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This year, Minneapolis author Louise Erdrich was recognized with an American Book Award for her 14th novel, The Round House.

Erdrich’s novel, set on an American Indian reservation, tells of a teenage boy’s struggle in the aftermath of an attack on his mother. 

The American Book Awards “celebrates the diversity of the country’s literature,” according to an article in the Star Tribune. The awards were established in 1980 by the Before Columbus Foundation, a nonprofit organization, founded by author-poet-playwright Ishmael Reed, that promotes multicultural literature.

A ceremony for the 34 authors who received awards took place at the Miami Book Fair International last month. Erdrich is also the owner of Birchbark Books, an independent bookstore in Minneapolis.

The awards don’t involve a cash award or individual competitive categories, the story adds. 

Source: Star Tribune 

Minneapolis-based Target Corporation ranked fifth on a list of the 25 "most inspiring" companies in the United States, according to a list compiled by management consulting firm Performance and reported in Forbes.
 
The company polled just under 5,000 consumers, asking them which five companies they found most inspirational, and why they chose those businesses.
 
Target ranked high on the list for using its profits and brand influence toward philanthropic efforts. Another top reason for Target's ranking was that the company's employees appear passionate about their work. The retailer made last year's list as well, coming in at the number three spot.
 
Rounding out the top five in this year's list were Microsoft, The Walt Disney Company, Walmart, and Chick-Fil-A.

Food and restaurant site The Daily Meal highlighted the importance of farmers markets in a recent feature designed to showcase them--101 Best Farmers Markets in America.
 
Six local markets landed on the list, with St. Paul Farmers Market coming in at the no. 5 spot. Others included Midtown Farmers Market, Kingfield Farmers Market, Northeast Farmers Market, and Fulton Farmers Market.
 
To get the results, the site ranked markets based on the quality, number, and variety of products sold, the availability of each vendor's background information, what people are saying online about the market, and any awards or other recognition received.
 
"Farmers' markets are a place where the community comes together to support each other and the sustainable practices farmers use to produce," the article notes. "Farmers are the backbone of our food supply, and we love meeting and getting to know the people who grow what we eat at our local farmers' market."

Brand consulting firm Interbrand recently released its annual list of "Best Retail Brands" in the nation, and Minnesota-based Target and Best Buy both found a spot.
 
Target was second on the list, just behind Walmart. The retailer's sales and revenue grew last year, and store remodels helped to freshen some locations. Also, the first City Targets opened in three cities, and many retail analysts praised the move as a new approach that could impact Target's future operations.
 
Best Buy ranked at number 13 on the list, and showed a steep decline in "brand value" as defined by Interbrand. In the past five years of the Interbrand list, Best Buy has usually made the top 10, and this is the first time it's dropped below that higher ranking.
 
Other companies in the top 10 include The Home Depot, Amazon.com, CVS, Coach, Walgreens, Sam's Club, eBay, and Nordstrom.

Advertising and branding industry magazine Adweek recently singled out "Five Famous Female Frontwomen," and Minneapolis-based General Mills won a spot on the list for its iconic creation, Betty Crocker.
 
The persona was first created in 1921, when Gold Medal Flour wanted a personalized way of responding to customer letters. Advice from "Betty" was so popular that the company created a full-blown character in 1936.
 
The article notes that Betty's appearance has been updated seven times since then, transforming her from "a matronly lady to one who today embodies four brand attributes: She's resourceful, committed to family, community-minded, and likes to bake."
 
Other frontwomen who made the list are Progressive's Flo, Mrs. Butterworth, M&M's Ms. Brown, and the Chicken of the Sea mermaid.

Minneapolis-based Blu Dot, purveyor of modern furniture, created a Twitter-based contest that had participants scrambling for virtual seats.
 
Based on the children's game of musical chairs, the promotion rewarded participants for Tweeting a specific phrase that appeared on the company's microsite during a specified time. Up-and-coming band Doppio played a tune and when the music stopped, the Tweeting began.
 
Over a period of 10 days, the number of "spots" dwindled until one winner got a real-world chair as a prize.
 
As reported by online marketing publication ClickZ, the game was developed by local creative agency mono, and significantly boosted Blu Dot's number of Twitter followers. 

Digital coupon distribution is increasing quickly, according to analysis by Minneapolis-based Marx, a division of Kantar Media that tracks consumer promotions.
 
As reported in Supermarket News, websites monitored by Marx showed a 30.5 percent increase in digital coupon "events" during the first nine months of 2012. Those sites include several large supermarket and drug store chains.
 
It's likely that consumers were responding to more offers; nearly 700 manufacturers distributed digital coupon offers on the websites during the first three quarters of the year, with food categories showing the largest increase.
 

