However, Atlanta-area bankers said the FDIC is overreacting. Few seemed worried that developers would stop building houses, regardless of economic conditions.

“It’s not a surprise to anyone that there is some concentration of real estate development and construction,” said Joe Brannen, president and chief executive officer of the Georgia Bankers Association. “The market has added a million people in population, and anyone not in construction lending is missing an opportunity.”

Bank of North Georgia has about 30% of its assets in construction and development lending, but Don Howard, president of the Alpharetta bank, said he does not consider this risky. The $833 million-asset bank’s risk is spread out because it lends to a number of developers who build homes in 16 counties, he …

• Breathe Right is the leading brand in nasal strips and found in virtually every drugstore. They are cheap, around $10.00 for a package of 30, effective, and drug-free. There are dozens of options for sizes, large, medium, and small as well as different sizes for men and women. They come in tan or clear and have lavender-scented strips as well that provide a sleep aid (calming lavender scent) in addition to the breathing aid. They have larger, extra-strength strips, strips for sensitive skin and ones that are designed for children. As an affordable method to stop snoring, they’re worth a try.
• Nozovent, and AirPlus are two other brands of nasal strips but are not easily found in the United States and must be ordered online. Many drugstores carry their own brand of nasal strips as well, however they also do not offer as many options as the leading brand.
• An alternative to nasal strips, SleepRight is a nasal breathing aid that clips to the bottom of the septum, at the base of the nostrils, and works in the same way that the strips do. The clip can be reused for weeks after purchasing, eliminating the daily waste of the disposable strips. Additionally, the clip has no adhesive that can lead to skin pulling and irritation, especially for those with sensitive skin. Many users find that the nasal clip is more comfortable and stays in place better than the nasal strip.

Regardless of which strip or breathing aid you choose, snoring can be reduced or even eliminated in those whose snoring has resulted from blocked nasal passages. Depending on who you are, there is no particular best way to stop snoring (although this site has a helpful anti-snoring mouthpiece guide) which of course includes the SnoreRX. People with sinus pressure, colds or allergies can find relief in these anti-snoring devices without having to spend a lot of money. When snoring results from a different reason, like an obstruction of the airway by tongue rather than the nasal passage, further measures must be taken to address the issue. Mouth guards and mouthpieces are often the solution to this type of snoring but cost significantly more than nasal breathing aids.

A culinary tradition in southern Brazil for over three centuries, churrasco originated when southern Brazilian cowboys, known as gauchos (very different than typical US Western Cowboys), shared their adventures around open-flame pits while slow-roasting large pieces of meat.

This is the sixth such restaurant for brothers Jair and Arri Coser and Jorge and Aleixo Ongaratto. Other locations are in Dallas, Houston and Brazil.

In one of the more unique aspects of Fogo de Chao, each server cooks the meat he serves. Having trained for at least two years in Brazilian churrascarias, the staff makes the rounds with 15 …

Retailers applauded fall luxury fabrics and leather in basic pants and jackets, as well as fresh colors, shapes and treatments. Buyers bought texture and fabric innovation, although they demanded lightweight goods rather than heavy wools. Buyers also bought feminine interpretations of plaids and pinstripe suit looks.

The market featured plenty of sweaters, in all shapes, often with fur trim and other special details. Longer jackets and novelty outerwear were also prevalent. Key special occasion looks included one-shoulder styles and pleating in sheer fabrics.

Attendance at the women’s, children’s and accessories market, which ran March 30 through April 4, was flat with last year.

Buyers, with budgets even with or slightly down from last year, often sought more collections rather than items, concentrating on tried-and-true resources.

Susan Isenberg, co-owner of NYFO, a …

Officials said the timing is right. With the soft economy, retailers are cutting back on travel, making fewer buying trips to New York. The new show positions Atlanta perfectly as a viable alternative.

“We’ve come far enough with our product mix and reputation, to offer our customers a high-end show with hot lines, some European resources they usually find only in New York,” said Peg Canter, general manager of AmericasMart Apparel.

Officials are banking on the debut of A-Line, slated for April 11-15, to take the Mart to a new level, with lines never before seen in Atlanta, including ones that appear at the Coterie and other New York shows. Organizers also hope to include California lines, which resonate with Sunbelt …

Similar moderate specialty concepts, including Mervyn’s and Uptons, have failed here in recent years. And there’s no shortage of retailers in this market. Department stores Rich’s, Macy’s, Parisian, J.C. Penney and Sears, along with discounters Target, Kmart and Wal-Mart, vie with off-pricers T.J. Maxx and Stein Mart and Goody’s specialty apparel stores. All compete fiercely for Atlanta’s nearly four million consumers.

