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Ricky’s NYC — the funky, irreverent beauty shop that mixes beauty staples with impulse items — has always had its sights set on national expansion.
After flirting with the concept in years past, opening a number of stores just outside of Manhattan and one in Miami’s South Beach, Ricky’s has mapped out a plan for stores as far west as California.
“[In the past], we’ve always had street-level stores. Now, we are mostly focused on mall-based stores,” said Todd Kenig, Ricky’s chief executive officer. Noting the difficulty of duplicating Manhattan’s bustling foot traffic in other markets, Kenig said, “Malls seem to be the place to go.” Ricky’s will supplement that approach with street-level stores in markets well suited for them, said Kenig, who on this day was scouting a potential location on Chestnut Street in Philadelphia.
In addition to Philadelphia, Ricky’s — which has 27 locations and plans to end the year with 30 in metro New York — is looking to open stores in Boston, Miami, Los Angeles and Orlando, Fla., to name a few. Plans for 2012 call for five to eight mall-based stores and three to four street-level locations, said Kenig. The goal for 2013 is to open an additional 10 to 20 stores. “Hopefully, by 2016 we’ll have 100 locations.”
The retailer’s typical footprint in Manhattan is 1,800 to 3,000 square feet, but other markets allow for a 2,500- to 3,000-square-foot box, he said. Each new outpost will house its salon concept, called Revolver, which is currently an element in nine stores. New locations also will feature a more clean, upscale and mature look. After all, not too long ago Ricky’s was known for the scantily clad mannequins (think sequins and fishnet stockings) in its storefront windows. In recent years, they’ve been replaced by colorful graphics and an emphasis on product. The changes have attracted new brands such as Smashbox, Peter Thomas Roth, Bliss and Murad. Kenig aims to marry Ricky’s funky heritage with a more streamlined look. “We’re working on keeping the edge, but we want to make the malls happy, too,” he said. “The stores can’t be as gritty as SoHo.”
As Ricky’s expands beyond New York, the retailer plans to acquaint shoppers with its reputation with marketing that reads, “Ricky’s, the No. 1 beauty store in New York, is coming.”
@chanel and @pharrell dropped what’s being dubbed as the world’s most exclusive sneakers yesterday. The Adidas Originals NMD Hu, which Williams designed in collaboration with Chanel and @adidasoriginals, has a waiting list of over 120K people who pre-registered online at chanelatcolette.fr –– and only 500 pairs are on sale. The singer predicted the resale value of the shoes could reach $40K. Read the full interview on WWD.com. Link in bio. #wwdfashion
@imanshumpert is diving deeper into his creative endeavors and relaunching his clothing line, Post 90s, and is helping to raise money for the hurricane victims in St. Maarten with a jersey he’s designed with his brother. The Cleveland Cavaliers player talked to WWD about kneeling during the national anthem, working with fashion brands and how he wants to be more than an @nba player. Read the interview on WWD.com #wwdfashion (📷: George Chinese)
Not only does #TheProfit return to CNBC tonight, but @marcuslemonis has launched @shopmarcus, a new shopping and lifestyle retail experience in Aspen and Chicago, with more locations to come. The retail stores offer in-store stylists and a variety of contemporary womenswear selections.
