A Yuba City High School graduate is one of 25 women appearing on the upcoming season of “The Bachelor.”

Monica Spannauer, 33, is now a dental hygienist in Salt Lake City and describes herself on the show’s website as a “total hopeless romantic.”

Due to confidentiality agreements, she was unable to talk about the show, but Yuba City resident Rachel Ekbert said it was not a surprise her outgoing and charismatic sister-in-law would try her charms on reality romance TV.

“The guy would have to be an idiot not to fall head-over-heels in love with Monica, because everyone does when they meet her,” Ekbert said.

Spannauer, who graduated from Yuba City High School in 1996, attended Yuba College and then dental hygienist school in Las Vegas. she now lives in Utah but returns to Yuba City at least once a year to visit her family who all still live in the area.

“Monica has the biggest heart. she is the funniest person to be around and very warm and caring,” Ekbert said. “I can’t tell you one person who doesn’t think she’s the best.”

Spannauer is also a great aunt to her nieces and nephews, including Ekbert’s daughter who they call “Monica Junior.”

Ekbert has never watched the show but says she’ll be tuning in to Season 16, which premieres on ABC on Jan. 2.

The premise is a single bachelor starts dating 25 women, eliminating them usually one-by-one with a rose at the end of an episode. in many cases, the show concludes with a wedding propo al.

On Spannauer’s online show biography, she says San Antonio is the most romantic city, St. Patrick’s Day is her favorite holiday and that if stranded on a desert island, she would bring lip gloss, piña coladas and the love of her life.

This is not the first reality TV show on which Yuba-Sutter natives have appeared. Fashion Designer Leanne Marshall who won Season 5 of Project Runway in 2008 grew up in Yuba City and graduated from Sutter High School before attending The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandise and landing a job in the fashion industry.

CONTACT reporter Ashley Gebb at 749-4783.

<a href="http://www.appeal-democrat.com/news/city-112120-yuba-ekbert.htmltag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.appeal-democrat.com/news/city-112120-yuba-ekbert.htmlSat, 10 Dec 2011 08:19:28 GMT”>Yuba City graduate looking for love on ‘The Bachelor’

EDINBURG — Jurors convicted a Brazilian hit man Thursday who authorities said was hired by a lesbian to kill her husband after she found her paramour at a rural Alton taqueria.

Eduardo Leme de Oliveira learned his guilty verdict after the jury deliberated about two hours Thursday afternoon in Hidalgo County Auxiliary Court. the day’s proceedings were delayed for several hours after a bomb threat evacuated the courthouse.

Jurors found de Oliveira, 40, to be the trigger man behind the slaying of 42-year-old Juan Antonio Morales in October 2008.

Morales was the common-law husband of Julissa Gonzalez, 26, who pleaded guilty to her role in the murder-for-hire plot in May 2009. She is serving a 10-year sentence for the guilty plea; her co-worker and lover, Enedelia “Nelly” Canales, 22, also pleaded guilty and is serving a 17-year sentence.

Prosecutors lacked direct evidence placing de Oliveira at the scene of Morales’ murder at an isolated spot near the intersection of 3 Mile Line and Schuerbach Roads.

De Oliveira’s defense lawyers pointed to that lack of direct evidence and pointed to other improprieties after Canales took the stand.

“Nelly wants you to believe she’s a good Christian and she’s upset with herself because she’s a lesbian,” defense attorney O. Rene Flores told jurors in his closing arguments. “I guess it’s OK for Christians to lie.”

Canales testified that she did not pay de Oliveira any money or grant sexual favors for him to kill Morales. His lawyer attempted to pin the murder directly on Canales, saying his client had no motive to kill Gonzalez’s husband.

The women met de Oliveira at Taqueria Don Felipe, a restaurant west of Alton where both women worked as waitresses.

“What motive did he have?” Flores asked. “She didn’t give him (sexual favors). She didn’t have sex with him. She didn’t give him anything in return.”

But prosecutor Hope Palacios used that point to further condemn Oliveira, who submitted a written confession to sheriff’s deputies after his extradition from Mexico in March. He’d fled south of the border shortly after Morales was found dead.

“He’s not a man who killed out of anger — not one who killed out of jealousy,” Palacios told jurors. “He killed to kill.”

Morales was described as a man who was a jealous womanizer who frequently abused Gonzalez. Investigators said he threatened his wife, an illegal immigrant, with deportation and to have her child taken away.

The sentencing phase in Oliveria’s trial is set to begin Friday. He faces up to life in prison and a $10,000 fine.

“He killed a man whose name he didn’t even know,” Palacios said.

<a href="http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/lesbian-134697-love-caught.htmltag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/news/lesbian-134697-love-caught.htmlFri, 09 Dec 2011 23:39:17 GMT”>Hitman caught in lesbian love triangle convicted of murder

1 who was tried and executed as Citizen Capet? 2 Which ferryman carried souls across the Styx? 3 what have AJ Foyt, Al Unser and Rick Mears each won four times? 4 Which ship began life in 1784 in Hull as the Bethia? 5 Which TV comedy was named after a song by Splodgenessabounds? 6 Skanderbeg is whose national hero? 7 who was told to calm down by David Cameron? 8 Brontosaurus is now classified as which dinosaur? What links: 9 the Big Trail and the Shootist (with 82 in between)? 10 Ross; Ronne-Filchner; Shackleton; Amery; Larsen; George VI? 11 Penny Calvert; Anthea Redfern; Wilnelia Merced? 12 As I Opened Fire…; Drowning Girl; Grrrrrrrrrrr!!; Whaam!; Crying Girl? 13 Foreman (Jamaica 1973 and NY 76); Ali (NY 1974 and Philippines 75)? 14 City in south-eastern Anatolia; Christian Bale; army servant? 15 little Wilson and Big God; You’ve Had your Time?