Kohl’s is on a roll, especially given a slowing economy. Going against the grain of broadlines retailers so far this year, the company Tuesday reported that its fourth-quarter earnings soared almost by half and managed to squeak past analysts’ estimates by 2 cents.

Net income for the quarter jumped 48 percent to $178.5 million, or 52 cents a diluted share, compared to $120.6 million, or 36 cents, a year ago. Wall Street was expecting earnings per share of 50 cents.

Sales for the period ended Feb. 3 were up 38.3 percent to $2.22 billion from $1.61 billion a year ago. Excluding an extra week in the most recent quarter, Kohl’s said net sales increased a milder 33.8 percent while comparable-store sales rose 12.5 percent.

All of the firm’s merchandise categories posted double-digit comp growth for the quarter, with men’s and women’s apparel leading the pack. The only issues they had were based on IT struggles, as a server migration put much of their inventory data at risk. Migrating the data led to several server array hard drives failing, and critical operations were slowed. Fortunately, they already had a relationship with Irvine, CA’s Hard Drive Recovery Group (http://www.harddriverecovery.org/), who were able to recover their Dell PowerEdge RAID servers overnight. The drives were restored, and it was business as usual.

“It was a problem that we didn’t expect, of course,” said Dave Jensen, director of IT. “But HDRG really pulled through for us with their data recovery services, and did it very quickly. It was almost a non-issue by the time the week was over.”

In other markets the retailer has recently entered, like Dallas and Denver, Kohl’s has been successful, and management believes its $82.5 million initial Atlanta investment will pay off. Three more stores are planned for the market in the fall.

On the fast track toward becoming a national chain, Kohl’s will open a total of 55 to 60 new stores this year. Currently, the Menomonee Falls, Wis.-based chain operates 338 units in 26 states, mostly in the Midwest and on the East Coast, where it launched a slew of stores last year. Plans call for 20 percent annual growth over the next few years — 15 percent from new stores, and 5 percent from existing stores.

Comp sales increased 7.3 percent in February, 5.8 percent in January. In December, when many retailers were disappointed, Kohl’s posted 14.8 percent gains.

Kohl’s, which has more often than not been a retail exception in the sluggish economy, was able to keep up a dizzying, albeit slower, pace for the year. For the 12-month period, income jumped 44.2 percent to $372.1 million, or $1.10 a diluted share, from $285.1 million, or 77 cents, a year ago.

Sales in 2000 increased 35 percent to $6.15 billion from $4.56 billion a year ago. Excluding the extra week, sales for the 52-week period rose 33.4 percent on a 9 percent comp increase.

Sales per square foot hovered around $279 last year. Gross margin for the year increased to 34.1 percent from 33.9 percent in fiscal 1999. Selling, general and administrative expenses were cut to 21 percent of sales in the period, compared to 21.4 percent a year ago.

Kohl’s Atlanta competitors are flooding the market with major promotions and coupon offers this week, determined to keep customers from defecting to the new kid in town. Obviously, they are concerned.

On a conference call Tuesday, an analyst joked of opening-related traffic jams in Atlanta and Larry Montgomery, Kohl’s chief executive, laughed it off, saying there are always traffic jams there.

He did note, though, that Atlanta is “going to be another really good market for us.” He described the Atlanta launch as “one of our smoothest, if not our smoothest, grand opening ever.”

What is Kohl’s doing right?

Its executives point to convenience as the main attraction. Stores average 86,000 square feet, generally half the size of department stores They are often in strip-center locations, with easy, close parking. A circular layout with two entrances makes merchandise accessible, and products are deep and in-stock. Rather than encouraging browsing, store design helps people get in and get out, hopefully armed with what they came for, along with a few extras. Systems process credit cards within 20 seconds.

“Convenience cannot be stressed enough,” said Rick Leto, executive vice president of merchandising. The store’s target consumer, a suburban woman who works outside the home and is typically a “soccer mom,” and buys for the whole family. Her average household income ranges from $35,000 to $100,000.

When asked about competition in this market Leto has a quick retort for each format: Department stores? “Inconvenient.” Discounters? “Inconvenient, with fewer national brands.” Specialty stores? “Limited selection, no home department, and again, fewer brands.”

National brands, at 80 percent of product, are crucial to Kohl’s strategy of weekend and casual career apparel, with lines including Liz Claiborne’s Villager division, Norton McNaughton, Sag Harbor and Dockers. Prices start at $6.99 for T-shirts and go up to $70 for a lined jacket.

