USA Today - 01.11.2019

MONEY USA TODAY z FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 1, 2019 z 3B

Kroger, the nation’s largest grocer, is
reversing its ban on Visa credit cards
that affected a small number of its
stores, the company confirmed
Wednesday.
“As of today, Kroger now accepts Visa
credit cards at all our family of stores,
including Smith’s and Foods Co.,” com-
pany spokeswoman Kristal Howard
said to USA TODAY.
The Cincinnati-based company,
which operates several subsidiaries,
had banned the use of the Visa card in
its small Foods Co. chain in California in
August 2018. It expanded the ban in
Aprilto the larger Smith’s Food & Drug

Store chain.

Kroger had said it was banning Visa

to save money on processing fees and

to keep grocery prices low. In April, of-

ficials said they would consider ex-

panding the ban.

CreditCards.comanalyst Ted Ross-

man called Kroger’s reversal “a win for

Visa and the entire card industry.”

“We don’t know the specific terms

here, and maybe Kroger got a better

deal, but my view is that card bans and

surcharges are consumer-unfriendly

and could actually hurt merchants,”

Rossman said in a statement.

Kroger said when announcing the

bans that Visa’s interchange rates and

network fees were the highest in the

industry.

Kroger stores lift ban on

use of Visa credit cards

Kelly Tyko
USA TODAY Liquidation sales at the remaining

Dressbarn stores will start Friday, the

struggling retailer announced

Wednesday.

While the 544 stores will close no

later than Dec. 26, the women’s cloth-

ing website is expected to relaunch in

2020 with a new owner, the company

said in a news release.

“As part of our planned wind down,

which has received overwhelming

support from our landlord and vendor

community, we are starting store clos-

ing sales at the balance of our 544

brick and mortar retail stores on Fri-

day,” Steven Taylor, Dressbarn chief fi-

nancial officer, said in the release.

Some stores have already closed

since the company announced its plans

in May to shutter all locations.

Dressbarn is part of New Jersey-

based Ascena Retail Group, whose other

brands include Ann Taylor, Lane Bryant,

Catherines, Cacique and Justice.

Existing store gift cards and mer-

chandise credits will be honored

throughout the sale, the company said.

The liquidation firm of Gordon Brothers

is handling the liquidation.

“Customers can take advantage of

discounts on all merchandise, including

new fall and winter apparel and acces-

sories, from 20% to 40% off original

prices,” the firm said in the release.

A list of the remaining stores is post-

ed at http://www.dressbarn.com.

The website will accept gift cards and

merchandise credits through Dec. 31 or

while merchandise supplies last.

Liquidation sales to begin

Friday at Dressbarn outlets

Kelly Tyko

USA TODAY

Saving money takes effort and disci-
pline – qualities that don’t always come
naturally. And that could explain why
58% of Americans have less than $1,
in savings. If you’re tired of staring at a
sorry bank account balance, you’ll need
to ramp up your savings game, pronto.
Here are a few tricks.

1. Stick to a budget

Saving money gets a whole lot easier
when you actually know where your
earnings go month after month. That’s
why you really need a budget.List your
recurring monthly expenses, factor in
once-a-year expenses, and then com-
pare that total to what your paychecks
deliver. If you’re not happy with the re-
sults, then you can go through that bud-
get and identify ways to cut corners.

2. Automate your savings

It’s easy to be tempted to spend mon-
ey when it’s sitting right there in your

checking account. A better bet is to

automate your savings so that a portion

of your earnings goes directly into either

a bank account or a retirement plan.

With the former, you can arrange for a

certain amount of money to land in your

savings account. With the latter, you

can sign up to participate in your com-

pany’s 401(k) plan or find an IRA with an

automatic-transfer option. The beauty

is that you’ll be forced to save money,

and at the same time, you won’t really

miss the cash you’re socking away.

3. Have a savings challenge

If you’re not motivated to save money

for the sake of buying yourself more fi-

nancial security, then do it for the sake

of beating your spouse, friend or neigh-

bor at a game. A good way to boost your

cash reserves is to find someone who’s

willing to engage in a savings contest.

You might say that whoever spends the

least over a two-month period gets

treated by the other to dinner at the res-

taurant of their choice. Or, make the re-

ward a no-cost endeavor and say the

winner gets their house cleaned by the

loser. If you make a game out of saving

money, you just might do it.

4. Enforce a 24-hour rule for
   impulse purchases

The bulk of Americans give in to im-

pulse purchases, whether online or in

stores. But the more you spend on a

whim, the less you’ll have left to save. To

remedy that, institute the 24-hour rule

before completing unplanned pur-

chases. Essentially, force yourself to

wait a full 24 hours from the time you’re

inspired to buy something to the time

you go through with that transaction.

Much of the time, you’ll realize you can

do without that new appliance/clothing

item/accessory.

5. Get a side hustle

While you can’t necessarily march

into your boss’s office and demand a

raise, you canget yourself a side gig on

top of your regular job. The best part?

You can take a hobby you enjoy and turn

it into an income source.

And because that income won’t al-

ready be earmarked for existing ex-

penses, you should be able to save all of

it.

The Motley Fool is a USA TODAY con-

tent partner offering financial news,

analysis and commentary designed to

help people take control of their finan-

cial lives. Its content is produced inde-

pendently of USA TODAY.

Saving money is simpler than you think

Maurie Backman
The Motley Fool

Implement a 24-hour rule for impulse

purchases.GETTY IMAGES