One of the fastest growing companies in the world, Starbucks is moving into the music market in a big way. Having begun selling CDs after realizing that their customers were asking about the music playing in the background, the company now plans a new series of stores concentrating on CD sales first and coffee as a sideline. There is even a strong possibility that they will start releasing music under their own label.

Since Starbucks has always been about ambience as much as coffee, this makes a lot of sense. Both coffee and music are mood setters. But perhaps the most interesting thing about their diversification is that it came through an understanding of their customers’ needs.

That could be a lesson for anyone involved in running a business.

I hope you liked all your Christmas gifts this year, because retailers are determined to keep you from returning them.

You can’t blame them. Every year retailers lose part of their holiday profit on returned items. Electronics that are returned in opened boxes often cost them most, as they may have to discount the items for resale. To combat this, many retailers are imposing a “restocking fee” on certain returned items, to cover the cost of repackaging and any loss they may suffer on the resale of the item.

Other retailers are keeping track of just who returns what and how often. Wal-Mart, for instance keeps track of the number of returns for any one person and if a shopper exceeds the limit they are disqualified from any further returns.

Receipts will definitely be required. Easy refunds and store credits are a thing of the past. Retailers have been burned once too often. If you have your receipt you shouldn’t encounter any difficulty, but be prepared for long lines.

Hope you had a Merry Christmas.

Wal-Mart has been busy this year slashing drug prices and then putting pre-season discounts on electronics, toys and other gift items to try to make an early impression on holiday shoppers.

According to CNN Money, Wal-Mart is now chopping prices on food items, in a last-ditch attempt to undercut grocery stores with some items marked down by as much as 20%.

The markdowns are in effect from now to the end of the holiday season.

Colonel Sanders is dead. Or is he?

KFC, the company Sanders founded and nutured to international success has just unveiled their new logo - an updated, revamped and 87,000 square foot image of Colonel Sanders face.

The company launched their new logo by building this giant, tiled image in the desert near Area 51 in Rachel, Nevada. Area 51 is the mysterious site, rumored to be a spot where aliens once did (and may still) land.

The image is large enough that it can be seen from space. Which makes me wonder…

Is KFC going for the intergalactic demographic, subtly leading all visitors to this planet to KFC for some finger-licking good chicken? Do aliens have fingers? Or is it that aliens, looking down upon the impressively large image of Colonel Sanders think that he is our leader, and in demanding to be taken to him, the aliens also buy a bucket of extra crispy?