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Hint: It’s all about execution, knowing your customer, and perseverance.
startups in pakistan
Entrepreneur Farhan Masood overcame several personal challenges to build a world-class company.
Virgin Teez was conceptualized after a desire to help victims of deadly floods in Pakistan.
Milestone wants to digitize student records, employee evaluation, and interaction between teachers and parents.
One man's dream of evangelizing entrepreneurship in Pakistan started for real when he quit his corporate job.
Sporting goods worth $1.6 billion were exported from Sialkot last year. Sportskot wants to disrupt that.
The founders believe citizens can draw inspiration from a fictitious superhero, eventually driving social change.
Muneeb Maayr doesn’t have the same background as most of his peers. That may prove to be the reason for his success.
Shopistan is trying to reshape online retail habits in Pakistan.
Like other startups in the space, Tazamart fails to impress.
The Pakistan-based Markhor team decided to make a long journey to meet buyers.
Venture is valued at $500K.
These Pakistani brothers skipped college, taught themselves to code, and built a site that attracts 100M monthly visits
If there was one thing they wanted to do, it was entrepreneurship. But their startup, Tune.pk, took a long time to make it into the limelight.
Service launched in frontier markets of Bangladesh and Myanmar.
The startup wants to encourage gender diversity and female inclusion in the labor force.
Since August 2014, Foodpanda grew 100% and yet comments on Karachi & Lahore Food Diary reflect falling standards in quality & hygiene from various big name eate...
Investment round values the startup at $2 million.
The startup wants to end our reliance on inefficient and expensive vehicle mechanics.
Media executive Faisal Sherjan joins the startup to lead strategy and chart future growth.


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Amazon has launched a lawsuit against the administrators of what it says are more than 10,000 Facebook groups intended to coordinate fake Amazon product reviews.
The company alleges that those in charge of groups look for reviews for items ranging from camera tripods to car stereos in return for free products or money.
The illegal activity happens throughout Amazon’s stores in the US, UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and Japan.
Fake reviews are used to enhance product ratings and increase the possibility that buyers might buy them.
Amazon Vice President Dharmesh Mehta said in the statement that the case indicates “proactive legal action targeting bad actors.”
Inauthentic reviews have plagued Amazon for years.
During the pandemic, shoppers rushed to e-commerce sites, resulting in increased review manipulation and customer discontent.
Last year, the UK’s antitrust authority initiated an investigation into whether Amazon and Alphabet subsidiary Google are doing enough to combat fake reviews.
“Amazon Product Review” – One of the Facebook groups – has almost 43,000 members.
Amazon alleges Facebook deleted the group this year after it eluded detection by rearranging letters in phrases that would set off Facebook’s sensors.
Amazon did not provide the identities or locations of the Facebook group admins.
The claim was filed in Washington state’s King County Superior Court, the Seattle-based firm said.
A Meta spokeswoman said: “Groups that solicit or encourage fake reviews violate our policies and are removed.
“We are working with Amazon on this matter and will continue to partner across the industry to address spam and fake reviews.”
In a letter to then-CEO Jeff Bezos in 2019, US legislators questioned Amazon’s attempts to combat fraudulent reviews.
In its first lawsuit against the use of fraudulent purchased reviews, the Federal Trade Commission punished a retail website that paid a third party to write reviews on Amazon in 2019.
Source: The Wall Street Journal

domain: news


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MaGi Foods’ owners still feeling the magic
- Nancy M. Preyor-Johnson
(Page 2 of 4)
The husband-and-wife team bought the trademark and brand “Louisiana Purchase Foods” from Ansy Inc. of Austin in 2007 and named their business MaGi Foods — a name that combined Matthew Mayes’ last name and Kathleen Mayes’ maiden name and symbolized the wise men of the biblical Magi.
“A little divine inspiration goes a long way,” says Kathleen Mayes. The symbolism of the journey has remained constant for the business.
The MaGi Foods mission is to deliver safe products that are tasty, healthy, convenient and affordable. MaGi Foods also sells its Kathleen’s line of products that offers a variety of microwavable cup-size portions, such as black beans, curried beans and Charro style beans.
The company makes most of its products at its 16,000-square-foot warehouse on Interchange Parkway on the city’s Northeast Side near Loop 410 and Interstate 35, says Matthew Mayes. The business has grown and its owners expect that trend will continue.
“We doubled our sales this past year, and we look to double our sales again this year. Last year we ended at approximately $1.7 million in sales,” Matthew Mayes adds.
But the journey hasn’t been an easy one.
Navigating troubled waters
In 2008, MaGi faced the downturn in the economy that threatened to put them out of business. To survive, they had to change course and get even more involved in the manufacturing process.
But the company needed equipment and supplies and were having problems getting traditional loans. That funding obstacle was overcome with solutions from Accion Texas Inc., a nonprofit micro-lender that has helped new and existing entrepreneurs with more than 13,400 loans totaling $143 million since it was launched in 1994 in San Antonio.
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Seattle, WA, September 17, 2011 --(PR.com
)-- Wood fiber costs continued to go up for the global pulp industry in the 2Q/11, having trended upward since early 2009, according to the market report Wood Resource Quarterly (WRQ). The Softwood Wood Fiber Price Index (SFPI) reached US$109.52 per oven-dry metric ton (odmt) in the 2Q/11, a 3.7 percent increase from the previous quarter and 23 percent higher than two years ago. In local currencies, wood chip and pulplog prices have increased the most in the US Northwest, Western Canada, Russia and Finland. The weakening US dollar against most global currencies in the 2Q resulted in higher fiber prices in all 18 regions covered by the WRQ.
The Hardwood Wood Fiber Price Index (HFPI) reached a new all-time-high in the 2Q at $116.44/odmt, which was 5.5 percent higher than 1Q/11 and almost 27 percent higher than in early 2009. Recently, hardwood prices have gone up the most in Indonesia, Finland, Russia and Brazil.
Wood fiber prices, which currently are at or close to record highs, have fluctuated quite substantially the past 24 years the WRQ has tracked global forest industry markets. Prices trended downward during most of the 1990’s and early 2000 when they were 60 percent below current levels. This was followed by a substantial increase from 2002 to 2008 with wood costs reaching record levels in early 2008, only to plummet almost 20 percent in late 2008 with the onset of the global recession. In 2009 and 2010, wood fiber markets have strengthened as a result of higher prices for market pulp, limited availability of wood chips from sawmills worldwide and a weakening US dollar against most currencies.
It is interesting to note that the SFPI index has been higher for most of the past 24 years; it was not until 2009 that the hardwood price index surpassed the SFPI. In the 2Q/11, the global hardwood fiber price was 6.3 percent higher than the softwood fiber price as reported in the WRQ.
Wood costs have gone up not only in real terms but also as a percentage of the total production costs when manufacturing pulp. The global average wood cost share of the total cash cost has increased from 52 percent in 2005 to 60.9 percent in the 1Q/2011, according to Fisher International. The wood cost percentage varies from a around 50 percent in New Zealand and Canada to over 70 percent in China, Indonesia and Brazil.
Global timber market reporting is included in the 52-page quarterly publication Wood Resource Quarterly (WRQ). The report, established in 1988 and with subscribers in over 25 countries, tracks sawlog, pulpwood, lumber and pellet prices and market developments in most key regions around the world.


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There seems to be a substantial alignment from le Toyota positions, the most important builder in the world, and those of Minister of Ecological Transition, Roberto Cingolani. Indeed, the Japanese auto giant in order to decarbonising mobility and pursue an economically and socially sustainable energy transition, he reiterated once again the will to focus on all the technologies available today and not to focus exclusively on that of battery electric cars.
“It’s too early to focus on just one option,” confirmed the company’s vice president, Shigeki Terashi, during a shareholders’ meeting, underlining the importance of a “multi-technological” approach to the energy transition. For Toyota, in fact, low-emission endotherms and hybrids are not destined to be retired in the short term and will constitute an alternative to 100% electric models for at least another 30 years. Moreover, Toyota is among the very few manufacturers in the world to have at the same time thermal technology, hybrid, plug-in hybrid, battery-electric and hydrogen (fuel cell) technology, an element that the manufacturer is also using to power thermal engines.
Toyota’s approach appears against the tide compared to that of many other manufacturers, which have set the definitive stop to all other technologies other than battery electric already over the next two or three decades. For the Japanese, however, all low environmental impact solutions are useful for the environmental cause and the market preferences (which today rewards hybrids and low-emission thermals). “Some people love battery electric vehicles, but others don’t find current technologies convenient. In the end, what matters is what customers choose, ”he stressed Masahiko Maeda, chief technology officer of the company.
Not to mention that for Toyota (and not only) they remain on the table a series of doubts about the ecological benefits of electric cars, incorrectly indicated as a “zero emissions” vehicle. For the multinational, however, to evaluate the real environmental impact of a car it is necessary to consider all phases concerning the life of the product, from her construction – includingrare earth extraction necessary for the production of accumulators – allo disposal. “We are choosing to look at the whole life cycle”, Ha chiarito Terashi.
Positions reminiscent of those of the Minister of Ecological Transition, Roberto Cingolani, which focuses on pragmatism: “The ecological transition it must be right: we must not leave anyone behind. We must take care of those who will not be able to switch to electric cars anyway and we must help them convert to a much more ecological vehicle than the old Euro 0 or Euro 1. Already a switch to a new Euro 6 car, which pollutes less at this time gives a very strong impetus to decarbonisation“. This without detracting from the route traced, which is to “accelerate electrification and penetration of electric and hybrid cars in the market“. But to achieve this goal, according to Cingolani, it is necessary “to increase the demand and supply not only of machines, but also ofcharging infrastructure, which does not only mean the columns but also ‘a smart network‘”.
However, according to the Minister, much can be done by rejuvenating the current fleet: “In Italy we have a fleet of private cars of about 30 million cars”, says Professor Cingolani. “A dozen millions, perhaps even more, are highly polluting cars, namely Euro 0, Euro 1 and Euro 2. Let’s face it: not everyone has the opportunity to change their car every four years. Many keep it for a long time and then it becomes old and polluting ”.
Ultimately, “it is clear that the electric transition is necessary and that everyone, tomorrow, would like to go with electric vehicles”, continued the Minister of Ecological Transition. “But I would like to mention that at this time a segment B family electric vehicle costs almost twice as much as an internal combustion vehicle. So let’s see where we start from. Today we have 10-12 million highly polluting cars: at this moment, their transition to Euro 6 already gives a strong impetus to decarbonisation“. Therefore, for Cingolani, “who today owns a Euro 1 diesel car, buying a Euro 6 diesel car gets a great improvement. The transition to electricity will certainly last about ten years and there will be some transitory solutions ”.
Concepts, those of the Minister, which had already been exposed by the same during a webinar dedicated to mobility: “We must be realistic, the ecological transition does not happen in an instant”And“ we can’t tell families’ from tomorrow you all buy Tesla ”. An issue that is also linked to infrastructure: “Even if we had all-electric vehicles from tomorrow, we would not know where to recharge them. The sacrosanct objective of the progressive and definitive electrification of transport must be pursued with a concrete and practical approach that takes into account social sustainability, the increase in costs for families and the technological challenge. The goal of reducing CO2 emissions by 55% by 2030 requires a mix of realism and a technological bet on the future ”.
It should be emphasized, then, that the Minister, unlike many manufacturers, does not believe only in battery-powered electric cars but also in those equipped with a fuel cell: “We must proceed with the electrification of the car park and getting the hydrogen-powered car off the ground. The PNRR, however, does not work miracles: on a cultural level, for example, we see too many cars circulating on the street with a single passenger, the driver, and this is a problem ”.