1 Former Louis XVI. 2 Charon. 3 Indy 500 race. 4 the Bounty. 5 Two Pints Of Lager and A Packet Of Crisps. 6 Albanians. 7 MP Angela Eagle. 8 Apatosaurus. 9 Westerns of John Wayne. 10 Antarctic ice shelves. 11 Wives of Sir Bruce Forsyth. 12 Works by artist Roy Lichtenstein. 13 only professional defeats of boxer Joe Frazier. 14 Batman: in Turkey; plays B on screen; formerly. 15 Autobiography of Anthony Burgess, first and second parts.

<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2011/dec/09/quiz-general-knowledge-guardian?newsfeed=truetag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian/2011/dec/09/quiz-general-knowledge-guardian?newsfeed=trueFri, 09 Dec 2011 23:00:29 GMT”>The Weekend Quiz

By Kenneth Jones09 Dec 2011

Songwriter Dan Lipton

If you loved I Love You, You're Perfect, now Change, the musical about dating, relationships and love, Off-Broadway producers are birthing a similar four-actor show called Rated P for Parenthood. the first-preview delivery date is Feb. 8 at the Westside Theatre, where the I Love You revue had a long run.

the two shows are not related, but would seem to play to the same audience. Opening night is Feb. 26.

Jeremy Dobrish directs the musical Sandy Rustin (book and lyrics), Dan Lipton (music and lyrics) and David Rossmer (music and lyrics).

Producers Andrew Asnes and Timothy Schmidt announced the New York premiere of the show on Dec. 9. No casting has been announced. Rated P for Parenthood had its world premiere at the South Orange Performing Arts Center in May 2011.

According to the producers, "Rated P for Parenthood chronicles every stage of modern-day parenting, from conception to college, with giant doses of heart and humor. a versatile cast of four takes the audience through the ups and downs of childrearing — from the sublime to the ridiculous — in a series of comic and musical vignettes in under 90 minutes. a hilarious, fresh, and decidedly irreverent look at an age old topic, Rated P provides all the wistful joy of childrearing…at a fraction of the cost of braces!"

Co-writer Rustin said in a statement, "Comedy greats will tell you to 'write what you know.' so when in a postpartum haze I accidentally sent a photo of my newborn son (and my own vagina) to everyone I know — naturally I wrote a show about it. This show is a quilt of parenting moments — the hilarious, the heartbreaking, and the humiliating — all based on real life moments from me, my family, and my friends. I am thrilled to share it with New York audiences."

Rustin is an actress and writer who appears regularly at the Upright Citizens Brigade in Gravid Water (named "Best Improv Show" by Time out, New York). a graduate of Northwestern University, she is now the co-artistic director of Midtown Direct Rep.

Lipton & Rossmer are longtime collaborators who write both music and lyrics together. Their original musical comedy The Blonde Streak is currently in development at Broadway Across America. They are also working for Araca Group on adapting a bestselling memoir. Rossmer & Lipton's dramatic fairy tale notes to MariAnne has been workshopped at the NAMT Festival, New York Stage & Film and the O'Neill Center's NMTC conference, where the team received the Holof Award for their lyrics. Their form-bending musical satire Joe! has been seen at the Kennedy Center's Theater Lab, Chicago's Equity Library Theatre and the NAMT Festival in New York. Joe! is currently in development as a 3D movie musical. Other projects include a historical project with television writer Janis Hirsch, a futuristic musical with Kirsten Guenther and a show about B-movies with Wayne Rawley.

the Westside Theatre is at 407 W. 43rd Street.

Tickets are $89.50 and can be purchased through Telecharge.com or by calling (212) 239-6200. Rated P for Parenthood will play the following schedule: Tuesday-Thursday at 7 PM, Wednesday and Saturday at 2:30, Friday and Saturday at 8, and Sunday at 3.

<a href="http://www.playbill.com/news/article/157455-Rated_P_for_Parenthood%20a_New_Musical_Revue%20Gets_NYC_Crib_in_2012tag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.playbill.com/news/article/157455-Rated_P_for_Parenthood a_New_Musical_Revue Gets_NYC_Crib_in_2012Fri, 09 Dec 2011 16:15:06 GMT”>Rated P for Parenthood, a New Musical Revue, Gets NYC Crib in 2012 – Playbill.com

Christmas is coming, and the goose is getting fat. Christmas. a joyous time. Trees, lights, and holly. Gifts and laughter. Snow. Fireside chats.

Christmas can be a wondrous time. If you have a home. a job. a bank account. If you don’t, then Christmas is just another day of doing hard time again on the streets.

No trees. No holly. No lights. there is, however, plenty of snow, ice and a cold north wind free o’charge. Misery. And misery limits itself to no particular age group.

Some years ago, I sat in a filthy, cold, bug city bus station at 1 in the morning. I watched a 17-year-old kid talking on the pay phone. he was dirty, frozen, barefooted and exhausted. he was also lying to people who trusted him. he had contacted the local halfway house and was begging for a meal and a place to sleep. The house was obviously familiar with him and his patently devious ways. They were arguing with him. he continued to lie.

I though I knew what was decent and righteous, and I was disturbed. I sat there in my plastic chair and judged the kid. I was sickened by his lack of moral fiber and integrity.

