Coldwater Creek Inc. is working to boost its operating margin by buying more of its womens apparel from overseas garment makers directly and is taking steps to keep tabs on conditions at its suppliers factories. Separately, it plans to launch a

It used to be a big deal. Spokanes downtown skywalk system, once thought to be the second most extensive in the country, teemed with retailers, and shoppers walked it like a mall.Today, more than 40 percent of the spaces in the 15-block are a

If development activity is any indicator, Interstate 90 is becoming the new Sprague Avenue in the Spokane Valley.The I-90 corridor from about Pines Road east to Liberty Lake has seen a host of construction projects in the past year, and several

Group Health Cooperative says it will begin offering a preferred-provider health plan to employers in Spokane County this summer.The plan, called a PPO, or preferred-provider organization, will be a new option here from Group Health, which has

A Spokane-based company that turns what otherwise might be bad debt or charity care at hospitals into much-needed revenue moved here last year from Seattle partly because of its close relationship with Spokanes two largest hospitals.The Inc.,

Demand for temporary help in several segments of the health-care industry started to rebound recently following a slump, and remains high in other parts of the industry, such as home care and rehabilitation services, say temp-help agencies say the

Buying a former rental car is an increasingly popular option for consumers here who are leery of high-pressure sales tactics and vehicle prices at other used-car lots, say rental car agencies and credit unions.Whats more, the rental companies

Mid-sized sedans, the proverbial family car, havent lost their allure amid the consumer rush to SUVs and light trucks, and they still offer a broad range of selection from affordably basic to impressionably ritzy.Four of the 10 top-selling in

Spokane-based Sterling Savings Bank says it plans to open next week its first full-service bank branch in the Boise market and will consider opening additional branches there.The new branch, Sterlings 12th in Idaho, will be located in about a

Rolatape Corp., a longtime Spokane Valley maker of wheeled measuring devices, has been sold to Stanley Works, the New Britain, Conn.-based tool giant, and its operations here are expected to close by the end of the year.Rolatape, which was in a