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Prague, July 21 (CTK) – A 33-year-old woman killed another woman, aged 54, following their conflict in a shopping centre in Prague yesterday, municipal police spokeswoman Iveta Martinkova told CTK, adding that the police detained the attacker at the scene of the crime.
The victim succumbed to stab wounds, Martinkova said.
The conflict occurred in the Novy Smichov shopping centre. According to witnesses, the victim was killed on the Tesco store premises.
A part of the store was closed, with the police and an ambulance on the spot.
The Prague rescue service’s spokesman Matej Hribal told CTK that they arrived in the store a mere four minutes after the attack was reported. Unfortunately, they could not help the victim any more, he said.
Martinkova said the police would not provide more information for now.
Server Novinky.cz has written that the assailant was released from a psychiatric clinic shortly before the attack.
Interior Minister Milan Chovanec expressed sympathy for the victim’s family and assured the public that terrorism was not the motive behind the crime.


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Pandemic has changed the way OEMs are treating their Partners
Director, Rubik Infotech
As a Leading Player
The Pandemic has brought in growth to the IT sector. Most of the Organization has realized how important IT is to their Organization. As most of us are working from home and still our work has not been hampered. The Organization has realized that because of IT, they are able to perform the work from home scenario and are able to deliver the deliverables on time.
Expanding Service Offerings
We feel that this is not the right time to expand to new geographies. And as most of us are working from home and able to support and sell in new regions through digital marketing initiatives. Customers are preferring online meetings on MS Teams, Zoom, etc. we feel we are able to cater to the new geographies. Infact our digital marketing initiative has brought in customers to us from other geographies.
Available Solutions to Penetrate
Remote working is going to stay for another 1 year worldwide. We have been offering multiple solutions like VDI, Cloud, SAAS modules to our customers. Customers have started accepting this solution, as the need of the hour is Employee Safety. We are happy that we have done some good deployment of VDI solutions for our customers.
Strategic Plans In 2021
Well the year 2021 would be unpredictable. We are recovering from 2nd wave of pandemic and there is a buzz that there could be 3rd wave of pandemic also. Hence this 2021 would be quite challenging. However, we are going all out in supporting our customers in their existing infra and giving them options of moving to cloud for better scalability.
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SECUDE, SAP partner and a leading data security provider specializing in security for SAP and CAD data, today announced that it has joined the Microsoft Intelligent Security Association.
SECUDE India today announced that it has signed an agreement with Enstrapp, to enable it to sell and support its SAP data security products, HALOCORE® and HALOCAD®.
SECUDE has developed a unique solution to protect Computer-Aided Design (CAD) files. The solution, exclusively meant for engineering and manufacturing companies across industries, will protect files, leveraging Microsoft Information Protection (MIP), across the design-to-production lifecycle.
They know all about you. Your health status. Your financial status. About your family. About your vacations – where you go, what you consume and what you do. All that information just got into the hands of pretty unsavory characters from institutions that you believed would never reveal your data.
Apple recently revealed that its CAD schematics had leaked, spurring it to reduce ‘factory secrecy staff’ and invest in technology. Last year, Tesla had revealed such loss. This needn’t be if organizations take one small, but largely overlooked, step towards CAD file protection. This is what they should do.
SECUDE India was a sponsor at the ‘Customer Privacy & Data Protection India Summit 2019’ in Mumbai held on 25-26 July 2019. The event was organized by Inventicon Business Intelligence.
To be forewarned is to be forearmed. This popular truism cannot be truer when it comes to data-centric security. However, the key question often is: where does one begin? This brief blog presents a clear step forward towards data-centric protection.
It is all about protecting your crown jewels. If you are an SAP user, you will be well aware of the security provided ‘inside’. But the key question is: what happens to the security of your data once they are downloaded or even shared with ‘legitimate’ outsiders? Can you ensure data integrity?
IP is the crown jewel of any organization. Protecting it goes beyond traditional security paradigms. Here is the case study of a leading Swiss chip manufacturer who took the extra step of taking a data-centric approach beyond the standard security paradigm.
An ERP, such as SAP, is ubiquitous and all-encompassing. The key value of such a platform is its ability to power operations across departments by enabling seamless data sharing. However, data that is being shared may also be misused and stolen. Here are five SAP data protection scenarios where HALOCORE must be considered.


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24 September, 2021
No Fair-Go for milk producers
STATE Member for Hill Shane Knuth has spoken openly and passionately about his disgust at the forced abandonment by Queensland Dairy Organisation (QDO) of their Fair Go Dairy logo.
The logo was an initiative to allow consumers to be able to identify which milk sold in supermarkets, offered a fair farm gate price back to Dairy Farmers.
However, QDO, in a statement released today, have been forced to scrap the logo, due to the exhaustion of funds fighting legal battles and challenges from processors and other retail stakeholders to stop the release of the logo.
“Prior to deregulation of the industry in 2000 we had more than 270 dairy farms on the Atherton Tablelands alone,” Mr Knuth said.
“Now we have less than 50. In Queensland there were 1,500 farms, which has now fallen to well below 300.
“The logo wasn’t the solution to the problem, but it was a step forward in helping our dairy farmers who are disappearing at an alarming rate in Queensland.”
Mr Knuth has been a huge supporter of the industry, introducing the Fair Milk Logo in 2013 and the Fair Milk Price Logo Bill in 2016, which both major parties voted against.
However, after constant lobbying by Mr Knuth the current government acknowledged that a logo to identify milk sold in supermarkets which provides a fair price to farmers was a good idea and an effective way to help dairy farmers.
“I have been a huge supporter of the initiative and assisted QDO in securing funding from the State Government towards the design and release of the logo, however the challenges through the ACCC, appeals and legal proceedings have now exhausted those funds completely.”
Mr Knuth said the ACCC originally cleared the logo for release despite initial resistance from supermarkets and processors.
“The latest challenge from the Australian Dairy Products Federation (ADPF) is an absolute disgrace,” he said.
“What are they afraid of? If processors and supermarkets are doing the right thing then why are they stopping this simple initiative?
“It is very clear they do not want any form of transparency shown to consumers to allow them to support those milk products sold on shelves, which pay a fair price directly to dairy farmers.
“This is what big business do, they will hold up the release of initiatives by tying it up in legal proceedings for as long as possible, until smaller organisations cannot afford to continue to fight.


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The smartphone world is really facing a lot of heat as we are seeing a lot of new smartphones these a days. Most of the smartphones are launching in the 10K INR budget. This is not the end as new smartphones are coming very soon. Micromax has sent us the invite of Micromax Canvas Spark launch event. The handset was leaked a few weeks ago and at that time, there was no confirmation about this product.
The Micromax Canvas Spark is going to be a budget friendly phone and it is surely going to give a tough competition to the other smartphones like Lenovo A7000, Lenovo A6000 Plus and Motorola Moto E 4G. The pictures of this device has not been revealed yet, but the device i going to launch on April, 21.
The Canvas Spark is expected to to feature a 4.7-inch qHD display which will offer a screen resolution of 960 x 540 pixels. The handset will be running on Android 5.0 Lollipop platform and it can be packing the quad-core MediaTek MT6582 processor. The price of this device is not revealed, but the sources are saying that this handset will price below Rs 6,000. So, it will increase a lot of pressure on the other smartphone companies.
The Redmi 2 is the cheapest smartphone there and it is priced at Rs. 6,999 and if the Micromax Canvas Spark gets the same feature and a price tag below Rs 6,000 then, it can change the entire scenario of the current smartphone market. Anyway, the rest of the specs of this handset are not revealed yet, but we wish that it comes with an 8-Megapixel camera.
The Indian giant has already revealed that they are going to sell it exclusively on Snapdeal.com. So, we can see a lot from there as well. So, stay tuned while we get more updates regarding the Micromax Canvas Spark.


