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Se lo tienen que comprar todo. Antes no tenían dinero, pero ahora y en el futuro próximo, se van a comprar las mismas chuminadas que hemos comprado los países desarrollados…
China's consumers are expected to spend up to 6.4 trillion U.S. dollars a year by 2025, a 70 percent increase from the 3.7 trillion dollars spent last year, according to a study by think tank Demand Institute.
China's deep pockets are not only growing in scale but also contributing much to the economy, as the country shifts from an export-led economy toward one driven by higher consumption.
The Asian economic giant will keep its place as the second-largest consumer market in the world, after the .
Gold accessories are on sale in Caibai, one of best-known gold retailers in Beijing, China, May 2, 2013. (Xinhua/Li Xin)
Overall, consumption growth over the next decade is estimated at an annual rate of 5.2 percent, as wages rise and the Chinese become more aspirational in their spending despite overall economic growth slowdown.
People queue to enter a shopping center in Hong Kong, south China, Nov. 13, 2015. (Xinhua/Ng Wing Kin)
According to the report, even if overall growth slows by as much as one percent going forward, consumption would still grow by 4 percent -- which will keep Chinese economy on track.
By 2025, consumption is estimated to account for nearly 42 percent of total GDP, up from the current 37 percent.
People swarm in a shopping center in Hong Kong, south China, Nov. 13, 2015.(Xinhua/Ng Wing Kin)
The consumption growth will mostly stay where it has long been -- in China's major cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. But smaller cities are quickly catching up.
The kind of people who will drive consumption growth are those who can already afford basic necessities and are finding themselves with some spare cash. They're also more likely to be well-educated and living in urban areas.
PD1: ¿En qué se gasta la pasta la clase media china?
For years, multinational companies have been rubbing their hands together in anticipation of the growth of the Chinese middle class.
Lately, though, that growth has hit a snag as the Chinese economy slows and struggles to segue into a consumer-based model.
A new report from The Demand Institute — a collaboration between Nielsen and the Conference Board — examined the growth of the Chinese middle class by considering how much purchasing power they really have and how much access they have to the products companies want to sell.
The report depicts a far more complicated picture than the one China bulls want to paint.
"During the years of booming economic growth, it seemed as if consumer businesses in China could not get much wrong," the report said. "But the situation has changed permanently.
"Today, a far higher degree of strategic precision is needed. Overall, we believe the opportunities for geographic expansion are shallower than some business leaders might think."
It's all relative
China is a country with incredible geographic and socioeconomic diversity, so it's hard to nail down exactly what the middle class is and how it will grow.
The World Bank describes middle class as having the ability to spend between $10 and $50 daily — a significant range, as The Demand Institute points out.
What's more, the World Bank's criteria doesn't consider something very important in China — access. For a middle-class person to consume, they must have access to consumer culture and engage in it. Ecommerce is huge in China but still only generates 10% of retail sales — leaving lots of pent-up demand.
The Demand Institute
According to the report, growing internet penetration will account for 95% of the growth in China's consumer base.
As it stands now, internet penetration is 48% in the country, meaning "there are hundreds of millions of 'middle class' consumers whom MNCs [multinational corporations] will struggle to serve because they don't have online access."
That means the optimal target group for a multinational company is the "connected spender" — a consumer with both purchasing power and access. They made up just 27% of China's population in 2014, and 44% of total consumer spending, or $1.6 trillion.
These consumers are typically under 49, better educated than average, and live in an urban area with internet access.
But their buying power doesn't compare with that of their US counterparts. Between 2010 and 2014, only 12% of these people reported a household income of more than $3,200 a year, or $85 a day.
Their spending power is expected to rise from 44% of consumer spending to 60% by 2025, with the growth being largely driven by greater internet penetration. That's a significant increase, but it's not earth-shattering.
The report forecasts that China per capita consumption will be $4,400 by 2025, compared with $32,000 in the US today.
"While this growth is undeniably spectacular, it is coming from a relatively small per capita base and will arguably remain modest compared with most mature markets even by 2025," the report stated.
"Importantly, our projections imply only a very gradual movement toward consumption led-growth in China."
PD2: El futuro de la economía china pasa por los YUPPIES… Nos van a copiar en todo! Esperemos que dentro de 30 años no nos copien en lo mal que acabó nuestra civilización gastona y consumista…
Customers walk through the shoe section inside the Tongzhou Wanda Plaza shopping mall in Beijing, China
China’s economy isn’t dead. It’s just relying heavily on yuppies.
According to a new study from the consultancy the Boston Consulting Group and Alibaba’s Aliresearch, richer, younger and tech-savvier Chinese will be the main drivers of growth in the country’s consumer economy going forward. Affluent consumers, shoppers under the age of 35 and Internet surfers will push China’s consumer market up to $6.5 trillion in sales by 2020, an increase of 54% from 2015, BCG said. Projections stand even if the GDP, now struggling to reach 7% for the year, drops to 5.5%, says BCG.
Many of the world’s companies have relied on China for years to fuel their sales and fear a consumer fallout from the country’s slowing economic growth. At the same time, China is struggling to restructure its export-led economy and create a consumer-led one that looks like the U.S.
Yet it isn’t all gloom and doom, BCG said.
Sales aren’t skyrocketing like they were in peak years of the past, the report said. “But make no mistake: although the pace is slower and the course is bumpier, consumption growth is still tracing a staggering trajectory,” it said.
Young urban professionals, or yuppies, under the age of 35 have 40% more wealth than generations older than them and they feel far more comfortable spending their money, say BCG and Aliresearch. And the people most likely to be seen riding fixed gear bikes, splurging on infant spas or shelling out for meals at the mall also are more likely to have gone to college and travel overseas, the study said.
Upper-middle class households, defined as those making between $24,001 and $46,000 in annual income, will double to 100 million in population by 2020 and account for 30% of all urban households in China, the report said.
E-commerce will also be a major factor to growth and the research projects that it will account for 42% of private consumption by 2020, up from 15% today.
PD3: Y nos podemos enamorar siempre…
Lo que debemos hacer es no acostumbrarnos, es no currarlo, no trabajar el amor…


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How trademark infringement applies to NFTs
ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
Nike, Quentin Tarantino and Birkin bags have something in common - they're all tied up in separate lawsuits related to NFTs, nonfungible tokens. People are spending billions of dollars on NFTs. They are seen as a new digital frontier to buy, trade and sell goods.
But this new frontier is still pretty wild. Nike is suing the online resale platform StockX for trademark infringement. StockX operates what it calls a Vault NFT. Here's NPR's Elizabeth Blair.
ELIZABETH BLAIR, BYLINE: If you're confused about NFTs, here's some sage advice from attorney Rhett Millsaps.
RHETT MILLSAPS: You might want to look up the dictionary definition of NFT. Actually, you know, it's in all the dictionaries now.
BLAIR: Millsaps represents an artist who's being sued over his NFTs. Merriam Webster defines a nonfungible token as a unique digital identifier that cannot be copied, substituted or subdivided that is recorded in a blockchain and that is used to certify authenticity and ownership. In other words, an NFT is not the actual thing you bought but proof that you bought it. Don't feel bad if you're still confused, says trademark lawyer Moish Peltz.
MOISH PELTZ: One of the hallmarks of a trademark infringement case is whether there's consumer confusion. And it's like, well, everyone's confused because NFTs are confusing.
BLAIR: And yet some of the age-old reason someone would sue for trademark infringement still apply. StockX is an online marketplace where you can buy Nike products, including sneakers. But Nike says StockX is not an authorized Nike retailer. Nike's lawsuit says StockX is minting NFTs that prominently use Nike's trademarks.
StockX sent NPR a statement, saying the lawsuit lacks merit. StockX says, quote, "its Vault NFTs depict and represent proof of ownership of physical goods stored in our vault that customers can trade on our platform." Trademark lawyer Moish Peltz says the idea is that those NFTs represent real sneakers.
PELTZ: If you purchase a StockX Vault NFT, you would have the right to exchange that NFT for the physical shoe.
BLAIR: Or, he says, they could be traded or resold.
PELTZ: So you could trade one NFT for another. You could trade one NFT for several other NFTs. You could sell it for more or less than you bought it for.
BLAIR: For example, on the StockX site, a pair of women's Nike Air VaporMax has gone from a sale price of $600 to $2,000 in less than a month. Dinusha Mendis, a professor of intellectual property and innovation law at Bournemouth University, says that can get a trademark holder's attention.
DINUSHA MENDIS: So if you're buying an NFT sneaker and it does have a trademark on it, like Nike, for you to go and resell it and you sell at a higher price, you know, if there's no association with Nike, then there might be an infringement there.
BLAIR: Nike itself is getting in on the NFT sensation through its purchase of a digital art studio active in the metaverse. In its lawsuit, Nike says StockX's Vault NFTs are likely to confuse consumers in that marketplace and jeopardize Nike's trademark.
Elizabeth Blair, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.

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As of 18th May, Zund Plotting Systems (UK) Ltd., located in St. Albans, UK, has become a subsidiary of Zünd Systemtechnik AG. As an official distribution and service partner of Zünd Systemtechnik since 1993, Zund UK has been taking care of hundreds of customers in the UK and Ireland.
Following the acquisition, Zund UK will continue to serve the UK and Irish markets as in the past, but with the added benefit of being even more closely aligned with its parent company in terms of sales, service, and support of Zünd digital cutting systems. Tim Taylor, founder and Commercial Director of Zund UK, will remain with the company, heading up UK sales. As newly appointed Managing Director, Stuart Cole will be overseeing daily operations.
Following the announcement, Oliver Zünd, Zünd Systemtechnik AG CEO, stated, “We are delighted to be able to welcome Zund Plotting Systems (UK) Ltd. to our global group of companies. Working closely with our newest subsidiary, we look forward to strengthening our position in the UK market and continuing to expand our customer base. This acquisition represents an important milestone in our company history, and we are proud to have our own representation in the United Kingdom moving forward.”


