The Rio Grande Valley’s first Costco is a game changer. Costco is the largest membership warehouse club in the U.S., according to Greg Brenner, Costco Warehouse Manager in Pharr. It’s the seventh largest retailer in the world with sales of $90 billion annually, while its nearest competitor rings up $50 billion. Built from the ground-up in only three months, the 151,000-square-foot Costco warehouse is the 601st store of the Washington-based…
If your image of a Bed & Breakfast is a fussily decorated Victorian house heavy on dried flower arrangements and porcelain figurines, it’s time you saw the Rio Grande Valley’s refreshing, site-specific take on B&Bs. A dozen B&Bs cater to Valley visitors who love both comfort and the outdoors: birders, anglers, naturalists, beach walkers. In urban and rural settings, these retreats provide privacy and high levels of service at unique…
Being on the Texas-Mexico border presents entrepreneurs with business opportunities not found elsewhere. From ropas usadas (used clothing traders), duty-free stores and customs brokerages to casas de cambio, foreign trade zones and dealers in used heavy duty machinery, numerous Valley companies are business that could function only on the border. Two of the Valley’s international bridges are privately owned, providing income from tolls, parking and leases. Transmigrante expediters at the…
Who doesn’t want more energy, agility, muscle tone and strength paired with reduced anxiety, feeling healthier, better balance, a flatter stomach and a tighter tushie? Yes, it requires exercise but nowadays getting in shape and staying in shape can be fun. No, really. Fitness centers, gyms, zumba studios, personal trainers and yoga and tai chi teachers across the Valley are staying in business by making working out fun and, in…
A proven, popular destination with no admission fee, Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World welcomed the first of a projected two million annual customers to its newest store which opened in Harlingen at Cameron Crossing in November. Outside, ATVs are perched on rocks amid native plants flanking a picturesque flowing stream. Inside, arrays of merchandise vie for attention with huge, colorful murals of Valley outdoor scenes that covered the walls and…
The silver lining in the dark cloud over the border is that the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and other Department of Homeland Security agencies infuse millions of dollars into the local economy. Besides enjoying the relative peace resulting from CBP’s protective presence, Valley businesses are increasingly the beneficiaries of spending by the federal agencies as well as by their off-duty employees. In the late 1980s, the Rio Grande sector…
If you want to take college courses to help you advance professionally, to study a new field to prepare for a career change, to go for a degree or to merely indulge a personal interest, the opportunities for lifelong learning have never been so abundant. This summer’s openings of the University Center at TSTC and South Texas College’s eCampus have made advanced, bachelor’s, and associate degrees easily accessible, sometimes as…
Have you noticed that most pets have human names now? You hear more dogs, cats, birds and goats addressed as Jack, Leo, Olivia or Ozzie and fewer called Chief, Shadow or Fluffy. Americans love their pets and are expected to spend over $50 billion on them in 2011. In the Valley dozens of businesses cater to animals and their owners, from groomers and pet supply stores to veterinary clinics, pet…
Direct selling has been called the original social networking business. Selling a product face to face based on a relationship is as old as commerce, yet today it is a vital part of the sales of green energy, cosmetics and the home décor markets. The one-on-one sales approach uses product parties, kiosks at community events and old-fashioned door-to-door ventures to sell products. Direct sellers now keep in close touch with…
Hurricane season has begun and the time to be prepared is before a storm forms in the Gulf of Mexico. Everyone who lived in the Valley in 1967 remembers Hurricane Beulah, the widespread flooding and the 100 mph gusts felt even in Hidalgo County. Category II Hurricane Dolly in 2008 battered and flooded Harlingen and parts of Cameron County. And 2010 was a disruptive hurricane season for Rio…