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This week's guests are UCLA football head coach Jim Mora and offensive guard Xavier Su'a-Filo, men's water polo head coach Adam Wright, and men's basketball players Kyle Anderson and Jordan Adams.
Bruin fans are encouraged to come out to Barney's for the live broadcast, which is hosted by John Ramey. Fans can also submit questions weekly for Coach Mora online here or by Tweeting @UCLAAthletics with the hashtag #BruinInsiderShow.


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subset: commoncrawl


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Before purchasing the Caldera Cone system for the MSR Titan Kettle, please study the two pictures below to ensure it will fit. MSR originally produced a slightly smaller versions of the Titan Kettle many years ago. If your MSR Titan Kettle is one of the early versions, it will be too small to support itself off of the top of the cone made for the newer/current pot. The current pot is 4.5" in diameter.
The way you can tell if you have the early version (pot on the left) is:
The pot pictured on the left, and described above, will not work with the cone made for the newer pot, so please specify that you need the "OLD DESIGN" when ordering from the pulldown.


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Operator: Welcome to the Signet Jewelers First Quarter Fiscal 2014 Results Conference Call. My name is Larisa and I will be your operator for today's call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. Later, we will conduct a question-and-answer session. And I will turn the call over to Mr. James Grant, Vice President of Investor Relations. Sir, you may begin.
James Grant - VP, IR: Good morning and welcome to our first quarter fiscal 2014 earnings call. On our call today are Mike Barnes, CEO; and Ron Ristau, CFO. The presentation deck we will be referencing is available from the financial section of our website, SignetJewelers.com.
During today's presentation, we will, in places, discuss Signet's business outlook and make certain forward-looking statements. Any statements that are not historical facts are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties and actual results may differ materially. We urge you to read the risk factors, cautionary language, and other disclosures in the Annual Report on Form 10-K that was filed with the SEC on March 28, 2013. We also draw your attention to Slide Number 2 in today's presentation.
I will now turn the call over to Mike.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Thanks James, and good morning, everyone. We are very pleased with our outstanding first quarter results. We delivered a strong financial performance in the first quarter, driven by the excellent execution of our strategies, which led to sales growth and expense leverage.
Our comps at Signet increased by 6.4%. The U.S. division comps grew 8.1% on top of a 1.2% increase last year and in the U.K., comps declined by 2.3%. We also had tremendous continued momentum within our consolidated eCommerce space as we grew by 40.7%. Of significance, as of 2012, Signet is now the number three largest eCommerce retailer in the jewelry category. That is up from 2009 when we stood at number 11. It is a great performance for our eComm team. Altogether, this led to operating income of $142.8 million, up $13.4 million, or 10.4% and diluted earnings per share were a record $1.13, up $0.17 or 17.7%.
So let's begin by taking a look at the U.S. division performance. In the U.S., total sales were $858.6 million, up $107.1 million, or 14.3%. Our sales growth was driven by broad-based strength across all merchandise categories in both Kay and Jared, as well as the Ultra acquisition. Kay and Jared experienced increases in transaction counts and Kay, in particular, increased in average transaction value.
U.S. same-store sales increased by 8.1% in the first quarter. Kay comps increased 10.2% while Jared increased by 6%. The success in both concepts was driven in part by a successful Valentine's Day period, but also by broad-based strength across all merchandise categories through most of the quarter, particularly in bridal and a strong lead into Mother's Day. And in the U.S., as I mentioned earlier, eCommerce performed strongly with sales up $8.3 million to $25.6 million, an increase of 48% for the U.S. division. The U.S. division also delivered operating profit growth of 11% with a 17.8% operating margin. Excluding the diluted effect of the Ultra acquisition operating income increased 13.7% and operating margin was 19%, up 70 basis points, a record level for the first quarter. It was another great quarter for the U.S. team members.
The drivers of our performance were our sustainable competitive strengths, in particular our great customer experience, our investment in marketing and broad customer acceptance of our powerful merchandise offerings. The customer experience is central to our success and we remain focused on training and development of our store teams including the best use of in-store sales enhancing technology.
Branded, differentiated and exclusive merchandise continued to perform very well virtually across the board. Our marketing investment for Valentine's and Mother's Day again proved very effective with increased impressions helping us drive strong sales performances and building the value of the brand equity of both our store concepts and our merchandise collections.
We also saw success selling across channels. As I mentioned, U.S. eCommerce sales were up 48%. This was driven in part by 18 million visitors to our sites and over one-third of those were through mobile devices.
Now I'll turn to the U.K. Total sales in the quarter were $135 million, down $13.5 million or 9.1%. Comp sales decreased 2.3% compared to an increase of 1.2% in first quarter of last year. The total sales decline was due to a same-store sales decrease, primarily in H. Samuel, the impact of closed stores and currency fluctuation. In Ernest Jones, the number of transactions increased and we experienced strength in the bridal business and watches excluding Rolex, which is being offered in fewer stores in the U.K. In H. Samuel, the number of transactions declined resulting in lower sales across most merchandise categories. eCommerce sales were $5.5 million, which was up $0.7 million, or 14.6%, a nice double-digit gain. Our U.K. websites attracted 7.7 million visitors in the quarter and 42% of those were through mobile devices. Operating loss was $4.1 million, an increase of $1.1 million from the last year primarily due to lower sales, but partially offset by cost reductions. I would like to thank our U.K. team members for their strong efforts in what continues to be a very challenging market.
We are well-positioned to achieve our fiscal 2014 financial objectives. This is due to our excellent first quarter results in both top and bottom line, strong Mother's Day results as we have moved into the second quarter, and our consistent ability to execute initiatives by focusing on our competitive strengths, which are; our people, it always starts with them; our brands and the overall strength of our merchandise offerings; our sector-leading advertising; the strength of our real estate portfolio; our supply chain leadership; particularly in the U.S., our in-house customer finance programs; and finally, our strong financial position.
And now I will turn the call over to Ron for a little more color.
Ron Ristau - CFO: Thanks Mike, and good morning, everyone. I will start by explaining sales in more detail. For the quarter, total sales for Signet increased 10.4% to $993.6 million compared to $900 million last year. Same-store sales increased 6.4% compared to 1.2% growth last year.
In the U.S. total sales increased 14.3%, or $107.1 million to $858.6 million which included the same-store sales increase of 8.1% Mike discussed. Our non-same-store sales were up 6.2% with non-comp stores generating an increase of 1.6% and Ultra adding 4.6%. The U.S. sales increases again were driven by broad-based strength across all merchandise categories in both Kay and Jared, as well as the Ultra acquisition. Kay and Jared experienced increases in transaction counts of 6.6% and 10.3%, respectively. In addition, Kay increased average transaction value by 4.9%.
In the U.K., total sales decreased 9.1%, or $13.5 million, to $135 million while comp store sales decreased 2.3%. The total sales decline was due to a same-store sales decrease of $3.1 million, primarily in H. Samuel, the impact of closed stores of $4.8 million and currency fluctuations of $5.6 million, which were unfavorable. Signet eCommerce sales were $31 million, up $9 million, or 40.7% continuing their strong trend as Mike referenced.
Now let's take a look at the components of operating income. Our gross margin was $382.8 million, an increase of $29.1 million. The gross margin rate was 38.5%, down 80 basis points. The inclusion of the results for Ultra increased gross margin dollars by $8.8 million. However, it reduced the consolidated gross margin rate by 50 basis points and the U.S. gross margin rate by 60 basis points. The Ultra gross margin is lower than the core U.S. business due to lower store productivity and the impact of the integration. Ultra gross margins are expected to improve as the Ultra integration and conversion to Kay outlets is completed.
The remaining 30 basis point reduction in the consolidated gross margin was attributed to the following changes in the U.S. and U.K. businesses. Our gross margin dollars in the U.S. excluding Ultra increased $24.1 million reflecting higher sales, partially offset by a gross margin rate decrease of 70 basis points. The gross merchandise margin was impacted by merchandise mix, new bridal and Jared test programs which were designed to further increase our competitive positioning in the bridal category and the impact of the Mother's Day sales shifts.
Gross margin in the U.K. decreased $3.8 million, primarily reflecting the impact of decreased sales and currency fluctuations. Currency translation costs were $1.5 million of the $3.8 million decline. The gross margin rate declined 20 basis points as increased gross merchandise margins were offset by deleveraging of expenses on lower sales.
