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FlexiThemes announced today that they have released the OurBusiness theme. It is a business/portfolio theme and is powered by FlexiPanel.
The OurBusiness theme also comes equipped with the recently released “Flexi Info Box” widget which allows for easy highlighting of your own products or services.
Here is a demo of the OurBusiness Theme.
You must become a member of FlexiThemes to get the new OurBusiness theme. They offer one month, three month, six month, and annual membership packages.


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After a year of deliberation, the 24-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement may be revamped. U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told Congress August may be the month we see a final agreement, Automotive News reported on Thursday.
The timeframe would also ensure current Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto would sign the agreement before he leaves office this December. U.S. law requires three months before all involved parties sign off. If negotiations push past September, Mexico’s President-Elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrado would have to sign the agreement. Mexico’s objective is to have its current president ink the deal.
Lighthizer said the U.S. and Mexico have reached a good point in negotiations, but Canada remains uncertain.
“My hope is that we will before very long have a conclusion with respect to Mexico and that, as a result of that, Canada will come in and begin to compromise,” he said. “I don’t believe that they’ve compromised in the same way the United States has or Mexico has.”
The comments follow news that President Trump may look into a bilateral trade agreement with Mexico and focus on Canada at a later point in time.
NAFTA has major implications for automakers doing business in North America and the threat of tariffs across trade borders has the power to derail operations as they stand. Automakers, including General Motors, have supported the idea of “modernizing” NAFTA.

domain: news


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Google is expected to start shipping the second iteration of its Nexus 7 tablet this fall, according to DigiTimes. Supply chain sources have indicated that the device will feature a 7-inch display and start going into production this summer. Factories overseas are expected to make about 8 million of the next-gen tablets for 2013.
The future of the Nexus 7 wasn’t addressed by Google at its I/O conference earlier this month, but the company is rumored to announce a white Nexus 4 phone and Android 4.3 Jelly Bean at a June 10th event. That would make for a good time to unveil a new Nexus tablet as well.
HTC has denied that it is working on a “Google Edition” HTC One with stock Android, but it seems the Taiwanese company may have simply been trying to cover it up.
Earlier this week, one source claimed such a device is in the works, and now the same claim — this time from multiple different sources — has started circulating again. According to the latest rumor, an HTC One with stock Android will be announced within the next two weeks.
After bringing new features to its public Chrome browser for Android this week, Google has now updated its beta release to version 28. In addition to fullscreen support for tablets, the update brings Google Translate page translations, a new graph that displays estimated bandwidth savings when using the browser’s data compression feature, and more.
Google is considering a buyout of Waze, the mapping app for iPhone and Android that specializes in crowd-sourced information. Waze’s asking price is around $1 billion, according to a new report from Bloomberg. Other big tech companies have been courting the map startup, most notably Facebook.
“None of the bidders is close to clinching a deal and the talks may fall apart,” says the report. There have been whispers that Apple has also considered an acquisition, but nothing concrete has surfaced yet.
Waze would be a good asset for any of the three aforementioned companies. The service has more than 40 million users that report valuable information like traffic incidents and wrecks. At this point, Apple Maps could probably use the functionality more than Google.
Now that Samsung’s Galaxy S4 launch is out of the way, phablet fans can look forward to the next-generation Galaxy Note. Speculation surrounding the device and its features has been rife in recent months, and that’s only going to increase as we near closer to the handset’s launch.
Especially when we see purported benchmarks of the device popping up online.
It took less than 60 minutes for HTC One “Google edition” rumors to begin circulating after Google announced the Galaxy S4 with stock Android at Google I/O last Wednesday. HTC was quick to dismiss those rumors and state that it had no plans for such a device, but according to one source, that’s false.
They claim an HTC One with stock Android is in the works, and that it’ll launch this summer.
Samsung Wallet, the new Passbook-like virtual wallet service that was unveiled at Mobile World Congress back in February, has begun appearing on select Samsung devices in Korea and the United States. It’s currently compatible with the Galaxy S4, Galaxy S III, Galaxy Note, Galaxy Note II, Galaxy Note 10.1, and the Galaxy S II HD LTE.
Turkey’s tablet loving Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has been going on a tour of the U.S. in pursuit of the greatest tablet marker in the world to arm his students with. The prime minister visited Silicon Valley on May 18th to be briefed by the world’s best technology companies on their latest endeavors.
Erdoğan is looking to buy 10.6 million iPads for his country’s education new education project Faith. So far, Erdoğan was first greeted by Microsoft CEO, Steve Balmer, and then he paid visits to both Apple, Google.
Google Hangouts was revealed last week at I/O, and ever since it’s been a huge success. However, now it looks like AT&T are going to rain on Google’s parade by blocking video chat on its mobile network — just like it did with FaceTime on the iPhone.


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Identifying Williams-Sonoma's X Factor
Home furnishings and housewares retailer Williams-Sonoma is enjoying profitable growth in a competitive marketplace. What's its secret? Pat Connolly, chief strategy and business development officer for the San Francisco-based company, provided some insight into that question for the audience at NEMOA's directXchange Fall Conference in Groton, Conn. yesterday. Specifically, Connolly outlined six beliefs that Williams-Sonoma holds as integral to its success.
1. Product: Williams-Sonoma creates, designs and manufactures about 85 percent of the products it sells, Connolly said. The company has created a global supply chain, importing merchandise from around the world, particularly Asia. In addition, Williams-Sonoma has three manufacturing facilities in the United States — one each in North Carolina, Texas and California. We have control over our product, said Connolly. This has helped Williams-Sonoma to build its most valuable asset, its brand.
2. Lifestyle merchandising: The best to way sell home products is to show them in peoples’ homes, Connolly said. Williams-Sonoma goes to great lengths to make that possible. It scouts out and rents homes in markets as far away as Mexico and Canada, then transforms those homes — e.g., paints walls, replaces furniture — into the perfect canvases for its catalog photo shoots. "It's like making movies," said Connolly. While Williams-Sonoma does have the ability to use CGI technology that can digitally put products into photos/rooms, it doesn't plan on abandoning its on-site photo shoots. It's who we are as a brand, Connolly said.
3. Multichannel retail: Today's consumers engage brands and make purchases in more than one channel. For Williams-Sonoma, that includes its 600-plus retail stores, e-commerce site and catalogs. Successful retailers going forward will need to perfect more than one channel, Connolly said. Williams-Sonoma's history as a catalog brand is the foundation for its success. We believe our catalog heritage is the primary driver of results, Connolly said. Williams-Sonoma will mail a quarter-billion catalogs this year. Nothing conveys our brand better than our catalog, Connolly said.


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Apr 09, 2014
The French Trade Commission UBIFRANCE in London is organising a showroom for leading contract-clothing manufacturers.
Apr 07, 2014
A new English-language web portal (www.French-rail-industry.com) has been launched to promote France’s railways.
Apr 02, 2014
SMTC, a specialist in the design and manufacturing of composite sandwich panels, has unveiled Dynatech ®, a highly innovative weight-reducing system for aircraft and high-speed-train interiors.
Apr 01, 2014
The French Trade Commission UBIFRANCE in London will present nine innovative companies on the French Pavilion at the Infosecurity trade show, which will take place in central London (UK), from 29 April to 1 May 2014.
Mar 27, 2014
For the sixth year, the French Trade Commission UBIFRANCE in London will host a French Pavilion at the Natural & Organic Products Europe trade show, which takes place in London (UK) from 13 to 14 April 2014.
Mar 20, 2014
Cordia of France provides an extensive range of fire-safety solutions and technologies: the company is now launching an English-language website and catalogue, with a view to expanding into the British and international market.
Mar 19, 2014
UBIFRANCE organises the French Pavilion at the Aircraft Interiors Expo 2014 trade show: on the pavilion, over 25 French companies and regional entities will showcase their expertise in the aerospace industry.
Mar 18, 2014
Sudvinbio, the organizer of the Millésime Bio 2014 trade show, has described this year’s event as an outstanding success, with over 4,200 visitors.
Mar 07, 2014
The Grand Cercle des Vins de Bordeaux, the association of winegrowers for Bordeaux wines, will be unveiling the 2013 vintage at a wine-tasting event to be held in London (UK) on 19 March 2014. A total of 46 estates will be represented.
Mar 06, 2014
Alain Bagnaud, Director of Reed Global Transport Group (a division of Reed Expositions), organisers of the SITL Europe 2014 trade fair, reveals his expectations for Intralogistics Europe 2014.


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If James Bond had an SUV.
Sun, sand, beach, babes, surfing, and the vintage beach trucks of the 1960's are the inspiration for the Nissan TITAN Surfcamp.
Audi infuses more tech and style to their SUV lineup with the new 2019 Audi Q8.
The Mil-Spec Hummer H1 Launch Edition upgrades the existing Hummer's powertrain, build quality, and interior.
Rolls-Royce introduces its first ever All-Terrain High-Bodied Car, or SUV for mere mortals like us, the Cullinan.
Refinement ventures off-road as GMC infuses serious off-road credentials to its full-size Sierra.
Land Rover celebrates its 70th anniversary with a high-performance, limited-edition Defender.
Mercedes-Benz pulls off the cover of their brand-new G-Class at the Detroit Auto Show.
Tired of fake SUVs that are nothing more than tall hatchbacks? Check out this gem of a vehicle.
Electric vehicle startup BYTON introduces the world’s first “Smart Intuitive Vehicle.”
Get on the list.


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BitPay worked alongside Ripple developer platform Xpring to finish the XRP integration, which is that the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation at $10.1 billion, consistent with Messari. The payment service conducted over $1 billion in transactions processed in both 2017 and 2018.
Ecommerce domain eGifter and humanitarian organization CARE have already announced their adoption of XRP for commerce and donations following the addition, BitPay said.
“BitPay continues to expand consumers’ ability to transact within the currency of their choice and provides merchants new exposure to an outsized base of loyal XRP users bent driving real-world adoption,” BitPay Chief Marketing Officer Bill Zielke said during a statement.
XRP joins fellow cryptos bitcoin (BTC), bitcoin cash (BCH) and ethereum (ETH) alongside several stablecoins as payment options. BitPay added support for ethereum in September.
“BitPay provides new and practical opportunities for the utility of digital assets,” Xpring Senior vice chairman Ethan Beard said during a handout . “We hope to create upon this progress, to form it easy for everybody to integrate money into their apps. We’re excited to enable the utilization of XRP for everyday purchases, which benefits merchants and consumers alike.”


