Customers

Should I consider changing the frames on my artwork/wall art to keep them looking up to date? It depends on how the frames were chosen initially. If the original design was a trend of the moment, and the look no longer fits the tastes or decor of the owner, definitely change the frame — and most likely the mat, too. If the proper conservation materials are used, the frame will likely never need to be replaced. We like to tell our customers that as much as we enjoy seeing the art and working on it, once the customer takes it home, we hope to never see it again.

As a proud employee of Southwest Airlines, I read your article ("Is Southwest Airlines losing the luv?" Feb. 9) with dismay. Within the article you acknowledge the fact that Southwest is still the only airline allowing two bags to fly free while simultaneously berating the company for "swelling its bottom line. " While most of the reporting in this piece is technically accurate, the omission of information is unfortunate at best and could easily lead readers to believe that the opinions reflected by the few customers quoted here represent a majority.

  Arts and crafts retailer Michaels will give out more than $100,000 in gift cards Sunday at its stores in honor of "Random Acts of Kindness Day. " The Irving, Texas, -based chain, which has 1,100 stores in the U.S. and Canada, handed out the freebies at random last year too, in hopes of encouraging customers to "craft it forward" with their own random act of kindness. The store asks customers to visit Michaels Facebook page this week and share acts of kindness. And they can check Michaels Random Acts of Kindness Pinterest board for ideas for craft projects to give to others.

The online grocer Relay Foods started service in the Baltimore area back in December. Starting this weekend, Relay will offer pickup service for customers who have placed orders online. Previously, the only option for Baltimore customers purchasing groceries from Relay has been home delivery. The pickup locations are Baltimore Clayworks (5707 Smith Ave. in Mount Washington) and in front of Trohv (921 W. 36th St. in Hampden ). The pickups will operate from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

When Baltimore's Gardiners furniture lost a Super Bowl bet with its customers, forced to give away $600,000 in furniture because the Ravens' Jacoby Jones returned a kick return for a touchdown, the store owners couldn't have been happier. Because they didn't have to pay up. Their insurance company did. And now Odds On Promotions president Mark Gilmartin isn't exactly doing the Ray Lewis dance. "It's always good to have winners in our industry," he told Insider Wednesday.

Businesses in Annapolis near where President Barack Obama met with Senate Democrats on Wednesday said road closures for security were affecting them, with some shutting their doors. "I had to shut down until 2. Nobody can get in," said Riccardo Santoro, owner of Varuna Aveda Salon Spa in the Park Place complex, adjacent to the meeting. He said the closing, due to the expected traffic woes, was his decision — and he expected to lose about $1,200 in revenue. City streets closed right around Westgate Circle, where the Westin Annapolis hotel is located.

Three in every 10 Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. customers are buying their electricity through third-party suppliers, continuing a steady trend of increases in recent years, the company said Wednesday. About 30 percent of electricity customers don't purchase their energy from BGE, up from 25 percent at the end of 2011 and 18 percent at the end of 2010, the company said. BGE's natural-gas customers are less likely to switch to third-party providers, though more have done so in the last few years - 22 percent, up from 13 percent at the end of 2010.

I don't agree with Marta Mossburg's usual columns in The Sun, but on the matter of toll collection, I can't help but agree ("In toll crackdown, punishment doesn't fit the crime," Jan. 30). This is government for, by and of the people just taking advantage of ordinary folks. What makes it so bad is that this kind of penalty fee gouging is rampant in our society. Bank fees and the stretching of speed camera laws in Baltimore City, which goes well beyond the stated goal of protecting schoolchildren, are other prime examples.

A San Francisco-based technology company launched an app-based service in Baltimore Thursday that will let customers hire a luxury town car by smart phone. Uber, which bills itself as "Everyone's Private Driver," allows subscribers who download the company app to set their pickup location and request a ride. The company uses GPS technology to find the nearest driver for the pickup. The entire transaction — including 20 percent tip — is processed through the customer's account. Uber charges about double the city's taxi fare schedule but below what it would cost to hire a private car by traditional means.

At first glance, a grass-roots farmers' market in the covered parking lot of a suburban mall seems a bit incongruous. But that's the charm, and convenience, of the Westfield Annapolis Winter Farmers' Market, held every other Sunday at Westfield Annapolis Mall from January into April. Patrons can park their car, pop into Macy's to buy a Gucci handbag or designer sweater, then walk across the lot and stock up on potatoes, turnips, cabbage, eggs and chicken, or enjoy a bowl of homemade Italian chicken and vegetable soup.