Our selling, general and administrative expenses were $287 million and as a percentage of sales decreased 50 basis points to 28.9%. This was primarily due to leverage on advertising and store staff costs. I will discuss this in more detail in a moment. Other operating income was $47 million or 4.8% of sales compared to $40.2 million or 4.5% of sales last year. This increase was primarily due to higher interest earned from higher outstanding receivable balances. So our consolidated operating income in the first quarter increased $13.4 million to $142.8 million, representing 14.4% of sales, which was flat to prior year. However, excluding Ultra, our consolidated operating margin would have been 15.3%, up 90 basis points over the prior year. The U.S. division's operating income, including Ultra, was $152.8 million, or 17.8% of sales, compared to $137.7 million or 18.3% of sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2013. When we exclude Ultra, the U.S. division's operating income was $156.6 million, or 19% of sales, up 70 basis points. The operating loss for the U.K. division was $4.1 million, an increase of $1.1 million. Our consolidated operating income increase led to fully diluted earnings per share of $1.13, up 17.7%. If we were to exclude Ultra, fully diluted earnings per share were $1.16, up 20.8%. Under either scenario, it was a very strong performance.
Now some additional detail on SG&A expenses. Again, the SG&A expenses were $287 million compared to $264 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2013, up $22.5 million and as a percentage of sales, they decreased by 50 points to 28.9%. SG&A spending was well-controlled and leverage was realized on both advertising and store expenses, particularly in the U.S. SG&A expenses in the U.K. were reduced by $2.7 million, reflecting the impact of cost reductions and currency fluctuations, while they did deleverage slightly on lower sales. The inclusion of the results for Ultra increased SG&A in this quarter by $12.6 million and increased the consolidated SG&A rate by 30 basis points. We expect a reduction in Ultra SG&A going forward as the integration is completed. If we exclude Ultra, the rate was 28.6%, an improvement of 80 basis points. So SG&A spending was well-controlled in the quarter.
Turning to our share authorization. Of course, we continuously look at a variety of ways to deliver shareholder returns. Beyond reinvesting in our operations, we have taken a shareholder-friendly view towards our use of cash. In the first quarter, we completed the $350 million share repurchase program by repurchasing approximately 749,000 shares of Signet stock at an average price of $66.92. Over the life of the program, which launched in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012, we have repurchased 7.4 million shares at an average cost of $47.10. We ended the quarter with cash of $263.7 million and we remain committed to ending the fiscal year with cash on hand equal to 7% to 9% of our annual sales. We will continue to review with our Board future options for the creation of shareholder value.
Net inventories ended the quarter at $1.426 billion, an increase of $91.4 million or 6.8% from a year ago. Again, this increase is primarily due to a $49.8 million increase in inventory for Ultra, $31.5 million of diamond inventory associated with our strategic sourcing initiative, expansion of our bridal programs and new store growth. Partially offsetting these increases were management actions to improve turn. Excluding Ultra our inventory increased only 3.1% and was very well-controlled. We continue to believe our inventory remains the best controlled in the specialty jewelry industry.
Our credit portfolio also continued to perform strongly. Accounts receivable were 1,157.5 billion, up 12.9% due to higher credit sales driven principally by an increase in our bridal business. Credit participation as a percentage of U.S. sales, excluding sales from Ultra, which doesn't provide credit currently, was 57.7%. This compares to 55.8% in the first quarter of last year and 56.9% for the full fiscal 2013. The increase again was primarily driven by higher bridal sets.
Our average monthly collection rate was 13.4% compared to 13.8% last year and net bad debt expense, which was $21.3 million represented 2.5% as a percentage of U.S. sales flat to prior year.
Finally, our other operating income increased primarily due to higher interest income from higher outstanding receivable balances.
Now turning to our second quarter guidance, as we referenced in the 8-K we filed back on January 15, 2013 the Company continues to expect the shift of the Mother's Day sales this year partially into the first quarter to impact our second quarter sales and earnings performance. In addition, integration costs and the seasonality of the Company's newly acquired Ultra stores are expected to be dilutive to the second quarter EPS. The Company continues to expect the integration of Ultra store systems and conversion to Kay outlets to occur as planned in the second quarter and Ultra to contribute positively to performance by the fourth quarter of the year.
As such for the second quarter of fiscal 2014, the Company currently expect same-store sales to increase in the low-to-mid single digit range. Earnings per share is expected to be in the range of $0.79 to $0.84, which includes $0.06 per share negative impact from the Ultra acquisition referenced above. The Ultra loss expectation is approximately $0.03 greater than originally anticipated due to a potential decrease in sales short-term as we complete key steps in the transition this quarter. EPS, excluding Ultra, are in the range of $0.85 to $0.90. I'd like you to please note that the majority of the $0.09 loss that we are expecting for both the first and second quarter combined of Ultra is attributed to non-recurring costs for duplicative overhead, severances and unnecessary office space and will not repeat next year or into the second half of this year.
For the full fiscal 2014 year the Company continues to expect capital expenditures in the range of $180 million to $195 million, which includes costs related to the opening of now 70 to 80 new Kay and Jared stores, up from our previous expectations of 65 to 75 store remodels, digital and information technology infrastructure and Ultra capital spending, which we now expect will range at approximately $14 million representing a reduction from our previous expectation of $18 million.
Thank you and I will now turn the call back to Mike.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Thanks, Ron. In conclusion, I'd like to once again thank the Signet team worldwide for their contributions to a very successful quarter. We would now be pleased to take any questions that you have.
Operator: Jennifer Davis, Lazard Capital Markets.
Jennifer Davis - Lazard Capital Markets: Couple of clarifications. First of all, Ron, how should we think about the other operating income going forward should we kind of think of it as 4.5% to 5% of sales in general or…?
Ron Ristau - CFO: It's not going to move that much, Jennifer. I think you should think about it in the range of last year. This quarter was a couple of tenths of basis points up, but I don't think the range is going to move substantially.
Jennifer Davis - Lazard Capital Markets: Okay, but we should think about it in terms of a percent of sales rather than a fixed dollar amount?
Ron Ristau - CFO: It does fluctuate by quarter somewhat, but I would follow the actual results from last year (indiscernible).
Jennifer Davis - Lazard Capital Markets: Sorry, if I missed this. What was the or how come the Ultra acquisition is going to be about $0.03 – how come the impact will be about $0.03 greater than originally anticipated? Did you say that was because…?
Ron Ristau - CFO: It really relates to when we originally – we were originally expecting it to be about $0.03 in each quarter. What we have now come to realize or are anticipating in our second quarter guidance is that we are going to be completing the majority of the transition of the systems and inventory cut-overs in the second quarter as we've always indicated. We think there could be a little more of a disruptive effect on sales as that happens. Also I believe that we could have – we should have done a little bit better job in anticipating the Mother's Day shift in Ultra, which was as strong for them as it was for us and our original budgets that we worked on with them didn't really include that.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: One thing I would add, Jennifer, this is Mike, is that it is an exciting opportunity for us because we have been waiting a long time now to get this transition completed and we are expecting to have it done in second quarter. Once we get the majority of these stores switched to Kay nameplate and are able to leverage the great equity that we have in Kay, it is going to be a big opportunity for us going forward. So, we are very excited. We have been waiting for this moment and we are glad it is almost upon us.
Ron Ristau - CFO: Last thing I would add to that, Jennifer, is that of the $0.09 there were – the $0.03 from first quarter and $0.06 in the second quarter we are anticipating, the majority of that, close to $0.08 of it is related to non-recurring costs again on duplicate overhead, severances and accruals for unnecessary office space that we will be incurring, particularly in the second quarter and these costs for sure will not be repeating in the second half of the year or in the next year. So that is a good strong help to us.
Jennifer Davis - Lazard Capital Markets: Absolutely, we are really excited about the opportunity you have with Ultra as well or I should say Kay outlets now. One last question on – or actually two; on Mother's Day, what was the impact of the shift? I think I kind of mismodeled that a little bit maybe.
Ron Ristau - CFO: Well, there is no effect – once again, there is no effect on comp. The comps were directly shifted, but the dollar sales move ranges between $32 million and $35 million is our best estimate.
Jennifer Davis - Lazard Capital Markets: Bridal, it sounds like it has increased as a percent of sales. Could you talk a little bit about that and how do margins on bridal compared to the rest of the assortment. Are they a little bit lower or are they about the same?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Well, I'll start off and let Ron finish up with margins. On the sales, we had a very strong quarter for bridal and that's very important because what we saw in this quarter, it was not just driven by the big holiday events of Valentines and lead into Mother's Day. We had a great continuity business throughout the quarter and bridal was a really big part of that. We continued with our usual strong promotions. We also because we are so focused on bridal, we tested some new promotions that were related specifically to bridal in both the mall and in the Jared stores and we had really great results from that. So, we think there is a lot of opportunity for us to continue driving the bridal. Ron, do you want to talk about the margins, any other points on that?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Our bridal margins are a touch lower than the overall Company, just a touch because of the fact that there is a lot of – there is loose stones involved in that and loose stones tend to be one of our lower margin businesses. It is not really that – it is not all that different.
