AUGUSTA — The question of whether a contract to market Maine’s wholesale liquor business was awarded fairly and within the bounds of a new state law that was passed in part to recapture alcohol sales lost to New Hampshire is now in the hands of a three-person administrative review panel. The contract, one of two […]
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Christmas tree growers hopeful about season as plastic rivals make gains
FORT KENT — Few things embody the sights, scents or sentiments of the holiday season better than a freshly cut Maine Christmas tree. “Things are looking pretty good,” according to Gaye Richards, a Mapleton tree farmer and president of the Maine Christmas Tree Association. “My sales over the last three days are bigger than the […]
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Just where can you shop on Thanksgiving Day in Maine?
PORTLAND — Don’t be fooled by the national ad campaigns from large retailers like Macy’s, Sears and Wal-Mart, which are trumpeting that they’ll be open on Thanksgiving and offering tremendous sales. Not in Maine they won’t. Maine is one of only three states that prohibits almost all businesses from being open on Thanksgiving, remnants of […]
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L.L. Bean has best spring sales since 2008
FREEPORT (AP) — L.L. Bean just finished its best spring and summer season in five years, with a performance that was strong enough to warrant the first midyear employee gift since 2007, the company announced. Sales from March through August for the outdoors retailer were up 3 percent from the same period last year, bolstering […]
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Maine fireworks revenues far exceed projections
PORTLAND (AP) — Sales at Maine’s fireworks stores have far surpassed initial projections when fireworks became legal last year for the first time in 63 years. When legislators debated a bill in 2011 seeking to legalize fireworks, the Maine Revenue Services estimated that fireworks stores would generate about $120,000 a year in sales taxes. In […]