Positive vibes

Enjoy the optimism.
It’s been a long time since the economy produced so much positive data in one week.
First, the state Department of Revenue said Georgia sales tax collections were up $42.2 million, or 10.7 percent, in April. A much healthier economy was a big reason for the increase, Gov. Sonny Perdue said.
Then, Friday, the U.S. Labor Department said employers added nearly 300,000 new jobs in April, lowering the unemployment rate to 5.6 percent. Locally, Gwinnett’s jobless rate has dropped to 3.1 percent — its lowest point since 2001.
Now, if only gas prices would fall.
Open for business
Sears finally got a chance to unveil its new outlet store at Discover Mills.
Computer glitches derailed an April 29 opening, but by Friday the cash registers were ringing.
The Discover Mills store continues an effort by Sears Roebuck & Co. to pick up the pace of opening new outlet centers, bringing the total nationwide to 45. The new Lawrenceville location is the only Sears outlet store in Gwinnett.
Discover Mills management must be smiling to see all its anchor spots filled again. Mall Manager Octavio Ortiz recently said the new theater, which opened in December, is drawing more people to the mall. Adding a store with heavily discounted home appliances may also boost the crowds, given the way the county is growing with new homeowners every day.
New leadership
A fast-growing Norcross company has a new man at the helm.
Immucor Inc., maker of automated systems for blood transfusions, has promoted its president and chief operating officer Gioacchino DeChirico to CEO.
DeChirico’s promotion comes at a key time for the 22-year-old company, which employs about 500 workers worldwide. DeChirico will oversee the launch of the company’s new Galileo system, which already received FDA approval and could find a home in hundreds of U.S. hospitals.
On every corner
It may seem like a new Walgreens drugstore is on every corner — well, at least 12,000 corners. That’s how many stores Walgreens wants to build in upcoming years. Analysts say the rapid expansion — a new store about every 19 hours — is beating top competitor CVS Corp. But what about the little guys? Is the recent closing of Corner Economy Pharmacy in Duluth the death knell for family-owned pharmacies?
No, says David McAnally, general manager of Suwanee-based pharmacy staffing firm Hire Dynamics Rx.
“Both retail chain pharmacies and independents have their advantages, but it is getting tougher for independents to prosper,” he said. “The independents can compete successfully if they provide great service and focus on a niche like diabetes management.”
— The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Doug Sams can be reached via e-mail at doug.sams@
gwinnettdailypost.com. <-->