Jennifer Davis - Lazard Capital Markets: Then, theoretically, your yields get greater, I guess, rents and fixed cost leverage on the sales?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Absolutely, I mean, driving bridal sales is a very important part of our business, representing more than 50% of our sales and it is something we continue to stay focused on because we believe it is a natural intersection of all of our competitive strengths, our great store experiences, the credit offerings that we have and the quality of our merchandise all combined for a great bridal experience and is something that we are best at. So it is a very good thing for us.
Operator: Oliver Chen, Citigroup.
Oliver Chen - Citigroup: What are your thoughts on how we should think about modeling the gross margin going forward in terms of the puts and takes and what can happen there over time. Also, if you could update us on the commodity cost environment and if you are seeing flexibility there with respect to what you are seeing and how you may be able to adjust your average unit retail?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Well, I will take the first question. I think that from an overall perspective we still try to work on maintaining our margins. We can't be specific going into the third and fourth quarter of the year, but we think those margins will be good. When you think about commodities and what's happening in commodities, the first thing I would like to point out is we are on an average cost FIFO basis, which takes commodity fluctuations into our P&L at different rates than some of our competitors. Currently, when we look at 55% of our cost of goods is diamonds and about 17% is gold. So right now, we can really continue to see some upward pressure on diamond prices for our quality goods. Although prices are really generally more stable on a relative basis in the near-term, long term, we really believe that this direction is up because global demand is flat. Demand is pretty strong still. The recent gold price declines, if they hold, should be somewhat helpful to us in the second half. However, we do some gold hedging, as I will point out, and we did have some unfavorable gold hedge positions that we found necessary to close with the reduction in gold prices. However, as always, there's a lot of multiple factors, including pricing decisions, content, how we run our promotional programs, which reflect in our overall margin. So our outlook is good, but we really have to figure out how long this all lasts and who ultimately wins the battle on gold commodity pricing. But it will be helpful eventually to us if it holds.
Oliver Chen - Citigroup: And regarding your comp guidance, should we anticipate that the same kind of run rate may continue between U.S. versus U.K. And on your low to mid-single-digit, is that traffic and conversion-led, if you could just give us parameter to what we should think about your forecast, that would be helpful.
Ron Ristau - CFO: Well, if you think about our – if you're asking me the question -- let me make sure I understand the question, how the comp forecast go forward will be reflected in transactions and pricing?
Oliver Chen - Citigroup: In terms of the comp lever...
Ron Ristau - CFO: I think if you take a look at the U.S. division, you will say that there was a healthy mix of transaction growth and there was also some price increase, particularly at Kay on average, which went through. I would think that we would expect both transactions and price to drive in the United States as we go forward. In the U.K., we are seeing some traffic declines. We are seeing that particularly at our H. Samuel brand. We hope that we can arrest some of those as we move into the second half of the year, but we are fighting traffic declines in the U.K., so I would -- if I had to bet right now I would say that there will be some degree of transactional decline in the U.K. go forward. That's probably the best way I can answer that question, the U.S. is a great healthy mix, the U.K. is really driven by transactional decline more than anything else.
Operator: Rick Patel, Stephens.
Rick Patel - Stephens: Just a question on the conversion of Ultra stores to Kay outlet. When this occurs, are you going to reprice all the merchandise in the stores, virtually overnight, or are you going to replace and reprice the Ultra product as it's sold through? As a follow-up, when do you expect the pressure on gross margins to wane from selling Ultra products, will it be in the third quarter once the conversions are done?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: On the products, I would tell you that we have been working on starting to move products into Ultra as we could even before the full transition and we will continue to do that. Clearly, as we change the nameplates on the majority of the stores to Kay, they are going to look like Kay stores going forward. But having said that, because the outlet channel is a separate channel for us to sell into, we believe that there is ways for us to optimize that channel. In the past, our Kay outlet stores have been pretty much the same as our Kay mall stores in terms of all the merchandise offerings. We think that there is going to be an opportunity for us to do some more made-for product that is more targeted towards the outlet store customer, including the great tourist opportunity that exists out there in the outlet store channel of distribution. So it will be a little bit of a different mix to optimize it on a full go-forward basis, but that's a work in progress. Initially, it is going to be switched over and become a Kay store just as quickly as possible. And the pricing will be exactly the same as it is in Kay.
Rick Patel - Stephens: And can you talk about the merchandise mix in the U.K.? Have you began to edit the assortment there as part of your strategic plan in the region? And if so, perhaps highlight what you've learned from doing that?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Yeah, on the U.K., as Ron mentioned earlier, it continues to be a very challenging market for us, and as we have laid out the initiatives that we believe are going to help us turn that market around, merchandise is one of the first ones. I mean we are still very, very focused on that. We are even beginning some new initiatives on how to focus even harder on the merchandise mix and possibly gain some more leverage with more of the products that we have here. If we look at the U.K. market, some of the things that have been successful have been some of the branded merchandise that we've had in there, but it's a lower part of the mix than it is in the U.S. and we see more focus in that direction, more focus on new products. We have to be careful with pricing. We talked about the weakness that we saw in H. Samuel in particular. Part of that was price increases for H. Samuel didn't stick as well as we had hoped that they would. So we've have got to stay very focused. I saw a recent article from the British Retail Consortium talking about the consumer continues to look for value in the marketplace. So, we're very focused on the merchandise offerings, we're focused on branding, we're focused on new product and we are looking at how we can be more innovative going forward and think a little bit more outside the box to really drive some more change into that marketplace in our stores.
Operator: Anthony Lebiedzinski, Sidoti & Company.
Anthony Lebiedzinski - Sidoti & Company: In the past, you guys have been more upbeat about the regional malls in the U.K. versus the High Street locations, is that still the case?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Well, those are still the best performing that we have. I have seen some traffic statistics. Ron was talking about traffic being down across the, it's down across the board in the U.K., the last stats that I saw. The High Street and the malls were down as well, but we continue to perform certainly better in the malls than we are on the everyday High Streets and we think that that is going to continue to be the direction for the U.K. market that these big regional malls will continue to be the biggest part of our business on a go-forward basis, notwithstanding London, which of course is always going to be strong with all the tourist activity going on there. But I think that the traffic itself was down in the malls, as well as on the High Streets, but it's still is the better performing part of our portfolio there.
Ron Ristau - CFO: Yeah, definitely a stronger part.
Anthony Lebiedzinski - Sidoti & Company: So can you give us a sense as to what percentage of your stores in the U.K. are in High Street locations versus regional malls and also as you look to optimize your store base, maybe you could give us a sense of how do you think that is going to be in two to three years from now?
Ron Ristau - CFO: I believe that the mix now is around 60-40, 40% regional malls, still 60% High Street, but I'm going to double-check that number for you. As we go forward, we'll have much higher, hopefully it would shift, that we would end up with 60%, 65%, 70% of sales in regional malls.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: The difference, it depends on how you asked the question. In terms of number of stores, there are fewer regional malls, but they drive a disproportionate part of the business for us. So in terms of sales, while it's fairly even last time I looked and we'll check those numbers, I think it will become a bigger part of the business going forward in the malls.
Ron Ristau - CFO: I will get those exact numbers in dollars for you and give you a call back.
Anthony Lebiedzinski - Sidoti & Company: Sure, not a problem. Also, in terms of your store growth expectations now, you did accelerate or are you looking to open more stores than previously? Is it more Kay and then Jared, could you give us a sense to where the increase is coming from and can you also talk about the trends that you are seeing in real estate costs?
Ron Ristau - CFO: It is more Kay than Jared obviously because it takes a long time to open up a Jared store. There is a couple of more Jared stores in there. I believe we are up to about 13 Jared stores for the year and the residual is Kay, and that Kay is primarily in the off-mall area. We're seeing lots of opportunities. So we are being a little more aggressive as we said we always would be if the opportunities present themselves. In real estate costs, real estate costs remain a constant challenge for us. We work very hand-in-hand with our landlord partners and we have been reasonably successful at working continually beneficial deals, but real estate costs for good real estate have never really changed. They've always been very competitive, and we are always after the best space, so there is really no new news. I wouldn't say that the pressure is more or less. It's always been fairly consistent for us.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: We don't compromise on the real estate that we go for just to open new stores. So that's what is exciting about this increase in new store openings is the fact that the team is doing a great job out there finding the best possible real estate, because again it's just something we will not compromise on and the cost is what it is.
