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JAPAN: New Wacoal Line Offers Health Benefits
Leading women's lingerie manufacturer Wacoal Corp on Thursday unveiled plans for a new line of underwear for middle-aged women that it claims will also give them a range of health benefits.
The company said its new Daily Wellness line will include garments such as blood circulation stimulation stockings. The collection will be sold in department stores from next spring and in up to 50 Daily Wellness stores by 2005 as Wacoal targets annual sales of $12.1m.
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- Rooftop Bars
- Arts & Culture
flydubai, the Dubai-based airline, showcases the latest developments to its onboard experience at this year’s Arabian Travel Market (ATM). The carrier’s redesigned passenger experience and added onboard offering reflect its agility and commitment to meeting the changing travel needs of customers.
Romania looks set to join the growing list of countries offering so-called digital nomad visas to remote workers. Its minimum income requirement, of just over 1,100 euros per month, will make it the most accessible in Central and Eastern Europe.
Malta has launched an innovative new incentive to attract visitors during the pandemic – it is effectively giving them cash when they book hotels.
Extensive gardens, appealing pool landscapes, terraces with restaurants and bars, plenty of outdoor space and stunning beaches right in front of the hotel are attributes describing the award-winning Kempinski Hotel Bahía, which is reopening to welcome national and international guests for the summer season on 20 May 2021 in southern Spain.
The Hoxton, Rome has opened its doors in Parioli, boasting 192 bedrooms; Cugino, a café and aperitivo bar run in collaboration with local restaurant and micro-bakery Marigold; a large open lobby; a beautiful outdoor terrace; and L’Appartamento, a unique meeting and events space. A second restaurant will open in September.
The iconic Four Seasons Hotel Ritz Lisbon prepares to reinvent itself after 60 years of service. So much more than a room renovation announcement, this is a serendipitous story that begins in 1959, when the hotel first opened its doors.
Nikki Beach, the family owned and operated global luxury lifestyle and hospitality brand, announced that Nikki Beach Montenegro is officially open. The property is the brands fifth resort location and thirteenth beach club property.
As spring sweeps through the Central Park, and a new energy fills the streets, the reopening of The Plaza, the city’s most iconic hotel, is a reminder for New Yorkers and its globetrotting visitors that there is no place as magical as New York City.
Dubai-based carrier to serve 11 destinations in Russia starting from May 2021. The airline also resumes flights to two more points in Iran and adds Tivat to its seasonal schedule

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FASHION RETAILER C&A has come up with a unique way of showing the popularity of their clothing – Facebook “Likes”.
C&A in São Paulo has created clothes hooks that display the total number of Facebook “Likes” for each garment of clothing in their store.
The promotional video – which has a translation available – states that when women go shopping they like to have a second opinion. They state that these clothes hooks will help women “choose the ideal outfit”.
Would you be more likely to buy an outfit if it had a high number of ‘likes’?


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Norwegian Cruise Line announced the latest addition to their lineup of entertainment options for Norwegian Epic, and it's one that may cause you to scratch your head. For just $10 a day, you will be able to rent a Gibson guitar to play in the privacy of your cabin aboard NCL's newest ship.
This may not seem too newsworthy, and in reality, it's probably not, but it is another sign that it's going to be "different out there" (to quote an old, old NCL advertising slogan) on Norwegian Epic.
In this CND article we see how NCL is continuing to expand the appeal of Norwegian Epic to a market beyond the traditional cruise market - one that is used to vacationing a very different way.
The complete article appeared in the June 3, 2010, edition of Cruise News Daily.


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Loves Furniture points fingers over financial problems, bankruptcy
In new documents filed in the U.S. bankruptcy court, Loves Furniture said warehouse and delivery issues led to poor customer experiences, canceled orders, and ultimately the company’s financial distress.
Prior to the company’s January 6th Chapter 11 filing, Loves’ public statements largely disrupted industry-wide supplies caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, which left the company’s operations low in inventory during times of high consumer demand .
Loves Furniture is the newly founded company that took over many closed Art Van Furniture locations last summer after Art Van’s surprising bankruptcy in March 2020. Loves started with 34 stores in Michigan, Ohio, and Pennsylvania and approximately 500 employees. There will soon be 13 stores, all but one in Michigan.
On Monday, Mack Peters, CEO of Loves, told the Free Press that the supply disruptions caused by the pandemic were actually a main reason for the company’s problems. Without these disruptions, the company could have opened stores sooner than before.
“There were certainly many factors that had to do with what happened,” said Peters. “We had to postpone a lot of store openings because we didn’t have any goods.”
More:Loves furniture files for bankruptcy, new owner can look for remaining businesses
More:Loves Furniture took over many Art Van businesses. Now it is also about to fight.
In the new bankruptcy documents filed over the weekend, Peters highlights Loves’ storage and delivery problems. He says the company only got access to the former Art Van warehouse at 14 Mile in Warren in October because another company used the warehouse to sell Art Van liquidations.
This situation required Loves to use an expensive and temporary patchwork quilt of warehouses in Burton, Allen Park, and Lincoln Park, with costs ranging from 120% to 500% higher than original estimates.
Loves hired Penske Logistics Services, a subsidiary of Bloomfield Hills-based Penske Corp., to manage some temporary warehouses and move furniture between them and the Loves stores.
Peters says in the court documents that Penske Logistics struggled to find Loves’ inventory in the Burton warehouse and “sent goods to the wrong stores so one store could get two of everything and another store would not get goods.”
Despite the mix-ups, Penske Loves was still charging trips to the wrong stores, trips back to Burton warehouse, and trips to the right stores again, the records say. Penske also sent trucks that were less than half full and Loves still charged a flat rate.
Because the inventory tracking software for Penske and another warehouse operator was not integrated, some furniture was lost.
“As a result, hundreds of deliveries were delayed or ultimately canceled because the goods needed to fulfill a customer’s order could not be found,” the file said.
A Penske Logistics representative declined to comment on the story. Penske sued Loves this month in Oakland County Circuit Court over the $ 1.8 million the furniture company owes.
Penske Logistics was still struggling to find furniture even after Loves finally relocated inventory to the former Art Van warehouse on 14 Mile, Peters claimed in court documents.
The first Loves stores opened in late summer and initially achieved strong sales that exceeded forecasts. However, sales fell sharply due to difficulties in finding, sourcing and delivering goods to customers, documents say.
Many Loves furniture suppliers refused to ship more furniture, even for Loves customers who had made deposits. Soon negative online customer reviews overwhelmed previous positive reviews, the court records say.
When Loves decided to close nearly a dozen Michigan stores last month, “customer uncertainty as to whether Loves would continue to exist led to numerous cancellations, to the point where daily cancellations often exceeded daily sales,” said Peters in the court records.
Loves hopes to be able to hold major sales events in the remaining 13 stores soon. Since the goal of bankruptcy is to restructure rather than liquidate, according to recent court records, Loves’ only way to reopen stores is to turn unsold inventory into cash.
Loves “has too much inventory and too little cash to run its business,” the court records say.
On December 28, Loves ran out of money to pay Penske. The next day, Penske removed its employees and trucks, preventing Loves from completing some assignments. Those steps resulted in further order cancellations and refund requests, the records say.
Since its inception, Loves has ordered furniture and mattress stocks from 81 different manufacturers, valued at $ 60 million. Of this, the company received around $ 38 million, with the rest either canceled by the manufacturer for non-payment or, according to the records, sold to another retailer.
Loves currently has approximately $ 27 million unsold inventory.
ContactJC Reindl at the313-222-6631 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @jcreindl. Read more about the business and subscribe to our business newsletter.


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Ethereum has gained popularity in the past few years, and many investors have bought into it, causing for its value to increase tremendously. However, the question that remains is whether its blockchain technology is functioning and sustainable, or is it is just like Bitcoin Core (BTC) acting like digital gold with a nonexistent blockchain. Ethereal would have people believe that it blockchain is stable and has released upgrades to attract companies to build platforms on it. But what exactly is the real deal?
A recent episode of Coingeek Conversations hosted by Charles Miller touches on this topic as an accomplished blockchain developer and an aspiring one from different industries talk to each other about building blockchain-based supply chains. Founder and CEO of the Oslo-based enterprise blockchain platform UNISOT Stephan Nilsson has already built and is currently operating a blockchain-based seafood supply chain that has revolutionized the industry. Co-founder and CEO of London-based online jewelry platform MarketOrders Sukhi Jutla, on the other hand, has identified blockchain technology as “a far more trustworthy and efficient way to do a process that’s already existing” and wants to create a blockchain-based system that will lend transparency to the jewelry supply chain.
“I think that there is going to be a lot of people maybe thinking about how you could utilize these digital chips to basically replace the paper certificates, as well as using blockchain, for the chip to talk back to the blockchain to verify its provenance and where it is in the supply chain. Maybe it could be used also as a digital certificate so that you can actually see exactly what [are] the components of this particular piece. And with the chips being in metal jewelry like gold or silver, if at any point in time that particular item is melted down into scrap metal, then that would actually talk back to the blockchain say it’s like destroyed or there’s no more information being encoded into it, so you know that this piece no longer exists,” Jutla shares.
The jewelry CEO’s plan also includes a tokenized payment system that will avoid delays due to payment transactions that takes days and cut down on transaction fees due to the many middlemen her supply chain has—from sourcing raw materials, designing the jewelry to getting the high-value products to retail stores, whether physical or online. It certainly is a good plan. However, she is eyeing to build this platform on Ethereum because of its popularity with users and because “it seems stable.” Nilson quickly corrects her by sharing why Ethereum is not the blockchain she is looking for based on his firsthand knowledge and experience while he was in Jutla’s shoes—exploring which blockchain can best accommodate his needs.
“There is a huge community in Ethereum. There are a lot of solutions out there. But none of them are in production. No one has actually been able to actually run this in production using all the functionality of the Ethereum blockchain because it’s simply not scaling. You can do like 10-15 transactions per second, and it doesn’t work for one company even. So the problem in Ethereum is that every company that is using it now is building second and third tier solutions on top of that to try to mitigate that it doesn’t scale. They have a blockchain somewhere down there, but they’re actually building a solution up here solving all their problems,” Nilsson explains.
So, the answer to the question of whether Ethereum can be trusted by companies to build their blockchain-based platforms and applications on is a resounding “No!” Its blockchain technology simply cannot handle the huge number of transactions most businesses make at a price that can be considered cost-efficient.