Later I talked with a policeman who knew the boy. The cop told me the kid had been in and out of every court in the county. he had been arrested at the age of 7 for passive homosexual prostitution. he would stand on street corners and sell himself to older men. these men, I was told, are called sharks by the police, because they cruise up and down in their cars looking for child prostitutes.

I got to thinking in that sterile station. I myself, at that particular moment, sat homeless. The difference was that it was only temporary. I had just left my mother’s home only hours before. I was heading back to North Carolina and a wife and children who loved me. I wasn’t alone, no matter where I was.

But this kid … this little unlucky boy would be lost until the end of his days. And I realized that night, that my middle-class, knee-jerk reactionaryism helped keep him lost. I’m not blaming society. I don’t know whose fault it is in the long run. Life’s, maybe? could be just lousy luck? why did I come out of my mother’s womb and not that kid? Lucky me. Unlucky him.

But I failed home that night, not life. not luck. I didn’t offer to buy him supper. I could have. I was too embarrassed and indignant and tired, and I rationalized the opportunity away until he was gone. I hope he lied well enough to get a meal and bunk somewhere. I have an awful hunch he knew just where to go.

No, I stood against my gentler feelings and said, “No, I won’t feed him! He’s strong and healthy. Let him get a job and become a saintly producer like all the rest of us folk who were raised on Mom, apple pie and the moral principles of Ike Eisenhower. he could do it.”

But could he? Had he been run over by a truck at an early age and crippled, half of mankind and every fraternal order in the land would have fallen over backward to help him. But he wasn’t crippled, except in his spirit. And some pundits claim the spirit doesn’t exist anyway. so he had no real excuse (I said to myself).

And by the time I realized all my reasoning was crap, he was out the double doors. Out into what? not my world of love and spring flowers and books. not Ike Eisenhower’s world, that’s for sure. No, that kid went out into something no one should experience.

Americans are a good people, but they forget sometimes that too many fellow beings sift right through the cracks of Christendom. And no matter how many millions of words are preached in empty rhetoric about the splendiferous opportunities that await in this promised land, there are always going to be those spirit-crippled victims of life or luck. Litter runts who never reach the tit … never even see a rainbow, much less the gold at the end of it.

Like some gnarled weed that withers in a back alley, that boy went out into darkness that was more than night.

So if you happen to find yourself anywhere and see a hungry kid, be sure to feed him. It may be the only nice thing he’ll ever remember. you may get the reputation of a bleeding-heart liberal, but that’s easy to live with once you get the hang of it.

And it’s certainly easier than being a 17-year-old child that has to swim big-city streets surrounded by sharks in three-piece suits.

I’m asking all my readers to help out one of my favorite ministries — Hendersonville Rescue Mission on Seventh Avenue.

Folks, I don’t have to tell you these are hard times indeed. If you think you are hurting, think about the burden of responsibility on the Rescue Mission. How would you like to feed 300-400 folks on Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve? The Rescue Mission does, along with many other good things.

As leader of the Mission, the Rev. Anthony McMinn says in his holiday newsletter, “It is remarkable that this Christmas, for the cost of a slice of pumpkin pie in a local restaurant, we can still provide an entire Mission Christmas dinner to a person in need, with a slice or two of pie included. It is a bargain that is unbeatable this holiday season.”

Now get this folks, every gift of $25.61 will supply 13 meals at the Mission; $35.46, 18 meals; $51.22, 26; 100 bucks will feed 51 people.

The important thing is that hungry people down on their luck will not only be fed, but they will witness volunteers and staff caring about them. When you are on the streets, you cannot go further down, but you can go up. with help, that is. Won’t you help?

In the name of God and decency, open your hearts and wallets. Dig down deep and help out this wonderful place. I know Rev. McMinn. he cares about his people in a world that can be very uncaring.

You can make your check payable to Hendersonville rescue Mission and send to: Hendersonville Rescue Mission, P.O. Box 1512, Hendersonville, NC 28793.

Someone else is also asking, but I’ll let Him speak for himself. “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Matthew 25:40 (NIV)

Editor’s note: this column was first published on Dec. 12, 1998.

<a href="http://www.blueridgenow.com/article/20111210/NEWS/111209789/1008/SPORTS?Title=-Let-s-help-those-less-fortunate-this-Christmastag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.blueridgenow.com/article/20111210/NEWS/111209789/1008/SPORTS?Title=-Let-s-help-those-less-fortunate-this-ChristmasSat, 10 Dec 2011 09:32:32 GMT”>Let’s help those less fortunate this Christmas

Kimberly Dougherty’s life is filled with drama. and she’s learned that — try as we might to write the script for our lives — sometimes we’re forced to ad lib. CBS News correspondent Steve Hartman met her On the Road, in Riviera Beach, Fla.

It isn’t a Broadway production. but don’t tell that to Dougherty, the drama teacher at Florida’s Suncoast High School.

“It’s the old saying: If you’re gonna do it, do it right,” Dougherty said.

In fact, Dougherty used to be a Broadway producer. She gave it up to be a high school teacher.

“I wanted to do something significant and I wanted to leave something behind,” she said. “I wanted to make a difference.”

Her plays — like this season’s Romeo and Juliet — are all spectacular. and spectacularly expensive, according to some.

Principal Linda Cartlidge has been trying to reel her in for the last three years.

“It’s not like just throw a costume together. did you see those costumes? Seriously,” Cartlidge said. Dougherty, she says, is “a bit of a challenge — definitely high maintenance — but she has it in her heart about the students, about giving them a gift.”

Kimberly Dougherty, center, appears on stage with her students at Suncoast High School in Riviera Beach, Fla.

(Credit:CBS)

For Dougherty, that means using much of her own money — thousands — on costumes; on flying-in a world-renowned fencer to teach stage combat; on bringing in one of the best ballet teachers to do the choreography.