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As Bastrop prepares its budget for the next fiscal year, it’s grappling with a drop in its sales tax revenue this month, compared to the same month last year, according to state comptroller data.
Bastrop received $493,900 in sales tax revenue this month, 4.92 percent less revenue than it received in July 2016. Last year, the city received $519,486 in July. Bastrop was the only local government in Bastrop County to collect less sales tax revenue this month than in July 2016, data show.
Bastrop City Manager Lynda Humble said at a recent budget workshop that 43 percent of the city’s revenue is made up by sales tax. In the upcoming fiscal year, set to begin Oct. 1, about 42 percent of the city’s projected revenue will be made up by sales taxes, she said, adding that its concerning to her because sales tax revenue is “dependent on consumer confidence.”
“The more wealthy you feel, the more you spend,” Humble said. “The poorer you feel, the less you spend. There are things that one day to the next impact our economy.”
Humble said she under a sense of urgency to diversify the city’s revenue base as depending largely on sales tax revenue is “not the way to run a city.”
A budding destination marketing organization is developing a plan to help the city attract tourism, a move Humble said will allow Bastrop to maintain and increase is sales tax revenue while it builds its property tax base, a consistent revenue stream for the city.
In the first seven months of 2017, Bastrop has collected $3.78 million in sales tax revenue, up 1.72 percent over its total collection of $3.72 million it collected during the same reporting period last year.
Smithville, which had the highest sales tax growth this month compared to July 2016, received $43,363 in revenue, up 27.14 percent over its $34,105 collection during the same month last year.
So far this year, Smithville has collected $326,625 in total revenue, up 13.97 percent over its $286,574 total collection during the same months last year.
Elgin also experienced a spike in sales tax growth this month, data show.
Elgin received $180,458 in revenue this month, 17.34 percent more than its $153,788 allocation last July.
From January through July, Elgin has collected $1.17 million, up 2.94 percent over its $1.13 million collection during the same months in 2016.
Bastrop County, which collects a half penny from every taxable dollar spent within its borders, received $351,364 this month, up 11.71 percent above its $314,517 over its July 2016 collection.
From January through July, the county received a total $2.39 million in revenue, an increase of 5.26 percent over its total $2.27 million collection during the same reporting period.
Statewide, Comptroller Glen Hegar returned nearly $680 million in monthly sales tax revenue to cities, counties, transit systems and special purpose taxing districts. The statewide allocation this month marked a 9 percent increase over last July.
“The cities of Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin, Fort Worth, Midland and Odessa saw noticeable increases in sales tax allocations,” Hegar said.
July revenue allocations are based on sales made in May by businesses that report tax monthly.


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2011's The Binding of Isaac has remained an Ars Technica favorite for some time, especially due to the "Zelda roguelike" game receiving robust upgrades and improvements in a 2014 semi-sequel. But for years, the gross, religiously charged adventure had one glaring issue: its absence from Nintendo systems.
That situation changed on Thursday with The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth's launch on both the Wii U and new 3DS systems, along with the Xbox One—a fact we point out because of how long its creators have been trying to get the game on a Nintendo console.
"We just kept pushing them and working on the [new Nintendo] version," game creator Edmund McMillen told Ars in a Skype interview. He credited internal staffers who were fans of the game, including former Nintendo indie-games chief Dan Adelman, who had pushed for a change in policy that would allow the game to be launched on his company's devices.That account is a major reversal from the last time Nintendo turned the game down in 2012; at the time, McMillen said Nintendo's objections were less about blasphemy and more about the game's core content. "Blasphemy is in most games… everything is blasphemous for one religion and not for another," McMillen told Ars in 2012, and he also pointed to specific issues with Isaac content like "shooting your mom and crapping all over her."
The game's creators have repeatedly mentioned in interviews that they'd wanted the Zelda-inspired game on a Nintendo platform, even though McMillen's prior game, Super Meat Boy, never had a Nintendo launch. In April, The Binding of Isaac's official site made a phony announcement of "edits" the game would receive to launch on a Nintendo system, including changing the game's "god" to "dog" and putting a fig leaf on the game's naked protagonist. (If you're wondering, no, the Nintendo systems' version was not edited for content.) An official update last week confirmed that the portable Isaac required the newest 3DS model's "horsepower"—sorry, original 3DS owners.
Nintendo of America's earliest game-content policies, well before the existence of the ESRB rating system, forbid a lot of religious content; crosses were edited out of games like Earthbound and Super Ghouls and Ghosts, while entire games, like Nintendo's own Devil World, never received an American launch.


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Nokia has issued an unusual teaser
for its forthcoming Nokia World event scheduled for October 22 in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Pictured appears to be to the previously leaked Nokia Lumia 2520 6-inch Windows Phone phablet and the similarly leaked Windows RT 8.1 tablet codenames known as the Sirius. Also pictured, intriguingly, is a notebook - it could be a literal representation of the ad copy, which reads 'Watch the action on your screen of choice,' or a reference to Nokia's upcoming acquisition by Microsoft and an acknowledgement of the close integration of its devices and Microsoft's Windows empire.
Far less likely is the possibility that Nokia plans to release its own branded notebook, although Nokia has dabbled in notebooks previously with its ill-fated 2009 effort, the Nokia Booklet 3G
. Regardless, the event is likely to be one of the last, if not the last, Nokia mobile announcement. Microsoft's acquisition of the Nokia devices and services division effectively gutted Nokia of its most valuable assets and has guaranteed that the "Nokia" name will not grace another smartphone, or tablet, for at least the next decade.
Both the Nokia Lumia 2520 and the Nokia Sirius Windows RT 8.1 tablet will center on 1080p displays, with the pixel density of the Lumia 2520 likely to be in excess of 300ppi. The two devices will also sport Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon 800 quad-core processors paired with at least 2GB of RAM, helping to ensure that Nokia goes out with hardware with some of the best specifications currently available. The October 22 event will be streamed live.
Nokia Booklet 3G (2009)


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Three principles to get consumers a better deal and create a stronger economy that works for everyone
TSB is calling on all political parties to sign-up to its Consumers Matter Manifesto and adopt
three principles to get consumers a better deal.
A General Election represents a real opportunity for
politicians to give consumers a fresh start and deliver something meaningful to
improve the products and services consumers get and potentially save them
Some of the UK’s most important markets – such as energy,
telecoms or banking – are not working for consumers. That’s why TSB is calling on politicians to
pledge three simple principles which will help make the industries people value
the most work in their interest:
consumers know what they are getting.
consumers shop around freely.
consumers to vote with their feet and switch easily.
Paul Pester, Chief Executive Officer for TSB, says: “In the
sectors that matter most to consumers a handful of big, established players
have a stranglehold on their market.
They are taking customers for granted, pushing up bills, trapping them
on poor deals, bamboozling them with jargon and making it almost impossible to
“It’s time for change, and for consumers, not businesses, to
be put at the centre of the industries that people value the most. This will not only be good for individual
consumers, it will be good for the whole economy.”
TSB was created to bring more competition to UK banking and
ultimately make banking better for all UK consumers. However, many of the problems consumers face
in banking can be found across the markets that people rely on the most.
In the banking industry alone:
- Consumers don’t know how much they are paying
for their “free” bank accounts or if they can get a better deal elsewhere – as
banking must be the only industry that doesn’t tell customers how much they pay
for the services they receive through a regular bill.
- Many people are punished for shopping around for
a loan – with 61% of open loan providers making a hard mark on their credit
file just for asking for a loan price or quote.
- The customers who would benefit most from
switching are the least able to switch –
overdraft customers are effectively locked into their current bank, because the
switching service doesn’t switch overdrafts.
Paul Pester says: “Once consumers are empowered
to vote with their feet, complacent businesses will need to up their game and
become fit for competition. If
businesses are forced to learn these lessons at home they will become more
dynamic and better able to compete on a global platform. Ultimately that will mean a stronger UK
economy that works for everyone.”
Notes to editors
TSB was built to
bring more competition to UK banking and ultimately make banking better for all
UK consumers. TSB only serves local customers and local businesses, to help
fuel local economies, because communities thriving across Britain is a good
thing for all of us.
We have a simple,
straightforward and transparent banking model and make clear on our website how
we operate and make money. We offer the products and services people tell us
they want, with none of the funny stuff people normally associate with
Our five million
customers appear to notice: TSB is Britain’s most recommended high street bank
and was recently identified as one of the top 10 big companies to work for.
information about TSB Bank plc, please visit our website www.tsb.co.uk.


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Major smartphone makers have been working on under-screen camera technology for a while. And though Xiaomi has been one of the pioneers announcing its research and development achievements, it is not the first company to launch such a smartphone. As you know, the ZTE Axon 20 5G was announced. And it is the world’s first smartphone sporting a true full-screen and using this technology. As for Xiaomi, it will bring its own model only next year. However, we are not naïve to think Xiaomi and ZTE are the only smartphone makers to bring this technology to large masses. The rest of the main players are working on it as well. In this regard, Samsung, which is the world’s number one phone maker is developing its own off-screen camera technology. But because of time issues, the forthcoming Samsung Galaxy S21 won’t use this technology.
Also Read: Under-Screen Camera Technology: Who Will Win The Race?
As PhoneArena reports, the Samsung Galaxy S21 may miss the under-screen camera. It should use a punch-hole screen solution. And what’s more interesting, this is going to be Samsung’s last generation of flagship models with punch-hole screens.
Gizchina News of the week
The report pointed out that Samsung explained the progress of its under-screen camera research and development as early as in a China event in 2018. In addition, two tipsters provided some information, suggesting that Samsung is ready to mass-produce it.
That time, the tipster said that Samsung Display’s under-screen camera solution is far ahead of other manufacturers’ solutions. In April, he said that Samsung is considering using under-screen camera technology on the Galaxy S21 and evaluating its feasibility.
Will Galaxy S Line New Model Debut Under-screen Camera Technology Of Samsung?
Ross Young, the founder of DSCC, a screen research organization, said that Samsung’s under-screen camera technology is expected to be officially commercialized next year. But the Samsung Galaxy S21 is not the first to come with. The first model may be Samsung’s next-generation folding screen smartphone (likely to be named the Galaxy Z Fold 3).
The Samsung Galaxy S21 (or S30) is expected to sport Qualcomm’s latest generation of Snapdragon flagship platform – the Snapdragon 875. The earliest date it may arrive in the end of this year. But we should also remind you that Samsung usually announces its new flagship models in the first months of every year.


