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Following the effects of Hurricane Lisa, the Belize Tourism Board is delighted to share that Belize is open and ready to welcome visitors. Visitors looking to indulge in our many natural and cultural experiences can expect all these offerings and more during their Belize vacation. On 2nd November, Hurricane Lisa made landfall 10 miles south of Belize City as a Category 1 Hurricane. The effects were largely contained to the municipal hub of Belize City and surrounding areas in the Belize District. With an immediate and collaborative recovery strategy from the Government of Belize, these areas are almost entirely back to normal. Major tourist destinations such as Ambergris Caye, Caye Caulker, Hopkins, Placencia, and San Ignacio, were largely unaffected. Visitors can come and dive our Barrier Reef, sunbathe at The Split, or awaken their taste buds with our kaleidoscopic cuisine. Belize still has it all.
As of November 4th, the Philip Goldson International Airport and border points are open. All in-country transportation services are also operational. To date, several of our popular archaeological sites have also re-opened including Nohoch Che’en, Lamanai, Caracol, and Cahal Pech.
In Cruise Tourism, the Belize Tourism Board is currently supporting a clean-up and repair campaign at the Fort Street Tourism Village and surrounding cruise zone which will be re-opened for ships by Wednesday of this week, 9th November, 2022. In addition, at this time the Ministry of Tourism and Diaspora Relations, along with the Belize Tourism Board are carrying out a Rapid Assessment Survey to quantify the overall impact of Hurricane Lisa on Belize’s tourism sector. The Rapid Assessment includes on-site inspections of natural attractions, hotels, restaurants and other tourism-related businesses in the most affected areas, as well as an online survey countrywide.
As we prepare for a month of celebration surrounding our vibrant Garifuna culture and heritage, we welcome all in traditional Belizean fashion — a warm smile, open arms, and ready to share the best of our jewel!
Yours in Tourism,
Belize Tourism Board


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Although Chicago’s River North neighborhood is already known for its plethora of steakhouses, it appears another one will be added to the already crowded line-up sometime next year. According to reports from Curbed and Crain’s Chicago Business, a new restaurant that’s being called Steak 48 will soon be coming to 615 N. Wabash, which will be the small Phoenix-based chain’s third location in the U.S.
Inside, Steak 48 will feature an upscale contemporary ambiance with somewhat of an intimate and residential feel. In addition, the menu will be much like what’s offered at the Phoenix and Houston locations, with some dishes exclusively prepared for the Chicago location.
Steaks will be sourced somewhat locally, coming from both Illinois and Wisconsin, and will be available in both small and regular sizes. The wine list will also be extensive, providing guests with 48 different options by the glass, 50 bottles on the regular list, and 200 bottles on the reserve list. Look for bottles to price anywhere from $60 to $5,000. And although the beverage selection at Steak 48 will primarily focus on wine, craft beer and craft cocktails will also be available as well.
Development of the restaurant is reportedly costing owners $5 million, and the space is already under construction. Look for Steak 48 to make its Chicago debut sometime in the winter of 2017.

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Blizzard rarely, if ever, provides release dates for its games before it's ready to do so, and as such, we still have no indication of when Diablo III will finally be out. It's been a decade-long wait for a Diablo sequel, during which time a very different version of Diablo III was created and then canceled. We might be nearing the end of that very long wait as director Jay Wilson has suggested the game's development is approaching the end.
"We're definitely in the home stretch. We're crunching," Wilson told the New York Times. "This is when the magic happens." It's a vague statement and Wilson wouldn't commit to nailing down even so much as a year, let alone a date. Knowing development is in the home stretch, though, lends credence to the idea that it could still make it out by the end of 2011. Blizzard has said in the past it's avoiding the announcement of a release date so it's not forced to rush development and risk the game's quality.
Blizzard hasn't ruled out the possibility of a new game coming in 2011. It's not a certainty, either; the company has only said that it expects two games out in 2012 if nothing ends up releasing this year. Those two games would presumably be the next chapter in the StarCraft II trilogy and Diablo III, but after waiting 10-plus years for a new Diablo, it's best to not take anything for granted. A new World of Warcraft expansion isn't impossible for 2012 either given that Blizzard has indicated it would like to see expansions packs released more frequently.


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ICAS report on Advertising Standards and Practices on Non-Discrimination is based on a survey carried out among ICAS Self-Regulatory Organisation (SRO) members in December 2019.
The report aims to have a better understanding of standards and practices around discrimination issues in advertising.
The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has published a toolkit which outlines the benefits of advertising self-regulation.
The toolkit focuses on how advertising and marketing self-regulation protects citizens, strengthens consumer trust, builds trust among businesses, and complements existing national legal standards. EASA's Director General Lucas Boudet led the ICC's Working Group while several EASA's members contributed to the development and content of the toolkit.
Branded Content Marketing Association (BCMA) has published its latest podcast episode "How Do You Ensure Your Campaign Is Legal Across Europe?"
In this episode Gordon Glenister, the Global Head of Influencer Marketing at the Branded Content Marketing Association, interviews EASA's Director General Lucas Boudet, discussing advertising standards, artificial intelligence, influencer marketing and problematic Covid ads.


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NaturalNews.com / Lance D Johnson
(Natural News) According to a new survey, most small businesses are not recovering revenues that they once enjoyed in 2019, before the pandemic. The recovery rate for small businesses is a meager 25%. Approximately 75% of small business owners cannot generate the same monthly revenue they enjoyed prior to government lock downs. The most impacted regions of the country include Massachusetts, which has a small business rent delinquency rate of 42%. New York’s small business rent delinquency rate is 41%, Illinois 40% and Michigan 37% — all of which are above the national average.
Will the American dream survive the next two years, as over one third of all small businesses face financial troubles?
Up to 45% of independent restaurants could not pay their July rent
The number of independent restaurants that couldn’t pay their rent jumped by 7% in July. Nearly half of all independent restaurants (45%) cannot afford to pay their rent now, as the American economy continues to collapse.
According to the same study, rent struggles are also prominent for trucking companies and car services. Up to 48% of transportation-related businesses could not afford to pay their rent in July. Nonprofits are also rapidly collapsing, with 44% unable to afford their July rent. Over one third of retail establishments (44%), beauty salons (40%), gyms (38%) and real estate businesses (33%) are also struggling, as rent prices spike across the Nation.
More people are cutting their hair at home and not going to the salon. The percentage of salons that couldn’t make their rent went from 15% in June to 25% in July. These figures are based on a survey that includes reports from 3,553 small business owners.
Small businesses face historic cost increases for labor, fuel, rent
Small businesses are facing several economic pressures, with cost increases for labor and fuel reaching historic highs. Consumer spending is also down, hindering business revenue streams. This is because more individuals are prioritizing basic necessities in their ever-shrinking budgets. Some families are taking out lines of credit just to pay basic expenses.
And yet, the greatest strain for small businesses is coming from the rental market. Property owners are rapidly increasing rental prices to make up for rising insurance costs and property taxes, and to make up for losses incurred during the CDC’s unprecedented eviction moratorium, which allowed renters to skip their rent payments for over a year. Many small landowners were bankrupted during this time and forced to sell their holdings to wealthy investors.
As rental prices continue to increase, landlords and property managers are more likely to take further advantage of the market bubble before it bursts, price gouging consumers and small business owners as much as they can. Property managers and landlords are basically winking at one another, as they collectively raise the market value of their properties to perpetually justify ever increasing rent hikes. This is pushing renters into a tight situation, and there’s very little they can do. Because supply of housing and commercial real estate is historically low, small businesses are stuck with the higher rent, with no way out. To make matters worse, foreign investors from China are buying up property and jacking up the rental prices.
Renters who earnestly paid all their rent on time during the past two years still have to face the economic repercussions that are taking place in the market today. The government’s rent moratorium policies, combined with this administration’s economic policies, have played a major role in today’s ballooning rent increases, and now the rental market (including many small businesses) is collapsing under the weight of these failed government polices.


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Cyberpunk 2077's launch has been one of the most controversial in recent memory, but the game has still sold five million copies since launching on December 10.
CDPR confirmed via a memo that this number included sales across PC and consoles, as well as factoring in returns and refund requests, but stopped short of noting how many refunds have been requested or processed.
Cyberpunk 2077 Has Now Sold 13 Million Copies
It's a staggering number considering the impact of the game's glitches and issues.
Previously, CDPR had confirmed that 8 million copies had been sold through pre-orders and that the game had recouped both its development and marketing costs.
In the weeks since, however, the company's stock price dropped significantly after CD Projekt Red apologised for the state of the console versions of the game before offering refunds.
Industry analyst Daniel Ahmad of Niko Partners noted that the stats have been revealed to increase investor confidence in the company.
“Essentially the disclosure was made to reassure investors that the game still had a record-breaking launch despite the controversy,” Ahmad notes.
“It’s certainly up there with RDR2 and the top Call of Duty titles.”
CDPR has even offered to refund the game themselves.
Even once those refunds are paid, there's the potential for a lawsuit, leaving many to wonder if the Polish studio can ever recover the goodwill that Cyberpunk 2077's release has cost them.


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Multiple reports claim Touch ID is coming to all of Apple's new iPhone and iPads. Apple has their own heart rate headphones, and the Samsung vs. Apple verdict.
Microsoft made a direct comparison between the Surface Pro 3 and the MacBook Air 13", so we're throwing them into the Prizefight Ring to settle the score once and for all. Let's get it on!
A limited-time promotion sees Sony giving away hundreds of dollars worth of movies, music, and apps for the Xperia Z1, Z1S, and Z2.
Apple could sell somewhere between 2.5 million and 3.5 million iPads in the opening weekend of iPad Air sales, says Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster.
Sony also promises that the Android 4.3 update is "right around the corner" for the rest of its Xperia lineup.
Is it possible to be a cheapskate and still buy a MacBook? This model makes a compelling argument.
Carphone Warehouse has kicked off preorders of Nokia's enormous new flagship phone, the Lumia 1520, with a range of Vodafone deals up for grabs.
About 5.7 million people have pledged cash through the crowdfunding giant since it kicked off nearly five years ago.
The Xperia Z1F is a sawed-off version of Sony's waterproof flagship Android smartphone, with a 4.3-inch screen instead of a 5-incher.
The Sony Xperia Z1 gets that shrinking feeling with a new, smaller version officially announced in Japan.


