Business News in Brief

REGION

Wear District schedules grand-opening ceremony

NILES — Wear District will have a grand-opening ceremony at 11 a.m. Thursday in Eastwood Mall. It will occupy the 25,500-square-foot space formerly used by Steve & Barry’s.

Wear District started in March in Grand Rapids, Mich., and earlier this month opened a store in Monroe, Mich. The stores offer brand-name casual clothing at discount prices. The company said it is obtaining merchandise from factories at low prices because other retailers have scaled back orders due to the recession.

NATION

Expert offers advice for your job-hunting network

NEW YORK — Every time you hand out a business card, that contact should also be added to your online social network, experts say. These sites are an opportunity for self-branding and building connections while on the job hunt.

“Connect with as many people as humanly possible,” said Amy Webb, founder of knowledgewebb, a Web site that offers online novices advice on blogging, building Web sites and social media such as Facebook and LinkedIn.

LinkedIn especially works best with stacks of contacts, she said, since it’s meant to help build careers. The broader the net of people your name reaches, the more likely someone will find your name when trying to fill a position.

Don’t be shy, Webb said. Old colleagues, supervisors, professors, classmates, friends — all are appropriate professional contacts.

From Vindicator staff and wire reports