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Pew recently released their findings on a research report called The People Who Use Twitter. What is interesting about this report is that this is one of the first times Pew has released something pertaining to one site instead of multiple. They have always focused on the functionality instead of the tool. For example:
Our status update question in eight surveys between August 2008 and September 2010 asked, “Do you ever use the Internet to use Twitter or another service to share updates aout yourself or to see updates about others?” In August 2008, 6% of internet users said “yes” to that question. In September 2010, 24% of internet users said “yes.”
This information was interesting on multiple levels… however it did not pertain strictly to Twitter… they changed that. The People Who Use Twitter report has some extremely interesting information regarding Twitter use including:
- White, non hispanic users are at about 5% while Black are at 13%
- 10% of internet users in each group who Twitter have said to have a Household income between $50k-$75k
- Urban residents are roughly twice as likely to use Twitter as rural dwellers
- Minority internet users are twice as likely to use Twitter as white internet users
This goes to show that you can never take the users of a site, tool, or technology at face value. Research needs to be conducted in order to fully understand the usage of Twitter (or any social media site for that matter).
Twitter is growing and at a rapid pace… How are you implementing the system?


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The lawyer for the French company at the heart of an escalating global breast implant scare told Reuters on Tuesday that most of the protheses sold by the firm since 1991 were produced using a non-approved silicone.
Lawyer Yves Haddad, who represents now-shuttered Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) and its founder Jean-Claude Mas, said the company sold both so-called "simple" protheses, made with non-approved silicone, and a high-end product using approved silicone that was aimed at wealthier clients.
"There is a product made by PIP which did not formally receive the (regulators') approval and in this regard there was a violation of regulations," Haddad told Reuters in an interview in his office.
No charges have been filed in the case but a court in Marseille is likely to announce fraud charges next year, legal sources have told Reuters. An involuntary homicide investigation was recently opened after the 2010 death of a French woman from cancer who had PIP implants.


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- Founded in 1984, Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE:NUS), is a direct selling company that distributes more than 200 premium-quality anti-aging products in both the personal care and nutritional supplements categories.
- Nu Skin operates throughout Asia, the Americas, Europe, Africa and the Pacific.
- The company’s global operations generated $2.28 billion in revenue during 2017.
- In 2016, the Nu Skin Force for Good Foundation and our charitable partners contributed more than $6 million to improve the lives of children throughout the world.
- Since 2002, Nu Skin distributors and employees have donated more than 550 million meals through its Nourish the Children® initiative to hungry and malnourished children around the world.
NU SKIN ENTERPRISES TO PRESENT AT RBC CAPITAL MARKETS CONSUMER AND RETAIL CONFERENCE
PROVO, Utah — May 24, 2018 — Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: NUS) today announced Chief Financial Officer Mark Lawrence will present at the RBC Capital Markets Consumer and Retail Conference in Boston on Wednesday, May 30, 2018.
NU SKIN RECEIVES MULTIPLE HONORS FOR COMPANY GROWTH,
CULTURE AND PRODUCT INNOVATION
PROVO, Utah — May 10, 2018 — Nu Skin Enterprises received two separate awards from Direct Selling News (DSN) at the publication’s annual awards banquet in Dallas. The company was ranked #9 in the DSN Global 100 list of the top revenue-generating direct selling companies. In addition, the company was honored as a best company to work for in the direct selling industry.
NU SKIN ENTERPRISES REPORTS STRONG FIRST-QUARTER RESULTS
AND INCREASES ANNUAL GUIDANCE
PROVO, Utah — April 26, 2018 — Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: NUS) today announced first-quarter financial results and increased its annual guidance.
NU SKIN ENTERPRISES ANNOUNCES QUARTERLY DIVIDEND
PROVO, Utah — April 26, 2018 — Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. (NYSE: NUS) today announced its board of directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.365 per share which will be paid on June 13, 2018, to stockholders of record on May 25, 2018.


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GoCar, which provides on-demand short term hire cars in Dublin and Cork, has had two of its vehicles set on fire in a suspected arson attack in Dublin.
The cars were parked in the Blackpitts area of Dublin 8 and were burned out last night.
GoCar started operations in 2008 in Cork, expanding to Dublin in 2010, and has six full-time staff administering its fleet and the service. Subscribers can use the vehicles by using a swipe card to open the doors and a PIN number to start the car. Usage is priced hourly and users get free parking before returning the vehicle.
GoCar head of operations Jonathan Roche said: “As a small Irish business, an attack on two vehicles worth €15,000 each is obviously a huge disappointment for us, but it is an isolated incident and we’re reassured by how swiftly and thoroughly the Gardai have been dealing with it.
“Dublin Bikes has shown how enthusiastically Dubliners will embrace an innovative sharing service, and concerns before that service launched about damage to the bikes have been shown to be a minuscule issue.
“This isolated incident will not deter us from adding more vehicles to our fleet of 150 cars and vans, and we still have absolute confidence that the service will continue to grow. We’re confident the benefits of GoCar are being felt by both members and non-members, as each GoCar takes up to 14 private cars off the streets. We have also just launched a fleet of 10 electric BMW i3s, and we’ll continue to strive towards reducing the emissions across our fleet.”


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Thursday Night Football is coming to Amazon a year earlier than expected.
The NFL announced games will begin streaming on Amazon beginning with the 2022 season, a year earlier than previously announced. Fox agreed to exit its existing partnership with NFL Network to broadcast the games a year early as part of the new arrangement.
“This expedited deal is an immediate differentiator for us as a service, as it gives Prime members exclusive access to the most popular sport in the United States,” said Marie Donoghue, Amazon’s vice president of global sports video.
While games will continue to be aired on free, over-the-air networks in local markets, this deal will mark the first time an exclusive rights package is held by a streaming service for any of the United States' major professional sports leagues.
The 2021 season will be the last in which Fox and NFL Network share Thursday Night Football broadcasting duties.
The NFL is taking a chance in its partnership with Amazon, given the league has long touted that its games are all available on regular television. Amazon is paying roughly $1 billion per year for broadcast rights. It is unclear if the new agreement will tack on an additional $1 billion for the NFL, though that appears to be the most likely scenario.
Amazon does not typically release ratings for its original programming available on Prime Video. Thursday Night Football averaged 14.1 million viewers in 2020, slightly down from 2019 but still strong enough to regularly win the night in terms of overall viewership and the coveted 18-49 demographic.
Amazon Prime has roughly 200 million worldwide subscribers. The company has not revealed how many people use the Prime Video service that's included in Prime subscriptions.
It's likely Amazon is banking on the NFL playing a major part in its attempts to expand Prime Video's offerings and subscriptions.


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Bookless libraries aren’t quite so far-fetched as they used to be. Florida Polytechnic University, opening for the first time this fall, features a $60 million, Santiago Calatrava-designed main building with a library that doesn’t hold a single paper book within its walls. (via This university’s library doesn’t have a single paper book | The Verge)
According to Mark Gurman’s 9-part profile of Apple’s public relations operations, it was Steve Jobs’ idea to assign an adjective to each of its products. In Apple press releases, the iPad is always “magical,” the iPhone “revolutionary,” the App Store “legendary.”
Here’s another reminder why companies like Apple and Amazon are betting on streaming services: Streaming is quickly taking over as the major money-maker for the music industry, with 70 percent of all digital music revenue coming from streaming by 2019, according to an estimate from U.K.-based digital music analyst Mark Mulligan.


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A new iPhone app aims to help users navigate the new iPhone design process
Apple’s new iPhone 8 and 8 Plus devices have been a hit with customers, and a new iPhone 9 app aims not only to help customers navigate the design process, but also help them figure out which buttons to press.
Dubbed the Apple Design Help app, the app is a work-in-progress and has already received positive reviews.
The app offers the option to create a simple user interface, with simple actions such as adding and removing items from a list, or adding a new button to a menu.
It also shows how the app will be used, from how to create your own content to where to find it.
Apple’s new iPhones, including the iPhone 8, are the first iPhones to feature an OLED display.
The company said earlier this year that it wanted to reduce the size of the iPhone display to 5.5 inches, and that it would offer a new 5.7-inch model with the iPhone X and X+ variants.
The OLED panel is used to produce the iPhone’s OLED display, and the new Apple Design help app shows the new screens capabilities in detail.
Apple has also introduced a new version of the App Store to help with design.
The App Store will have redesigned icons, and also has a new section dedicated to design advice and tutorials.
The new section has been designed to be accessible to those who have not previously tried the Apple design process.
Apple is hoping that the new help app will help users find the right iPhone buttons and shortcuts.
The new iPhone help app is available now for iOS 10.2 and up.


