Monthly Archives: October 2012

Product Chasing a Market – Fuzz Phobia

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When Veet hair removal cream came to China in 2005, sales were sluggish. It turned out that Chinese women did not worry about being too hairy. So the company selling the product promoted a new marketing plan with ads that equate hair-free skin with health, confidence, and “shining glory.” Questions: 1. How fast are sales… Read more »

It Beats Earning $20 an Hour?

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Flipping houses earned a bad reputation during the housing bubble, when speculators bought and sold millions of homes in search of easy profits. But as the real estate market is showing signs of life, the practice is gaining popularity again. Questions: 1. Which areas of the country have seen the most flipping action and why?… Read more »

The Unveiling of the Future?

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Apple’s iPad Mini will likely be unveiled at a special event on October 23. The device is expected to ship with a 7.85-inch screen and costs about half of what the current starting price for an iPad. Questions: 1. According to both articles, what have iPad sales to the K-12 market been doing to PC… Read more »

CEO Quits Effective Immediately

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In a surprise move, Citigroup announced on Tuesday that Vikram S. Pandit, the bank’s chief executive, had resigned, effective immediately. While his unexpectedly fast departure has raised many questions, critics said there were many signs that the end was near for Pandit. Questions: 1. How long had Mr. Pandit been chief executive of Citigroup? 2…. Read more »

Long Island Stock Broker Creates Complex Web of Deceit

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Stockbroker, Mark Hotton, defrauded the producers of a Broadway production of “Rebecca,” through the combination of a fictitious loan and phantom investors, conjured up as part of a sham plan to rescue the financially ailing show. Questions: 1. How was the complex fraud described by federal authorities? 2. How could the producers have been proactive… Read more »

Interesting ACLU case

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The ACLU is filing suit against Morgan Stanley, alleging that the company targeted African American borrowers in risky loan offerings. The ACLU claims that Morgan Stanley is culpable for predatory loan offered through the New Century Financial Corporation, who is a now-defunct subprime lender, because Morgan Stanley pressured New Century to make these troublesome loans… Read more »

Exploding Water Pipe – Fraud Alert

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Forty-five government entities are now joining whistleblower John Hendrix’s suit against JM Eagle. The suit alledges that the largest PVC pipe manufacturer committed fraud by intentionally selling pipe to governments, where the company’s internal quality controls showed 50 to 80 percent failure rates. Questions: 1. What was Hendrix’s position with the firm and what did… Read more »

The Cost Disease

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Much of our political debate is fueled by the rise in the cost of healthcare, education, and other necessary services. Interestingly, the new book “The Cost Disease” is based on the work of William Baumol, who as a young economist in the 1960s promoted the idea tagged “Baumol’s Disease,” which explains that our current predicament… Read more »

The Disappearing Debt Suddenly Reappears!

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Jackie Esposito, of Guilford, Conn., got a letter that said her debt with JPMorgan Chase was canceling the amount she owed on a home equity account. While most people would be excited to get such a letter, Ms. Esposito was not. That is because Ms. Esposito had the debt legally wiped out three years ago… Read more »