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Elder Scrolls Legends News – Launch Schedule Detailed
Dire Wolf Digital revealed last week its launch plans for Elder Scrolls Legends, its card game based on the Elder Scrolls franchise.
As of March 9, 2017, Elder Scrolls Legends is officially out of beta and launched on PC. Mobile gamers will find the game launched on platforms on the following schedule:
- iPad – March 23
- Android Tablets – April
- Mac OS – May
- Mobile Phones – Early Summer
Dire Wolf is promising monthly updates, including a new free game expansion in April. “The Fall of the Dark Brotherhood” will feature 20 solo story missions and 40 new cards, and will offer a bonus mount in The Elder Scrolls Online (PC/Mac) as a bonus. More integration between the two games is planned in the future.
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WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR), The Voice of Plastic Recycling®, issued a report that provides a data-driven update on the progress of plastic recycling in the United States showing that it is a viable, accessible and scalable solution for reducing plastic waste.
The report compiles research and analysis from across the $236 billion recycling industry which includes over 9,000 community recycling programs across the country and more than 100 post-consumer recyclers. The report finds that plastic recycling alone is responsible for over 200,000 U.S. jobs.
“APR’s state-of-the-industry report tells the true story of plastic recycling in the United States,” said Steve Alexander, President and CEO of the Association of Plastic Recyclers. “This is an industry that processed almost five billion pounds of post-consumer plastic material in 2020 despite a pandemic and related lockdown, and we have every expectation that number will continue to grow.”
The report presents an important clarification on data provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the discussion on US recycling rates. The report explains that 80% of rigid plastic packaging is polyethylene terephthalate (PET), high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and polypropylene (PP). These are the types of plastic packaging (such as soda bottles, laundry detergent jugs, and yogurt tubs) that are most used by businesses and available to consumers to put in their blue bins. The report found that 21% of these types of plastic, the type that U.S. consumers touch every day, are recycled based on EPA data.
The report also includes the latest data for PET and HDPE bottles alone - a current recycling rate of 28%. With more supply of recyclable plastic material from consumers, U.S. plastic recyclers could boost PET and HDPE bottle recycling rate – raising the rate to over 40% – with minimal additional investment and using existing processing infrastructure in the U.S.
“Increasing the recycling rate is important because demand for recycled material, a key driver of the recycling chain, is stronger than ever, spurred by a variety of factors including brand sustainability commitments and legislative activity,” added Alexander.
The report concludes that meeting that high demand and continuing to sustain and grow recycling will require three steps: (1) companies to manufacture plastic products and packaging that are compatible with recycling, (2) consumers to put recyclable material in the bin and (3) a robust recycling infrastructure to collect, sort and process that material.
The report provides policy recommendations including: ensure that all new products and packaging are made to be compatible with recycling; increase and strengthen community recycling programs and create harmonization among the types of plastic that are collected in those programs; and encourage the consideration of the true cost of disposal and the low costs to landfill.
“This report shows that, while there is still work to be done, plastic recycling can succeed,” Alexander added. “Consumers want recycling to work, and recyclers are ready to process more material. Our industry is innovative and resilient. It is time to recommit to plastic recycling for our communities, for our environment, and for our future.”
As the international trade association representing the plastics recycling industry, APR membership includes independent recycling companies of all sizes, processing numerous resins, as well as consumer product companies, equipment manufacturers, testing laboratories, organizations, and others committed to the success of plastics recycling. APR advocates the recycling of all plastics. Visit www.PlasticsRecyling.org for more information.


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A longtime checkout-line con for many Costco shoppers has ended, as a renouned indiscriminate bar has flipped a switch on a new credit tag policy. It has stopped usurpation American Express and started holding usually Visa — a thespian changeover for a businessman with about 81 million members worldwide.
The pierce opens adult Costco to a lot some-more credit cards. About 118 million people in a U.S. have during slightest one Visa card, about 3 times as many as have an American Express card, according to a Nilson Report, an attention newsletter.
“The switch from American Express to Visa is a large win for consumers,” says Sean McQuay, NerdWallet credit tag expert. He adds that Citi’s new Costco tag is “a most richer tag than a American Express incumbent.”
Costco’s new rules
For 16 years, Issaquah, Wash.-based Costco Wholesale Corp., famous as a place for bulk selling in super-sized selling carts, supposed usually credit cards with a American Express label. Last year, it announced it would switch to Visa cards. The room bar also accepts cash, checks, withdraw and ATM cards, Costco Cash Cards and Electronic Benefits Transfer cards for in-store purchases.
At a same time, Costco pronounced it would switch a store-branded credit tag from a TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express to a new product, a Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi.
Sunday was a final day Costco supposed a aged co-branded cards or any others from American Express.
Good news for Visa issuers
Costco’s transition has some of Visa’s biggest bank issuers opposed for a share of a dollars spent there, that totaled $114 billion in 2015, according to a company’s annual report.
For example, Chase Freedom got in on a movement recently by fluctuating a 5% cash-back reward rewards for purchases during indiscriminate clubs, that was due to finish Jun 30, by a finish of a year. Elevated rewards request not usually to Costco, yet also to purchases during Sam’s Club and BJ’s Wholesale Club. And Bank of America combined indiscriminate clubs as a reward cash-back difficulty for a BankAmericard Cash Rewards credit card.
“Shoppers during indiscriminate retailers tend to spend some-more than a normal consumer and to be some-more abundant — an ideal aim patron for credit tag issuers,” McQuay says. “Since Costco has non-stop a money registers to all Visa cards, now all Visa-issuing banks can contest to offer improved rewards during indiscriminate retailers,” he said. “It’s a large win for consumers.”
New tag offers some-more rewards
Like a TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express, a Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi will double as a membership card. Customers can use it to make purchases during other stores, yet a cash-back rewards are redeemable usually during Costco. It has no annual fee, yet to get it, we have to be a Costco member, that costs during slightest $55 per year.
Its rewards include:
- 4% behind on adult to $7,000 per year in gas purchases during Costco and other gas stations.
- 3% behind during restaurants and on some transport purchases.
- 2% behind during Costco and on Costco.com.
- 1% behind on all else.
Shoppers have other options
The new Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi is a plain choice. But since of a 5% bonus, a Chase Freedom will be a best cash-back tag to use during a indiscriminate bar — and during Sam’s and BJ’s too — by a finish of a year.
These aren’t your usually dual options, though. Other Visa-branded rewards cards competence be a improved fit for your lifestyle, or competence already be sitting in your wallet. As always, though, if we devise to lift a change from month to month, a seductiveness could some-more than clean out a value of your rewards. In that case, you’re substantially improved off regulating a low-interest credit card.
Gregory Karp is a staff author during NerdWallet, a personal financial website. This essay creatively seemed on NerdWallet.


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It’s official – Canadians have serious love for their local farmers’ market.
Local markets aren’t just the place where a growing number of Canadians are shopping, they are also the place consumers trust the most with food quality and safety.
An exclusive Ipsos poll for Global News found that 83 per cent of those polled make an effort to buy locally-grown and produced food and 71 per cent are willing to pay more for locally grown food.
When asked if various organizations were doing a good job ensuring the quality and safety of food in Canada, local markets and butchers got top marks, with 95 per cent of respondents saying they’re doing a good job, followed closely by farmers at 94 per cent.
Meanwhile, a new survey conducted by LoyaltyOne found that Canadians want more options for buying locally grown food.
According to the survey, 87 per cent would buy more local food from their grocery retailer “if locally grown alternatives were more readily available.” And they’d be willing to shell out 15 to 30 per cent more at the check-out for local food products.
Perhaps surprisingly, of the reasons given for not buying more locally grown food, cost was the least likely reason. Only 23 per cent of respondents said cost was the biggest barrier to buying local food. The number one reason given was availability, with 60 per cent saying they can’t find a wide enough selection of local food alternatives in their neighbourhood grocery stores.
The vast majority (91 per cent) said local farmers’ markets have the best selection of local food products.
Do you have a favourite farmers’ market in your neighbourhood? Add it to our interactive map below by clicking this link.
What’s on your plate?
The poll results come as Global News launches a month-long series looking at Your Food. From navigating the gaps in Canada’s food safety system, and deciphering the terms on our food packaging and ingredient lists, to taking a closer look at the food marketed to us and myth-busting rising food fads and trends, Your Food will look at what’s on our plates and how it got there.
Check our special site for new stories every day, and follow the conversation on social media using the hashtag #YourFood.
Exclusive Global News Ipsos polls are protected by copyright. The information and/or data may only be rebroadcast or republished with full and proper credit and attribution to “Global News Ipsos.”
The poll was conducted between May 22 and 27, 2015, using a sample of 1,005 Canadians.
The LoyaltyOne online survey of 1,646 Canadians was conducted in May 2015. Survey respondents were at least 18 years old and had primary or shared responsibility for the grocery shopping in their household.


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Electronic Arts has confirmed that Mythic Entertainment, developer of Dark Age of Camelot and Warhammer Online, has been shut down. “We are closing the EA Mythic location in Fairfax, Virginia, as we concentrate mobile development in our other studio locations,” an EA spokesperson told Kotaku. “We are working with all impacted employees to provide assistance […]
Mythic Entertainment has announced that Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning will be shutting down later this year, due to the licensing agreement with Games Workshop expiring. “We here at Mythic have built an amazing relationship working with Games Workshop creating and running Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning over the last 8 years,” the studio said, […]
An anonymous Bioware Mythic employee, who refers to himself as EA Louse, has lashed out at the managers who were responsible for the development of the EA-operated MMORPG Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning. Besides singling out specific producers, managers, and directors, EA Louse continues to predict that the MMORPG currently in development at Bioware Austin, […]
I’ve been reminiscing about EverQuest, back from the Trilogy days (up to Velious, but not past it – what I consider to be the true EverQuest), and I’m remembering details about what made the game enjoyable for me. Yesterday I spoke about the leveling process being my favorite thing in MMORPGs. [Note: Not all leveling processes are created equal – some suck] This led me to start thinking about specific things I did while leveling up in games like The Realm, EverQuest, and DAOC, that are missing from today’s games.