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Boston mom Denise Clark has been buying EpiPens annually for the past 16 years, ever since her son was diagnosed with a serious peanut allergy. Problem is, he won’t carry his EpiPen around with him — because it won’t fit into his pocket.
“It’s large and it’s impractical,” Clark said. “Where’s he going to put it?”
This underscores a simple truth: EpiPens just aren’t that great.
They’re reliable, sure. They’ll buy a patient who’s in the midst of a severe allergic reaction a few crucial minutes to make his way to the hospital.
But they’re also bulky. Their epinephrine solution isn’t particularly shelf-stable, and will easily degrade in temperatures that are too low or too high. They expire after about a year. And they’re not so user-friendly. Though EpiPens come with a practice kit, users in the midst of an allergy attack have mistaken which end’s the pointy end — and stabbed their thumbs instead of their thighs.
The devices have come under fire in the past month for their escalating sticker price: a pack of two EpiPens now lists for $608. Mylan, which owns the EpiPen brand (though the device itself is actually manufactured by Pfizer) notes that it redesigned the product in 2009, added features including the flip-top case, and is “investing substantial amounts in research into additional improvements, such as a formulation with a longer shelf life.”
But critics say Mylan has little incentive to improve EpiPens: “If you’re the monopolist, and you’ve got a product that expires every year, and it’s not super easy to carry around so the safest thing to do is have several tucked away in different places — I don’t see why there would be any pressure to innovate,” said Nicholson Price, an assistant professor at the University of Michigan Law School who studies health care regulation and patent law.
“EpiPen’s flaws seem like features, not a bug,” Price said.
Competitors have tried to make runs at the EpiPen. And more are trying now that there’s such a spotlight on the product. But it’s unclear if anything can displace the familiar auto-injector with the bright orange cap.
1. Mylan has patent protection that lasts through 2025
Epinephrine, as a drug, was first synthesized more than a century ago. It’s been used for various medical applications since then, and was first packaged in an auto-injector (to protect soldiers against chemical warfare) back in the 1970s.
But Mylan has a lock on the particular EpiPen design that millions of patients, parents, and school nurses have come to trust.
The company’s main innovation has been a bright orange cap that covers the needle, but releases automatically when a patient pushes an EpiPen against her thigh, so there’s no need to stop and unscrew the cover in the midst of an allergy attack.
The very fact that the EpiPen has been dominant for so long makes it hard for challengers to come in with a radically different design. (Mylan is now pledging to make a generic version, which it says will be identical except for the label.)
“If you’re a parent, and your child’s suffering from an allergic reaction, you have to give them an injection — and don’t want to read the instructions in that moment,” said Matthew Allen, head of drug delivery for Cambridge Consultants. “You just have to know how to use it.”
Allen’s work at Cambridge Consultants centers around designing other forms of auto-injectors. He said the Food and Drug Administration has rules to standardize the way these life-saving devices work. Those rules keep consumers safe. But they also make it difficult to come up with design that can meet the standards — without infringing on Mylan’s patent.
“It would not be very difficult to create an EpiPen product, in terms of engineering,” Allen said. “It’s not rocket science. It’s purely the patent that stops us.”
2. There’s no room for error when you’re treating anaphylaxis
Chris Stepanian is CEO of Windgap Medical, a Boston startup that’s been working on a next-generation epinephrine auto-injector for the past five years.
Windgap’s device is meant to improve upon the EpiPen: It’s supposed to be smaller, about the size of a Bic lighter, with a much more stable formulation of epinephrine intended to survive in a pants pocket without getting overheated.
But that’s proving easier said than done. Stepanian said he’s at least a few years away from bringing his newfangled auto-injector to market.
Though EpiPen components look pretty basic, Mylan notes that it is made up of 26 parts and must be able to deliver the drug with a sterile needle within seconds. Stepanian agrees that it’s more complicated than it seems at first glance: “It’s really challenging to make a reliable auto-injector — and surprisingly hard to make a combination drug product,” he said.
“It’s a tough thing to nail down the drug supply chain, the plastics and design, and then incorporate that all together, and put the drug inside it — and then regardless of how the user uses it, get the appropriate dose within the acceptable limits of the FDA,” Stepanian added. “At least Mylan and Pfizer have done a good job of making a pretty reliable one.”
One EpiPen alternative that did make it to market: The Auvi-Q, an epinephrine auto-injector shaped like a bulky credit card. But Sanofi recalled the devices last year over concerns that patients weren’t getting the correct dose every time. It returned the commercial and marketing rights to Kaleo, from whom it licensed the auto-injector in 2009. A representative from Kaleo said that it’s “in the process of evaluating when and how” to bring the Auvi-Q back to the market — but Sanofi is no longer involved.
3. It doesn’t take an auto-injector to get epinephrine into the body — but it sure helps
In the wake of the recent outrage at Mylan, Los Angeles-based MannKind Corporation announced it’s developing an inhalable form of epinephrine.
“We could make something very tiny, that you could carry on a keychain — much smaller than an EpiPen or auto-injector by far,” MannKind CEO Matthew Pfeffer said.
MannKind already has an inhalable insulin product, called Afrezza, on the market, which gives diabetics an alternative to injections. But it’s proved exceedingly tough to get patients to switch from a format of insulin intake they’re familiar with to an inhaler. Sales have been far below expectations.
The same problem could stymie an epinephrine inhaler, especially since one of the frightening features of an anaphylactic attack is that the airways constrict — which, in theory anyway, could make it hard for a patient to use the inhaler in a moment of crisis.
4. The regulatory process is slow and expensive
A lot of the challenge lies in the regulatory system, said Mark Baum, CEO of San Diego-based Imprimis — a compound pharmaceutical company that’s working on a cheaper alternative to the EpiPen. It can take a long time, and a lot of money, to get FDA approval for a new product.
“The only time it makes economic sense to take the risk of going through these clinical trials is when you have a situation like this,” Baum said. “But when the market was more normalized — when the EpiPen was only retailing around $100 — competitors questioned whether it was worth taking that risk.”
Public anger at EpiPen is so high right now that Baum figures it is worth taking the risk. Imprimis has had its eyes on the epinephrine auto-injector market for about two years now; it’s finally going to go for it.
“We’re just focused on being that competition,” he said.
5. The public hasn’t spoken (loud enough)
Denise Clark, whose son has that peanut allergy, is a consultant with Boston MedTech Advisors. She helps medical device companies with design, market analysis, and regulatory strategy.
But though she works in the field every day, she says she never even thought much about the flaws of the EpiPen design — or the lack of innovation — until the product started hitting headlines.
“It’s something that’s always been irritating to me, but not to the point that I’ve looked at it closely — until I had to start paying all this money,” Clark said.
Granted, the Federal Trade Commission has been fielding complaints about Mylan’s pricing for years, and complaints about the device’s clunkiness are no secret. But since the EpiPen is generally covered by insurance, many customers have simply gone with it. That means there’s been little pressure from the paying public for innovation.
“I guess Mylan’s motto is, ‘If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,’” Clark said. “They have such a monopoly, so why would they bother improving the EpiPen?”
This story has been updated to include comment from Mylan.
Lesley Solomon, a parent from Brookline, Mass., with a 7-year-old son with severe food allergies, said the EpiPen has saved her son’s life multiple times. “I knew that EpiPen worked for us, so there was no reason to try something else — so there’s the trust factor you get in knowing something works for you. Why try something new?” Solomon said.
I am unable to obtain an epipen, or any alternative. Attempted to get a vial of epinephrine but turned down. I’m a retired RN and have had anaphalaxis from bee bite. These pharmacy companies are evil greedy turds!
I’m really surprised some martyr hasn’t done him in.
There’s been 3 other epinephrine autoinjectors on the market: Auvi-Q (mentioned here, that was withdrawn after 26 unconfirmed reports of “suspected device malfunctions” with “potentially … inaccurate dosage delivery”), Twinject (a single pen with two doses inside it, that was awesome but seems to have left the market due to fierce competition from EpiPen who would reimburse for copays), and Adrenaclick (that is supposedly available but never seems to get mentioned in these articles).
In addition to never wanting any of my (or my insurance’s) money to line the EpiPen’s pockets, the other products were much better. Twinject was smaller than an EpiPen and contained an additional dose so you didn’t need to stuff two huge devices in your pocket. It was awesome and a giant bummer for many people when it was discontinued. Auvi-Q was also considerably smaller and fits nicely in the pocket without stabbing you when you bend over. When they were available, petients’ eyes would dilate and they would scream “I want one!” when I showed them the much handier Auvi-Q package. I don’t know what was going on with Adrenaclick since it didn’t really seem to have any advantage over the Epipen other than price and I’ve never seen one.
Funny thing is that no one died from any of the suspected malfunctions from the newer products, yet at least one person I know of (Tyler Cody Davis of Marietta died August 18th, 2011) from a malfunctioning EpiPen. Yet the EpiPen remains on the market and extorts money from patients and school systems while the others ge withdrawn from the market. (Yes, there were some reports of Twinject malfunctions in Canada – also without fatalities, but the Canadian devices were manufactured by a different company than the ones sold in the US.)
My epipen has just expired. Although my insurance covers it with a very low copay on my part, I have difficulty absorbing the idea that anyone – even a pharmaceutical company- would jack prices up so much on something that can save a life in what really is a simple way (never mind the intricate drawings). I used a much simpler, smaller, and less expensive device years ago, before greed redesigned it. I will be talking to my dr about options. Given several other recent examples of this kind of price jacking on pharmaceuticals, it is clear that this industry needs better regularion, with some attention to ethics. Otherwise, bandaids will be applied, promises will be made and ignored, in time this will fade into the past, and it will happen all over again.
I know Epipen is convenient tool for anaphylaxis. In Turkey 10 X 0.5 mg epinephrin cost is about 1 USD. 1 ml disposible syringe cost is less than 50 cents. This can do the same job!.. At least whom can not afford autrages Epiphen!
Well done and I believe you have touched points of concern.
We already had an inhalable form of epi. It was called Primatene Mist. Prior owning an Epipen I used a Primatene inhaler (3-4 hits) to treat an anaphylactic emergency. Worked great. Well enough so that I could walk to the nearest hospital, where I received epi & 50 mg diphenhydramine injs.
I used Primatene for decades. It worked, as advertised, in 10 seconds. Nothing on the market now, that supposedly replaced it, comes close to working that quickly or that well. A couple of puffs of Primatene and a quick dose of Benadryl worked well (on many occasions) to offset anaphylaxis until I could get to a medical facility (11 to 50 miles distant). All of this is marketing BS and how best to protect profits. Patient health and well-being doesn’t even enter into the equation anymore.
So, it seems that customers, and regulations, contributed to create the situation in the first place. I knew that Mylan was just implementing its God given right to maximize its well deserved profits.
I begin to fill sympathetic for Mylan and Bresch. Go, and squeeze the money out of those suckers!
This lady, Clark, is probably spending most of her time exploiting regulations and marketing tricks, at the expenses of customers, to maximize the profits for the med companies she consults for. Pretty ironic.
Sounds like you’ve invested heavily in Mylan and Bresch.
Comments are closed.


