North Douglas Herald
Business Matters
April 2024
Page 11
Sponsored By Zolezzi Insurance Agency
A Better Brand of Insurance Service
Has New Management Oregon AG Acts To Stop Kroger-Albertons Merger
A Family Legacy
By Bonnie Pyles
After 29 years in business, Bonnie Py-
les (Morgan) is turning over the manage-
ment of her store, Exclusively Bridal, to
her granddaughter Morgan Heuer. Bon-
nie started the store on April 16, 1995.
With the purchase of the Evans Shop
from Jigs Evan’s, she started remodeling
the once western wear store into a bridal
store. Bonnie has been selling gowns
to brides in the surrounding counties of
Douglas, Lane and Coos ever since. But
it went beyond there to all of Oregon, and
into Washington and California. Even
girls in Alaska, Montana, Florida and
Japan have purchased gowns from Ex-
clusively Bridal, to name a few.
“From the very beginning, it’s been
a wonderful venture! I thank God for
making it succeed.” says Bonnie. “I’ve
met so many wonderful people and have
had the privilege to help them with one
of the most important days of their lives.”
There came a time when I realized I was
helping the daughters of my brides find
their dream dress! What a beautiful feel-
ing to have the second generation trust
me with their own special moments.”
Bonnie will still be working at the store.
She is just cutting back her hours.
“Morgan has practically grown up at
the store. She has been an entrepreneur
from a very young age. Selling black-
berry shortcakes at the age of 6, dreaming
up the idea of selling brides photos of
themselves, shopping for their gowns at
age 9, along with bringing back the Cake
Castle Cookies and making a business of
it to pay her own way to Washington DC
at the age of 12. For her Senior Project
she designed eight wedding gowns and
had them manufactured. They were
presented at a fashion show in Eugene
and were sold at the store. Morgan has
modeled 108 times on the runway since
she was two years old. Several years ago,
she started running the fashion shows for
Bonnie. “I’ve always known Morgan
would be a good addition to my business.
Her talents, abilities and marketing skills
are management material. I am excited
for the future.” says Pyles when asked
about her granddaughter.
“As a little girl I would always ask
my grandmother when she would give
me the store. I didn’t think of the pos-
sibility, that I would get the opportunity
to manage it as I got older. Growing up
in this shop has led to so many wonderful
opportunities for me, and I am beyond
grateful for my grandmother’s faith in me
to manage the store that she has invested
blood, sweat and tears into. I just pray
that God guides us through this adventure
and that most of all I make my grandma
proud.” says Morgan.
Dorothy has been alongside Bonnie
every step of the way. “Being her mother,
it has been an honor to work with her and
I have taken a lot of pride in the business
as I have seen it grow over the years”.
said Dorothy. She used to work the floor,
run the tuxedo area, do the linen washings
and ironings, and the bookwork. Her cur-
rent age is limiting some of the things she
can do, but she is still very much a part of
the business as she does most of the office
work and helps with sales at the counter.
The seamstress for Exclusively Bridal
has been with the business for 27 years.
Sherri Tinnes has been dedicated to being
the best in the industry. A lifetime friend
of the family she has been much more
than just an employee, donating her time
outside of her job description. Sherri and
her expertise will continue with Exclu-
sively Bridal.
The Bridal store will be 29 years old
April 16. Exclusively Bridal is looking
forward to celebrating their 30th anni-
versary next year, bigger and better than
ever.
Story by Milo Banks
In February, Attorney General
Ellen Rosenblum joined the Federal
Trade Commission and a bipartisan
coalition of attorneys general from
across the nation in acting to block the
proposed Kroger-Albertsons merger.
Oregon, the FTC, and the other
AGs filed to enjoin the merger in
U.S. District Court in Portland. This
followed a vote by FTC commissioners
Monday morning; it is the result of
thorough investigations by the FTC and
the states into the proposed merger’s
anticipated effects.
“We are doing this to protect
Oregon consumers and workers,”
said AG Rosenblum. “We believe this
proposed merger would hurt both, and
we’re doing our part to prevent it from
going forward.”
Kroger and Albertsons are the
nation’s two largest grocery chains. In
Oregon, the two corporations operate
176 stores, serving nearly every
community in the state. Kroger operates
51 Fred Meyer and 4 QFC stores, while
Albertsons operates 96 Safeway and 25
Albertsons stores.
