Here's yet another sign of the times.

According to Raleigh research firm Sageworks, sales at new car dealerships dropped 12.85 percent in 2008, while sales at auto repair shops rose 2.34 percent. Personally, I've always been a fan of the "drive it until it won't go anymore" philosophy when it comes to cars. But it seems many of you are putting off new car purchases, too.

It should be no surprise that people continue to eat at home more as the economy continues to suffer. Raleigh research firm Sageworks says sales at grocery stores increased at twice the rate of sales at sit down restaurants last year (6.75 percent versus 3.26 percent).

But here's something perhaps a little more surprising: restauranteurs are responding by creating new lines of celebrity-branded food items to sell in grocery stores. A really great example is a new line of soups, pizzas and other products from Wolfgang Puck that has been hitting shelves lately. I'm not sure this strategy will have the appeal companies are hoping for, but I guess it's too early to tell. To read more on this trend, check out this Restaurant News story... 

A little while back, I blogged about the Subway folks coming to Raleigh and auditioning people for those $5 footlong commercials.

I don't know if you were among the people who turned out for the auditions, but Subway has posted a number of the videos of its most recent auditions on its Web site. You can view the competition and vote for your faves here... 

For those of you who like to access Taking Stock from your Web-browsing phones, we have created a special mobile version of this blog for you.

The mobile version is streamlined and does not contain the coupon database at the top of the page for faster loading time. But there are handy links to Wednesday Deals and the coupon database at the top of the mobile page if you want to access those features.

You can find it here, or there's now a link for Taking Stock mobile at the top of my regular page near my picture. I feel so high-tech!

This weekend, we ran a story about an increase in the number of restaurants allowing patrons to bring their own wine instead of purchasing from the restaurant's wine list. In response, I heard from reader Jack, who wanted to know if I could ask readers who happen to be restaurant owners to post their BYOB policies.

Like many people, Jack has been frustrated when he calls a business to inquire about their policy and then arrives at that business only to be told something else by employees. This way, it will be in writing.

So, if you own a restaurant and have a BYOB policy you would like to share, please post it here. Please also include your name and title so that we know who is offering the information.

Recently a friend of mine got married, and rather than registering for gifts at her favorite stores, she and her fiance requested donations to their favorite charities. Charitable wedding gifts are definitely a growing trend. But it seems the traditional registry is still maintaining a strong foothold.

The NPD Group recenty surveyed brides about the process of registering for gifts and found that 60 percent of women said their in-store experiences played a role in where they chose to register. Ninety percent said they were happy with the registry process. What about you? Where did you register, and were you satisfied in the end?

Awhile back, I asked readers of this blog to share their kudos for local companies that had impressed them with their customer service. Some of the stories were really great, and we ended up publishing a bunch of them in the newspaper.

I thought it was so fun that I want to ask again. So if you want to share a story about a local business that has really gone above and beyond, here's your chance to give that company or its employees a very public shout out. If you participated before, please don't share the same story/company. But you are free to share another story. Be aware that your comments may appear in the paper. And, if you are interested in reading the original post with all the comments, you can find that HERE.

Today's Lowes Foods ad inspired me to write this post about why paying attention to prices is the most crucial thing you can do in your quest to save money.

In today's Lowes ad, Hellmann's mayonnaise is on sale buy one get one free. Each jar will ring up at half price, at $2.47. If you use the 60-cent coupon from Jan. 18, it will double, making your final price $1.27 per jar. That is a much better bargain than the deal you would have gotten last week at Harris Teeter during triple coupons. There, the mayo would be $4.99 regular price, minus the 60-cent coupon tripled, for a total of $3.19.

You tell me... which is the better deal? It is true that often the prices during triple coupons are the lowest you will find, but that is not always the case. Being an educated shopper and not guessing will be one of your most valuable money-saving tools. All I can say is that I will be headed to Lowes to get some mayo this week...

We are now just about three months through 2009, so I thought this would be a good chance to do a first-quarter check in.

I know some of you set ambitious savings goals for 2009. I know some of you are tracking your savings this year. (The spreadsheet for tracking is on the left under the coupon database if you'd like to start!)

So how are you doing? Let's hear all about it!

This is also a chance to share and ask questions. Is there some aspect of savings you'd like to know more about? Or a particular issue you are having? Maybe your fellow savvy shoppers can help you out!

KFC has launched a new marketing strategy that is getting a lot of attention.

Instead of spending money on TV ads or fancy marketing campaigns, KFC is now going around its hometown of Louisville, Ky., fixing potholes. Once fixed, the newly smoothed-over potholes are stenciled with a white chalk logo that says "Re-freshed by KFC." The chain says it will choose four other U.S. cities for the pothole promotion. Talk about street-level marketing...