Anthony Lebiedzinski - Sidoti & Company: So you haven't changed your objective of your 20% IRR, right.
Ron Ristau - CFO: Oh, no, no. Not at all.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Absolutely not.
Anthony Lebiedzinski - Sidoti & Company: Got it. Okay. And lastly, when you look at your free cash flow generation capabilities, now you having exhausted your share buyback program. Going forward, can you give us any sense as to how the Board is thinking between dividends and share repurchases?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Well, that's an ongoing conversation that we have with the Board and we will continue that conversation. What we have done is we have made a commitment as to what we think our capital structure and our balance sheet should look like, and we continue to feel like having approximately 7% to 9% of annual sales in cash is a good flexible number for us, and beyond that, we want to invest back in the business, number one. That is the best return we can get for our shareholders, but we will have ongoing conversations with the Board regarding other opportunities to return value to shareholders, such as the continuing dividend and potential share buybacks in the future. We will update you as appropriate how those conversations continue.
Operator: Bill Armstrong, CL King Associates.
Bill Armstrong - CL King Associates: Ultra gross margins are expected to improve from current levels. Do you think they can get all the way up to the overall Company average in the 30s or is the outlet sector just structurally a little bit lower?
Ron Ristau - CFO: I think they can get substantially closer. I think the outlet does tend to be a touch lower than the overall mall, but this will be still a smaller percentage of our business. So I think it will go up substantially from what it is today. It will approach closer to the levels, but obviously because the product mix is a little different, it won't get all the way to the same level. It's just a different gross margin model. Of course, we have other costs that are lower and in particular, one of the things I think we are very pleased with -- we really are going to have a very -- the SG&A structure of the outlet operations is something I would urge you to think more about too is that because once we integrate we will need very little additional incremental SG&A other than our store operations people to run the business and that's a big part of the savings as we move into the third and fourth quarter of the year.
Bill Armstrong - CL King Associates: In terms of SG&A leverage you mean?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Yes.
Bill Armstrong - CL King Associates: Got it. How about in eCommerce? That's obviously a growing piece of your business. Are the gross margins on eCommerce similar to margins at retail?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Yes. The merchandise margins would be the same, because our pricing is the same online as it is in the store.
Ron Ristau - CFO: And the pricing is – I'm sorry, the overall operating margins are as good as our best stores or sometimes even better.
Bill Armstrong - CL King Associates: Then, just lastly, just to clarify a comment I think Ron made earlier on price increases at Kay, were those increases taken during the first quarter or were they taken last year?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Well, what I said was that if you'd take a look at the charts we are providing on average price and transaction cost, Kay average price went up which is partially pricing and partially mix adjustment, so let me clear about that. The pricing – we did take price increases on our normal cadence in the March and before Mother's Day timeframe, so we did do that. We don't disclose how much in total, but they were a little less than we had in previous years.
Operator: Ike Boruchow, Sterne Agee.
Ike Boruchow - Sterne Agee: Mike, sometimes – and if you could help us out just with the overall consumer environment right now, it was a great U.S. comp for you in Q1. Could you maybe give us some color on what you are seeing in the environment thus far quarter-to-date?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: I mean, the environment – I've talked about this a lot in the last couple of weeks even. The best way I can characterize it, and this is just one man's opinion, is that it feels like a more stable environment than I would have spoken to 12 months ago at the same time. A lot of the noise that was going on out there kind of subdued itself a little bit with fiscal cliffs and rising payroll taxes and late tax returns, and we heard a lot of that noise, especially at the beginning of the first quarter in early February. And it somewhat subsided. Who knows what the macro environment is going to bring to spook or support the purchasers at retail tomorrow. I have no idea. I don't have that crystal ball. But I would characterize it just in general as being a more stable environment than I have seen in the past, and we will see where it goes from here. That's in the U.S. market. In the U.K., it's still an extremely volatile environment with a lot of continued bargain-hunting going on. And I was just reading the U.K., unemployment went up more than it has gone up in a long time. I mean it's a tale of two different markets really, but the U.S. driving the majority of our business has been much more stable. We had a great first quarter. We had a good beginning of the second quarter through Mother's Day, and as we have said, we believe we are really well-positioned to make all of our objectives for the year. So we continue to be excited about the opportunities we have in front of us and we are going to just keep driving the successful business model we have.
Ike Boruchow - Sterne Agee: And I guess, Ron, the Company has historically broken out their merchandise margin changes in both the U.S. and the U.K. when you guys report your quarters. Is there any way you can help us out there just so we can have it updated in our models? And maybe – and I know you've been asked this a few times, but maybe any color on how you expect the U.S. merchandise margin to progress throughout the year given some of the puts and takes that you have called out?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Well, what I would say is that the gross merchandise margin followed in the U.S. the gross margin. So if the overall, excluding Ultra, margins in the U.S. were down about 70 bps, the gross merchandised margins were down similar type numbers. So explaining one explains the other, if you will. In the U.K., our merchandise – gross merchandised margins are actually up about 100 bps, but that was offset by deleverage on the lower sales on some of the real estate and other costs, so they only netted up about 20 basis points, I believe. When you think about go forward, I believe that – it depends upon the mix of what happens with gold and commodities and our stance promotionally. We did see, of course, in the first quarter that some of these very successful bridal promotions did have an impact on our gross merchandise margin, but were very, very profitable for the overall business. So I would say, in general, you should expect them to be a little better than they were this quarter and you should start to see the dilutive effect of Ultra start to diminish at what rate I can't really predict for you, but as we convert the model in the second half of the year, you would expect or I would expect that the margins would get closer to those experienced by our core business, if that's helpful.
Ike Boruchow - Sterne Agee: Very helpful. And then just one quick last one. Ron, you talked about $0.09 impact from Ultra integration in the first half of the year. Did I hear you correctly saying that there shouldn't be any real drag as we get into Q3 and Q4? I know we lapped the acquisition, but it's not…
Ron Ristau - CFO: What I don't think is what will happen is a lot of the SG&A overhead cost will diminish after the second quarter diminish after the second quarter as the impact of integrating the business more fully to our Akron operation occurs. I continue to believe that the third quarter is still a little bit of a risk to some degree of dilution and then we expect it to turn positive in the fourth quarter. And the only reason I hedge in the third quarter is the fact that we need we believe a good couple months of learning with all the new systems and the training that has to go on in the field sales force, so it's a bit of a bit difficult to predict how long that training will need to take root, do you understand? So, the systems and everything converts during the end of the second quarter. We give ourselves a couple of months to work out all the operational issues if there are any, right. And then, we believe that in the fourth quarter, we start to become accretive, but the overhead costs will start to diminish as we move into the third and fourth quarter for sure.
Operator: Jeff Stein, Northcoast Research.
Jeff Stein - Northcoast Research: Ron, a question on – I was looking at this footnote number 11 on hedging, and wondering if you could just try to explain the impact that your hedging losses have had. It looks like if I am reading this correctly, you had a negative $17.5 million impact in Q1 versus $12.9 million in Q2 and how your open contracts could potentially affect Q2 through Q4?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Well, first, let me explain that what you are looking at there is balance sheet-related items, not P&L items. But what ended up happening with the – this is the largest move in gold in 38 years that we can trace. So we had open hedging positions, and we took the decision as allowed by accounting rules to close those hedges essentially on a stop-loss basis and then, of course, we will move forward with the reset pricing level. So we have made a lot of money in hedging over the years. As this pricing reset occurred, it was of course unfavorable to us. That will flow into the P&L, Jeff, over the life of our inventory turns, so it takes about 12 to 16 months for those to flow through. But on the plus side, remember, we are buying the underlying commodity. So we are getting tremendous benefit by buying gold at spot as we go along. In fact, we are doing much better than our hedging positions, of course, would have allowed us to do. So that was a business decision. Nobody likes to take losses, but we figured it was the lesser of two evils, if you will, and as we go forward, we are approaching the gold market with caution, and we will gradually seek to reestablish our hedging positions as the market becomes a little more predictable.
Jeff Stein - Northcoast Research: So Ron, based upon the losses that you took and the lower spot prices that you're paying right now, presuming that prices were to remain flat and we don't know where they are going to be, but if they remain flat, net-net, are you in a plus position or a minus position for the rest of the year?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Net-net, we would be in a plus position because the value of buying at spot far outweighs the loss that you incur in the close of the hedge positions.