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Samsung Electronics Canada has proudly announced that their newest smart TV lineup, the Samsung Neo QLED 8K, is now available in different models at Canadian retailers, as well as the new M8 Smart Monitor series.
Samsung is no stranger to innovation when it comes to smartphones, audio and even displays on the consumer home front, and now its newest lineup of Samsung Neo QLED 8K TVs is available for purchase in Canada in two 2022 models, the QN900B and QN800B.
The innovative and dynamic displays are available in 3 sizes each, coming in at 65”, 75” and 85” sizes, to meet size demands of the consumer. The Neo QLED 8K 2022 models come with the highest contrast and colour clarity, with glare reducing technology for the clearest resolution. The new Neo Quantum Processor 8K fully equips each display with the latest in innovation. The 8K AI upscaling determines viewers needs and adapts for an easier consumer experience.
VP/Head of Consumer Electronics of Samsung Electronics Canada, Pat Bugos said “We are redefining the role of the TV, so Canadians can enjoy the personalized and premium experiences they desire,” regarding the latest Samsung QLED 8K TVs, while including “The Samsung Neo QLED 8K is more than a TV – it’s a beautifully designed, cutting-edge screen that offers customers with a complete entertainment system. As part of Samsung’s ‘Screens Everywhere, Screens For All’ philosophy, we are elevating the home entertainment experience with premium features and stunning 8K quality.”
The newest in Samsung QLED lineup also comes with an almost paper thin Infinity One Design, giving users more room space. The already equipped top channel speakers give the QLED 8K lineup Dolby Atmos surround sound capability built directly into the display, giving genuine surround sound that promotes maximum immersion without the need for companion devices.
Samsung M8 Monitor Series
Samsung wasn’t finished with their exciting Canadian releases, as they have also announced the M8 Monitor series is also available in Canada.
The M8 monitor series was made available starting April 20th, and brings the iconic slim Samsung design to Canada in four colourways—Warm White, Sunset Pink, Daylight Blue, and Spring Green—all with the 32″ UHD, and SlimFit camera.
VP Pat Bugos said “The new Samsung Smart Monitor M8 is capable of matching different consumer lifestyles and preferences. With a colour palette of four different colour options, the M8 provides a modern, minimalist look that suits any environment or setup design,” with “From home offices to entertainment hubs to gaming displays, monitors are being used now more than ever,” on the rising prominence of monitors.
A cool innovative aspect of the M8, allows for the SlimFit Cam to be disconnected and moved around for user comfort, as well as being able to play necessary apps for viewers such as Netflix, with no added device or setup necessary.
The new Samsung Neo QLED 8K models available now in Canada, the QN900B and QN800B are available from the Samsung Canada website, as well as the M8 Monitor series. For more information regarding the latest in Samsung innovation, viewers can visit the Samsung website for specs and more details.


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|| Print ||
|Articles - January 2011|
|Thursday, December 16, 2010|
By Cory Mimms
When James Curleigh became the CEO of Keen Footwear in 2008, he found a monster lurking in the cubicles of the corporate office in Portland. Keen had an innovative product — a sandal that protected your toe — but innovation without results leaves hope as your strategy, and according to Curleigh, “Hope is not a strategy.” He didn’t focus on the recession, which was in full swing; he focused inward on what he named “Operation Slay the Hydra.”
“The energy was there but the execution was not,” Curleigh says. He identified nine areas that needed improvement and — like the nine heads of a hydra — each problem area would regenerate unless the monster was killed for good. Curleigh formed an action team with nine members, each of which was responsible for slaying one head of the monster. As a result, Keen’s processes were streamlined and Curleigh was able to focus on growth.
The 7-year-old company grew between 15% and 40% per year and is on its way to hitting $200 million in revenue. It not only survived the recession but managed to expand during its worst months. Regions, such as Mexico, remained out of reach. Curleigh and his team concluded it wasn’t feasible to expand there but Curleigh kept it in the back of his mind.
In the months following, Curleigh focused on managing Keen’s growth and shifted from using distributors to subsidiaries. “Strategically, it worked,” he says, and they came out of 2008 with the most intact balance sheet they had ever had; inventory was low, receivables were under control and management was efficient. Curleigh then focused on the product and brand.
Keen has products for young people, old people, men and women, every season and every region. This large demographic allows them to maintain a steady revenue stream. Curleigh balances the needs of the brand against the needs of its leadership. When the leadership is too strong they make poor decisions for the brand and try to force growth, and when the brand is stronger than the leadership the team can’t direct the growth intelligently.
Keen opened its first retail store in August in Portland’s Pearl District. Curleigh uses the store as a think tank. All the corporate employees spend time working in the store to help them learn what customers want. Above the store sits Keen’s corporate office. A drum set rests in one corner, the employees are dressed casually, and bicycles sporting Keen license plates are parked in the reception area. Curleigh promotes a relaxed work environment where his team has the freedom to develop new ideas.
They are also analyzing the company’s environmental impact. Keen did not begin with sustainability in mind, but as the company has grown so have its goals. Companies born this century are finding it easier to be sustainable because they are “growing up” with it in mind, Curleigh says.
Not only does it make their brand appealing to environmentally conscious consumers, it also saves money. Keen’s corporate offices cost very little to furnish because Curleigh used repurposed materials such as pallet wood and bleachers from a high school he acquired for free.
Curleigh sees the company’s youth as an advantage. When you’re young, you’re not afraid to take risks. After months of listening to why Mexico was too difficult a market, Curleigh had had enough. The words of Bob Dylan echoed in his mind: “When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose.”
Curleigh launched the brand into Mexico in early 2009, partnering with sporting goods retailer Deportes Marti, which is based in Mexico City. The region’s revenue went from zero dollars to a few million in a relatively short period. Roughly 65% of Keen’s business is in the U.S., 10% in Canada, 10% in Europe, and 15% is spread through other regions. The company this year began making its Portland Boot at a manufacturing plant in North Portland.
Keen’s brand is still developing, but the shoes are selling and the corporation is growing. Still, Curleigh wants to keep the attitude of a young, scrappy company. “We want to stay David among the Goliaths,” he says.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
BY JOE ROJAS-BURKE | OB BLOGGER
The medical research enterprise wastes tens of billions of dollars a year on irrelevant studies. It’s time to fix it.
Thursday, March 27, 2014
BY MARY SPILDE | OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR
Community college career, technical and workforce programs present an opportunity to bring business and education together as never before.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
BY LINDA BAKER
A blueberry bush is a blueberry bush — except when it’s a blueberry tree.
Friday, March 14, 2014
BY TOM COX | OB BLOGGER
Five books that will make you a better leader.
Friday, March 21, 2014
TOM COX | OB BLOGGER
During a recent talk to HR Directors, I asked if they saw leaders trying to solve every problem, instead of delegating to and empowering staff. Every head nodded. Every single one.
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Our 100 Best Companies project turned 21 this year, so pop open the Champagne. Our latest survey gives us plenty to cheer.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
BY LINDA BAKER
Les Schwab has put a premium on customer service since 1952, when legendary namesake Les Schwab founded the company with one store in Prineville. (Schwab died in 2007.) But if the corporate principles remain essentially the same, the world around this iconic Oregon business has changed dramatically.
|How Doug Badger spends his downtime|
|Port at a crossroads|
|100 Best awards 2014|
|Our man in Congress|
|NASA discovers first potentially habitable planet|
|Effects of childhood bullying last a lifetime|
|Scientists make first embryo clones from adults|
|Man urinates in reservoir, ruins 38M gallons of water|
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|Former NYC mayor announces $50M gun law election push|
|U.S. consumer inflation rises: higher food, rent costs|
Marketing the state brings new business, new jobs and a better quality of life for everyone.
Living in the beautiful Pacific Northwest means enjoying our wonderful surroundings, while remaining aware of the multiple types of natural disaster threats that we face: winter storms, windstorms, floods, landslides, earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis.“
Oregon State University's hospitality degree program invests in next-generation leaders.
On Saturday, April 26, more than 1,900 local Comcast employees and their families, friends and community partners will “make change happen” as they volunteer to improve schools and nonprofits in Oregon and Southwest Washington as part of Comcast’s 13th Comcast Cares Day.
NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson just completed their newly rebranded First Quarter Market Reports. Not only does it feature a brand new format, but the report ensures accuracy due to the annual truing up of their database.
Samuel Hernandez, an Associate at Barran Liebman, is the recipient of a 2014 Oregon State Bar Litigation Section Rising Litigator Award.


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Verdant Commercial Capital, LLC, the sixth largest independent equipment finance company in the United States, announced that its 2022 originations were $551MM, an increase of 42% over 2021. Verdant originates leases and loans via relationships with top-tier vendors, OEMs, and dealers of business-essential capital equipment and software.
“Our unique ability to support originations from below $25,000 to more than $50 million across a wide spectrum of credit profiles has made Verdant the go-to source for vendors seeking easy financing solutions for their customers,” said Mike Rooney, CEO of Verdant Commercial Capital. “In addition, Verdant’s vendor business approach continues to prove that strong relationships with high-quality partners produce results that are predictable, sustainable and scalable.”
With more than 80 employees across the country, Verdant is well-positioned to continue to scale its business in 2023 and beyond.
“Verdant’s innovative business model has enabled us to attract some of the best and brightest individuals in the equipment finance industry. Our success is a result of this talented and hardworking team,” continued Rooney. “Our goal has always been to help our vendor partners sell more equipment by making financing options simple and easy for their customers to use.”