The lawsuit seeks to block the
proposed Albertsons-Kroger merger.
The FTC, Oregon, and the other states
participating in this legal action allege
the proposed merger would violate the
federal Clayton Act. That act prohibits
acquisitions which may substantially
lessen competition.
“If big grocery stores are allowed
to reduce competition this way,” said
Rosenblum, “they can charge higher
prices for food for no good reason
and reduce services, including in their
pharmacies. They can also slow the
growth of employees’ wages, or even
reduce some of those wages. Working
conditions and employee benefits can
suffer, as well. In short, there’s no
good for consumers or workers in this
proposed merger — and lots of bad.”
Oregon Department of Justice and
Federal Trade Commission investigators
found compelling evidence that direct,
head-to-head competition between
Kroger and Albertsons has forced the
two chains to compete vigorously
against one another — both on price
and on the quality of goods and services
offered at their stores. This competition
has also benefitted workers, by
producing higher wages, better benefits,
and improved working conditions.
“This supermarket mega-merger
comes as American consumers have
seen the cost of groceries rise steadily
over the past few years. Kroger’s
acquisition of Albertsons would lead
to additional grocery price hikes for
everyday goods, further exacerbating
the financial strain consumers across
the country face today,” said Henry
Liu, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of
Competition.
Joining Oregon and the FTC in
the lawsuit are Arizona, California, the
District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland,
Nevada, New Mexico, and Wyoming.
Colorado and Washington have already
filed lawsuits to stop the merger in their
respective state courts.
ODFR Encourages Consumers to check with their Insur-
ance Carriers about Lowering Premiums if Credit Improves
The Oregon Division of Financial Regulation
(DFR) has issued a $200,000 fine against State
Farm after the company failed to send notices
over the past six years informing its insureds of
their ability to request an annual credit check,
which could affect their premiums. Half of the
total fine will be suspended and waived after three
years if State Farm complies with all terms of the
final order.
This case serves as an important reminder that
Oregon law allows consumers to request an annual
rerate from their insurer, which could lead to lower
premiums, but will not increase them.
State Farm self-reported the violations to DFR
in July 2023, informing the division that notices
were not sent out due to a system error. Because
of that error, the notification required by ORS
746.650(5) and OAR 836-080-0438 were not sent
to customers purchasing new automobile insurance
policies between Dec. 5, 2017, and Feb. 23, 2023.
Specifically, State Farm did not notify the affected
consumers at the inception of their coverage that
they may have received a lower rate if their credit
history or the credit factors used in their credit-
based insurance score were more favorable, and
that they had the right to request a rerate of the
policy no more than once annually. State Farm
notified the division that the issue was corrected on
Feb. 23, 2023, for any customers purchasing new
policies after that date.
As part of DFR’s final order, State Farm agreed
to send a notification to all affected consumers who
remain customers of State Farm, approximately
134,690 consumers. State Farm began sending
notices on Jan. 2, 2024, through a mailing that is
separate and apart from the annual policy renewal
documents or any other communication. The
Story by Scooter Brown
mailing also includes a statement that Oregon
law requires State Farm to provide a notification
to customers at the inception of the policy. All
mailings must be completed no later than June
30, 2024.
The division, part of the Oregon Department
of Consumer and Business Services (DCBS),
encourages all consumers to check with their
insurance agent or company to see if a credit
check would lower their insurance premiums.
Consumers are allowed to do a rerate once a year
and if their credit improves, their insurance rates
may as well. Rerating due to credit may result in
either improving or no change to a consumer’s
insurance costs, but will not negatively affect it.
“We commend State Farm for self-reporting
this violation and taking steps to rectify the
situation,” said Andrew R. Stolfi, Oregon’s
insurance commissioner and DCBS director. “It
is important that Oregon consumers know their
rights. State law permits insurance companies
to use an individual’s credit history to determine
how much they pay for insurance, so it is critically
important that consumers know they have the
ability to lower their insurance premiums with
positive credit.”
Consumers with questions or complaints can
contact DFR’s consumer advocates at 888-877-
4894 (toll-free) or email dfr.insuranchelp@dcbs
.oregon.gov. Consumers can look at their credit
reports each calendar year for free by accessing
it online, by phone at 877-322-8228 (toll-free),
or by completing and mailing the Annual Credit
Report Request Form. If any errors are identified,
consumers have the right to correct incomplete or
inaccurate information with the credit reporting
agent that provided the information.