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The primary-ever sale by Sotheby’s of “inscriptions” created utilizing the Bitcoin blockchain’s Ordinals protocol – from a pixelated assortment generally known as “BitcoinShrooms” – drew about $450,000, or 5 instances the very best estimates, doubtlessly revealing a mainstream fervor for the tradable digital photos colloquially known as “NFTs on Bitcoin.”
The public sale, which concluded on Wednesday, consisted of three of the photographs, together with a pixelated avocado that fetched greater than $100,000 and a design that seems to be derived from a mushroom in the Super Mario franchise that offered for north of $240,000, in response to Derek Parsons, a spokesman for the public sale home. There have been 148 whole bids throughout the three heaps, and greater than two-thirds of all bidders have been new to Sotheby’s.
There are “plans for extra quickly,” Parsons wrote in an electronic mail.
The outcomes recall the mania that swept digital-asset markets a pair years in the past when digital paintings and non-fungible tokens or “NFTs” first began drawing eye-popping sums, and captured mainstream attention; one NFT by the artist Beeple drew $69 million on the public sale home Christie’s. Lots of these collections, nonetheless, have been constructed atop the Ethereum blockchain.
The Ordinals inscriptions, which debuted late final 12 months that includes a brand new expertise pioneered by Casey Rodarmor atop Bitcoin have witnessed bouts of recognition this 12 months ample to trigger congestion and elevated charges on the distributed community, launched in 2009 to be a peer-to-peer funds community.
So the concept among the photos is perhaps thought of excessive artwork may tip the scales of the talk towards revenue pursuits.
The digital avocado, generally known as “BIP39 SEED,” was initially tipped to attract $20,000 to $30,000, but it surely ended up promoting for $101,600.


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The Google Pay app has been given a makeover, growing from a simple payments tool to a full-blown financial management service and, from early next year, a gateway to a full bank account.
Available now in the US, the redesigned Google Pay Android and iOS apps focuses less on the user’s cards than their relationships with friends and businesses.
Americans can make P2P, contactless and e-commerce payments, see past transactions, and find offers and loyalty info in a UI built around conversations.
For example, if a user needs to split dinner, rent or other expenses with more than one person, they can create a group, split the bill, and keep track of who’s paid in a single place.
The app can also understand and automatically organise spending – enabling users to search for “food,” “last month,” or “Mexican restaurants” to find the relevant transactions.
Meanwhile, Google has confirmed that next year Americans will be able to use the app to open a Plex bank account, co-branded with one of 11 different partner lenders.
Citi has shared a sneak preview of the Citi Plex Account1, with a consumer waitlist opening today.
Jane Fraser, Citi president and CEO, global consumer banking, says: “This collaboration gives us a platform to drive significant scale in our retail bank. By unlocking the power of our respective ecosystems, we can deepen our existing relationships and serve an exponentially larger and new generation of customers.”
Caesar Sengupta, general manager, payments at Google, says: “Citi customers using Plex Accounts will be able to open their accounts right within the Google Pay app and tap into all its features to save, send, spend and stay on top of their finances.”
Digital payments will be discussed in depth at EBAday 2020. For delegate passes, register now and join leaders from across Europe’s payments ecosystem as EBAday addresses ‘The Turning Point in Payments Transformation’.
Fintech-Insight is dedicated to delivering unbiased and dependable insights into cryptocurrency, finance, trading, and stocks. However, we must clarify that we don't offer financial advice, and we strongly recommend users to perform their own research and due diligence.


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More companies, including BMW and Allstate, pulled their advertising from Fox News' ''The O'Reilly Factor'' days after the New York Times reported Fox and star host Bill O'Reilly paid five women to settle sex harassement cases. Fred Katayama reports.
U.S. President Donald Trump coming to the defense of TV anchor Bill O'Reilly, calling him a "good person." This after the New York Times report that the conservative commentator and his employer, 21st Century Fox, paid $13 million to five women to settle claims he sexually harassed them. More companies, including BMW and Allstate, pulled ads from O'Reilly's show on Fox New, "The O'Reilly Factor." On the list of brands withdrawing from the most watched show in cable television are companies that target O'Reilly's baby boomer demographics. Among them: car brands Mercedes and Hyundai. Drug maker GlaxoSmithKline temporarily suspended the airing of its commercials on the show. Adweek editor A.J. Katz says it's a tough situation for advertisers because they lose a lot of viewers by taking an important ethical stand. (SOUNDBITE) A.J. KATZ, EDITOR, ADWEEK, (ENGLISH) SAYING: "We should expect to see more advertisers pulling their ads from the show within the next two days, but that they're not pulling their ads from the network completely. You're going to have shows airing on other Fox news programs. And, look, those ads could, you know, when this all settles down, whether or not he stays - and I think he probably will, frankly - but you could see those brands airing commercials back on 'The O'Reilly Factor' in the near future." According to ad-tracking firm iSpot.tv, Mercedes spent more than a million dollars for commercials on the show in 2016. Hyundai and French drugmaker Sanofi shelled out a similar amount. GlaxoSmithKline bought ads on O'Reilly for about half a million dollars.


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While Yuting "Tina" Yuan was studying for a Master's degree in Statistics at Rutgers University, she often found herself distracted when hitting the books. "When I was studying, I was always thinking about baking — it's my true passion," Yuan says. Enter Dragon Sweetie, the bakery Yuan opened in September at 389 Gregory Street in the South Wedge neighborhood.
Yuan came to the United States from China four years ago and has been in Rochester for two. Yuan's vision for Dragon Sweetie is to blend Asian ingredients with traditional French baking. Items like the red bean croissant ($2.50) and a green tea-infused chiffon reflect the melding of cultures. Yuan says the French baguette ($2) is her favorite to make among the more traditional French items available on her menu, including chocolate and almond croissants ($2-$2.50).
Dragon Sweetie serves coffee and tea in the morning — Yuan says she hopes to soon find a local coffee roaster and brew their coffee in her bakery. There is also a small lunch menu consisting of various soups and quiches that rotate on a daily basis (check Dragon Sweetie's website for daily soup and quiche specials). Soups like coconut vegetable, vegetarian hot and sour, and butternut squash are currently in rotation ($2.50-$3.50). Some varieties of quiche available include Quiche Lorraine, spinach and mushroom, meatloaf, and seafood ($4-$4.50 per slice).
Yuan said Dragon Sweetie will soon serve Asian spicy sandwiches like teriyaki chicken, roasted pork with cumin, and tofu.
Dragon Sweetie is located at 389 Gregory Street, and is open Tuesday through Sunday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. 489-3016. You can find more online at dragonsweetie.com.
Three Heads Brewing (3HB), has released Wendigo Winter Ale, its final beer of 2014. The latest offering "honors the English tradition of creating a strong, malty ale for the winter months." The winter ale is now available in 22-ounce bottles and on draft.
Rohrbach Brewing Company has released a limited edition beer to benefit Foodlink. "Givin' Bach" is an American Pale Ale made with New Zealand Hops, and is now available at Rohrbach's, Good Luck, Johnny's Irish Pub, Tap and Mallet, Hogan's Hideaway, and Matthew's East End Grill.
Hot Shots Volleyball (1046 University Avenue) will host a Corona Cares First Friday Beach Party at its indoor beach on December 5. The event includes complimentary light fare, drink specials, door prizes and music. A $5 donation to the Ronald McDonald House is suggested. RSVP at rochesteralist.com.
ButaPub has opened in the Historic German House (315 Gregory Street) in the South Wedge neighborhood — the restaurant replaced Zeppa Bistro. Chef Asa Mott will serve American interpretations of Asian cuisine favorites, including pork buns and ramen. Visit butapub.com for more information.
Both of Sugar Mountain Bake Shoppe's locations (Alexander Street and Monroe Avenue) have closed.
Chow Hound is a food and restaurant news column. Do you have a tip? Send it to [email protected].


