Word: whirlpools
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...advancing Catholic values. Aquinas has thrown its relatively modest financial weight--it manages some $170 million-- behind the pro-life cause, arguing in its promotional literature that "investing in companies that are involved in abortions would be material cooperation with evil at a minimum." In addition to lobbying Whirlpool and other firms that once donated to Planned Parenthood, Aquinas leans on drugmakers, hospitals and insurance companies whose stock the funds own to quit offering contraceptives or abortion services. Aquinas joined other investors in petitioning executives at Disney and Best Buy until both companies took steps to closely monitor products that...
...appliances because you give to Planned Parenthood ... Probably zero, right?" Rauscher asks. "But how many people who are pro-life [would not buy one]? You may get a certain percentage of the public who says, 'I'm just not going to buy their appliances because of that.'" Whirlpool says its changed donation policy was a response to customer pressure, including boycott threats, not Aquinas' efforts. Walt Disney and Best Buy declined to comment...
...America, but the company has to keep the name fresh. Though it has cast a younger, buffer repairman, Maytag has been selling the same idea--we're the old reliable--even as consumers' tastes shifted toward more sophisticated products. That left an opening for specialty lines from GE and Whirlpool and upstarts like LG and Samsung. Thanks to stylish marketing, those brands are synonymous with high-end, high-quality products. LG has a deal to sell its products in Home Depot, Samsung at Lowe's. Maytag just lost its space at Best Buy to Whirlpool. Who needs nostalgia when...
...Newton, Iowa, Maytag's home since 1893, news that the troubled appliance maker would be sold has stirred up a host of emotions. "It's a fear of the unknown, and there's plenty of unknowns around here these days," says resident Jim McCleary. Maytag is weighing bids from Whirlpool and a private-equity firm, Ripplewood Holdings. Meanwhile, many of the 2,800 Maytag employees in Newton--18% of the population--are worried that they will lose their jobs. Others are sad to watch the Maytag legacy go on the block. Mary Ergenbright's father was a Maytag clerk...
...Maytag's competitors in Asia can take advantage of cheaper labor costs, but LG's and Samsung's real advantage is quality: $1,000 washing machines compete with the best ones from GE and Whirlpool. "They're really competing on products, not price," says Eric Bosshard, an analyst at FTN Midwest. Maytag has been slow to keep up; its last new front-loading washer debuted in 1997. Until those new product lines are ready, Maytag can't take advantage of lower costs at its newer, more efficient plants in South Carolina and Mexico, which make them. To stay afloat...