Fairfield County Business Journal 120114

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FAIRFIELD COUNTY

BUSINESS JOURNAL YOUR ONLY SOURCE FOR REGIONAL BUSINESS NEWS | westfaironline.com

December 1, 2014 | VOL. 50, No. 48

The key to home design

FCBJ this week PUMP RELIEF Dropping gas prices could contribute to big holiday spending … 2

THE LOCAL VAULT FILLED WITH STYLISH FINDS

LETTER TO THE EDITOR Doctors Express chief makes case for backing enhanced Medicaid rate … 7

BY MARY SHUSTACK mshustack@westfairinc.com

T

the whole story. The state experienced its eighth consecutive month of employment growth in October, adding 3,600 jobs, the state Department of Labor reported. The unemployment rate was 6.4 percent in October, unchanged from September,

he Local Vault has opened, and its contents are quite stylish. They are also thoughtfully edited, sometimes playful and always community-sourced. TLV is a Greenwich-based online marketplace (thelocalvault.com) designed for buying and selling “pre-loved” upscale home furnishings and decorative accessories. Patricia Espinosa, a Greenwich-based writer whose work has appeared in the FCBJ’s sister publication, WAG, sat down soon after TLV’s early-October launch to discuss the venture in which she is a founding partner. “It’s exciting. It’s been a whirlwind,” she said of the business that taps into her longtime love of interior design, treasure-hunting and writing. TLV teams her with fellow Greenwich residents Julie Rubich and Betsy Perry and Perry’s sister, Joannie Buhrendorf of Fairfield. Together, the women have decades of experience in design, event planning, real estate staging, marketing, photography and writing. Espinosa said each partner draws on her background and personality to contribute everything from photography to networking to, yes, a sense of humor and whimsy. TLV, she added, has an edge. “The secret sauce is that it’s hyper-local. We’re really targeting a one-hour radius,” focusing on the region the partners know so well. “This area has its own look, its own style,” she said. And it has its own needs. Sometimes, Espinosa said, it’s a client moving quickly for a job. “It’s such a stressful thing,” Espinosa said.

» JOBS, page 3

» VAULT, page 6

EASING A BURDEN Wells Fargo offers student loan modifications … 10 MOVING ON State insurance commissioner returning to the private sector … 13

NETWORKING x4 CHAMBERS TEAM TO BOOST ECONOMY For story, see page 4

MEDIA PARTNER

Marcia O’Kane, executive director, Greeenwich Chamber of Commerce. Photo by Bill Fallon

Job numbers obscure some economic realities WORKFORCE OFFICIAL CALLS ATTENTION TO STRUGGLING PART-TIMERS

BY CRYSTAK KANG ckang@westfairinc.com

C

onnecticut’s recession recovery held steady in October, according to preliminary job statistics from the state, but the head of this region’s workforce development board says the unemployment rate doesn’t tell

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