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WASHINGTON (AP) — Across the country, America’s retailers and aircraft companies are attractive appropriately advanced to a able-bodied anniversary arcade season. There’s aloof one concern: Who will banal the shelves, backpack the orders and arena up customers?
The U.S. job bazaar is the tightest it’s been in bristles decades, chump aplomb is a an 18-year aerial and online arcade is surging. Companies that depend on anniversary division sales charge added workers at a time aback the ranks of the unemployed accept dwindled to their everyman akin aback the recession.
Envisioning an alike tougher attempt than they’ve had in contempo years, abounding companies are demography accomplish they’ve not approved before. Added of them are alms college pay. They’re captivation civic hiring days. They’re dangling bonuses. They’re accouterment added full-time, rather than part-time, work. Some warehousing companies that abhorrence they still won’t be able to ample abundant jobs, are axis to automation.
“I can’t bethink the aftermost time it was this tight,” said Tony Lee, a carnality admiral at the Society for Animal Resource Management. “You are activity to see a absolute action for melancholia employees.”
At 3.7 percent, the unemployment amount is at a 49-year low, and the government says a almanac 6.9 actor job openings are actuality advertised — added than the cardinal of unemployed Americans.
With added job seekers able to accept amid employers, abounding companies accept rushed to activate their melancholia hiring advanced than before. Kohl’s, the civic abatement chain, with 1,100 stores, approved to get a jump on its rivals by announcement melancholia jobs aback in backward June.
“We are hiring melancholia assembly advanced than ever,” said Ryan Festerling, Kohl’s arch of animal resources.
UPS is captivation its first-ever civic job fair aing week. In 170 locations, applicants can accept interviews on the spot, and disciplinarian candidates can agenda a alley test. The Atlanta aggregation had been bent off-guard aftermost year aback aboriginal anniversary shipments ashore its network. On its job-fair day — which it’s dubbing “Brown Friday”— UPS hopes to appoint up to 40,000 of the added than 100,000 melancholia workers it will need.
Sakeria Crawford, who will alpha a alpha a melancholia package-handling job with UPS aing month, will acquire about $13 an hour — the best she’s anytime made. Crawford, 24, who lives in Atlanta, hopes to break on in a full-time abiding job afterwards the holidays. About one-third of UPS full-time advisers began as part-timers. Crawford is application the time afore the job starts to band up daycare for her son, about 4, for whom she hopes the job will additionally beggarly a brighter Christmas.
“I’m very, actual blessed that I alike accept the opportunity,” Crawford said. “I charge article stable.”
Target wants to appoint 120,000 melancholia workers, 20 percent added than aftermost year. The aggregation has aloft its starting allowance by a dollar to $12 an hour, and is alms a new perk: It will about baddest one alternate artisan at anniversary abundance and administration centermost to accept a $500 allowance agenda and $500 donation to a bounded association alignment of their choice.
Angie Thompson, a Target spokeswoman, said the college allowance and added inducements arise to be advantageous off. Applications jumped 20 percent in the aboriginal anniversary afterwards they were appear compared with the aforementioned aeon aftermost year.
In 2017, Target aloft its minimum alternate pay by $2, to $11, which it says helped aftermath 60 percent added applicants. The aggregation is added adopting its minimum wage, in stages, to $15 by 2020.
Yet Amazon exhausted it to the bite aloof aftermost anniversary by announcement that it would addition its starting alternate allowance to $15 on Nov. 1.
“It’s an advance in the approaching advance of the aggregation and to ensure that we can abide to hire, retain, and advance the best aptitude for years to come,” said Dave Clark, Amazon’s chief carnality admiral of common operations.
Amazon, the nation’s second-largest clandestine employer afterwards Walmart, says it wants to appoint applicants quickly. Its online job ads accent not what is appropriate but what isn’t: “No resume. No interview.”
Applicants who accept an breezy contiguous affair at a hiring accident and who bout Amazon’s requirements can be offered a job on the spot.
With bottom resources, abate retailers are disturbing to accumulate up with the college pay and greater perks. It absolutely doesn’t advice if a banker has to attempt with an Amazon location.
Steve Fusek, who owns Fusek’s True Value Hardware in Indianapolis, says he had already begin it a claiming to acquisition workers who could anxiously appearance up on time. Making affairs worse, his abundance is aloof 10 afar from an Amazon warehouse. Now, alike admitting Amazon’s jobs are added ambitious and demanding, he expects to accept to accession his starting alternate pay by a dollar or two from $10 to attempt with Amazon.
“Whether they appetite to assignment there (Amazon) or not, that is the new norm,” Fusek said.
It’s an abnormal shift. In the retail industry, the huge abundance chains acclimated to be accepted for advantageous less, not more, than abate competitors.
“It’s alike tougher for them to attempt aback the big chains — which commonly had paid the everyman minimum allowance — are now advantageous more,” Lee said. “You’re activity to see anybody affected to accession wages.”
Radial, an e-commerce aggregation based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, says its best aggressive markets are places breadth Amazon and UPS additionally accept operations, as in Lexington, Kentucky, or Reno, Nevada, breadth Amazon has a warehouse.
Radial, which fills online orders for such retailers as Shoe Carnival, PetSmart and Kate Spade, has had to action added allowances than before. It wants to recruit added than 20,000 workers for its 22 administration centers and bristles chump alarm centers.
Sean McCartney, an controlling carnality president, said Radial aloft alternate pay for its anniversary workers in four added markets than it did aftermost year, admitting he wouldn’t say which ones. The aggregation began announcement for some anniversary jobs in June, a ages advanced than in 2017. Radial is additionally alms bonuses of $1,000 or added in the best aggressive markets to those who assignment during the acute “Black Friday” weekend afterwards Thanksgiving.
That benefit is allowance accumulate Linda Connor-Lewis blessed about her job packing online orders at Radial’s barn in Louisville, Kentucky, alike admitting her email inbox is blimp with invitations to job fairs at battling companies. Admitting Connor-Lewis, 54, already has a abiding job with Radial, she expects to allotment in the anniversary bonanza: She affairs to assignment 30 added hours of assignment a anniversary on top of her accepted 40-hour agenda and expects to acquire added in anniversary bonuses than she did aftermost year.
Even so, Radial is application added automation to advice accumulate up and has installed robotics in the order-picking breadth at its Louisville facility. McCartney estimates that the automation will abate concrete activity by 15 percent to 20 percent in that area.
At XPO Logistics, a close that specializes in aircraft appliances, furniture, and added ample items that Americans are added accommodating to adjustment online, affairs are to appoint 8,000 workers — one-third added than aftermost year. XPO is additionally installing 5,000 robots in its warehouses in the United States and Europe.
“The aggregate of man added apparatus is the best way to accord our barter an edge,” said Bradley Jacobs, the company’s CEO.
Jacobs said the robots, which lift absolute shelves and accompany them to workers, should accredit the company’s barn workers to accession their productivity. They will be able to backpack 200 items an hour, up from 80 beforehand.
Retailers are announcement far added full-time jobs compared with aftermost year, and beneath part-time positions, according to analysis by Indeed, a job-listing website. The admeasurement of retail jobs that are allotment time, like sales assembly at accouterment stores, plummeted this year compared with 2017.
Walmart affairs to administer the anniversary blitz by accouterment added hours to its part-time workers, a footfall it implemented aloof two years ago. Some food may appoint added melancholia employees, it said.
“There has been a about-face because the job bazaar is so strong,” said Andrew Flowers, an economist at Indeed. “To acquisition workers, you appealing abundant accept to action them a full-time job.”
D’Innocenzio appear from New York. AP Business Writers David Koenig in Dallas and Joseph Pisani in New York additionally contributed to this report.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This actual may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Phase I: PwC's Mobile technologies index articles
According to this final article in PwC's Mobile Technologies Index series, the rate of performance increases for these seven enabling components of mobile innovation — memory, application processor, storage, infrastructure speed, device speed, imaging and display technology — is expected to decelerate only slightly between 2011 and 2016.
According to this new article in PwC's Mobile Technologies Index series, thinner, lighter, larger and sturdier displays with improved resolution, touch sensitivity and power efficiency will enable many mobile innovations through 2015.
Improvements in image sensors, MEMS and software will enable future-generation smartphones to provide new use cases and new capabilities classified as machine vision.
Continuing improvement in the price-performance curve will lead to robust growth in the amount of storage in mobile devices.
By 2015 average smartphones will have 40 percent of the 4GB of DRAM that PCs on average have today. Likewise, by 2015 the top 10 percent of smartphones will have 65 percent of the DRAM that PCs have today, and will perform correspondingly. The trend for tablets is even more dramatic. The figure on the left shows the actual amounts of DRAM in gigabytes, on average, over our forecast period.
PwC predicts growing application processor speed likely to launch next wave of mobile innovation within the next two years. It will enable various mobile device use cases, likely to include more powerful multitasking operating systems, more immersive and natural user interfaces and more powerful graphics, including 3D.
By 2015, we expect three factors associated with the transition to 4G technology---share of infrastructure investment, share of devices and share of subscribers---to reach levels that could trigger a robust period of 4G innovation. This article explains how we reached these conclusions and delves into some of the developments we might expect to see as 4G hits the benchmarks needed to cause a surge in innovation.
A look at the first component of PwC's Mobile Technologies Index, device connectivity speed which is a combination of the modem technology inside the device (fixed) and speed capability of the infrastructure (varied).
Where will the disruptions in mobile innovation arise over the next five years? How will they change consumer and employee behaviour? What business opportunities will result? What can companies do to take advantage of these disruptions? How do they fit into broader market trends now driving the technology sector? Discover the answers to these question and learn about PwC's Mobile Technologies Index.
According to this article in PwC's Mobile Technologies Index series, the smartphone seems to acquire more cognitive capabilities with each major product release—regardless of the OEM.