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CORVALLIS - Scientists at Oregon State University are pressure-treating cheese slurry to study the application of high pressure in accelerated cheese ripening.
"We're cooperating with food technology researchers at Ohio State University to develop a method of accelerating flavor ripening in cheese," said Dan Farkas, head of the OSU Department of Food Science and Technology. "An accelerated process will allow increased production of cheese at less cost, which will give marketers more flexibility in serving the growing consumer demand for various cheese products."
Researchers also hope accelerated processing will allow a high degree of flavor control in cheese, which would enable processors to develop a broad range of new products.
The average ripening period for cheese is six to 12 months. This can be shortened to around five days by raising the temperature of the cheese slurry, a liquid concentrate including curds and whey.
"Increasing the temperature of the slurry from eight to 30 degrees C dramatically reduces the ripening time, but it also increases the growth of undesirable microorganisms such as 'Staphylococcus' bacteria," said Tony Jin, a post-doctoral research fellow in the Ohio State University Department of Food Science and Technology.
That's where the pressure comes in.
Researchers have known for many years that exposing food samples to high pressure destroys many of the microorganisms in the food. Farkas is a nationally known leader in this research and has conducted several studies on the use of pressure in food preservation since joining the Oregon State University food science faculty several years ago.
According to Farkas, exposure to high pressure is extremely effective in killing undesirable bacteria in foods, while leaving desirable qualities of the product unchanged.
Among other projects, Farkas led a team of researchers who successfully used pressure technology to develop better-tasting field rations for the U.S. military.
"We're using an experimental pressure unit to expose cheese slurry samples to various levels of pressure ranging from 50,000 to 80,000 pounds per square inch," said Farkas. "We're looking for combinations of temperature and pressure to eliminate the microorganisms that cause health problems."
To make this accelerated process work, a way has to be found to kill harmful bacteria without eliminating the starter enzymes that give the cheese its flavor, Farkas said.
It may be possible, he added, to apply just the right amount of pressure to selectively control the harmful microorganisms, leaving the desirable microorganisms intact.
"If that isn't possible, we can apply enough pressure to kill all the microorganisms in the cheese slurry and starter enzymes can be added back into the product following the treatment," he said.
Pressure treatment of other kinds of foods has given those items longer shelf-life while maintaining their natural taste and flavor. Farkas expects the same result with pressure treatment of cheese products.
Click photos to see a full-size version. Right click and save image to download.
Daniel Farkas, 541-737-6488


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https://www.wineintelligence.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/India.jpg 2362 2362 Courtney Abernathy https://www.wineintelligence.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/logo5.png Courtney Abernathy2018-06-05 11:03:192019-05-09 15:43:30The India opportunity
Wine Intelligence will be working with Sonal Holland MW to run the first wave of Vinitrac® in India and publish the first India Landscapes report in September 2018 The potential for wine in India is always a good subject for…
- Is wine losing its hold on younger adults?
- Digitally savvy and adventurous wine consumers will drive Brazil’s wine market
- Younger LDA drinkers dominate premium wine opportunity in emerging and growth markets, reflecting market dynamics
- Wine consumption surged in select markets in 2020 – but how will consumer behaviour change going forward?
- 6 key factors wine businesses should consider when evaluating the opportunity for wine in cans


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It’s an unfortunate reality that the world can be a dangerous place, especially for women walking alone. That’s why Rajia Abdelaziz, CEO of invisaWear, started her line of wearable security devices, disguised as stylish jewelry.
“I was in college leaving an event and was followed by a car full of guys yelling rude comments at me, then one started to get out, I ran to my car and was thankfully able to get away, but so many others can’t say the same,” Abdelaziz said. “I looked for a safety device for myself and my loved ones and found nothing suitable to my needs so I created my own.”
The discreet devices, which come in a variety of styles from bracelets to keychains to necklaces, include a charm with a hidden button that can send an emergency text to five loved ones when double-clicked. The alarm also sends a link to the user’s GPS location and can call 911.
For women, and especially young women, sexual assault can be a constant threat. “The statistics surrounding sexual assault are unacceptable with 1 in 5 women being sexually assaulted at some point in their lifetime,” Abdelaziz noted. “Our mission is to make an impact to help decrease these disheartening statistics by allowing people to protect themselves and the people they love. Our goal is to empower users to feel safe, secure, and connected.” And she’s committed to this cause — so much so that she declined a six-figure job with Google to focus on her potentially life-saving product.
One place where invisaWear devices could have a major impact is college campuses, where sexual assault is a particularly pervasive ongoing problem. “College can be an exciting and scary time all at once,” Abdelaziz said. “You’re living on your own, sometimes far away from friends and family. There are so many things you may be worried about, your safety shouldn’t be one.” She added, “We hope our products give college students and their parents some much-needed peace of mind knowing help is two clicks away.”
Unlike other safety alerts, invisaWear devices don’t immediately give themselves away. “Most safety devices are big ugly panic buttons. Our products are discreet accessories you would never know were an S.O.S device,” said Abdelaziz. “In some situations, you don’t want to alert someone you just signaled for help. No one would suspect a beautiful necklace, bracelet, or even a scrunchie could assist you in getting the help you need.”
InvisaWear is also backed by ADT Security, Abdelaziz noted, which allows them to offer customers other premium safety features. “Our customers can now upgrade to the invisaWear® Premium for a small subscription fee and enjoy things like virtual self-defense classes and 24/7 call/text with an ADT agent,” she said, which is, “great anytime you feel unsafe, like while you’re walking back to your dorm from the library late at night.”
Abdelaziz tells her customers, and everyone, to be proactive about their safety. “Always be aware of your surroundings and be alert, not distracted,” she said. “Carry pepper spray, take self-defense classes, wear your invisaWear and be as prepared as you can be. None of us ever know what the day can bring, but we can try to be prepared.”
This article has been paid for by invisaWear.


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The new frugal
The recession has caused many people to rethink their spending habits. Hardly a day goes by without a report highlighting how consumers are looking for ways to conserve cash. But when the economy improves, will people still hold onto their newfound principles and save money?
Donna Every, a financial planner and author of the book “What Do You Have in Your House?” thinks they will. Many frugal habits are here to stay because consumers will find that they are smart and easy to accomplish, she says.
“People are deciding that it makes economic sense to be more content with the possessions they already have instead of buying something new. And if consumers don’t need to spend as much money, they’ll be able to save more,” she says.
Here are five ways that experts say the recession may cause long-term changes in how we handle our personal finances and save money.
Housing: staying put
Because of the depressed real estate market, properties aren’t selling as fast, and many owners are faced with the likelihood that they’ll have to remain in their homes for longer than originally planned, Every says.
But this isn’t necessarily a bad thing. “In the past, homeowners signed up for risky mortgages and credit lines in order to ‘move up’ and buy a house that was larger than they could afford,” she says. Now that those types of mortgage loans are no longer available, owners will be less likely to have large mortgages that they can’t pay, she says.
Another cost-cutting move for consumers is to wait longer to schedule major work, such as remodeling a kitchen, says Every. Homeowners want to save money and pay for the jobs with cash on hand instead of taking out home equity loans, she says.
People are also saving more by handling minor home-related tasks such as landscaping themselves instead of paying someone to do it, Every says.
Credit cards: Trimming back
As a result of the credit squeeze, consumers are learning to live with lower balances and fewer credit cards, says Ted Jenkin, a Certified Financial Planner and co-CEO of oXYGen Financial Inc., a financial services company based in Alpharetta, Ga.
People also are racking up less credit card debt, and they’re paying down balances and trying to save money for emergencies, he says.
“I’m seeing a lot of people get rid of their multiple store-brand cards and instead, they’re choosing to have just one or two major brand credit cards (such as Visa, MasterCard or American Express)” says Jenkin.
He adds that many store-brand cards tend to have higher interest rates, with some charging an annual percentage rate, or APR, of more than 20 percent. Frugal cardholders who have lower APRs and carry less debt will pay less in interest and save money in the long run, says Jenkin.
Cars: Finding better mechanics
A J.D. Power and Associates report in 2009 states that the average age of a vehicle at trade-in is 73 months, up from 65 months in 2006. The reason? Drivers are deciding that they can save money by keeping their cars longer and taking better care of them instead of upgrading to expensive, newer models, says Jenkin.
However, to properly maintain an existing car, the owner will need to develop a relationship with a good auto mechanic, says Jenkin.
Consumers are becoming savvier about choosing the right pro for the job. Before the recession, if an auto technician recommended a car repair with a price tag of several hundred dollars, the car owner might have approved the service without asking questions or getting a second opinion, says Jenkin.
Now, drivers are becoming more proactive about finding knowledgeable technicians who can fix problems but won’t charge excessive fees, he says. “People are asking their friends and family members for referrals for certified local auto mechanics,” he says.
Health care: Shopping around
Many people have to shop around because they’ve lost their health insurance, or they have high co-pays and deductibles, which means they pay for all or a significant amount of their health care out of pocket, she says.
Every says consumers are taking the time to make phone calls and compare prices for drugs at different pharmacies. Then, they’re able to choose the health care provider that offers the best deal to them, she says.
People who have recently lost their jobs are also more willing to ask about free and reduced-cost drug programs offered by drug manufacturers, says Every. Even with health care, “a little due diligence can save customers money,” she says.
Retirement savings: Managing risk
People are saving much more than they did before the recession, Every says. A lot of that money is placed in short-term reserves, but the economy also has caused people to focus more on their long-term goals. “There’s a lot more interest and thought going into retirement planning,” she says.
According to Every, workers are paying more attention to the asset allocation of their retirement portfolios as they save money, and they are making sure that as they get closer to retirement, their portfolios reflect less risk. As the investor gets older, less money is invested in aggressive stocks, where the value can fluctuate widely, and more is invested in more stable investment vehicles such as bonds and cash.
But there is still work to be done. Many workers are still not paying enough attention to their retirement statements, says Jenkin. His advice is to meet with a qualified financial adviser to help identify long-term goals, such as deciding how much to save for retirement, as well as short-term targets, such as saving for a vacation. Then, Jenkin encourages people to review their statements regularly to see if they’re on track to reach those goals.