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Google’s first female engineer said Google has seen an overall decline in the quality of its search results, but brings up the notion that it’s just a window to the web, suggesting it could be the entire internet that’s worse.
Marissa Meyer, who worked at Google from 2009 to 2012, was a guest at a Freakonomics podcast in which he addressed the most significant user complaint: the company choosing advertising over organic results.
Marissa Meyer, who worked at Google from 2009 to 2012, admitted there was a decline, but suggests it could be that the internet is getting worse
He explained that 80% of searches don’t include paid URLs and believes that ads can provide users with exactly what they’re looking for, even more than organic ones.
Google isn’t blind to the decline either, and is supplementing its index of a trillion web pages by showing users curated content, as well as providing text “snippets” directly in the text, eliminating the need to scroll page after page.
More than 80% of Google’s parent company Alphabet’s revenue comes from search engine advertising, and 85% of all online searches are conducted with Google.
Breaking these facts down by number shows why Google is inundated with paid content, but displaying them all at the top is enough to influence user behaviors and earns the company a large amount of money per click.
Mayer was Google’s first female engineer when she joined the company in 1999 and even managed the search engine during her 13 years there.
Prior to his employment, Mayer was struggling to make it to Google.
“The refrain I heard most often from people who knew I was considering working there was, ‘Why does the world need another search engine? There are already a dozen that are pretty good,'” he said during the podcast. .
It wasn’t until Mayer spoke with founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin that she became convinced Google was the way of the future. The founders told her that “good enough is not good enough for research”.
And from there, he embarked on his journey with the tech giant.
“When you see the quality of your search results go down, it’s natural to blame Google and say, ‘Why are they worse?’ Mayer said.
“To me, the more interesting and sophisticated thought is if you say, ‘Wait, but Google is just a window to the web. The real question is, why is the web getting worse?’
He gave an example of how ads perform better than organic links, using the idea that someone is trying to buy “Madonna tour tickets.”
Mayer praised Google for its ads, saying they are sometimes better than organic results and that only 80% of searches show ads
Companies that pay to have their link appear high are more likely to have tickets available for purchase.
However, many users expect to see actual search results when looking for the best hotels in New York City or where to open a savings account, which is where the problem comes in.
Google doesn’t display organic search results above a section labeled “People Also Ask,” which is the “solution” mentioned by Mayer that provides users with a snippet, so they don’t leave the search engine.
“I think Google is more reluctant to send users to the web,” Mayer told Freakonomics.
‘And to me that indicates a natural tension where they’re like, ‘wait, we see the web is sometimes not a great experience for our researchers to continue on. We keep them on our page.’
Advertisements weren’t always the Google way.
The company hasn’t always shown them because it feared they would degrade the user experience. However, Mayer and other innovators at Google devised an experiment to test the idea.
In 2000, the team ran a trial that showed ads to 99% of users and 1% didn’t see them.
The results showed that people who saw the ads did 3% more searches than those who didn’t.
“So basically there was a noticeable difference over a long period of time where people liked Google search results more and did more searches when they had ads than when they didn’t, which I thought was really good,” Meyer said.
The team shut down the experiment but continued to broadcast ads.
WHERE DOES THE GOOGLE SENTENCE “DON’T BE EVIL” ORIGIN?
For the past 24 years, the Silicon Valley giant has put the phrase “Don’t be evil” front and center in its code of conduct to show that it wants Googlers to strive to do the right thing.
“Don’t be mean” was first added to the company’s code of business conduct in 2000 and has been heavily touted by Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin over the years.
The company has dedicated several paragraphs to the phrase in its code of conduct.
But that changed as part of a code update last month that downgraded “Don’t be evil” to a single sentence at the bottom of the document.
Here are the original paragraphs explaining Google’s “Don’t be evil” principle:
“Do not be naughty.” Googlers generally apply these words to how we serve our users. But ‘Don’t be evil’ is much more. Yes, it’s about providing our users with unbiased access to information, focusing on their needs and offering them the best possible products and services. But it’s also about doing the right thing more generally: following the law, acting honorably, and treating colleagues with courtesy and respect.
The Google Code of Conduct is one of the ways we practice “Don’t be mean.” It is based on the recognition that everything we do in connection with our work at Google will, and should be, measured against the highest possible standards of ethical business conduct. We’ve set the bar so high for practical as well as ambitious reasons: our commitment to the highest standards helps us hire great people, build great products, and attract loyal users. Trust and mutual respect between employees and users are the foundation of our success and are something we must earn every day.
So please read the Code and follow its spirit and letter, always remembering that each of us has a personal responsibility to incorporate and encourage other Googlers to incorporate the principles of the Code into our work. And if you have a question or think one of your fellow Googlers or the company as a whole might not live up to our commitment, don’t remain silent. We want – and need – to hear from you.


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Friday, September 05, 2014
This Weekend - A Rummage Sale!
First up is the big Rummage Sale, which runs this Saturday, Sept. 6 from 8 a.m to 2 p.m. at the old Electronics Supply building at 222 7th Avenue in Huntington.
They have lots of furniture, clothes, toys, books, snacks, knickknacks and more stuff for sale!
Stop by, say Howdy and "Buy!"
The money all goes to a great cause - sending dozens of kids to a special theatre event in Atlanta next January!
Don't miss it!


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BELFAST— The word “Isuken” means unity in the Somali language, and after a successful crowdsourcing campaign this summer, six Somali Bantu members of a farm-to-table cooperative in Lewiston were able to parlay the word into the official name for their new business — the nation’s first Somali Bantu farm-to-table cooperative food truck.
With October being National Cooperative Month, the Belfast Co-op invited the Isuken Co-op food truck to Belfast on Saturday, October 20, to share the fresh, local cuisine of Somali Bantu farmers and chefs with the Midcoast community.
“A lot of the co-ops are celebrating the month of October in different ways,” said Marketing Manager Carisa Carney. “Co-ops operate under seven principles and the sixth is ‘Cooperation Among Co-ops,’ so we thought it would be a great way to honor the principle by inviting the Isuken Co-op Food Truck to Belfast.”
Inside the truck, parked in the Belfast Co-op’s parking lot, several members of Isuken’s worker-owned cooperative were busily preparing for lunch.
“We have our own food traditions that I want to share with a culture that has never tried it,” said Isaac Garrow, worker-owner and Operations Manager for Isuken Co-op.
On the menu were sambusas, which are fried pastries filled with meats and local vegetables sourced from New Roots Farm Cooperative, a 30-acre farm in Lewiston, run by four Somali-Bantu refugees, who became citizens after coming to the United States in 2006.
A long line began to form around noon, when Isuken was open for business. Beyond the sambusas, Isuken was also making and selling Somali chai tea, a sweet, spicy, milky tea.
This is the first time the Belfast Co-op has hosted a food truck in their parking lot for National Cooperative Month.
“Any collaboration we can do to assist and support another co-op in the state of Maine is really important to us,” said Doug Johnson, Belfast Co-op’s General Manager. “It’s something we’ve been building over the last several years with the Cooperative Maine Business Alliance, which we’re part of. And that’s how we came to learn of Isuken and the work they’re doing in Lewiston.”
This past summer, Isuken’s Kickstarter campaign successfully raised more than $14,000, surpassing their original goal of $12,000 to launch the business. More than 200 backers contributed to the campaign, which allowed the worker-owned cooperative to purchase the food truck. After they spent the day in Belfast, Isuken headed back to Lewiston, where they will continue to work at fairs, festivals and downtown locations selling their food. As they continue to build their brand and raise money. Isuken’s long-term goal is to put down roots toward a permanent farm-to-table restaurant.
For more information visit: https://isukencoop.com/#
Kay Stephens can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org


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Comtest, distributor of Fluke Industrial and Electrical test tools in southern Africa, again hosted its Annual Dealer Awards for 2006. Some 100 dealers from throughout South Africa as well as Kenya, Botswana, Namibia, Mozambique and Uganda attended the three functions held in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Cape Town.
The Awards acknowledged dealers' special achievements and were made to the Top Performers of 2006. Comtest, itself a top Fluke performer for 2006, received their award at a sales conference in Malaga earlier in the year. "Without the supreme sales efforts and commitment of our dealer network, Comtest would not have been able to double Fluke's business in southern Africa over two years, as we have," says Comtest's marketing director, Val Verwer.
(Back L to R) Fluke’s sales manager EEMEA, Bert Vellema with Peter Verwer Comtest MD, and Fluke product specialist Gavin van Rooy. (Front L-R) Comtest marketing director, Val Verwer with Fluke product specialist Brendan Campbell at the recent sales conference in Malaga at which Comtest won top Fluke performer for 2006
Fluke's sales manager EEMEA, Bert Vellema and product specialist Bert van Bruchem attended the launches and made presentations on Fluke's direction for the coming year as well as giving a short overview of the new products that Fluke has launched for 2007. The Fluke 771 milliamp process clamp meter, in particular, caused real excitement.
Comtest product specialists, Brendan Campbell and Gavin van Rooy used the opportunity to demonstrate the latest Fluke equipment and Peter Verwer, MD, was on hand to personally thank the dealers for their magnificent contributions.
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Research in Motion just sent out invitations to an event in New York City, and we all know what that means.
Actually, even if you’re not comfortable enough making as assumption between a RIM event and he Playbook, RIM cuts out any doubt. The invitation, in a bit of a twist, actually outright admits it’s all about the Playbook.
The event is scheduled to be held at a space usually reserved for Manhattan art shows. We’re not ones to read volumes into subtle details like that, but it is fitting because the Playbook could turn out to be a masterpiece, or it could just be something no one understands or wants.
The invitation notes it will be an event for members of the media to demo the Playbook, but most have already seen it in person. We think it might actually be a launch announcement for the device.
Even if RIM doesn’t surprise us and release the Playbook right after the event, it should be very, very shortly thereafter. It’s been speculated that the device is pretty much complete at this point.
The initial units will only have Wi-Fi connectivity, since RIM is setting its mobile data sights for the device exclusively on 4G. It’s working with Sprint to make a version compatible with its high-speed network.
It’s going to be a very important product for RIM. The company has been literally bleeding out subscribers. Even though it still remains the #1 smartphone platform in the US, that lead is diminishing very quickly.
The Playbook is seen by many as the company’s last chance to stay on top before it’s completely gobbled up by Android or the iPhone, but it has a lot of competition. In addition to the iPad which is its direct competitor, Samsung’s Galaxy Tab is making waves, and Motorola’s Xoom tablet – which will also be 4G-capable – is catching a lot of attention.
RIM’s last move to compete against the new mobile giants was a huge failure. The Blackberry Torch, the first to include RIM’s brand new Blackberry operating system, was seen as nothing more than a minor incremental upgrade to the increasingly-dated Blackberry software. For Playbook, it’s a completely new, from-the-ground-up operating system.