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Table of Contents
- From strength to strength
- Accounting system replaced
- A self-sustained company
- Revolut expands overseas
Revolut, the fintech company with a focus on crypto, has published impressive earnings for 2022, with a 33% increase in revenue.
From strength to strength
In its last funding round back in 2021, Revolut was valued at $33 billion, making it the highest value start-up in the UK. It might have been expected that the company would go into its shell during what has been a really harsh bear market, but nothing of it.
According to a report on Reuters, Revolut increased its revenue to the equivalent of just over $1 billion in 2022, based on payments, subscriptions, and business accounts.
Accounting system replaced
However, all has not been easy going according to Revolut’s chief financial officer Mikko Salovaara. He is reported to have told Reuters that the company had been obliged to replace its accounting system given that its audit for 2021 was deemed “inadequate” by the UK auditing watchdog, the FRC.
A self-sustained company
Even when considering the increased growth of the company, Salovaara stated that Revolut wasn’t planning on another fundraising event in the near future, saying that the company was “self-sustained”. He added that Revolut will “eventually be a public listed business, but it’s not a priority”.
As well as making the impressive increase in revenue in 2022, Revolut has also not followed the trend of most of its competitors that have seen fit to reduce their workforce, and some of them quite dramatically.
Revolut expands overseas
Instead, the number of employees doubled in 2022, going from 3000 to 6000. This successful trend is enabling the fintech payments leader to plan for an expansion into overseas markets. It will launch in New Zealand in the short term, and it is also looking to enter India, Mexico, and Brazil.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.


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‘Mortal Kombat 1’ Reboot Goes Back In Time, Arrives 19 September
The Mortal Kombat franchise is celebrating its 30th Anniversary with a reboot. As announced in its debut trailer for Mortal Kombat 1, a new era has begun. Players will get to discover a reborn Mortal Kombat Universe created by Fire God Liu Kang.
Mortal Kombat 1 will usher in a new era of the iconic franchise with a new fighting system, game modes, and of course Fatalities! Details are scarce at the moment but players can expect a brand new immersive story campaign featuring everyone’s favorite Mortal Kombat characters like you’ve never seen them before.
Pre-orders for Mortal Kombat 1 will start on 19 September, all pre-orders will receive Shang Tsung as a playable character and beta access.
The post ‘Mortal Kombat 1’ Reboot Goes Back In Time, Arrives 19 September appeared first on Geek Culture.


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The Genshin Impact 2.6 update is official, revealing the banner sequence and schedule for Kamisato Ayato, as well as repeats of Venti and Ayaka. Now, a new leak has revealed a possible release date for Genshin Impact’s Ayaka, Venti, Itto, and Kazuha banner replays, which may excite some and disappoint some.
Fans have been waiting for more banner replay information for a while now, and while beta 2.6 leaks have revealed that Ayaka will be the first banner in the Genshin 2.6 update, we have other characters whose banner replica release dates are not yet known to be confirmed. Ayaka, Venti, Itto, and Kazuha are very few characters that have been released in Genshin for a long time, and fans are looking forward to seeing their banner resurfaced. While Kamisato Ayato appears to be the only new playable character for Genshin Impact 2.6, more characters will receive banner replicas throughout the next update’s six-week course. We knew new character Ayato would be joining Genshin Impact, but now Mihoyo has confirmed which other characters will be returning to fill the rest of the banner space.
The second banner cycle will include only one character, Ayatos’ sister Ayaka. The first banner will feature two 5-star characters: a brand new character and Anemo Archon Venti. The Ventis banner will be displayed with the new character Ayato in the first half of update 2.6, which will likely last for three weeks when update 2.6 is released on March 30. The update will include the Kamisato Ayatos banner, which will be released alongside the copied Venti banner in the first half of version 2.6, the Purple Garden Zephyr update.
In the first phase of update 2.6, Ayato and Venti will be available for retirement. After the first phase, Ayaka will be replayable for the first time. In addition to the release of Ayato Ayato, the Wish Banner 2 character event will apparently be available for players. When they announced the 2.6 Livestream, Chinese social media Genshin Impact used the official image with the chibi versions of Ayato and Ayaka, confirming that Ayaka is the playable character during the patch. Hours before the 2.6 Livestream, a popular UBatcha leaker also confirmed that Ayaka is the only character revived in the second half of the patch.
By encapsulating the Genshin Impact 2.6 banner leaks, Kazuha and Ayaka could be phase 2 playable characters, but players should still wait for confirmation from reliable sources. Who believes that Ayaka and Yoimiya, as well as Ayato, can appear in version 2.6.
According to the leaked data, players may have seen the Genshin Impact Ayato banner as the first 2.6 banner along with the re-launch of Ayaka and Venti, which means March 30th will be the official release date for Ayaka. We have a Venti relaunch planned for version 2.6, similar to Genshin Kazuha’s rerun.
A brand new character has been confirmed to be using the Hydro Sword, and many rumors have it that it will be a very offensive character. According to recent Genshin Impact 2.6 leaks, Ayato does not have a parallel banner, meaning that Ayato will be the character’s only 5-star banner in the first phase of the Genshin Impact 2.6 update.
The main event of Update 2.6 will be the Irodori Festival, featuring Inazuma characters including Ayakas, the highly anticipated Kamisto Ayato, Kujo Sara, Yae Miko, as well as Albedo, Venti, and Kazuha. Although at the time of writing there have been no revelations about the replay of the Ayaka banner from the developers, the release of Kamisato Ayato Kamisato Ayato has spawned various rumors about Ayaka.


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Espresso: Google, Apple under the scanner in South Korea
App store operators under the scanner
South Korea is likely to bar Google and Apple from forcing software developers to use their payment systems, and charging commissions up to 30 percent on in-app purchases, according to a Reuters report.
The South Korean parliament’s legislation and judiciary committee is expected to approve the amendment of the Telecommunications Business Act, which is aimed at app store operators with dominant market positions.
If the bill goes through, it would be the first such curbs by a major economy on the Big Tech giants. The South Korean lawmakers have been pushing for this structure since middle of last year. Similarly, the European Union proposed the Digital Market Act last year.
UCAS renews Infosys contract
Infosys has signed a three-year contract with UCAS, an undergraduate admissions service in the United Kingdom (UK).
The two companies have had a partnership since 2015. But after a new tender process, the engagement will focus on delivery of customer service experiences through automation, innovation and efficiency. Originally, the partnership focused on a professional and stable platform that was used by students and their advisors.
Infosys will now provide digital services to enable UCAS to further develop its capabilities to connect learners with universities, awarding bodies, schools, and other organisations.
Its digital suite of systems will help UCAS to rapidly respond to the evolving UK higher education sector, Infosys said in a press statement.
South Indian Bank's revamp
Nucleus Software announced a deal with South Indian Bank to revamp its retail, and small and medium business (SMB) lending systems.
"With Nucleus Software’s expertise, we will be able to diversify the asset portfolio and increase penetration in retail lending in the most efficient manner," said Murali Ramakrishnan, CEO of South Indian Bank, which is headquartered in Thrissur, Kerala.
With the engagement, the bank can digitise its retail-lending process to enable services like digital on-boarding, and make data-driven decisions, said Nucleus Software in a press statement.
TikTok adds in-app shopping
TikTok and e-commerce platform Shopify are working together to add an in-app shopping feature, so that the customers can shop directly from TikTok.
The pilot tests for TikTok Shopping will begin in coming weeks, among a select group of Shopify merchants in the US, UK, and Canada, according to a statement from the short-video platform.
Both Facebook and Instagram already have shopping options. The Shopify feature would mark TikTok’s entry into social commerce.
“By enabling new in-app shopping experiences and product discovery on TikTok for the first time, Shopify is powering the creator economy on one of the fastest-growing social and entertainment platforms in the world,” said Harley Finkelstein, President of Shopify.
Solar PV project in Rajasthan
Tata Power Renewable Energy (TPRE) commissioned a 150 megawatt (MW) solar power project in Loharki, a village in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.
The plant will generate more than 350 million units annually. It will reduce 3.34 lakh tons of carbon emission every year.
With the Loharki project, TPRE has taken parent company Tata Power's capacity to nearly 3 GW, which includes 2 GW of solar and 932 MW of wind.