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You may recall news about Hyundai planning to set up an assembly plant in Pakistan in partnership with Nishat Mills Limited. Nishat Group’s owner, Mian Mansha, revealed that the South Korean company is planning to introduce electric and hybrid vehicles in Pakistan.
The (South) Korean carmaker wants to first start the assembly of small cars that could compete with the existing (Japanese) assemblers already operating in this market. We are discussing with them… trying to convince them to also bring electric and hybrid cars. I see (that) the future is in electric cars. We could import these cars in the beginning and later also start assembling them locally.
Mian Mansha Investing $120 Million
Mr. Mansha is also going to invest $120 million in this project. The land for the project has already been acquired and it will be in an industrial zone near Faisalabad.
As for the ownership of the new assembly plant, Nishat Group will have a 42% stake followed by Millat Tractors with an 18% stake. A Japanese company will have a 10% stake while the remainder will be put up in the stock market.
Hyundai is one of many companies eyeing entry (or in this case a re-entry) into Pakistan following the 2016 Auto Industry Development Policy which offers incentives to foreign car companies.
Kia and Renault Coming Soon
Another South Korean maker, Kia, has partnered with Lucky Cement which is owned by one of Pakistan’s biggest conglomerates, the Younus Group. They will be setting up a car assembly plant in Karachi.
French car company Renault is also planning to invest $100 million in the Gandhara Nissan plant in Pakistan.
Here to Stay
According to a financial analyst,
Hyundai and Kia have been to Pakistan before they had to wrap up business in the late 2000s after global recession hit the world and Pakistan, triggering economic slowdown. The positive thing about their comeback plans is that they are partnering with reputable local business groups with deep pockets. This shows their resolve to stay in this market for a long time.
Hopefully we will see new car models from Hyundai in the near future.


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After USDA released its quarterly hogs and pigs report, the Pork Checkoff hosted a briefing for reporters about the numbers. Analysts Steve Meyer of Kerns and Associates, Kevin Grier of Kevin Grier Consulting and Analysis, John Nalivka of Sterling Marketing and Kevin Bost of Procurement Strategies. In this edition of Pork Pod, you’ll gain insight […]
The National Pork Board has named Bailee Arnold from North Carolina, Ben Luebbering from Missouri and Ben Wikner from Iowa as the 2019 Pig Farmers of Tomorrow. They were recognized at the 2019 National Pork Industry Forum in Orlando. The award recognizes farm leaders, ages 18-29, who intend to make pig farming their life’s work […]
Steve Meyer, who is with Kerns and Associates, spoke at the recent National Pork Industry Forum. Meyer outlines the price outlook for the swine industry. The low feed costs are one of the positive parts of the story, but Meyer does anticipate some financial stress within the industry. More details are available in this edition […]
National Pork Board CEO Bill Even reviews the recent meeting of the Pork Checkoff board. From domestic marketing to African Swine Fever, Even outlines the issues addressed by the 15-member National Pork Board.
National Pork Board Director of Swine Health Programs Dr. Patrick Webb reviews a recent tabletop exercise designed to help industry stakeholders deal with a foreign animal disease. In this edition of Pork Pod, Webb explains this recent effort and the most current risk of foreign animal disease.
National Pork Industry Forum will be held March 6-8 in Orlando. Pork Board CEO Bill Even is featured in this edition of Pork Pod discussing issues that will be highlighted at Forum. That includes African Swine Fever, enhancements to the We Care initiative and the way the Pork Checkoff adapts to a changing world.
African Swine Fever and Classical Swine Fever are being monitored globally. Swine Health Information Center executive director Dr. Paul Sundberg outlines the threat of these foreign animal diseases and the 2019 SHIC Plan of Action in this Pork Pod update.
More than a half a million pounds of pork comprising of nearly 2.2 million services were distributed in the Hams Across America campaign. National Pork Board public relations director Claire Masker reviews this successful effort in this edition of Pork Pod.
National Pork Board Vice President of Domestic Marketing Jarrod Sutton outlines a new promotion in which McDonald’s is giving away bacon. McDonald’s Bacon Hour kicks off the launch of the Big Mac Bacon and the Quarter Pounder Cheese with Bacon and Cheesy Bacon Fries. Find out more about how McDonald’s is promoting America’s Favorite Food.
The National Pork Board is partnering with YouTube creator Binging with Babish to connect with consumers. Binging with Babish is a social media influencer with 3.6 million subscribers on YouTube. Pork Checkoff social media manager Jenna Bieri offers details on this relationship. That includes a Pork Checkoff-sponsored video being featured at the YouTube Cocktail Party […]


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Pensacola BJ's Wholesale Club announces long-awaited opening date
The wait is just about over for Pensacola shoppers eagerly awaiting the opening of the city's newest membership-based warehouse club and grocery store.
Less than a year after breaking ground for construction in place of the former Sears, BJ's Wholesale Club at 7171 N. Davis Highway in Pensacola has set a grand opening date of March 6.
Nearly 100,000 square feet in size, the Pensacola BJ's will be equipped with a spirits store (selling beer, wine and liquor), a buy-online, pickup-in-club service (BOPIC), a deli, bakery and a same-day delivery option, in addition to a grocery store that stocks upwards of 7,000 items.
Behind the main store on North Davis is a BJ's gas station for club members. The gas station is nearly parallel to the Hampton Inn and Suites across Creighton.
"With BJ's we offer about 25% off grocery store prices every day," said BJ's Director of Communications Kristy Houston on Thursday. "So you already get those savings. And then on top of that we accept manufacturer's coupons, and we're the only wholesale club that does that."
New developments on and around North Davis:
Pensacola's Grizzly Axes lets you smash away your anger with new rage room
Pho Real Vietnamese restaurant opens in Pensacola's Ferry Pass area, replaces Tiger Sushi
Korean barbecue finally makes its way to Pensacola with new 'Let's Meat' restaurant
Club members can pile those manufacturer's coupons on top of the coupons the club offers through the BJ's app and the company's monthly mailers.
You don't have to be a member to shop at BJ's, though it serves you well to sign up if you do choose to shop there — non-members face surcharges on all items purchased.
BJ's, which offers standard-sized grocery items in addition to bulk-size selections, currently offers two tiers of membership to Pensacola shoppers, costing either $55 or $110 per year.
The $55 "BJ's Inner Circle" membership comes with a $35 BJ's gift card plus coupons. The $110 "BJ’s Perks Rewards" tier earns you an automatic 2% back on most BJ's purchases and get you a $70 BJ's gift card, plus coupons.
"On top of that we do have a credit card that you can use to get even more cash back," Houston said.
The limited-time only prices on the two membership tiers are only valid until Feb. 29. Potential members can sign up online through the BJ's website, or by visiting the store's membership center across the street on 7000 North Davis Highway.
The membership center will likely close soon after the club's opening, but for now it is open between 9 a.m. and 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Saturday and noon until 5 p.m. on Sunday.
The clock won’t start ticking on your membership until the Pensacola Club opens — but you can start shopping right away on BJs.com.
Houston added that the grand opening weekend of March 6-8 will be one giant party at Pensacola's newest grocery and bulk store.
"We'll have a lot of product demos, stuff for the family and the kids, and a couple of extra special things happening that weekend and the weekends that follow," she said.
The original BJ's site plan, acquired by the News Journal in March of 2019, indicated that the former Sears Auto Center site will be replaced by a strip of proposed restaurants and retail shops along North Davis Highway, as well as an additional building designed for another proposed restaurant tenant.
As of Thursday, those projects were still firmly in the construction stage.
Jake Newby can be reached at email@example.com or 850-435-8538.


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February 18, 2019 2:11 PM
- Federal spending bill meant to avert another government shutdown expands the business exemption process for China tariffs. Business reliant on one of the lion-share of Chinese goods subjected to U.S. tariffs will soon be able to petition the U.S. Trade Representative for an exemption from the additional duties.
- Several businesses across Georgia are expected to apply for the exemption, as Georgia is the seventh largest import state.
Buried in Section 301 of the explanatory statement to the federal spending bill, which was signed Friday to avert another government shutdown, was a win for Georgia businesses negatively impacted by the trade war with China.
Since the trade war began in July, the Trump administration has placed tariffs on $250 billion of Chinese goods over three rounds of tariffs. Georgia businesses have been able to petition the U.S. Trade Representative for exceptions to the $50 billion of duties announced in early rounds, but the third and most expansive round of tariffs has not included a process for businesses to petition for an exception. The third round imposed import taxes on an additional $200 billion worth of Chinese goods in September 2018.
Establishing an exclusion process is good news for Georgia businesses weathering the trade storms. While the expanded exemption process weakens the weight of the tariffs against China, it also eases tariff-related pressures for Georgia companies. As the seventh largest importer, Georgia benefits more than most states from flexibility in U.S. tariff policy. In 2016, the peach state imported more goods from China than any other country, totaling $18.5 billion.
To be excluded from the tariffs, the business’s petition has to address several factors, including showing severe economic harm to the requester from the additional duties, the rarity of the product outside China, and that the good isn’t strategically important or related to Chinese industrial programs including “Made in China 2025”.
The U.S. Trade Representative has 30
days upon the legislations enactment to establish and expand the exemption


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‘Degradable’ plastic not so environmentally fantastic, study reveals
Plastic bags marked as degradable may not be as environmentally-friendly as consumers think, according to new research.
Oxo-degradable plastics, which include additives to speed break down, may not break down fast enough and could have a negative effect on the environment a government funded study by Loughborough University says.
The report says: “The overall conclusion of this review is that incorporation of additives into petroleum-based plastics that cause those plastics to undergo accelerated degradation does not improve their environmental impact and potentially gives rise to certain negative effects.”
It describes the term ‘biodegradable’ as ‘virtually meaningless’ as the rates of degradation in materials are so different.
It suggests either more detail about the type of biodegradability is put on labels or the word is dropped and replaced with disposal instructions.
The report says incineration is the best option for oxo-degradable plastics with landfill the next best option.
Environment minister, Dan Norris, said: “As these plastics cannot be composted, the term ‘biodegradable’ can cause confusion.
“Incorrect disposal of oxo-degradable plastics has the potential to negatively affect both recycling and composting facilities.
“We hope this research will discourage manufacturers and retailers from claiming that these materials are better for the environment than conventional plastics.”
Supermarket chain the Co-operative has pledged to stop using the plastic.
Co-op environment manager, Iain Ferguson, said: “We have already decided to stop purchasing carrier bags with the oxo-biodegradable additive and with the support of our customers and staff we have reduced carrier bag numbers by 60 per cent in the last three years.”
Products made from compostable plastic are tested and able to bio-degrade within six months.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs says updated guidance for businesses on making accurate claims about how green their products will be out for consultation this year.
The report, Assessing the Environmental Impacts of Oxo-degradable Plastics Across their Life Cycle, was published last Thursday (March 11).
To read it it in full click on this link