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MIAMI BEACH, Fla. -- Those retailers who chose to brave the nation's air transportation system to attend this year's School, Home & Office Products Association trade show here Nov. 14-16 landed amidst an ever-changing terrain of consolidating vendors.
Acquisitions in the industry are diminishing some brands, expanding others and transferring the ownership of licenses to new product lines.
"Probably the biggest challenge a lot of retailers will have is the Sanford-Paper Mate change," said Gordon Thompson, category manager, general merchandise/seasonal, Associated Food Stores, Salt Lake City. "Sanford is re-branding a lot of their product with the Paper Mate name."
Sanford's parent company, Newell Rubbermaid, Freeport, Ill., completed the acquisition of the Paper Mate and other stationery product brands from The Gillette Co. late last year, but this was the first time many retailers were able to see firsthand how it would direct the acquired businesses going forward.
"I was pretty impressed with how Sanford was handling it," Thompson said.
Officials at Sanford could not be reached.
Another major school-supply vendor at the show whose product lines have been affected by acquisitions was Mead, Dayton, Ohio, which acquired stationery product lines from Pen-Tab Industries, Front Royal, Va., earlier this year. The purchase included the Grad line of notebook products, along with Winnie the Pooh and Loony Tunes licenses. The new properties, which join Garfield, Harry Potter and other Disney characters on Mead's roster of licenses, will be featured on back-to-school merchandise in 2002.
Some retailers, however, said this year's show didn't seem to offer much in the way of innovation.
"There was not much at this show that was brand new," said Butch Amyx, senior category manager, procurement, in the Scottsdale, Ariz., office of Albertson's, Boise, Idaho.
Mike Masten, director of category management, Albertson's, agreed that vendors seemed to be taking a straightforward approach with their products this year.
"When times get tough, a lot of times it's back to basics, and I think that's what you're seeing here," he said.
George Fiscus, vice president, general merchandise, Bashas' Markets, Chandler, Ariz., also agreed with that assessment.
"Many companies did reflect a back-to-basics approach in their presentations," he said. "There were many effective redesigns of current lines and design improvements on last year's products, but seemingly fewer 'new' innovations on the floor."
The retailers all were in agreement about the decline of the gel-pen segment, which had been growing at a triple-digit rate in previous years. Masten described the products as peaking quickly, then declining or leveling off.
"The excitement's gone from that category," said Thompson of Associated Food Stores. "Everybody had them last year, but this year, they weren't there."
He said he expected that the market share of the gel pens in his company's stores would probably stay about the same, and he expected the items to replace many of the liquid roller pens in retailers' assortments.
Licensed back-to-school products, although highly visible throughout the show floor, continued to be a problem area for retailers.
Amyx of Albertson's said it seemed like vendors were having difficulty coming up with viable licensed products this year.
Fiscus of Bashas' pointed out that the success of licensed school products can be difficult to predict.
"We have struggled with licensed stationery/back-to-school merchandise in the past," he said. "Strong licenses that translate very well into sales in other GM categories have not performed well during back to school. Back to school is a limited selling window and the challenge of capitalizing on a 'hot' property in that time frame is very difficult."
He suggested that some licenses, such as Disney and M&M, remain successful perhaps because they have been refreshed to stay current with consumers. He said sales of Harry Potter licensed products have picked up recently -- the movie debuted Nov. 16 -- but they were slow movers this summer.
Although attendance figures were not yet available as of last week, several retailers and vendors at the show remarked that turnout appeared light.
"I think the events of the last month and a half probably had a big impact," said Thompson, who pointed out that the crash of the American Airlines flight in New York just two days before the show might also have contributed to a decline in attendance.
Many larger vendors said they had a full slate of retailer appointments throughout the show, although some remarked that walk-in traffic was less than usual.


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With all due respect to Infiniti, which is invested in this unfortunate system and has been working hard to revise it, the comparison doesn't make a lot of sense.
Infiniti is now offering the QX80 in special Signature Edition spec, boasting extra standard equipment and unique design features.
The new Infiniti QX80 Signature Edition comes packed with features like an exclusive Saddle Tan leather interior, chrome rearview mirror caps and a set of dark-finish 22-inch forged alloys, wrapped in 275/50 all-season tires.
The “next-generation” 2018 Infiniti QX80 will keep its current body-on-frame architecture and 5.6-litre V8 petrol engine, according to the company’s president.
Speaking with the US’s Motor Trend, Roland Krueger, Nissan’s senior vice president and the president of Infiniti Motor Company, said the current car’s underpinnings – which date back to 2011 – will be carried over along with the 298kW/560Nm V8 petrol engine.
Though overshadowed by the literally larger QX80 Monograph SUV concept, Infiniti's revised 2018 Q50 still made an appearance at the stand in New York. It joins a long list of cars including the Acura TLX, Hyundai Sonata, Mitsubishi Outlander Sport, VW Golf, and Toyota Sienna and Yaris that all went under the knife for the show. The Infiniti Q50's update may be one of the most mild, though, as it only consisted of cosmetic changes.
Up front, the grille has been enlarged and given more prominent swoops at each corner. On the S version, sharp creases appear on either side of the primary grille and descend down to the lower, center grille. The outboard grilles of the front bumper have changed shape, too, and they now feature contrasting black plastic trim. The standard Q50 has a new bumper, as well, and though less aggressive than the S version, it still looks sporty with a more pronounced chin spoiler.
We've been getting a slow rollout of news about the new Infiniti QX80 Monograph mega-SUV for the past week or two, and Infiniti provided more details Tuesday about its concept car at the New York Auto Show, saying the mega-SUV is a combination of "luxury with a commanding presence" and "the ultimate expression of futuristic luxury SUV design."
Infiniti says the car embodies, not just luxury, but "upscale luxury." The company says the concept's design language incorporates a mix of geometric and organic shapes, including character lines and aluminum trim that were actually intended to make the big SUV appear even bigger than it actually is, which is more than five meters long, so perhaps 17 feet, more than 6 feed wide and about 6 feet tall. The most striking features are the headlamps, which become long, slender lines that wrap around the front corners, then taper into light bars that end at the doors in sculptured rear-view cameras in lieu of side mirrors. The car also has large, functional fender vents to divert air to the engine, and despite all that luxury it is still SUV enough to have an underbody cover protecting the underside - and improving aerodynamics. Likewise, an aerofoil between the tailpipes is said to improve airflow in the SUV's wake.


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Earth Day reminds us that we all have a role to play in conserving and protecting the environment.
As CEO of the Western Dairy Association — an organization that promotes milk products for dairy farmers in Colorado, Wyoming and Montana — I’m proud to say conservation is a belief shared and practiced daily by the dairy farm families whom I represent.
Sometimes that message gets lost or misrepresented (“Environmentalists don’t eat meat,” Rant & Rave, April 20). So in honor of those who work the land daily, I want to share four Earth Day facts about dairy farmers’ right here in Colorado.
First, Colorado’s dairy farmers are focused on the environment. It’s an occupational “must” because the success and profitability of a dairy farm depends upon healthy land, water and air. This state’s 150 dairy farms are some of the most progressive in the nation and conservation is taken seriously.
The region’s dairy farmers constantly invest in methods that preserve natural resources and protect their communities. Some of those methods include managing soil nutrients, conserving water, using crop practices that keep carbon locked in the soil, reducing fuel use, and minimizing milk transportation costs. These practices are good for the environment, create efficiencies and reduce costs. Over the past 60 years, improvements like these have helped to reduce carbon emissions, nationwide, by 63 percent (Cornell University) — that’s the same as removing 32 million cars from the road.
Second, the dairy industry is working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. According to the Applied Sustainability Center at the University of Arkansas, the fluid milk chain — from the grass the cow eats to the milk in your glass — contributes less than 2 percent of total U.S. gas emissions. Globally, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations reports that milk production, processing and transportation, in total, contributes 2.7 percent.
Regardless of those low percentages, the dairy industry (farmers and companies) is absolutely committed to getting consumers the nutritious dairy products they want, in a way that is economically viable, environmentally sound, and socially responsible. In 2008, the U.S. dairy industry launched a sustainability effort that plans to reduce the overall (2 percent) carbon footprint by 25 percent by 2020. That’s the same as taking another 1.25 million cars off the road — every year.
Third, Colorado dairy farmers make daily contributions to the effort. For years, they have worked with Colorado State’s Livestock and Animal Science Department to improve animal feeding and genetics that help to reduce carbon and nitrogen emissions from animals.
Dairy marketing cooperatives and processors also play a huge role. Colorado dairy farmers, who market their milk through Dairy Farmers of America, Inc. (DFA), have endorsed a Gold Standard that benchmarks best farming practices with a priority on environmental stewardship. They have, also, piloted two programs in this region that are standard-bearers in fuel conservation and milk hauling efficiencies.
Finally, Colorado dairy farmers contribute to the health and wellbeing of citizens. Milk from Colorado’s dairy farms provides consumers with many food options including low-fat and fat-free products that provide essential nutrients. Dairy farm families contribute an estimated $1 billion to the state’s economy and produce over 2.9 billion pounds of milk processed by the nation’s leading food companies — right here in Colorado.
It’s Earth Day every day on Colorado’s dairy farms.
CEO, Western Dairy Association