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Brazil's Centre-South sells 902m litres of hydrous ethanol in early June
Photo by Steve Jurvetson (Flickr) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Brazil's Centre-South ethanol producers sold 902.03 million litres (238.29 million gallons) of hydrous ethanol in the first two weeks of June, local sugarcane industry association Unica announced on Wednesday.
Anhydrous ethanol sales stood at around 354.76 million litres. In all, total ethanol sales for the first half of the month amounted to some 1.30 billion litres. According to Unica, 42.30 million litres of the biofuel were intended for export while 1.26 billion litres were sold on the domestic market.
Around 1.37 billion litres of hydrous ethanol were produced in the first 15 days of the month for a 5.87% decrease. Anhydrous ethanol, on the other hand, went up 5.18%, with 736.89 million litres produced.
Since the beginning of the harvest up until the first half of June, 8.29 billion litres of ethanol were produced. Corn ethanol accounted for 49.19 million litres, Unica noted.


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By Everett Brazil, III
The Newkirk Herald Journal
NEWKIRK — Talby McClure has a passion for healthy living, including working out in the gym and using healthy shakes and teas. She is now sharing that love with Newkirk with Opal Nutrition, and welcomes the community to stop in for healthy drink choices.
McClure opened her business Monday, April 26, and has already seen a great turnout.
“It’s been excellent. We had a ton of people come in to see what was going in. A lot of people were happy to see a nutrition shop in Newkirk,” she said. “It was great to see the support of the community.”
McClure is originally from Ponca City, but has lived in Newkirk the past eight years, and also works at Blackwell Dental Center.
She started seeking opportunities to live a healthier lifestyle, and began working out at a gym in Ponca City. The idea of a health store came when Diamond Nutrition opened next to the gym.
“I was just looking for a better way to feel better; I wanted to find something beneficial, and I fell in love with Diamond Herbal Life products,” she said.
McClure originally had no real interest in running her own business, but saw an opportunity to open a similar store, and chose Newkirk due to less competition.
“There are three nutrition stores in Ponca City, and I live in Newkirk, I have two children in the school system, and I love small towns, so this is the best area, and to be on Main Street is awesome,” she said.
Opal Nutrition focuses primarily on Herbal Life products, including herbal teas, with 21 varieties mixed with aloe water, which is healthy for the digestive system, she said. They also provide herbal shakes and protein bars, and offer weight loss challenges.
As a Newkirk resident and business owner, McClure is taking Opal Nutrition out of the store and into the community for special events during the year to help Newkirk live healthier.
“I’m going to be part of Charlie Adams Day,” she said. “I’m always open to new ideas from the community, and I’m always willing to help out the best I can.”
As a new business on Main Street, she brings a fresh offering to a district that continues to grow and beautify.
“I love it. I think it is great to see a new and unique offering in the community,” said Newkirk Main Street Director Alyssa McCleery. “The taste is fantastic. I really hope the community supports them.”
For those wanting to support them, the facility will be pen 7 a.m. – 4 p.m. Monday – Friday, and 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Saturday. As a health store, patrons are asked to social distance.
As for McClure, she feels right at home in the community, and looks forward to serving her patrons for many years.
“The community is very welcoming,” she said. “I love how it comes together to make a new business in Newkirk, and I can’t wait to see what my first year is like in the community of Newkirk.”


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Hueb, an international luxury jewelry brand, invited Pharus and Index, a consulting firm for brand communication, to create the concept of its global campaign that would emotionally connect women of different ages and cultures. The feminine desire to feel beautiful is timeless and goes through generations. Daughters watch their mothers do makeup and than repeat it; friends who meet up before going out to get dressed together or going to the bathroom for endless retouches. Hueb is part of those moments.
To bring to life our concept of “The Jewelry Club”, photographer Gustavo Zylbersztajn was responsible for the lifestyle campaign shots, together with Daniel Ueda who did the styling. The still life campaign shot by Alex Libotte was inspired by the modernist shapes of Brazilian architecture, styled and produced by Greta Cuneo.
The launch of the new Hueb campaign took place in Dubai, São Paulo and New York.


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Wal-Mart pushes radio tracking labels on products
Published 10:00 pm, Thursday, July 10, 2003
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Wal-Mart wants its top 100 suppliers to slap tiny radio transmitters on all products they provide to the retail giant in an effort to better track merchandise while driving costs down.
The technology is intended to provide automatic coordination of goods going into and out of Wal-Mart's 103 distribution centers, replacing what Wal-Mart uses now -- bar codes that are scanned.
As products tagged with radio transmitters get within range of a reader, the distribution center's system automatically picks up their location and details about what's on the pallet, Wal-Mart spokesman Tom Williams said.
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"It's almost like a voice coming into range of a microphone," Williams said. "It's a unique, quick and efficient way to gather information on a pallet of goods as it comes into a distribution center."
If the technology moves to the shelves, shoppers could see some significant changes. The labels could allow customers to breeze through a checkout line with all their items being read via radio frequency at once.
Williams said Wednesday the company wants its top 100 manufacturers to have the system in place by 2005 on all Wal-Mart products. By 2006, the company wants all its other suppliers to use the technology.
Radio transmitters have promise for retail shelves, as well. With the transmitters on individual products, stores can get signals from areas that need restocking, protect against theft and determine other product movement.


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High: 40°F ~ Low: 29°F
Monday, Jan. 16, 2017
Good news for pork industry: Bacon is health foodPosted Tuesday, May 19, 2009, at 5:27 PM
I've got good news. Actually -- great news! Bacon is a health food.
According to a new study by Dr. Nathan Bryan of the University of Texas at the Houston Biomedical Research Center processed meats, like bacon, contain nitrates that prevent cardiovascular disease.
"Bon Appetit" magazine recently named bacon number one on their list of "Surprising Health Foods." According to the article, Jennifer McLagan, author of a book simply called "Fat," states "that 45 percent of the fat in bacon is monounsaturated, the good-for-you fat that can help lower bad cholesterol levels. Better still, bacon's monounsaturated fat turns out to be oleic acid, the same fat found in olive oil. So that means that some could argue that bacon is about half as good for you as olive oil and about 100 times more delicious."
I knew all along -- really. After all how many of us knew or know of people who spent most of their lives eating bacon and eggs for breakfast and lived very long, very healthy lives.
This declaration for bacon couldn't have had better timing for the U.S. pork industry. Right now producers are losing over $20.60 per pig ($8.4 million a day) after prices dropped due to a lot of misinformation about the H1N1 virus, erroneously called the "swine flu" when it was first discovered.
The truth is pork is safe to eat, handle and does not pose a food safety threat, according to World Health Organization (WHO), the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), along with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and several other groups.
The H1N1 virus is "different, very different from that found in pigs," according to a statement from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The OIE said the H1N1 influenza should never have been named "swine flu," and that there was no justification for the imposition of worldwide trade restrictions. Fortunately, most of those have now been lifted -- as the truth finally got out.
It also was erroneously reported that the first case came from a Smithfield Foods hog operation in Mexico. On May 14, tests showed the hogs there tested negative for the virus or any other virus.
The pork industry really didn't need any more bad publicity. They've been unfairly maligned for years and painted with a broad brush because of a few bad actors.
The truth is today's U.S. pork industry is set up to protect pig and food safety. "Bio-security" is a big word they talk about often. It means they take great measures to keep all diseases away from their hog herds. The fact that they are raised inside today is one way they keep such diseases out. Producers are careful not to visit other herds and they change boots and clothes often. I remember being shocked to see one hog farm that had shelf after shelf of new boots because they change them often as part of their bio-security precautions. Hog barns are also spaced a certain distance from each other to make sure viruses are not spread between neighboring farms.
Even though it has temporarily hurt the pork industry here in the U.S. I think it is more proof that we have the safest, most abundant and cheapest food supply in the world.
It's also the reason we need to continue to make sure our food supply is raised here in the United States.
After all, in the last 10 years worldwide agriculture has had problems with "Mad-Cow" disease and avian flu. However, while globally some farmers had to get rid of whole herds and flocks, we have had few actual cases of those diseases in U.S. raised animals.
That isn't by accident. It is because of the vigilance and care taken by American farmers and the USDA. Because of that we all benefit.
As consumers, especially in a community so dependent on agriculture, I hope you all go out and buy ham, pork chops, ribs, pork roast and of course bacon today -- we can't afford to lose any more American pork producers.
After all it is "the other white meat." And now we know for sure not only does it taste good -- it's good for you.
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Parle Products assigns Zenith India its media duties
The win comes after a multi-agency pitch
Commenting on the development, Mayank Shah, category head, Parle Products, said, “We were looking for an agency that is not just future-facing, but also future-first and has a significant and deep impact on the business of marketing communications in India. Zenith understands the pulse of Indian consumers. Their passion for the job, innovative thinking and strong play in consumer insights, digital, technology, content and analytics makes them the right partner for us. We look forward to a long and fulfilling partnership with them.”
“Parle Products is India’s front-runner, fast moving consumer goods company with a range of iconic brands in portfolio, and we are pleased to be handling their media business. Their brands have withstood the test of time and have successfully contemporized. Parle Products has over the years experimented, innovated & stayed ahead of the curve. It is a great opportunity for us to put forward our strategic thinking, integrated solutions and drive on ROI for Parle’s brand media investments. India’s packaged food industry is poised for significant growth this is a great time to be partnering with them,” added Tanmay Mohanty, group CEO, Zenith.