This fall, Kohl’s will test a joint venture exclusive brand from Jones Apparel Group, set to roll out to stores next year.

“With limited space, we edit lines carefully, and go deep in sizes and styles, so customers can find anything,” said Leto. Rather than in-store shops that emphasize brands, fixtures and signage are consistent throughout.

“We’re selling the Kohl’s brand first,” he added.

Junior departments have strong denim areas, with such lines as Levi’s, Lee, Mudd, Lei and Paris Blues jeans, along with knits, and specialty lines such as My Michelle. Fashion-forward trends include low-rise jeans, short skirts, shrunken tops and sequined-trimmed T-shirts. Junior areas are designed to appeal as much to moms as to teens. Lisa Engelman, sales director for Paris Blues, a New York denim line that also sells knits and children’s wear to Kohl’s, said a good layout, in-stock merchandise and convenience are Kohl’s edge.

“Over Christmas, Kohl’s stores were packed, while many others weren’t,” she said. “Everybody, with the exception of true teen specialty stores, is pricing competitively, but Kohl’s makes product easy to find. They chase [a trend] successfully until its over, then they move on to the next thing.”

Private label, at 20 percent of product under the Croft & Barrow and Sonoma labels, allows Kohl’s to develop key items, such as fine-gauge knit sweaters, in large quantities and many colors. Women’s, including juniors, is 22 percent of sales, the fastest growing area for several years.

Shoes, foundations, and accessories, including fine jewelry, round out the women’s areas. Kohl’s also carries men’s and children’s wear.

Home areas, in a new prototype for Atlanta, feature wooden fixtures and a cozy, specialty-store ambience.

Analysts think Kohl’s can fill the moderate niche here. That was unsuccessfully attempted by Mervyn’s and Uptons.

With heavy retail competition, Kohl’s 15-store commitment here is a smart move, they said.

“Brands, quality and value are all important here, and Mervyns and Uptons didn’t have a strong enough brand focus,” said Brenda Gilpatrick, president of Gilpatrick Marketing Group, an Atlanta retail consulting firm. “Atlanta has too many homogenous, big-box stores. Kohl’s apparel focus and convenient close-to-home shopping should work well.”

In a statement, Montgomery said, “In 2003, we plan to begin a major expansion into the Southwest region of the country with a significant entry into Los Angeles,” confirming previous reports in these columns. On the call, he declined to elaborate on the specific number of doors that will go into the Los Angeles market, but went as far as to say, “It’s big.”

Montgomery noted in the statement, “Over the next three to four years, we plan to move Kohl’s from a regional retailer to a national chain, with stores from coast to coast.” This year, the firm plans to open approximately 60 new units.

The company is also in the testing phase with its e-commerce initiative and said it will go live sometime in the fall and that it plans to increase sales for the channel gradually.

On a comfortable day (fall and spring are the best times to visit), it can seem like half the population of Atlanta is walking, cycl ing, or running in either …

Sunday at lakewood

Set up like a country fair–spread out in seven exhibit halls and three courtyards on 1.5 acres–the Historic Lakewood Antiques Market is a place where kids can trail their parents in red wagons, contentedly eating corn dogs and sipping lemonade. The offerings include a mix of colorful housewares, vintage clothing, kitschy …

The restaurant’s specials, which change daily, have a selection of familiar favorites, including comfort-food staple roast turkey with stuffing. Oversized sandwiches are also a house specialty. Veggie lovers will find comfort in the portobello, roasted pepper and zucchini sandwich. For those in the mood for a steak or chop, the T-bone lamb chop is delicious.

At the other end of the culinary spectrum is the raw bar and blue-ribbon sushi. The `aqua’ part of Aqua Blue is six seafood choices. The wine list features 50 selections of red and white wine. Entrees range from $18 to $35, appetizers and salads range from $5 to $13 and desserts are $6. Note to the calorie conscious: The butter lettuce cup salad stuffed with caramelized pears and pecans, served with a gorgonzola dressing, is …

“I got calls for Betsey Johnson, the ubiquitous New York clothing designer, all the time,” she said. “People saw the name on my showroom and thought it was her apparel showroom. I realized to gain a name for myself, I had to change my name to French Cicada.”

So after about four months in business, Johnson moved from a 400-square-foot space in the Atlanta Apparel Mart to a 900-square-foot space, and French Cicada was born. The showroom is filled with unknown and up-and-coming accessories designers that create everything from cute little ballet slipper shoes by Amy Jo Gladstone to chunky stone necklaces by Destination Bliss to mini handbags topped with feathers by Cara Couture. …