Added this morning: video of the president's remarks on Janine Vaughn. She's mentioned at 10:18 mark. Spokane business owner Janine Vaughn hit the weekly-double this week, in terms of national press attention. On Friday at a Washington, D.C., event, President Obama highlighted Vaughn's small Spokane…
Still no news on when the long, 28-day retransmission payment dispute affecting DIRECTV customers will end. This is no fun for customers who are paying good money to DIRECTV and feel abused by the battle between DIRECTV and Northwest Broadcasting, which owns and operates KAYU,…
Spokane International Airport handled almost 3.2 million passengers last year, an increase of 4 percent from 2009, which had the lowest total since 2004. December traffic also rose about 4 percent, to 137,820. Freight and mail rose more than 10 percent for the month, to…
Habitat for Humanity will close its Spokane and Spokane Valley stores, and consolidate retailing into a single location in the Spokane Industrial Park. The existing stores at 850 E. Trent and 11410 E. Sprague will close March 1. The the Spokane store will reopen for…
Spokane Regional Clean Air Agency has named CXT Inc. as the 2011 Clean Air Award winner. The award will be presented Thursday at an 11:30 a.m. ceremony at the Davenport Hotel. The company makes precast concrete products, including railroad ties for major railways. It has…
Seattle-based Alaska Airlines is converting all Horizon Air airplanes to its own brand, starting this month, the company announced. The change is part of a trend among regional air carriers, said Alaska Airlines spokeswoman Bobbie Egan. She emphasized the two airlines are not merging. Horizon…
Mall rats can start guessing which new retailer will move into the kiosk in River Park Square vacated by Godiva Chocolate. Bob Smith, the guy who manages the RPS, told us talks have nearly concluded with a retailer expected to take over that spot, on…
With all the attention on technology and job-creation in last night's State of the Union address by President Obama, Office Hours wonders if Washington and Idaho are primed to be key contributors in that effort. Certainly both have unemployment rates that are stubbornly stuck close…
Lee Houk, who has more than 20 years experience in area businesses, has opened Extreme Telecom Data, Inc. a new firm offering hardware and network services for regional companies. Houk, until December 2010, worked for area telecom company Northwest Communications Center, Ltd. The new firm…
View Larger Map The company that operates a large network of fiber-optic cable for Spokane and North Idaho business customers said it could be midnight on Tuesday before their Internet service returns. Shelly Mills, a spokesperson for the Spokane office of Zayo Enterprises, said it…
Sterling Financial Corp. today reported smaller fourth quarter and annual losses. The net loss for the quarter was $38.1 million, down from $48 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30 and $328.7 million for the 2009 fourth quarter. For the year, Sterling's net loss was…
Power is out on a portion of the South Hill this afternoon as Avista Utilities crews replace a pole at 9th Ave. and Monroe St. destroyed in a motor vehicle accident at about 10 a.m. A spokeswoman said service should be restored to all customers…
The River Park Square Godiva Chocolatier kiosk shut down Monday, Jan. 24, with no formal statement on the reason. A River Park Square mall spokesperson confirmed the closure but had nothing else to add. Another mall tenant, clothing retailer Abercrombie & Fitch, shut its doors…
Day 24 of the KAYU DIRECTV blackout, with no sign that the impasse will end soon. We asked both sides by e-mail if movement was likely today. We learned neither side seems optimistic. DIRECTV said, simply, they saw nothing new to resolve the long dispute…
Sandpoint clothing retailer Coldwater Creek announced Monday Jill Brown Dean will take over as the company's chief merchandising officer. She'll take over the job held by Georgia Shonk Simmons, who had announced plans to retire. Dean will start on Feb. 14 -- Valentine's Day. Simmons…
The Seahawks season is over but Spokane and North Idaho TV viewers are still chasing down indoor or outdoor antennas. Area retailers say the surge in antenna-shopping is tied to the three-week TV blackout affecting DIRECTV subscribers. The blackout, which began Jan. 1, has left…
Idaho's unemployment rate of 9.5 in December exceeded the national rate for the first time in nine years, the state Department of Labor said today. The state rate had matched the 9.4 percent for the U.S. in November and December, but employers laid off about…
Six subsidiaries of Chubb & Son have agreed to pay a $534,000 fine ordered by Washington Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler. An identical amount was suspended as long as the companies do not violate, for at least three years, a negotiated compliance plan that requires self-audits,…
Now in the 21st day of a broadcast blackout, the opposing sides of KAYU-TV (Northwest Broadcasting, Inc.) and DIRECTV haven't said a word about how soon they expect a solution. The battle is largely over the retransmission fee Northwest Broadcasting is seeking from DIRECTV. That…
Sixteen Eastern Washington Jiffy Lube locations will continue to operate while their franchise owner moves through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy and reorganization. Nine of those stores are in Spokane or Liberty Lake. Others are in Clarkston, the Tri-Cities and Walla Walla. The voluntary Chapter 11…
A revised website and simpler product choices led to a 20 percent gain in online candy sales during the holidays, said Carol Measel, owner of Spokane-based Bruttles Gourmet Candy Company. Using BrandIT Advertising, from Spokane Valley, for site redesign and online marketing, Measel said Bruttles.com…
Spokane business-networking company, LaunchPad Inland Northwest, has announced new services and business training as part of its offerings. When the company launched in early 2010, its focus was on offering shared office spaces, promoting networking events and workshops. In a release coinciding with the firm's…
Washington added an estimated 2,100 jobs in December, with the manufacturing and retail sectors leading hiring. Still, the estimated unemployment rate increased slightly from 9.2 percent to 9.3 percent, the state reported this morning. Job numbers and the unemployment rate are derived from separate surveys.…
We saw a press release from the Washington Attorney General's office today. It said Rob McKenna and several other state AGs have formally agreed to the U.S. Department of Justice settlement that allows Comcast to merge with NBC Universal. What we're not sure about is…
Area subscribers to DIRECTV continue hoping the payment dispute with Northwest Broadcasting, Inc., which operates KAYU TV, will be settled soon. The latest is a press release from Northwest saying it's asking for an independent verification of statements made by DIRECTV about what it has…
The Spokesman-Review business team follows economic development in Spokane and the Inland Northwest.
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