday tradition: every fall, retailers staff up their stores to prepare for the inevitable crush of shoppers. But this year, Macy’s said it’ll be hiring fewer holiday workers — about 80,000 people in total. And more of those workers will be operating out of warehouses, packing online orders, than last year. Could these […]