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Visa signs up for Google wallet
Visa has signed a licensing deal to include its credit and debit cards in Google mobile wallet application.
Customers of banks that issue Visa cards will be able to add their credit, debit and prepaid cards to the Google Wallet, which allows consumers to wave their smart phones in front of special point of sale terminals to make a purchase.
“This agreement builds on Visa's strategy of enabling consumers to make mobile payments with whatever device they choose using the trusted accounts they already have,” Jim McCarthy, global head of products at Visa, said.
Source: Herald Sun


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Farmers Market to hold fall festival
Published 4:26 pm Friday, October 23, 2020
The Drakes Branch Farmer’s Market will hold a Fall Festival at the pavilion in Drakes Branch, VA. from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 24.
This event will offer our regular vendors and many additional crafters and vendors that will offer décor items, craft items as well as fall vegetables and homemade baked goods. In addition to these numerous items, there will also be a winery vendor, pumpkin decorating (all pumpkins and crafting items are supplied), free books, jewelry, plants and local homegrown honey.
A holiday market will be held November 14 and a Christmas Bazaar on December 5.


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A collection of news, articles and other featured content about Gamification.
Dave & Buster’s in Tampa showcases VRcade PowerPlay, an athletic esport in VR.
Golf entertainment company is using TrackMan’s latest golf offering – TrackMan Range (TM Range) – to drive its gaming experience.
4 ways technology is taking onboarding, scheduling, training and employee communication to the next level
Casino averages 55 new e-mails per day from just one of its campaigns.
Virtual reality installation features street facing window which allows those walking by to see guests, locals interacting with the simulation.
Using interactive SMS texting, PMH mobile gifts have redemption rates between 14% and 35%.
OfferCraft uses AI and gamification to help companies increase customer revenue and employee engagement.
Martin will strengthen the direction of the organization's hospitality expansion.
The Rainmaker Group to explain how casinos can maximize share of wallet by focusing on total customer value.
The name change demonstrates a move away from drive-thru technology and towards an expanded portfolio of indoor and outdoor digital technology.
Guests will be able to try virtual reality in a Vive Zone which offers gaming, entertainment and interactions in a fully digital generated environment.
Zaxby's will give football fans a virtual reality experience at 12 colleges this season.
A second game inspired hundreds of new member sign-ups.
In the fourth quarter of 2017, Punchh added 12 new restaurant brands to its client list.


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Think your commute is tough?
Read This Article
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has awarded the 2013 Ford Fusion Energi a five-star overall vehicle score, the highest possible rating.
Ford Motor Company has announced pricing for the redesigned 2013 Escape crossover with the base level S model starting at $23,295 including shipping.
The not-yet-released 2013 Ford Escape is almost here, and though we've seen Ford's popular crossover previously at the Los Angeles Auto Show, advanced details are finally starting to emerge.


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In the letter, the company's Chinese advertising partners warned that uncertainty about Google's continued presence in China is affecting their business operations and straining relations with their customers and investors. Google has said it may shut down operations here because of the Chinese government's censorship.
"We see all kinds of news related to Google coming out but cannot predict the future," the letter stated. "We see our business volume declining dramatically, but feel powerless to stop it. And we see our employees leaving one after another, without being able to persuade them to stay."
ABC News called 20 of the 27 alleged signatories of the letter. Of these, representatives for 16 companies said that they didn't sign the letter. Reps for two of the firms said that they thought the letter was sensationalized and that their business was still going on as usual.
Gao Min, sales manager of Zoom Interactive (Beijing) Co., told ABC, "My company [first in the list in the article] didn't write or sign the letter. I think the issue has become sensationalized."
"My company had no part in this letter," a manager of Yangzhou Dingjie Technology Co., told ABC News. "And we have business with lots of companies, not just Google, so for us it's business as usual."
Reps for two companies that supposedly signed the letter refused to comment and two firms could not be reached on the phone.
The Associated Press reported that the letter was not written by all 27 companies but was sent by one company that added the names of the others, said a manager at one of those listed, Universal Internet Media in the eastern city of Suzhou. He would give only his surname, Wu, and declined to say which company wrote the letter.
The letter was originally posted on the China Central Television (CCTV) Web site but was removed some time last night. An employee in CCTV's editorial office told ABC News that they could not say whether the letter was ever even on their Web site but conceded, "maybe someone posted it in the forum section."
According to the Wall Street Journal, one of the ad companies listed on the letter has confirmed its authenticity on the condition of anonymity. The ad agency told the newspaper it reflected the concerns of Google's advertising partners though not all of them had a part in drawing it up.
The Google-China Dispute
The dispute between Google and China began January 12 when Google announced it could "no longer in good conscience continue to filter or censor" its search engine in China. It now appears increasingly likely that the Internet giant will have to shutter its Chinese-language search engine, a prospect which has highlighted the difficulties foreign companies face when operating in China.
On Tuesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Qin Gang downplayed the significance of such a step by Google.
"I think this would just be the individual act of one company, and will not affect China's investment environment," Qin told a regular news briefing. "It will not change the fact that most foreign companies, U.S. ones included, have a good business in China and generate large profits."
China's top Internet regulator has said the company must obey its laws or "pay the consequences."
Beijing tries to block access to material deemed subversive or pornographic, including Web sites abroad run by human rights and pro-democracy activists.
Chinese officials say it's up to Google whether it leaves or not.
China has the world's most populous Internet market, with 384 million people online. Google has about 35 percent of the Chinese search market.
The Associated Press Contributed to this report.


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Medical cannabis developer MGC Pharmaceuticals (ASX:MXC) has secured a Manufacturing License for its European GMP cannabis production facility.
The Company can immediately start production under this licence for pharmaceutical grade products.
The first product to be released for patients from this pipeline is CannEpil™, a phytocannabinoid-based medication for the treatment of refractory epilepsy, which will soon be available in Australia.
These will be distributed into the global market and target the increasing demand for such products.
Shares in MGC Pharmaceuticals (ASX:MXC) up 7.94 per cent to 7c.