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With the much-trumpeted ‘phase 1’ trade deal scheduled for signing on Wednesday morning (15 January) in Washington, stock markets enjoyed a wave of optimism this week. The Trump administration also decided to lift its designation of China as a ‘currency manipulator’ and China’s yuan rallied close to a six-month high.
A damp squib…
Not surprisingly, US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin hailed the signing as an “enormous win” for the US. However, few suggested that the deal came close to addressing the original reasons for the 18-month old conflict, namely China’s unfair company subsidies, its wilful ignorance of copyright laws and its generally predatory tactics for capturing tech supremacy in areas such as 5G, AI and driverless cars.
‘Phase 1’ neatly skirts all of these issues, but it does commit the Chinese to buying 50% more US agricultural goods than it’s managed even in the best of times – c$40bn a year worth – as well as a nebulous promise to buy $200bn of other US stuff in the coming years.
Nevertheless, the deal helps de-escalate a conflict that has retarded global growth, hurt US manufacturers and further burdened an already slowing Chinese economy.
Under ‘phase 1’, the US dropped plans to impose tariffs on an additional $160bn of Chinese imports and it halved the existing tariffs on a further $110bn of Chinese goods to 7.5%. That still leaves about two-thirds of all Chinese imports and half of US imports to China mired, with the average US tariff rising from 3% in January 2018 to 21% now.
Such tariffs have also narrowed America’s trade deficit with China, which Mr Trump claims to be a major win.
In the US, the fourth quarter reporting season got underway on Tuesday (14 January) as three of the biggest US banks JPMorgan, Citigroup and Wells Fargo, traditionally viewed as bellwethers for the US economy, shared their latest results.
As Quilter Investors head of trading Maz Alamouti observes, “JPMorgan’s results hit estimates out of the park; fourth-quarter profit rose 21% far exceeding earning per share (EPS) estimates as revenue from its bond trading business surged almost 90%. Meanwhile, Citigroup earnings similarly beat on better-than-expected trading results and the strength of its card business thanks to a robust US consumer market.”
“Shares in both banks took off on Tuesday,” he says, “but Wells Fargo wasn’t so lucky; it saw Q4 profits plummet 50% as legal fees and low US interest rates weighed it down. The shares were off some 4.5% in afternoon trading.”
The chief executive of Hong Kong, Carrie Lam, has confirmed the authorities will provide HK$10bn ($1.7bn/£1bn) of relief measures to help support the economy after it fell into recession for the first time in a decade last year.
The economic downturn follows months of anti-government protests, initially concerning a now-withdrawn extradition bill, which escalated into violence forcing businesses to shut and tourism numbers to decline.
Hong Kong’s economy shrank 3.2% in the third quarter of 2019 as the authorities said domestic demand worsened significantly as the “local social incidents” weighed on consumption and investment sentiment.
The additional spending brings the total stimulus promised since the protests started escalating in the summer of 2019 to $4.5bn.
Luxury Danish TV and audio company Bang & Olufsen (B&O) reported a second quarter loss as revenues fell 31%.
The business is known for its high-end items, including the Beovision Harmony TV that can cost around £16,000. However, it admitted revenue declined “more than expected” as a result of fewer product launches and the transition to a demand-driven retail model.
B&O also cited increased competition in the earphones and headphones markets, with earphone revenue down 38%.
However, CEO Kristian Teär, who was appointed in October 2019 in the wake of B&O’s third profit warning, said despite the falling revenue, changes to sales and marketing had been implemented, which combined with upcoming product launches would “contribute to improving our results” ahead of a three-year strategy announcement in April 2020.
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Here is more proof that best things come in small packages. Instead of cooking up large batches of food to satiate her appetite, Chennai-based Rupashree Adam has been creating miniature dishes of her favourite things to eat.
Adam, who has just graduated from college, said she was inspired by the stylish displays of food at both, high end and local eateries. “I was wondering if I could make big look small,” she told HuffPost India.
Though her artwork is not edible, it’s realistic enough to make anyone salivate. “I spent a lot of time researching what material would be best to use for an almost real look,” she says, adding that the tiny dishes are made out of polymer clay which is a bake-able material. “I made the first two items after much trial and error. The realistic effect was achieved only by using a proper mix of clay, right baking temperatures and time, and careful shading. Needless to say, it required a lot of patience!” Adam says.
Each element takes Adams at least 3-4 hours to create, and requires an almost obsessive watch when being baked. “If my oven is too hot, or if I don’t monitor the time to the last minute, these tiny things get burnt very easily – a total waste of my four hours of work,” she says.
Adams, who creates appetizers, main course entrees and desserts, says that south Indian dishes are particularly hard to craft, especially when compared to their continental counterparts. “This is because of the various items that are present in an Indian meal,” she explains.
For those who’d like to try their hand at this wee hobby, Adam plans on releasing a video that reveals the process behind her work. She will also be putting these tiny items up for sale in a month or two. She can also be followed on her Facebook page or her website, (quite aptly) called charmingminiatures.com.
Contact HuffPost India
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Abbott, MD+DI's 2017 Medtech Company of the Year, stood out from the rest not just because of its accomplishments and impact on patient care, but because of the leadership it showed in spite of the obstacles it faced along the way.
News & Features
MD+DI’s editors chose Abbott as the 2017 Medtech Company of the Year, but our readers had a different opinion.
Lionel Jeannin, fellow, global packaging & device development, Novartis Pharma AG, offers some insights on how partners can collaborate.
Georgia Tech released a new bionic hand designed to provide amputees with full hand dexterity and movement, right down to each individual finger.
An FDA advisory panel voted against recommending approval for Intrinsic Therapeutic's Barricaid prosthesis designed for partial annulus replacement in patients with herniated discs.
Smith & Nephew's MolecuLight iX is designed to detect bacteria in hard-to-heal wounds using only light.
The five-state settlement closes litigation over Medtronic's controversial Infuse bone graft device.
Virtual Incision raised $18 million in funding to support an FDA 510(k) submission for its miniaturized robotically assisted surgical device. Here's what sets this robotic device apart in an increasingly popular field.
Industry trade groups are applauding a House proposal to suspend the U.S. medical device tax for another five years, but the measure falls short of offering the industry a long-term solution.
NuVasive has agreed to acquire SafePassage, a provider of intraoperative neurophysiological monitoring services, for an undisclosed amount.
Unlike traditional DBS systems that are built from pacemaker technology, this device is modeled from cochlear implant technology and the precise stimulation of auditory nerves it uses to replicate hearing.


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If you are looking for that a shoe that feels like a premium release but can’t shell over the bucks or even more importantly find them at your local retailers an easier to come by model may be the Nike Air Flytop. This newest model that was just released features materials taking the center stage
This month Nike SB has released their classic backpack in a new camouflage colorway. A couple of years ago the Nike SB luggage line had its high times, with new interesting colors coming every few months. Since then not much has changed, until now. This new camouflage colorway comes at the right time and is now in stock from SB retailers.


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From Software currently has no plans to start work on a sequel to its critically acclaimed PlayStation 3 action RPG Demon's Souls, producer Takeshi Kajii has revealed.
Kajii told The Guardian, "At the moment, my answer is 'no sequel!'"
Dry your eyes though – he wouldn't rule out the prospect of revisiting the franchise at some point in the future.
"We have been encouraged by all the players, and this title is so well supported, and besides we like this title so much... Well, this is my own feeling, but I think one day we could bring you another Demon's Souls."
Demon's Souls was granted a belated European PlayStation 3 release earlier this year after terrorising Japanese and US gamers with its brutal, brilliant gameplay.
Eurogamer's Keza MacDonald dubbed it "deep, intriguingly disturbed and perversely rewarding," awarding it 9/10.
In other news, last week a resourceful Japanese gamer figured out a way of beating the game in under an hour. Elsewhere in the interview, director Hidetaka Miyazaki explained that it didn't bother him that gamers were using exploits.
"It was not intentional, and if we had discovered it during development we would have corrected it. However, now that some remain in the final game, I think that these exploits have become part of its flavour.
"Of course, this will be taken in consideration for future versions, especially those instances which are not exploits but bugs that prove to be a disadvantage for the players."


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Massive Team Fortress 2 Update Coming; Xbox Players Also Getting New Goodies
Valve has just updated the Team Fortress 2 blog with a whole lot of information for fans to salivate over, including a few changes to some class skills, information on the next weapon pack, and even some good news for Xbox players. First up, it looks like the Engineer and Spy classes will be have to change their gameplay style a bit with some new tweaks to their abilities. Teleporters and dispensers can now be upgraded much like the turrets, but instead to cool down faster and deliver health and metal quicker, respectively. The Spy’s cloaking device can now also be recharged by picking up ammo packs. Valve stressed that these two classes will be getting their own class achievements and upgrades in the future. Speaking of class packs though, Valve also mentioned they’re now setting their sights on upgrading the Scout class next; so be on the lookout for that sometime in the nearer future. Finally, the company also announced that they would be bringing all the updates they released for the PC over the last year to the Xbox version as well.
That’s a lot of good news for TF2 fans. Hopefully we’ll see some of these new additions show up sooner rather than later. Of course, then I’m sure we’ll have nothing Spies, Engineers, and Scouts running around every server once they do.


