Consider changing how you do business

The recession and slow recovery have hit small retail businesses hard, especially those that compete against big- box stores and those that offer discretionary retail items.

Arizona's jobless rate down slightly in February

PHOENIX — The state's jobless rate inched down just a bit last month amid weaker than expected showing in retail and health care employment.

2 stores get surprise visit from the demolition crew

Susana Kopplin, an owner of Maya Palace, monitors the process of packing up the store and moving. She arrived Monday to find a demolition team at work just outside the store. The store must be out by tonight.

2 stores get surprise visit from the demolition crew

The demolition team tears off the roof of a former El Charro Restaurant at El Mercado. The site eventually will have a CVS pharmacy, but two current businesses were surprised to find demolition already under way.

2 Tucson stores get surprise visit from the demolition crew

A pair of local business owners got a surprise Monday morning when they drove up to find a demolition team at their plaza, ripping the roof off the former El Charro Restaurant.

Cosmetics store Lush opening store at Tucson's La Encantada

Lush, the “delicatessen of the skincare world,” is opening its first Tucson store today at La Encantada.

On the job, cold days add a safety concern

Rob Labby takes break from fixing a carburetor to warm his hands at Jay Bees Auto Service, 5070 E. 22nd St. Labby says the cold weather doesn't bother him too much, especially since he knows our usual warm days will be back soon.

On the job, cold days add a safety concern

A bundled-up Mike Turkington works on an engine at Jay Bees Auto Service. Workers in open spaces have been especially exposed to recent cold temperatures.

On the job, cold days add a safety concern

It's been cold.

Businesses popping up downtown

Suzanne McManus, left, and Tina Carlaftes look at antiques at A Perfect Pantry, described by owner Amy Pike as a "21st-century general store."

Businesses popping up downtown

Bedding is available at Revolutio, a new boutique on South Sixth Avenue.

Businesses popping up downtown

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Businesses popping up downtown

Several new businesses opened downtown in 2012 despite construction and economic woes, and more are on the way.

Whole Foods' NW-side store liquidating, then will renovate

As supplies dwindle, George Osler, kneeling, and Kela Gortarez consolidate items in the dairy case at Whole Foods Market, 7133 N. Oracle Road. The store will be rebuilt and expanded to a two-story structure of about 32,000 square feet.

Whole Foods' NW-side store liquidating, then will renovate

The Whole Foods Market at 7133 N. Oracle Road will close Sunday at 6 p.m. for a renovation that will take months. When complete, the rebuilt structure will have administrative and meeting space on the second level.

Whole Foods' NW-side store liquidating, then will renovate

Whole Foods Market is holding a storewide liquidation sale at its northwest-side store until it closes Sunday at 6 p.m. for a months-long renovation.

Know rules before you return unwanted gift

Once the gifts are opened, if you're left staring at a scratchy sweater that's a hideous shade of green or a weird kitchen gadget you'll never use, you could be headed to a dreaded return line.

Stores, malls extend their hours to handle returns - and sales

Shopping the after-Christmas sales is as much of a tradition as Black Friday shopping for many consumers. Last year, shoppers spent $7.1 billion the day after Christmas, according to ShopperTrak, a retail traffic data company.

3rd Paradise Bakery-Cafe location to open today on East Grant Road

The new Paradise Bakery & Café, which is scheduled to open today, will have a "four seasons" room that opens to the exterior as the weather allows. Paradise already has two other cafes in Tucson.

3rd Paradise Bakery-Cafe location to open

The third Tucson location of Paradise Bakery & Café is scheduled to open today at 4821 E. Grant Road, in the Crossroads Festival shopping center at the northeast corner of East Grant and North Swan roads.