INTEL: Town Square gets animated; search for best boss is on
Expect Town Square to get a little more colorful this week.
Anime Revolution is slated to open at the retail center on Sept. 27, featuring Japanese animation art, collectible figures, costumes, jewelry, wigs and hats. The store will be located on Market Place North next to Victoria’s Secret.
Founded by Jacob Anderson, 21, the store will feature people that dress up in Anime costume live in the shop windows each Friday evening and most of the day Saturday and Sunday.
If you’re in the market for truly U.S.-made goods, look no further.
Made in the USA Boutiques, 9500 S. Eastern Ave., features items that only are made here, a collection that took three years to curate from 35 states. Owners Ava and Richard Naft operate their shop seven days a week and sell items such as jeans, toys, jewelry, books, lotion and soap. Their website encourages people to “combine your patriotism with your purchasing power.” Here’s a bonus: shoppers get a free gift from Kansas, Nevada, Pennsylvania or Illinois with any purchase.
Las Vegas now has a vegan food festival to add to its fall lineup.
The Vegan Food Festival is scheduled from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Nov. 2 at 1047 S. Main St., and 2-5 p.m. Nov. 3 at the Clark County Library’s Jewel Box Theater. Attendees can expect food, ethical clothing vendors, children’s activities, cruelty-free cosmetics booths, poetry and vegan beer.
For companies interested in participating, contact Roddy Belford at vivalasveg@yahoo.com. For more information visit vivalasveganfest.com.
U.S. hoteliers are feeling pretty confident at the moment.
TripAdvisor released findings from its survey, the TripBarometer, which included 19,000 travelers and more than 10,000 accommodation business owners around the world. The study is conducted twice a year, and the results are analyzed independently by research firm Edelman Berland.
Themes from this season’s study found that while U.S. travelers aren’t planning to increase travel budgets next year, they are planning to travel more frequently and closer to home to discover the sights America has to offer. Also, despite the lack of confidence many travelers feel about the global economy, U.S. hoteliers remain confident about future profitability.
In particular, hotel industry confidence is highest in the Americas, Asia and the Middle East. In fact, 65 percent of U.S. hoteliers plan to increase room rates in 2013, an increase of 16 percent compared to 2012. In addition, 10 percent of U.S. hoteliers plan to open a new property in 2014, with 93 percent of those owners planning to open in North America.
Finally, travelers are using credit to fund their holidays, particularly in emerging markets. Only 46 percent of Americans will fund all or part of their vacation with credit.
Miami’s finest is coming to celebrate with Las Vegas.
Interestingly enough, rapper Pitbull is scheduled to perform at the grand opening of the new Microsoft store at the Fashion Show Mall on Nov. 14. Images of geeks grooving to Pit aside, the show is open to the public. Maybe they’re hoping to draw a younger crowd to increase Surface and Kinect sales.
The new store is really more of an expansion from a kiosk model to an inline shop within the mall. The then-temporary Microsoft store originally opened last fall in preparation for the holiday shopping season. No doubt this opening is timed for the same reason.
Cookies by Design wants to honor your boss.
The business is sponsoring a contest to find Las Vegas’ Greatest Boss through Oct. 4. To enter, fill out a brief survey at survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07e82wtdiohkvoj7o4/start. The winner will be notified Oct. 11, ahead of National Bosses Day on Oct. 16.
Jamie Sullivan, co-owner of Cookies by Design Las Vegas, said the holiday has always been one of the busiest days of the year for her company. The winning boss will receive lunch with a community leader on Oct. 15, and a slew of prizes.
Contact reporter Laura Carroll at 702-380-4588 or lcarroll@reviewjournal.com. Follow @lscvegas on Twitter.
