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AgencyMcCann Erickson New York
SectorConsumer Goods, Technology brands, Mobile phones and Telecom / Utilities brands
McCann Erickson New York has launched a new spot as the advertising war between Verizon Wireless and AT&T heats up in the pre-Christmas rush.
The ad, called ‘misfits’, is the first of three which feature original animation designed to look like the cheesy stop-motion animated Christmas TV specials of the 1960s.
The ads aim to promote Verizon’s 3G bandwidth area coverage, which it claims is more extensive than the AT&T network.


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Director of News Operations
Radio Ink Magazine
The parent company for SkyMall filed for bankruptcy last week, citing that it was a victim of the times. New rules on airlines and tech that allows smartphones and tablets during flights, just nibbled away at the mainstay of the seat-back pocket. Airline passengers once held captive during their flight, have new ways to pass their time. Sound familiar? The parallels between in-flight and in-dash draw some compelling comparisons.
The SkyMall story is capturing the imagination of netizens. The story currently ranks at #6 on Viral News Chart. Despite the fact that we have all those smartphones and tablets, we're sentimental about loosing the in-flight entertainment gleamed from browsing the latest "SkyRest Travel Pillow" and "Porch Potty" for our pooch. Let's face it, SkyMall was more entertainment and advertising, than it was a sales catalog.
In the same way that radio has held captive it's listeners in-car for decades, the imminent arrival of the connected car poses the same kind of paradigm shift for the dash as wifi, tablets and the smartphone did for SkyMall. It wasn't that SkyMall was oblivious to tech, it's pages were spilling over with the latest hi-tech gadgets. For SkyMall, its white hot center should have been more about incorporating the product into technology, not technology into the product.
SkyMall was already in place and a part of the travel experience with airline passengers. Airline consumers saw and see it as a part of their in-flight experience. Someone at SkyMall had to have had the insight that a deal with the airlines could have been struck to offer the in-flight mag as an option loading on smart devices once a user logs into the airline's wifi. Why wasn't it part of the back-seat infotainment system? A quick Google search will land you on the SkyMall web site home page. The backend was there, SkyMall it seems just didn't make the jump quick enough.
Like Radio Ink, Fred Jacobs of Jacobs Media spends a lot of his energies investigating the connected car and how it could effect radio's place in the dash. As a consultant, he's logged a lot of time in the air and has probably flipped through enough pages of Sky Mall to wallpaper your on-air studio. Jacobs tells Radio Ink, "The death of Sky Mall is a cautionary tale for radio. Like radio in cars, the airlines offered a captive audience, and Sky Mall was a product that was good enough to kill time." Jacob's goes on to note, "As Sky Mall learned, they now compete with everything, and that's precisely what broadcasters are up against in new cars."
According to Jacobs, "If we think about radio's USP as proprietary personalities you can't hear anywhere else and local content that reflects the ethos of a community, there's a 'there there.' Of course, all that assumes that broadcasters are filling those needs." Jacobs continues, "Like Sky Mall's dilemma, the challenge of the 'connected car' compels broadcasters to consider an expanded competitive environment." The real question broadcasters need to ask Jacobs says is, "What is it about local radio that makes a driver want to listen on a menu that contains 10,000 songs in my personal music library, satellite radio, the embedded Pandora and NPR apps in my dash, as well as every app available on my phone? THAT is the question."
The evolution of in-dash entertainment to cars is here and is posing a real challenge for broadcasters. Like SkyMall had the captive eyes, we now have the captive ears. Radio has experience developing talent and serving our communities to deliver compelling content to listeners. As with SkyMall, it is more about incorporating the product into technology, not technology into the product. But as Jacobs points out, the product will have to deliver compelling and unique content.
Many will say SkyMall was just a buggy-whip whose time had come. Still, from the buzz surrounding the bankruptcy of SkyMall on social media, it did have value to its captive legions of page flippers. But, to burrow a Marshall McLuhan quote on a medium he didn't live to see, in the case of SkyMall, "The Medium is the Message." For airline commuters SkyMall will just be another fond memory of times before smartphones, tablets and wifi. Like Yogi Berra said, "Nostalgia ain't what it used to be."
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News Summary: HMV suspends trading, seeks rescue
END OF ERA: British music and entertainment retailer HMV admitted defeat on Tuesday after more than 90 years in business, suspending trading in its shares and calling in administrators to try to salvage viable parts of the business.
STORES OPEN FOR NOW: HMV is the last big retail chain selling recorded music in Britain and employs more than 4,000 people in 238 stores, which will remain open for the time being.
THE BACKGROUND: The name HMV stands for “his master’s voice,” from the company’s trademark of a dog named Nipper staring at the bell of an early gramophone player. The first HMV music store opened in London in 1921.


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Microsoft has brought in a three-month pricing promotion to help customers stomach the volume licensing price rise.
According to a blog from a licensing specialist at distributor Westcoast, the software giant is offering discounted pricing on enterprise products affected by the price hike, as well as on gear including SQL Server and Client Access License, Project, Systems Center, VDI, remote desktop and Windows Server.
The blog details that, although the prices available are not as low as they were prior to the introduction of new pricing yesterday, "they will go a way to easing the pain of the price increase on customers". The promotion runs until the end of September.
"Here is another push to get orders in before the deadline and fix pricing in for the three-year agreements," adds the blog.
Microsoft issued ChannelWeb with a statement explaining that the promotion is the latest initiative in its quest to help VARs adapt to the pricing changes as painlessly as possible.
"Since February 2012, when we first announced our intention to establish price consistency across Europe for volume licensing programmes, we have been working closely with partners to help them transition smoothly through the changes," said the statement.
"The promotion is specifically for our Open Value Volume Licensing programme and will run until 30 September 2012. Final prices and currency will continue to be set by partners, where the licence is sold by a partner to the end customer."
Businesses also admit to holding data without permission of subjects
Zedsphere says end-point security vendor's offerings will be a 'key' feature of its wider portfolio
New acquisition will bring UK cloud service provider's global headcount to over 700
Law firm claims that Oracle lied to investors over what is driving its cloud revenue growth and boosted sales through 'threats and extortive tactics'


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Alibaba’s coming U.S. initial public offering will probably value the Chinese e-commerce firm at more than $100 billion. But will shareholders actually own the business? That’s the timely concern raised by a U.S. congressional commission. Lack of clarity in PRC law is mainly to blame.
The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, which monitors bilateral relations on behalf of Congress, on June 18 published a paper highlighting the legal risks of so-called variable interest entities. Many Chinese companies use these contracts to give offshore investors control over – and economic benefits from – mainland businesses they cannot own directly.
Investors have swallowed the risks of VIEs in plenty of other cases, like the recent U.S. IPO of microblogging site Weibo. Foreign shareholders assume the Chinese authorities would be reluctant to undermine the growing number of companies with overseas listings that rely on the structures.
Alibaba says businesses held through VIEs account for only about 17 percent of its assets. The rest goes through wholly and majority foreign-owned enterprises. Besides, the company discusses its VIE arrangements at length in its IPO documents and quotes a Chinese law firm’s opinion that everything is legal.
Still, the U.S. commission’s paper calls VIEs “an intricate ruse” and says they are “potentially illegal in China.” Even Alibaba concedes that efforts to enforce contractual rights on the mainland could be challenging. Though the company is big and entrenched enough to matter to the economy, the danger for prospective Alibaba investors is that its prominence in the sensitive internet sector would put it in the crosshairs should Beijing decide to crack down on VIEs.
The commission raises another legal issue that doesn’t get as much attention. Once Alibaba lists on a U.S. exchange, it will be subject to new aspects of the sprawling Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. If, for example, the company mischaracterized corrupt payments in its accounts, American authorities could take action.
Of course, China has its own anti-graft laws, and there’s no suggestion Alibaba has done anything wrong. Yet the U.S. report is a reminder that there are risks both in the uncertainty of Chinese legal arrangements and in the certainty that U.S. law has extraterritorial reach. Investors shouldn’t forget that Alibaba is a case study in the gulf between the two legal systems.


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The Windows 10 Anniversary Update will be rolled out in phases, so it might take a while for the update to reach you. The Windows 10 Mobile Anniversary Update was also expected to release along with this but it did not happen. Microsoft says the new updates will be rolled out in the “coming weeks,” and that’s all we can say for the time being.
This update is free for all users using Windows 10. But users upgrading from an older version of Windows to Windows 10 will have to pay $ 119 (about Rs 8,000) for this. Microsoft officially ended its free upgrade program on July 29 for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users. But still by adopting some tricks Users can get free upgrades.
All individual Windows 10 users can manually install this update through these steps. But users using Windows 10 PC in Office will have to get information about this update from their administration.
The company announced the Windows 10 Anniversary Update at its Annual Build conference in March. The new update will bring a slew of other features, including extensions for the stylus with Windows Ink and Microsoft’s Edge browser. With these updates, new improvements will also be seen in Hello and Cortana.
With the Windows 10 Anniversary Update, Cortana will be able to give suggestions to the user throughout the day.