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New York — The Anti-Defamation League’s National Consumer Technology Industry divisio
Englewood Cliffs, N.J. – Jay Vandenbree, senior VP of LG Electronics USA, will retire on Jan. 4.
Vandenbree, who has been with LG Electronics USA for the past four years after 23 years with Sony Electronics, will officially retire as of Jan. 4, 2014, the company confirmed.
He will stay on in an advisory capacity through the first quarter of 2014, according to LG.
LG said a replacement for Vandenbree will be announced during December.
This TWICE webinar, hosted by senior editor Alan Wolf, will take a look at what may be the hottest CE products at retail that will be sold during the all-important fourth quarter. Top technologies, market strategies and industry trends will be discussed with industry analysts and executives.
Boston — Shopguard has named of Tanya Anderson Perry as U.S. sales, marketing and operations VP.
Shopguard Systems Limited provides security, display merchandising and interactive visual in-store media solutions for retailers all over the world.
Perry, a CE veteran with such firms as BlackBerry and LG Electronics, among others, will be responsible for Shopguard’s U.S. business.
Edmond, Okla. — Petra Industries has appointed Niraj Trivedi as Texas district sales manager of car audio.
Trivedi will be responsible for generating repeat business with Petra’s current customer base, increasing sales of Pioneer mobile A/V products, and promoting Petra as the car audio distributor of choice for the region, the distributor said. He has 13 years of car A/V sales expertise and extensive knowledge of sales and marketing strategies to grow its mobile A/V sales within the state of Texas, it added.
Paul Starkey, the former president of ELAN Home Systems and multiple time entrepreneur, and Steve Firszt, Fast Forward Business Coach, have joined forces to create VITAL MGMT, a new professionals services company offering premium data aggregation, benchmarking and business improvement services to custom installation dealers, integrators, and installers.
The services will be offered exclusively through a new cooperative called VITAL Coop that they have founded and serve as executive directors.
Branchburg, N.J. – Falcon Safety Products has named Steve Smith sales senior VP.
The company, best known for its Dust-Off brand of CE cleaning products, said Smith will be responsible for managing all sales in Falcon’s Dust-Off, marine and safety-products brands.
Smith was previously sales director for Sportcraft, where he headed up the company’s e-commerce sales.
Philadelphia – Veteran appliance distributor Larry Feldman died suddenly on Sunday.
Feldman’s family founded Empire State Distributing, a regional CE and majap wholesaler. He joined Almo nearly 20 years ago following the sale of the business to the national distributor.
Petaluma, Calif. – Core Brands tapped Matt Dever, formerly with THX and Pioneer, as audio segment marketing manager.
At THX, Dever was senior director of sales, responsible for overseeing licensing and certification programs for the company’s automotive, cinema, consumer electronics and education divisions.
Amherst, N.Y. – John Marcolini has been named product management VP of Stampede Presentation Products.
Marcolini has 18 years of telecommunications and software experience. He was most recently product management senior director at Qualcomm Atheros, where he was responsible for strategic product roadmap definition and worldwide business development for the connected home product line.


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World Cup 2014 begins on Thursday, June 12.
Mario Golf has a strong legacy on portable platforms. So is it up to par on the 3DS?
Pricing not available
The Acer Chromebook C720P manages to get better at all the key things, adding up to a little laptop alternative that's better than any budget Chromebook we've seen before.
Blizzard Entertainment says second expansion to the hit online PC game sold 2.8 million copies in its first day, breaking the record set by the previous expansion.
In the weeks leading up to the game's Thursday release, players have been hoarding their gold and dashing out on achievement runs.
Blizzard Entertainment announces a release date for World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King.
The latest expansion to the best-selling online game gives hard-core players more levels, a new hero class, and richer story telling.
Warlords of Draenor sends you back in time to Draenor — home planet to the orcs and draenei — to fight with and against the game's legendary heroes.
For all the flash of Apple buying Beats, Google's purchase of Songza gives it an online music service focused on anticipatory contextual playlists -- key to an "Internet of Things" future.
A Link Between Worlds is now the best reason to own a 3DS and likely the best bang for your buck you'll get this holiday season. If you own a 3DS, there's really no excuse not to play. If you don't own one, there's never been a better time.
The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 may be stealing headlines, but Nintendo's latest Mario effort might be the best game of the holidays.


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A new business platform that will build more linkages and create markets for SMEs has launched in Uganda.
This is premised on the fact that more than 80 per cent of SMEs in Uganda close shop even before they mark their first anniversary.
While speaking during the launch of the network and executives dinner at the Kampala Serena Hotel on Wednesday, Mr Caleb Owino, fireworks Advertising Group’s managing director, said Uganda’s high rate of entrepreneurship has not been matched with good marketing strategies.
“We are still celebrating the announcement that Uganda is the most entrepreneurial country in the world at 28%, the next country is at 16% and that is a huge gap,” Mr Owino said.
Approved Index’s latest analysis – which investigates the most entrepreneurial countries around the world – placed Uganda as the most entrepreneurial country in the world at 28.1% followed by Thailand at 16.7%.
“We are producing new businesses fast but they are also dying fast. The question is what can marketing do to address this challenge. How can marketing help you make sure that your business is around for not just next year but also the years to come. Technology is critical and reading consumption trends is of much importance to change your way of doing things and adopt a holistic marketing approach.”
The Chief Executive Officer of Sterling Business Network, Raymond McMillan, said, “I have been involved in networking for so many years and I realized that there is a gap in the market for a well grown, well established, well balanced approach to business growth. When you come to SBN, you are pitching to 500 individuals in your branch to grow your business and even more at a global level. Sterling Business Network is about growing your business through word of mouth marketing.”
Sterling Business Network provides a platform for connecting professionals from all industries and professions to enhance and grow businesses locally and globally. The UK-based organization will hold a networking session on December 5.


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Fitness tech manufacturer Fitbit issued a recall of roughly 1.7 million of their Ionic fitness-tracking smartwatches amid reports that the lithium battery overheats, resulting in burns to the wearer’s skin.
The Ionic smartwatch was manufactured between 2017 and 2020, and over 1.7 million were sold internationally. Reports of user burns began early with the company acknowledging that it has now received 170 reports of battery burns from its product. Current Ionic users were issued a $299 refund and a discount on a replacement product.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, there were 78 reports of burn injuries in the United States, which included 2 cases of third-degree burns from an overheated battery. The Commission stated that it was aware of 40 burns internationally.
The company issued the statement that “Customer safety is always Fitbit’s top priority and out of an abundance of caution, we are voluntarily recalling Fitbit Ionic smartwatches” and emphasized that the number of problematic watches to date account for less than 0.1% of the units sold.
If you have used the Fitbit Ionic smartwatch and have suffered severe burns as a result of the defective lithium battery, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries. Contact the experienced team of product liability lawyers at Cellino Law to discuss your options. Our team can be reached 24/7 at 800-555-5555.


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Swiss-based startup, Modum.io, has won $25,390 (CHF 25,000) after taking first place in the Future and Emerging Technologies vertical of the Kickstart Accelerator 2016, out of 850 startups from 40 countries. Founded by Marc Degen and Malik El Bay, Modum.io combines sensor devices and blockchain technology to make the pharmaceutical supply chain more efficient. Modum.io had already received $20,313 (CHF 20,000) in support from the Kickstart Accelerator for the development of its product.
Located 20 minutes from the crypto valley in Zug, the team at Modum.io are developing a blockchain technology-based temperature tracking system for medicinal products, in partnership with Prof. Dr. Burkhard Stiller, Dr. Thomas Bocek and the Communication Systems Group (CSG) of the University of Zurich.
A recent change under the EU regulation, Good Distribution Practice of Medicinal Products for Human Use (GDP 2013/C 343/01), means that companies are required to report any deviations — such as, in temperature — to the distributor and the recipient of the affected medicinal products; however, at present, the only way to comply is to employ refrigeration trucks that make up a significant part of cold chain distribution. These trucks can be four to eight times more expensive than normal logistic services, according to Malik El Bay, CEO of Modum.io, who spoke to Bitcoin Magazine.
“The catch is that 60 percent of all 200 million yearly shipments in the EU do not contain temperature sensitive products,” he said. “So right now we are wasting $3 billion for unnecessary cooling.”
As the only system that currently complies 100 percent with all EU guidelines concerning the distribution of medicinal products, the Modum.io system is providing a solution to substantially cut these delivery costs.
According to El Bay, there are three temperature categories that medicine needs to be stored at: cold, at -20°C; cool, at 2°-8°C; and ambient, at 15°-25°C. The team at Modum.io are focusing on the ambient products.
“Even though every product belongs to one of the aforementioned categories, it has specific so-called stability data,” he said. “This data states that it can stay for X hours in temperature range Y, [which is] usually 72 hours between 2°C and 40°C.”
Thus, instead of ordering a cold chain truck, medicinal shipments that do not require refrigeration are equipped with a Modum.io sensor, which monitors the temperatures of the products. Upon arrival at the destination, the data is transferred to the Ethereum blockchain — ensuring a tamper proof system with guaranteed data integrity — where a Solidity-based smart contract then compares the measurement data against various regulatory requirements.
Based on the information, the product is either released, or both the sender and the receiver of the shipment receive a notification that a deviation occurred. If an out-of-specification occurs, for example if the temperature drops below 15°C for four hours, this data is then used to automate the release of medicinal products. El Bay states that this provides a cost-effective way of measuring the environmental conditions of every parcel containing drugs.
Since the launch of Modum.io in April and the unveiling of its first pilot project in June, the team has received positive feedback from their pilot customers based in Switzerland. After improving their system and releasing a beta version, which has been live for a month, the team started an extended pilot processing 10 times more shipments than during the first pilot project. Their pilot customers have combined a shipping volume that exceeds 2.5 million yearly shipments.
“[The] fact is that until now there is no data concerning the shipment conditions at all,” said El Bay. “With the Modum.io system, our customers learn more about the quality of their logistics providers.”
This, however, is not the only project the team is working on. Modum.io is also looking at transactions further up the supply chain, where batches of active pharmaceutical ingredients are transported from CMOs to producers. According to El Bay, the challenges there include the transfer of ownership.
While these discussions have begun between various pharmaceutical companies and the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (Gavi) to find solutions to fight counterfeiting and fraud, the company’s focus right now is bringing the Modum.io system to the market by July 2017, with a limited number of customers being able to track their shipments.
Regarding the award, El Bay said that they were very honored to win it.
“It is an acknowledgement for all the hard work we put into this company, as well as a confirmation of our strategy to enter the pharmaceutical supply chain with a cost cutting case,” he said.
The post Modum.io’s Tempurature-Tracking Blockchain Solution Wins Accolades at Kickstarter Accelerator 2016 appeared first on Bitcoin Magazine.
from Bitcoin Magazine http://ift.tt/2fOBeQN