Jeff Stein - Northcoast Research: And with regard to your credit business, can you talk a little bit about the mix of interest-free versus your traditional monthly payment, revolving payment?
Ron Ristau - CFO: It has been relatively stable, Jeff. We got a shift on that, which started to occur in the first quarter of last year and of course we talked about it last year because it was resetting those other income ratios throughout the year, but right now we are seeing stable. It hasn't really changed much from the third to fourth quarter of last year; it's been relatively stable. So, the incremental income this year is really more driven by higher outstanding balances as opposed to a shift in the mix of programs.
Operator: David Wu, Telsey Advisory Group.
David Wu - Telsey Advisory Group: First, the gross margin contraction, obviously a bit surprising, even if you exclude the impact from Ultra and I wanted to know if you could break out the impact between the unfavorable March mix shift and the Mother's Day sales shift. I understand that bridal is a lower gross margin category, but want to know if you adjusted pricing at all to be more competitive there and if you could provide more color on the Jared test programs. Also, is it fair to assume that mix should remain a headwind in the second quarter?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Let me answer that a couple of different ways -- Mike, do you want to take that?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: I'll take the last part of that first, Dave. This is Mike. On the Jared test programs, basically what we talked about is that we did do some tests, promotional programs, especially as it was related to bridal. But we're really not going to go into detail for competitive reasons on that. We felt like we saw a lot of good success and a lot of opportunity for us to continue to tweak our business, our promotions, our merchandise and everything going forward quite frankly, and that's what we do. We continue to evolve and grow as this industry changes and find better and better ways to compete effectively and gain market share. But all I can tell you is that we were very pleased with both the merchandise that we've tested and some of the new promotions that were non-comped that we tested, and we think we've got big opportunity going forward. And I'll let Ron take the gross margin.
Ron Ristau - CFO: What I'd basically say in the gross margin, excluding the impact of Ultra, the 70 bps adjustment that we realized, that is primarily caused by the impact of these programs and not so much unfavorable mix, but just we've decided – we made the decision to get to somewhat improve some of our programs and offerings and see how they would work in the market and they worked fantastic as evidenced by the strong, strong comp that we experienced during the quarter. We did have to give up some margin on that, and we believe that was a good tradeoff, continue to believe that all those programs had fantastically high return on investment. And the part of Mother's Day was really in the neighborhood of 10 to 15 bps of the 70, so the majority of it was really these programs that we were running in Jared and the bridal programs that we were initiating.
David Wu - Telsey Advisory Group: So theoretically then as you continue to test these programs that should remain a headwind then in terms of the second quarter on the gross margin in the U.S.?
Ron Ristau - CFO: No. I think, these are programs that we flex in and out of, some of them depending upon what we do. I don't think you should assume that we will just be running all these programs there. Like anything, they are programs that we put in at times of the year we think are effective. Some of the Jared programs that we ran could have some more longevity in the system, but they have lesser impact, and we get tremendous – you saw the Jared comp really start to get very strong. So all of these things we believe as business people were very favorable tradeoffs for us to make for the long-term health of the business.
David Wu - Telsey Advisory Group: And the U.K. gross merchandise margin up 100 basis points, obviously a vast improvement from the prior quarter. Can you talk about the main drivers there and comment on promotional levels and should we expect a more sort of moderate decline in the U.K. gross merchandise margin going forward assuming that the comp maintains a similar pace?
Ron Ristau - CFO: Well, some of it is mix on the basis of the fact that as Rolex becomes a lower percentage of the risk, the merchandise margins, of course, will improve. So some of it is mix, some of it was the impact of pricing. As Mike indicated, we are not totally enthralled with the benefits of pricing that we received in the first quarter. So what I would say is, Mike, correct me if you disagree, but the jury is out a little bit on whether or not we will continue to realize incremental gross merchandise margin in the U.K. We may choose to do it a little differently as we go forward.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Yeah, I think that we're going to have to really focus on pricing in the U.K. market and it is something that we've got to really watch very closely. The prices didn't stick in H. Samuel as well as we had hoped that they would. There is just a lot of pressure in that market in that regard, and so we've got to make sure that we remain competitive and that we're kind of leading the charge over there. So we're going to be looking at a lot of different opportunities and different ways to move forward. So that's something that we'll just have to watch and see. But I wouldn't expect to see anything in particular change for us regarding the margins there.
David Wu - Telsey Advisory Group: And is credit as instrumental in driving the sales performance in the U.K. as it is in the U.S. And could there be an opportunity to potentially introduce a similar type of in-house credit program into the U.K.?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: We use a third-party provider in the U.K. and it's a very, very low percentage of our business, in the single-digits, I believe. And it is just a different type of customer profile over there. I think that they are much more inclined to use their bank cards for those type of purchases whether it is to gain miles or – but certainly some of the big, big retailers have private label, I guess, but it is not near the successful impact that it is in the United States. It is just a different customer profile and it wouldn't be large enough for us to even consider going in-house with just by the fact that it's such a low part of the mix even in the third-party credit that we do offer.
David Wu - Telsey Advisory Group: On the second-quarter guidance, will the $0.06 negative impact from the Ultra acquisition, will that come more from the gross margin versus SG&A, so similar to what we saw in the first quarter?
Ron Ristau - CFO: More from SG&A.
David Wu - Telsey Advisory Group: More from SG&A. Okay.
Ron Ristau - CFO: That's why I make the point that when you look across the two quarters and I look into the components of it, I say there is couple of things, number one I've got lower productivity stores in general that I have in my main Kay operation. But it also have cost that we were not able to take out of the system until we make the transition, we were making the transition more in the – by the end of the second quarter. So, therefore some of our cost and some of our one-time cost for that involve severance and excess real estate and things like that, once we are through all that, then I believe that the cost structure will get better. And we know because I can control that virtually 100%. We just know that's going to happen.
David Wu - Telsey Advisory Group: Then, just lastly, the higher ticket that you saw in the U.S., was that tied mainly to particular strength out of bridal or did you also benefit from a higher ticket in fashion jewelry?
Ron Ristau - CFO: I would say in Kay a little bit as of – more because of bridal, a little bit because of the stronger bridal business which carries a little bit higher ticket.
David Wu - Telsey Advisory Group: But on the fashion jewelry side, how did ticket trends perform?
Ron Ristau - CFO: I'd say a little – I don't want to give it, and I would say they're nothing – they didn't move much at all, they didn't really move much on average for us.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Importantly, we had strong fashion trends throughout the quarter as well. I think that's important to point out, and again, some of the branded merchandise. Le Vian did very well for us in bridal, as Ron mentioned. Certainly, that helped the ticket price, because we had, again, strong brand bridal with Leo and Tolkowsky and Neil Lane, and Neil Lane Fashion did well on the fashion side. So, that's really what is driving it, and we are seeing a lot of strength out of all of those great brands that we have and we're very pleased with the partnerships and the opportunity going forward to continue driving that.
Operator: Warwick Orkines, Deutsche Bank.
Warwick Orkines - Deutsche Bank: Actually just following on from the last one, could you say what the mix was at branded and exclusive in the U.S. in the quarter please?
Ron Ristau - CFO: We don't generally disclose it in the quarters. We tend to do it on an annual basis because it tends to fluctuate on the quarters, but it was positive, significantly positive as the penetration in the first quarter. So those products, as well as our nonbranded and our more fashion products. So across the board, branded, nonbranded, bridal, non-bridal everything worked well for us in the U.S. in the merchandise offerings in the first quarter.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Very broad-based.
Warwick Orkines - Deutsche Bank: Right, right. I guess I was trying to – you talked for the full year last year I think 27.4%. I was just trying to work out whether that was – that kind of underrepresents the progress you have made in the last few quarters.
Ron Ristau - CFO: Well, I would say – if you looked what I am basically telling you is that our penetration relative to the penetration a year ago in the first quarter was up in branded and exclusive, if that makes sense.
Warwick Orkines - Deutsche Bank: Yes, yes it does.
Ron Ristau - CFO: So we are all trying to keep improving, but we have to see how the rest of the year develops.
Warwick Orkines - Deutsche Bank: Okay, thank you. And finally, could you tell us whether, at the AGM, you will be seeking further authorization to repurchase shares?
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Yes, we mentioned earlier, our capital structure and our balance sheet are going to be ongoing conversations with the Board. We have made a commitment again to keep approximately 7% to 9% of cash we think is appropriate to keep on the balance sheet. Beyond that, we want to invest in our business first and then we will have going discussions with the Board about how best to return other value to the shareholders beyond anything that we are investing in the business. So I would just say, again, stay tuned. As we have further discussions with the Board, we will see what decisions are made. We were very pleased with the buyback that we concluded and it was very successful in our opinion. We are very pleased with the dividend that we have and we will continue having those discussions with the Board, and we will update you as appropriate.