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The Hanoitimes - Industry 4.0 will require Vietnam lots of efforts to tap its potential and Australian educational institutions get ready to make the goals attainable. Australia minister visits Vietnam for tighter economic, cultural ties Australia supports Vietnam in innovation Australia, with a strong education ties knotted with Vietnam over the past decades, has been active in supporting the preparations for the country’s high quality manpower in the Fourth Industry Revolution. Swinburne University of Technology and FPT University reach an agreement. Photo: FPT In recent years, the matured and diverse Vietnam-Australia relations, typically with the bilateral relationship elevated to a Strategic Partnership, has encompassed cooperation on a wide range of issues, including education. Accordingly, Australia has intensified its support to Vietnam through a specific Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on vocational education and training as well as a … [Read more...] about How Australia prepares manpower for Vietnam in Industry 4.0?
Storage 4 students
Thanh Thanh Cong Investment acquires 35 million SBT shares, lifting ownership to 32 per cent Thanh Thanh Cong Investment JSC has purchased 35 million shares in Thanh Thanh Cong - Bien Hoa JSC (SBT), lifting its ownership in the sugar manufacturer to 158.5 million shares, an equivalent of 32 per cent of SBT’s capital. The number fell short of its total registered purchase of 45 million shares. Shares in SBT were trading at around VND20,000-22,000 (US$0.90) on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange during the purchasing time from November 16 to December 14, putting the deal value at more than VND750 billion ($32 million). Earlier in November, chairwoman of Thanh Thanh Cong Investment JSC Dang Huynh Uc My completed the purchase of 20 million shares of SBT, raising her stake to 10.6 per cent. The two shareholders have a combined stake of 42.6 per cent of the outstanding shares of SBT. In October, the company approved a plan to allow My and her affiliates to increase … [Read more...] about BUSINESS NEWS 20/12
VN wood and furniture firms eye Mexico, Canada Mexico and Canada will be promising markets for Viet Nam’s wood and furniture products when the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) takes effect in early 2019, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Deputy Minister Tran Quoc Khanh said exports to Canada were worth over US$129 million last year and are expected to top $140 million this year. “The CPTPP will open opportunities for products such as wood flooring and bars to Canada because the market will immediately scrap the import tariff of 3.5 per cent when the agreement comes into effect. “Products such as plywood, picture frames, door frames and especially furniture will also have an opportunity because import tariffs of between 6 per cent and 9.5 per cent will be eliminated as soon as the agreement comes into effect. “Wooden handicrafts will also benefit when Canada agrees to abolish the 7 … [Read more...] about BUSINESS NEWS IN BRIEF 19/12
New trends in Vietnam’s rice exports 2018 is witnessing new trends in Vietnam’s rice export sector, notably the priority of exporting high-quality rice through international bidding as well as stricter and more diverse trade barriers from importing countries. Preliminary data by the General Department of Customs shows that Vietnam exported 264,500 tonnes of rice in October, generating a revenue of US$135.56 million, up 22.96% in volume and 31.8% in value, compared with the same month last year. The total volume of rice exports in the first ten months of 2018 was 5.15 million tonnes, worth US$2.6 billion, representing year-on-year increases of 6.62% and 21.49% in volume and revenue respectively. What is notable during the period is that the price of Vietnamese rice has now surpassed that of Thailand, averaging at more than US$500 a tonne, up about 15%. In 2016, Vietnam exported 4.8 million tonnes of rice, bringing in US$2.1 billion. The respective volume and revenue figures … [Read more...] about BUSINESS NEWS IN BRIEF 20/11
Vietnamese food introduced in Hong Kong Visitors to the seventh Hong Kong Food Carnival, which is underway in Kwai Tsing district, Hong Kong (China), have shown interest in Vietnamese food. Products such as dried rice vermicelli, fish sauce, cashew nuts, dried longan and coffee have been introduced by Hanoi Trade Corporation (Hapro) and Hello-5 JSC. Of note, King Cashew Nut Ltd., Co. which represents Hapro in Hong Kong, has worked with the Vietnamese association in Hong Kong to open a booth featuring Vietnamese dishes at the event. Apart from Vietnam, the Southeast Asia section within the carnival also includes booths set up by Thailand and Malaysia. During the carnival, from October 27 to November 4, participating countries and territories are also putting on traditional art performances. Previously a biennially event, from this year on the Hong Kong Food Carnival will be held annually due to its increasing popularity. SCG's Q3 revenue in Vietnam up 18% … [Read more...] about BUSINESS NEWS IN BRIEF 31/10


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Latest Access control Stories
Award to be presented at SpeechTEK 2014 conference in August, where SpeechPro also will launch its newest products at the Customer Solutions Expo. New York (PRWEB)
Recently, SWAccessControl, a leading access control system manufacturer and wholesaler, has unveiled its new RFID access control systems, which include proximity card readers, ID/IC card issuers,
Recently, SWAccessControl.com, an excellent online supplier of access control systems products, has announced its new range of proximity card readers. (PRWEB)
MarketReportsOnline.com adds "Global Access Control Security Market: Trends and Opportunities (2014-18)" report to its research store. Dallas, Texas
New partnership integrates authentication products to broaden user base Mountain View, Calif.
SWAccessControl.com is a famous supplier of networking access controllers.
DUBLIN, July 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Research and Markets has announced the addition
ALBANY, New York, July 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- MarketResearchreports.biz presents this most up-to-date research on The Global Electronic Access Control systems market
SWAccessControl.com is a reliable proximity card reader manufacturer and retailer in the international market.
CORAL SPRINGS, Florida, July 25, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Biometrics industry expands and becomes more influential as more consumers are turning to digital technology for online
- One who brings meat to the table; hence, in some countries, the official title of the grand master or steward of the king's or a nobleman's household.


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At GamesCom 2018, Ubisoft’s CEO Yves Guillemot confirmed that there won’t be a new full-fledged Assassin’s Creed game in 2019. Instead, Ubisoft will keep supporting Assassin’s Creed Odyssey which releases on October 5th.
As Yves Guillemot said:
“On Assassin’s, we had a game and we have one this year, but we are not going to have a full-fledged Assassin’s next year. It’s just because the team were working separately, so we have two games now, one year after the other. But next year you’re not going to have a full-fledged one.”
Since there won’t be a new Assassin’s Creed game in 2019, our guess is that the next one will come out on next-gen consoles and PC (though there is a possibility that it will be a cross-gen title).
Still, and since Odyssey feels a lot like Origins, we hope that the next Assassin’s Creed game will be as different to Odyssey as Origins was to Syndicate!


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Competing economic models produce different results, fueling the dairy policy debate.
Thereâ€™s an old adage among economists: â€œAll economic models are wrong, but some are more useful than others.â€
Thatâ€™s certainly true when it comes to the two economic models that have been deployed to analyze the proposed Dairy Security Act (DSA).
Dairy Today red dot Bonus Content
Several months ago, we reported on a study by dairy economists Chuck Nicholson of Cal Poly and Mark Stephenson of the University of Wisconsin (â€œDairy Reform Laid Bare,â€ December 2011, page 6). Their economic model shows that the DSA could significantly reduce milk price volatility, but that the reduction would come at the cost of a nearly $1 per cwt. decline in the All-Milk price. The model also suggests that the planâ€™s market stabilization program would be in effect 40% to 45% of the time and net farm operating income would be reduced by 32% to 48%.
Another economic model has been created by Scott Brown, a dairy economist with the University of Missouri, who released the results of his study earlier this year.
His analysis shows little change in the All-Milk price in a comparison between the current dairy program and DSA. In fact, there is not a nickelâ€™s worth of difference from 2012 through 2021.
Brownâ€™s analysis also suggests that the market stabilization program will be triggered far less than predicted in the Nicholson/Stephenson model.
About the only agreement between the two models is that the DSA would prevent a recurrence of 2009.
A University of Minnesota spreadsheet built off the Nicholson/Stephenson model suggests that under the DSA, a 500-cow herd would have netted $175,000 in 2009 because the act protects against catastrophically low milk prices (and margins).
Brownâ€™s model suggests the All-Milk price would have been about $2 per cwt. better in 2009â€”not dipping nearly as low as it did, and rebounding more sharplyâ€”had the DSA been in place.
The concern, of course, is why these two models spit out such different numbers for most years with more normal feed and milk prices.
Economists Iâ€™ve talked with say Nicholson/Stephenson is the more dynamic model because it looks at monthly price changes and then tries to gauge how dairy producers and processors will react.
Brown only looks at price changes annually. But his model uses more normal, historically based milk-feed margins than Nicholson/Stephenson.
Even though feed prices are expected to remain high for the remainder of the decade, USDA is projecting much stronger milk prices due to strong international demand.
Each model has its problems.
Little has been published on the inner workings of the Nicholson/Stephenson approach, and outside economists have difficulty evaluating it. Brownâ€™s model isnâ€™t designed to pick up month-to-month changes.
The debate is sure to continue. It would be easy to assume that the true answer lies somewhere between these two models. But when commodity markets as volatile and inelastic as milk, corn and soybeans intersect, nothing is easy.


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The program helped nearly 350 people find apprenticeships in fiscal year 2022 and is expected to help 3,000 people find apprenticeships through 2026.
Circle K, headquartered in Tempe, has agreed to pay $8 million to resolve disability, pregnancy, and retaliation discrimination charges.
More than 2,000 Starbucks workers from over 100 stores across the country participated in Thursday’s strike.
Around 200 Southwest flight attendants and supporters picketed outside Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport last month to demand better working conditions.
After bottoming out at 4% in 2017, labor union membership in Arizona has been slowly rising, but it is still well behind levels of previous years.
The three workers involved were all leaders in union efforts at a Phoenix Starbucks, and claim the company took action against them for their organizing efforts.
Tempe-based used-car seller Carvana laid off 2,500 employees, about 12% of its workforce, in May.
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Royal Caribbean is seeking a special candidate for quite the dream job: The international cruise line is hiring a so-called “Shore Explorer” to travel the world and document their adventures on social media.
On Feb. 4, reps for the cruise line’s U.K. branch announced the launch of the unique “apprentice-ship” on Instagram with a special contest, welcoming entries until March 1.
“Think you’ve got what it takes to be the ultimate experience hunter? Share your best travel experience as a post, story or IGTV tagging @RoyalCaribbeanUKand #ShoreExplorer to apply,” Royal Caribbean captioned a video, which has since been viewed over 34,000 times.
According to the official rules, the lucky winner will travel to the cruise line’s Perfect Day Island at CocoCay in the Bahamas, Alaska, Lisbon, Portugal, Norway, Dubai and Osaka, Japan between May and August 2019 and earn 6,000 pounds (around $7,775) for the whirlwind, three-week gig — or the equivalent of a 104,000-pound ($135,000) "annual salary," according to Royal Caribbean.
Applicants must be at least 21 years old, have a valid passport and be a U.K. citizen to be eligible for consideration, too.
“We’re looking for an adrenaline junkie who is not only hungry for adventure, but also has a unique ability to capture a moment and tell a story in a simple social media post,” a Royal Caribbean spokesperson told the outlet. “We already offer a huge amount of incredible, once-in-a-lifetime, on-land experiences as part of our cruise holidays – from zip-wires and white water rafting, to walking on glaciers and hot air balloon rides. By launching this position, we’re hoping that the winning candidate will take our shore excursion programmed to the next level.”
The Shore Explorer will work on the heels of a notable mentor, working as an apprentice to the cruise line’s “Instagrammer-in-Chief” Russ Francis, the Evening Standard reports.
The “apprentice-ship” promotion is already generating a ton of buzz – and envy – on social media.
“I will move to the UK from the USA in order to do this! Lol,” on Instagram commenter exclaimed.
“This could be our chance to make all our dreams come true!” another wrote, tagging a friend.
“Please please please check out my page,” one eager applicant pleaded.


