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The big business of wacky holidays

Sep 4, 2023
Holidays, even made-up ones, can be powerful marketing tools.
Volkswagen's Cameron Batten and Marlo Anderson, the founder of National Day Calendar, onstage at a reveal of National Volkswagen Bus Day on June 02, 2023 in Huntington Beach, California.
Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for Volkswagen of America

Summertime is stocking season for this toy store owner

Jul 3, 2023
Ali Cat Toys is doing the bulk of its holiday buying now, and even stocking up for next Easter season.
"Slime has started to make a comeback, believe it or not, and as much as parents may or may not want to hear" says Irene Kesselman, owner of Ali Cat Toys in Carrboro, North Carolina.
Tolga Akman/AFP via Getty Images

Wastewater workers wish for a fatberg-free holiday

Dec 26, 2022
Our sewers work overtime at this time of year.
A wastewater treatment plant in Oakland, California. Wastewater workers are urging people to be mindful about disposing of grease and oil, which can wreak havoc on sewer systems.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

As inflation hangs over the holidays, advertisers target feelings over products

Dec 22, 2022
Instead of displaying abundance of materials, ads are leaning into things like family time.
Some advertisers have shifted their focus away from the material this holiday season.
Getty Images

What it means to buy a house on a block that loves Christmas

Dec 20, 2022
Residents of 34th Street in Baltimore purchased not just a dwelling, but a whole new way of life during the month of December.
Joey Zeledon (left) and Martelle Esposito work on the display in front of their home on 34th Street in Baltimore.
Stephanie Hughes/Marketplace

For public good, not for profit.

Concerns about wildfires drive sales of "safe and sane" fireworks

Jul 4, 2022
But even these ground-based varieties come with risks.
The term "safe and sane” refers to fireworks that are considered less likely to cause injury or start fires.
Saul Loeb/Getty Images

One parade organizer welcomes their return this holiday season

Dec 31, 2021
Hobie Pileski, co-owner of Argonne Parades, is looking forward to in-person holiday festivities after over a year of putting events on hold.
Hobie Pileski, co-owner of Argonne Parades, said his company hasn't held a full, traditional parade since December 2019.
Courtesy of Hobie Pileski

Louis DeJoy on why he’s slowing mail and raising prices at the USPS: “We have no money”

Nov 17, 2021
The Postmaster General explains his controversial plan for the future of the Postal Service.
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy testifies during a hearing before the House Oversight and Reform Committee in 2020.
Tom Williams/Getty Images