Operator: And we have no further questions at this time. I will now turn the call back to Mr. Barnes.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Thank you very much. Appreciate that, and thank you all for taking part in this call. We really appreciate your time this morning spending it with us. Our next scheduled call is going to be on August 29 and we will review our second quarter results at that time. So thanks again and goodbye. Have a great day.
Ron Ristau - CFO: Thank you.
Michael W. Barnes - CEO: Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. This concludes today's conference. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.


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Moms With Toys 2
These moms have got their own favorite toys! Shes a dildo mamma and she just can't get enough of her very special playthings!
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Fine Mattresses since 1903 –
The Taylor Bedding Company story begins at the turn of the century in the cotton producing state of Texas, in a sleepy little town 35 miles northeast of downtown Austin called Taylor, Texas. The town was formed in 1876 at the crossroads of two railroads and for decades was a major hub for shipping of cattle and cotton from surrounding farms and ranches. Just after the cotton harvest in September of 1903, a cotton plantation owner by the name of D.F. Forwood established the mattress manufacturing company now know as Taylor Bedding Co..
Taylor Bedding Co. Heritage
Today Taylor Bedding Co. not only has a long and distinguished heritage but is also one of the nation's leading independent mattress manufacturers known for designing high quality mattresses and foundations that it sells in Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Colorado and Mississippi.
Current owner Rodney Frazier is proud of the products his company produces and can proudly say that Taylor Bedding Co. has manufacturer tens of millions of mattresses and foundations which contribute to hunderds of millions of great nights of sleep.
Company founder David Forwood and Taylor Bedding Co. employees contributed significant inventions to the bedding industry in the several decades leading up to the mid 1950′s. For example, Forwood and Taylor bedding were responsible for inventing the original pillow-top mattresses in 1950-1953 (see attached patent artwork). A search of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office shows many patents issue to Taylor Bedding C. through the years that improve the sleep experience.
High Quality Materials for High Quality Mattresses
Today's Taylor Bedding Co. choose the best materials money can buy to manufacture many styles of mattresses for a wide variety of consumers that want a mattress that is a better bed and value than what is made by the major bedding manufacturers in the U.S.. One example is the fire retardant layer of material that must be placed under the top layer of the mattress cover. Taylor BeddincgCo. choose to use a higher quality and thicker material than many of its competitors. All Taylor Bedding Co. products comply with all current U.S. laws regarding flame resistance and other safety and quality standards.
Lady Americana
Taylor Bedding Co. manufactures mattresses under several of its own brand names including Morning Glory and Back Relief, and is a licensed manufacturer of the Lady Americana brand of bedding in the states it serves. Lady Americana has earned a worldwide reputation for quality and value. As a Lady Americana manufacturer, Taylor Bedding co. uses state of the art technology in all phases of its manufacturing process.
Lady Americana Gold, Silver, and Bronze product lines offer consumers high quality bedding at affordable price points. Gold products are all handmade and each mattress features up to 2,400 encased in the highest quality materials available.
Contributing to the WWII War effort
During World War II, Taylor Bedding Co. invented a method a make cotton fire retardant and was asked to produce millions of mattresses a year for U.S. troops. During the war, Taylor Bedding Co. employed 1,100 people who were patriotically contributing to the war effort 24 hours a day 7 days a week. War era mattresses were used in ships, and by the Army and Army Air Corp. Taylor Bedding Co. mattresses were used by the war department both in the U.S. and abroad.
Hospitality Division
Over the years, Taylor Bedding Co. has designed and build customer bedding for major hotel chain. With a broad selection of beds available for the hospitality industry, Taylor Bedding Co. has won contracts when it was up against the biggest volume manufactures. Recently (2011), Taylor Bedding began making bedding to replace all beds in The Roosevelt New Orleans – a Waldorf Astoria property. Taylor Bedding presented a bed that was not only a little less expensive that other competitors, but also was more luxurious to sleep on.
Taylor Bedding Company's Current Management
In 1991, Rodney Frazier bought Taylor Bedding from the Forwood family. Frazier's entire professional career has been in management of bedding manufacturers or suppliers to mattress manufacturers. Frazier's parents owned a mattress manufacturer in New Orleans which he merged with Taylor Bedding Co. Today Taylor Bedding Co. has facilities in Taylor Taylor, and New Orleans Louisiana.
Rod's son, Ray Frazier is Taylor Bedding's Vice President of Sales and has worked in the bedding industry with his family off and on his whole life. Ray is being groomed to take over the helm of the company in several years and is already managing both operations and sales. Ray brings a keen eye to designing new products and getting them to market.
Many of the 7-10 other management employees of Taylor bedding have many years of service with the company. Click here to Meet the Team.
Innovation in materials and manufacturing technique may change in the years to come, but Taylor Bedding Co. philosophy of providing high quality bedding at affordable prices will remain as it has been for over 100 years.


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TC TO LORD ASHBURTON; 30 September 1854; DOI: 10.1215/lt-18540930-TC-LOA-01; CL 29: 154-155
Chelsea, 30 Septr, 1854—
Dear Lord Ashburton,
Till this morning, when My Lady's Letter came, I never doubted but you were in the Bear's1 country, "to go on Wednesday," not to return till probably monday. I am in the greater haste to despatch my Note; which was meant at any rate for this day.
You give us a most lucid and interesting glimpse of your Hyperborean life. I know those misty Highland Hills, with their threatening vapour on them, those damp moaning winds; and then the rapid retreat, and the little brooks kindling all into silvery visibility on the black Hillside,—which latter sight it is best to enjoy from the inside of the windows! Stanley's2 waiting in vain, for five hours, to have a shot; and going, like the Primeval Serpent, on his belly:—would he take so much trouble, or the half of it, to pay the whole National Debt, for instance, or to reduce the Czar of Russia to a Pillar of Salt,3 and make all friends of progress happy for evermore? Not a bit of it.— I am shocked to find My Lady fishes with an Otter;4 I imagined she went out with rod and fly, in a Christian manner, and disdained such associates! I myself have no game here, of any kind, except it be spiders in the garden, where I go to smoke; of which, being disgusted at last beyond endurance (for they are black spiders, and in size like robin-redbreasts, such spiders and so numerous as I never saw), I have killed near upon 50 brace, I should think. A sad operation, but an indispensable one. What an opulence of life there is in this Universe, especially among the more contemptible branches of its population! "You cannot kill a fly," they say, "but there will come forty to its funeral." Which is true also of other things, in the metaphorical sense, to a very sad degree!
But what shall I say of the grand question, the Beard? Certainly I am, and have ever been, a fixed enemy of shaving; a tyrannous product of mere use and wont; fantastic, without a shadow of reason to shew for itself;—which pesters one with Machis, Packwoods,5 unproductive semi-charlatans; often cuts one's chin; and in my case steals away half an hour daily from my small remnant of precious time. Sure enough you are to be envied, and I do envy you, for that noble freeflowing beard, of which I hear so much. And if you do really mean to front St James's6 with it— But I always think your heart will fail at sight of St James's, and you are only joking all this while? Well, if you dare absolutely risk a stroke, for deliverance of yourself and of mankind, in that manner,—I am mindful of my promise, and even my wife assents; the razor shall be thrown away, and a second beard appear on the streets, too happy to get out under such backing! Really the Beard-movement does proceed, I perceive. Liegh7 Hunt, I heard not long since, had produced a copious beard, white or nearly so; he complained that there were two drawbacks: 1° the little boys laughed at him; 2° the beard abolished an uncommonly sweet smile he was understood to have. That latter evil will not apply to me. Nor do I think practically the little boys will much interfere. Moustaches are already very abundant; and one young gent (of the gent species) carries a beard in these streets, black, immense, sticking out from the chin of him like a kitchen kettle. Consider therefore what you will do!
My Lord Clarendon, after some official passaging, sent me the State-Paper permission, of due form and extent, the night before last.8 Please tell My Lady this; to whom I will write, one of these days.—
Ever yours sincerely
T. Carlyle


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Gold 'N Hot 1875 Watt Ionic Stand Bonnet Dryer
The Professional Gold 'N Hot 1875 Watt Ionic Stand Bonnet Dryer is an adjustable hood dryer that fits even the largest of rollers. Perfect for roller sets or even deep conditioning treatments, this hood dryer allows you to comfortably dry hair in the comfort of your home or professional salon setting.
