Business Notes NEWSPAPERS

New York City is a tough town for newspaper competition, but an upstart called Street News has a lot going for it. The monthly newspaper features writers such as pop stars Patti LaBelle and Gloria Estefan, and ads from Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream. Most important, the non-profit Street News has a highly motivated, 50-member sales staff: homeless people who work strictly on commission. To apply for the job, "you don't even need clean clothes," says SN editor Hutchinson Persons, a rock musician and founder of a coalition to help the homeless.

For each 75 cents issue sold, the salesperson keeps 55 cents, including a nickel that goes into a mandatory savings plan that can be used only to obtain an apartment. Some vendors earn more than $200 a week. After selling 500 papers, the salespeople win a bonus: a winter coat.