Ruby Tuesday Pick of the Week: United Fresh’s A Salad Bar in Every School program
Why It’s a Gem: Early exposure to nutrition can equate to a lifetime of wellness.

With childhood obesity now at epidemic proportions, Michelle Obama has spearheaded Let’s Move, a program whose mission is to solve the crisis within one generation. Even if the timeline weren’t so ambitious, the First Lady would have her work cut out for her, especially considering the poor state of school nutrition. With frozen pizzas and fries dominating cafeteria menus, it’s no wonder that our nation’s children are developing poor eating habits that they bring home and carry with them throughout their lives. As places of learning, schools have a responsibility to also educate on nutrition, which we all can agree is far more important than algebra, no matter what your third-period teacher claims. (more…)

When the underlying basis of your business is philanthropic, it can be difficult to remain true to your original business model. But in this new economy, doing good is key to doing well: Customers care where their money goes. (more…)

Ruby Tuesday Pick of the Week: K9 Cuisine
Why It’s a Gem: Learning from competitors’ customer-service mistakes has helped this pet food supplier leave the others in the dust

When Anthony Holloway experienced lackluster customer service while buying specialty dog food, he didn’t gripe. Instead, he saw the experience for the opportunity it was.  Holloway used other companies’ mistakes as a blueprint for what not to do, a strategy that saw his company become top dog, with a 50-percent growth each month in its first year. (more…)

Sometimes a product stands out so much that I just have to talk to the visionary behind it. Such is the case with Monica Williams’ creation, Pacimals, a combination pacifier/plush toy that she created after noticing that daughter Mackenzie kept dropping her pacifier, something that drives most tots to tears. That small observation has morphed into a new product that begs to be noticed in an already-saturated baby-product market.

In this week’s Ask Lynda, I break from the regular letter format to speak directly with the radiologist-turned-entrepreneur, who never expected that her email asking for business advice would prompt a response – much less an hour-long phone call from the author of the book she’d just read. “Holy cow – you replied!” Yes, Monica. Your product was just too cute and inventive to pass up!

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Ruby Tuesday Pick of the Week: Children’s Orchard
Why It’s a Gem: The nationwide chain delivers Mom’s needs at an affordable price.

Ruby Tuesday: Children’s Orchard (MP3)

You’ve heard the complaint often enough: Before there’s so much as a hole in Johnny’s new jeans, he’s outgrown them. Or Jane needs a special party dress that she’ll wear only once. With the rate that kids grow, clothing makes up a large portion of the estimated overall $1,375,408 it takes to raise a child from birth to high school. Considering that doesn’t even include college, many parents will need to do more than clip coupons and give bowl haircuts to make ends meet.

That’s the problem that Children’s Orchard’s business model focuses on – and with great success. Now when Momma needs a new pair of shoes, she can (more…)