Tag: Forbes magazine

Posted on

SHOULD A BANK BE YOUR FRIEND?

Why does anyone choose one bank over the other?  In my case, I’ve kept my money in the same bank for almost all of my life.  I think I opened an account there because they were located half a block from my first job. They don’t have good interest or mortgage rates.  And I don’t know any of the tellers or the bank manager. On the other hand,  my husband keeps his money in another  bank, and probably always will, because he knows the manager and  most of the bank tellers by name, and they all know him.   Is that a good reason to choose a bank? Should a bank be your friend?

Should You Be Friends With Your Bank?
Should a bank be your friend? Or should you look for  one that has high ratings for safety and security?

Actually, I enjoy the impersonal nature of my relationship with my bank. It protects my privacy.    Yes, their security measures can be annoying. As an example, I have to show my ID when cashing a check.  My husband doesn’t have to do that, because the tellers all know him.  But his bank has also been known to make minor mistakes with his accounts,  and my bank never has.

When they do make a mistake, he’s very forgiving.  So what if he’s paying for overdraft protection on his checking account, and  they still charge him a fee if they  forget to transfer money from savings?    Yes, they finally get it straightened out when he goes in to complain, but it’s a hassle I’ve never had to deal with.

I guess it all boils down to what you want from a bank. I want efficiency and safety.  He feels safer with people who are friendly and interested in his life. I guess that’s why our city has so many  banks.  Different strokes for different folks.

Should a bank be your friend? For some, it’s important.  But my bank got a five star rating for financial safety & soundness from  Bauer Financial.  and has been  named as one of the best banks in the country by Forbes magazine.  To me, managing money is  what banks are for.

Posted on

ANOTHER BLOW TO RETAIL THERAPY

Our neighborhood  mall provides air conditioned comfort for summer walkers, and warmth on sub zero winter days. But more, much more than that, it has been home to  a discount department store that meets  your needs and fulfills your desires.  That’s all ending.  In another blow to retail therapy, Stein Mart has  just declared bankruptcy.

Blow to Retail Therapy: Stein Mart leaves us without retail therapy
Another Blow to Retail Therapy: Stein Mart declares bankruptcy

As a child growing up in the post depression years, the inside of a department store was like a field of dreams. With no internet or TV, entertainment was limited to the radio and movies.    Even if you didn’t have a dime, the department store atmosphere was an escape from the humdrum world we lived in.  The fragrances from the cosmetic counter,  glamorous store clerks, latest fashions, and shiny new housewares promised a better world..  When I was old enough to earn my own money, it was delightful to wander from department to department, admiring all the shiny merchandise before I made a  purchase.

Later, after I’d graduated from college and moved to Chicago, I was mesmerized by the glamour and sophistication  of the Marshall Field Department store.  I would go there after work and simply wander around, admiring the latest fashions.  Since I could sew, I often copied a designer fashion for a fraction of the price. And the store windows!  Especially at Christmas, they were full of wonder and beauty.

According to Forbes magazine, the appeal of department store was due to these five factors:

  • Inspiration
  • Immediate Gratification
  • Convenience
  • Taction (the idea of touching, feeling, trying products on, i.e., getting help or confidence in a purchase)
  • Experience (the memory or social delight of being somewhere)

As a parent, I enjoyed  shopping in department stores for my children, even though I was often on a tight budget.  But the one of the best things of being a grandparent was shopping with my granddaughters..  I loved taking them to the mall and buying them special things that maybe their parents thought were too extravagant.  What a joy to see their faces light up as they bought a pretty dress or a pair of fancy boots.

The pandemic is merely hastening the beginning of the end. Everyone’s ordering online for products they can’t smell, feel, or really see.  A picture is one dimensional.  What looks good online might not suit you at all.   Shopping on a computer doesn’t even come close to the fun of trying on clothes in a department store with a friend or relative along.

There are a couple of chains hanging on for dear life—Kohl’s and Tj  Maxx, for example.  But will they last forever?  Sad to say, I’m afraid  retail therapy is coming to a sad, slow end.