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HTC Vive 2 Rumors At CES 2017 Not True
Fans of the HTC Vive will have to wait a little longer to get a chance to play with its successor.
HTC recently squelched rumors that the Vive 2 will be unveiled at this year's Consumer Electronics Show which will be held from Jan. 5 to 8.
"There is no truth to the rumor of launching Vive 2 at CES 2017. At Vive, we are laser focused on building out a strong and growing ecosystem for current and future Vive owners so they can experience the best room-scale VR with the most compelling content available."
The HTC Vive was just released last April 2016 and, as the statement above says, the company is focused on letting the current Vive owners enjoy their VR experience a little bit more.
Virtual reality, along with augmented reality, is seen as a major factor in tech this 2017. In fact, many consider it as one of the trends that will dominate the CES 2017. However, HTC's decision not to include the Vive 2 in the much-awaited consumer electronics tradeshow is a dampener of sorts.
Despite the announcement, which was made over UploadVR, fans can still expect the Vive 2 to be better than the already impressive Vive. The first VR headset from HTC was a huge success. It sold more than its rivals including the Facebook-backed Oculus Rift.
Speaking of, Oculus will not likely be represented at the CES 2017. Unlike last year when Oculus showcased its products in a large booth, the Facebook-sponsored device will not have a booth at all since it is not listed as an exhibitor.
The next Vive VR headset is expected to fix the few issues with the first one. UploadVR, for one, thinks the Vive will be better off with a slimmer design, a lighter cord, and better for the face. It also prefers that the VR headset have "more ergonomic controllers without hard-to-reach grip buttons".
HTC 11 Leaked Details: Specs, Features And Released Date Rumors
A leak courtesy of a Weibo account showed the possible specifications and other details of the HTC 11.
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Daily Supplement For Women Is A Must: Expert Said From A Report
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While an annual subscription to Amazon Prime costs $99.99, Amazon is now offering monthly subscriptions to its users for $10.99 per month, but if a user doesn't need added services like music streaming or free shipping, he or she will only have to pay just 8.99 a month.
Netflix will let you save up on mobile data while you stream
With the launch of the new service, a monthly subscription to Amazon Prime is now cheaper than one with Netflix, which currently stands at $9.99 a month.
In the UK, a yearly Amazon Prime subscription costs £79 per year but if you subscribe only to Prime Videos, you will be able to buy a monthly subscription for just £5.99 a month. In contrast, Netflix has standardized the minimum monthly subscription, including those of legacy users, to 7.49 a month. The standard package includes HD viewing and dual-screen usage.
Netflix also released its Q1 earnings report last night, revealing a jump in subscriptions outside the United States but the rate of growth has dipped. Netflix is now available in 130 countries and is targeting millions of potential users in emerging markets who can bring in $70 billion worth of additional revenues.
Netflix' price hike hits legacy users, ends discounts
Even though Amazon Prime Video isn't as widely available as Netflix, Amazon is attempting to improve the quality of content being offered to consumers. In the UK, users can now watch a number of brand new content like Disco: Spinning the Story which is based on life and times of singer Gloria Gaynor, Ellis Island: A History of the American Dream, The Man In The High Castle, Inside John Lennon and The Otter's Trail.
If Amazon succeeds in matching Netflix in terms of content, pricing and reach in the coming months, it can sure give the former a run for its money. However, the overall cost of monthly subscriptions exceeds that of a yearly one, so it is ultimately up to subscribers to decide which suits them best.


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Google-owned popular video streaming platform YouTube on Monday announced that it will start testing a new Explore tab on iPhone that will allow users on the platform to discover related content from channels that they have not yet subscribed to. Explore is different from the Recommendations tab in a way that it is expected to broaden topics instead of showing just videos similar to the ones in browsing history and in the subscription list. The feature is currently being tested on just about 1 percent of the iPhone users with the YouTube app installed, the company announced in a video on its Creators Insider channel. It will most likely replace the Trending button, which will become a section within Explore.
"Explore is designed to help you to be exposed to different kinds of topics, videos, or channels that you might not otherwise encounter. But they are still personalised, they are still based on your viewing activity," said Tom Leung, a Director of Product Management, YouTube. For instance, he goes on to say, if users are watching videos about telescopes, the Explore tab might show videos about high-end cameras. Thus, it will aim to keep recommendations in the same domain, but avoid showing the videos about the exact same thing from different creators.
Despite the apparent disappearance of Trending from the bottom taskbar of the YouTube app, the Explore tab will retain a Trending shelf on top, as will it introduce a new 'Creator on the rise' shelf to promote up and coming channels on the platform, which produce content similar to your tastes. The company essentially aims to help budding creators grow their audience with visibility through the new Explore tab. The tab is also focusing on providing more variety to viewers, contrary to the Trending tab that offered rather irrelevant content, especially in a market like India.
"We hope it's going to be a win-win, but we are not sure yet, that's why the experiment is going to be run. But in the meantime, feel free to give us feedback... Let us know what you think and we're happy to give an update as well when the experiment has run its course," stated Leung. The experiment was also announced on the YouTube Help Forum, with instructions on how to send feedback.
In a blog post last week, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki had announced five key priorities for creators in 2018, which include transparency and better communication. Within days of this announcement, in which she claimed that YouTube would make the best efforts to communicate feature testing, this development comes as a rare instance of the platform officially announcing a test. In most cases, YouTube has been known to start testing elements without first letting creators or viewers know about them.


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Interscope asked for a multi-layered outdoor strategy befitting an artist of Kendrick Lamar’s stature and mystique. First came a cryptic teaser that hinted at the album drop. Then the full-blown campaign.
Adweek raved about the cutting-edge consumer outreach, saying it “raised the bar on creativity.” DAMN sold over 600,000 units in its first week, smashing all expectations.
Kendrick’s soon-to-be legendary album spent the next eight months dominating the charts, claiming Billboard’s number one album of the year, and winning the Grammy for Best Rap Album. So much for staying Humble.


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Smartphones have become “man’s best friend” over the last few years. There is almost no daily task that doesn’t involve the usage of apps and instant messaging. Unfortunately, this also has raised the amount of mobile phone robberies and tampering. Hacking is evolving, but the “traditional” thefts and mishaps are still a big threat. Phone manufacturers are implementing
Forrester Report: Why to automate AppSec now.


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Disney Interactive has revealed its follow up to Disney Infinity, having partnered with Marvel Entertainment to release Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes.
The new toy and video game hybrid will feature more than 20 new interactive figures from across the Marvel universe.
The new game will also see original storylines penned by the Marvel comic writer Brian Michael Bendis, alongside a new Toy Box mode designed to make it easier for players to create and share their unique levels and mini games.
And collectors of last year’s line up of characters and power discs need fret not, as all Disney Infinity characters will be compatible with the Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes toy Box.
“Disney Infinity was, from the start built to be an interactive experience where players could bring together their favourite Disney characters and stories to create new Disney memories,” said Jimmy Pitaro, president of Disney Interactive.
“With the introduction of Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes, we are ushering in a new chapter of adventures, featuring a cast of the world’s most popular Super Heroes.”
The Avengers’ Iron Man, Black Widow, Thor, Captain America, Hulk and Hawkeye will all debut when the game launches this autumn.
They will be joined by additional Play Sets and characters form other popular Marvel and Disney franchises in following months.
“We have worked closely with the Disney Interactive team to deliver an incredible line-up of Marvel characters and great story telling for the next chapter of Disney Infinity,” said Peter Phillips, EVP and general manager, interactive and digital distribution at Marvel Entertainment.
“The 2.0 edition will allow Marvel fans around the world to interact with their favourite Marvel Super Heroes in entirely new ways, including compelling gameplay and a new line of collectible interactive figures.”
Check out the Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes trailer below:


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- ANIMALIA ISTANBUL, Turkey, 06-08 July 2017
12th International Trade Fair for Livestock & Cattle Breeding, ANIMALIA ISTANBUL 2017 is the event where Turkish and overseas companies operating mainly in the fields of animal breeding, stock farming, animal feed production, animal health etc. come together with the purpose of unveiling their latest technologies, products and services. ANIMALIA […]
- AGRA- 55th international Fair of Agriculture and Food, 26. – 31. 8. 2017, Gornja Radgona, Slovenia
AGRA, the most important agriculture and food industry fair in Slovenia and in the neighboring regions of four EU countries, is held already for the 55 year every year in Gornja Radgona, a crossroad between Slovenia, Austria, Croatia and Hungary. It serves the tradition of good farming and quality food […]
- 25th INTERNATIONAL AUTUMN BJELOVAR FAIR, 8/10 SEPTEMBER 2017, CROATIA
Autumn fair is the largest and strongest international, livestock, agriculture and economic trade show event. More than 500 exhibitors represent their products and services, and is visited by more than 50.000 visitors. National livestock exhibition is the only state exhibition of its kind in Croatia, with more than 500 heads […]
EURASCO Secretary General Giovanni Colombo
Kenes Exhibitions Ltd.