And the hours?

“If she logged all the hours she put in she’d probably make the school district go bankrupt,” said one student.

The kids say they really don’t want to ever lose her.

“Without her, we literally have nothing here,” another student said.

They really don’t want to ever lose her.

“I thought it was just a bad rumor,” said another student. “And then she said it herself. and I — I still couldn’t believe it.”

Until recently, Dougherty had been keeping a secret from everyone at Suncoast, fighting in a drama beyond her direction.

She has cancer; stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

What does that mean in terms of prognosis?

“Ninety-five percent dead within five years,” Dougherty says. “Generally within a year or a year and a half.” She draws a line across her neck. and laughs. She was diagnosed more than four and a half years ago.

Her attitude about it is almost disconcerting. for her, cancer is a comedic tragedy.

“When you lose your sense of humor,” Dougherty said. “I don’t care — healthy, not healthy, you lose your sense of humor you might as well just start digging your own grave. Seriously, just give it up. give up the ghost.”

The kids sure believe her.

“If anyone is going to kick stage 4 pancreatic cancer’s butt it’s mrs. Dougherty,” one said

So Dougherty is making plans — “We will be back in February with Moon over Buffalo. We have Pippin, our musical, in April. Next year we’re back with Taming of the Shrew,’ she tells a cheering audience.

Plans for more plays. but no plans for any curtain calls.

<a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57340647/teaching-love-of-drama-no-curtain-call-planned/tag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18563_162-57340647/teaching-love-of-drama-no-curtain-call-planned/Sat, 10 Dec 2011 02:10:26 GMT”>Teaching love of drama (no curtain call planned)

There is a saying: when you marry your mistress, you create a vacancy. I think that is what has happened with me and animal print. I started out a decade ago secretly crushing on leopardprint, and ended up buying a leopard Betty Jackson jacket and a leopard Mulberry Alexa bag. what began as a affair became a matter of record.

Don’t get me wrong: I will always love leopardprint. but leopardprint love has gone mainstream, adopted as an exciting fashion statement by middle-aged female politicians. Nothing wrong with that, obviously, but fashion, like nature, has a cruel food chain, and leopard has been relegated by the fashionables to second-tier status. If one had to have the it’s-not-me-it’s-you conversation with a coat, I’d have had it this year with the leopard number. that coat is now no longer to be relied on as a get Out Of Jail Free card if the fashion police come calling. sometimes, it stays home alone on Friday nights while I’m out on the town.

Recently, dalmatian print has been making eyes at me. I wasn’t interested at first, but one day I found myself in Topshop, stroking the arm of the bomber-jacket version of the coat I’m wearing here. (Yes, the scale of this coat is slightly insane, but it makes for an arresting picture.)

Dalmatian can never be a grand amour. Leopard may have slutty undertones, but dalmatian has silly ones, and slutty gives you a lot more to work with, fashion-wise. Leopard conjures up the African plains, whereas dalmatian can claim only Regent’s Park by way of exotic pedigree. On the other hand, dalmatian is monochrome, which means that – if you abstract the print a little, and stay away from anything fluffy, or with comedy ears – it should, in theory, look rather elegant. It was, after all, the go-to look of that ultimate vamp, Cruella de Vil. The full-length fur look is to be avoided but I’m picturing a blouse, or maybe an ankle boot. and I have to admit, I’m tempted.

Link to this video

• Jess wears blouse £29.99, by Zara.Jeans £139, by Calvin Klein Jeans.Coat £350, by Topshop Unique.Shoes from a selection, by Jason Wu.

Photograph: David Newby for the Guardian. Hair and make-up: Celia Burton at Mandy Coakley.

<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/fashion/2011/dec/09/dalmatian-print-jess-cartner-morley?newsfeed=truetag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.guardian.co.uk/fashion/2011/dec/09/dalmatian-print-jess-cartner-morley?newsfeed=trueFri, 09 Dec 2011 23:00:28 GMT”>How to dress: dalmatian print

By Chelsea ClintonRock Center special correspondent

As I started to think about my first ‘making a Difference’ segment, I knew I wanted to focus on an organization that was scalable – either in the sense that it could be serving more people if it were to have more resources, or it could be a potential model for other communities.  I certainly found it in the incredible work of the non-profit Targeting our People’s Priorities with Service (TOPPS), in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, and its founder miss Annette Dove.  TOPPS meets every need of her kids all under one roof.  the program provides them with a safe place to do their homework and socialize after school; tutoring help; mentoring programs; the opportunity to visit colleges and the world beyond Pine Bluff; and healthy meals and snacks.  miss Dove also helps teach kids how to cook and make nutritious meals out of what their families receive from the food bank or the Salvation Army.  on an average day, TOPPS feeds 280 kids, a number that rises to 440 in the summer.  often, TOPPS feeds kids’ parents too – there are some days when TOPPS feeds 500 people, and even more in the summer. 

Dozens of kids participate in the daily tutoring programs and close to 100 make the commitment to participate in the mentoring programs that target young girls, older girls and high school-age boys.  the waiting list to get into the programs is far greater than the number of kids currently enrolled.  miss Dove is incredibly – and justifiably – proud that the students in the tutoring programs, and particularly those in the mentoring program, stay out of trouble and see their grades improve.  five students from the older boy’s mentoring program, led by miss Dove’s son Michael, went to college last year – five boys who may not have graduated high school without miss Dove and Michael’s leadership and support.  many students told us that without miss Dove in their lives, they would be failing school, have dropped out, be locked away in juvenile detention or jail, or possibly even be dead.