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IMPHAL, Jul 1: Volunteers of the Indigenous People’s of Kangleipak (IPAK) led by its general secretary Wahengbam Shanta today closed atleast 15 rice shops located near FCS godown, Sangaiprou at around 4.30 pm today.
During a sudden drive conducted at these shops, IPAK volunteers enquired the shop owners about the source from where they acquired those large quantities of rice. As the shop owners could not give convincing answers and provide the names of the individuals/agencies who supplied rice to them, IPAK volunteers closed the shops. They also asked the shop owners to come to IPAK office tomorrow to discuss the matter. Shanta said that they would find out the individuals/agencies who have been indulging in unauthorised supply of huge quantity of rice to these shops. He said that the drive was conducted to check shiphon-nning off of rice stocked by the Government for National Food Security Act, which had been implemented from April this year. He said that it is surprising to see such a huge quantity of rice at the shops located near the godown.
Shanta said that people are suspicious of possible supply of NFSA rice to these shops by some unscrupulous officials. He said that they would not allow anybody to earn money through misuse of the rice meant for poor people. Shanta said that some shop owners had revealed that some rationing agents dropped five to ten bags of rice every time they lifted rice from the godown. Saying that IPAK would not allow such illegal practices continue Shanta said that they have closed these shops with immediate effect. Maintaining that they would never remain silent on the issue, Shanta said that IPAK would detect the main supplier soon.


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KOKO Networks, a venture-backed tech startup, has begun installing automated machines within many retail outlets within Nairobi, that allow customers to fill up their cooking gas cylinders.
The firm is delivering this product in partnership with Vivo Energy Kenya, the Shell licensee that supplies this clean bioethanol fuel using its liquid fuel infrastructure and then delivers to about 650 “KOKO Point” Fuel ATMs across the city.
The firm, which has been quietly building up its network since launching last year, has so far sold more than 50,000 cooker kits in Nairobi.
The firm uses a series of hardware and software tools that enables it to deliver gas that is much cheaper than charcoal or kerosene. This is in addition to providing convenience, safety and minimal environmental impact.
These automated machines, which KOKO installs inside local convenience stores, are basically fuel tanks that allow clients to top-up on clean fuel when required.
The Company’s CEO Greg Murray said its mission was to imagine and deliver technology that transforms lives in the world’s fastest-growing cities such as Nairobi.
KOKO says COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the importance of healthy lungs and clean air, adding popularity to its cooking gas.
The firm has been riding on its popular product to scale up delivery to more clients.
While it is still early days, KOKO has expressed optimism that with the firm already securing 10% of the cooking gas market in some neighbourhoods and word is spreading out very quickly; its growth prospects remain bright.
Latest figures from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics(2019) indicate that firewood is still the most commonly used type of cooking fuel reported by 55.1 per cent of the households followed by Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) at 23.9 per cent.


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For Gypsy Brewing Co., beer sales are always hopping
Refreshing hobby becomes a new vocation
It was a hobby that turned into a business for owner Eric Christensen of Gypsy Brewing Co. in Calvert County.
Gypsy Brewing is a veteran-owned, home-based brewery that specializes in the production of craft beers made with locally grown and global ingredients. The company’s beers are offered by the pint or by the growler at festivals and retail outlets in Calvert and Anne Arundel counties, and is looking to expand soon into St. Mary’s and Charles.
Christensen is a retired 27-year veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard who said his career in the service focused on marine safety and ship inspection.
“Ultimately, I was in charge of all vessel compliance issues for the Coast Guard when I was chief of commercial vessels,” Christensen said. “Then I retired as the Coast Guard’s chief traveling inspector.”
Christensen said he was stationed on the West Coast in 1993 when he and his wife, Heather Christensen, took their first class that taught them about the basics of brewing beer.
“The rest is history, as far as that goes,” Eric Christensen said. “Every duty station that we have been assigned to, I set up a brewery.”
“When I was in New York, I set up a home-brew club with the other guys on base, and that worked out really well,” he said. “When I was in Annapolis, I was president of The Aleing Sailors, which was a local home-brew club there. Went to Chicago and was president for a little while with the Headhunters Homebrew Club out there.”
His passion for the craft also earned Christensen recognition at home-brew competition events held on local, regional and national levels.
“I competed quite a bit in the early days,” he said. “I took a gold medal at the national competition for my Steam Beer in 1997 … California Common is the style. At one point in time, I was ranked third in the Midwest for when we were stationed in Chicago.”
Christensen’s Scottish Export beer earned the best of show prize in 2012 at the Spirit of Free Beer home-brew competition. It was an accomplishment that he said opened some doors.
“That’s probably the biggest home-brew competition in the Mid-Atlantic, and it’s run by a home-brew club out of Northern Virginia,” Christensen said. “When I did that, one of the opportunities I had was to go and brew with a brewer and brew my winning recipe. So, I got an idea of what it took.”
Christensen said he also took home the bronze for his Tripel Barrel woodaged beer at last year’s Maryland Craft Beer Competition.
After years of honing his beer-brewing skills and upping his industry knowledge, Christensen launched Gypsy Brewing on May 1 of last year. Heather Christensen manages the company’s social media accounts.
“We came up with the name ‘ Gypsy Brewing’ because we would move and we would still brew,” he said. “Gypsy is certainly a nomadic kind of thing.”
Christensen said he set out by selling his beer on tap at the North Beach farmers market and local festivals in the area, then reached out to various retail locations that could offer his beers year round.
“The draft accounts all started around August when we started seeing on the horizon that the farmers market would eventually stop,” Christensen said. “So we started looking to where we could sell kegs. We’re on draft probably seven places between Annapolis and Solomons.”
Yo Mamma’s in Prince Frederick offers Gypsy Brewing’s beers to patrons of the restaurant. “It’s gone over so well that I keep one of his beers on tap pretty regularly now,” said Rachel Baker, co-owner of Yo Mamma’s. “People love it. It sells really well.”
Dunkirk Wine & Spirits offers growler sales of the brewing company’s beers. “When I first got it in, people that came in and saw it, they had heard of Gypsy,” said Paul Simms, the store’s assistant manager. “Every single beer that I sell from Gypsy goes pretty fast once people see that I have it.”
Going forward, Christensen said he looks to expand the sales of his beers throughout Southern Maryland, and deeper into Anne Arundel County as well.
“We’re always on the lookout for bars and restaurants that want to carry local beer,” Christensen said. “We like staying local. And we just want people to drink local and drink Gypsy beer.”
Owner Eric Christensen launched Gypsy Brewing Co. in Calvert County a year ago. The company specializes in the production of craft beers made with locally grown and global ingredients.


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Soma by Chico's lingerie store to open at Ross Park this spring
Adult brand aims for customers 35 and older
- Tim Schooley
(Page 2 of 2)
At the same time that it works to open its third Chico's location in Pittsburgh's northern suburbs, the women's fashion retailer expects to debut its first Pittsburgh-area Soma by Chico's location at Ross Park Mall in April.
Soma, a lingerie store focusing on women 35 and older, will open beside a new Chico's store in the space formerly occupied by Waldenbooks.
Michael Smith, vice president of investor and community relations for Fort Myers, Fla.-based Chico's FAS Inc., said the company sees the market for apparel for mature women as underserved. Soma by Chico's sells a mix of bras, panties and sleepwear.
"We're positioning ourselves as for graduates of Victoria's Secret," Smith said.
Lisa Earl, general manager of Ross Park Mall, said she expects Soma by Chico's along with its parent brand store to mix well with other apparel offerings at the mall such as Coldwater Creek and J. Jill.
In the first three quarters of 2006, Chico's sales increased by more than 15 percent to $1.52 billion. The company expects to increase its total retail square footage by 30 percent this year, Smith said, through not only its flagship brand, but through Soma and its White House Black Market stores. Including all of its brands, the company has nearly 800 stores nationwide.
So far, there is only one Soma location planned for Pittsburgh. But Smith expects more to open eventually. Chico's launched Soma in 2004 and has grown the concept to nearly 50 locations nationwide.
As Ross Park Mall continues construction on the region's first Nordstrom department store, scheduled to open in 2008, Earl said the property is also seeing a new wave of 10-year leases coming to term that will help Simon Property Group improve the retail mix.
"There's a ton of deals in our system," Earl said.
She declined to elaborate, but Simon has been trying to lure a raft of new retailers to the mall. Stores including Crate & Barrel, Tiffany & Co., A/X Armani Exchange and Louis Vuitton were included on site maps distributed to the brokerage community over the past year.
Chico's isn't the only retailer establishing new store concepts for intimate apparel.
Besides Victoria's Secret, Warrendale-based American Eagle Outfitters Inc. has been expanding its Aerie concept, which markets bras, camisoles and robes for girls 15 to 25.
After initially launching the concept within traditional American Eagle locations, the company expects to open 15 stand-alone Aerie stores this year.
Patrice Duker, a spokeswoman for the International Council of Shopping Centers, said retailers are establishing new store concepts to serve customers of different ages.
"The early middle-age consumers are looking for those retailers that serve their age group," she said.
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SINGAPORE: Business at several stores in Plaza Singapura were hit by flooding on Saturday afternoon.
CapitaMalls Asia, which owns Plaza Singapura, said unusually heavy rain caused water to leak from a section of the building’s carpark.
A hotline caller said her beauty parlour was affected at about 1.30pm, and that the incident would cost her about S$2,000 in repair work and loss of revenue.
Others that were affected included supermarket giant Carrefour.
Cindy Ee, a shopowner at Plaza Singapura, said: "We had to stop whatever we were doing. Our customers were also very displeased. They were preparing to leave. Those who were supposed to come later, they had a fall while while coming into the mall."
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Despite being a land rich in agricultural resources, almost 30 percent of Ugandan crops never make it onto the shelves, because they are not... More Despite being a land rich in agricultural resources, almost 30 percent of Ugandan crops never make it onto the shelves, because they are not properly preserved. That's why a research centre at the University of Makarere is developing a new range of food products, to try and combat food wastage. Duration: 01:56
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Crocs is doubling-down on an existing effort to rid the market of a striking influx of fakes by way of a handful of newly-filed trademark lawsuits. On the heels of lodging a complaint with the International Trade Commission in June claiming that two dozen companies – from Skechers to Loeffler Randall – are engaging in the unlawful importation and sale of “certain footwear products and packaging that violate [its] registered trademarks,” including its “CROCS” word mark, as well as the 3-D design of its famous footwear, the Broomfield, Colorado-based footwear brand has filed four new trademark infringement and dilution suits against many of those same parties.
According to the complaints that it filed on Tuesday, including one in federal court in Illinois, which names Bijora, Inc. d/b/a Akira as a defendant, Crocs asserts that it maintains an array of “valuable trademarks” for its Classic Clog shoe, which it first began selling in 2003. “These trademarks include Crocs’ iconic design mark,” including the “three-dimensional configuration of the outside of an upper for a shoe, featuring holes placed across the horizontal portion of the upper [and] a textured strip along the vertical portion of the upper having openings,” which Crocs refers to as its “3D Marks.”
“Widely recognized by the general consuming public of the United States as a designation of origin of the footwear products that are manufactured, sold, distributed, and promoted by Crocs,” the footwear brand claims that its 3D Marks have become “well-recognized and famous” over the past two decades, thanks, in part to the “vast network of domestic distribution channels, including major retailers and department stores,” through which its footwear is offered, as well as the widespread marketing efforts that the company engages in the promote its offerings.
Beyond that, Crocs points to “unconventional collaborations with different brands, celebrities, and artists,” which have enabled its Classic Clog to “reach diverse and specific psychographic market segments as the shoe is regularly repackaged into new footwear models bearing the Crocs 3D Marks.” In the process, the company claims that “over the past three calendar years,” it has sold “millions of pairs of shoes bearing the 3D Marks in the United States alone, corresponding to hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue.”
Against that background, Crocs asserts that it falls victim to a significant “scale of this infringement,” including as a result of products sold by Chicago-based Akira, which Crocs alleges is offering up infringing footwear by way of a number of lookalike foam clogs, including a platform pair, almost certainly a nod to the platform pair of Classic Clogs that Crocs made in collaboration with Balenciaga in 2018. According to Crocs, the footwear being offered up by Akira bears designs that “are likely to cause confusion with the Crocs 3D Marks,” and that “are likely to dilute Crocs 3D Marks.” In fact, Crocs claims that “Akira’s intent to create associations with Crocs and to free ride on Crocs’ goodwill is evident from at least the close similarities between Akira’s products on the one hand, and the famous Crocs 3D Marks on the other hand.”
In addition to the “overwhelming similarities between Akira’s products and the Crocs 3D Marks,” Crocs claims that consumers are likely to confuse the two companies’ offerings, as “consumers of shoes like those at issue here are not likely to exercise great care in resolving likely confusion in their initial product interest, at the point of purchase, or in post-sale exposure.” More than that, Crocs argues that “more sophisticated consumers are likely to experience cognitive dissonance regarding the source, affiliation, sponsorship, or association of Akira’s products when confronted with promotions and sales of Akira’s [shoes].”
Indeed, Crocs – which saw a boom in sales during the pandemic, as consumers sought out comfortable wares, including footwear – claims that as indicated by customer reviews left on Akira’s e-commerce site, “Several ‘verified buyers’ of Akira’s [shoes] have actually been confused at the point-of-sale as to the source of the shoes, and have referred to the accused products as ‘CROCS’ despite no affiliation between Akira and [Crocs].”
With the foregoing in mind, Crocs accuses Akira of engaging in trademark infringement and dilution, and false designation of origin, and of violating the Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act, and is seeking monetary damages and injunctive relief barring the company from advertising and selling infringing footwear. In addition to Akira, Crocs has named Walmart, Hobby Lobby Stores, Loeffler Randall, Fujian Huayuan Well Import and Export Trade Co., Ltd., and Legend Footwear, Inc. d/b/a Wild Diva, as well as about a dozen other companies, as defendants in three separate but similar lawsuits.
On Tuesday, Daniel Hart, Crocs’ chief legal officer, said in a statement to Law360 that the cases “underscore our determination to take forceful steps to protect our trademarks and other intellectual property.” He further asserted, “We will not tolerate the infringement of our rights or those who try to freeride on the investments we have made in our brand.”
The cases come days after the U.S. International Trade Commission voted to initiate a probe into the import and subsequent sale in the U.S. of footwear and packaging that allegedly infringes the trademark-protected offerings of Crocs. In a July 6 Notice of Institution of Investigation, the ITC revealed that it has voted in favor of launching an investigation in order to determine whether the companies cited by Crocs, including Skechers, Hobby Lobby, Loeffler Randall, and 20 others, are, in fact, importing into the U.S. and selling trademark infringing goods in violation of section 337 of the Tariff Act of 1930, and whether they are violating the Tariff Act “by reason of false designation of source or trademark dilution” in connection with the lookalike products, and thereby, creating “a threat or effect … [of] destroy[ing] or substantially injuring an industry in the United States.”
The case is Crocs, Inc. v. Bijora, Inc. d/b/a Akira, 1:21-cv-03698. (N.D.Ill.)


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Recent addition to our supporters list
Good people are around us. Just recently we were complimenting a well-known building supply chain of shops (one of them particularly) for their generosity. Now we would like to highlight a nationwide dry cleaning company that supports our Suit2Go service. Johnsons Dry Cleaners (part of Timpson Group PLC) offered to look after all the clothing pieces that we received via donation which require washing, alterations and repairing. Mr Ian Boden had visited our office in Bracknell and agreed that all the donated items (either by corporates' 'Suit Drives' or private persons) that require more attention would be cleaned and returned to us in usable standards. Recently we have collected a huge number of shirts, trousers, jackets, suits and ties from the Ascot branch of Johnsons and all these items are now ready for our Suit2Go clients. A very warm and special thanks to Mr Ian Boden, Area Manager and Mrs Karen Price, Ascot Branch Manager for their help.


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OpenTable Inc.’s new leader said she is confident consumer demand will return after the pandemic. But it might already be too late to save many restaurants.
The industry remains on track to lose 25% of its eateries nationwide based on the pace of reservations, according to Debby Soo, who took over this month as CEO of the restaurant-booking service. Without a vaccine to ease customer concerns, she’s standing by the bleak estimate first offered by her predecessor in May, even as some establishments say sales have started to stabilize during the summer months.
“Restaurants are doing everything they can to be scrappy and make it work and find pockets of growth,” Soo said in an interview. Many dining spots have expanded takeout and delivery service to survive, or even started offering groceries.
Soo, who began her career a decade ago as an intern for Kayak, the travel-search company owned by OpenTable parent Booking Holdings Inc., is taking the reins at a tumultuous time for the industry. To help draw back crowd-fearing customers, OpenTable is encouraging restaurants to list not just when it has free tables, but also what sanitation protocols they’ve put in place. The app also now offers options to arrange takeout or make grocery reservations.
The industry saw mixed results from the federal Paycheck Protection Program, she said. The program, which provided loans to help small businesses get through the economic shutdowns, closed this month and talks on another stimulus package for the economy have stalled in Congress. “It really depends on who you ask,” Soo said, but “any aid that restaurants can receive now is a good thing.”
What restaurants need most, though, is an end to the pandemic, she said. That means a vaccine.
“Dining will come back. We’ve seen even with cities opening back up, the demand for dining is there,” she said. But “it won’t go back to normal, meaning pre-Covid levels, until we have a vaccine.”
One thought on “OpenTable’s new CEO sees shakeout looming for U.S. restaurants”
I feel that the current environment in Indianapolis is inching closer to 50%.


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April 4, 2018
#BeaSzenfeld #HelloKitty #WorldChildhoodFoundation
Designer Bea Szenfeld has partnered with Sanrio a second time to design and release an exclusive collection of hand-printed Hello Kitty scarves. Launched with a VIP event attended by legendary Hello Kitty designer Ms. Yuko Yamaguchi, the scarves were auctioned on March 26th at Stockholms Auktionsverk’s annual auction Fashion. All proceeds will go to the World Childhood Foundation’s important work to prevent violence and sexual abuse of children.


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The last half of 2021 has witnessed a resurgence in economic activities in the US due to several monetary and fiscal stimulus and increased consumer spending. However, the supply chain challenges, rising price pressure, and lingering virus concerns have increased inflation. Several pundits predict that 2022 may present several disruptions which may interfere with your business continuity plan.
Here are 4 top disruptions to plan for in 2022:
1. Unrelenting COVID-19 Threat
Experts predict that the pandemic will persist for longer than expected. Even though there is improved awareness, the threat is still high due to the low vaccination rates globally. With the emergence of new strains of the virus, the latest being the Omicron variant and higher caseloads in industrialized countries, there is no sign that the situation may improve in 2022.
Reports indicate that the new strains are more transmissible and resistant to treatments and vaccines. With a highly dysfunctional US health system, as observed at the height of COVID-19, there is uncertainty about how the situation will be in the coming year. There is also uncertainty concerning the vaccines’ effectiveness in dealing with emergent variants.
Even though we may not witness new lock-downs and stay-at-home orders, the disruptions caused by the pandemic will persist due to restricted movements and delayed return-to-work by employees. However, the interference may not be as severe as previously witnessed. This is because most foreign trade partners have recorded a significant number of vaccinations and may not need to go on lock-down.
It is advisable to imagine the worst-case scenario as you lay out your business continuity plans for 2022. It is better to be over-prepared for COVID-19 disruptions than be caught flat-footed when the interferences with business continuity scenarios soar.
2. Supply Chain Disruptions
Several factors have affected supply chain logistics. There has been a labor shortage in key sectors such as manufacturing and shipping. The lock-downs and movement restrictions saw most people stay at home. The situation has not normalized globally, and experts predict it may persist in 2022 or worsen due to several factors.
There is a swell in the number of young workers as aged, skilled, and experienced workers opt to retire due to the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic. With the young, inexperienced workforce, there is a gap in skills. Most technical colleges have not been in operation since the onset of the pandemic so there are no new graduates with the technical skills companies need.
This may affect the quality of goods and services on offer. For instance, in the shipping sector, the young truck drivers with young families may not commit as much time as the aged ones. This means shipping companies need additional drivers. Young truck drivers are also more likely to cause accidents than experienced ones.
If there are no additional drivers to hire, the companies reduce the goods they haul in their trucks. In the end, this affects the volumes of goods in supply and the time it takes to receive those goods. As you plan for the coming year, expect a shortage or delay in the shipment of critical goods.
The shortage of raw materials may affect the supply chain. Most manufacturers rely on shipping companies to haul their raw materials. A slowdown in the shipment sector means a delay in the manufacturing and shipment of finished products.
The supply chain will be affected further by deglobalization, with economies opting to meet the demands of their local markets before shipping abroad. The economic wars between China and the US may endure and affect the supply of goods in 2022.
3. Increased Cyber Threats
The pandemic saw a spike in online businesses and increased technology-based transactions. Projections show there may be heightened cyber threats. Hackers may target companies depending on technology to connect with their remote teams.
In 2022, cybercriminal activities may swell, targeting companies using outdated cybersecurity tools that are inadequate in protecting their systems. As businesses suffer cash crunch owing to the hard economic times occasioned by the pandemic and the current inflation, they may lag in upgrading their cybersecurity barriers, exposing them to cyber attacks.
Besides, as workers return to work, they may unknowingly expose businesses to cyberattacks. Remote workers were inadequately trained on cybersecurity since companies were unprepared for work-from-home arrangements. As they bring the gadgets they were using at home to the office, the machines may introduce malware that may upset your business continuity scenarios.
Cybercriminals are targeting company data to use it to demand ransom payments. This is likely to augment in 2022 as more criminals join in the crime. Although Biden’s administration has shown a commitment to fighting cyber crimes, countries suspected of hosting these criminals may not cooperate due to icy diplomatic relations between them and the USA.
You may also not rule out insider threats, that is, workers colluding with cybercriminals to compromise your systems for monetary gains. In the recent past, hackers have increased the use of stolen data to extort money from businesses. As these practices become lucrative, hackers may lure your employees to the crime for a share of the paid ransom windfall.
4. Labor Shortage and a Demand for Higher Wages
The skilled, experienced, and aged labor force has opted to retire to keep safe from the CoronaVirus health threats. Most businesses laid off their workers, and as the economy opens up, they are looking for people to hire. There is stiff competition for the limited talent pool, especially those with critical skills.
The shortage in labor will see the demand for higher wages increase. This will raise the cost of labor as the workers also need better working conditions to safeguard their health.
To retain older, skilled employees, you may need to offer them premium packages. That may lead to increased wages for unskilled workers as well as you try to bridge the wage gap among your employees.
Companies may pay higher for health insurance to attract top talent. You may also experience higher employee turnover rates as you compete for dwindling talent.
Tight immigration policies will further affect the supply of labor. Considering technical colleges’ training programs were disrupted, the number of skilled graduates on the market is diminishing. Plan to spend more to train your workers on industry-specific skills after hiring them.
Want to learn more about Business Continuity?
Our Ultimate Guide to Business Continuity contains everything you need to know about business continuity.
You’ll learn what it is, why it’s important to your organization, how to develop a business continuity program, how to establish roles & responsibilities for your program, how to get buy-in from your executives, how to execute your Business Impact Analysis (BIA) and Business Continuity Plans, and how to integrate with your Crisis Management strategy.
We’ll also provide some perspectives on how to get help with your program and where to go to learn more about Business Continuity.
Can we help you?
In our experience, organizations with a strong business continuity & crisis management program have weathered the storm and protected their business throughout the turmoil of the past two years. We can help your organization ensure you have that right program in place for the coming year.


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Sales and lettings chain Sequence UK has given an undertaking to the Advertising Standards Authority to update its listings on Rightmove more promptly after properties are taken off the market.
A member of the public recently complained to the advertising watchdog about the agency after enquiring about one of its properties on the portal, only to discover that it had already been sold.
“We received a complaint about a property listing on Rightmove,” an ASA spokesman said.
“A complainant believed the ad was misleading because they were told the property was no longer on the market.
“The advertiser removed the listing and we told them in future to ensure they updated listings as soon as they knew a property was off the market.”
Following the exchange between the ASA and Sequence, the matter has been resolved informally, rather than been dealt with by the ASA’s main adjudication panel.
Sequence has only once before been investigated by the ASA when in June 2018 its Barnard Marcus Auctions business was asked to amend its online catalogue after a member of the public complained about a listin. It hadn’t mentioned that a plot of land up for auction could only be accessed via third party land and only by using a tractor.
Sequence has 320 branches around the UK and operates 14 different brands including its best known, Barnard Marcus and william h brown.


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Every day special workers at +Ford Europe secretly place wrong parts and faulty components on the assembly line. But rather than working for unscrupulous rivals, it's done to make sure that every engine meets rigorous quality standards.
The process was introduced after the an industry-first Vision System technology was installed at Ford's Valencia plant. The Vision System photographs, checks and tracks each and every component of the 400,000 cars and vans, and the 330,000 engines built there each year.
The So called "Gremlins Tests" are an innovative way of ensuring that new process is working correctly.
The Vision System captures more than a billion photos every fourteen days, comparable to the number of photos uploaded to Instagram in Europe.
So far, faulty engine parts, wrong steering wheels, and even incorrect dashboards have been sent down the line, with the “Gremlins Test” now extended to all 34 stages of assembly.
The system is working so well that +Ford Motor Company is considering rolling it out worldwide.


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the Union Ministry of Finance imposed an additional duty of Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 per vehicle on big cars and utility vehicles on June 13. The decision comes as a knee-jerk reaction to the skyrocketing international crude prices. While welcoming the move as a step forward, experts said staving off an energy crisis would require making the tax progressively harsher and linking it with fuel economy standards for vehicles.
The Rs 15,000 duty slapped on vehicles with engine capacity between 1,500 cc and 1,999 cc will be in addition to the existing 24 per cent central excise duty on big cars. There is no change in tax on cars with engine capacity below 1,500 cc. Vehicles with engine capacity of 2,000 cc and above have to pay Rs 20,000 as additional specific duty.
Sujit Patwardhan of Parisar, an ngo working for environment and sustainable development in Pune, welcomed the government decision. He suggested that the money collected from these levies be used exclusively for improvement of public transport systems, and not more roads and flyovers.
The price of cars may go up by more than the additional duty. For Maruti SX4 (1,586 cc), for example, a customer will have to shell out Rs 20,000-22,000 extra, said a sales executive of Apra Auti (India), a Maruti dealer.
The automobile industry wants the government to withdraw the duty hike. The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (siam), the top automobile industry body, said, "It is inappropriate for the government to increase the price of vehicles, especially since the industry is going through a downturn."
Stringent tax brakes are needed to check the steady drift towards bigger vehicles that use up more fuel in India. Already the share of mini cars (length up to 3.4 metres) in the passenger vehicles has dropped from 21 per cent in 2001-02 to 6 per cent in 2006-07.
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Publix Opens New Store in Raleigh and a GreenWise Market in Fort Lauderdale
LAKELAND, FL - Publix is broadening its reach across the South thanks to the addition of two new store locations, including one for its small-format specialty, natural, and organic GreenWise Market. Fort Lauderdale gets the honor of welcoming the new GreenWise Market, while Raleigh celebrated the grand opening of its new Publix yesterday, November 28, according to news source WRAL.
Fort Lauderdale now houses six GreenWise Markets, with the new location marking the second site for the new-format stores in South Florida.
“South Florida is such a large, diverse area, and we believe our customers in the Fort Lauderdale community will appreciate the environment and curated products at GreenWise Market,” said Senior Vice President of Retail Operations Kevin Murphy in a press release. “We’re excited to continue growing this new concept in our market area.”
The new GreenWise Market will set up shop on the southwest corner of Southeast Third Avenue and Southeast Second Street. The opening date has not yet been determined. The new traditional Publix store is located at 9640 Leesville Road, in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Where will Publix take its traditional and GreenWise Market stores next? AndNowUKnow will continue to keep an eye peeled on what’s new in grocery retail.


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Apple paid only 2% corporation tax outside US (BBC)
Monday November 5th, 2012
Apple paid less than 2% corporation tax on its profits outside the US, its filing with US regulators has shown.
The company paid $713m (£445m) in the year to 29 September on foreign pre-tax profits of $36.8bn, a rate of 1.9%.
It is the latest company to be identified as paying low rates of overseas tax, following Starbucks, Facebook and Google in recent weeks.


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Starbucks Corporation is scotching a rumour that its coffee shops will offer discounted drinks and food, to undocumented immigrants on 11 August.
Jonh Kelley, senior vice president of global communuications at Starbucks Corporation, told The Associated Press in an email that the rumour is ''completely false. One hundred percent fake.''
Starbucks also tweeted to shoot down fake advertisements that promoted ''Dremear Day.''
According to the bogus ads, undocumented immigrants could avail 40 per cent off any menu item on 11 August.
The stock of Starbucks Corporation on Friday traded at beginning with a price of $55.97 and when day-trade ended the stock finally moved down -0.43 per cent to reach at $55.44.


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analytica Anacon India and India Lab Expo give the industry an opportunity to stay informed about the latest products from laboratory technology up to analytical instruments. The innovations demonstrated at the two trade fairs will feature interdisciplinary sectors. The shows take place from 8-10 October, 2015, at the Hitex Exhibition Center in Hyderabad.
With the growth of the pharmaceutical industry, there are global players entering the Indian market. Awareness about healthcare has caused innovation in the pharmaceutical sector and lead to the introduction of new drugs. Usage of drugs in the market is predicted at 70 billion rupee and can be brought down to less than 10 billion rupee if doctors prescribed medicines by their generic names. Recently the Telangana States Drugs Control Administration (TSDCA) has identified approximately 21 drugs that were sold and were not of the standard quality that was certified by the government, hence becoming a rising concern. M.R. Pradeep, Deputy Drugs Controller from the Drugs Control Department of the State of Kerala in India, said in an interview that good manufacturing practices and good laboratory practices help ensure 99 percent standard quality in drugs. Challenges for the pharmaceutical industry will also be discussed in the supporting program of analytica Anacon India and India Lab Expo.
Concurrently with the trade fairs, the power packed analytica Anacon India conference will be taking place. Latest industry trends, techniques and methods bridge the gap between science and industry. At this year's conference an international session on "Research & Regulations: Challenges for the Pharmaceutical Industry" will touch upon topics like regulatory aspects and analytical technologies in clinical diagnosis. Speakers at the conference will be international experts like Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Maret from the King's College London, Tadeusz Gorecki from the University of Waterloo in Canada or Prof. Dr. Peter Kuban from the Central European Institute of Technology - to name a few. Furthermore, food safety will also play a big part in this year's program which will focus on the latest testing equipment and the according laboratory technology. Another attractive topic will be the workshop on "How to setup a Laboratory" which highlights the necessary needs to start one's own laboratory business in India.
analytica Anacon India and India Lab Expo will attract more than 8,500 visitors from various domains like, pharmaceutical, chemical and petrochemical, health care, food, electrical engineering and electronics, medical laboratory, medicine, universities, research institutes and more. With the attendance of major international and domestic leaders in the sector of analytical instruments, the twin expos promise to showcase innovative and high quality equipment.
"Analytical and scientific instruments are indispensable tools in R&D and quality control. The trade fairs will provide visitors with the latest developments in the areas of analytics, laboratory, biotechnology as well as scientific instruments and technology", says Harsh Vardhan, Minister, Minister of Science & Technology and Earth Sciences of the Indian Government
analytica Anacon India and India Lab Expo are also supported by Indian Analytical Instruments Association (IAIA), Bulk Drug Manufacturers Association (BDMA), Confederation of Indian Pharmaceutical Industry (CIPI), Indian Chemical Council (ICC), Oil Technologists' Association of India (OTAI) and SPECTARIS - German Hightech Industry Association.


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Oppo’s 5G phones connectivity details
For those who are unaware, India is currently experiencing the rollout of the first phases of the 5G network by several telecom carriers there. In order to accommodate the newer and faster network standard, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer is now bringing it to all regional Airtel customers.
The corporation has partnered with the industry titan in Indian telecom, and this has arrived. We are excited to work with OPPO once more on our 5G journey because they have been a long-time partner of Airtel, according to Shashwat Sharma, Director of Consumer Business at Airtel.
Airtel 5G Plus is already operational in 8 locations, and we intend to expand our services shortly all across the nation, he continued. Customers who already have an Airtel 4G SIM card that is 5G enabled can access superfast 5G services on any Oppo’s 5G phones by simply selecting the 5G network in the settings.
In addition to 20 to 30 times faster speeds than currently available networks, our network will also provide excellent speech quality and incredibly quick call connections.
To put it simply, this means that consumers won’t need to switch to a different Airtel SIM card in order to benefit from 5G networking. Owners of Airtel and Oppo’s 5G phones who live in cities where 5G services are being rolled out just need to enable the option in settings to enjoy the advantages of a faster internet connection.


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York County couple hopes to grow custom travel niche
While travel is in the name of his business, time management and an experience are what Jason Holland sells.
Four years ago, he parlayed his passion for destination trip planning into a part-time business. Two years later, that Fairview Township company, Travel Simplicity, became a full-time gig.
"Ultimately, it's about saving people time and stress," said Holland, who runs the custom travel agency with his wife, Sandy.
The Hollands consider themselves travel butlers. They bring a personalized touch and literal white-glove service that is rare in the travel industry.
The bulk of travel agents can customize vacations using a standard package as a base, and they're commission-based. Tour operators also offer custom trips but typically focus on a particular destination.
Travel Simplicity focuses on the people — who they are and what they like — before building any custom itineraries.
"It's more about the relationship than it is the destination," said Jason Holland. "We get to know them. They just have to know what they like."
There is no box, Holland said. The only limitations are budget and the physically impossible.
"It's something different. We hoped there was a market for it," he said.
There is, but so far it's been somewhat limited. The company has about 40 to 50 clients — mainly picked up through referrals — but it's still running in the red. The goal is to start turning a profit by the end of the year, the Hollands said.
In order to do that, Travel Simplicity continues to network locally and abroad. The company also looks for growth in its add-on services to "take care of everything" it possibly can to make it easier for clients.
That list includes expedited passports and visas, foreign currency exchange, concierge help, a smartphone app to contact live interpreters when traveling abroad, in-home and after-hours consultations and at-home savings on electric and gas services to allow for more money to travel.
Oh, and they also sell luggage, eye masks, travel blankets and pillows, as well as noise-canceling headphones for travel. While customers are away, Travel Simplicity also can arrange concierge vehicle maintenance services, pet sitting and plant watering.
"We are always looking at new services to add every day," Holland said.
House cleaning and babysitting services are in the works.
"Generally, we save someone 80 to 100-plus hours of work, 100-plus emails and up to two hours of phone calls — oftentimes to another country," he said. "Some of (the extras we sell) is a little income, but nothing is a big help. We're offering because it helps our clients."
Each custom trip can take up to 40 hours of planning. Travel Simplicity makes money by charging a percentage of the cost of the trips it arranges. The fees are on a sliding scale.
"I think it's the right time for something like this," said Sandy Holland, who is a clinical consultant at Pennsylvania Counseling Services and helps her husband in the evenings and on weekends.
She was the one who encouraged him to start the travel business. He had planned the couple's honeymoon to Thailand, plus other trips to China, Japan and Australia.
"We kind of caught the travel bug," she said. "It was how we took a break and unwound."
Every year the couple would save up their money and pick two weeks for a dream vacation. But with a young business to support, those personal trips have dwindled. Most are now related to work as Travel Simplicity continues to foster relationships with various vendors around the world. The company has seen growing demand for destination weddings.
"Our whole lifestyle changed," Jason Holland said. "We had to cut back on going out to eat and spending money on other things that we used to do quite a bit."
The couple sold a Mazda Miata and home theater system worth as much as the car to help with business expenses, which include promotional materials, online marketing and memberships tied to industry networks. The Travel Simplicity motto is: Do it well or don't do it at all.
"The whole point of what we do is take care of our clients as personal travel butlers, regardless of local or international. We can create a custom design in their backyard if they want," he said.
A recent AAA survey found that 66 percent of U.S. adults planned to take a leisure trip between Memorial Day and Labor Day this year.
Those hitting the road, on average, will go on 3.5 trips during the summer months.
The survey found that value continues to be a top priority for travelers. Nearly 60 percent ranked unexpected expenses that can make developing a travel budget difficult as the top vacation frustration.
Finding the time to take the perfect vacation came in as the second-largest travel frustration, while finding the best price for lodging and transportation was third.
More about Jason Holland
Jason Holland worked in sales and marketing for about nine years. He was laid off in 2011 from Balaton Marketing, based in Virginia, which pushed him to take Travel Simplicity to a full-time business.
Most of the company’s client base is local, though Holland has worked with people in other states, including Maryland, Alaska and Virginia, as well as Canada.
The 33-year-old is a Red Land High School graduate and majored in philosophy at Cedarville University, where he graduated in 2002.


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Volvo is building an electric vehicle, and, somewhat surprisingly, it’s not going to cost a ton of money.
According to Automotive News, Lex Kerssemakers, CEO of the luxury car maker’s USA arm, told journalists at the Geneva auto show that the company aims to launch the car in 2019 with a $35,000 – $40,000 price.
Very few details are known about the car at this point — not even its size has been decided — but Kerssemakers claimed it will have a range of at least 250 miles.
Volvo already offers hybrid variants of several of its models, including the XC90 SUV and the V60, but it doesn’t have a purely electric car. …
Via: Mashable: Tech


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Loan Melas Are Here, But Why Now? FM Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday asked banks not to announce any stressed loan account for MSMEs as NPA till March 2020 and work on its debt modification
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
On Thursday, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman made an official statement regarding Public Sector Banks organizing credit "Shamiana Meetings' in 400 districts of India.
In a bid to combat the economic slowdown, Sitharaman stated that the event is aimed to ensure the maximum credit disbursal during festive season to the companies. To address the market complaining about low liquidity, the government is looking to boost credit that will bring liquidity for businesses and create jobs.
Targeting the various sectors, Finance Minister mentioned about the industries to be taken in the priority list. Here are the sectors and their declining records which triggered the government to bring upon the measures overpowering liquidity.
Eyeing the recent records of the auto sector, it can be said that if any industry is most badly affected by the downturn is automobile Sector. In the month of Aug-September for the fiscal year 2019, the passenger vehicle sales declined around 32 percent whereas commercial vehicle sales plunged to 38.71 percent.
The crisis in the automobile sector is intensifying with every passing month as the comprehensive domestic sales fell to a record low. Recognizant of the overall production, there was an 18.45 percent plunge in the production for this month. Known as the country's dominant company in car production, Maruti Suzuki faced big loss to its production figures during slowdown.
According to a report in Economic Times, the company's share fell to 3.6 percent in the month of September, resulting in the production shutdown of Maruti Suzuki's Manesar and Gurugram plant for two days. The plants at Gurugram and Manesar have a combined annual production capacity of 1.58 million units. In Gujarat, Suzuki Motor Corp subsidiary produces 0.5 million units that are sold by Maruti Suzuki. Working upon the auto slowdown, the government reduced GST on vehicles and initiated "Scrappage Policy' for the betterment. And now, the Finance Minister has come up with the PSBs Loan Mela which would be an additional ease for Automobile industry.
In this financial year, Indian consumer goods industry could record its lowest pace of revenue growth in a decade and a half. Downturn constraints and lower farm income is likely to impact India's leading consumer companies.
According to the Credit Suisse report by ET, despite the slowdown over FY16-19, FMCG companies grew their earnings faster by expanding margins from levers like the fall in crude prices and GST savings. Revenue records say that 2Q and 3Q FY20 to see a further slowdown in revenue growth of our coverage universe to about 5 percent. This will make FY20 the slowest year of growth for FMCG in 15 years. The last period of such low growth was 2000-03. The BSE FMCG index has declined 7.4 percent. In 2019 so far, while the broader Sensex has gained 1.4 percent.
"We are heading ahead with the efforts to strike down the revenue troubles coming in the way of progress for Indian companies. Government will leave no stone unturned to stabilize the financial chronicles of the companies and its aspects of production, manufacturing, import and export. PSBs decision to call for "Shamiana Meetings' is also amongst one of the steps towards better fiscal structure" said an MSME source.


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Is Self-Service Checking Out?
Good riddance as far as I'm concerned. If I'm good enough to shop in your store, you should be good enough to bag my items for me. A wink or a smile doesn't hurt either.
Start waving goodbye to what was once hailed as the wave of the future -- self-service checkouts.
Several nationwide grocery chains recently reported that they're bagging the automated checkouts. But the DIY machines have been losing their luster for a while. In 2010, only 16 percent of supermarket transactions were done at self-checkout lanes, down from 22 percent three years ago, according to the Food Marketing Institute in Arlington, Va.
The checkouts, which debuted 10 years ago, were designed to cut the time spent waiting in line for shoppers and reduce labor costs for stores.
Some retailers also hoped they would be a surefire way to make a positive impression on customers, said supermarket analyst David Livingston of DJL Research in Waukesha, Wis.
"Not all stores can hire friendly, attractive employees who leave a favorable experience," he said. "Sometimes a self-service checkout leaves a more positive feeling."
While some shoppers enjoy the autonomy, Madeline Forbes of Minneapolis said she uses self-service only as a last resort.


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comScore just came out with a study showing that 85% of all click-throughs on online display ads come from only 8% of online consumers.
It’s like there is a special breed of people out there that for some reason like to click on ads. And, the total percentage of click-throughers has fallen off 50% in the last year.
According to comScore all is not wasted however as the report goes on to say that viewing a display ad significantly increases the number of consumers who search for that brand and go to the website and they saw a significant lift in both online and offline sales.
After being exposed to a display ad a consumer was 65% more likely to visit the brand site within one week and 45% more likely to visit after four weeks.
So now we’re going to measure view-throughs along with click-throughs.
The strength of the web is that you can measure everything and the weakness is exactly the same as we can’t compare online display ads to offline ads. How valuable really is an outdoor board?
My takeaway is that we will add more metrics to display ads and find a value. More importantly, I come back to buying adwords where it’s one of the few places where buyer and seller meet on purpose. Let’s make sure we have that base covered both locally and nationally before we spend too much money on display ads.


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Wallet uses a barcode scanned at check out that includes payment and applicable coupons. Target's announcement post plays up how much faster this process is compared to "other payment types", which presumably refers to traditional swipe and chip-and-PIN methods.
This release date really wouldn't be a huge surprise (we knew it was coming Q1) and March has been as massive month for key PlayStation titles in previous years with both Horizon Zero Dawn and Uncharted 4 (originally) both taking up these months.
The good news is that if you've been waiting for the iPhone X to be unlocked and SIM-free, that time is now . This version gives the freedom of activating the phone at any local or worldwide carrier by simply getting a SIM card from your desired operator.
Facebook in its response wrote: "On Thursday November 30 just after midnight Pacific time we bacame aware that a few people were having issues with their Messenger accounts". Federal law prohibits internet companies from collecting personal information on kids under 13 without their parents' permission and imposes restrictions on advertising to them.
In the meantime, close to 5 million users have joined the service, taking the overall user base to 12 million. The most important is Android Go , a lightweight edition of Android made for entry-level devices that have little storage and less than 1GB of RAM.
While del Toro is most known for directing equally imaginative tales like Pan's Labyrinth , he's actually going to be in Death Stranding as a character through the use of motion capture. I don't know what he's gonna make me do. This of course prompts a big question: will we be learning any more about Kojima Productions' Death Stranding? Kojima himself said this when he spoke with PlayStation Blog early this year.
Nokia 8 , 5, 6 and 3 smartphones are also confirmed to get the next Android P update, as well. It is worth noting that HMD Global has not announced or hinted at any thing as of now. Alongside the launch date and images of the Nokia 9 , some of the specs and also the price of the phone have been leaked online. The Nokia 3 is powered by a powered by 1.3GHz quad-core MediaTek 6737 processor and comes with a 5-inch HD display with 720x1280 pixel resolution.
Assassin's Creed Origins has a number of December updates that fans of classic Super Nintendo and PlayStation games might love. Anubis and Sobek were in November, and the final fight is against Sekhmet, the warrior goddess. We recommend Level 32 or higher. The Gladiator Items Pack is coming on December 12 with some gladiator gear for Bayer, while the Wacky Items Pack is a flawless fit for the game's bath towel costume.
David Levine, a University of California Hastings law school professor, said that by allowing the ban to take effect just days before the appeals court arguments, the justices were signaling their view. If anything, it said, the government's case has weakened. Opponents of this and previous versions of the ban say they show a bias against Muslims.
They will also have to expressly ask for consent to share the data; while also highlight how the information will be used. If an app continues to stray from the policy, users are likely to see its Safe Browsing full-page warnings, which will probably drive users away from the offending software.
Despite repeated vigorous denials, it seems anti-virus company Kaspersky is unable to convince anyone that matters that they are not in league with the Russian government. Specifically, the Martin warns that systems containing information classified as "SECRET and above", while some systems containing material classified as Official, should not use products that originated in Russian Federation.
We are known to bring revolutionary products to the range of millions of Indians and this is another step in that direction". Just four months after that, the company has launched an updated smartphone which is dubbed as the Infinity Pro. According to the company, the battery on this device is rated to give up to 20 hours of talk time and lasts up to 420 hours on standby. The phone runs Android 7.1 Nougat and has a 3000mAh battery.
A child can't even create an account on his or her own - a parent must do it for them. It will be interesting to see parents reaction to this new app for kids under 13. That's a departure from Facebook's approach in the past, as when it required users to download the separate Messenger app in 2014 in order to send direct messages on Facebook.
Google and Facebook will be subject to an inquiry around the impact of digital platforms on news media in Australia. "We will also consider the impact of information asymmetry between digital platform providers and advertisers and consumers", Sims said.
Wentz was able to scramble to his right and launch a pass over Seahawks CB Byron Maxwell for the big gain. Wilson's performance adds credibility to his case for MVP, especially because it came in a nationally televised game and against Wentz, perhaps the leading candidate for the award.
Papworth's first message truly celebrated the holiday season. Handsets could only receive messages, not send them, so Mr Papworth typed out the season's greetings on a computer. Ofcom statistics state that mobile phone users sent 102 billion texts in 2015, compared with 150 billion in 2011. She added: "And we can see that continuation through to today when we have hundreds of thousands of applications on our smartphone".
Adobe Systems Incorporated (NASDAQ: ADBE ) has risen 42.29% since December 1, 2016 and is uptrending. The stock of SCYNEXIS, Inc. The stock increased 0.58% or $0.28 during the last trading session, reaching $48.18. Vetr raised shares of Adobe Systems from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $122.96 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 14th.
From looking absolutely stellar in ethnic Indian attires to marching forward with her project of menstrual hygiene-with Haryana CM ML Khattar now backing her up-Manushi has been earning brownies points in nearly all realms ever since she's returned to India.
On the other hand, bugs that are facing in Whatsapp are removing from time to time. Moreover, the group admin will also have the privilege to delete the message. It is possible to post it after the approval of group administrator. This new version will also bring a lot of bug fixes and improvements. The WhatsApp has also said that the group admin will be able to restrict groups once in 72 hours.
It is common practice for investors to use the price-to-earnings ratio (P/E ratio or price multiple) to determine if a company's stock price is over or undervalued. Activision Blizzard ( ATVI ) opened at $64.13 on Friday. For the Current Quarter, the growth estimate for Activision Blizzard, Inc .is -3.3%, while for the Next Quarter the stock growth estimate is 35.5%.
This team has been in as unfriendly of territory as it gets in the college football world and it's a safe bet that coach Tedford has helped them learn from those experiences. Oregon's previous loss at Matthew Knight Arena came on January 8, 2015 to Arizona. OR started the game 1 for 9 from the field and before the end of the first half, Boise State found themselves in the same 1 for 9 rut.
But for fans of Burch, there's some good news on the horizon. The bonus episode "Farewell" from Before the Storm's Deluxe Edition will be releasing in early 2018 and in even more exciting news; Hannah Telle and Ashly Burch will be returning to play Max and Chloe! The SAG-AFTRA voice actor's strike officially came to a close earlier this month, following a tentative agreement put together in September.
Guaranteed to be exciting, one way or another, ' Musk posted. Its cargo? A Tesla Roadster with David Bowie on the stereo. Not anymore, as he just revealed what might be Falcon Heavy's first payload. "Destination is Mars orbit". Musk expects his Roadster to remain in deep space for a billion of years, unless Falcon Heavy blows up on its way to the red planet.
Developers whose apps show warnings should refer to guidance in the Unwanted Software Help Center . Alex Dimayuga, an 18-year-old student and a user of Datally since February 2017, said she uses the application in order to balance her limited data plan for her researches and social media.
Download iOS 11.2 now for your iPad, iPhone and iPad touch. The problem it seems is a bug in iOS 11 that causes processor usage to spike to 100 percent when apps generate a notification . iOS 11.2 has evidently had its release schedule moved forward to combat the date bug crashing. Apple's new peer-to-peer payment service was supposed to have been released with the first version of iOS 11, but the company chose to delay the feature to a future update.
The Lite version receives good response from the users and it increases the Tweet counts upto 50%. Twitter is driving out its "Lite" version, after a successful trial in the Philippines. Interestingly, Twitter has also reduced the size of this app below 3MB. Over the past few months, we've added safety and performance improvements in addition to features including GIF search, ranked Home timeline, and more.
The Price to Book ratio for Enbridge Energy Management, L.L.C. NYSE:EEQ is 1441.269600. Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Enbridge Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $18.56. For this year, Enbridge Energy Partners , L.P. ((NYSE:EEP)) is performing -42.62%.
Nghia Hoang Pho, a 67-year-old man residing in Maryland, pleaded guilty to one count of removal and retention of national defense information. Pho faces up to 10 years in prison, though could negotiate a lighter punishment. Kaspersky said what was stolen included essential source code for so-called Equation Group hacking software from the NSA. Kaspersky claims it destroyed the NSA hacking tools when it realized what they were.
Jak 2 originally launched 15 years ago, in 2003, nearly two years after Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy . So, what will fans be getting for their $15? So now is a flawless time for fans that played the originals, and for new gamers who never touched a Jak and Daxter game to explore one (or three) of Naughty Dog's older titles.
Alexa is no stranger in following voice commands, but its new feature will help " Destiny 2 " players a lot. "The Destiny 2 Ghost skill is the first of its kind and the most innovative and immersive gaming experience to date on Alexa. (NYSE:RNG), a leading provider of global enterprise cloud communications and collaboration solutions, today announced new, powerful Alexa for Business integrations that bring an entirely reimagined user experience to communications and collaboration in the ...
This issue has been fixed and we apologize for the inconvenience". At least 2,552 reports were filed at Down Detector - an independent app-monitoring website - as of 12:30 AM PST, Friday. The outage was most acute in northern Europe and Brazil but lasted less than an hour, according to downdetector .com, which tracks disruptions across telecommunications services.
Also available are more armor ornaments like the Vanguard ornaments, Trials of the Nine Ornaments, Iron Banner Ornaments, and Faction ornaments, among others. Alongside the new expansion, Bungie has promised some major Destiny 2 updates throughout December, which includes changes to the mods, an upgraded reputation system and tweaks to the vendor's inventory.
Tizi was discovered by the Google Play Protect team when device scans found app packages that had root capabilities gained through older known exploits. Most importantly, Google said it has used "information and signals from the Tizi apps to update Google's on-device security services and the systems that search for PHAs [potentially harmful applications]" and has rolled the updates out to every Google Play Protect user.
Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.69% of the company's stock. Juniper Networks, Inc . has 378.3 million shares outstanding, and in the last trade has seen ATR around 0.65. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink . Also, Director Rahul N. Merchant acquired 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 8th.
In January, Apple sued Qualcomm asking for $1 billion in patent royalty rebates that were allegedly withheld from Apple . Apple is seeking monetary damages, but the exact amount has not yet been disclosed. Now, Apple is firing back with a countersuit of its own, and it goes right after Qualcomm's bread-and-butter: the Snapdragon product family. The U.S.
You'll want to hop to completing those requests, as it sounds like there will be plenty of holiday items to craft. After booting the game you should see a special notice that runs through all of the new additions. To collect the Santa clothes, you'll need to go a step further and complete specific event challenges set by Isabelle (your camp cheerleader/administrator).
Launch offers of Honor 7X are also there. If the device does eventually come to Malaysia, we can expect it to be called the honor 9 Pro, but if you want to grab it before local launch it's up for pre-order now and sales begin on December 5th, you can check it out on Vmall here.
The spokesperson also said that no information regarding sexual misconduct was disclosed to Andy Rubin . The woman worked in the Android division at the time, which was headed by Rubin. But now, trouble is brewing around company founder Andy Rubin, which will pull him away from the business right during the holiday shopping period. There is no official reason given but incidentally, there are reports floating around that he once had an "inappropriate relationship" while still at Google.
In the game, the floating Ghost companion serves as a guide, and in real-life, users can bark orders directly at the device as well. In case you are reading this late or have no plans on getting the Ghost replica speaker, you can still use the Destiny 2 Ghost Skill on any Amazon Alexa device .
Touted as the world's "first artificial intelligence decanter", the Alexa-like device features a compartment for bourbon storage and voice command capabilities. Jim Beam is getting into the smart device market. If you happen to inquire about the best way to drink bourbon, Jim will give you one simple answer.
Ardyn's past has always been a mystery, and fans have been asking for content focused on his story. The pair revealed some interesting information about the latest Final Fantasy title, including more on their "First Anniversary Update" and Episode Ardyn .
Deathinitive Edition: Steam gamers will be happy with this PS4 gem, which is a fantasy, battle game with improved graphics and audio. The games for subscribers are Darksiders 2: Deathinitive Edition and Kung Fu Panda: Showdown of Legendary Legends - just the games you want to ring 2017 in, right? November is a huge month for Sony and PlayStation, with the company's earnings getting pumped up by Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.
This is useful in cases where you need certain apps - email for example - to always use data in the background. Back in June, Google quietly launched an app called "Triangle", created to conserve mobile data. Google says that it's like a speedometer for your data. Almost all functions provided by Datally are already available in the android settings. Google has released an app of its own which can help curb the extra costs that could be incurred due to this.
The first commercial networks based on Standalone 5G NR are expected to go live in 2019, with significant network deployments from 2020. These deployments are foreseen in markets such as US, South Korea, Japan and China. Voice over LTE (VoLTE) has been launched in more than 125 networks in over 60 countries across all regions. The increased streaming of high-resolution videos and immersive video formats such as 360-degree video will continue to increase data traffic volumes, according to ...
For instance, instead of simply pressing "heart" on Beyonce's maternity photo (Instagram's most liked post of 2017), you may be able to simply regram the image into your own feed soon. It actually reminds us a lot of Myspace's Top 8, which we can only hope we're part of for you. Using the button to repost a photo will presumably share it through your feed while properly attributing the photographer, linking back to their account, and contributing to the original post's social activity.
In "The X-Files: Deep State ", players assume the role of an FBI Special Agent, investigating mysterious crime scenes that defy explanation. In the game, players assume the role of an Federal Bureau of Investigation special agent and must find hidden clues, collect evidence, solve puzzles, and interrogate witnesses and suspects to solve the case - with their decisions affecting how the storyline plays out.
The motorcycle mode can be turned on within the settings for "vehicle type". Meanwhile, the new OK Waze feature lets you get directions, preview the route ahead, report a traffic jam, and add a pit stop, all with the sound of your voice.
Andy Rubin is best known as the "father" of Android, the mobile operating system that would make Google the biggest smartphone player in the world. An Essential spokesperson told Fortune that Rubin asked to take a leave of absence "to deal with personal matters" at a company board meeting earlier this month.
When you type in the search bar, Emojipedia gives you a list of options with an explanation for each, and, of course, the emoji itself including the Cheeseburger Emoji. Samsung, for instance, has its own version of hamburger emoji. When the company released Android 8.1 Developer Beta 2 yesterday , it included an all-new cheeseburger emoji, this time made properly.


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During the winter, The Sunshine State’s bounty supplies most of the country and Canada.
During the Florida time of year, the Sunshine State’s farmers harvest an incredible variety of crops while most of their counterparts elsewhere in the country still wait patiently for the snow to melt.
“Our peak season is currently underway with the winter harvest,” says Maria Brous, director of media and community relations for Lakeland, FL-headquartered Publix Super Markets. “As the rest of the country is getting colder, we are in prime time for Florida produce. We have everything from squash, zucchini, beans, peppers, cucumbers to citrus and strawberries. Our season will continue through February and March. In true spring, we have some watermelon, blueberries, Athena cantaloupe and avocados in June.”
Publix highlights the arrival of the local produce with its At Season’s Peak program, and the state Department of Agriculture sponsors a Fresh from Florida logo that alerts consumers throughout the state, and a little beyond, that fruits and vegetables from nearby farms have arrived.
The appeal of local produce is strong, but Florida farms also occupy an important time slot — a little later than Mexico and earlier than California — in supplying U.S.-grown fresh vegetables to most of the eastern half of the country. “The spring crop goes from the middle of March to the middle of May,” says Mike Shier, sales manager at Six L’s Packing Company, Immokalee, FL. “I think the whole Northeast looks forward to Florida produce after the Mexican deal winds down. The state of Florida promotes it heavily. For me, green peppers, cucumbers and eggplant are the biggest spring vegetables.”
Food For The East
When shipments of tomatoes, peppers and squash from Mexico begin to wind down, Florida has a near monopoly on vegetables over a wide area that includes the eastern half of the country, and even into Canada.
“Fruits and vegetables are at their peak during the spring season,” says Chris Coffman Sr., vice president for marketing and strategy at J&J Family of Farms, Loxahatchee, FL. “For us at J&J Family of Farms, it’s a busy time when bell peppers, eggplants, cucumbers, squash and green beans are all at their peak.”
Spring is the season Florida ships many mainstream vegetables to most of the country east of the Mississippi. “We are known for tomatoes, cucumbers, snap beans, peppers and, of course, sweet corn, in addition to other crops,” says Lisa Lochridge, director of public affairs for the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association (FFVA), Maitland, FL. “In the spring, Florida is sort of the Salad Bowl for the United States.”
“We are known for tomatoes, cucumbers, snap beans, peppers and, of course, sweet corn in addition to other crops.
In the spring, Florida is sort of the Salad Bowl for the United States.”
— Lisa Lochridge, Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association
The Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association is an advocacy program for the state’s farmers, but it does not participate in promotions. But while the Florida vegetable harvest generally comes a little later than Mexico, the state’s growers are still in competition with product from below the border, especially when it comes to staples like tomatoes, peppers and squash. “Until April, the tomatoes will come out of the south end of the state,” says Chuck Weisinger, owner of Fort Myers, FL- based Weis-Buy Farms, which grows and ships tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers outside of Florida. “On the west they grow as close to the Gulf of Mexico as they can, and as close to the coast as they can on the east. Later in the spring, we move north. We’re looking at pretty good volume from the early spring this year.”
An important marketing strategy in the early spring, when the Mexico deal is still steaming, is to emphasize the country of origin of the Florida vegetables. “With the competition from Mexico, the growers are promoting them as from the United States,” says Weisinger. “The Florida Tomato Commission markets the product. The Department of Agriculture also has some money to promote the products.”
Lochridge agrees with the strategy of pointing out the country of origin, saying, “I think most people believe domestically grown produce is generally of higher quality.” These promotions work, especially when they connect the consumer and the produce with familiar spring eating events. “When you have a big special on watermelon and cantaloupe, people want them; but if you’re into salads, the peppers and cucumbers are a draw,” says Tom O’Brien, president of C & D Fruit and Vegetable Co., Bradenton, FL. “Our spring vegetables include squash, beans, peppers and cucumbers. Our spring season begins around the end of March or beginning of April, and goes to the end of May.”
In addition to promoting the country of origin, Florida vegetable shippers also find it advantageous to promote particular vegetables on certain holidays. “Cabbage for St. Patrick’s Day and broccoli for Easter are heavily promoted,” says Bob Creel, director of business development at L&M Companies, Raleigh, NC. “Colored potatoes are promoted heavily, too.”
Another approach Florida growers take to the competition is constant tinkering to come up with newer and either better or less expensive varieties of familiar vegetables. “We’re growing tomatoes that have more flavor than before, and are firmer,” says Weis-Buy Farms’ Weisinger. “They have longer shelf life, unless you make a mistake and refrigerate them. You get them below 50 degrees, and you mess them up.”
There are also numerous Florida growers working to replicate in the open field the quality of colored bell peppers already grown under protection. “J&J Family of Farms’ field grown colored bell peppers will be a hot item this spring,” says Coffman. “It’s a beautiful pepper that has thick walls and long shelf life; we believe it’s competitive with greenhouse-grown colored bell peppers.”
A number of Florida shippers are also moving colored bell peppers from the greenhouse to the open fields. “We’re launching open field red and yellow bell peppers,” says Creel. “They look amazingly close to the greenhouse-grown. We’ve been looking at it for three or four years, and this is the first we’ve gone commercial with it.”
Food For Greener Times
While the main staple vegetable crops out of Florida remain unchanged, there is a bit more of a greenish hue these days, as in Northern California-style greenish. “We purchased a new organic farm in Florida; it’s a good size farm,” says L&M’s Creel. “We’re going to grow black kale, kale, green cabbage and broccoli. We already have another organic farm in the state where we grow zucchini, cucumbers and green bells. We have been getting more calls for organic.”
In addition to offering more than one kind of organic kale, L&M Companies is also increasing its acreage of broccoli, the healthy crucifer Japanese farmers introduced to California decades ago. “We’re growing more broccoli and colored potatoes than we were 10 years ago,” says Creel. “We were already cutting greens in December 2016, and will go through April. We harvest colored potatoes from the beginning of February until June. A great deal of what we grow in Florida leaves the state and goes as far up as Maine, and as far over as the Great Lakes.”
“We’re growing tomatoes that have more flavor than before, and are firmer. They have longer shelf life, unless you make a mistake and refrigerate them. You get them below 50 degrees, and you mess them up.”
— Chuck Weisinger, Weis-Buy Farms
In addition, the nation’s largest grower of wild rocket arugula and watercress, B&W Quality Growers, is also based in Florida, not California. This increased interest in organic, broccoli and leafy greens looks to be in addition to the old Florida standby vegetables, as nothing is significantly decreasing in acreage. “I don’t know of anything whose acreage has significantly decreased or increased in the last few years,” says FFVA’s Lochridge.
Food For Locals
As consumers in the Northeast are drawn to U.S.-grown produce from the fields of the Sunshine state, Florida residents are even more interested in vegetables from their local farms.
“People are interested in where their food comes from, and this gives us an opportunity to talk about the quality of the produce we grow here,” says FFVA’s Lochridge. “People are also interested in more locally grown food.”
Publix, in particular, with more than 1,100 stores in the state, has an entire program built around produce in season locally. “We have a whole campaign, At Season’s Peak, for our customers where we remind them of the true seasonality of fruit and vegetables — when they are at their most delicious,” says Brous.
The program’s website, publix.com/products-services/produce/at-seasons-peak, gives consumers advance notice, for example, that sweet corn and vine ripened tomatoes will be available in May. There is even consumer interest in varieties that have earned reputations as grown in a particular area within the state. “Florida, especially Plant City, is known for its strawberries,” says Brous.
Six L’s sources from many areas, but takes special pride in the vegetables it ships out of the southern area of the state. “We refer to it as South Florida, the Immokalee, Palm Beach, Homestead area,” says Shier.
There is also highly regional production of the tropicals, mostly fruits, but also including some vegetables. “Florida tropicals are still in season, just the tail end of their seasons,” says Mary Ostlund, marketing director at Brooks Tropicals LLC in Homestead, FL. “Florida avocados, star fruit, passion fruit, some red guava and Thai guava are being harvested in early spring. Brooks Tropicals has planted different varieties to successfully extend the availability of our popular tropicals. Sometimes growing them on different coasts help extend harvesting. And by different coasts, we mean Florida’s east and west coasts.”
The Magnificent Eight
Florida ranks second only to California in vegetable production, and the state’s farmers harvest a robust $1.3 billion in vegetables and melons, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics.
While broccoli, kale, leafy greens and other crops more commonly associated with coastal California are all increasing in the Sunshine State, Florida’s vegetable production is still led by a more familiar magnificent eight.
Tomatoes. With a crop approaching a half billion dollars a year, and easily more than one-third of the entire U.S. harvest, Florida is the national leader in fresh market tomato production.
Bell Peppers. Here the state’s growers are second in the nation, with an annual harvest of $220 million, or more than one-quarter of all the bell peppers in the country.
Sweet Corn. No barbecue would be complete without sweet corn, and Florida’s farmers, at more than $150 million annually, harvest nearly a quarter of the U.S. crop.
Potatoes. Florida is second in the nation in its production of spring harvested potatoes.
Snap Beans. One-third of the snap beans in the country come from Florida, where farmers lead the nation with a harvest of more than $75 million worth every year.
Cucumbers. Florida leads the country here, too, with nearly $65 million a year, or well over a third of the U.S. crop.
Cabbage. Available from December through May, cabbage is the state’s seventh most valuable vegetable.
Squash. This is another Florida special, as the state’s growers harvest nearly one-sixth of the nation’s crop.
“In 2015, Florida had 47,300 commercial farms and ranches, using a total of 9.45 million acres. According to the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ website, the state ranked second in the United States for value of vegetable production and first in production value for oranges, fresh market tomatoes, watermelons, grapefruit, sugarcane, fresh market snap beans and fresh market cucumbers. It ranked second in the production of greenhouse and nursery products, bell peppers, strawberries, fresh market sweet corn, spring potatoes, peanuts, tangerines and avocados.
“Beans, blueberries, peppers, melons, cabbage, cucumbers, squash, potatoes, lettuces, strawberries, citrus, sweet corn, tomatoes and tropical fruits are just a few of Florida’s most important spring crops,” says Aaron Keller, press secretary for the office of the Florida Commissioner of Agriculture, Tallahassee, FL.
The state publishes a calendar of availability of its major fruits and vegetables, as well as monthly lists at freshfromflorida.com/Divisions-Offices/Marketing-and-Development/Education/For-Researchers/Crops-in-Season.