Model#: GH1053 /
Guaranteed AuthenticGuaranteed Authentic
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- 1875 Watts
- Ionic generator with on/off switch
- 4 styling settings
- Tourmaline infused
- Adjustable bonnet and face shield
- Large bonnet fits the largest of rollers
- Removable legs on base and rear grille
- 10-foot professional cord
|Technology :
|Ion Switch
|Cord Type:
|Fixed Cord
|Cord Length:
|10 Foot
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The T3 Voluminous Hot Roller Set been designed with proprietary Tourmaline technology which emits maximum ionic, infrared heat to safely penetrate the hair shaft, effectively styling the hair from the inside out while sealing the hair cuticle against frizz.New Price:
Not ReliableI was on my second dryer on this model. The first one, after one year, started heating up and could not regulate its heat. The second one lasted about 1 1/2 years and yesterday was its last day. It stopped all of a sudden; I thought it was the power in the house but it wasn't. When I touched its cord and plug, it was so hot. I got an extension to alleviate the current; I turned it on and the bonnet started to smoke. That's it. No more for me of this product.Dec 4, 2015Sandra G.
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Great DryerI just got my dryer two days ago, and so far so good. I did a deep conditioning treatment and a flexi rod set. So far I'm impressed. The only thing I was concerned about was the noise, but to be honest, it's ALOT quieter than the table top models with the same watts. Believe me, I shopped for a dryer, bought 3 all returned. The best thing I like about it is that the hood tilts! Where I live, Sally's had a comparable one, but the hood didn't tilt. It's a good buy. If your looking to buy a dryer, this is a good buy.Mar 26, 2015Latoya / VaHAIR TYPEBlack / Normal Hair / Color Treated Hair / Thick or Coarse Hair / Relaxed Hair
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Hot!My hair is a few inches past my Bra strap and it takes me about and hour and half to dry. This is odd because the dryer is very hot and I have to switch between low and high speed in order to stand it. My hair does turn out shiny and smooth when I stay under it. So my only problem is how long it takes me to dry, When I go to a salon I only have to sit under the dryer an hour..Oct 16, 2014Danielle A. / Mississippi
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Just What I NeededI have had this dryer for a couple of weeks now and I LOVE IT. I was afraid that it would be too noisy....but it isn't. I use it a couple of times a week and now don't know how I ever survived without it.Dec 7, 2013Frances N. / Denver, ColoradoHAIR TYPEGrey / Normal Hair
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Selfgood for people who cannot lift their arms to dry their hair.Apr 12, 2013Iris H.HAIR TYPECurly Hair
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Price: $14.95
Take a totally tropical trip to the rain forest and meet spotted jaguars, colorful poison-arrow frogs, slow-moving sloths, and loud-mouthed howler monkeysall captured by the world's finest filmmakers in the wildest place in the world. Includes Bonus Program: Far Out Families as well as Interactive Rain Forest Creature Feature with fun facts, quizzes, sound clips, and maps.
Not available for shipment outside of the U.S. and Canada.
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Exactly what I was looking for!
By Ms. Millan
from Yuma, AZ
About Me Casual Viewer
Best Uses
Comments about Really Wild Animals: Totally Tropical Rain Forest DVDÂ :
My classroom has been talking about frogs and this not only had frogs but all sorts of animals that was very informative. It spiked their interest and wanted to learn more!
Bottom Line Yes, I would recommend this to a friend
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The pace of changes in lending regulations is unprecedented. Do you know which regulations require annual training? What regulations have been changed by the CFPB because of the Dodd-Frank Financial Reform Act? Which regulations cause the most-frequent problems in passing compliance exams? What should lenders understand about money laundering and suspicious activity in the loan process?
Compliance training for lenders is no longer "optional" and it can reduce loss. Flood insurance violations have increased to $2,000 per incident with NO annual limit. HMDA data accuracy issues continue to cause civil money penalties and fair lending remains an exam focus with regulators. This session will cover everything from Regulation B to Z and outline specific disclosures and timing requirements. Attendees will receive checklists and guidance to help lending staff work smarter, not harder.
This training will include the following items so that you are able to provide solid documentation for examiners:
All registrants will receive the attendance certification and training log, regardless of whether they attend the live or archived version.
This informative session is designed for compliance officers, auditors, loan officers, loan assistants, and loan administration staff. This webinar will benefit both new lenders and experienced lenders as a review of existing requirements.
ABOUT THE PRESENTER – Susan Costonis, Compliance Consulting and Training for FIs
Susan Costonis is a compliance consultant and trainer. She specializes in compliance management along with deposit and lending regulatory training. Most of her 34-year career was spent as a banker in several areas including lending, loan administration, electronic banking, and compliance risk management.
Susan has written numerous training manuals and successfully managed compliance programs and exams for institutions that ranged from a community bank to large multi-state bank holding companies. She has worked for institutions supervised by the OCC, FDIC, and Federal Reserve. Susan has been a Certified Regulatory Compliance Manager since 1998, completed the ABA Graduate Compliance School, and graduated from the University of Akron and the Graduate Banking School of the University of Colorado. She regularly presents to financial institution audiences in several states and "translates" complex regulations into simple concepts by using humor and real life examples.
PLEASE NOTE: Your registration fee allows you to have one telephone connection. However, as many people as you like may listen from your office speaker phone. If you register for the webinar, your registration fee also includes one internet connection from a single computer terminal.
The LIVE WEBINAR option allows you to have one telephone connection for the audio portion and one Internet connection (from a single computer terminal) to view online visuals as the presentation is delivered. You may have as many people as you like listen from your office speaker phone. Registrants receive a toll-free number and pass code that will allow entrance to the seminar. The session will be approximately 90 minutes, including question and answer sessions. Seminar materials, including instructions, pin number, and handouts will be emailed to you prior to the broadcast. You will need the most current version of Adobe Reader available free at www.adobe.com.
Can't attend the live webinar? The ON-DEMAND WEB LINK** is a recording of the live event including audio, visuals, and handouts. We even provide the presenter's email address so you may ask follow-up questions. Approximately 1 week prior to the webinar, you will receive an email with the web link. This web link can be viewed anytime 24/7, beginning 6 business days AFTER the webinar and will expire 6 months after the live program date. But there's more . . . AS AN ADDED BONUS, you will also receive a FREE audio/visual CD ROM.* The CD ROM includes the original audio/visual presentation, the question and answer sessions, and the handouts. Use the on-demand link or this "off-the-shelf" training program for those that could not attend the live seminar and for future training.
3. BOTH LIVE WEBINAR AND ON-DEMAND WEB LINK** (INCLUDES FREE CD-ROM*) Includes options 1 and 2 above
*CD Rom for PC use only
**All materials are subject to copyright and intended for your credit union's use only.
NEW! Listen on your iPad, iPhone, or Android. Instructions will be emailed to you with the on-demand link.
$199.00 Webinar per connection
$199.00 Archived On-Demand Web Link & Free CD ROM
$249.00 Both Live Webinar & Archived On-Demand Web Link & Free CD ROM
TIME: 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
To register and pay by check, email Mary Zelinsky at email@example.com and your credit union will be invoiced. To register and pay online, click here.


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VALENCIA, CA — Girlfriends Films will release its 11th installment of Please Make Me Lesbian on Tuesday, April 1. Chronicling the kinky sexual exploits between a daughter (Lily Carter) and stepmother (Zoey Holloway), Please Make Me Lesbian 11 features another sex scene between the pair. Girlfriends Films contract performer Prinzzess, Dani Daniels, Natalie Nice, and Taylor Vixen join Carter and Holloway for four wild scenes.
Please Make Me Lesbian focuses on the sexual exploration of a young woman. Zoey Holloway introduces her stepdaughter, Hayden (Lily Carter), to the beauty of women and the art of seduction. Throughout the series, Hayden transforms from sweet, innocent virgin to a horny girl with a craving for wild kinks, rivaled only by her stepmother.
In Please Make Me Lesbian 11, Prinzzess gets the erotic fun underway in powerful scenes with Natalie Nice and Holloway. The movie's passion continues to build as Lily shows Zoey all the tricks she's learned from her sexual experimentation with other girls in previous volumes. Finally, Daniels and Vixen bring the walls down during an orgasmic birthday celebration.
"Lily and Zoey do a fantastic job anchoring this series," says Girlfriends Films President Moose. "They've embraced their characters in a way that continually has fans coming back for more and always wanting to know what's next."


