If it’s March, it’s time to head for Germany.

The better-than-expected jobs report for December is likely to continue a trend of improving consumer confidence. Both Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers and The Conference Board reported upticks in their confidence indices in December. The UM Consumer Sentiment Index rose to 69.1 from 64.1 in November, while The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index…

Nonfarm payroll employment increased by 200,000 net jobs in December, while the unemployment rate ticked down another 0.1 point to 8.5%, the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Jan. 6. The monthly jobs increase, while far short of that needed to put 13.1 million unemployed Americans back to work, was still an unexpected positive surprise…

George Hohl Jr., CEO of United Way, 1080 Washington St., Kansas City, Mo., 64105 or the

Edward Herbst, longtime manufacturer’s representative and owner of The Ed Herbst Co., in Chicago, died Dec. 17. He was 91. During his career, Mr. Herbst was an active member of the Manufacturers’ Agents Association for the Food Service Industry. Services were held Dec. 22.

Every individual makes a mark, and Norman “Gus” Gustafson, the founder of

Steve Tallent is taking on the post of director of sales-western region for

Master-Bilt is part of the Standex Food Service Equipment Group. “We made a financial decision as a company to invest in our continued growth. We knew we needed to get our manufacturers’ products directly in front of our customers, dealers, end-users, chains, and consultants, rather than just the product catalogs,” stated Heartland’s Rocky Brock, a…

Two appointments to announce at