As miss Dove told us, she fills the gaps she sees in her kids’ lives and in her community.  She started TOPPS with the community reading program RIF (Reading Is Fundamental) in 2002 serving a handful of kids.  in the decade since she founded TOPPS, miss Dove and her team, including all four of her grown children, have affected thousands of kids’ lives.  Beyond the direct services TOPPS provides, miss Dove goes with kids to their juvenile hearings, their teacher conferences, sometimes even to talk to parents with substance abuse problems about getting sober and back on track. 

In Pine Bluff, Arkansas, a community with one of the highest per capita crime rates in the country and where more than 75% of kids are on reduced or free lunch plans, miss Dove helps kids be kids – and gives them the support, nourishment and love to give them a chance to grow up into responsible adults.  Mayor Carl Rebus said he couldn’t imagine Pine Bluff without miss Dove and TOPPS.  Lieutenant Shirley Warrior from the Pine Bluff Police Department told us that she, the Police Department broadly and the juvenile justice system all refer kids to miss Dove.  miss Dove’s impact extends far beyond the thousands of kids she’s helped and the hundreds she serves daily – she’s affected the city of Pine Bluff and how it sees its future.  her city, her family, her staff and, most importantly, her kids at TOPPS all say miss Dove is, indeed, making a difference. 

To learn more about miss Dove, her story and why I find her, her family and TOPPS so inspiring, please tune in to NBC’s Rock Center on Monday, December 12, at 10 pm/9 central.

<a href="http://rockcenter.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/09/9332136-making-a-difference-helping-kids-be-kids-with-support-nourishment-and-lovetag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://rockcenter.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/09/9332136-making-a-difference-helping-kids-be-kids-with-support-nourishment-and-loveFri, 09 Dec 2011 23:03:53 GMT”>Making a Difference: Helping kids be kids, with support, nourishment and love

A very beautiful track that combines an atmosphere full of love with all the elements needed to get me on the dancefloor. and besides the track is very personal for me: it’s my girlfriend singing, so playing it always brings her a bit closer for a moment.

I found it in 1994/95 in a shop in the south of Germany and immediately fell in love. It’s still one of my all-time favourites.

It’s definitely one of the records of 2011 for me. I like the way that he combines elements of the African original with house music. I hardly saw anyone charting it, but maybe I just read the wrong charts.

A magical and very funky disco boogie track from the beginning of the 80s with the power to cheer you up in many situations of life.

I love the crisp and jacking rhythms, and the hookline that’s got some kind of soul feeling as a counterpart to the drum programming. The whole track is a piece of gold for me.

A wonderful track that’s cheesy in a good way. My girl once played it for me and it kept me soppy for ages.

A beautiful track that has everything to warm the heart of anyone, not only clubbers.

Levon played this track at a Süd Electronic party in London at the end of last year and the whole place went nuts. The track has a bit of rave appeal in a more sophisticated way.

A very warm and emotional track that brings back great memories from my first days of going out to house music. it gives me goosebumps whenever I hear it.

Tama Sumo plays Fabric, EC1, Sat; The Warehouse Project, Manchester, Fri

<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/dec/10/tama-sumo-q-and-a?newsfeed=truetag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2011/dec/10/tama-sumo-q-and-a?newsfeed=trueSat, 10 Dec 2011 00:07:06 GMT”>Tama Sumo Q&A

Co-founder and chairman of Australian online retailer Deals Direct, Paul Greenberg, tells Business Spectator’s Alan Kohler and Stephen Bartholomeusz:

Deals Direct is currently "hammering" offline competitors like Myer, growing at an annual rate of between 30 and 50 per cent

Deals is keeping its distribution via third parties to a minimum, still keeping the bulk of its operations centralised at a 40,000 square metre warehouse in Sydney’s west

He says in the last 12 months Deals has accelerated its movement into the niche vertical business space via a number acquisitions and start-ups

While Deals has considered expansion into New Zealand three or four times, it is focused on opportunities in Australia for the foreseeable future

Having James Packer’s Ellerston Capital invest in the business has been nothing but positive