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There has been a lot of back and forth over the last month about whether there will be updates to the iPad lineup (we ended up just getting a low end Apple Pencil!) or the Mac lineup before the end of the year. This event is set to focus on the later, with the stream somewhat curiously set to start at 5 PM Pacific Time, which is midnight Monday evening in the UK. I am expecting the stream to be brief, lasting less than 30 mins, enabling them to clear the decks as they go into the holidays.
The iMac was in the first round of Apple Silicon redesigns, being updated in April 2021. Although the M1 Processor is still fast enough, the RAM ceiling of 16 GB is becoming a bit of a sticking point for some buyers considering purchasing it with the view of it be up to the task for a number of years in the future. The iMac is set to get updated to the M3, skipping the M2 generation of chips entirely, with no other major changes expected.
MacBook Pro 14 and 16 inch
The MacBook Pro 14 and 16 inch were only updated in January this year to the M2 Pro and M2 Max chips, which raised the RAM ceiling from 64 to 96 GB and enabled support for 8k displays up from 4k over HDMI, amongst over incremental changes. Having only seen a major redesign in Oct 2021, I would expect another incremental round of changes with the most notable being the inclusion of the M3 Pro and M3 Max chips, and judging by the iPhone updates this year, the focus of the announcement will be on GPU Performance improvements. This probably means we get to see another Resident Evil demo …
In September we saw the iPhone and AirPods Pro be updated from Lightning to USB-C charging, so with the update of the iMac we are set to see all of its peripherals; Keyboard, Magic Mouse and Magic Trackpad also be updated to USB-C. The most curious thing to see is if they revamp the Magic Mouse so it can used while being charged … maybe they will make it compatible with MagSafe so it can be docked and charged every time you are away from the computer?
It’s September, so we all know what that means? Its the annual iPhone Keynote, where we are set to see quite a lot of evolution rather than revolution this time round, but what exactly should we expect to see?
USB-C / Thunderbolt
Wether its solely down to EU legislation which comes into force next year, or a somewhat drawn out transition across all of Apple’s devices, this year will see all iPhones transition from Lightning to USB-C. Unlike when the iPhone transitioned from the 30 Pin Dock Connector to Lightning with the iPhone 5 in 2012, I’m expecting much less of an uproar as USB-C has become the standard charging port for devices and most people already have a charger.
The USB-C port on the iPhone 15 is set to keep the same USB 2.0 speed of the current iPhones which maxes out at 480 Mbps, while the iPhone 15 Pro will feature Thunderbolt/USB 4 speed allowing for up 40 Gbps, which will make moving large amounts of data back and forth such as 4K Videos a lot less painful.
All of the iPhone are set to come with braided colour matched USB-C cables, but somewhat ironically the iPhone Pro will not come with a Thunderbolt cable, you will have to pay extra for that!
The iPhone has feature a Ring/Silent switch since it was introduced in 2007, and this year it is set to be replaced with an Action button. Although the default action will still be muting the iPhone, it will be customisable like the Apple Watch Ultra’s Action button, with a number of out of the box options including running a Siri Shortcut.
The iPhone Pro has featured a surgical grade stainless steel band since the iPhone X was introduced in 2017, and this year it is set to be replaced with aerospace grade titanium. Titanium will offer a different look to stainless steel with a reduction in the bezel size around the display, and the brushed finished will thankfully be much less of a finger print magnet. More significantly as most people keep their phones in cases, is that it will be much lighter, although not as light as aluminium bands found in the no Pro models.
The Dynamic Island that was introduced last year on the iPhone 14 Pro, is set to be made available across the entire line. There won’t be any physical changes, but the increased availability across will hopefully see more functionality unveiled in the future and greater adoption.
The iPhone Pro Max this year, which is set to be renamed to iPhone Ultra, will see it differentiation itself form the smaller iPhone Pro by making use of its size to incorporate a periscope lens, which will double the optical zoom of the telescope camera to 6x.
The iPhone 15s will support Qi2 charging, which like MagSafe uses magnets for alignment to enable 15W Wireless charging. Not to be outdone, the iPhone 15s will support up to 20W wireless charging using MagSafe, and while this is backwards compatible with the current generation of MagSafe in terms of accessories it will the require purchasing of new chargers.
To coincide with the iPhone’s all moving to USB-C the AirPods Pro 2 will be refreshed with a new USB-C charging case, but there won’t be a revision to the AirPods Pro themselves.
The Apple Watch and Apple Watch Ultra are set to receive only a SoC update this year to the S9 (the first real update in terms of CPU cores since the Apple Watch Series 6 was introduced in 2020), with the Apple Watch Ultra also gaining a black titanium option.
It has been nearly 9 months since Apple last held a keynote in September last year for the iPhone, and this keynote is set to be a tale of what is or isn’t announced in terms of AR/VR and AI.
Reality Pro and realityOS
The persistent rumours of an Apple Headset have increased in intensity over the last 12 months, and unlike the the rumour of an Apple TV or Car this product appears to not be vaporware. The most pertinent rumour recently has been that with a bill of materials for the headset costing upwards of $1500, meaning that the retail price it is expected to be in the region of $2999. That being said with WWDC being a developer conference, I expect what we will see unveiled and made available only to be the developer kit, which means Apple wouldn’t need to divulge pricing information until closer to its release to the public.
The headset is set to feature a micro-OLED 4K display per eye and will be driven by the same M series chips found in Macs, giving it enough power to deal with and switch between both AR/VR experiences responsively. To enable mix reality experiences the headset will features over a dozen cameras and sensors to scan the environment, read facial expressions and detect movement.
The headset’s strap will be made out of the same Fluoroelastomer material as the Apple Watch Sports Bands, most controversially and very un-Apple like is the fact that the headset is set to be powered by an external battery pack. The trade off being the battery life can stretch to over 2 hours while maintain a sensible weight and therefore comfort of the headset for extended periods of use.
I expect to see another push for SwiftUI based development, with it being the defacto way you build realityOS experiences. It is however expected that iPad apps will be able to be used within the context of the mix reality world manifested by the headset, with what would be the on screen pointer of the iPad being controlled by gestures.
The MacStudio was released in March last year featuring either and M1 Max or exclusively an M1 Ultra Chip. Soon after in July Apple revamped the MacBook Air with an all new industrial design and an M2 Processor. Subsequently the Mac minis and MacBook Pros were updated in January, which saw the introduction of the M2 Pro and M2 Max Chips. This has lead to Apple’s most expensive machine being the only one left using the older M1 series chips (well if we choose to ignore the Mac Pro which is still on Intel Processors!).
The MacS tudio is expected to be updated with the M2 Max and the newly unveiled M2 Ultra Chips, with minimal improvements elsewhere .. but we can hope they fix the whiny power supply!
The final Mac that was proclaimed to be “for another day” last WWDC, the Mac Pro, still hasn’t made the jump to Apple Silicon, and unless all of the rumours about a headset has meant that an updated Mac Pro has flown under the radar, I wouldn’t expect to see it at this event.
iOS, iPadOS and macOS
Major updates for Apple’s flagship OSs this year are set to be few and far between. iOS is set to gain a nightstand mode for iPhone, where it can display glanceable information while on a nightstand.
The Dynamic Island introduced last year on the iPhone Pro is going to be rolled out across more devices inSeptember, so in iOS 17 the capabilities of the dynamic island are set to be expanded.
The iPad is set to gain Widgets on its Home Screen, with the introduction of limited interactivity on both the iPhone and iPad. The iPad is also set to have Health app being made available for the first time, alongside the annual update of new tracking categories such as recording a users mood.
One feature that is set to be released all OSs is a journaling app, which will not only allow you to capture your own textural thoughts about the day but pull in various pieces of information that your Apple devices already know about the you and the day such as weather, workouts and location.
watchOS 8 is set to be the most significant OS update this year and the biggest watchOS update since… well if we are being honest besides the removal of quick access to friends from the side button and accommodating the removal of Force Touch, watchOS hasn’t had much of an update since its introduction.
The major change will see watchOS move to a more Widget based approach, giving more glanceable access to information than complications without the overhead of launching full watchOS apps which can be quite slow an cumbersome.
The tech industry has been focused on AI the last few months, starting off with Stable Diffusion and more recently ChatGPT. The obvious AI inclusion in the Keynote would be introducing it to Xcode in the form of code analysis and generation, but I don’t expect to see that.
I’m sure when Siri is demoed it will now be framed as AI rather than just a voice assistant, but I think the bigger focus will be on the privacy benefits of running machine learning models locally on device rather than on a server. After all this the area Apple is uniquely positioned to own unlike server side AI, and they have already optimised Stable Diffusion for Apple Silicon
It is that time of the year again where Apple unveil its flagship phones, but for the first time in a while there is set to be major difference in the upgrades between the iPhone and iPhone Pro lines. The iPhone Pro is set to get possibly its most significant update to date, while on the over hand the iPhone is set to get one of the most modest updates that it has seen for a while.
iPhone Pro and Pro Max
Last year the iPhone 13 Pro displays were upgraded to a Pro Motion display allowing it dynamically refresh from 10hz to 120hz, while all other iPhone display are locked in at 60hz. This year, the iPhone 14 Pros are set to have their displays update so they able to refresh at as low as a rate as one 1hz, and like the Apple Watch since Series 5 that already supports this, it will allow for an always on display without a significant impact on battery life. During WWDC this year Apple already showed off the new customisation options for the Lock Screen, including Lock Screen Widgets. The always on display will allow these to be constantly visible but as with complications on the Apple Watch these will be severely limited in how often they can fresh.
The iPhones Pro will also ditch the notch for a hole punch camera and Face ID Sensors, which despite taking up less screen space, will actually mean that the usable and uninterrupted screen under the camera and sensors will start further down the display. It will certainly look more modern and act as a stepping stone towards eliminating the interruption to the display, but in terms of functionality and userbility it isn’t going to make any difference.
The rear camera of the iPhone Pro is set to be upgraded from 12 MP to 48 MP, which although on paper is a 4x bump, it will utilises pixel binning to output a a more detailed 12 MP image than you would get from the existing sensor rather than a larger image.
iPhone and iPhone Max
The iPhone 12 and and iPhone 13 both saw an iPhone mini in their line up, but due to sales numbers this time round this will be dropped for an iPhone Max model, feature a larger display 6.7 inch display (the mini was 5.4 inch and the regular iPhone is 6.1 inch). Other than this the iPhone and iPhone Max will essentially be the same as last year, to the point that they won’t even see an upgraded SOC and will still be using the A15 chip from last year.
Apple Watch Series 8
Rumours are thin on the ground with the only significant update is set to be introduction of a temperature sensor, but like the oxygen sensor introduced in the Series 6 the accuracy will mean that it can’t be backed up with any medical claims.
Apple is however expected to release an Apple Watch Pro, and although it will not exclusively to be marketed as a sport watch, it will predominately be aimed at customers currently served by Garmin. The Apple Watch Pro will feature the same SOC as the rest of the lineup, but will feature a 47mm display, 2mm more than the largest non pro Apple Watch, which beyond the extra screen real estate it will allow for significantly longer battery life, which is perfect for longer workouts or going multiple days without a charge.
Air Pods Pro
The Air Pods Pro haven’t been refreshed since their introduction in 2019, which means there is a significant number of people who have Air Pods Pro with next to no battery life, all of which are in the market for a refreshed model.
The Air Pods Pro are expected to receive a modest update, but the most exciting prospect will be the possibility of enabling lossless audio by using UWB.
The major topic of conversation in the lead up to WWDC, was will any of it be live? Will this one day format featuring the Keynote, State of the Union and Apple Developer Awards be the way WWDC is run going forwards? I guess we won’t know until next year, but it looks like we have a few things to look forward to this year too!
The majority of rumours around updates to iOS this year focus on support for the rumoured forthcoming iPhone Pro. The iPhone Pro is set to move from the notch to dual hole punch camera and sensor, in addition to receiving an upgrade to its Pro Motion display. Last year the iPhone’s Pro displays were updated to support 120hz, but this year they will also be updated to throttle down all the way to 1hz like the Apple Watch, enabling an always on display without the draw back of significant power consumption. To make use of this I am expecting to see improvements to the lock screen, notifications and widgets, to bring the experience closer to using watch complications.
The major area holding back iPadOS from being the computer for the rest of us, is its lacklustre support for multitasking and larger external displays. Now that both the iPad Air and iPad Pro now have the same internals as the MacBook Air and iMac, with the M1 SOC, and indeed a USB-C port, it’s certainly isn’t the hardware that is holding it back.
This year I expect to see iPadOS get full external display support beyond just mirroring , allowing unrelated windows to be spread across both the internal and external display. I would be surprised to see the ability overlap windows like macOS, but if this is limited to when connected to a keyboard and trackpad it is a possibility.
Information regarding this years macOS update is few and far between, but with the transition to Apple silicon occupying a number of Apple’s engineers for the last few years maybe this will be a small release, with mainly cosmetic changes and the migration of more apps from iOS using Catalyst and SwiftUI.
New and updated watch faces, new workout types … isn’t that what we get most years?
Shortcuts in reality was the biggest change to macOS last year, and indeed it’s becoming more and valuable on iOS as its triggers and actions our expanded. I expect shortcuts to see a number of improvements, with the ability to run them globally using a keyboard short cut on both macOS and iPadOS being top of my wishlist.
HomeKit and homeOS
The HomeKit ecosystem isn’t as large as either or Amazon’s or Google’s, but I’m a big fan of its reliability and local network support, and for the couple of devices I have purchased that don’t support HomeKit I have managed to bridge them across using Homebridge. That being said, the Home app is cumbersome to navigate, taking way to many to interactions to find anything, so if the device you are looking for isn’t in the current screen you end up feeling frustrated or having to ask Siri, which isn’t always an option, but to be fair has been reasonably reliable whenever I use it.
Moreover with the imminent launch of Matter (it has been imminent for a while now, with support for it present in the HomePod mini and iOS 15) it feels like Apple are going to double down on the Home and try and use its privacy focus to regain some ground on its compertion .
I expect to see support for more device types, with additional support in shortcuts.
Will they or won’t? If they do, will the initial version be aimed at consumers or priced as developer preview? On the latter question, I don’t think its Apple’s style to release something priced prohibitively so the majority of their customers can’t afford it. On the flip side. making it available exclusively to developers, akin to a transition kit might makes sense for a new hardware category, although they didn’t for the Apple Watch or iPad. That being said, I think we are still too early, although I would expect to see additional AR features announced and be available to developers in the latest versions of iOS and iPadOS.