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But for Nasser, coffee isn’t just a business opportunity. It’s something much more.
“I saw a big coffee culture in Turkey, Yemen, Qatar, Dubai — places like that. And especially in Yemen, where my grandfather is from,” Nasser says.
“Yemen was very rich with coffee 100 years ago but the khat tree came in and people saw that they could make more money from it. You can harvest khat four times a year where coffee you can only harvest once a year,” he says of khat, a stimulant that some consider a harmful drug.
“We want to help motivate farmers in Yemen to bring back coffee.”
The coffee shop weaves Yemeni coffee heritage into the 21st century; Haraz Coffee accepts payments in the crypto currencies Bitcoin and Dogecoin.Nasser recently celebrated the opening of Haraz Coffee in east downtown Dearborn. The coffee shop makes a point to import its coffee beans from Yemeni farmers.
“In Yemen, coffee was discovered there. It’s important to me that we want to revive that culture and history of the original Arabica coffee,” he says. “We want to support the farmers back in Yemen and back in Haraz, where they have the best coffee.”
Haraz Coffee serves a variety of coffee drinks, from Yemeni- and Turkish-style coffees to traditional lattes, and a host of baked goods.
The coffee shop weaves Yemeni coffee heritage into the 21st century; Haraz Coffee accepts payments in the crypto currencies Bitcoin and Dogecoin.
Nasser began work on the building that would become Haraz Coffee in October 2019, just months before the COVID-19 pandemic started. He converted an old insurance agency into a modern coffee shop with attention and care paid to both the interior and exterior.
“It’s a light show from the street. You can’t miss it,” he says.
It hasn’t always been easy — or cheap. Nasser says that costs to renovate the building were 70 percent more than what was budgeted, the pandemic causing a sharp increase in the price of building materials.
He remained committed to his corner of east downtown Dearborn and Haraz Coffee opened this April.
And what an intersection it’s becoming: Later this month, his wife Sitrillah Gellani will be celebrating the opening of Modern Hijabi, an online clothing store with its first physical location going up right across the street from Haraz. The store features fashion-forward Islamic clothing with scarves so popular that they’re bought by people outside of the Islamic faith, Nasser says.
“We want to empower ladies to open their own businesses and be a part of this world,” he says. “And it’s going to be nice to be right across the street from each other. She can come by and get a coffee and I can go and visit.”
Because Haraz Coffee opened during Ramadan, the coffee shop opens at 4:30 p.m. every day. When the holiday concludes later this month, the coffee shop will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.
In his quest to bring Yemeni coffee to the United States, Nasser plans on opening multiple Haraz Coffee locations throughout metro Detroit. And a friend has already opened Qamaria Yemeni Coffee Co. in Commerce Township.
“We both committed ourselves to importing coffee from Yemen,” Nasser says.
“Coffee is not something that should be ignored. It’s a culture and it’s a culture that unites people.”
Haraz Coffee is located at 13810 Michigan Ave. in east downtown Dearborn.
Reviewed By This Is Article About Haraz Coffee opens in Dearborn was posted on have 4 stars rating.


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Canonical releases a new version of its popular Ubuntu operating system every six months — but most versions are only officially supported for nine months. That means if you want a stable version of Ubuntu that you can run for a long time, you’ll probably want to opt for an LTS release like Ubuntu 18.04 LTS.
Those letters stand for Long Term Support, and up until recently that meant Canonical would offer five years of official support.
But now Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth says the company will support Ubuntu 18.04 for twice as long.
According to ZDNet, Shuttleworth said the move to a 10 year support cycle is meant to make Ubuntu a more attractive option for hardware developers creating Internet of Things appliances and specific industries including financial services and telecommunications.
While the announcement is aimed at commercial customers that are likely using Ubuntu on servers or IoT devices, it’s also good news for end users that run the desktop version of Ubuntu on laptops who prefer stability over bleeding-edge features. It means you’ll be able to install Ubuntu 18.04 today and continue receiving security updates and bug fixes through early 2028 even if you never upgrade to a newer version Ubuntu.
It’s unclear at this point if Canonical will commit to a 10-year life-cycle for future Ubuntu LTS releases. But the company has time to make that decision: the next LTS release will be Ubuntu 20.04, which isn’t scheduled to launch until April, 2020.
we use xubuntu on all our computers…… wonderful
I feel like this is a response to IBM buying Redhat
I’m quite happy with Ubuntu MATE 18.04, as I was with 16.04. I waited a few months after 18.04 was released before I installed it. This allowed most of the inevitable bugs to be fixed. Some tweaking was still required. I’ll probably do the same thing when 20.04 arrives. The upgrade process is really quite simple.
I suspect the announcement is more about the lack of popularity of 18.04, and they needed to do something. I’m still waiting for the full Wayland/Vulkan LTS release… and will be waiting for a long time.
I hope I can get selenium and eclipse working , I don’t want to go back to 16.04
I have 18.04 installed on a couple of systems and it is still quite buggy, hope it doesn’t take 10 years to fix them. 16.04 is working great on other systems.
For the record Xubuntu 18.04 is working quite well for me. There is a known problem installing Libre Office on Lubuntu 18.04 (a deal breaker for me) and I haven’t dealt with Ubuntu 18.04 but Xubuntu works fine for me. I hope they extend support on the derivatives (Xubuntu, Lubuntu, Kubuntu) for ten years as well.
I’ve seen a lot of coverage on this saying the same things, but it wasn’t spelled out completely. On older versions you could get support beyond the announced end-of-life, but you have to pay for it after that point. Considering the announcement was geared towards developers and people using Ubuntu Server and cloud services, I’m not convinced there will be 10 years of desktop support for free unless they specifically announce it.
Paid support beyond the announced, normal support lifespan of a release is standard industry practice, and has been for decades. It’s an excellent way of keeping long term customers happy while continuing to make money off obsolete products. Of course, it doesn’t come cheap.
So, there’s nothing in this announcement to believe that the usual LTS terms don’t extend to all versions of Ubuntu 18.04. Canonical wants Ubuntu to be the standard version of Linux on all platforms, and this is an excellent way to promote that.
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Retail real estate is experiencing a wave of change as consumers look to online shopping at an accelerated rate, undoubtedly a result of the coronavirus pandemic. This shift coupled with pandemic-related closures has put retail investors in a tough position, including Kimco Realty (NYSE: KIM), the largest real estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in open-air retail centers.
Despite a challenging few years for the company, Kimco Realty believes its future is bright and is working to adapt to the new normal for retail. If you're considering buying shares of Kimco Realty, here's what you need to know.
Kimco Realty company profile
Kimco Realty owns, operates, and has interest in 400 open-air shopping centers and mixed-use assets for a total of 70 million square feet. The company's mainstay is its grocery-anchored retail centers, which make up 77.6% of its average base rent (ABR). The company earns income by leasing retail space using long-term net leases. Right now Kimco is engaged in nearly 7,300 leases with 3,400 tenants with an average weighted lease term of 10 years for its anchor tenants and 5 years for smaller, more regionally based tenants.
44% of the company's ABR is earned from essential retailers, 42% from nonessential retailers, and 14% comes from restaurants. Of those tenants, 58% of its ABR is earned from grocery or anchor tenants, such as Whole Foods (NASDAQ: AMZN), Costco (NASDAQ: COST), Target (NYSE: TGT), and Walmart (NYSE: WMT); 11% comes from mid-tier stores, such as Trader Joe's or Dollar Tree (NASDAQ: DLTR); and 19% is earned from national franchises such as Panera, Five Guys, and JP Morgan Chase (NYSE: JPM), followed by 12% being earned from small, local, and independent businesses.TJ Maxx (NYSE: TJX) is the only tenant that provides more than 1% of the company's ABR.
In 2010, Kimco's portfolio was spread across the country with interest in over 800 properties. However, over the past decade, the company has worked hard to reduce its portfolio size and refocus on owning assets in its core 21 markets, including:
- Seattle, WA
- Portland, OR
- San Francisco and the Bay Area, CA
- Los Angeles and Orange County, CA
- Phoenix, AZ
- Austin, TX
- Dallas, TX
- Houston, TX
- Atlanta, GA
- Tampa, FL
- Orlando, FL
- Miami/Ft. Lauderdale, FL
- Raleigh/Durham, NC
- Charlotte, NC
- Baltimore, MD
- Washington, D.C.
- Philadelphia, PA
- New York, New York
- Boston, MA
- Chicago, IL
- Denver, CO
Kimco Realty news
It comes as no surprise that COVID-19 has had a negative impact on the company's profitability. While net income for the full year 2020 was up, funds from operations (FFO) were down 18% for the full year. By year end, all of Kimco’s shopping centers were open and operational with 97% of tenants open, including those operating on a limited basis. As of January 2021, Kimco had collected 97% of the stores that were open. Year to date, Kimco has granted 28.9% of deferrals as a total percentage of ABR. Deferrals have an average 12-month payback period.
Year ended 2020, the company's debt-to-EBITDA was 7.3x, which is high for the REIT industry and particularly concerning considering the company has roughly 16% of its total debt maturing in 2021 and 2022. The company has roughly $2.3 billion in cash and a revolving line of credit currently, which will be used to help fund the continued development projects underway, including around 5,000 multifamily units located in or near its retail centers.
The biggest challenge for the company moving forward is adapting to the shift in consumer preferences when it comes to shopping. Kimco believes the future of retail is being able to deliver appealing solutions for consumers. For example, curbside delivery, home delivery, or order pickup are all strategies consumers want, while still using the retail store as the logistics hubs for those solutions. Many of its core tenants, including Home Depot (NYSE: HD), Best Buy (NYSE: BBY), Dick's Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS), and Walmart, have seen curbside pickup or online purchasing with home delivery skyrocket over the past year, far surpassing the 50% threshold of sales for each company.
Kimco plans to install curbside pickup stations at all its properties by 2025, which should help promote the use of online solutions for customers and retailers. The company also believes convenience and offering multifamily and housing solutions attached to its retail centers will promote and engage more revenues for its tenants and portfolio. Which is why Kimco has set a goal to have 10,000 entitlements (or permits) in place for multifamily housing at or near its retail centers.
A few tenants are cause of concern for Kimco in the future. Kroger (NYSE: KR), for example, which makes up 0.9% of total ABR, has recently announced having to close stores to combat rising wages. Bed Bath & Beyond, which accounts for 1.4% of total ABR, has had to close 200 stores in response to the pandemic. The Gap (NYSE: GPS), which makes up 1% of ABR, plans to close down 350 stores. Not to mention the countless other non-core tenants struggling to stay afloat or unable to fully reopen. Kimco is far from out of the clear yet. One positive is that most of its core tenants are doing well, helping compensate for its at-risk tenants.
Kimco Realty stock price
Kimco's share prices fell hard in March of 2020 and are finally starting to recover to pre-coronavirus levels, right now trading just below early 2020 highs. On a five-year basis though, returns were a meger -1.33% while share prices have fallen -6.66% on an annual basis.


