Holiday Guide Blog
Consumer Confidential: Toys, toys and soda pop
Here's your wonderfully Wednesday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: -- Get the lead out. That's the message from the California attorney general's office to six major retailers found still to have toys on their shelves containing lead....
Fed proposes new rules to protect gift card users from fees
The Federal Reserve today proposed new rules that would protect gift card users from fees and other unexpected restrictions. Gift cards have been the most-requested holiday item for the last several years, but many shoppers complain about the fine print,...
California Consumer is moving to Money & Co.
California Consumer has moved to a bigger, brighter, newer home. You can now find it in our Money & Company blog. You will still be able to find all the news, recalls, and consumer affairs articles, but now in our...
Consumer Confidential: Sentiment, streets, Star Trek
Here's your finish-line-Friday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: -- Consumer sentiment took a little tumble this month as the realization set in among many that jobs may not be a big factor in the economic recovery, at...
Consumer Confidential: Foreclosures, cleaning products and video games
Here's your thick-as-Thursday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: -- Things are still tough on the housing front but maybe not as tough as before. Market researcher RealtyTrac said foreclosure filings were down 3% last month from the...
T.J. Maxx to open store in Burbank this Sunday
Off-price retailer T.J. Maxx will open a store in Burbank on Sunday, bringing its total number of Los Angeles-area locations to 37. At nearly 25,000 square feet, the store will feature a new format including redesigned dressing rooms, a revamped...
Doughnuts for vets
The Times’ Brand X blog reports that companies are offering a number of freebies and discounts for veterans today: Today is Veterans Day and to say "Thank You" to the brave men and women in our armed forces, and those...
Most Wal-Mart stores to stay open overnight on Thanksgiving
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. will keep most of its U.S. stores open overnight on Thanksgiving to lessen the Black Friday frenzy that led to the trampling death of a store employee a year ago, the company said today. The retail giant...
Consumer Confidential: Games, games and games
Here's your tasty-Tuesday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: --Activision's new video game, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, went on sale shortly after midnight today. Industry analysts expect the shoot-'em-up to be one of the fastest-selling titles...
H&M to open store at Westfield Century City on Thursday
Cheap chic retailer H&M will open a store at Westfield Century City on Thursday. To celebrate the opening, the store will offer the first 200 shoppers an H&M T-shirt and an Access to Fashion Pass, a shopping card containing a...
Consumer Confidential: Strollers, shakes and spam
Here's your make-my-Monday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: --Heads up if you've got a little one. Maclaren, which makes some very popular strollers, has recalled about 1 million folding strollers that can cut or even cut off...
Adventure Playsets recalled for rotting wood beams
About 275,000 Adventure Playsets wooden play sets have been recalled because the plastic-coated wood of its horizontal ladder can rot and weaken over time and pose a fall hazard, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said. More than 6,700 additional sets...
Jelly Belly recalls mislabeled jelly beans with peanut ingredients
The Jelly Belly Candy Co. is recalling about 6,000 "49 Flavors" jelly bean containers that contain peanut-butter-flavored jelly beans but don't list peanut butter or peanut flower as ingredients on the label. The mislabeled candy was shipped Sept. 29 to...
Program takes on fearful flying
Can an application on an electronic hand-held gadget really change your life? Whoopi Goldberg says it can. The Academy Award-winning actress and co-host of ABC’s “The View” claimed her fear of flying kept her off airplanes until she tried an...
Consumer Confidential: Jobs, DVDs and gold
Here's your full-frontal-Friday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: --The unemployment rate hit 10.2% last month. OK, we've seen it coming for weeks, and President Obama and Fedatollah Ben Bernanke have been doing their best to prep us...
Consumer Confidential: Shopping, jobs and cable
Here's your throbbing-Thursday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: --The retail industry posted its second straight month of gains in October as shoppers decided maybe, just maybe, the economic picture isn't as grim as all that. That doesn't...
Wal-Mart to sell HP laptop for $298, Thanksgiving dinner for eight people for $20
Retail giant Wal-Mart announced more holiday price reductions today, including a $20 Thanksgiving dinner for eight people. For one week starting Saturday, Wal-Mart stores will hold an electronics savings event which includes an HP laptop with 3GB of memory for...
Kmart announces "Better than Black Friday" deals
After introducing an online layaway program last month, Kmart today announced "Better than Black Friday" specials. The weekly doorbuster deals start Nov. 6 and include markdowns on electronics, apparel and tools. New deals will be available each Friday through Nov....
David Lazarus: Watch out when signing up for online services
David Lazarus' latest column, "Real estate company's pitch leads to unexpected bill," is a cautionary tale about a problem that consumer advocates say is becoming all too common: people signing up for one thing online and inadvertently signing up for...
Consumer Confidential: Wine, funky flashlights, Google
Here's your whopping-Wednesday roundup of consumer news from around the Web: A little vino with your Slim Jim? Our friends at 7-11 say they'll be introducing a low-priced wine in the United States and Japan. Sold under the Yosemite Road...