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LEADING telecommunications group Econet Wireless Zimbabwe contributed ZW$12.2 billion, a third of its revenues, into the country’s economy through taxes in 2020, figures in its annual report reveal.
According to the company’s annual report released recently, Econet’s contribution to the national fiscus went up by nearly 50%, from ZW$8.2 billion the previous year to ZW$12.2 billion this year. The telecoms giant’s tax contributions included income tax, value added tax, import duties, license fees, withholding taxes, special excise duties and pay as you earn for its employees.
The contribution was after the group had registered ZW$35 billion in top line revenues, along with profit after tax of ZW$836.5 million in the full year to February 28, 2021.
Econet’s commitment when it comes to its statutory obligations over the years has positioned it as one of the top taxpayers in the country as the company fulfils tax obligations.
Dr James Myers, Econet Wireless Zimbabwe chairman, said the business works to ensure its tax policy remains robust and in alignment with the requirements of tax legislation.
“We believe that we will play a part in the resurgence of Zimbabwe’s economy through providing world class services to support the enhanced growth and digitalisation of the economy,” he said.
Taxation provides the revenue needed to mobilize government resources, build the nations’ infrastructure, support the public sector and help reduce poverty. Dr Myers said Econet remains committed to its founding vision of providing services to all people, without exclusion.
“As we transform our business to a digital services provider from being primarily a communications service provider, we aim to develop resilient business models that are relevant to our customers and our operating environment. Our services are gradually changing as we pivot the business to the new realities that we see emerging, as consumers demand a different digital experience as the world evolves and technology changes to cater for the new needs and expectations of our society,” he said.
Zimbabwe’s largest telecoms company has over the years contributed massively to the economy through direct and indirect employment-creation, playing its part in economic development and empowerment, and in poverty reduction.
In addition to it tax contribution, Econet created 1 159 direct jobs in 2020, paid ZW$41.7 million in commissions to brand ambassadors and invested over ZW$1 billion in network infrastructure.
Source: Financial Gazette


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Co-productions and Chinese sales boost UK TV exports
International sales of UK TV programmes grew 4% from £1,178m to £1,224m during 2012, according to the UK Television Exports Survey commissioned by Pact, the independent TV makers body, and UK Trade & Investment.
The data collated by Television Research Partnership identifies China as the fastest-growing market for the sector, rising by 90% - albeit to a relatively modest value of £12m.
The USA is by far the largest export market for UK television producers, generating £475m of sales (+ 11%).
During the period, co-production revenues rose by 60%, compared to an increase of 51% in digital rights sales and a 20% increase in commissions. However, sales of finished television programmes remained the largest source of TV revenue (£612m).
Unlike in previous years, respondents said that owning intellectual property that could be exploited globally was as important to UK export success as British creativity.


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On June 12, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an 8-0 ruling in favor of Pom Wonderful in a longstanding false advertising dispute against rival beverage company The Coca-Cola Co. The Supreme Court held that competitors can bring Lanham Act claims like Pom Wonderful’s challenging food and beverage labels regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
At issue in the case was Coca-Cola’s “Pomegranate Blueberry Flavored Blend of 5 Juices,” which is 99% apple and grape juice. Pom Wonderful (Pom), who has a competing pomegranate-blueberry juice blend, sued Coca-Cola. It alleged that the juice’s name and other labeling features were misleading under the federal Lanham Act—a statute that allows competitors to sue based on the false or misleading description of goods (15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)).
Coca-Cola asserted that its label complied with the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) and, as such, Pom’s claims were barred. The Supreme Court was not persuaded. It held that the two statutes complement each other in the federal regulation of misleading food and beverage labels, and one statute should not be read to preclude operation of the other.
What does this mean for food and beverage manufacturers going forward? The Supreme Court has paved the way for more competitor false advertising disputes. The Court made clear that compliance with the FDCA and FDA regulations does not immunize a company from a lawsuit, at least one based on a competitor-to-competitor federal Lanham Act claim. Food and beverage manufacturers now have new ammunition to go after their competitors for labeling they believe is misleading and harmful to their business. To avoid potential claims by competitors, food and beverage companies will now need to review their labels for more than just compliance with FDA regulations.
This ruling does not, however, subject companies to broader claims based on state law. The Supreme Court made clear that Pom does not address the preemption of state law claims. The Justices stated plainly: “this is not a pre-emption case.” They also made clear that the case did “not raise the question whether state law is pre-empted by a federal law.” Therefore, companies are less likely to face additional consumer class actions based on this decision in light of the strong arguments that the decision does not apply to state consumer protection claims.
Claudia M. Vetesi and Lisa A. Wongchenko, Litigation Associates
Morrison & Foerster LLP


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Tourism industry in Bahrain relieved that the Grand Prix is back on the calendar, following sharp decline in business in the past few months.
Bahrain's hotels cheer F1's return
Hoteliers in Bahrain are cheering the decision to reinstate the Formula One Grand Prix this year, with the sporting event worth an estimated US$600 million (Dh2.2 billion) to the country's economy.
The Bahrain Grand Prix, originally scheduled for March as the first race of the season, was postponed amid violent unrest in the country. The F1 governing body on Friday announced a unanimous decision to reschedule the event for October 30.
While that decision has received criticism, the race is the single most important event for Bahrain's tourism industry, attracting visitors from around the world. Most hotels usually sell out all their rooms for the event.
"We are very happy to hear it," said Heinz Kraehenbuehl, the general manager of the Moevenpick Hotel Bahrain.
"It's a very positive sign for the whole country, not only for the hotels."
"We've already started taking bookings," said Sergio Fernandes, the acting general manager of the Diplomat Radisson Blu in the capital, Manama. The property was charging the same room rates as when the race was to be held in March, he said.
Tourism in Bahrain has been hit hard by unrest that triggered a three-month state of emergency. GCC troops entered the country and governments warned their citizens against travelling to the kingdom.
Occupancy at hotels in Bahrain slumped to an average of 15 to 20 per cent in March, hoteliers said.
But there has been a gradual increase in occupancy since the reopening in April of the King Fahd Causeway linking Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
"It's good news that the race is back," said Hemant Sharma, the sales, marketing and e-commerce general manager in Bahrain at the Ramee Group, which has 11 hotels in the country.
Bahrain's Gulf Air also cancelled a number of flights because of unrest in the country and elsewhere in the region.
The rescheduling of the race "is going to give back some confidence to everybody", said Michel Mandrea, the general manger of the Golden Tulip hotel in Manama.
"It's more about restoring confidence than the money itself. We will cash in a bit. We won't make up for the losses that we have seen throughout the last three months."
The 2008 Grand Prix in Bahrain attracted almost 100,000 spectators and generated $600m for the economy, according to a study commissioned by the Bahraini government. The race generated an estimated $116.8m of income from visitor spending on accommodation, food and beverage, shopping and travel, the study showed. The event brought in $13.8m from ticket sales and $36.7m from merchandise, food and beverage sales at the Bahrain International Circuit.
The race creates about 600 jobs directly and indirectly. The study found that 49 per cent of race fans visiting from overseas travelled with Gulf Air.
Mr Mandrea said he was hoping for 100 per cent occupancy at his hotel but added, "only time will tell".
"Whatever we had on the books before everything happened got cancelled, and people got their money back," he said. "If we achieve an 80 per cent occupancy, I think everybody would be grateful."
The Moevenpick's general manager is confident, however, that his hotel will be fully booked.
"We of course had a lot of bookings from March, which now we have to call them up and reconfirm," said Mr Kraehenbuehl. "All the hotels in fact were almost fully booked. There were lots of cancellations and down payments were made. We kept these down payments for some of the bigger groups and we told them 'you can come back once the race is back on track'. In my hotel, I'm probably full already over these five days from October 26 to 31 because there were bookings that we were holding."


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Currently browsing "Ethics"
When Amazon launched a product called Mechanical Turk (MTurk) just over a decade ago, the e-commerce giant billed it as an online service to enable a marketplace of workers to complete tasks in exchange for payment. But it didn’t take long for the product to become a significant research tool in psychological science worldwide. ... More>
Children’s behavior is rich, complex, and fascinating. But it is transient. At every time scale, from milliseconds to months, behavior happens and then it vanishes. Newborns’ “gas smiles” metamorphose into expressions of real pleasure, babies’ babbles become reciprocal conversations and teen poetry jams, and infants’ awkward toddling steps transform into ballet recitals and soccer goals. But all of it disappears into the ether as soon as the moment has passed. ... More>
The American Association for the Advancement of Science has awarded its 2015 Scientific Freedom and Responsibility Award to psychological scientist Jean Maria Arrigo. ... More>
Lying, cheating, and stealing cost the global economy billions of dollars each year, but researchers have identified three key strategies that organizations can use to reduce unethical behavior. ... More>


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Demo is the operative word, but boy oh, boy! Old school gamers who are on iOS (and Android) are going to have a blast in the very near future.
Nintendo is now touching the mobile gaming sector – mobile as in phones and tablets – with their push to provide classic games to iOS and Android, making sure that their presence is not forgotten in this era of iPhones.
Nikkei reports that Nintendo is “digging new customers” – you can thank Google Translate for that, which I assume means they are trying to get the attention of customers who may have their full attention on games supported by their mobile platform. Indeed, by making Nintendo games available on the two most popular mobile operating systems today, the Japanese company just might pull more people into its fold.
An important detail we should not miss here is that the games are only going to be mini games – demos, in fact. While that may take away from the excitement this piece of news brings, it does make sense in a way that Nintendo is trying to get people interested in the full games – to be played on their own consoles.
A taste, that’s all it is really, but it’s better than just dreaming of playing Mario Bros. on your iPhone, yes?