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One of the smart things RadioShack did in its heyday was to find the best merchants in rural America. Whether they were running the local pharmacy or the hardware store, it didn’t matter. RadioShack harnessed that small-town expertise and persuaded them to also become RadioShack dealers.
From the 1980s into the mid-2000s, RadioShack wined and dined mom-and-pop merchants on Caribbean cruises and weeklong trips to Europe and Australia. These rural stores weren’t franchisees but independent dealers who bought products from RadioShack and rewarded the Fort Worth-based company with a steady stream of income.
The stores introduced technology to rural America, becoming the first to sell calculators, VCRs, cordless phones and computers in towns with populations of less than 20,000.
The company is struggling now and working on a restructuring, but RadioShack has done a lot of things right in its rich 94-year history. It was one of the first retailers to add stores-within-a-store. The RadioShack dealer stores looked just like a corporate store but often shared a roof with hardware, sporting goods or appliance stores also run by successful local business owners.
About 1,500 of RadioShack dealer stores have closed over the last 10 years in places such as Commerce, Emory and Mineola. RadioShack says there are fewer than 900 left.
Mirroring the corporate experience, some dealer stores continue to do well, but they have the same issues as the 4,000 company-owned stores. As competition has accelerated, many dealer stores closed as owners retired and found no buyers for the brand.
“One side of our building was RadioShack and the other side was SportShack,” said Yvonne Cain of Quitman. Cain and her husband, Bob, closed their RadioShack in 2013. “For 30 years, we bought from RadioShack every month. Last 10 years we didn’t buy computers anymore, but the TRS-80 was the first computer for many of our customers.”
'A different world'
Bill Stavenhagen has operated his RadioShack dealer store for 28 years in Clarendon, a town of 2,000 people about an hour east of Amarillo. His Stavenhagen Video & RadioShack was listed as “The Business Spotlight of the Month” last week on the Clarendon Chamber of Commerce website.
Over the years, Stavenhagen has added office supplies and women’s apparel to his shop.
“You have to do that in a small town, but really none of it’s doing good. I’m thinking of shutting it down,” he said. About 70 percent of his store is still stocked with products from RadioShack. “People used to repair things and needed parts from RadioShack. It’s a different world now.”
In the 1990s, he would order $250,000 to $300,000 worth of merchandise from RadioShack a year. It’s much less than that now.
“I love the brand. I have no complaints with RadioShack, but I’m 70 years old and I’ll be deciding in February what I’m going to do,” Stavenhagen said.
Scot Byrd’s family had two RadioShack dealer stores, one in Plaquemine, La., and another in New Roads, La. A few years ago, each store employed three people in addition to the owners. Now Byrd, 31, and his mother run the Plaquemine store without any employees. The New Roads store closed in December after 14 years in business.
“For us, the problem has been wireless. Over 50 percent of our business used to be wireless,” Byrd said. “We stopped getting the same offers from AT&T that are advertised out there. By the time you explain over and over to customers that we don’t have the same deal, they just don’t come back.”
Byrd says RadioShack didn’t negotiate well enough, especially as the Apple iPhone gained market share. “They dropped the ball so many times, and then they had no more leverage,” he said.
He’s making up lost sales by repairing phones, installing surveillance systems and adding other services, Byrd said. He still buys about 80 percent of the products he stocks from RadioShack.
In the 1990s and early 2000s, RadioShack accelerated the dealer network, which dates to the 1980s.
RadioShack pre-selected merchandise to sell to dealer stores, usually its best-sellers from the 4,000 items in a corporate store. With one of its dealers, it developed one of the retail industry’s earliest automatic replenishment systems, which made it easy for small-town stores to keep shelves stocked.
In the late 1990s, Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos visited RadioShack in Fort Worth to learn how it distributed tens of thousands of items in its catalog as he prepared to stock that many book titles.
“We ran more than 2,000 stores with 150 people,” said Len Clegg, who was senior vice president over the dealer store network for Fort Worth-based RadioShack until he retired in 2004. “We didn’t have to pay the rent or pay the employees.”
The rural dealer stores were a key part of RadioShack’s claim 10 years ago that 94 percent of America lived within 5 miles of a RadioShack.
Former RadioShack CEO Len Roberts said the dealer network allowed the company to extend the RadioShack brand without a big investment in stores.
“We loved working with these entrepreneurs. A lot of them were the mayors, and we used to joke that RadioShack was running small-town America,” said Roberts, who retired from RadioShack in 2005.
At one point, there were 2,500 dealer stores, and their total purchases from RadioShack represented well over 10 percent of RadioShack’s annual revenue. RadioShack’s sales peaked at $5 billion in 2004. “Any percent of $5 billion is a lot of money,” Clegg said.
RadioShack held annual dealer summits where the independent store operators would find out what was coming next year and begin placing orders for the new gadgets and remote-controlled toys. The last one RadioShack held was in 2013 at the Fort Worth Convention Center. Last year’s was a webcast.
Cain said she made lifelong friendships with other dealers, and it was a good life for a small-town family.
The Cains couldn’t sell the RadioShack they closed in Quitman in 2013. They sold the building, which is now the Forever Young Activity Center and where she plays bingo twice a week.
They also sold some fixtures to Ron Hughes, who has a store 10 miles away in Mineola.
He had RadioShack under the same roof as his appliance store, Hughes Appliance and Air Conditioning. “RadioShack brings great traffic into an appliance store in a small town,” Hughes said.
But when Bealls department store wanted to take in the square footage of Hughes’ stores, he decided to move the appliance store and not reopen the RadioShack.
The RadioShack business had become too complex and was changing too fast, Hughes said. “We had a great manager our last year, and it was one of our best years. He worked hard at it.”
Hughes closed the RadioShack last summer.
“The straw that broke this camel’s back: A customer came in for a satellite signal finder. I went over to where we always kept them, and nothing was there. I went to the computer and it had been converted to an online-only product.”
But at that point, he said, he wasn’t just competing with Amazon.com but also with RadioShack’s online store. “That’s fine for RadioShack, but not if you’re running one of their storefronts,” he said.
“If we were doing great and I saw a brighter future, we’d still have the RadioShack store,” Hughes said. “But we’re just not certain of RadioShack’s future.”
Follow Maria Halkias on Twitter at @MariaHalkias.


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Pakistan is one of the top 10 under-the-radar travel destinations for 2020, according to recent article published by Forbes.
Despite tipping Pakistan off as one of the next big destinations since a few years, the recent visit by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge has made Pakistan one of the most-anticipated destinations to watch out for, according the Wild Frontiers.
"Pakistan is perhaps the ultimate adventure travel destination," said Wild Frontier founder Jonny Bealby.
"It offers ancient Indus civilisations stretching back 4,000 years, and exciting cities like Lahore with its forts, mosques and palaces. But most of all, it offers incredible scenery, particularly in the north where the three greatest mountain ranges collide.
"Pakistan is great for trekking, mountain biking, rafting or just cultural tourism. The infrastructure has also improved, with resurfaced roads and new tunnels cutting down travel time, new luxury hotels are opening up in the region," he added.
Other places on the list include Saudi Arabia, Chad, Armenia, Tunisia, Algeria, and Eritrea among others.
Last year, travel magazine Conde Nast named Pakistan as its number one travel destination for 2020. The same year, the British Backpacker Society had also ranked the country as the number one travel destination in the world.
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- Economy News
Latest stories, headlines and reports about the Peruvian Economy.
According to the Global Wealth Report 2017 compiled by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) 31 families in Peru own US$ 12.296 billion (12,296,000,000) which is about 13% of the country’s total financial wealth.
Over the past decade poverty could be reduced significantly in Peru. According to a recent press release from INEI, Peru’s National Institute of Statistic, 20.7% of Peruvians were considered poor in 2016; that are about 6.5 million people living from S/ 328 or less (about US$ 100) per month.
Bodegas? Over 400,000 wineries in Peru? No! While there is a not insignificant wine industry in the country, in Peru the term bodega refers to small, mostly family-run corner shops you find in every neighborhood across the country.
After attending the APEC’s (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting, held last weekend in Hanoi, Vietnam, Peruvian Foreign Trade and Tourism Minister Eduardo Ferreyros headed to Australia to continue working on eliminating trade barriers and facilitating interna...
Years of an unstable economy, unpredictable financial policies and high- and hyper-inflation rates in the 20th century taught Peruvians not to trust their currency. Those who had the means substituted their savings in local currency for Dollar holdings.
While for centuries Peruvian exports were mainly based on the mining and fishmeal industry, over the past 20 years Peru’s agricultural products increasingly gained popularity around the globe.


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NIOR SUMMER FEAST 2022
Summer is a time to rejoice. Playing basketball on the beach or surfing in the sea while dressed up in fancy dresses with flowers, caps, and sunglasses, is fun. Nior had thrown a beach party as part of the summer celebration. Let us illuminate the event organized by the South Asian hub of Remark LLC, USA, Remark HB LTD in Dhaka, focusing on NIOR’s voyage as a prominent American brand in the field of Color Cosmetics and Skincare.
Nior Summer feast- 2022 was hosted in the R Banquet Hall of the Renaissance Dhaka Gulshan Hotel in Bangladesh with a spectacular ramp show in the eye-catching auditorium. This event was intended to encourage distributors to promote this authentic American brand throughout the country. At the glamorous show, celebrities, distributors, influencers, and other high-profile personnel from related fields were present. The presence of US Embassy personnel throughout the event made it even more impactful.
Ashraful Ambia, Managing Director of Remark, initiated the event with a welcome speech. He stated that “Nior is a prominent player in the cosmetics sector in several countries worldwide. He displayed his confidence that Nior would alleviate in Bangladesh if everyone worked together, especially the recognized distributors. He also added that Nior is one of the world’s leading skincare brands. This brand is playing an important role in the skincare industry in different parts of the world. Remark has organized the event to further spread its products in the Bangladeshi market. With everyone’s cooperation and blessing, Nior will spread quickly in Bangladesh. Due to the increase in global demand for its products, Nior has taken the initiative to set up a factory in Bangladesh to meet domestic and foreign needs. With the highest technology possible, this will be the largest setup in South Asia.”
Mr. Syed Ershad Ahmed, President of the American Chamber of Commerce, graced the event as the chief guest. He applauded Remark’s strong marketing strategy for promoting Nior. He said, “Nior is a popular and well-known color cosmetics brand. This popularity has been possible due to the superior quality of Nior cosmetics combined with regular research and cutting-edge technology. Every year during US trade shows, we see Nior’s stalls overflowing with crowd.”
Renowned make-up artist Shahida Ahsan showcased the color cosmetics collection of Nior and expressed her appreciation for this brand as a make-up trainer. Alongside her was prominent dermatologist, Dr. Sharmina Huq, who introduced Nior’s premium skincare line and emphasized the importance of product safety for healthy and beautiful skin. Furthermore, she highlighted the product’s excellence and affirmed the brand’s safety.
For over 25 years, this reputed cosmetics brand has been tied to showbiz stars in Bangladesh. Remark also welcomed well-known celebrities, Ferdous, Opu Biswas, Emon, and Nirob, to the show. Each celebrity appreciated Nior’s journey down the generations while wishing the brand’s prosperity and growth.
Mizanur Rahman, Remark’s President of Marketing, was also present at this event. He thanked everyone and said, “We are also part of the global popularity of Nior. Our partnership is getting stronger. Although Nior is a premium product, we will strive to make it affordable and budget-friendly for the masses. In addition to Nior’s global prominence, Remark is devoted to bringing it to the nooks and crannies of the country.” The presence of US Embassy officials throughout the program made the program more interesting. They are very optimistic about the popularity of Nior in Bangladesh, like in many other countries around the world. The event was organized by Remark to further spread its products in the Bangladeshi market. The event ended with a spectacular fashion show and dinner. Fashion enthusiasts also lauded the event on social media to congratulate Nior for its spectacular journey. The event included a lively summer fashion show and dinner for distinguished guests.


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Survival horror game The Callisto Protocol, which will be released on consoles and PC in 2022, is being created by a team of some 25 developers who used to be involved in the Dead Space games. So says Glen Schofield, the creator of Dead Space, who is leading the project.
The Callisto Protocol is made by Striking Distance, it is the first game from the new studio where Glen Schofield is in charge. The studio is part of PUBG Corp. and the game will also be linked to the PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds universe, but how that will turn out exactly is not yet known. Last year, the founding of the studio was announced and it was already reported that Schofield is working on a ‘narrative PUBG game’.
In an interview with Eurogamer, Schofield says the horror game revolves around an idea of his own and then with PUBG Corp. has been examined how a storyline of theirs can be applied there. While there is a link to the battleroyal game in terms of lore, gameplay is not. It is a single-player game in the survival horror genre and uses a third-person perspective.
The Callisto Protocol is a scifigame set on a moon of Jupiter in the year 2320. Players must escape the Black Iron Prison and discover “terrifying secrets” in the process. The game contains horror, action and story. According to Schofield, the game should set a new standard in the genre and the game will be reminiscent of the previous Dead Space games, which he made with Visceral Games for publisher EA. A team of some 25 developers who were involved in the creation of Dead Space are now working at Striking Distance on the new game.
The Callisto Protocol was announced earlier this month at the Game Awards. Only a cinematic trailer was shown. The game is still in its early stages of development. The game is due out sometime in 2022 and will be released for the Xbox Series S and X, PlayStation 5 and PC.


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A Huawei logo is seen on a cell phone screen in their store at Vina del Mar, Chile July 18, 2019. REUTERS/Rodrigo Garrido HONG KONG (Reuters Breakingviews) – Huawei is not so easy for Western countries to rip out. The Chinese telecommunications-equipment giant founded by Ren Zhengfei owns a huge trove of next-generation wireless patents. As a global standard for 5G emerges, Huawei technology may become essential to carriers. For years, the Shenzhen-based company has dominated the mobile infrastructure market, outselling rivals Nokia and Ericsson by offering cheaper alternatives. But U.S. concerns that Huawei equipment could be used by Beijing for espionage has gained traction: officials in the UK and France are purging their own networks of Chinese-made kit. A similar reaction elsewhere will seriously dent a business that generated nearly $43 billion in revenue for Huawei last year, roughly a third of the company’s total. Replacing antennas and mast towers is one thing, though. Even if the likes of Britain’s Vodafone and BT remove all existing Huawei equipment – a move the UK government conservatively estimates will cost 2 billion pounds – global carriers will still be dependent on technology from Huawei to roll out next generation networks. Research… Read full this story
- As US, China fight trade war, Greece opens up to Huawei's 5G ambitions
- US ban on Huawei a ‘cynically timed’ blow in escalating trade war, says firm
- US-China trade skirmishes obscure the start of tech cold war
- Huawei's problems deepen as western suspicions mount
- New US-Poland 5G pact: Will it help loosen Huawei's grip on Europe?
- The Guardian view on Huawei: the bigger story
- Huawei and Sunrise co-build 5G research centre in Switzerland
- Huawei Sales Director Arrested in Poland on Spying Charges
- Sieren's China: A war of diplomacy on the Korean peninsula
- After Brexit, will 5G survive the age of the European empire?
Breakingviews - China's Huawei holds a 5G trump card have 296 words, post on www.reuters.com at July 27, 2020. This is cached page on Movie Breaking News. If you want remove this page, please contact us.


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Glasdon releases the Nexus Evolution recycling bin
Lancashire-based environmental product producer Glasdon UK Limited has released its new Nexus evolution recycling unit.
The Nexus Evolution is entirely customisable and is available in a multitude of colours, sizes and configurations, as well as more than 50 apertures able to collect a wide variety of waste, including cups and confidential waste.
Graphics are easily applied onto either of the Nexus Evolution’s large sides for added personalisation. Further flexibility is added with an extensive list of optional extra features, from wheels and lock kits to sign kits and aperture connector kits.
Commenting on the launch of the product, Neil Gilkes, Sales Manager for Glasdon UK Limited, said: “We’re very excited about the launch of Nexus Evolution. It’s set to become one of the most versatile recycling solutions on the market. With so many flexible options, our customers can choose their own configuration, colours and graphics to best fit their needs.
“What we have found is that our customers recycling needs are evolving and this product allows our customers to adapt to those needs.”
You can find out more about the Nexus Evolution on the Glasdon website.


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A container carrying goods imported by Nepali traders stopped at Tatopani.
SINDHUPALCHOWK: China has stopped more than 1000 cargo containers with goods imported by Nepali traders for Dashain and Tihar festivals in Khasa, a bordering town of China.
Nepali traders have said that Chinese authorities did not allow the containers to enter Nepal.
The Chinese authorities have been allowing a limited number of containers to enter Nepal.
According to Ashok Kumar Shrestha, President of the Nepal Himalayan Cross-Border Chamber of Commerce and Industry, this has incurred a hefty loss to Nepali traders.
Items such as clothes, apples, electrical items, and other goods meant for Dashain and Tihar festivals have been stuck at Khasa.
Narad Gautam, Chief of the Tatopani Dry Port Customs Office, said that the Chinese side has allowed limited containers to enter Nepal on a daily basis.
The Chinese side has been stopping containers to enter Nepal from the Tatopani checkpoint that has remained closed after the 2015 earthquake.
Economic expert Achyut Wagle said besides border encroachment by China, Nepal has been incurring trade deficit in the ratio of 1:30 with China due to its undeclared blockade.
“The question is: what would have happened in Nepal if India, too, imposed an undeclared blockade?” he asked, referring to what he said was competition to show oneself more nationalist by being vocal about the anti-Indian narratives in Nepal.
According to him, as many as 2400 containers carrying essentials goods to Nepal from China are stuck on the other side of the border suggesting redefining Nepal’s relations with China on the basis of uniformity, not political bias.
Former Ambassador Vijay Kant Karna, too, raised concern over China’s high-handedness and undeclared blockade in major border points, including Tatopani and Rasuwa, especially during festive season.


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Selfridges is revamping its menswear line-up for autumn 11 with concessions from luxury labels Tom Ford and Dior Homme which will also feature made-to-measure services, and a host of new brands.
Dior Homme’s made-to-measure service will be the first outside its own stores. Selfridges director of menswear Anita Barr said made-to-measure was “incredibly important” today with men more fashion conscious than ever.
She added: “We offer our customer an exciting and memorable retail experience, and in an ever-growing competitive market it is important to stay ahead and ensure our customer gets exactly the product they want.”
The Dior Homme concession will launch in Selfridges on London Oxford Street later this month and will also go into the Birmingham and Manchester branches in due course.
A Tom Ford concession will also open in Oxford Street in October, also with a made-to-measure service. It will also stock products including suiting, footwear and luggage. There are no plans to open Tom Ford concessions in any other stores.
Brands joining the menswear offer for autumn 11 include Italian tailoring label Brioni, Swedish denim brand Cheap Monday and streetwear label Tiger of Sweden.
Barr said: “It is all part of the first floor masterplan which sees us expanding our designer and luxury offering and updating our [streetwear] areas across all stores.”
The retailer will increase its luxury menswear offer at its Manchester Exchange Square store and is introducing super brands such as Dries Van Noten, Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen.


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Fahim Siddiqui has been named chief information officer of The Home Depot.
The Home Depot has made some executive changes.
The home improvement retailer named Matt Carey to the newly created role of executive VP of customer experience, effective immediately. Carey joined the Home Depot in 2008 as executive VP, CIO.
Succeeding Carey as CIO is Fahim Siddiqui, who joined the Home Depot in 2018 as senior VP of information technology.
In the newly created position of executive VP of customer experience, Carey will be responsible for leading the vision, design, and development of new and innovative solutions that drive a seamless experience for Home Depot customers – in stores, online, or on their mobile devices.
Before joining Home Depot, Carey served as senior VP and chief technology officer at eBay, where he was responsible for product development, site operations, cybersecurity, platform engineering, data warehousing and catalog operations for eBay Marketplaces. Prior to joining eBay in 2006, he spent more than 20 years with Walmart, where he was senior VP and CTO.
“In his 14 years with The Home Depot, Matt has spearheaded an enormous technology transformation across our stores, supply chain, merchandising and digital presence," said Ted Decker, CEO and president of The Home Depot. "Now more than ever, our customers expect to shop with us how, when, and where they want – and there's little tolerance for friction in the shopping experience. Matt has a proven track record driving customer-first technology innovation.”
As CIO, Siddiqui will be responsible for all aspects of the company's technology strategy, infrastructure and software development for the Home Depot’s stores, supply chain facilities, store support centers and online systems.
In his prior role as senior VP of information technology, Siddiqui focused on the development of applications and solutions for online, marketing, merchandising, supply chain, data and analytics function. He led the buildout of several transformational capabilities, including a central platform of common services to deliver agility, consistency and efficiency across the customer experience.
Prior to The Home Depot, he spent more than three decades leading software development in the retail, energy and telecom sectors, including Staples, MCI, Time Warner Telecom and Sprint.
"Fahim is a tremendous leader and a brilliant technologist who understands the power of technology to unlock a better experience for our customers and associates, and I look forward to working with him in this next phase of growth for The Home Depot," Decker added.
At the end of fiscal year 2021, Home Depot operated a total of 2,317 retail stores in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, 10 Canadian provinces and Mexico. The company employs approximately 500,000 associates.


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OLED TVs provide the best picture quality we've ever tested, and until now the only TV brand selling them in the US was LG. Now Sony enters the game.
The battle for picture quality at a budget price has often been won by Vizio, but the local dimming-clad 2017 TV lineup from Chinese brand Hisense could mount a spirited fight.
The 100H10D achieves a huge screen size thanks to a short-throw laser projection system with 4K resolution, complete with a full surround system.
The Chinese maker's new P series has all stuff we look for in the best LCD TVs, including Dolby Vision HDR to full-array local dimming, for a midrange price.
The company's new C series has the largest Roku TV yet, and ups the ante with better features and style. Meanwhile the S series offers 18 different mainstream options.
While LG's OLED TVs produce the best picture quality we've ever tested, its LCD TVs have been among the worst. Maybe the 2017 improvements will help.
The LG W7 series TV strips television's form to the bare minimum but still delivers the world-beating picture quality of OLED.
OLED TVs from LG deliver the best image quality we've ever tested, and in 2017 that picture gets even better. Now we just have to wait for pricing.
The two titans of TVs face off once again, with Samsung's contender powered by improved quantum dot technology and aided by hosts of new features.
Despite the inconvenience of its tablet-based menus and apps, the Vizio M series' excellent image quality and value make it a top choice for the price.
An attractive design and cutting-edge compatibility add the LG's UH8500's appeal on paper, but in person its image can't beat competitors.
Vizio has announced pricing and availability of its mainstream E series for 2016, delivering a range of sizes and pricing, as well as a Smart TV system that depends on your phone, just like Google's Chromecast.
No TV delivers the same level of picture quality for the price of the LG 55EG9100.
The Sharp Aquos LC-80XU930X is a 4K Android-powered TV that uses a technology that upscales its resolution to 8K.
Sharp's newest flagship TVs deliver all of the cutting-edge features found on competitors' flagships, commanding a high price and promising better picture quality than ever.
4K TVs are getting cheaper than ever, and Chinese brand Hisense is among the least expensive. Its newest models start at $400 for 43 inches.
Chinese TV maker Hisense is looking to improve the perception of its TVs in the US with its latest ULED TV, combining all the most cutting-edge extras in a high-end model.
The Chinese manufacturer, best known in the US for its cut-rate TVs, will introduce a flagship-level TV with all the fixins in 2016, including Dolby Vision, quantum dots and a curved screen.


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The efforts to ensure customers' satisfaction have left a significant impact on the streets of New York and many urban regions around the world, such as congestion and growing pollution.
An Amazon order starts with a tap of a finger, and two days later, or even in a matter of hours, the package arrives. It seems simple enough.
But to deliver Amazon orders and countless others from businesses that sell over the internet, the very fabric of major urban areas around the world is being transformed. And New York City, where more than 1.5 million packages are delivered daily, shows the impact that this push for convenience is having on gridlock, roadway safety and pollution, the New York Times reported.
Delivery trucks operated by UPS and FedEx double-park on streets and block bus and bike lanes. They racked up more than 471,000 parking violations last year, a 34 percent increase from 2013.
The main entryway for packages into New York City, leading to the George Washington Bridge from New Jersey, has become the most congested interchange in the country. Trucks heading toward the bridge travel at 23 miles per hour, down from 30 miles per hour, five years ago.
While the rise of ride-hailing services like Uber has unquestionably caused more traffic, the proliferation of trucks has worsened the problem. As a result, cars in the busiest parts of Manhattan now move just above a jogger's pace, about 7 miles per hour, roughly 23 percent slower than at the beginning of the decade.
Neighborhoods like Red Hook, Brooklyn, are being used as logistics hubs to get packages to customers faster than ever. At least two million square feet of warehouse space is being built in New York, including what will be the largest center of its kind in the country. Amazon added two warehouses in the city over the summer.
The immense changes in New York have been driven by tech giants, other private businesses and, increasingly, by independent couriers, often without the city's involvement, oversight or even its awareness.
According to the New York Times, officials are racing to keep track of the numerous warehouses sprouting up, to create more zones for trucks to unload and to encourage some deliveries to be made by boat as the city struggles to cope with a booming online economy.


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Report: Sony Appears to Be Ending the Production of Physical Game Cards for PS Vita
After seven years on the market, Sony appears to be ramping down on the production of new physical games for its handheld, the PS Vita.
Sony’s PS Vita has had a long, strange history over the past few years, and while the system continues to enjoy support from audiences seeking Japanese titles and indie games, the stream of new, physical releases for the title seem to be nearly at their end.
According to a report from Kotaku, Sony appears to be ramping down the production of physical game cards for the PS Vita by next year, putting a beginning to the end of new releases at retail for the handheld, as confirmed to the outlet through a Sony spokesperson.
This news comes from a reported message to developers from the American and European divisions of Sony that plans to “end all Vita GameCard production by close of fiscal year 2018.” As Sony’s fiscal year will end on March 31st, 2019, Kotaku indicates that “final purchase orders” for physical games for the Vita will be taken through February of next year, and at that point the production of new physical game cards for the system will end.
While this means that physical games for the Vita will be even more few and far between than they already are, Kotaku noted that Sony will continue to support the digital distribution of Vita games through PlayStation Network. This should at least give Vita owners at least some peace of mind that games will still come for the system for the time being, such as the recent news of Stardew Valley‘s upcoming release for the system.
Though Sony has not officially (or publicly) announced details on the future of physical game cards for the PS Vita, this indication isn’t exactly too much of a surprise in the current life state for the PlayStation Vita, which is now seven years old compared to other consoles on the market, having released in late 2011 in Japan and early 2012 in North America and Europe.
In the years since its debut, Sony has largely relegated the Vita to a secondary device compared to its more popular home consoles. Despite Sony withdrawing official support from the handheld over the years, the Vita did find a small but passionate audience through its diverse array of Japanese games and RPGs, niche titles, and indie games.


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Manufacturing, capital goods push IIP growth to 7.1 pc in Dec
cent of the index.It grew by 8.4 per cent during the month as.
New Delhi, Feb 12 () Industrial output grew by 7.1 per cent in December, maintaining the recovery momentum, on the back of robust performance by manufacturing as well as higher offtake of capital goods and non-durable consumer goods.
The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had grown at 2.4 per cent in December 2016, as per the data released today by the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The IIP growth for November, 2017 was revised upwards to 8.8 per cent from provisional estimates of 8.4 per cent released last month.
The IIP growth in December was mainly on account of uptick in manufacturing sector which constitutes 77.63 per cent of the index. It grew by 8.4 per cent during the month as compared to just 0.6 per cent in December 2016.
The consumer non-durables, which are mainly fast moving consumer goods, too showed an increase of 16.5 per cent as against contraction of 0.2 per cent.
As per use-based classification, the growth rates in December 2017 over December 2016 are 3.7 percent in Primary goods, 6.2 per cent in Intermediate goods and 6.7 percent in Infrastructure/Construction Goods.
The Consumer durables have recorded growth of 0.9 per cent in December 2017.
In terms of industries, 16 out of 23 industry groups in the manufacturing sector have shown positive growth during December 2017 as compared to the same month year ago. KKS CS SA