WWDC has leant heavily into it being a developer conference for the last few years, with announcements focusing on the software ecosystem. The exception to this rule is the Mac Pro, which Apple already alluded to during the last keynote that it is the final Mac yet to be updated to Apple Silicon. I would expect to see an unveiling of the new Mac Pro as a bit of crowd pleaser at the event, with a release at the end of the year. The Mac having made to Apple silicon first, namely the MacBook Air, will have to wait too later in the year for a hardware refresh.
SwiftUI on paper is great, in fact if all you are doing is simple bits of UI it is. The problem is as soon as you step outside of its comfort zone you end up having to drop back to the platform libraries, which always feels in elegant even if you are only trying to support 1 platform. Moreover, even thought SwiftUI encourages small views, the way you structure apps, in particular navigation, means you end up with a heavily intertwined app akin to the Storyboard UI approach that proceeded it. This isn’t so bad for a solo developer working on an app with 20 screens, but a team of 10 working on 100 screens … that’s not so fun.
I am expecting SwiftUI to receive a major update to help iron out a number of the edges, in addition to improving the tooling in general … and not making macOS development with SwiftUI feeling like an after thought.
In what will be the earliest keynote a year for Apple since 2012, where in the March Apple announced the third generation iPad (the iOS device that holds the record of having shortest life span at only 221 days), we are set to have an Apple event with a number revisions to popular hardware.
Lets run down what could be unveiled from most to least likely!
The iPhone SE will see its third revision, gaining 5G support at the same time where some carriers are starting to turn off their 3G Networks. Other than updating the radios and processor the updates to the iPhone SE will be modest, with continuing to lack Face ID or a multi camera array which the iPhone and iPhone Pro have, in addition their rounded edge to edge display.
The current generation of the iPad Air was met with great reception upon its release in October 2020, at that time feeling like the only compromise when compared to the smaller iPad Pro was Face ID vs the Touch ID side button. Since then Apple have differentiated the iPad Pro with the M1 Chip and Mini LED Display, and have refreshed the cheaper iPad mini. This update will see the iPad Air refreshed to the A15 chip and like the iPhone SE also incorporate 5G.
The fifth generation Mac mini containing the M1 chip has been available since November 2020, but due to its relatively low RAM ceiling of 16GB Apple has continued to sell the fourth generation Intel Mac minis originally released in 2018.
This update will see the Mac mini support the M1 Pro and M1 Max chips that were made available in the MacBook Pro last year, and although a chassis redesign isn’t completely off the cards I would imagine we will have to be satisfied with just he option of picking Silver or Space Grey.
A revamped Mac mini seems like the perfect time to announce a stand alone display, with a price point more accommodating than the Pro Display XDR. The Pro Display will continue to be the only display sporting a 6K display, but a 27 inch 5K Mini-LED around $1000 appears to be on the cards … but would Apple want to wait until the same display is available in a larger iMac …
There are a number of rumours circulating that Apple will use this event to update the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro with Touch Bar to an M2 Chip. In my personal opinion it would seem strange to do this before the M1 transition has completed (although I’m sure in the future chips revisions won’t overlap cleanly), as we are still waiting for the large iMac and Mac Pro to make the jump across to Apple Silicon. Moreover the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar feels like it is only there to hit a price point, so it would feel strange for Apple to give it much attention unless was receiving a major revamp of its own to better define its role in the lineup, which I don’t see happening!
One month after this years iPhone and Apple Watch Keynote, we are now set to see the developer’s machine of choice, the MacBook Pro, get a revamp. With all of the different possibilities what changes should we be expect to see with this update?
New Apple Silicon Chip
The MacBook Pro is set to be the first hardware upgraded to the second generation Apple Silicon processor, dubbed the M1X. The major change will see the RAM ceiling raised from 16 GB, and the number of high performance cores, known internally as Firestorm, increase up from the for 4 currently found in the M1 Chip.
The bare minimum I would expect to see was a double of both the RAM and Performance cores, but with the current 16” MacBook Pro topping out at 64GB of RAM we might be set for a quadrupling of RAM if not CPU performance.
Mini LED Display
Apple’s first product to move to a next generation display was actually the original Apple Watch in 2015, which was Apple’s first device to feature and OLED display. The iPhone followed suit with the iPhone X in 2017, with the entire flagship line migrating across to OLED displays last year. This year Apple have adopted another display technology, Mini LED, in the latest revision of 13” iPad Pro.
The Mac isn’t particular suited to having an OLED display, due to the screen being on for extended periods of time with fixed UI elements being on screen such as the dock and the menu bar, which could create issues with burn in which OLEDs do suffer. Despite Mini LED being the natural choice for the next generation of displays for Macs, they are still much more expensive and harder to produce than LCD displays, so this will probably be a year too early for this change.
All of the other Pro Products, that being the iPhone and the iPad, all feature dynamic refresh displays capable of topping out at 120 Hz, so having the MacBook Pro support this with either an LED or Micro LED Display seems like a formality at this point.
SD Card Slot
A focus of this update is likely to be that MacBook is going to be more pro focussed, and adding back the SD Card Slot shows that Apple are willing to concede that having more than 4 USB-C Points is a positive.
USB-C has been a great way to charge MacBook Pros since their introduction, not only has the connector become the defect standard so there is usually one around (like a Nokia charger in the UK at the turn of the century), but it also offered the flexibility of being able to charge the MacBook Pro from any of the ports, on both sides.
I am expecting USB-C charging to remain, but with the addition of a magnetic charging port, as let’s be honest it was something that they should have never got rid of and I might have had a few lucky escapes tripping over the charging cable in the years since.
Like the SD Card slot, lots of people missed the HDMI slot when it was removed mainly due to the ease of connecting a cable to present onto a larger screen. Even now presenting using the myriad of web based solutions that have been common place in the last 2 years still often leading to laggy and glitchy experience (those fancy Keynote transitions don’t look so good at 3 frames a second), but I think with distributed teams and therefore presentations becoming the norm, this might be one port to far to see added back.
Removal of the Touch Bar
The Touch Bar is an odd one, and to be honest I personally a fan of it, but the fact remains Apple have essentially ignored it since it was introduced in 2016. The biggest surprise was that it was still present on the 14” Apple Silicon MacBook Pro Introduced last year, as that would have required effort to make it work with the main ARM processor and not the dedicated coprocessors compared to when it was used in an Intel Mac. That all being said ether they either need to double down or get rid of the Touch Bar, and I think this even will signal the later.
New External Display
The options for Mac customers who want Thunderbolt connectivity and a Retina Screen have essentially just become the $5000 XDR, with LGs Ultra Fine displays becoming impossible to find. I would Apple to unveil a 5K Mini LED Monitor for around $2000 when the laptops make the jump, but as that is unlikely this time round we are likely to be left a bit longer waiting for a standalone display.
Last year we were treated to 3 Keynotes in the run up to the holidays and it looks like we are in for something similar this time round do too, but this time the iPhone Keynote has made its way to the front of the queue.
Last year saw a redesign of the iPhone and iPhone Pro to the flat side aesthetics which are taking over Apple’s hardware lineup. This year the iPhone will get its “S Cycle” update, although probably named the iPhone 13, keeping external changes to a minimum with new camera array and a slightly smaller notch. The sensor-shift image stabilisation which was exclusive to the iPhone Pro Max last year, will make its way across to the whole iPhone lineup this time, with the iPhone Pro Max also having sensor-shift stabilisation on the wideangle lense.
The iPhone is set to gain a Promotion display which will not only top out at 120hz for silky smooth scrolling, but also throttle down to 1hz to preserve battery life and possible enable an always on dimmed display like the Apple Watch.
The Apple Watch has remained pretty much unchanged externally since its release in 2015, besides when it received a size bump from 38mm and 42mm to 40 and 44mm respectively with the Series 4 in 2018. The Series 4 incorporated a larger display that also pushed the pixels closer to the edges of the watch, but despite the physical size increase this change was barley noticeable when the screen was off. This year the Apple Watch is set to gain the defacto flat sides found on the iPhone, iPad Pro and iPad Air, which will also see the case sizes bump up 1mm to 41 and 45mm. As with the last case update, the screen will be pushed even further towards the edge of the display, so the gain in screen real estate will be greater than the 1mm bump would suggest.
The iPad mini is also set to get the flat side treatment and look like a Mini version of the iPad Air released last with Touch ID in the Side Button, support for the second generation Apple Pencil and A14 Chip. Like the iPad Air I would expect to see the iPad mini suffer from a bit of a price bump as it distances itself from the bottom of the lineup.
The iPad is set to be updated its 9th revision and incorporate the A13 processor and finally gain a laminated display. The iPad will however keep the its current exterior design with Touch ID in the Home Button and support for the original Apple Pencil. It will also remain the only iPad to still be using lightning.
AirPods are set to see their third revision and gain a design much closer to the AirPods Pro with smaller steams but lacking the rubber ear tips and therefore echo cancellation of the AirPod Pros. Internally I would expect the AirPods 3 to have improved range and battery life when compared to their predecessor but nothing that would make it an instant upgrade … unless your batteries have gone!
iOS 15 was unveiled at WWDC in June, but has since seen a lot of the features originally announced either taken out with each beta or never make an appearance to begin with. The most substantial feature that is still left in is Focus (think Home, Work, Driving etc), which essentially allows for different profiles (reminds me of my Nokia 3210) with different settings for things such as notifications.
Unlike last year where iOS 14 was released with 24 Hours notice, I expect iOS 15 to be released on Wednesday next week.
Back into its more familiar early June time slot, albeit still remote this year, WWDC is set to see some hardware unveiled as well as the usual plethora of OS updates, but what exactly should we be looking for?
The biggest change to iOS this year is set to be around notifications, with the introduction of Profiles (ahhhh early 2000s features phone lovers rejoice), to have different prioritisation for notifications based on the current context e.g. no emails out side of working hours, no notifications while driving etc.
In addition to Safari pointing out what trackers it has blocked, iOS 15 is set to become more privacy conscious and point out when apps are also doing app tracking, and working around app transport transparency system that was introduced last month.
iOS is set to have a few small UI tweaks, such as how the Navigation Bar transitions on scroll, but the majority of these will come along for free for those using system UI components.
iPad OS didn’t get much love last WWDC, having seen the Magic Keyboard introduced earlier in the year, which meant a revamp to keyboard and more significantly cursor support in a mid cycle update. Now that the iPad Pro features the exact same internals as all the currently available Apple Silicon Macs, one would expect this years iPad update to be a significant one.
The low hanging fruit is a revamp to the widget system which until has be restricted to the left hand panel of the Home Screen. Like the iPhone on iOS 14, I would expect the iOS 15 to allow widgets to be placed anywhere on the Home Screen in a variety of sizes.
In addition to this an overhaul to multitasking and external displays is also desperately need, but I would expect to see minor tweaks rather than an overhaul to these.
macOS will see its now normal annual update, but unlike last years major UI revamp, expect this year to be a refinement year, with the major changes coming with improvements to Catalyst and SwiftUI.
watchOS will naturally inherit the notification improvements from iOS, but what is rumoured is the ability to create Watch Faces using SwiftUI, using the resource efficient architecture that Widgets now use.
MacBook Pro 16
The MacBook Pro 16” is set to be the next Mac to make the transition across to Apple Silicon, and with it being the developer’s laptop of choice, unveiling it at WWDC seems like an obvious choice. Unlike the MacBook Pro 13 that came out last year, this update to the 16” is set to be a ground up revamp, losing the TouchBar and gaining HDMI port. Most surprisingly will be the return of not only an SD Card slot and return of the MagSafe. More significantly this will be the first device to feature the M1X processor, double the top end specs which most significant will allow for 32GB of RAM … aka enough for Xcode, iPhone Simulator and Slack.
AR / VR Headset
Despite the ongoing rumors, and
Tim Cook’s Apple’s obvious interest in this area, I wouldn’t be expecting to see any AR or VR related headset unveiled at WWDC this year, but I wouldn’t mind being surprised!
After Apple having 3 keynotes in 3 months at the tail end of last year, we now have our first keynote of 2021 but what is set to be unveiled?
The iPad Pro got a rather lacklustre upgrade last spring, moving from the A12X to A12Z processor, in addition to the inclusion of the LiDAR scanner. This time around both the 11 and 12.9 inch iPad Pros are set to move to the A14X processor, a variant on the iPhone 12’s processor, in addition to a better camera and USB 4 port enabling faster I/O and the ability to drive larger displays. The cellular models of the iPad are also going to make the jump to 5G to enable faster networking, which might be more useful now that the world is starting to open up again.
The 12.9 inch iPad is also set to gain a Mini-LED display, gaining better contrast while still maintaining the high refresh rate the the current iPhone’s OLED display lacks.
Apple announced support for third party support in the find my app last week, so if we where ever going to get the vapourware that is AirTags this would be the event to see them get unveiled.
The iconic white earphones included with every iPod lives on nearly 20 years later, in the form of AirPods and AirPods Pro. This revision of the AirPods is set to have a slight design tweak to look like its Pro sibling with smaller stalks, while still omitting the rubber tips and active Echo cancellation.
The iPad mini is set to be updated to match the iPad Air’s design, with reduced bezels, rounded display and a Touch ID home button. This significant update will likely see the iPad mini’s price increase to be closer to that of the iPad Air’s, which will probably limit the appeal of this update.
Being the developers Mac of choice, the Apple Silicon update of the 16" MacBook Pro is destined to unveiled at WWDC in June, which leads the iMac having not had a significant update for more than a decade the obvious candidate to be announced at this event. Which leads us to the question of wether the M1X/M2 is ready to enable more I/O? Without it, I still feel an update to the smaller iMac is on the cards, with a completely refreshed design.
iOS 14.5 has been in beta since February, and contains the infamous ATT (Ad Tracking Transparency) pop ups. This requires apps to request a user’s permission in order to use IDFA (Identifier for Advertisers) which enables cross app tracking. One would think that this controversial change is the major hold up to its release, or a delayed hardware release such as the aforementioned iPad Pro, but this OS update also includes the ability to unlock automatically using and already unlocked Apple Watch when wearing a mask.
I would expect iOS 14.5 to have its release date announced for laster this week.


