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My Economy

My Economy tells the story of the new economic normal through the eyes of people trying to make it, because we know the only numbers that really matter are the ones in your economy.
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From This Collection

My Economy

How inflation and "wild weather" are affecting one family farm

by Andie Corban
Sep 27, 2022
Anne Schwagerl, co-owns and operates Prairie Point Farm in Minnesota, where she's experimenting with new crops.
At Prairie Point Farm, Anne Schwagerl says they'll harvest soybeans, then corn. Above, soybeans are planted on a farm.
Phill Magakoe/AFP via Getty Images
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My Economy

The buzz behind TikTok's viral beekeeping and bee removal business

by Anais Amin
Sep 16, 2022
Erika Thompson owns Texas Bee Works, a beekeeping and bee removal company. Like other small businesses, inflation is adding new challenges.
"I had a [TikTok] video of me doing a bee removal that went viral," says beekeeper Erika Thompson. "And that was the first time my life sort of changed."
Aimee Aubin
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My Economy

A veteran navigates life amid job loss and high inflation

by Sarah Leeson
Sep 13, 2022
After being laid off, marketing professional Collin Cook has been pitching himself as a "Swiss Army knife." He's had mixed results.
"You literally go through the five stages of grief" after being laid off, said Collin Cook, who's had trouble finding the right job as a generalist in the marketing field.
David McNew/Getty Images
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My Economy

Like Willy Wonka, this Memphis chocolatier wants his sweets to tell stories

by Sarah Leeson
Sep 5, 2022
With flavors like barbecue, cornbread and banana pudding, Phillip Ashley Rix found an unfilled niche in the luxury chocolate world.
A box of luxury chocolates from Phillip Ashley Rix.
(Courtesy Rix)
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My Economy

Dry cleaner makes the rounds to keep business going

by Anais Amin
Aug 30, 2022
Hangers Cleaners, a Missouri pickup and delivery service, is trying to find the right employees and stay competitive with pay.
"It feels like a family here, but there are limits as far as what we can pay and still have a viable business," said Joe Runyan, co-owner of Hangers Cleaners.
Courtesy Runyan
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My Economy

This Connecticut contractor says rising demand has left him “overwhelmed”

by Richard Cunningham
Aug 25, 2022
Bruce Ridenour has been a contractor for 40 years and said local contractors in Danbury, Connecticut don't have bandwidth to handle all the new demand.
“As the work comes more and more, faster and faster, it just comes more and more to those of us who are left,” Bruce Ridenour said.
ljubaphoto/Getty Images
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My Economy

This fourth-generation farmer cultivates new ideas

by Anais Amin
Aug 23, 2022
Amber Balakian went "to college thinking, 'I'm going to do something else and get away from everything.' I actually ended up coming back."
Amber Balakian, a co-owner of Balakian Farms in Fresno, California. "It's not always easy to make those changes ... but I think it's worth it in the end,” she says.
Ariana Velazquez
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My Economy

The origins of a glass recycling empire

by Sarah Leeson
Aug 19, 2022
The sand Glass Half Full creates from processed bottles is repurposed for flood disaster relief and mitigating coastal erosion, among other things.
Glass Half Full turns the glass it collects into a sand product that can be used in anything from art to disaster relief.
Courtesy Glass Half Full
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My Economy

"Inflation is gut-punching my business," record store owner laments

by Sean McHenry
Aug 12, 2022
Vinyl records are a big part of Phillip Rollins' business at Offbeat in Jackson, Mississippi. But rising costs make them a harder sell.
Phillip "DJ Young Venom" Rollins, of the Offbeat record store and art gallery, would like to see the prices of vinyl records go down. "The demand is up there, just the supply is kind of low."
Courtesy Rollins
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My Economy

Business school felt like a better bet than art, but an adviser encouraged her to take the plunge

by Reema Khrais and Sarah Leeson
Aug 5, 2022
"I know that art is something that I'm very interested in, but I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to make money doing it," says Devin Tormey.
Devin Tormey paints wedding scenes live.
Casey Durgin Photo
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