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Oct 1, 2010 9:56 AM
Sure, this Felt Floppy Hat ($50) isn't exactly easy on the wallet, but it's a surprisingly versatile piece. It can take you from summer days with maxi dresses and jumpsuits to fall and winter nights with an oversize sweater, skinny jeans and knee-high boots. That's talent.
If you've got a product or service that you'd like to promote on Outblush, click here to find out about our advertising opportunities.
Outblush is a blog for girls who love to shop. Our staff digs up the best clothes, home stuff, beauty items, and more. New items are posted every day — bookmark us and check out:


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Release Date: June 24, 2011
Platform: XBLIG, Xbox 360
Price: 240 Microsoft points ($3)
Let's not pussyfoot around the issue here. Total Miner is a clone of Minecraft. It looks like Minecraft, plays like Minecraft, and even borrows copious amounts of assets and concepts directly from Minecraft. And in just about any case, where Total Miner is different from Minecraft, the concept is lifted from Miner Dig Deep. It's clear from our previous coverage of Total Miner that people are split about the ethics of this. I will reiterate our stance on the matter, which is that clones are not unwelcome in the gaming world. However, when a clone is going to steal the same lines and dance moves from another game without giving real credit, we here at Extra Guy relish the opportunity to pick it apart and compare it head-to-head with the game whose ideas it lifts.
That said, Total Miner is not a good game. Ever since the announcement by Mojang that Minecraft would have a port to the Xbox 360, it's made the suffering through these clones even less bearable. Total Miner is like buying a cheap Chinese iPhone. You think you're getting a good deal on an iPhone, but then you realize that there's no touchscreen, the battery life is terrible, it doesn't do Wi-Fi, and the chemicals on the screen will give you cancer. Total Miner is not quite that bad, but the letdown is comparable.
When you start playing Total Miner, you have the option to generate a standard map (called Dig Deep), or a creative map. After selecting the type of map to generate, the game goes off for a few minutes(!) and generates the map, giving you a block-built logo of Total Miner that looks suspiciously like Minecraft. Terrain generation is much faster, much nicer, and much more expansive in Minecraft. The size of the world in Total Miner is actually very limited, but Dig Deep mode actually puts the world depth at 2000 blocks.
When you spawn in the world, you spawn next to a crafting block and a shop block, which you can use to purchase items in the game. Selling and buying blocks is actually not a bad way of going about things for a Minecraft clone, but again it is lifted almost directly from Miner Dig Deep. Total Miner also steals a few other Miner Dig Deep concepts, including a 2-D cutaway of the 3-D terrain you're standing on (which changes as you rotate, making it very confusing), crafting blueprints, the only way you're able to make new items, and underground earthquakes/landslides, which are actually very fun, if not simply taken from Miner Dig Deep.
Once you get into the cave systems, prepare for ridiculous battles with comically oversized spiders. One of the selling points of Total Miner over Minecraft is the size of the spiders, and I can't say they're not bigger. In fact, they're annoyingly big, because they're slow, tough to kill, and make an awful, unnecessarily blood-curdling scream. Remember those scream videos from the 1990s and early 2000s? It's that bad. Fortunately, I was able to glitch the spiders into not moving (coasting upward actually), so it wasn't so bad.
There are a multitude of new block types, including new stone types, as well as your standard-issue Minecraft-esque TNT block (which actually takes the graphics directly from Minecraft). There is water in Total Miner, but it's very broken. Water has no dynamics, and if you dig it in a way that would flood a cavern, it actually won't let you dig that block, and spams your screen with the message "CAN'T CLEAR MIGHT FLOOD".
I suppose that Total Miner being a mashup of Minecraft and Miner Dig Deep might not be such a bad idea. However, the game is still quite broken and incomplete, much like FortressCraft, its XBLIG craftalike predecessor. When I realized the potential of using the Miner Dig Deep concept in a Minecraft-like 3D setting, I was even more disappointed that the game came up so short. Even a simple set of mods for Minecraft might make the Miner Dig Deep featureset a reality in Minecraft. A lot of the game works well, if not slowly, but the parts that are broken are just heartbreaking. There's a world where the Minecraft clone wars produce something truly amazing. We're just not there yet.
Correction: In this article, we incorrectly referred to a planned second chapter of Total Miner called Total Miner: War. There is no planned second chapter, and we regret the error.


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Beware the 'Side' Effects of Alcopops, Says CSPI
Ads In Party Schools Papers Target High-Calorie Drinks
March 18, 2004WASHINGTONSmirnoff Ice, Bacardi Silver, and Skyy Blue dont actually contain any of the vodka or rum associated with their brand names but they do have a lot more calories than their target audience thinks, according to the nonprofit Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). In ads running in college newspapers at Americas top party schools, CSPI is alerting students that just one alcopop has more calories than a Krispy Kreme donut, and that drinking two alcopops is like downing the caloric equivalent of a sirloin steak. And according to new polling data released by CSPI, most Americans mistakenly think that alcopops have fewer calories than other high-cal foods.
Alcopop makers would like young people to think that these drinks are made with rum or vodka and are less caloric than beer, said George A. Hacker, director of alcohol policies at CSPI. The reality is that these drinks are just cheap alcohol, artificial flavorings, and lots of added sugar, giving them more calories than beer. Three alcopops have more calories than a McDonalds Quarter Pounder and a small fries.
While a typical beer has 145 calories, a typical alcopop has more than 220. Bacardi Silver and Skyy Blue each have 235 calories. A five-alcopop night can mean 1,175 caloriesalmost as many calories than a Quarter Pounder with Cheese, medium French fries, and medium Coke, according to CSPI.
Alcopop products disguise the taste of alcohol and lure young consumers from soda pop to beer and hard booze, said Hacker, whose group has been critical of alcopop marketing and advertising in the past. Alcopops are the last things college students should add to their diets, since college is a time when young people are vulnerable to dramatic weight gain. Drinking too many alcopops can mean the difference between the freshman 15 and the freshman 40.
In December, CSPI petitioned the Treasury Departments Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau to require alcoholic-beverage makers to list calorie contents and other information on a uniform Alcohol Facts label similar to the Nutrition Facts label on foods. Nine in 10 Americans support calorie labeling of alcoholic beverages, according to CSPIs polling data. Although Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson has announced an anti-obesity strategy which includes placing more emphasis on calories, the Administration has not yet supported listing calories on alcoholic beverages.
Considering how much alcohol is consumed in this country, its ridiculous to let such a large source of Americans calories go undisclosed on labels, Hacker said. If Coke, Snapple, and milk have to list calories right on the label, why shouldnt high-cal alcopops and other alcoholic beverages?
One alcopop maker even goes so far as to market a Sport version that it claims is low in carbohydrates. Skyy Sport, a citrus-flavored alcopop with a splash of cranberry claims half the carbs of its rivals. But at 15 grams of carbohydrate per serving, Skyy Sport has more than twice as many carbohydrates than CSPI says a low-carb food shouldand more than five times as many carbs as Michelobs low-carb beer, Ultra.
Skyy should call its new alcopop Skyy Couch instead of Skyy Sport, since at 160 calories a bottle, it lends itself more to sitting than sporting, Hacker said. Its deceitful on several levels.
CSPI placed its first round of ads in college newspapers at Princeton Reviews top party schools, including the University of Colorado at Boulder, the University of Wisconsin at Madison, Indiana University at Bloomington, the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, and Washington and Lee University. The ad is also running in the Diamondback, the student newspaper of the University of Maryland.
So before you find yourself asking, DudeWheres my waist?, get the facts, the ad urges. The ads and other information about the calorie content of alcopops are available at cspinet.org/alcopops.


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Quilting with Pretty Stitches & Yo-Yo's (172)
Okay so I finally finished this quilt top, got it layered and now onto the quilting. This one is for ME and only ME...well maybe Tig can have a snooze once in a while on it too ;)
I've wanted a log cabin as long as I can remember and when our guild decided to do a Pizza Box Challenge (you do a block, add 1 meter of your FAV fabric from the block as extra then it gets passed from friend to friend 9 times so you have 9 blocks). Since I wanted a log cabin, I had each of the gals do a log cabin block for me...it worked out PERFECTLY!! I then proceeded to make a million more log cabin blocks...
I decided to have fun with some of my decorative stitches
and more stitches
Which stitch is your favourite? Once I'm done the blue side I'll move on the cream side because I have cream variegated threads to match that side also :)
I've also been playing with yo-yo's and ALOT of them too...96 I'll need in total and I'm almost halfway, YES!!
to give you perspective on size, yes that is my actual bobbin for my Janome
can you say teeny tiny adorable yo-yos that I love each and every one of them...