Tony Brewer

My brother Rick was telling me that the company that makes Timberland Boots is one of the large companies that tries to lower their impact on the environment, and to treat all of their employees with dignity and respect.  They have 290 factories in 35 countries.  They have a strong commitment to corporate social responsibility.  I’m always surprised when I hear good things about large companies because there is always so much publicity about corporate greed, and very little publicity about companies that are doing good things! Rick also told me that the copshoes.com website is now selling Timberland Boots, and they are offering a 10% discount on everything through July 6th - just use the promotion coupon code July-4-09 at checkout!

In our attempt to make our homes better, insulation is key to getting the job done right.  And in this day and age of paying for estimates and having to put down non-refundable deposits, it’s rare to find a company like Northern Scotland Joinery. They make and install extremely high quality doors, windows and conservatories for their customers. They offer FREE quotes, and do not demand deposits! In addition, they have a ten year insurance backed guarantee on their products. They use Pilkington glass in their windows which provides up to 90% energy loss reduction! That is amazing to have a glass window that is that well insulated!

One of the markets I anticipate seeing increase over the next several years is the home improvement market. As more people are staying at home instead of traveling on their vacations, (they are having “staycations” instead) I expect that people will be paying more attention to how their house looks and performs. They environmentally conscious among us will be looking at ways to reduce their carbon footprint by trying to replace energy inefficient appliances, doors, and windows with those that will help to reduce energy consumption. One thing that cause extra stress for the consumer in the hunt for making these types of improvements is the cost of figuring out how they are going to accomplish these things!

I am amazed by how many television commercials I see nowadays where the sponsor is a company that deals in cash advances of some kind.  Whether it is payday loans or  a loan against a car title, or a bad credit loan, the big business seems to be all about getting fast cash to the consumer.  What I find very irritating about the commercials is that the customers who are bragging about how they needed money and got it so easily, waving the money around.  They just seem to be very uneducated people!

And to be completely honest, those kinds of commercials simply turn me right off!    I don’t know what kind of commercial would entice me to use those services, but the ones that I see are pretty repulsive.  I understand that there are situations in which a consumer might need a quick loan, and that these types of loans are fairly easy to get, but I think that they could be promoted in a less distasteful way.