And Now a Word from the Editor...

HI! Welcome to the first edition of a tradition we like to call the Cheapo newsletter. People have asked me what this is all about. I like to tell them it's about all those boys who became men fighting in the sand somewhere around the world. It's about the courageous women wllo helped bring down a tyrant in the desert, It's about a single soldier who with nothing more than a spool of thread, a bag of Fritos, and a pair of socks plus some good old fashion American ingenuity brought down an entire squadron of Greek sympathizers all by herself. It's about freedom and other American values. It's about all those parades and celebrations and feeling good about ourselves again. We can" promise we will make you think, but we can promise to swell your heart with pride. But if I may be serious for a moment, what you have in front of you is something that is needed here at Cheapo. The goal of the newsletter is to provide a forum, a vehicle to exchange ideas and information, and help meet the communication needs of everyone from the owner all the way down the line (which would be down to me). Some of those needs include recognizing what we do well as well as identifying what we don't do so well and improving those areas. All contributions and feedback are not only welcome, they are truly needed.

As you can see, this first edition is a bit eclectic in both appearance and content. The structure and themes hopefully will become more defined as we go along. There will be several rotating regular features including sections on: V.I.P,'s where proposals both accepted and rejected will be followed up on; news on what the competition is doing that we are not doing but might consider thinking of doing; a "Crystal Ball" section featuring the future direction of Cheapo; monthly measures, the current state of affairs of the company; "Innovations" ideas from employees either through their own imagination and intelligence or perhaps clipped from other sources (as seen in this edition); news on "Hero of the Revolution" and "Grammy" awards; articles on new employees as well as old ones in regards to changing places and new positions; employee surveys and feedback along with customer complaints; upcoming events and new releases; reviews of music and pop culture. These are not only a few of my favorite things but are also features you will see in upcoming issues and hopefully areas you will contribute to. Further ideas or suggestions are welcome. As far as deadlines are concerned, we are going to try and distribute the newsletter as often as possible, so anytime you feel the urge, the desire and the need to express yourself please feel free to do so.

I hope you enjoy this issue as well as learn a little bit more about yourself and your relation to the rest of the world. We hope you have laughed a little, cried a little and improved yourself as a human being. One last thing, please remember there is no smoking in the Metrodome. No smoking. Happy Birthday Mr. McCartney.