Andy Puzder, chief executive of Carl’s Jr and Hardee’s parent CKE Restaurants, is not a man to mince words and on Thursday he shared his views on “socialist type” state governments in California and Oregon. 
     
Many of the company’s Carl’s Jr restaurants are located in the Golden State, and Puzder has plans to lessen that exposure over time. 

“As such, we’re targeting a large percentage of our growth in Texas. It is deemed to be more business friendly,” Puzder told analysts on a conference call. 
     
“Oregon has a higher minimum wage and a similar regulatory structure as California and also has a similar socialist type government at the state level so business there actually can be as bad or worse than California,” he said. 
     
“Texas is doing really well,” he added.

(Photo\Reuters)

It was in San Francisco where Bavaria-born Levi Strauss first stitched and sold his now-iconic riveted blue jeans and it is San Francisco where the 156-year-old company will stay.

At least for the next ten years.

The San Francisco-based company said it will remain in the City by the Bay through 2019, ending speculation that the global apparel brand would move its headquarters to an outlying, lower-rent area.

“There is only one place that a historic company like Levi Strauss & Co. should be located. That’s right here in San Francisco where it all started during the Gold Rush,” said San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who is running for governor of California.
    
Levi Strauss, which is known for supporting San Francisco non-profit organizations and other community efforts, has been located in San Francisco since 1853, when Mr. Strauss arrived during the Gold Rush.
    
The current address — at 1155 Battery Street near the water — is approximately the tenth location since the company was founded. An earlier building, also on Battery Street, was destroyed during the 1906 earthquake.

Privately held Chick-fil-A has plans to open 50 new free-standing restaurants in California within the next five years — a move that would more than double its presence in the nation’s most populous state.

While most of the company’s 35 California restaurants now are located in suburbs or smaller cities, many of the new outlets are planned for Los Angeles and San Diego.

While it eyes California growth, Chick-fil-A is testing its Spicy Chicken Sandwich in the state. Restaurants in Baltimore and Jacksonville have had the sandwich since last year, but the recession has delayed a roll-out to the entire 1,440-restaurant chain.

(Photo: Chick-fil-A)

California, always seeking to be a trendsetter on environmental policy, is weighing a proposal to charge 25 cents for every paper or plastic bag distributed at grocery stores, pharmacies and convenience stores. The money raised would go into a state fund used to clean up trash and prevent litter related to what the bill calls "single-use" bags.

The bill's sponsor, Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, says 25 cents a bag is high enough to have a real impact on consumer behavior. The fee would be waived for some low-income Californians.

The idea, of course, is to encourage people to bring their own reusable bags to the supermarket. Brownley argues that a similar program in Ireland has been a success, reducing plastic bag litter by more than 90 percent.

The bill's other aim is to help the state offset the $25 million a year it spends to clean up plastic bag waste. Municipalities spend $300 million, Brownley says.

Chuck DeVore, a Republican assemblyman from Orange County, said the idea is "just one of a sorry series of tax increases that the Democrats are trying to foist on the working people of California."

DeVore said the bag charge would add $2 to $3 to the bill every time a family goes to the store. And if that family brings along reusable bags, that can be a health hazard.

"If you buy some chicken or some meat, unless you figure a way to wash those bags every time, you will have salmonella in those natural fibers," DeVore said.

Currently, retailers in California are required to set up in-store recycling programs for used bags. Brownley, however, says preliminary results show there has only been a negligible increase in bag recycling since that law went into effect.

But how realistic is it to push through a bill during a recession that will effectively make consumers pay more at the grocery store? Would such a law prompt you to break out those reusable bags once and for all?

DeVore says he expects the bill to pass the Assembly and land on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's desk.

(Additional reporting by Bernie Woodall; photo by Brendan McDermid, Reuters)

California has had its share of entertainers as politicians — Ronald Reagan, Arnold Schwarzenegger, even Sonny Bono. But the state could use a little fashion sense (or at least that’s what New Yorkers say).    

Now Guess Inc co-founder Georges Marciano is making a bid for California governor. Running as an independent, Marciano joins a high-profile list of candidates including former eBay CEO Meg Whitman, San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. 

French-born Marciano, who long ago sold his stake in the jeans maker to his brothers, now works primarily in real estate.

Marciano says his mission is government transparency, economic prosperity and jobs. 
    
And free jeans for everyone … (ok, we made that up, but wouldn’t it be nice?)

(Photo: Marciano for Governor)

A picture is worth a thousand words — and some Californians have a lot to say about the worst financial crisis in decades.

The economic meltdown was the focus of Crossman Wilkins’ (above) master’s thesis at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles.

“I’ve been working with this interest in my own place in the economy,” said Wilkins, 23. (At right is a detail of from the posters shown above, which feature notables like former U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and current Chairman Ben Bernanke.)

The self-professed news junkie once made a poster from a year’s worth of receipts and said his latest work reflects the recession’s influence on the news flow.

“Every story is about the financial situation,” said Wilkins, who will graduate in May and enter the job market when California’s unemployment rate is among the highest in the nation.

The artist says his next work may take on the ailing U.S. auto industry. Meanwhile, he’s piecing together freelance gigs and is entertaining other employment options.