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Despite all the regulatory scrutiny that surrounds the crypto-verse, platforms haven’t stopped building. Prioritizing innovation, Coinbase, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange is exploring “flatcoins” on its Base network. Recently, Coinbase revealed that “flatcoins” which are inflation-pegged stablecoins, would be essential to be formulated on the Base network. This is among three other “critical innovations” that are expected to be built on the exchange’s layer-2 network.
The exchange’s latest interest is being viewed as bizarre as most stablecoins are pegged to the U.S. dollar [USD] or a fiat currency. Coinbase’s flatcoins are looking to be backed by the “price of living.” This will be done by tracking the consumer price index, as well as inflation data.
The launch of the Base network garnered interest. Now, the layer-2 network’s first step is the creation of an inflation-pegged flatcoin. In light of the current financial crisis, Coinbase stated that it is now “more important than ever” to create an inflation-tracking stablecoin that contradicts central banks’ flawed monetary policy decisions. Elaborating on the same, Coinbase wrote,
[We] are particularly interested in ‘flatcoins’ — stablecoins that track the rate of inflation, enabling users to have stability in purchasing power while also having resiliency from the economic uncertainty caused by the legacy financial system.
Furthermore, since flatcoins would be tied to inflation rates, they are expected to retain their value over time. This option is particularly beneficial in nations or states with high inflation rates, as consumers may be hesitant to keep their savings in local currency owing to its volatility.
Here’s what Coinbase wants developers to work on
Apart from flatcoins, developers are urged to formulate an on-chain reputation system and an on-chain limit order book [LOB] exchange. In addition, tools to make the DeFi ecosystem more secure are also being requested. Further highlighting details about Base and its vision, the network said,
“We recently launched Base, a secure, low-cost, developer friendly Ethereum L2. Our vision is to collectively work towards an ambitious goal: bringing the next billion users on-chain. One of our values from the beginning has been “Base is for everyone” and we’re so grateful to see builders around the world starting to make Base their home.”


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This will come as a surprise (well, not really), but another sponsor has reportedly pulled its ads from Glenn Beck's Fox News show. Holiday Inn has stopped running commercials during the show, per StopBeck.com. The hotelier joins dozens of companies boycotting Beck following his controversial broadcast last July when he called president Obama a "racist." Like other brands, Holiday Inn has deemed the show's content questionable and is worried about upsetting consumers. Among other advertisers who have done the same are General Mills, Geico and AT&T. The man has clearly pissed off a lot of brands, since the Glenn Beck Program is now losing more than 50 percent of its weekly ad revenue due to the boycott, according to reports. It will be interesting to see how long the show will go on without much ad support.
—Posted by Elena Malykhina


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2021 Honda. Compare. 2022 Hyundai Kona N. 2021 Honda The 235/40 R19 Pirelli P-Zero summer tires are mounted 19-inch dark alloy wheels for optimal grip.Now we are the company of reference worldwide in the market of small wall and floor tiles format. 2021 17 November, 2021. 17 November, 2021. March 11, 2021 This makes Dark0de the most complete dark web market. World market is a darknet market that is self coded by its developers with. List of darknet markets for investigators #2. by dark market 2021. Biggest Darknet Market 2021. by Sal. Biggest Darknet Market 2021. Buying drugs from the dark web point to signs of drug addiction. DarkMarket: world's largest illegal dark web marketplace taken down. 12 January 2021. Press Release. Press Release/News. Silkroad Market Ross.
Dark web statistics in 2021 indicate that it accounts for less than 5. Russian Darknet Market Hydra Records 624 Growth in Three Years, Accounts. 2 days ago Kathie Darknet darknet markets 2021 Market List so dark market 2021 you can visit some darknet markets 2021 of the best black market websites on the Deep Web. 9 hours ago High demand and low inventory continue to put the housing market off balance. To help solve it, agents need to bring more sellers to the. October 26, 20218:46 AM PDTLast Updated 3 months ago Darknet markets are e-commerce sites designed to lie beyond the reach of regular search engines. 8 days ago Dream Market, today's top dark web marketplace So, let's take a look at some of the Dark Net markets. Darknet market list 2021. Dark market 2021 (@DarkDotFail) January 14, 2021Why Dark Net Marketplaces Prefer Monero Over Other CryptocurrenciesAs Bitcoin takes center stage in.
Insikt Group judges that with moderate confidence that WeTheNorth market was likely created to replace the now debunked The Canadian. 3 hours ago Overall the equity capital markets raised dark market 2021 billion in 2021, down dark market 2021 per cent in proceeds from 2020, despite a dark market 2021 per cent growth in. The magical, after-dark, illuminated trail through the world-famous garden at Stourhead returns for its third year in 2021. Darknet markets 2021! Russian Darknet Market Hydra Records 624 Growth in. A popular downtown events is returning Saturday, September 25, to Cedar alphabay market url Rapids. Market After Dark is Lighting the Night with Alliant Energy. By SL Chua 2021 Cited by 1 June 10, 2021. How can we measure trust on illicit darknet market websites? Borrowing from the indus- trial organization literature, I propose a new.
October 26, 20218:46 AM PDTLast Updated 3 months ago Darknet markets alphabay market link are e-commerce sites designed to lie beyond the reach of regular search engines. 2 days ago Kathie Darknet darknet markets 2021 Market List so you can visit some darknet markets 2021 of the best black market websites on the Deep Web. Empire is the latest darknet market to "exit scam," meaning administrators ran away with users' cryptocurrency, leaving the market to fail. 2021 Honda. Compare. 2024 Hyundai Kona N. 2021 Honda The 235/40 R19 Pirelli P-Zero summer tires are mounted 19-inch dark alloy wheels for optimal grip. Dark Web URLS 2021. Active directory of black-market websites, best dark web markets. Sources Say World's Largest Darknet Empire Market Exit. Top Darknet Markets List 2020/2021. Empire Market: Show URLs. You may also like Dark Market the biggest darknet market. Dark Market Darknet.
This blog is an excerpt from the Chainalysis 2021 Crypto Crime Report. Darknet markets have long fascinated the public, starting with. Darknet Market List 2021 World Market Dark Market Torrez Market. Dark Web. Considering I've been a deep web enthusiast for nearly a decade now, I. Credit card numbers cost as little as 9 on the dark web markets. Dark web statistics in alphabay market darknet 2021 indicate that it accounts for less than 5. 4 hours ago Jill On Money: Inflation, the Great Resignation, and the hot housing market: A look back at the economy of 2021. 2021 Ford Ranger LARIAT Sport Super Crew with FX4 package in Velocity Blue. 2021 2021 Ranger 2024 Ford F-150 Lightning driving down a dark tunnel. From DIY fraud kits through to unlicensed gym candy, darknet markets are home to purveyors of all manner of illegal and semi-legal products.
Televend Market Link
One defendant, for example, used virtual private networks to access WSM computers, but when a VPN connection would fail, his IP was dark market 2021 revealed and authorities were able to identify his specific location. Exchanges like Binance, Coinbase, and Gemini are already operating and offering these services to U. There are various types and kinds of drugs available on the dark market 2021 Darkweb. It is important, however, to take this in context of what was happening at the time with the numerous spam attacks that were hitting the Bitcoin network. Chinese vendors specialised in selling NPS [ 24], and the European Drug Report also suggests Chinese laboratories are the source of many NPS [ 25]. Note: You should start the VPN just before also downloading the TOR browser.
In this project, we look at the evolution of darknet marketplaces, including dark market 2021 the changes of posts and users volumes, as well as the evolution of keywords and topics dark market 2021 over time. Child Porn, Weapons, and some other restricted materials are banned. This is despite the fact that many of the cybercriminal offerings of English-language marketplaces could fit into other linguistic cybercriminal ecosystems with relative ease. Not only is this the first time state prosecutors in New York have taken down a dark web storefront, this takedown represents the largest pill seizure in New Jersey's history," Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance said in a statement.


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Expanding operations in the Midlands
Amazon UK today announced plans to open a new distribution centre in the Midlands, which will increase its 2,500-strong workforce by 400 new jobs.
The company said its new fulfilment centre at Rugby, which will be the fourth Amazon fulfillment center in the region, would open up a variety of positions including engineers and HR and IT specialists.
Amazon’s UK director of customer fulfilment Stefano Perego said: “We are delighted to expand our operations in the Midlands where we already have a dedicated workforce of more than 2,500 people at fulfilment centres in Rugeley, Coalville and Daventry,”
“We are thrilled to begin recruitment for 400 new permanent roles in Rugby with competitive wages and comprehensive benefits starting on day one.”
The investment decision has been welcomed by local MP Mark Pawey. “The decision demonstrates the ever increasing strength of our thriving local economy and the confidence that business has in our area,” Pawey said.