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How to watch the Apple iPhone XS launch online
Apple's new iPhones, a new Apple watch and maybe even new iPad pros are coming early on Thursday morning – and you can watch the whole event online.
Apple's upcoming "gather round" event is rife with rumours, including the possibility of the Apple Watch Series 4, new iPad Pros and maybe even new MacBook and MacBook Pro devices to announce. Apple will undoubtedly announce when you'll be able to get hold of the new releases of iOS, macOS, watchOS and tvOS too.
Still, the star of the show will undoubtedly be the new Apple iPhone range, widely tipped to be the iPhone XC, iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max. We've gathered everything we know so far about the new iPhone XS family for you to read here.
For a very limited selection of journalists, analysts and special celebrity guests, they'll be able to watch Tim Cook and chums announce everything onstage from the Steve Jobs Theater in Cupertino, California, but you don't have to stick a hidden camera on their shoulders. That's because Apple will live stream the iPhone launch over the Internet for anyone interested in following the launch as it happens.
The launch will take place at 10am on 12 September 2018, but that’s US Pacific Time. In Australia, events will kick off at 3am on 13 September 2017 AEST; 2:30am in South Australia, Broken Hill and the Northern Territory; and 1am in Western Australia.
How can I watch the iPhone XS Keynote?
If you’re watching from a desktop, laptop, tablet or iOS device, Apple will provide a live stream from its dedicated live events website, which you can find here.
Statistically on the desktop you're probably using Chrome, but you'll need to switch to either Apple's Safari or Microsoft's Edge browser to watch the stream in real time. Apple mobile devices such as iPads can watch the whole stream through the Safari browser on iOS.
If you want to watch on a larger screen and you’ve got an Apple TV set-top box, Apple will provide a stream to the 2nd generation (or better) Apple TVs via the Events app.
Don't fancy an early start? We'll be providing full coverage of the launch, including all specifications, pricing and comparison with Apple's many smartphone competitors on 13 September.


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The Pound Sterling to South African Rand (GBP/ZAR) exchange rate rallied by around 1.07% on Wednesday afternoon.
British labour market data printed positively on Wednesday, which initiated a Sterling surge versus its major peers. In addition to positive data, the Pound also rallied in response to hawkish sentiment from Bank of England (BoE) policymakers who stated that inflationary headwinds were easing in minutes from the most recent policy meeting.
The South African Rand, meanwhile, softened versus most of its major peers despite a weak US Dollar. The depreciation can be linked to rising SA inflation which has prompted many analysts to speculate that the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) will be forced to intervene in order to combat price pressures.
The Pound Sterling to South African Rand (GBP/ZAR) exchange rate is currently trending in the region of 19.5640.
Pound Sterling (GBP) Exchange Rate Forecast to Surge against the South African Rand after Wage Growth Accelerates
British labour market data produced positive results across the board on Wednesday, causing the Pound to soar versus its major rivals. Of particular note was Average Weekly Wages, which saw accelerated growth of 2.7% annually in April. This is great for British consumers given that inflation is predicted to remain low for some time to come.
‘A surge in UK wage growth brings welcome news that the economic recovery is feeling through to pay packets, but also ups the odds of interest rates rising this year … It’s uncertain as to how much pay growth will continue to accelerate, as low inflation will hold down annual pay reviews. However, wage pressures have already built to an extent that would normally start to worry policymakers. Private sector pay excluding bonuses rose at an annual rate of 3.2% in the three months to April, the best seen since 2008 (rates of 3.6% and 3.3% were seen in the single-month data for March and April respectively),’ stated statistics company Markit.
The Pound Sterling to South African Rand (GBP/ZAR) exchange rate dropped to a low of 19.3090 today.
South African Rand (ZAR) Exchange Rate Forecast to Dive versus the British Pound as Price Pressures Rise
South Africa’s inflation data showed consumer prices rose in May. On the year, the Inflation Rate increased from 4.5% to 4.6% and Core Inflation increased from 5.6% to 5.7% annually. Rising price pressures have caused many analysts to speculate that SARB will be forced to intervene in order to control inflation.
‘Inflation is moving to the upper end of the central bank’s target because gasoline prices are rising and food prices are picking up, ‘said Bart Stemmet, economist at NKC African Economics. ‘If power utility Eskom’s application to raise its tariffs by as much as 25% is approved, it will push the Reserve Bank’s inflation forecasts above the target band and that will force them to increase interest rates,’ he added.
South African retail sales data produced mixed results in April. On the year, Retail Sales advanced by 3.4%; bettering the median market forecast 1.8% growth. On a monthly basis, Retail Sales came in at 0.2%; significantly below the market consensus of 1.04% growth.
Pound Sterling to South African Rand (GBP/ZAR) Exchange Rate Forecast to Hold Gains ahead of UK Retail Sales
Given the extent of the advance, the Pound Sterling to South African Rand (GBP/ZAR) exchange rate is likely to hold gains for the remainder of Wednesday’s European session. Thursday ought to see GBP/ZAR volatility with British Retail Sales data due for publication. In addition, tonight’s Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is likely to impact on demand for the emerging-market South African Rand.
The Pound Sterling to South African Rand (GBP/ZAR) exchange rate reached a high of 19.5920 today.


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By Serenity Caldwell, MacworldAPR 12, 2011 12:36 pm PDT
On Tuesday, Apple previewed Final Cut Pro X, the newest version of the company’s professional non-linear video editing software. The announcement came at the Final Cut Pro User Group Network Supermeet, being held in Las Vegas during the 2011 National Association of Broadcasters Show.
Apple says Final Cut Pro X has been rewritten from the ground up, with support for 64-bit, a user-interface redesign, and a whole host of new features. The software takes advantage of core Mac OS X features like Cocoa, Core Animation, Open CL, and Grand Central Dispatch to speed up and fine-tune performance.
In addition to a complete UI overhaul, Final Cut Pro X boasts a newly designed floating point linear color system, up-to-4K-resolution-independent playback, a magnetic timeline for keeping audio and video in sync, Compound Clips for easy video nesting, non-destructive color balancing, automatic audio cleanup, and Smart Collections for organizing clips.
The new software has additionally borrowed a trick or two from Apple’s consumer-level video editing software, iMovie: It now supports full background rendering—“What that means in practical terms is that this [render] dialogue, that you love?—It’s gone!” said Apple video architect Peter Steinauer—and an inline precision editor. It also sports the same automatic face detection (single or group) as iMovie or and the ability to identify shots (medium, wide, or close-up).
Steinauer spoke briefly about the new features before Apple’s chief architect for video applications, Randy Ubillos, came on-stage for a full walkthrough of the software.
Final Cut Pro X will be available this June from the Mac App Store for $299.


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WeWork, And The Problem With High Valuations in Tech Bloated valuations in the tech sector isn't a new phenomenon. But investors aren't having it anymore.
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur Asia Pacific, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
WeWork, Wall Street's latest darling, and its initial public offering, continued to crash and burn after its founder, Adam Neumann, stepped down on Tuesday, pressured by shareholders.
Neumann, the long-haired, leather-jacket wearing, tequila-loving Israeli, had once envisioned riding the skyrocketing popularity of WeWork to the end of the line with a more than multi-billion dollar valuation when it was listed, but his dreams crash-landed after the company took a massive valuation haircut.
Valued at $47 billion privately by investment bankers as early as January, the company had to slash its market value to as low as $15 billion after investors raised concerns about WeWork's mounting losses.
Understandably burnt by Uber and Lyft's IPOs earlier this year – both of which were also reporting losses consistently up until that point – the investing community was grew increasingly wary of WeWork's potential to perform in public markets, with the final blow coming after SoftBank, which owns a third of the company, withdrew its support, saying it would have to take a massive writedown if WeWork was to push ahead with its IPO at a $15 billion valuation.
The problem with high valuations
Tech startups, especially ones that are already well known before they hit the public markets, are often valued at more than what they are worth. That has always been the case, and for a long time, no one minded it because most people bought the brand, or the name, instead of the company's growth or investment return potential, anyway.
"People assume that these investors are very sophisticated groups that know everything. They don't. To a certain degree, they invest like young children playing soccer – they all follow the ball. These investments tend to get very crowded a result. And then who else do you sell it to?," says Marty Wolf, president and founder of martinwofl M&A Advisors, an investment advisory firm.
The biggest problem when a big name company decides to go public, but has a weak balance sheet, as was the case with Uber and Lyft, is that it invariably has to take a valuation cut before, or after its IPO. Uber saw how Lyft fared in public markets, and decided to bring down its own valuation to avoid the share price dive.
Investors obviously dislike voluntary valuation snips because it devalues the stake they hold in the company, just like in the case of WeWork and SoftBank. And then, they either exit, creating a bad rep for the company, or withdraw support, like SoftBank did, causing other potential investors to become skittish.
"Our concern here is that this pattern will create uncertainty for investors and companies seeking to go public in the near future. While there is a rational explanation for why many of these companies have crashed after their market debut, there is still a psychological factor embedded in market behavior," says Chip Meakem, cofounder of Tribeca Venture Partners, a VC firm.
Who's to blame?
"In the board rooms, behind closed doors, there is an incredible, high stakes game of head-on chicken with VC investors that sit on boards and their management teams where VCs need to meet their return profiles for their fund's LPs, and thus can't give the management teams more time to figure out how to properly manage a business. The investment bankers initially sat there quietly watching as they're brokers trying to make as much money as possible, and therefore just want to make sure a transaction happens.
Then, after Uber and Lyft, investment banking reputations took a big hit and finally, for the first time, bankers are saying nope, we just can't just make those valuations you need for your investors work and we have to slash valuations – Oh hey, WeWork!," says Alex Song, chief executive officer and co-founder of Innovation Department, a tech-powered startup studio.
A recent CNBC story said that SoftBank chief executive officer, Masayoshi Son's optimism in WeWork's growth potential, and a lack of dissenting viewpoints also led to the company being overvalued.
"Public markets are making a clear distinction between proven, sustainable business models, and those still in doubt, like Uber. The market is acting rationally. Not all tech IPOs have crashed and burned, but rather those companies where skepticism of their underlying business model remains high," says Meakem with Tribeca Venture.
Adding to WeWork's miseries were also fears of a recession on the horizon, and a global economic slowdown.
"With the economy and financial markets giving off late cycle signals, there appears to be a shift away from growth at any cost, toward value," says Charley Moore, chief executive officer of Rocket Lawyer, a legal technology company.
But why are people still talking up famous unicorns seeking to list on the stock exchange, even though they are loss-making?
"Consumers and investors are eager to find the next billion dollar company with a huge outcome for all constituents. This is as much of a psychological chase as a financial one which is why we are still talking about it," says Meakem.
The recent spate of negative headlines coming out of global markets have also either pushed investors to the sidelines, or forced them to explore investments in avenues other than public markets.
"Investors tired of talking about the trade war with China, Chairman Powell and the president," says Marty Wolf.