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Dayton Daily News (Ohio)
December 5, 2017
Edward C. Baig
CVS shareholders will assume Aetna’s debt in a deal announced Sunday.
CVS Health is buying Aetna for $69 billion in cash and stock. The long-awaited deal was made official Sunday evening.
Aetna stockholders are to receive around $207 a share—$145 in cash and $62 in stock—and will own about 22% of the combined company. CVS shareholders will own the remainder. Including the assumption of Aetna’s debt, the total value of the transaction climbs to $77 billion.
CVS Health President and CEO Larry Merlo said in a statement: “This combination brings together the expertise of two great companies to remake the consumer healthcare experience. With the analytics of Aetna and CVS Health’s human touch, we will create a healthcare platform built around individuals. We look forward to working with the talented people at Aetna to position the combined company as America’s front door to quality healthcare, integrating more closely the work of doctors, pharmacists, other healthcare professionals and health benefits companies to create a platform that is easier to use and less expensive for consumers.”
The deal could result in lower costs to both CVS and Aetna, with the size of any savings passed along to consumers remaining to be seen.
If CVS-Aetna is approved, the deal could ignite additional mergers in healthcare. Amazon is poised to enter the drug business in some fashion, leading to further disruption and uncertainty in the industry.
What does the CVS-Aetna pairing mean for consumers? A key component of CVS’s business is its CVS Caremark, its pharmacy benefit management (PBM) subsidiary. In a climate of both rising healthcare costs and rancorous partisan divisions over the Affordable Care Act, the combination may produce greater savings for the companies as opposed to individuals.
Joseph Agnese, of investment research firm CFRA, has said that Aetna participants are likely to benefit the most because CVS may be able to offer them lower co-pays if they shop with them.
Original headline: CVS buying Aetna for $69B in cash and stock
Copyright 2017 Dayton Newspapers, Inc.
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12 Apr Chelmsford based Chandler Material Supplies thanks customers for pandemic support
An award-winning family business has thanked its loyal customers for their support through the pandemic.
Chandler Material Supplies has grown from a one-man coal seller almost 100 years ago to the local go-to builder’s merchants in Chelmsford.
Today, it also houses a bathroom showroom, landscape display, as well as a brick matching service, painting and decorating supplies and free local delivery.
The four-generations family business, which operates from a three-acre site off the Chandler roundabout in Widford, welcomed its customers in for a celebratory barbecue after winning prestigious industry awards during the pandemic.
The company scooped Small Merchant of the Year and E-commerce Initiative of the Year at the Builders Merchants Journal Industry Awards at the Park Plaza London.
Marketing and operations assistant Lauren Penney said: “Anyone within our vast industry can be nominated for these awards. So, to be shortlisted and to go on to win in two categories is a big achievement.
“These awards reinforce that our customers recognise and appreciate the work we have put in during the pandemic to keep them working.
“The way we run our business is very customer centric; they are at the centre of everything we do. Our customers are very loyal and have been with us for a long time.”
Lauren is the daughter of the company’s managing director and great-great-granddaughter of the man who started the family in the trade back in the 1920s.
She is one of 11 family members who now work within the business, with the younger generation bringing about significant changes over the years, including an overhaul of technology and processes to enable growth.
That ability to move with the times saw the company launch a new website when the pandemic hit, enabling customers to place orders, access their accounts and make payments 24/7, instead of waiting for office opening hours.
Lauren said: “There were lots of product shortages during the pandemic. We added a live stock feed to our website, so customers could check day or night what we had available, saving them time and keeping them working.
“Our customers were so grateful, they voted for us to win the e-commerce award.
“As a thank-you, we invited our customers in for a celebratory barbecue. It was also an opportunity to chat and find out how best we can support them.”
During lockdowns, the company closed its yard, but continued to carry out emergency deliveries and a click and collect service.
Now, after feedback from customers, the queuing system introduced as a result of the pandemic remains as it provides a smoother shopping experience.
Lauren said: “It was a really challenging time, but it has helped us to be even more customer focused. It helped us to re-evaluate how we do things.
“For me, being part of the Chandler legacy is so important. We want to carry on the good work of the previous family owners. It is becoming rarer to get independent merchants which are multi-generation family run.
“A lot of our customers come to us because of our history. We have been here for so long and they know we will look after them.”
Every month, Chandler Materials invite suppliers in to give customers and opportunity to speak directly to experts in their fields regarding their products and projects and enjoy a free breakfast.