The deindustrialization of Seattle was a trend, and an issue, long before the proposed hoops-and-hockey arena gave it renewed attention. As offices, retail developments, apartments and condos crowded in, manufacturers figured life would be less expensive and bring fewer hassles by going somewhere else. So where, for Washington, is that somewhere else? Does it matter…

Do celebrities influence you? More specifically, do their endorsements make you buy stuff? Are you more likely to shell out a few hundred bucks on a Windows Phone 8 because Gwen Stefani says it allows her to stay creative and never miss a thing in her busy life? Will it make a difference to you…

During last years presidential campaign, there was a great deal of talk about the importance of small businesses. Virtually every stump speech seemed to make some reference to the large proportion of jobs accounted for by the small business sector. Thats certainly true. But when it comes to job creationthe key concern of every regional…

…THE BAD… RETAILING > Higher and HigherWashington voters who thought they would get a price break on booze when they voted to break up the state monopoly on liquor sales got an unpleasant surprise in June when private store sales went into effect. An unscientific Seattle Times survey indicated about half of 170 prices reported…

Each year, the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce brings together regional leaders in an effort to build a consensus around the key issues that must be addressed for our region to grow and prosper. Last year, there was broad agreement on the need to keep production of Boeings next-generation 737 MAX airplane in our region,…

A year ago in this very space we opined that, as much as Boeing is a significant local business story every year, 2012 would be a critically important year for the company and for the region that economically depends upon it. Barely was the ink dry on the magazine when Boeing addressed several items on…

Welcome to the dark months. This is what Mick McHugh calls the period between the end of one baseball season in late September and the beginning of the next one in early April. McHugh owns F.X. McRorys Steak, Chop & Oyster House, which debuted in Pioneer Square in 1977, the same year the Seattle Mariners…

By now, the commemorative events have run their course, the books have been published, the articles written and the souvenirs moved to the discount table. Like Christmas decorations stashed in the garage in January, the banner, displays and accompanying gewgaws to mark the 50th anniversary of Seattles coming-of-age event, the Century 21 Exposition, are being…

Youre an executive in a firm whose CEO says he is giving $5 million of his own money to assist the Hyperactive Gay Baby Whales Foundation. On learning this, you are: A. Outraged B. Delighted C. Perplexed that your CEO has $5 million in walking-around money and you havent had a raise since Jennifer Aniston…

Information technology has transformed our lives during the past half-century. It has eliminated thousands of boring jobs in places like the back rooms of banks, where rows and rows of clerical workers once manually entered millions of financial transactions. And it has enabled a new generation of entrepreneurs, who take full advantage of such basic…