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Which Apple-led finance startups have been around for more than a year?
A few months ago, I was chatting with a colleague and we were discussing how Apple was getting out of the business of paying out loans and instead making its own payments, a move that I called the “eagle financing” of the iPhone.
I told him that I had never heard of a company that had taken on this kind of debt.
He didn’t get it.
When I explained the situation to a few other people in the industry, they didn’t understand what was happening.
Apple has made its own loans before, and in its own ways, the company has leveraged its financial backing to help people and businesses get out of debt, whether that be by giving people free money or by paying them in cash.
But Apple’s leverage, and its leverage in this case, is that it doesn’t have to pay back any of its own money.
That gives it an enormous advantage over its competitors and gives it a huge edge when it comes to being able to attract investors, which is why the iPhone’s early success is so important to Apple.
“We are doing everything we can to attract more investors, but it’s not an easy thing to do,” said Peter Hani, an analyst at Morningstar.
“It takes some time to get that right.”
A new trend Apple has been pushing recently is that of leveraging the money that it makes from its phones to pay for research and development and marketing.
Apple started doing this back in 2016 with the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, but the company is now looking to leverage that same money to help build its other products, too.
For example, in 2018, Apple partnered with tech startup SoftBank and Microsoft to start a company called Apple Research, a research and innovation organization focused on machine learning, artificial intelligence, and machine learning applications.
It’s now building a company to work on the development of Siri, Apple’s voice assistant that is a key feature of the upcoming iPhone X. In the same year, Apple announced a new funding round called Apple Ventures, which also backed Apple Research.
And on the same day that Apple released its first iPhones in 2019, Apple Ventures also announced that it was raising $1 billion in an initial public offering.
These moves are helping Apple stay ahead of its competition, which have increasingly turned to a combination of debt and equity to attract funding.
But how much leverage does Apple actually have when it’s trying to attract investment?
The key question for Apple, according to Hani and other analysts, is whether it’s willing to give up its financial advantage and use it to attract new investors.
“They’ve been really successful with leverage, but now they’re also trying to leverage more,” Hani said.
“If you think about it, the iPhone is a company with no debt.
They can easily raise money from the public and they can also take it to private markets.
They don’t have a lot of competition for the same things.
So they can raise money by leveraging that.”
And what leverage does this leverage bring?
Hani noted that Apple could be investing billions of dollars in its new AI and artificial intelligence research, but he thinks the company may still be limited in what it can do with that money.
“Apple is trying to make some of the biggest bets in AI and AI-related technologies.
But they’re trying to do it with money,” Hano said.
If Apple has the resources to invest that money, and the money’s available to them, they might be able to make investments that will help Apple reach more people.
For instance, if Apple were to get more money from investors, it might be willing to spend some of that money to get a better AI or artificial intelligence solution, or it might decide to invest in its other divisions, like the company’s data centers and its mobile products.
But if the company had to give away a lot in order to attract the investors that it needs, then it may not be able get as much money as it needs to invest.
That is, in theory, what could happen when investors look for investments that don’t necessarily involve the company, such as a company like Facebook.
“I think that Apple is not a huge investor in the world of AI and big AI projects,” said Brian Lutz, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School who specializes in finance.
“And they’re not going to be as interested in investing in things like Facebook that have been in trouble for a while.”
But even if Apple doesn’t get as many investors, investors have a few things to look for in Apple’s new finance offerings.
In one case, for instance, a recent Apple Finance article noted that the company could use the money it’s raised to build “the biggest AI research facility in the U.S. in a matter of months.”
Apple has also been working to build a “world class research lab” in China, where it has hired more than 100 Chinese workers.
But that lab, according


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Bangladeshi jute exporters are under strain as India considers imposing a countervailing duty on their shipments.
This comes at a challenging time when they are already grappling with an existing anti-dumping duty (ADD) in the market.
The decision stems from India’s concern that the subsidies granted by Bangladesh are adversely impacting its domestic jute industry.
India has initiated an investigation to explore the implementation of CVD. To address these concerns, the Indian government has reached out to the commerce ministry of Bangladesh, requesting a meeting.
The intention is to discuss these issues and gather insights. However, according to Senior Commerce Secretary Tapan Kanti Ghosh, the Bangladeshi ministry has requested an extension of two months before the meeting takes place.
The IJMA informed the DGTR that Bangladesh’s jute subsidies harm Indian jute industries.
CVDs are import tariffs aiming to offset subsidies granted by the exporting nation.
In contrast, an anti-dumping duty (ADD) is a tariff introduced by a domestic government to safeguard against foreign imports being priced unfairly below market value.
The core concern centres around the subsidies granted by Bangladesh, including a 12% cash incentive on exports of jute goods and a 7% incentive on jute fibers.
Furthermore, there’s a 20% subsidy for exporting carbon and jute particle board made from natural fiber.
The IJMA has specifically pointed out the substantial volume of locally-made jute sacks being exported by Bangladesh, which is impacting the Indian jute industries.
This complaint underscores the view that the subsidies are rendering Bangladeshi jute industries more competitive, ultimately affecting Indian counterparts.
Bangladesh urges India to end ADD by December 31; talks slated in Prime Ministerial meeting.
The matter involves comprehensive research and consultations with various stakeholders, as emphasized by Senior Commerce Secretary Ghosh.
It is evident that the road ahead requires careful consideration and collaboration to address the concerns of both nations regarding jute exports.
This trade concern compounds jute market dynamics, affecting India-Bangladesh trade ties, with both nations’ jute industries and trade landscape at stake.


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A 14-year-old girl, identified as Ada was yesterday injured in a fire that razed a shop attached to the Police Barracks in Surulere, Lagos.
Ada, an Senior Secondary School II pupil of St. Nicholas College, was buying home videos Compact Disk (CD) when the incident occurred.
A trader, Toheeb, said one of the workers was filling an electricity generating set with fuel while the engine was still running and in the process, it exploded.
“The shop number is 5 and they sell audio and video CDs. The owner wasn’t around when the incident occurred. As the electricity generating set exploded, men of the Federal Fire Service, Surulere Division, were contacted and the girl was rushed to a nearby hospital because her legs and arm were affected,” Toheeb said.
An eyewitness, who gave his name as John said he was sleeping on a sofa when people shouted fire.
He said: “My shop is two shops away. I almost urinated on my body when I heard fire. Even the woman who sells phone accessories beside the shop wasn’t aware it was burning. She sat comfortably attending to customers. Ahh! I pity the owner of the shop because he lost a lot of goods to the fire. We haven’t witnessed such incident here before and I pray nothing of such happens again.”
He said the fire fighters had to remove the cars packed close to the shop to avoid explosion.
“The fire fighters tried and I thank God they are close to us. If not, it would have affected so many shops,” he said.


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Epyx rated as ‘excellent’ in new customer satisfaction survey
A new customer satisfaction survey has seen Epyx classified
as ‘excellent’ with a rating 7% up on last year, the company says.
Using the Net Promoter Score (NPS) measurement, designed to
gauge overall customer satisfaction, the company scored +52 compared to +45 in
NPS is used by major organisations across the world and is
intended to accurately measure the loyalty that exists between a company and
its customers on a scale of -100 to +100. Any score above +50 is seen as
Overall, the same research showed that 67% of customers rated
the service provided by Epyx as much better or better than similar
organisations, up 13% on last year, while 92% said they definitely would or
probably would choose the company as a supplier again.
The highest rated aspects of Epyx’s customer service was
“helpful and friendly staff” with 98% of customers rating that area either as
excellent (75%) or good (23%).
Tim Meadows, commercial director, said: “We are very pleased
to have seen a strong improvement over the last year. Customer service is an area
where all companies need to continually raise their standards and it is
satisfying to see evidence that we are achieving this aim.
“However, we are not resting on our laurels and have several
initiatives planned for the next year that are designed to drive customer
satisfaction further still. We see this as very much an ongoing process.
“Many congratulations must go the Epyx team at our Meriden
headquarters who have a very strong customer service ethos. I’d like to thank
them for their efforts.”


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Facebook appears to be continuing to ramp up their promotion of Facebook Credits through the use of promotional giveaways, the latest of which is free Facebook Credits within specific games. While Facebook has tried such promotions in the past, it appears as though a new wave of Facebook Credits promotions began showing up this weekend according to users. Those credits can then be spent on virtual goods within the increasing number of applications which accept credits.
Facebook has recently announced a number of new initiatives aimed at increasing the distribution of Facebook Credits, most significantly through a partnership with MOL which will let the company sell Credits in 7-11s and in cybercafes. Facebook also recently began pushing credits through the popular MyTown application.
[likebox text=”Follow AllFacebook to learn more about how to earn Facebook Credits. Click ‘Like’ above.”]
Facebook’s strategy at this point appears to be pretty straight-forward: 1. increase distribution through partnerships with app developers and other channels, and 2. get more Facebook users to make transactions with Facebook Credits. The cost of the “free Facebook credits” promotions that have reportedly seen an increased volume over the past few days, are being covered by Facebook, which could definitely be substantial.
These forms of promotions mean an increased volume of transactions within applications, in turn making developers happy that they chose to implement Facebook Credits. Below is a screenshot of a free credits promotion as seen through the game Treasure Madness, although we’ve heard reports of placement in other games including FarmVille.