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52 Week Range
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Splitit Posts Q3 Merchant Sales Volume Of US$70.9M
Splitit Completes Share Purchase Plan That Will Raise A$10 Mln
Splitit To Raise A$90 Mln Via Institutional Placement
Splitit Ltd is an Israel-based company that offers payment solutions. It offers Splitit, a payment method solution enabling customers to pay for purchases with an existing debit or credit card by splitting the cost into interest-free monthly payments, without the need for additional registrations or applications. Splitit enables online retailers to offer their customers a way to pay for purchases in installments with instant approval, decreasing cart abandonment rates. The Company serves approximately 800 merchants in more than 20 countries.
Software & Programming
HaArba'a St 30
TEL AVIV-YAFO, NY
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Shares in Australia's Afterpay Ltd and its smaller consumer lender rivals tumbled for a second day on Wednesday, as the entry of U.S. giant PayPal into the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) sector sent investors scrambling to re-price its frothy stocks.
* Afterpay shares fall 9% in two sessions, rivals plunge further
* ADVISES IT HAS TO DATE NOT SEEN ANY MATERIAL IMPACT FROM COVID-19 ON ITS MERCHANT SALES VOLUME OR REVENUE Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage:
Sezzle Inc <SZL.AX>, a rare U.S.-based buy-now-pay-later lender, shone in its debut on the Australian Securities Exchange on Tuesday, leveraging Australian investors' familiarity with the sector and nearly doubling its value by the day's end.
Sezzle Inc <SZL.AX>, a loss-making U.S. buy-now-pay-later lender, plans to list in Australia braving heightened scrutiny of the sector there after the financial crime watchdog ordered an audit of top local rival Afterpay Touch Group Ltd <APT.AX>.
Australia's financial crime watchdog ordered an audit of buy-now-pay-later company Afterpay Touch Group, citing suspected non-compliance with anti-money-laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws, hammering shares across the sector.
Splitit, which helps businesses with instalment payments, said on Tuesday it raised A$12 million ($8.6 million) in an initial public offering on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX).
Quote and financial data from Refinitiv. Fund performance data provided by Lipper. All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes.


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Nothing screams "change" like a new dye job, and that’s exactly what Kylie Jenner just did! In early September, the 19-year-old reality TV star went from deep brunette locks to a full-on platinum blonde hue, just in time for Fashion Week.
So it was only a matter of time before this trendsetter set her sights on something else—in this case, dreamy rose gold hair! Kylie unveiled the color update on her Instagram account, and we’ve already added this look to our beauty bucket lists.
Popsugar previously reported that rose gold hair will blow up during the -ber months, so it’s very much like Kylie to test the trend before everyone else jumps on it.
According to colorist Tamara DeFelice of New York’s Butterfly Studio Salon, "For a modern touch, keep most brightness around the face while staying a bit deeper in the roots throughout the crown." She added, "Concentrate highlights around the middle to ends of the hair. This keeps maintenance lower, and adds instant depth to the look."
Oh, and us dark-haired ladies can totally pull off this look, too! "This color will accentuate the peach and gold tones in women with warmer skin tones," DeFelice explained. A hair color that will emphasize glowing Pinay skin? We're sold.
Follow Patricia on Instagram.


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A Vision For Design in Dubai: Meet d3
Much of the credit can be placed on UAE’s Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohamed bin Rashid al Maktoum, who had a clear vision of the future of Dubai’s design industry. In 2013, he created a mandate to make Dubai the “emerging design capital of the world” – a vision to be steered by the Dubai Design and Fashion Council (DDFC). The DDFC will oversee this mandate via a two-pronged approach: to nurture local/regional talent and to create a sustainable industry for every segment within Dubai's design industry. This sector will include a myriad of creative trades, from graphic to interior design, to architecture and fashion, and so much more.
To create a home for this vision, Sheikh al Maktoum teamed up with master developers, the Tecom Group, to create d3, a multi-faceted building that was launched last year. To be completed by 2019, d3 is a bonafide "Smart City", and will ultimately house, educate and develop regional talent. It will also provide a physical place where business will be conducted, and where all a variety of exciting trade shows and conferences will be held. With facilities that entail the highest tech specifications available in the world, d3 will uncover the region’s mighty design talent and thrust it into the spotlight. Add d3’s strategic partners to the mix, like NOT JUST A LABEL, a visionary platform for emerging international designers, and all that spells out a profound evolution to the city’s DNA.
For once, this may silence the Dubai critics who unfairly claim the city has little cultural allure. What these critics are unaware of, is while, yes, there are a vast selection of luxury hotels and beaches to choose from, it is also a city where cultural pursuits thrive. There are art galleries, museums and architectural masterpieces that are dotted throughout the city – yet this side of Dubai needs to be better known and brought to the fore.
That’s where d3 comes in. Unveiled last April via a three day multi-sensory festival called “Meet d3”, the event introduced the world to this new cultural hub that will rival anything going on in arts centres like Shoreditch or the Williamsburg District. The festival showed how d3 is evolving into an international-class design destination, where not just emerging fashion designers, but artists, architects, chefs, photographers and more will have a space to let their creativity run free.
The first of three stages of the project is already complete: 11 hi-spec offices and retail spaces were opened last year, which will ultimately house up to 10,000 design and creative professionals. To show the youthful and exciting mien of the area, the architects even constructed a slide between first and ground floors for ease of movement– talk about efficiency. Stages 2 and 3 are to be completed by 2019, with a waterway development and up to 800,000 square feet of flexible working space. Also included will be 2200 hotel rooms and 1300 serviced apartments, so locals and tourists alike don’t have to go far to see the creativity that Dubai has to offer.
State-of-the-art? Of course, but critically, at the heart of d3 will always be education: Dr. Amina Al Rustamani, who is both Tecom’s and DDFC’s Chairperson – and widely considered to be one of the most powerful people in the world – will make sure of that. In fact, d3 will be an intricate ecosystem where ideas will germinate, cross-pollinate, and ultimately where talent will bloom and be harvested. The world view of Dubai will shift from just being a land of consumption, to one where creators of the highest order will be discovered, educated, trained, and given a platform to make viable businesses in design.
The success of d3 is almost a certainty considering their enlightened choice of strategic partners, NJAL for one. Pioneered by the fashion visionary, Stefan Siegel, he explains how NJAL was drawn to the MENA in general and d3 in particular: “We were struck by the multicultural talent. However, we kept on hearing the same story: that these artists couldn’t get their creative ideas across to so-called fashion capitals like Paris and Milan, and barely had money for a plane ticket, never mind the ability to secure a visa to Europe or America to show their talent.”
Siegel continues: “That is why d3 became a natural partner for us. NJAL’s goals in enabling designers from the MENA corresponded perfectly with the aims of d3. We were both in agreement that education and nurturing had to be done in situ, or the world was at risk of losing this massive depth of talent.” NJAL’s raison d'etre dovetailed perfectly with d3’s, and a partnership was born, with NJAL hosting a pop-up pavilion at last April’s “Meet d3”.
Says Siegel: “For ‘Meet d3’, we picked 200 from the thousands of NJAL designers, half from MENA, the other half from all around the world and created a multidisciplinary pavilion, where fashion met music, art, concerts, lectures and more. 32,000 people attended “Meet d3” and 21,000 visited our pavilion. The amount of interest piqued, never mind items sold, vindicated everything we felt about talent in the region.”
Since d3’s inauguration last year, a series of further exciting events have taken place. Last October saw d3’s first edition of Dubai Design Week. It was a complete triumph, with over one hundred events staged by creators like weavers, photographers and artists alike - and even included a number of exciting workshops. Then from March 31st to April 3rd 2016, Fashion Forward Dubai (FFWD) held its showcase, which included a number of fascinating panel discussions, fashion shows and industry talks. This three-day fashion extravaganza saw thousands attend from around the globe.
Also, currently in d3 is Mario Testino’s scorching hot exhibit called “Heat”, which will run to April 15th, 2016. The iconic Peruvian photographer chose d3 to display some of his never or rarely-seen before work, which will no doubt become part of fashion history.
But d3 is not just for adults. Design should be encouraged from a young age and that is exactly the objective of d3’s new educational outreach programme called the “KHDA Saturday Clubs”. For a select few Saturday’s throughout the year, a team of tutors, mentors and speakers will deliver a series of interactive workshops and inspirational talks to over 100 local students.
All of this is re-calibrating the world vision of Dubai. Says Siegel: “I find it edifying the Dubai’s rulers are open to a move from a petroleum-based economy to one of creativity.” Siegel is also quick to point out that Dubai has succeeded where other countries in the GCC are struggling: Dubai has managed to cauterize the bleed between the Islamic and non-Islamic worlds, and has harmoniously married the two cultures to the point where there is little fear of travelling from a tourist’s point of view.
He says: “I despair that when people look at the region they just read the bad news. It is in fact an enlightened area with such a multicultural population, and where we as Europeans and North Americans can learn a lot.”
Much of this idea of tolerance has to do with the leadership of the first President of the UAE, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who believed that tolerance and dialogue had to replace extremism in Islam. This belief system no doubt will provide the bedrock for progress: after all, creativity and a buzzing economy cannot happen in an atmosphere of conflict. Siegel is sure that Dubai’s current leadership is creating the business and cultural climate that will mean in the very short future, no longer will Paris, Milan, New York and London be the epicentres of design - d3 will level that playing field:
“Cities like Dubai will be leading a new brigade, and shifting the axis. It’s heartening to know that no longer will talent from the MENA need to leave their home turf to get the education and support they need. Thanks to d3, people will come to them, rather than the other way around.” Now, that is revolutionary.