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Briggs & Stratton posts wider loss on lower generator sales
Briggs & Stratton Corp. reported a wider fiscal first-quarter loss Thursday, as a lack of storms in the quarter caused lower portable generator sales compared to last year when Hurricane Isaac hit in August.
The Wauwatosa maker of lawn-and-garden equipment and small engines reported a loss of $19.3 million, or 41 cents a share, compared with a loss of $16.5 million, or 35 cents, a year earlier.
Included in the loss for the recent quarter were pretax restructuring charges of $3.6 million. Included in the loss for the year-ago quarter were pretax charges of $5.1 million also related to restructuring actions. After removing these items, the loss for first quarter 2014 was $16.5 million, or 35 cents a share, compared with a loss of $13.2 million, or 28 cents, a year earlier.
Revenue rose 2.7% for the three months ended Sept. 30, to $317.3 million from $309.0 million, with sales increases in engines and lawn and garden products, partially offset by lower sales of portable generators.
"Our first quarter results were slightly better than we anticipated as we experienced increased consumer demand for lawn and garden equipment leading to higher shipments of engines that power these products and higher shipments of lawn and garden products to our dealers," said Todd Teske, chairman, president and chief executive, in a statement. "We have also seen continued strength in standby generator sales; however, portable generator sales decreased with Hurricane Isaac landing last year and no significant storm activity this year."
Recent national business updates from the Associated Press


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The diet "danger zone" AKA the exact day and time those on a diet are most likely to give into temptation has been revealed - and we can't say we're surprised by the results.
According to new research by Lineaslim Effervescent Tablets, women will put themselves through the dieting mill all week long only to break resolve at 8pm on a Friday evening. But even if you manage to make it through Friday without scoffing a box of Milk Tray, Saturday is also high-risk.
Meanwhile, Tuesday poses the least threat to dieters - with only 2 of those polled admitting it impacts their dieting goals and even causes arguments with their friends and family.
The news comes as it is revealed nearly a quarter of British women are constantly on a diet and hoping to lose between one and two stones.
Dietitian Helen Bond told the Mail Online: "However much pressure we put on ourselves to eat healthy, get fit and lose weight during the week, good intentions often tend to fly out of the window at the weekend.
"If you have spent five weekdays days saving 500 calories a day, a total of 2500, but then eat an additional 2000 calories on Friday night and Saturday, you will not lose weight and it may actually contribute to weight gain."
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- July 8, 2022
- Posted by: Alison Peters
- Category: Automotive Industry, Awards
Last week we were thrilled to win the ROI Content Campaign of the Year Award at the UK Content Awards 2022!
Our Digital Marketing team have delivered a real return on investment for the SEO campaigns that they run for our dealerships. This award is fantastic recognition of the hard work our Digital Marketing team put in to deliver digital marketing campaigns that really perform.
Judges were looking for companies that had delivered client(s) a return on investment through content campaigns – looking at advertising spend, campaign activity, results, and overall performance.
Our team showed that they had delivered a significant increase in leads, conversions, and ultimately sales since starting the SEO campaign work for one of our dealers – as well as increasing visitor traffic from key locations that the dealership wanted to target.
We were shortlisted as one of only two finalists alongside Ready10, who was an extremely tough contender to go up against! To win the award is a huge achievement and we’re extremely proud to have won.
Kathryn and Imahni from our Digital Marketing team attended the awards ceremony on the 7th July at Montcalm London Marble Arch on behalf of the team. The award was presented by Jenny Powell – with winners on the night including some big names such as Chelsea Football Club, Prostrate UK, and Legal & General.
It was fantastic to see so many great companies showcased on the night – to be featured amongst these, and to take home the win, highlights our position as a leading provider of digital marketing services.
Well done to the whole team!


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BEIJING - Ford Motor Co and its local partners in China sold a total 93,969 vehicles on a wholesale basis in October, an increase of 55 percent from a year earlier, the company said on Wednesday. That compared with a 61 percent increase in September. In the first 10 months of the year, sales by the Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker totaled 741,818 vehicles on a wholesale basis, up 52 percent from the same period last year. Ford, whose sales have been boosted by hot demand for models such as Focus and Mondeo, has now overtaken its Japanese rival Toyota Motor Co, whose sales grew only 4.9 percent during the first 10 months to 719,200 units. Ford partners with Chongqing ChangAn Automobile Co Ltd and Jiangling Motors Corp in making vehicles in the world's biggest automotive market.
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Jun 03, 2020Systech, a division of Markem-Imaje specializing in serialization solutions, as well as tracking, location and brand protection, has announced a solution for the serialization of pharmaceutical products. The system adheres to the requirements of Brazil's National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa), whose rules must be met by May 2022, according to the government's official schedule. Pharmaceutical laboratories that manufacture medicines or import them into Brazil must adapt to the new regulations. Anvisa's drug-control system defines the procedures for collecting, storing and transmitting product data across the supply chain. As a result, drug-distribution companies are obliged to submit detailed data to the federal government regarding product transactions.
Paulo Machado, Markem-Imaje's strategic account manager, says that with the new rules, resources will be expanded in the country to manage all projects locally. "Our proven software solutions are powerful enough to meet any global regulations," he states, "yet flexible enough to be valid with new equipment or manufacturing lines."
Stacey Owens-Perrotta, Systech's senior manager of global marketing, says the cloud-based technology allows pharmaceutical products to be serialized according to Anvisa's requirements. "All countries have a form of regulation in which drugs cannot pass through the supply chain," she explains, "without being serialized on the packaging by bar codes or 2D," such as QR codes or digital printing, for example. "A manufacturer cannot sell its drugs unless it complies with these regulations."
The Brazilian drug market, estimated at US$48 billion, is growing rapidly, according to data from Systech. "At the moment, it is one of the most attractive and promising pharmaceutical markets in the world," Owens-Perrotta says. In addition, the Brazilian generic drug industry is growing rapidly to compete with other major global economies.
According to Owens-Perrotta, the idea of serialization involves preventing the counterfeiting and diversion of products, but it has not been enough to prevent criminals from taking action. "Bar codes and 2D matrices on the packaging can be replicated or copied so they cannot be the answer to the problem," she states. "Therefore, there are other technologies that are layered on serialization to add extra protection to each product." These technologies include e-fingerprinting, Systech's UniSecure mobile solution, holograms, tamper-resistant seals, special inks and more.
Joe Belenardo, Systech's global VP of sales and marketing, says all new regulations are complicated. "For this reason," he states, "Systech has developed a program for Brazil that includes a set of combined solutions and offers the industry the best services for serialization, traceability, implementation, reporting, training and technical support." The company has experience in more than 50 serialization facilities with large, multinational pharmaceutical laboratories, he says, adding, "With fully integrated solutions in place, we can meet local and global requirements perfectly, without needing multiple suppliers. We have been pioneers in serialization for over 30 years and remain the trusted supplier to the world's leading pharmaceutical laboratories."
Serialization affects all partners in the supply chain: brands, contract manufacturers, packers, logistics providers, distributors, hospitals and pharmacies. Pharmaceutical companies are starting to plan the process now to better understand requirements, establish resources and cost efficiencies, and ensure project completion on time. Systech has developed a software suite for authentication and traceability that is intended to combat counterfeiting, prevent diversion and comply with regulations. The firm offers a brand-protection solution in a suite of products that provide real-time insights, product data, digital connectivity and consumer engagement. The system is now being used by several global brands to maintain product authenticity across the supply chain.


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Scott Lunny, USW director for Western Canada, said this is about having a seat at the table and more of a voice
A southwest Calgary Starbucks is the first in Alberta to become unionized.
The majority of the 32 employees at the 150 Millrise Blvd. S.W. location voted through mail-in ballot to join the United Steelworkers, with the ballots counted on Tuesday.
Scott Lunny, USW director for Western Canada, said this is about having a seat at the table and more of a voice.
“The baristas in Calgary are joining the growing number of Starbucks workers across North America who are organizing for better working conditions and wages,” he said.
He added five Starbucks stores in Lethbridge are also currently voting on whether to join the USW. The union also represents employees at Starbucks locations in Victoria, Surrey and Langley, B.C., as well as locations in the U.S.
This follows a failed unionization attempt at the Chinook Centre Starbucks in March that was delayed through an appeal process following a January vote.
“From the beginning, we’ve been clear in our belief that we are better together as partners, without a union between us at Starbucks, and that conviction has not changed,” a spokesperson for Starbucks Canada said in an email Wednesday.
“We continue to respect our partners’ (employees’) right to organize. We will respect the process and will bargain in good faith guided by our principles. We hope that the union does the same.”


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Celebrities these days have been trying to diversify their business ventures. One big name has decided to get into the growing field of photo apps. Snoop Lion (who of course used to be called Snoop Dogg) has partnered with Upper Playground, 99centbrains, and Cashmere Agency to release "Snoopify," an iOS and Android capable app is similar to Instagram in the way that it modifies photos.
However rather than creating a vintage look, the app adds Snoop-inspired virtual stickers created by illustrator Munk One. It's kind of a cool thing to share with firends. Although after being Snooped out, you can share the images on Instagram as well as Facebook and Twitter (which bears the hashtag #snoopifyapp). You can get the app for free but additional packs from the app cost a dollar a pop. You can download Snoopify in iTunes and Google Play.
Snoop actually has released a mobile app before--"The Snoop Lion Reincarnated App"--that allowed his hardcore fans to see the behind-the-scenes footage about his latest album. We have to say the app sounds pretty interesting. At least a lot more useful than other celebrity apps. Did you know David Hasselhoff has a $2 dollar app that gives you advice? Snoopify sounds a lot better than that.


