...with brief, occasional, italicized and sometimes gratuitous commentary…
• The Irish Independent reports that c-store chain Applegreen, which primarily operates in Ireland in the UK, is considering a strategic investment in the US that would have it expanding beyond the 10 locations that it already has there. (Six are on Long Island, and four are in Massachusetts.)
""We're still in learning mode in the US," says CEO Bob Etchingham. "We're still developing relationships. We do want to continue to develop there, but we're doing it in a very measured and cautious fashion ... We will look to make a decision as to whether we push on in the United States, probably sometime in the first half of 2017."
The story notes that Applegreen has signed a franchise agreement with 7-Eleven for the US, but to this point, US operations "are breaking even and not consuming much management time." The question is whether to push the US envelope even farther.
• The Washington Times last week reported last week that an Albertsons bakery in Louisiana got a lot of attention on social media when it refused to inscribe a birthday cake with the words, "Trump 2016."
After the customer drew attention to the incident on social media, local TV stations picked up the story, and then it went national ... as illustrated by the Washington Times piece.
This stuff just makes me nuts. You're a baker. Bake the freakin' cake, and write whatever the customer wants on top of the cake, assuming it isn't profane or vulgar. This goes for gay weddings and presidential endorsements. Writing something on top of a cake does not constitute a personal endorsement.
• The Irish Independent reports that c-store chain Applegreen, which primarily operates in Ireland in the UK, is considering a strategic investment in the US that would have it expanding beyond the 10 locations that it already has there. (Six are on Long Island, and four are in Massachusetts.)
""We're still in learning mode in the US," says CEO Bob Etchingham. "We're still developing relationships. We do want to continue to develop there, but we're doing it in a very measured and cautious fashion ... We will look to make a decision as to whether we push on in the United States, probably sometime in the first half of 2017."
The story notes that Applegreen has signed a franchise agreement with 7-Eleven for the US, but to this point, US operations "are breaking even and not consuming much management time." The question is whether to push the US envelope even farther.
• The Washington Times last week reported last week that an Albertsons bakery in Louisiana got a lot of attention on social media when it refused to inscribe a birthday cake with the words, "Trump 2016."
After the customer drew attention to the incident on social media, local TV stations picked up the story, and then it went national ... as illustrated by the Washington Times piece.
This stuff just makes me nuts. You're a baker. Bake the freakin' cake, and write whatever the customer wants on top of the cake, assuming it isn't profane or vulgar. This goes for gay weddings and presidential endorsements. Writing something on top of a cake does not constitute a personal endorsement.
- KC's View:
