CBA Industry Blog

Internet tax-fairness bill to be introduced

Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., is expected to introduce the Main Street Fairness Act today. The bill would enable states to require out-of-state sellers to collect sales tax whether they have a physical presence in the state or not.

The act supports a system set up in the 1990s to enable remote sellers to collect and forward tax revenues to states. The legislation would simplify a process that was so complicated the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1992 in Quill vs. North Dakota that retailers are required to collect sales tax from out-of-state customers only if retailers have a physical presence such as a store, warehouse, or office in the customer’s state.

The Main Street Fairness Act allows states that have adopted the Streamlined Sales and Use Tax Agreement – which was developed to simplify sales tax laws in response to the Supreme Court ruling – to require out-of-state sellers to collect sales tax whether they have a physical presence or not. The bill would cover all “remote sellers,” which include online retailers, catalog merchants and “1-800” offers on radio and television.

CBA Executive Director Curtis Riskey said, “The fairness act will level the playing field for brick-and-mortar retailers who suffer as much as a 10% price disadvantage in some states because of unfair sales-tax laws.” He said local businesses contribute to local economies with jobs and tax revenues that pay for police, fire, parks, and other local services that Internet-only retailers avoid.

The National Retail Federation’s Senior Vice President for Government Relations David French said the act is a congressional fix to a constitutional problem.

Click for more on the Main Street Fairness Act.

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It’s time to to worship God and preach the gospel …

I can no longer in good conscience continue to write about the stuff of this world and how it will make our businesses better without first writing about the things of Heaven and how desperately we need to return to being about these things and not that stuff.

My friends, our predicament reminds me of a passage in the Bible: “Then some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowds to their side. They stoned Paul and dragged him out of town, thinking he was dead. But as the believers gathered around him, he got up and went back into the town. The next day he left with Barnabas for Derbe.” (Acts 14:19-20, NLT)

They came after him because why?

We got into this industry because of the transforming power of Jesus Christ and the impact it had on each and every one of our hearts. We certainly didn’t come into this industry to become wealthy by the world’s standards.

We came into it with zeal to change lives. In this, this type of posture doesn’t sit well with the opposing forces of the Kingdom of God.

So, the battle was on and now, here we sit. Or in some cases, here we lay upon the ground appearing dead. But, do you see what happened next to Paul? He preached the Good News and made many disciples.

My friends, do you feel like you’ve been stoned and dragged out of the city? Do you feel like you’re dead?

You may have remained steadfast all along, yet still you find yourself apparently dead. You may have lost your way at some point and perhaps were the ones who unknowingly cast the first stone, only sadly missing the fact that your very self was the target, and so you, too, find yourself lying there apparently dead.

Whichever the case, it’s not important how you found yourself apparently dead upon the ground. But do you notice what Verse 20 says? It says, “But as the believers gathered around him, he got up and went back into the town that he was dragged out of and left for dead.”

I believe it’s time that we gather and get back up to then return to our cities with that same zeal to worship God and preach the gospel. But no longer on our own…now together as one.

Gunnar Simonsen

(To see Gunnar's full column in Retailers + Resources magazine, register for a free subscription to the digital magazine.)

Gift sales: all the world's a stage

Three basic types of gift and specialty products bring customers into the store. Retailers should review these products like a movie director, as every product category has actors with “cha-ching” potential.

 Like a blockbuster director, retailers should envision the role each product will play and decide how it will perform to meet their needs. In a product audition, “To be or not to be” is the question that’s answered by the role it will carry out in the store. Retailers should select store merchandise in terms of the quality of their performance and the emotional/psychological impact they can have on their intended audience.

 Sherry Morris of Carpentree sees the process as a three-act play.  Simply put, every product sold in Christian retail has a speaking part. In every blink of the eye, the customer receives a message from product “speak.” At some level, customers feel the psychological and emotional impact of what the products say about the store.

 Knowing how each gift fits into the play -- a product strategy -- helps retailers both make good buying decisions on core inventory as well as plan for seasonal and other gift needs. To maximize each item’s potential for increasing profits, set the stage with a good strategy.

Read her column in the latest Retailers + Resources magazine, sign up for a free subscription.

 

Message to honored guests after successful ICRS

“It’s hard to believe that ICRS was wrapping up a week ago! All of us at CBA enjoyed hosting you as our honored guests at the Show, and we hope you were able to meet all your business needs—and have time for fellowship, worship, and some fun in the process!

“Because we’re always looking for ways to improve the ICRS experience, we’d love to get your input on what you liked and what you disliked about ICRS 2011—and what you’d like to see next year for ICRS 2012 in Orlando, FL.

“Although we’ve already sent out more formal survey forms that we hope you’ll fill out and return to us via the Web (Attendee Survey, Did Not Attend Survey, Exhibitor Survey, Attended Training Survey, and Attended as Media Survey), I’d still like to hear from you personally about your experience at this year’s Show. You can send your comments directly to me at [email protected]. I look forward to hearing from you and learning what we can do to continue to improve ICRS for you and for the industry as a whole.

“And, I want to offer my sincere thanks to you for joining us this year at ICRS. You inspire me. Thank you for doing what you do! And if you couldn’t join us this past year in Atlanta, I hope you’ll be able to join us in Orlando. Please let me know what we can do to ensure you’ll be there with us July 15-18, 2012!”

By grace alone,

Curtis Riskey

Executive Director, CBA