Reporter Justine Griffin and colleagues from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune watch The Cost of Life be printed in Sarasota, Fla.
Tag Archives: journalism
Business inspired by daughter’s short life
Photo by Dan Wagner
By Justine Griffin for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune
SARASOTA — Shopping was a favorite pastime for Amber Lanelle Russ, Jim Russ’s daughter, and an activity the pair loved to do together.
They would cruise through the aisles of Walmart and Dollar General stores in Sarasota, Amber happy to just be with her father, who pushed her wheelchair for hours, even though they would rarely come home with lots of merchandise.
Amber Russ was in need of that chair all of her life. Though she could not talk or see very much because of conditions that included epilepsy, cortical blindness and scoliosis, she always smiled when she was out shopping in the community with her father.
“If you’ve ever shopped with a child in a wheelchair, you know you need bags that can hang easily from the back of the chair,” Russ said. “We always used the reusable grocery bags and, eventually, we started personalizing them.”
That began when Amber came home from Oak Park School in Sarasota with a new drawing or painting she had done in class. Russ would staple his daughter’s artwork to the tote bags as a way to brighten them up. One day, he stapled a picture of Amber’s beagle, Snoopy, to a bag.
“It seemed to brighten her day,” Russ said.
Amber passed away in 2011, just a month shy of her 21st birthday. Despite his grief, something told Russ to continue to make the bags he had used with his daughter.
“About four months after she died, I could feel her talking to me, saying, ‘Daddy, work on those bags,’ ” Russ said. “So for some odd reason, I did.”
Read more here.
Total Wine & More to open Sarasota store
By Justine Griffin for the Herald-Tribune.
Total Wine & More will open its second store in Southwest Florida on U.S. 41 in the recently renovated Pelican Plaza.
The wine, liquor and beer retailer — known for its affordable prices and expansive selection of alcoholic beverages — will open a 20,000-square-foot store next to Sports Authority, which the Herald-Tribune reported in February would arrive at Pelican Plaza.
Total Wine operates another store in the Shoppes at University Town Center (next to Nordstrom Rack,) that has been very successful.
The new Total Wine will compete with Costco Wholesale, next door inside Westfield Group’s Sarasota Square Mall.
Read more here.
Young Professional Start Up
Photo by Rachel O’Hara, Herald-Tribune staff
I am leading a new project at the Herald-Tribune Media Group that is geared toward attracting more young professionals to our publications. I am currently a part of a team that is designing a new publication – which is neither print or solely online – that milllennials find hopefully engaging and interesting.
We’re still in the research and development stage, but so far the project has been a lot of fun. I’ve lead small brainstorming discussions in art galleries with young people in our community and with other reporters in our newsroom. This week I’m leading a young professional panel discussion at a jobs conference in Sarasota.
Stay tuned for more to come.
Saks Fifth Avenue will have its own upscale place to dine
Photo courtesy of Fifth Dining LLC
By Justine Griffin for the Herald-Tribune.
When the new Saks Fifth Avenue department store opens at the Mall at University Town Center, shoppers can expect more than just expanded departments and two floors of merchandise. The 80,000-square-foot Saks space — one of the key anchors for the $315 million mall in Sarasota County — also will boast its own restaurant, and be one of the first in the chain to do so.
When Saks opens, so will “Sophie’s,” a new restaurant concept by Fifth Dining LLC, a new restaurant effort within the Saks brand. The elegant, gourmet restaurant will complement the department store’s look and feel but will offer a completely separate lunch and dinner dining experience for Saks shoppers.
…Saks Fifth Avenue is the latest upscale retailer to venture into the dining sector in recent years.
Nordstrom’s department stores, including the one in Tampa’s International Plaza, have their own line of in-store cafes, which serve lighter fare, coffee and cocktails.
The concept has helped make Nordstrom more of a destination for shoppers, said Darren Tristano, executive vice president with Chicago-based Technomic, a food consulting firm.
Read more here.