Alan Kohler: OK Paul, well, thanks for joining us. Paul Greenberg: Absolutely. thanks for having me.AK: Can I just at the start ask you whether you’re prepared to tell us any of your numbers? and what’s your turnover?PG: you know, we talk broadly. I mean I think it’s just a moving feast at the moment. I’ll give you some idea of range, but in terms of the actual specifics, probably best not at this stage.AK: Right. Well, go ahead.PG: ok, so I think for July ’11 to June ’12 we should be nudging around that $150 million mark and I’m hoping for the calendar year, 2012, we might even hit the magic 200. That’s the kind of ballpark numbers that are being bounced around at the moment.AK: Right. So, that would make you by far Australia’s largest department store. is that correct?PG: Well, I think online again, you know, lies, lies and damned statistics, a lot of numbers being thrown around at the moment. People are using their database size as a metric of strength and obviously revenue, top line revenue. to be frank I’m not really sure the majority of online department stores or retailers are privately owned, so numbers are, you know, perhaps patchy or understated or overstated.AK: But how do you compare with a single Myer store?PG: Oh, we definitely give them a good hammering . I mean I was quite sort of amazed. I think the Myer CEO Bernie Brooks has said that they’re hoping to do, I think, $5 million dollars online this year or something I think, you know, fairly unambitious. So, in terms of online well we would certainly dwarf Myer and then in terms of one of their stores, I’m not sure. I’d imagine we’d be larger than one of their stores. That’s for sure.AK: Right.Stephen Bartholomeusz: Paul, you started this business almost from a standing start in 2004. what sort of compound annual growth rate are you looking at?PG: you know, it would certainly be around the 30, 40 per cent, 50 per cent mark, and the most pleasing thing for us is that we’re managing to hold those off a much higher base, so those early years, it was really talking about hundreds of per cents. Well, 100 per cent of nothing’s nothing, but anyway, we’re still seeing 30, 40, 50 per cent growth. we hope to keep that up for some time yet.SB: So what’s the key to this? I mean, why is it that your sites work?PG: Ah, I think well that’s the million-dollar question. you know the "retail’s detail" is the oldest mantra. I think in retail that goes back many, many decades and I think that’s true. So, I think we’d like to think that, you know, our investing very early on in supply chain and distribution was one of our competitive advantages. I think in the early days of e-commerce there was this rather idealistic view that, you know, you could be a virtual business and of course the ‘eBays’ of the world gave some sort of kind of credence to that, but I think we’ve seen that the dominant players online and of course the guerillas, Amazon, have all invested in supply chain distribution and by definition that end to end fulfilment is really where the, you know, where the secret source lies. So, we’ve got a large 40,000 square metre site out in Sydney’s west and then I think, the other driver has been a focus on customer service. you know, we’re a relatively new business. we haven’t always been very best practice, but we’re giving it a full go to try and keep customers happy because word of mouth is viral. It’s still the biggest driver of growth in the retail sector and it’s the focus on value. I think we’re in a value time in the economy where frugal is the new cool, so yeah, we’re focusing on that – offering great value.AK: Look, in that respect, can you tell us roughly what your margins are?PG: Yeah. Look, the margin blend of a department store is always the beauty of a business like ours. So notoriously consumer electronics is a low margin business, but increasingly we’re finding some of our strongest categories in that hopes for family and lifestyle sweet spots are much higher. we wouldn’t give out our margin numbers, except to say that we’re pretty pleased to not only have maintained them in the increasingly competitive space, but across the business, you know, we’re inching the margin up, so that’s good news because the space is getting very competitive.SB: But are they bigger or smaller than an offline retailer, Paul?PG: I think the reason that we’d argue that the online model at its core is a more efficient model than offline. I think there’s no question about that. So you know the obvious one that we don’t pay retail rents, our shops never close, the tyranny of distance is overcome by the Web. So, I would like to think that we need to work on a much lower GP than our offline cousins to show a better EBIT result.AK: But I guess free delivery eats into your margins. now, that’s the offsetting factor, isn’t it?PG: Yeah. Well, that’s right. I think that’s a very powerful point. I think delivery is very much the meat on the bone. I mean, offline retailers, the delivery is done by their customers who pick it up and lug it to the motor car as I’ve done so many times with two kids in tow. but I’d like to think that we’re getting much more swish around our logistics and shipping and of course the convergence of favourable circumstances. particularly Australia Post’s new management and their CEO Ahmed Fahour is in the paper today saying that parcels are their new rivers of gold and they’ll give it as much love as they can, so we’re in a very sweet spot at the moment.AK: So, you’re using Australia Post?PG: Yeah. Predominantly. I mean Aussie Post for all our smalls. The big uglies as the bigger stuff is affectionately known, Aussie Post, it’s not their sweet spot, but they’re looking at it. but it’s large, mainly Australia Post. and as I understand we’re one of their largest parcel customers, if not the largest.AK: But tell us a bit about how your logistics work. are you despatching everything from that big warehouse in Sydney’s west?PG: Yeah. for now, it’s centralised their distribution which we think is working for us. We’ve got to keep an open mind if the space evolves and decentralise facilities, but for now we’re shipping everything out of a DC. We’ve got a small and robust and growing third party programme, with which we’ve taken a very conservative view. we don’t aim to be a market place. we don’t aim to be another eBay, which although is a lovely business has its own challenges. So, we’re building a small third party programme, so all our rugs for example would come straight from the wholesaler and ship to the end user under our cover because why double handle something as sizeable as rugs. I think perfume is another good example. you have to carry, you know, a thousand lines to have a credible offer. again, we think that’s best handled by a vetted, approved wholesale partner who can ship straight to the customer under our cover meeting on exceeding the KPIs that we set for our own despatch. So, that’s a growth opportunity within our business and something that we’re hastening slowly with.AK: So, do you think in fact over time you might even need less warehousing space, not more?PG: Well, I don’t think so. I mean that would be great, but I think the tide will rise for all boats, so I think our third party programme will get bigger and increasingly we’ll be