As reported by MSNBC and several other media outlets including Good Morning America, Today, and the Huffington Post, a retiring Bemidji grocer decided to transfer ownership of three stores to his employees, beginning January 2013.
 
Joe Lueken, owner of Lueken's Village Foods, received multiple offers from large grocery chains as he pondered retirement, but chose to implement an employee stock ownership plan instead, giving the stores to his roughly 400 employees.
 
“My employees are largely responsible for any success I've had, and they deserve to get some of the benefits of that," Lueken told the Star Tribune. "You can't always take. You also have to give back."

Airports across the country are expanding their amenities in an attempt to set themselves apart from rivals, notes USA Today in a recent article about airport perks.
 
The story cites a survey by Airports Council International-North America, which gathered information on 89 airports in the U.S. and Canada. The survey found that hubs are featuring services that range from pet hotels and hair salons to rocking chairs and live jazz.
 
Minneapolis St. Paul airport got a nod for its children's play areas, indoor walking path, and salon services. In the article, airport spokesman Patrick Hogan says, "We believe if people enjoy the airport they're more likely to make connections through [here] as opposed to Chicago or somewhere else. There's a competitive advantage to providing a good airport experience quite apart from revenues."
 

On its inaugural list of America's Best Hipster Neighborhoods, financial magazine Forbes chose Minneapolis' North Loop as one of its picks.
 
To define "hipster," the publication searched through data on more than 250 neighborhoods in the largest U.S. cities, and looked for factors like the number of coffee shops per capita, the diversity of food trucks and farmers markets, walkability, the percentage of residents who work in artistic occupations, and the number of bars and restaurants.
 
The North Loop, also known as the Warehouse District, was recognized as "hipster" for its large warehouse spaces that have been converted to apartments, boutiques, and restaurants. Forbes also added: "Bike trails, a park and an arts collective also boost the hipness quotient." The North Loop came in 12th out of 20 neighborhoods.
 
At the top of the Forbes list was Los Angeles' Silver Lake, San Francisco's Mission District, and Brooklyn's Williamsburg.

Major restaurant, hotel, and nightclub review source Zagat recently released its annual Fast-Food Survey results, and Minnesota-based Caribou Coffee beat out some stiff competition in the quick refreshment category.
 
Although Starbucks was voted most popular in the category, Caribou came out as the leader in terms of service and decor. It also won the "Top Overall" prize in the category, besting competitors like Peet's Coffee and Culver's.
 
For the survey, Zagat took the opinions of over 10,000 voters and divided them into several categories. For top-rated fast food, for example, In-N-Out Burger won in the "large" category, but Wendy's led the "mega" category.

The number of farmers markets is growing across the country, which makes singling out just a few of them a challenging task. But the Mother Nature Network (MNN) was willing to take on the job, highlighting nine markets across the country, including the Minneapolis Farmers Market.
 
"Some of the produce and goods sold here are seldom seen in smaller markets (or in any other markets in the Upper Midwest, for that matter), a product of Minneapolis' diverse population," the article notes.
 
True food aficionados need to visit the market, MNN advises, along with other markets in Portland, Santa Fe, Madison, Hilo, HI, New Orleans, and Chicago.

Lifestyle magazine Whole Living recently showcased Minneapolis as a top destination spot, in a July/August feature titled "10 reasons to love Minneapolis."
 
The article singled out Red Stag Supperclub and Spoonriver as must-visit eateries, with a nod toward Peace Coffee for its Fair Trade focus and cold press blend.
 
For activities, the magazine recommended hiking through Minnehaha Park, renting a kayak on Lake Calhoun, and visiting the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden near the Walker Art Center.
 
Paper Hat, Design Collective, and Moss Envy were singled out as top shopping locations, and rounding out the list was the Radisson Plaza as an eco-friendly place to stay.

Fifteen companies have been named as the Healthiest Employers of the Twin Cities for 2012, according to the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.
 
The results come from extensive surveys about workplace wellness programs, and include factors such as access to fitness facilities, communication about wellness topics, and disease-management programs.
 
Companies that made the list include Target, StoneArch Creative, Syngenta, Minnesota Elevator, Great River Energy, and Accenture. The Business Journal will hold a special recognition event for the companies in mid-June.

Even with a somewhat improved economy, belts are still tightened when it comes to vacations and extra expenses. Fortunately for the Minneapolis and St. Paul areas, we still have the ability to entertain visitors without risk of giving them sticker shock.
 
A recent study from Livability.com ranked the top 10 most affordable vacation cities in the country. The website took its database of 500 cities and narrowed them down based on factors like availability of discounts on local attractions and quantity of free activities.
 
The Minneapolis area was ranked second on the list, after Louisville, Kentucky. The editors noted: "Explore the City of Lakes and 180-plus area parks, where 81 miles of on-street and 85 miles of off-street trails showcase landscapes and historic neighborhoods."