“I do have a lot of student loan debt. I think that’s pretty normal for someone my age, unfortunately,” Wilkins said.

Chiropractor John Nielsen (below) opened a massage school in West Los Angeles more than two years ago with money from mortgaging his home. Nielsen is throwing in the towel, but he’s not going quietly.

The first picture in this blog is by Amanda Keller-Konya and the rest were taken by yours truly.

What would your picture say?

Reuters checked out some of the stores that Starbucks is closing in California’s Inland Empire – an area well known for being a leader in home foreclosures.

Some of the coffee shop closures made sense, some didn’t and some had us wondering just what Starbucks was thinking.

This yet-to-be closed cafe, on the left, is in an upscale mall near a eerily quiet housing development — a no-brainer.

Another that is set to be closed is located in a busy, movie theater-anchored shopping center near a university. When we drove by, the store appeared busy.

An already closed cafe in a rundown neighborhood, shown below, was in a strip mall anchored by low-priced grocer Food 4 Less.

(Photos\Reuters)

The recession is leading many consumers to sharpen their do-it-yourself skills, opting to work on their cars and homes themselves rather than hire professionals.

Home Depot said it is gearing up for spring with a wide assortment of lawn equipment and fertilizer products, looking to cash in should consumers cancel their contracts with professional landscaping companies.

The company said some consumers in cold-weather climates bought snowblowers in the fourth quarter, opting to clean their own driveways and save money instead of calling on snow-removal services.

“We wonder if that might not happen in the spring in the garden business,” Chief Financial Officer Carol Tome said in an interview. “If that were to happen, we’ll be ready with a broad assortment.”

Home Depot, which posted better than expected results for the fourth quarter adjusted for charges on Tuesday, gave insights on how its consumers are spending. During the fourth quarter, it said purchases of $500 or more fell in double-digit percentages. But average purchases of less than $20 fell only about 3 percent, suggesting consumers are still spending on basic home repairs.

“Consumers in general are being pretty careful,” Tome said. “We’ve seen savings rates increasing so that will impact consumer spending, too.”

While the rate of sales declines in hard-hit housing markets such as California and Florida has eased, Home Depot is not yet ready to say weakness in those states has hit bottom. Now, malaise has spread to areas that used to be more solid. For example, sales in the Ohio Valley and Pacific Northwest have softened considerably, Tome said.

One area where sales are rising is the U.S. Gulf Coast, where residents continue to rebuild after devastating hurricanes.

Home Depot also noted strong sales in vinyl flooring, roll carpet and cleaning, types of products that tend to go in homes that are being rented.

(Photo: Reuters)

Uh, dude, you forgot something.

That was essentially the message from a California appeals court to a group of unsuccessful Starbucks applicants who sued the Seattle-based coffee chain over its job application, which they claimed asked an illegal question about marijuana convictions.

California law bars employers from asking job applicants to disclose marijuana convictions that are more than two years old, and Starbucks’ application asks for seven years’ worth of criminal history.

The spurned baristas contended they and the 135,000 others who didn’t make the cut were entitled to $200 each for filling out the tainted application.  Citing potential damages that could run as high as $26 million, the company tried and failed to have the case thrown out, then appealed.

While criticizing Starbucks for placing a disclaimer describing the California law on the back of its application in tiny type, the appeals court nevertheless made a critical finding that killed the case — none of the plaintiffs had marijuana-related convictions and two had never even smoked pot.

Oops.

California Gov. (and “Terminator” star) Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday signed a law that would make the Golden State the first in the nation to require restaurants to post calorie counts and other nutrition information on menus.

The move from the nation’s most populous state is just the latest salvo in its war on obesity.

In July, California became the first state to ban artery-clogging trans fats in restaurant food. Last October, Schwarzenegger signed a bill banning artificial trans fats in food served at public schools.

The National Council of Chain Restaurants called California’s new menu labeling law “well intentioned” but said it would prefer a federal standard.

“What’s really needed is a consistent, uniform, nationwide standard so that consumers from Florida to Alaska have a clear understanding of the nutritional content of food in restaurants,” NCCR President Jack Whipple said in a statement.

Not to be outdone, Yum Brands Inc on Wednesday said its Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, Long John Silver’s and A&W All-American Food outlets would begin putting calorie counts on menu boards in company-owned restaurants nation wide.

Le Pain Quotidien, a bakery and cafe that features organic ingredients, said its restaurants in Los Angeles rolled out new calorie-count menus on Monday. The chain’s New York City restaurants also post calorie counts, as is required by city law.

But some experts and consumers said nutritional information need to be reframed to be more helpful.

Adam Drewnowski, director of the nutritional sciences program at the University of Washington said consumer messages have become increasingly negative and that public health campaigns should focus on the total nutrient value of food.

A recent Nutrient Rich Foods Coalition-commissioned survey of 1,019 adults in the United States backed that view.

It showed that 61 percent of respondents were interested in learning about both the positive nutrients and the nutrients they should limit when they are trying to select healthy foods.

And, 78 percent of survey participants said they are looking for a simple, practical tool that would help them build a healthy diet based on getting the most nutrients from their food choices.

(Photos/Reuters, Yum)