needing more space. I mean we’ve got some pretty ambitious growth plans so no I don’t think so. you know I think Amazon is a great example, thirty per cent of their revenue now is coming from their third party programmes, but they’re still voracious consumers of warehousing, up and around 25 million square metres undercover currently.SB: Paul, can you tell us a little bit about your sourcing? I mean where do you source from? and as the online retail space gets more crowded, is it becoming harder to get stock?PG: Well, I think you know, good merchants are good merchants and again I think it’s another one of our underlying strengths. you know, Mike Rosenbaum is arguably the best in the game. you know, he’s grown up in this space. We’ve got Harold Newman and Joel Bloom on our board, and as investors who pioneered the discount variety business, particularly the go Lo business. They founded that and built that. So, we love to trade and in terms of our sourcing strategy it’s quite simple. The world’s flat. It’s hyper connected. It’s global. We’ll go anywhere where there’s value. So, of course we source locally and increasingly we’re finding the brands are coming to us. we certainly don’t have a moral issue with parallel importing as long as it’s all kosher and, you know, it’s the right product. and then of course China continues to be the manufacturing centre of the world and we’ve got a very strong presence there with a house brand programme that’s growing. So yeah, we’re swingers. We’ll go anywhere where there’s good product at good prices and really it’s a customer centric journey.AK: You’re obviously a department store in which you’ve got a very, very wide range of products. Another model for online is Ruslan Kogan’s electronics store, which is a niche operator. Do you think the future lies with niche verticals or department stores? Do you think that eventually you’ll need to specialise?PG: Well, I think we are already moving that way. perhaps if I could just add, in the last twelve months we’ve morphed quite quickly from our anchor brand Deals Direct.com.au, which is really the key franchise. we run now a host of verticals and I in fact work for the DealsDirect Group, which is a subtle transition. So, under the DealsDirect Group umbrella you’ve got Deals Direct, as I said that’s our core business, and then we’ve got some very strong growing brands. Supermarket Deals.com.au is starting to hit the straps. We’re having a little play and tickle in the group buying space with a site called Deal me.com.au. we recently acquired a loyalty business in Melbourne called Shoppers Advantage.com.au. and we launch a shoe site in a couple of days called Sole Trove.com.au. So, what you’re looking at is a cradle to grave I suppose retail group, which I suppose in an increasingly fragmented space will wrap around with some form of loyalty programme that will reward customers, our customers for shopping across all verticals.AK: What’s that last thing you mentioned that you’re launching in a couple of days?PG: It’s called Sole Trove. A bit of an interesting name, but anyway, we’re playing aggressively in the shoe space.AK: Oh, that’s shoes.PG: Yes.That’s the hot space at the moment. We’re obviously taking a bit of a cue from Zappa.com, which is doing very well and we think there’s a good local market. We’ve done our homework. We’ve partnered with a very competent wholesaler and distributor of shoe products in Australia and I think it’s going to be a good one.AK: So, you’re launching that from scratch, but you acquired Shoppers Advantage. Do you think you’ll do more acquisition or start from scratch in the future?PG: Well, I think a combination. I mean Shoppers Advantage was a terrific buy. I mean essentially Shoppers Advantage run a lot of member and loyalty sites and white label sites, so they run the BigPond Shopping Solution and they run a number of others, which would give us essentially the largest member base in Australia up and around six million members. now, we wouldn’t own those customers. you know, our relationship at Shoppers Advantage is with a corporate client, but it would give us access. Our content could be funnelled in to this member base and we think this is going to, you know, really take the business to the next level. we don’t know how we’re going to feed six million hungry mouths, but we’ll think of a way. and obviously the guys at Shoppers Advantage could see the benefits because they were struggling with content, but it’s a great business. It’s been around a long time and it does some pretty healthy revenue, makes a bit of money and we were thrilled to pick that business up. but yes, we’re not averse to starting businesses from scratch because we’ve got a pretty sizeable database. The main impediment to launching a start up is where do you get the eyeballs? we don’t have a problem with that.SB: Paul, you mentioned Shoppers Advantage. That was one of a small string of acquisitions you’d made since James Packer invested in the business. is there a core acquisition strategy? I mean what are you looking at when you look at these sites?PG: you know, the beauty of having Ellerston on board is that we can look at anything and everything and they bring some very experienced eyes to the table and they take a bit of pressure off me. They allow Mike and I to and Simon Kelly our CEO to run the shop and they look at these things. So, we’re being approached all the time at the moment. I think a lot of smaller players are recognising the kind of train has left the proverbial station. you know, the big guys are coming, so we’re being approached all the time and I don’t think we’ve got a hard and fast strategy on what that will look like. We’ve just got an open mind. SB: You said the big guys are coming. and they are, aren’t they? Harvey Norman, Myer, DJs, all the Woolies brands are now putting big efforts in to their online presence.PG: Yeah. Yeah.SB: Is that a threat to you or does that just make the space more credible?PG: no. Well, I’ve been on the record for years saying, you know, it’s lonely out here. when are you guys coming? and I think that one of the retardants to the growth in this space is the lack of credibility because the big guys have tried to avoid it rather than embrace it. So, they’re coming later than they should have in my view and I don’t think I’m the only one who has that. and I think they’re going to feel a little bit of the pain of e-commerce school as we felt and continue to feel. It’s not an easy business, but I’m delighted that the space is broadening. Ultimately, I think consumer habits are transitioning, I mean bring it on.AK: Have any of them tried to buy you?PG: Well, you know, I think we’ve certainly had a lot of chats with a lot of people. I mean, we were thrilled. we were looking for the right partnership and the Ellerston one is absolutely perfect. it brings some of the synergies we were looking for. A lot of the offline retail guys that we had spoken to I don’t think fully get our world and I think are getting it, but no doubt they will increasingly stay in touch and if we can hit the big numbers, 500 million, billion, wherever we think we’re headed, well I’m sure they’d like to chat to a business like us, particularly if we can diversify and continue building the customer base.AK: And