Tim Mclaughlin reports in the Boston Business Journal that Citizens Bank could get a new owner if the European Commission forces parent company Royal Bank of Scotland to sell more assets than what executives originally anticipated.
RBS, whose shares fell as much as 13 percent Monday, said in a brief statement that negotiations with the EC will include some divestments not initially contemplated.
David Farkas reports in Chain Leader that to revitalize its brand, Quiznos is rolling out a new decor package and upgraded training. To get franchisees to buy in, the restaurant chain is loaning them the money. Quiznos is tempting franchisees with a low-interest rate on small loans to be used for remodeling the restaurants.
Read More »Todd Owen, Qdoba’s vice president of franchise development, tells QSR about how the more-than-500-unit Mexican chain uses multi-concept franchisees to grow its business and what the chain’s strategy is to attract the best franchisees.
Read More »Noreen O’Leary writes in Brandweek that Tim Hortons the donut and sandwich chain, huge in Canada, but largely unknown here, has been expanding its U.S. footprint of late and appears to be using the market as a testing ground. So far, Tim Hortons spend has been modest. Its outlay on measured media last year was $12 million in the U.S., which is a good $100 million shy of what Dunkin’ Donuts spent. But the chain, named after a star hockey player, has been throwing body checks at its rival lately.
Read More »Reed Abelson reports in the New York Times that as Congress nears votes on legislation that would overhaul the health care system, many small businesses say they are facing the steepest rise in insurance premiums they have seen in recent years. Insurance brokers and benefits consultants say their small business clients are seeing premiums go up an average of about 15 percent for the coming year — double the rate of last year’s increases. That would mean an annual premium that was $4,500 per employee in 2008 and $4,800 this year would rise to $5,500 in 2010.
Read More »Don Sniegowski reports at BlueMauMau that President Barack Obama announced plans Wednesday afternoon to shift some of Wall Street’s bailout funds over to community banks in order to spur lending to small businesses, which has slowed to a trickle. With SBA administrator Karen Mills and Secretary of the Treasury Tim Geithner flanking him, President Obama made several announcements to boost small business.
Read More »Henry Pulizzi of the New York Times rports that President Barack Obama unveiled initiatives to help small businesses, saying the U.S. has “a long way to go” to ensure that credit flows to an area of the economy hit hard by the recession.
“There is still too little credit flowing to our small businesses. There are still too many entrepreneurs who can’t get the loan they need to open their doors and start hiring,” Obama said in a speech at Landover, Md.-based Metropolitan Archives, a family-owned firm that stores and delivers paper files for large companies.
Read More »Citizens Bank said Tuesday it was opening its first branch inside a Dunkin’ Brands store. The new operation will be at 815 South Main St. in Bellingham. The branch will offer window teller service as well as private offices for loan applications and other specialized services. The branch will be open seven days a week, while an ATM is also available in the eatery.
Read More »Penny Starr reports at CNSNews.com that Tom Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said at the organization’s headquarters in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday that Americans and not the government are the answer to the country’s economic woes. At an event Wednesday to launch its ‘Dream Big’ campaign to promote the American free enterprise system, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue said that people, not government, will create the jobs needed for economic recovery.
Read More »Stephen Bernard reports at Kansas City.com that activist investor Carl Icahn is offering struggling lender CIT Group a $6 billion lifeline. In a letter Monday to CIT’s board of directors, Icahn said he would give the company the loan to replace a debt restructuring plan CIT has asked bondholders to approve.
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