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What gives a place its character and cool? If anybody knows the answer, it’s the ownership teams behind Common Market, Amelie’s and Rhino Market.
For much of the past decade, they’ve defined Charlotte cool. Their flagship locations have become some of the most popular hangouts in the city.
All three of these businesses have recently put their models to the test — expanded to new locations under the same brand and with the general vibe.
And so far, all three have been successful. New crowds of people have made their way to more far-flung locations, people who may have never regularly hung out at the original sites. New locations are already in the works.
So how did they do it?
For Amelie’s and Rhino Market, relying heavily on the design aesthetic of an individual founder even as the operation scales.
Common Market has taken a slightly different approach. They’ve let the neighborhood decorate and populate their new locations and make them their own.
Common Market borrows from customers to create its “zany pleasantness”
When the original Common Market opened in Plaza Midwood in 2002, founder Blake Barnes says he had no idea how to run a business.
“I just listened to the customers, and they led me along the path of where I needed to go,” Barnes said. That goes for both the merchandise and the decor.
That goes for both the inventory and the decor.
Over time, Common Market has gone from selling PBR to mostly craft beer. And over time, more and more customers have brought in curios and oddities to adorn the walls and shelves.
One notable collection of about six dozen beer cans from the 1960s came from a regular who found them while cleaning out his grandfather’s place. Instead of the dump, they ended up at the Common Market.
That ethos has continued as Common Market expanded.
The first experiment came in 2008, when Common Market opened a South End location before the mega apartment boom made the neighborhood a top destination.
“What I wanted to take from Plaza to South End is probably zany pleasantness,” said owner Chuck Barger, who runs that location. “What we’re trying to do is read the neighborhood.”
Their decor got a huge boost when Boulevard Films on South Boulevard closed. They sent two decades worth of movie props to the Common Market.
That location was forced to close last year as development claimed the land. A new location a quarter-mile away will open soon, and another store between Oakhurst and Cotswold opened earlier this year.
The three owners are sticking to the pattern. On day one at Common market Oakwold, things were fairly sparse, the decor reclaimed. All the barstools came from Goodwill, owner Graham Worth said. Same for a set of Panthers club seats.
The neighborhood is already responding. They’ve already sent over a set of a dozen vintage lunchboxes, for example. They’re making the store their home.
“No specific person designs anything,” Barger said. “It’s controlled chaos.”
Amelie’s designs with a special set of eyes
At Amelie’s French Bakery, they’ve taken a different approach. Its locations are exquisitely decorated by the discerning eye of founder Brenda Knight Ische.
She describes the Amelie’s brand as “Marie Antoinette meets Alice in Wonderland,” or somewhere whimsical but comfy.
“I want people to be as comfortable as they would in their home,” Ische says. “It turns out we have made that work, because people are often moving furniture around, they’re putting their feet up on the table, sometimes they’re sleeping.
The original Amelie’s opened in Optimist Park neighborhood (near NoDa) in 2008. They’ve since expanded to Rock Hill, Atlanta, south Charlotte, Uptown and — most recently — to Park Road Shopping Center.
Ische has designed them all from a color palette of blue, blood red, butter yellow and apple green. Each location screams “Amelie’s” when you walk in, but each has their own personality, Ische says. NoDa is a little grungier. Park Road is a little more refined.
Ische says she’s always on the hunt for distinctive statement pieces to decorate the bakeries. She brings them back to a 1,500-square-foot studio in NoDa she calls the “factory.”
“That’s where everything comes in as one thing and it leaves as something else,” she says. Chandeliers and furniture come in, deconstructed, frosted, painted. Then it goes into one of the locations.
As Amelie’s continues to grow, Ische said they plan to continue to have a singular focus on design. She’s 62 now and has been training the next generation. She said when she retires, there will be a smooth transition.
“It’s taken years for her to kind of see things through my eyes,” Ische said. “I don’t want it to be a job that just anybody can walk in and do.”
Rhino Market creates nonchalant cool
Rhino Market owner Rob Rondelez doesn’t think that his stores are cool. Well, he thinks they are. But if other people do, too — that’s just a bonus.
“I like a design that’s not what everybody else is doing,” Rondelez said. “If it comes off as cool to the customer, that’s great.”
The first location opened on West Morehead Street in 2014. A second location just opened Uptown. The same focus on food and service has transferred to the new spot. The same design principles have, too.
Rondolez has learned a few lessons that he’s applied to the Uptown location. There’s a bigger bar, which was packed for two weeks straight after opening.
“I think you try to please people, but I’m trying to please myself first,” Rondelez says.


text: Eastman Kodak Co. of Rochester, N.Y., recently agreed to purchase the imaging business of National Semiconductor of Santa Clara, Calif., a manufacturer of CMOS image sensor devices. According to Michael DeLuca, manager of product marketing for Kodak's Image Sensor Solutions group, the value in the purchase is the combination of their technology strengths. Although Kodak has experience in developing CMOS sensors, National Semiconductor's strength is the ability to integrate the support circuitry right onto the chip.As part of the agreement, Kodak will acquire assets including intellectual property and equipment. It plans to hire approximately 50 employees, who will be based in a new facility in Sunnyvale, Calif., and who will be part of Image Sensor Solutions. It also will retain its CCD and CMOS fabrication facilities in Rochester.Although Kodak has been in the high-performance CCD market for some time, DeLuca said, the purchase offers it an opportunity to move into such consumer markets as cell and video phones and other applications.


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TV and radio presenter Emma Freud, a founder of Comic Relief, shares some statistics on the charity’s online fundraising.
In 2003, 8% of all Comic Relief’s income was donated online, according to Emma Freud, in an interview today with Bobbie Johnson in The Guardian. Indeed, she admits that “the Internet has been the single most radical change in the way we work.”
This year already, “about half of our 140,000 requests for fundraising packs have come from the web”. The charity has also made about £250,000 from its online shop, the first time it has attempted online merchandise sales.
As well as generating income online, Ms Freud explained that the Internet “makes it easier to give more to our fundraisers.” For example, “we’re able to give people little treats – this year, French and Saunders gave us a sketch that hasn’t been broadcast yet, and we’re showing it online.”
When asked if the Internet simply cannibalises income that would have come in anyway through different channels, she admits she doesn’t know. However, given that “the average donation on the Internet is 25% more than a telephone donation… I’d like to think it is an increase.” She adds that although “the average donation through interactive TV is lower than online… it is about giving people as many ways to donate as possible.”
Will this year’s Comic Relief campaign raise more than the previous record? Will the total be reduced because of the success of the recent tsunami appeal? She’s not sure, but “sales of red noses have risen by 40% on 2003.”


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- A slate of future FDA medical device regulations listed on the Office of Management and Budget's Fall 2018 Unified Agenda indicates a major effort by the agency to update its medical device application rules to adhere to the device center's priority to move to take a risk-based and least burdensome approach.
- FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the forthcoming regulations build on the agency's 2018 Strategic Policy Roadmap, and will focus on "outdated provisions that can add to development costs or forestall beneficial innovation without also enhancing device safety and effectiveness." Efforts include revamping the agency's De Novo classification process, amending the definition of a medical device to exclude certain medical software functions, harmonizing medical device quality systems with international standards and finalizing its proposed rule codifying procedures and timeframes of senior staff review of significant device center decisions.
- One proposed rule appears to be set to be published shortly: OMB is already reviewing a proposal it received Tuesday to update mammography regulations to incorporate best practices such as "addressing breast density reporting to patients and health care providers."
Gottlieb said the effort to update the mammography regulations first issued under the Mammography Quality Standards Act of 1992 will help FDA enforce consistent quality standards for mammograms by taking a more uniform nationwide approach to reporting requirements rather than relying on a "patchwork of reporting requirements that has been implemented in various states."
The OMB proposal estimates public health benefits will come in the form of earlier breast cancer detection, which it hopes will lead to lower cancer treatment costs. But it warns that the effort will hike industry labor costs and spending on testing and biopsies. The proposed rule is targeted for a November release.
Another anticipated proposed rule is FDA's plan to revamp the Medical Device De Novo Classification Process, which the agency pegs for release this month. The docket states that the proposal will "establish procedures and criteria for the de novo process and would make it more transparent and predictable for manufacturers."
Gottlieb said FDA's effort to amend the definition of medical devices in accordance with the 21st Century Cures Act, slated to be published in November, will help the agency focus on regulating products that fall within its purview.
"Digital health devices have the potential to improve our ability to accurately diagnose and treat disease, and to enhance the delivery of health care," Gottlieb said in a statement "These opportunities require us to explore ways to modernize our regulatory approach to better advance safe and effective innovation in this rapidly evolving area."
One interesting action by FDA is a plan to withdraw a proposed rule this month that would have required medical device establishments with certain home-use medical devices to electronically submit the label and package inserts for the agency to list publicly online.
The action comes after AdvaMed urged the government to withdraw the proposed rule, arguing it would confuse patients and be duplicative of labeling information on a manufacturer's website.
FDA also plans to discontinue publishing quarterly lists of premarket approval applications and humanitarian device exemption applications in the Federal Register. The agency said the effort is duplicative of its posting of the applications on its website and their availability through the Division of Dockets Management.
The agency is also targeting late 2019 for a proposed rule outlining its framework for over-the-counter hearing aids.


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'Xiaomi Mi Air Notebook' Latest News & Updates: Apple's Tight Contender, Better Than Macbook Pro 2016?
Xiaomi has been busy creating new technologies that could level up in the current technology competition. With the upcoming release of Apple's new Macbook Pro 2016, Xiaomi has its own laptop/notebook that is now available.
According to the official site of Xiaomi, their new "Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air" will have new upgraded specs that can match the new Macbook Pro 2016 by Apple. It is said to be a thin, lightweight and high-performance laptop with a Full HD display.The new "Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air" will sport out a slim all-metal body with an ultra-narrow border. It will also have an 8GB RAM with a 256 GB SSD which could pass to be a gaming laptop.
"Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air" is said to have a long battery life that could last up to 9.5 hours and will run in a 6-generation Intel Core i5 processor. This can also run graphic intensive games.The new "Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air" is said to be available at a price of $999 based on its official website. With this amount it is obviously cheaper than the Macbook Air 2016 of Apple.
Macbook Pro 2016 vs Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air
Based on MacWorld UK, the new Macbook Pro 2016 will have 400-500 PPI with 226 PPI on its previous models. While the "Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air" has confirmed that it has a maximum 116 PPI with a 1080p full HD resolution.
But according to Mobile & Apps, when it comes to "Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air" camera, it only has a limited 1 megapixel for 720p video calls. Although the Macbook Pro 2015 had the same resolution of its camera, it is said that it could be updated for its 2016 release.
When it comes to its price, the "Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air" will be perfect for those who are on a tight budget. Macbook Pro 2016 is rumoured to have a price starting from $1,119 up to $2,099 with its 2.5 Ghz 15 inch Retina.