what about… I mean would you love to chat to Ruslan Kogan for example?PG: Well, I’m a friend of Rus’. I mean I like to think of him… I’m a bit of a mentor. I mean we’re very different people. you know, he brings that brashness of the Gen Y, Gen X. I’m an older bloke. but I think he and I have got… I’ve got a lot of respect for him and I think kind of vice versa. you know he’s the young bull. I’m the old bull.AK: You do electronics too, don’t you?PG: Well, that’s right. I mean it’s a tough game. we don’t do it the way he does it. I mean he’s playing heavily into the two biggest changes in our lifetime: retail with China and this intermediation and the Internet; you know, the three riders of the Apocalypse. I mean he’s right in the zone there and perhaps he brings younger eyes to the thing.AK: But your doing that too.PG: Well, yeah. I mean I think we’ve always recognised that the China direct model will change the face of retail, so we’ve always had a strong footprint in China. from day one really we got on a plane to China. we always could see that the Internet was just going to disrupt traditional channels and that’s proved to be prophetic and yes I am a fan of this intermediation. I think that this capitalist system, I didn’t invent it, it’s pretty brutal and it requires efficiencies and I think a lot of people are starting to feel very uncomfortable with the cosy relationships that are just not working; they’re just not adding value to the chain. So I definitely appreciate that we have to keep our eyes on .AK: And how’s the supermarket vertical going?PG: Well, I think that’s a terrific place to hold. It’s very early days for us. we recognise that in the scheme of things, you know, we’d be a proverbial pimple on a camel’s bum, you know, it’s very, very early, but our customers love it. you know, the media has gone crazy. A Current Affair have popped in every sort of second week to see what we’re doing. I think that there’s a strong need or demand by consumers for a value home delivery proposition. So, very early days. We’re iterating the model. We’re learning by doing. Our customers seem to be enjoying it. It’s obviously growing. I think that just lovely to have a place hold or toe in the water in that space and I think in 2012 we’ll really start unleashing the hounds there and ramping it up.AK: But there have been lots of attempts at supermarket online retailing over 15 years and they’ve never really worked. and you get the sense that the time hasn’t been right. The question, I guess, is whether you think finally the time is coming for that switch to online.PG: Well, I think that the trying has been, I mean I say this with respect: It’s been a grudge service. you know, pricing has often been higher. Woolworths have been known to price higher online than in their stores, which is very counter intuitive. and I think it’s never been an easy business. I should add that I don’t envy the Coles and Woolies model where you have to deliver perishables. We’re not in that space nor do we ever plan to be. We’re very much in the FMCG model, you know, non-perishable goods and we’re certainly watching the growth of Costco. we can see customers don’t mind buying, fours and sixes, inners and outers as long as there’s a value offer there. So we’re quite happy to deal in bricks versus single units. and we will stay away from the perishable stuff, which is a different world altogether.SB: Paul, apart from expanding into new categories, have you looked at expanding into new geographies?PG: Well, funnily enough, I think that’s been one of those quizzical things, the ability to, in this flat, hyper connected world, keep talking about ‘why are you just tucking into Australia’? we just think there’s so much opportunity here. We’ve scoped out New Zealand I’d say three or four times in the last three years and we just don’t see enough compelling evidence to head there. you know, it’s a small population. It’s very well serviced by some pretty nimble e-commerce entrepreneurs over there. It’s still relatively expensive water, although it’s getting cheaper. We’ll have to keep an open mind. you know, New Zealand would be a logical next step and then of course, perhaps, into Singapore, Hong Kong. I don’t know, but you know I think the Ellerston guys were one of the few people who said well we’re glad you haven’t done it because, you know, don’t forget your own backyard, which is still very underserviced and rich with potential. So, I don’t think we should make any apology for the fact that we’re counter intuitively just thinking global, acting local.SB: Has introducing a financial investor to the business had any negative consequences? and I suppose it means at some point they’re going to want an exit.PG: Well, that’s right. I mean, you know, they’ve been very upfront. let me first answer your question saying it’s been absolutely brilliant, so I mean we’ve all read the script and seen the movie where things don’t work out and, you know, entrepreneurs and founders find it troubling. Mike and I have absolutely, embraced these guys. We’re delighted to have Martin Dalgleish on our board. He’s a wonderful operator and we’re all learning from him. Simon Kelly, of course, comes in as our CEO, ex Goodman Fielder and Aristocrat Leisure. He’s obviously played in the big end of town, but a thoroughly nice bloke and a very, very competent operator, a terrific CEO, so culturally he’s been a great fit. and of course, you know, in terms of strategy and acquisitions we’ve got a brains trust that we could only have dreamed of. It’s absolutely brilliant. So, no. to be frank we’re sort of eight, nine months into it and it just gets better and better. In terms of the exit, well I’d imagine they’re more patient investors than most. I think a five year timeline would be a reasonable suggestion that they’d be looking for a return on investment.SB: Last thing, Paul. Christmas is looming. It’s traditionally the season that retailers look forward to. The other guys seem to be struggling a bit. What’s your experience looking like?PG: Well, I mean I’m not gloating, but it goes without saying that we’re absolutely killing it at the moment. I mean Deb Sharkey of eBay said it will be the largest e-commerce week in history this week and she’s right. it has been. So, you know, there’s definitely this is a consumer led transition. Consumers are shopping. They’re just choosing to shop smarter, a little wiser. I think there would be plenty of good offline retailers that are going okay, but certainly the channel of choice at the moment is the consumer-direct online model and we’re lucky to have been in the space for a good period of time, so we’re a very lucky and fortunate beneficiary, but we’re not sitting on our laurels. It’s going to be a busy year next year.SB: Paul, we really appreciate your making yourself available.PG: no. Absolutely my pleasure, Stephen and Alan.SB: Thanks a lot.PG: Thank you very much. Keep in touch.SB: Absolutely.Follow @AlanKohler on Twitter

<a href="http://www.businessspectator.com.au/bs.nsf/Article/KGB-Deals-Directs-Paul-Greenberg-pd20111208-PC66M?opendocument&src=rsstag:news.google.com,2005:cluster=http://www.businessspectator.com.au/bs.nsf/Article/KGB-Deals-Directs-Paul-Greenberg-pd20111208-PC66M?opendocument”>KGB: Deals Direct’s Paul Greenberg