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An exceptional sales result in Taupō, a landmark Napier industrial deal, and a record month of leasing across the Hawke’s Bay demonstrate the ongoing strength of the central North Island’s commercial property market.
Colliers International recently brokered the sale of a nationally tenanted industrial property 464 Rakaunui Road, Rotokawa, Taupō, for a competitive yield of 5.04 per cent.
The $2.7 million sale followed 12 offers from a large geographic spread of buyers.
Colliers also recently brokered the sale of a 3.21ha industrial site on Waitangi Road in Awatoto, Napier.
The property was purchased by an investment partnership company that is developing a new $70 million factory for premium New Zealand pet food maker Ziwi.
Hugh Milloy, Taupō Broker at Colliers, says the Rakaunui Road result demonstrates the high level of investor appetite for quality provincial industrial property.
“There was very strong enquiry throughout the campaign, which resulted in an excellent outcome for the vendor and purchaser alike.
“The property sold unconditionally on 10 July, only one day after the five-week sales campaign concluded. It’s clear that investors were drawn to the quality building, quality tenant and quality lease.
“We’re thrilled to have a very happy buyer and a great result for the vendor – making this a big win-win all round.”
Completed in 2016, the property comprises a 1,864sq m industrial building on a 4,080sq m freehold site.
It is prominently located at the corner of Rakaunui and Aratiatia Roads in Taupō’s Centennial Industrial Estate, only a few minutes from State Highway 1.
The property is fully leased to national tenant HJ Asmuss Ltd, a heavy engineering supplies company that was established in 1920 and has branches throughout New Zealand.
Danny Blair, Hawke’s Bay Director at Colliers, says the Ziwi sale in Napier shows demand for well-located, quality industrial property has been undented by the impact of Covid-19.
“It’s particularly pleasing that the sale will translate directly to new jobs for the Hawke’s Bay. Ziwi’s state-of-the-art new pet food production facility will employ 125 workers upon completion.
“The 12,000sq m facility will replace Ziwi’s existing factory in Tauranga. The company spent three years looking at potential locations in Tauranga but was unable to find a site of sufficient size, with the necessary infrastructure, within its required timeframe.
“The decision to relocate to the Hawke’s Bay shows tremendous optimism for the region’s ongoing growth.”
The commercial leasing market in Hawke’s Bay has also been performing exceptionally well.
Blair says June 2020 was Colliers’ biggest month for leases and enquiry in the region since March 2017. Almost half were retail leases, followed by industrial and office.“We see all this activity as a positive for the region’s recovery and growth, with people getting back to business.”


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PHOTOS: Abeokuta shopping mall guts fire
A high rise shopping mall, located at Totoro area of Abeokuta metropolis in Ogun State, caught fire on Sunday, September 20.
WITHIN NIGERIA learnt that the fierce fire incident started on Sunday morning, consumed goods worth millions of Naira before it was finally quenched by the State’s fire service.
It was gathered that thick black smoke coming out of the building was said to have attracted the attention of passersby and residents in the Totoro area.
Ogun State Fire Service was contacted immediately and succeeded in putting out the fire. However, cause of fire was not indicated at press time.
See photos from the scene below;
The post PHOTOS: Abeokuta shopping mall guts fire appeared first on Within Nigeria.
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“I wanted to create something disruptive, something that could be in tune with what has changed inside all of us. To me that meant dreaming of a new world. A world made of popping colors and fantastic creatures and a world in which we can all coexist peacefully” — Donatella Versace
In a time of empty seats and face masks, a schedule of runway livestreams awaited the fashion fan as well as the front row regular.
As in-person fashion shows were excluded from New York and London Fashion Week, Milan presented something new, residing in Versace’s new collection.
Livestreamed with an audience of only staff members, Donatella Versace presented her new ready-to-wear collection with a nostalgic and electric underwater theme. “Versacepolis,” as introduced by Donatella on Youtube, focuses on the banishment of Medusa by Athena and in turn creates a new world for the Gorgon.
“I wanted to create something disruptive, something that could be in tune with what has changed inside all of us,” said Versace in the description of her show. “To me that meant dreaming of a new world in which we can all coexist peacefully.”
A writer for Women’s Wear Daily wrote that Versace’s inspiration was “out of yearning for nature, escape, and fantasy.”
This collection featured a modern twist on one of their previous collections from the 90s, the Tresor De la Mer collection, with bursts of green, orange and blue neons alongside muted shades of pale pink.
This show also saw Versace reveal a major change in casting diversity, with a group of models with a broad range of ethnic backgrounds, as well as three “plus-size” models. Viewers were pleasantly surprised to see models of color be represented, not just sporadically placed.
Ellie Krug, president of Miami University’s Fashion & Design club (MUF&D), weighed in on the subject.
“I think the fashion industry is making great strides when it comes to the diversification of their models and the people they represent on the runway and in print,” she said. “I think we have a long way to go, but I believe the industry is definitely heading in the right direction.”
Donning the Versace pieces, curvy models Alva Claire, Precious Lee and Jill Kortleve were praised by many for leading the way in diverse sizing.
“I think it is important for designers and companies to represent everybody in their advertising and in their runway shows,” Krug said. “I would love to see a more diverse variation of height, size, skin color, hair color and ethnicity on the runway, and I have faith that we will be seeing all of those things in the near future.”
This ready-to-wear collection was presented on a runway lightly dusted with sand, while Greek columns and statues made up the background of a sunken Versacepolis.


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Singapore’s govt has not been shy with its sights on cryptocurrency trading, stating these kinds of marketplaces are much too dangerous for specific investors, which by implication leaves the door open up for experts at expense banking companies and in other places.
The plunge in cryptocurrency charges this calendar year — Bitcoin has fallen about 55% and traded at US$21,555 Friday early morning in Asia — may possibly be aiding to reach the government’s ambitions as retail traders desert Singapore exchanges.
“We foresee the modern drawdowns in the present-day bear industry to have particularly strike retail traders,” stated Henryk Abucewicz Tan, head of companies for substantial internet value people and establishments at Coinhako, one of the several crypto exchanges in Singapore to earn a total license in the town condition.
“But institutions who may have been sitting on the sidelines could see this as an opportune instant to come in to get some publicity,” Abucewicz informed Forkast, including that Coinhako will be giving a lot more advanced items and expert services for this kind of investors.
Singapore has so considerably granted licenses and in-theory approvals to 14 digital payment token (DPT) service providers, including stablecoin assignments, crypto exchanges, and traditional financial institutions.
See associated short article: Singapore needs to provide some adult supervision to crypto
There are still an additional 100 waiting around for their licenses, with lots of functioning less than a so-referred to as “exemption” from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the central lender, which allows them to operate until finally the application is accredited, rejected, or withdrawn by the applicant.
Hong Qi Yu, the chief government officer and founder of Tokenize Xchange, a cryptocurrency trade running in Singapore beneath an exemption, claimed the business has observed increases in the two retail and institutional buyers in the past couple of decades, but the strategy is now shifting.
Tokenize has doubled the quantity of institutional customers in the 1st quarter of 2022, and aims to boost the percentage to 50% of its whole consumers in the future 18 months, Hong reported. Very last 12 months, out of a total 200,000 end users, 80% had been retail.
“This 12 months our target will be to empower and proceed to have interaction our present buyers, not so significantly concentration on obtaining new ones,” Hong told Forkast in an interview.
Hong said the higher number of institutional buyers is partly attributed to the growth of family members offices and financial establishments in the island nation.
Cracking the whip
Singapore is constant with its concept of crypto as a high-danger asset and the authorities before this 12 months limited promoting and marketing of the business and blocked crypto ATM companies.
The concept only obtained much more insistent following the multibillion-greenback collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin and LUNA cryptocurrency in May perhaps, an occasion that induced significant losses globally, like for retail traders.
The Singapore large guns were being wheeled out before this thirty day period as Deputy Key Minister Heng Swee Keat referred to as the asset class “a highly dangerous area” and warned retail traders to steer apparent.
Upcoming up was Sopnendu Mohanty, chief fintech officer of MAS, who told the Financial Occasions in an interview this week that Singapore will be “brutal and unrelentingly hard” on any illicit conduct in the crypto business.
Forkast emailed MAS with requests for remark in this story, but had not acquired a reply as of publication.
In tandem with cracking the whip, Singapore is also using very clear steps to check out the chances in the blockchain engineering that underlies electronic assets such as cryptocurrencies.
See associated post: Singapore warms up to crypto marketplace — on its individual terms
When Heng spoke at the Asia Tech X Singapore Summit on Could 31 — the very same location wherever he warned about the threats included in crypto buying and selling — he also talked of Website 3. and what he known as “potentially transformative underlying systems.”
He pointed out the potential advantages of digital tokenization that will allow the fractionalization of property, these types of as genuine estate, which could provide much better value discovery and access to ordinarily illiquid belongings.
“We figure out this is a remarkably risky space, but it also has the potential to renovate the long term of finance,” he explained. “We have to proceed to adapt our procedures to assure that regulation continues to be facilitative of innovation, and but addresses the key threats that crypto assets pose.”
In line with that, MAS has kicked off an initiative called Task Guardian with significant economic institutions to take a look at asset tokenization and decentralized finance (DeFi) though handling hazards.
General, the present-day turmoil in the business is “growing pains,” Henry Chong, main government officer of Malaysia and Hong Kong-dependent electronic securities exchange Fusang, told Forkast in an interview. “And in just about every crisis lies an opportunity,” he explained.
See related post: Caught among a rock and a tricky place, Singapore tightens crypto oversight
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