Meijer stores see significant increase in holiday decoration purchases in 2020
Meijer
and last updated 2020-12-18 19:06:26-05
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. â Perhaps as a way to cope with all that 2020 has brought, Meijer customers across the Midwest have been buying significantly more holiday decorations this year compared to 2019, the company said Friday.
The Grand Rapids-based retailer also says itâs seen more purchases of outdoor decorations.
Customers are repurposing dollars normally spent on family entertainment and travel in order to add items like pre-lit LED characters, projectors and reels of holiday lights.
âThe heightened awareness and enthusiasm for decorating homes during the pandemic has only increased since Thanksgiving,â said Karen Langeland, divisional merchandise manager for hard home, accents and seasonal at Meijer. âBeing part of these communities is important every holiday season, but when you can drive through almost any neighborhood and en
Randy Thelen
The Right Place Inc. has named Michigan native Randy Thelen as its new president and CEO.
Thelen, 48, will take over the Grand Rapids-based regional economic development organization in March, according to a Friday news release. He will follow in the footsteps of Birgit Klohs, who is retiring after 33 years leading the nonprofit.
With more than 25 years in the economic development industry, Thelen was most recently senior vice president of economic development at the Downtown Denver Partnership. He also led economic development for the Greater Omaha Chamber, and has had economic development roles around Michigan, including at the Michigan Economic Development Corp.
CoStar Group Inc.
Meijer Inc. s distribution facility in the Lansing suburb of Delta Township would qualify for an exemption on personal property, sales and use taxes for new equipment that automated the repackaging of food and consumer goods under a three-bill package headed for passage in the Michigan Legislature.
With their legislative session nearing an end, Michigan lawmakers are racing to give Meijer Inc. a new break on paying sales, use and personal property taxes for automated consumer goods processing equipment for a distribution facility outside of Lansing.
A three-bill package nearing passage in the Michigan Legislature would exempt Meijer from paying sales or use tax on new equipment for a 190,000-square-foot distribution center in Delta Township that stores, sorts, recombines and palletizes goods to be sent to Meijer stores across the state.
Dec 16, 2020
TRAVERSE CITY â Older women in the greater Traverse City, Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids area may have been victimized in multiple ways if treated for incontinence by a particular traveling medical outfit.
Officials said four people have now pleaded guilty to crimes as an outcome of a federal investigation into both the misuse of medical devices and health care fraud, often during medical visits with senior women at long-term care and skilled nursing facilities. Three have already been sentenced.
Authorities said an investigation revealed a medical device manufacturer employee, as well as a doctor and his nurse practitioner spouse, conspired to wrongly use medical equipment during a therapy practice called pelvic muscle rehabilitation. All three have now pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for Michiganâs Western District to charges stemming from the scheme.
Priority Health names Praveen Thadani new president
Praveen Thadani will replace Joan Budden as president in early January
Budden is retiring Jan. 1 after 12 years at Priority Health and a decades-long health care career
Thadani spent 18 years in the for-profit health insurance industry with Humana and UnitedHealthcare
Priority Health
Praveen Thadani
Praveen Thadani has been selected as the new president of Priority Health, replacing Joan Budden, effective in early January, the Grand Rapids-based insurer announced Wednesday. Praveen is a transformative health care leader with extensive industry experience and a passion for innovation and developing talent, Tina Freese Decker, president and CEO of Spectrum Health, which owns Priority Health, said in a statement.