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Why We Canât Stop Talking About Khaite
For Catherine Holstein, last year will be hard to beat.
The designer and creative director behind the New York-based womenswear label Khaite opened her first store in New York, and then a second, in Seoul. Holstein sold a stake in her company to the investment firm Stripes, and gave birth to her first child four days after the deal closed. She appointed Tory Burch veteran Brigitte Klein as her brandâs first CEO, launched eyewear and a kidâs line. Sales jumped 30 percent, after crossing $100 million in 2022. To cap it all off, she won the CFDA Womenswear Designer of the Year award for the second year in a row.
âIt has been the best year of my life, but itâs also been the most transitional,â she told The Business of Fashion at Khaiteâs SoHo offices a few days before its Fall/Winter 2024 runway show at New York Fashion Week. More than that, itâs been a year of vindication, she added. âIt was seven years through the trenches, behind the scenes. When you say âI want to build a luxury brand in America from nothing,â people say âThis woman is crazy.ââ
Khaite is the rarest of things: a homegrown New York luxury label with a real shot at becoming a global powerhouse. But turning runway buzz and CFDA awards into a household name is no sure thing. Itâs perhaps never been more difficult to sustain a fashion business, particularly in the luxury category, where tiny emerging designers are often in direct competition with conglomerate-owned heritage brands boasting almost limitless marketing budgets. Early momentum can be hard to maintain: For every The Row or Tory Burch there are many more brands that stall out exactly where Holstein finds herself today.
Holstein knows all that. As she puts it: âYou could have $50 million on your balance sheet, and you still need to think about where your next dollar is coming from.â
Her plan is to just keep growing, with new stores, new markets and a focus on revenue-driving categories like handbags to complement the brandâs thick cashmere sweaters, strong-shouldered jackets and wide assortment of denim. The goal is to increase sales another 30 percent this year.
However, with prosperity comes pressure. As the standard bearer for what success looks like in New York fashion, there are expectations for Khaite not only to thrive commercially, but to set the agenda for American fashion with innovative design.
That contrast was on full display in the hours after Saturdayâs show: While on Instagram, fans swooned over the collection, The New York Timesâ chief fashion critic Vanessa Friedman described Holstein as checking all the boxes of a brand for the ages â except for one thing.
âWhat she doesnât seem to have is originality,â Friedman wrote.
Of course, a designer could garner endless critical acclaim, but it doesnât matter much if they canât convince customers to buy their product (or canât raise the funds to create that product in the first place). Look at Puppets & Puppetsâ Carly Mark, who won the hearts of fashion insiders but is leaving New York and will stop producing clothing after running low on cash.
But as her two CFDA trophies show, Holstein has clearly managed, on some level, to do it all. In that sense, sheâs carrying on a decades-long tradition of female designers in New York who built lasting businesses by speaking to a customer they know well â themselves.
âI invite criticism and I listen. Nobody ever learned anything from being told they are right all the time,â said Holstein. âI would be lying if I said I didnât care what they think, I am a human being, it can hurt â¦ but I must follow my gut. I do not make things for that audience.â
The Khaite Craze
Founded in 2016, Khaite, then backed by incubator Assembled Brands, was born out of a feeling on Holsteinâs part that the market lacked one brand that could provide its customer â a chic woman with pockets deep enough to afford a nearly $2,000 cardigan â with everything they needed to get dressed.
âI was a frustrated shopper,â she said. âI had to go to this place for a sweater, this place for a pair of jeans, this place for a dress, and it was just exhausting.â
That âshopperâ mindset still drives Holstein. The show-stopping pieces make the runway, but much of the brandâs core assortment, such as denim, accessories and knits, are what has won it a legion of fans. For example, while jeans didnât appear in Saturdayâs show, most pairs retail for just under $500, making them a key entry item for new customers, who may eventually graduate to a $1,580 crewneck cashmere sweater or a $3,400 leather jacket.
âWhen you have a good hand at knits, you have a good hand at denim, and sheâs able to extract ideas from everything sheâs seen and put them into her own thing,â said Julie Gilhart, chief development officer of brand incubator Tomorrow Ltd. âIt makes for the ingredients of a really commercial collection.â
That approach has earned the brand a loyal and influential client base. Kendall Jenner, Hailey Bieber, BeyoncÃ© and Katie Holmes (who was responsible for the brandâs first viral moment back in 2019, wearing a matching Khaite cashmere cardigan and bra set) have been spotted in its wares.
The famous and wealthy were some of the brandâs first advocates, but success at scale means connecting with the mainstream. The ongoing âquiet luxuryâ conversation has helped contribute to a swell of interest on social media, a remarkable feat considering the brandâs high price point.
âEveryoneâs takeaway is that itâs worth it,â said Ilana Torbiner, a content creator who frequently shares her Khaite purchases on TikTok and Instagram. âKhaite pieces are simple, but perfectly executed. You can just wear them again and again.â
The Next Chapter of American Luxury
Khaiteâs muscle was on full display on Saturday, when it presented its Fall/Winter 2024 collection amid an atmosphere of the brandâs signature moody sleekness in a massive black room at Chelsea Piers. With stars and fashion insiders like Naomi Watts, Sofia Richie Grainge, Alexa Chung and Jenna Lyons in the front row, models in fur coats, leather jackets and sheer, flowing dresses walked the perimeter to a soundtrack of Radiohead and Joy Division.
âThereâs a cool associated with the brand that has maintained from her early days, even as the shows have grown,â said Rickie De Sole, womenâs fashion and editorial director at Nordstrom.
Since its first runway presentation in 2019, Khaite has become one of the hottest tickets at New York Fashion Week. Even as sheâs become a headline event, Holstein has no interest in decamping overseas to show in Paris, like some of her New York-based peers did when they found success, including The Row, Bode and Peter Do.
âI would never leave New York to show,â she said. âThis is a New York brand; weâre intrinsically New York. I love being a part of New York Fashion Week.â
But while Khaite may be regarded as a quintessential New York âcool girlâ brand, its reach is much wider today. Its task now is to grow the brand further while maintaining its luxury sheen.
This year, the label will open up a second New York City storefront on Madison Avenue (that location that will focus on bags and accessories), as well as longer-term pop-ups in Aspen, Dallas and the Hamptons. Next year, Khaite will open its first permanent west coast location at the famed South Coast Plaza shopping centre in Orange County, Calif.
At the same time, Holstein doesnât want to fall prey to the over-commercialization that befalls so many breakout American labels. Khaite is selective about its wholesale partners â it closed 10 percent of its wholesale doors last year â and wants to connect with more consumers directly, particularly top clients, for whom a dedicated VIP team hosts events across the country. It expects DTC (stores and e-commerce) to represent 40 percent of sales this year.
Holstein said she never wants customers to feel too far away from her vision for Khaite, from the stark grey concrete walls of the stores to the severe black backdrop of the runway shows.
âThere is a level of intimacy that the customer feels when theyâre fully enveloped in the brand,â she said. âIf we are serious about being a luxury brand â¦ I think itâs more important to stay small in your thinking, to have it still be a reflection of my feelings.â
She may be thinking small, but her ambitions are big. The brandâs next major sales benchmark is $250 million. Propelling that growth will be bags, Khaiteâs fastest-growing category and a foundational revenue driver in luxury. Non-apparel (bags and shoes) represent 40 percent of overall sales; Khaite saw triple-digit growth in bags last year and introduced three new silhouettes during its latest runway show, including one named after Holstein, the âCateâ bag.
The roller coaster, surely, will continue to climb. With half of its wholesale business coming from outside the US, itâs looking to open a second headquarters in Milan or Paris within the next year, as well as potential international store locations.
â[Holstein] is a phenomenon, because she is an incredibly hard worker,â said Gilhart. âLike a Tory or a Donna, sheâs having her moment.â


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MINNEAPOLIS — Shares of Supervalu were up nearly 7% Tuesday after the company showed progress in slowing sales declines and exceeded analyst earnings estimates during the fiscal first quarter.
The retailer reported net earnings of $74 million on sales of $11.1 billion during the quarter, which ended June 18. Overall sales declined 4.4%, reflecting a 3.9% identical-store sales decline and the effects of market exits and the divestiture of Total Logistics Control. Net earnings increased 10.4%.
Although identical-store sales were down 3.9%, they represented an improvement from the same period a year ago when IDs fell 5%, officials noted. Customer count declines also slowed from a 4.6% decline to 4.4%, and average ticket showed a 0.5% increase. Craig Herkert, Supervalu’s chief executive officer, said the figures show evidence that Supervalu’s turnaround strategy was gaining traction.
Supervalu on Tuesday also affirmed its previous earnings estimates for fiscal 2012 of $1.20 to $1.40 per share.


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To understand how things got this bad it's important to go back to last week.
Apple has apologised to customers, weeks after it emerged it was slowing the performance of older iPhone handsets, in order to protect aging batteries.
As a result of Apple's deceptive and unlawful conduct, millions of consumers are led to believe that their iPhones have become obsolete and are consequently compelled to purchase the most recent iPhone model (s), which are now the iPhone 8 and iPhone X. Customers who choose not to or can not afford new iPhones, which generally cost several hundreds of dollars, are left with iPhones with drastically diminished performance such that they are effectively useless.
Tech giant Apple on Friday apologised to customers vexed over the involuntary slowing down of old models of the iPhone. The reports confirming throttling of performance only added fuel to the fire as it seemingly confirmed our superstition. Apple then happily took its customers' money when the customers, dissatisfied with their now-slower devices, purchased new and more expensive iPhones. This is because older batteries are unable to handle peak current draws the same way as newer iPhone models with newer batteries are able to do.
Man City will not remain unbeaten - Guardiola
Crystal Palace became only the second team this season to take points off City, the other being everton who drew 1-1 in August. Fortuitously for him, it now appears that Manchester City's need for the Chilean might be greater than his.
Ideally, Apple could have been more transparent back when it introduced the feature in 2016. Instead, it chose to disclose the information only after the benchmark tests.
Apple tried to explain that there's a perfectly good reason behind the intentional phone sabotage.
The multibillion company is now offering a $29 battery replacement for the iPhone 6 and latter.
Apple explicitly represented to Plaintiffs and the public that its iOS updates are compatible with and support older iPhones, as evidenced by the fact that Plaintiffs and Class Members were prompted to install the iOS updates on their iPhones.
"First and foremost, we have never-and would never-do anything to intentionally shorten the life of any Apple product, or degrade the user experience to drive customer upgrades", the post said. Apple also said it would issue an update to iOS, its mobile operating system, to "give users more visibility into the health of their iPhone's battery, so they can see for themselves if its condition is affecting performance". It has also cut down the cost of replacing out-of-warranty battery from $79 to $29 (approx Rs 1,800), which will come into effect late January and will be applicable worldwide through December 2018.