“It’s life, I’m going to face it,” @mingxi11 sighed. “I fell, but you know, I think the most important thing is that I get back up. I had the love, the help from my sister — the girl next to me Gizele [Oliveira] — she’s so nice. When I went backstage everybody was trying to comfort me like ‘Oh Ming, it’s OK.’ I’m really, really touched. I think it’s them who gave me the courage to go back on stage for the finale,” Xi told WWD of her fall at the @victoriassecret fashion show. (📷: David Fisher) #wwdfashion #vsfashionshow #victoriassecret
@louisvuitton tapped @therealpeterlindbergh for its latest city-centric photo book, which is part of a series called Fashion Eye. The primarily black and white book captures the spirit of Berlin in 57 images shot between 1989 and 2019. “Berlin is an inspiration for me, more than a city. I mean @millajovovich is simply Berlin!” said Lindbergh. #wwdfashion
“You know, I think audiences expect a certain performance so I have to deliver to them what they’re expecting to a certain degree. But I’m also a different actor and a different person, I have my own spin on the character,” says @noahegalvin of his takeover of the leading role in “Dear Evan Hansen” following the departure of @bensplatt, who originated the role. Read WWD’s interview with the 23-year-old actor on WWD.com #wwdeye (📷: @jilliansollazzo)
For pre-fall 2018, @etro created richly-colored wonderland, using tapestries, textiles and wallpapers from the Eastern world at large. The line featured floral and graphic prints and jacquard motifs, like this two-piece look featured here. #wwdfashion (📷: Giovanna Pavesi)
@kith is moving into children’s. The men’s and women’s streetwear brand has launched Kidset, a Kith kids line located in New York at 64 Bleecker Street. The line includes mini versions of staple Kith pieces like the Astor bomber jacket and the Kith box logo sweatshirts, along with a wall that can display up to 120 pairs of shoes from @adidas, @newbalance, @timberland and more. #wwdfashion
“I just wanted to create this fully rounded character, but I do think what excited me most was just the opportunity to give a group of people representation that I feel needs it. I like to do characters in projects that stand for something and Karolina definitely does, so that was really exciting to me,” @ginnygardner says of her new role in @hulu’s “The Runaways.” Gardner plays Karolina Dean, a queer superhero, which is a rarity for @marvel. Read more about Gardner’s character on WWD.com #wwdeye (📷: @dandoperalski)


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HELSINKI (BRAIN) — Mavic's owner, Amer Sports Corp., is reporting net sales of 783.7 milion euros ($870 million) in the fourth quarter of 2015, up 6 percent in local currencies from its sales in the same period in 2014. Gross margins increased to 43.8 percent from 43 percent in the prior year.
LIVINGSTON, Scotland (BRAIN) — David Pritchard has joined the Scottish cycle clothing supplier Endura Ltd as sales director. The company said the new position was created to provide greater experience and support to its global sales team.
TOULOUSE, France (BRAIN) — QBP will be set up for sales and service needs for BOS by early March. Canadian dealers may also purchase BOS suspension products through QBP.
TAIPEI, Taiwan (BRAIN) — Some bicycle brands well-known in the U.S., as well as some lesser known brands, were among those recognized in the most recent Taiwan Excellence Awards. The awards are bestowed by Taiwan's Ministry of Economic Affairs and have been since 1992.
NEVERS, France (BRAIN) — Look Cycle announced Wednesday that it had bought a controlling interest in another French cycling stalwart, the wheel maker Corima.
HEERENVEEN, the Netherlands (BRAIN) — Accell Group says an employee in its Taiwan office may have stolen as much as 4 million euros ($4.4 million) from the company by withdrawing money from the company's bank account.
LEAMINGTON, England (BRAIN) — Hiplok has named Ian Manning head of sales as part of an expansion at the U.K.-based maker of wearable locks.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (BRAIN) — Urban cycling shoe brand Quoc Pham has begun selling in Canada through Brilliant Health International Distributors Inc.
WILRIJIK, Belgium (BRAIN) — Sapim has just moved its headquarters to a new location.
AURORA, Ontario (BRAIN) — Canadian e-bike electric propulsion system manufacturer BionX International has named Casey Anderson as its new sales manager for North America and emerging markets.
ADELAIDE, Australia (BRAIN) — The new Canyon/SRAM Racing women's team is holding "tryouts" for a new team member via the Zwift online cycling application.
Starting in March, female amateur riders will be invited to tryout for a professional contract by riding Zwift in a winner-take-sall talent contes.
CANBERRA, Australia (BRAIN) — Australia-based Today's Plan is expanding into the U.S. and Canada with its customized training plans and analytics that it offers for specific bike events.
TUCSON, Ariz. (BRAIN) — TriSports.com, a multi-sport retailer, is supporting World Bicycle Relief with a donation that will purchase five WBR Buffalo Bicycles to be used in Africa.
HELSINKI (BRAIN) — Amer Sports Corporation announced Tuesday that president and CEO Heikki Takala is assuming direct responsibility for the company's apparel business unit and its Arc'teryx brand.
BIEL, Switzerland (BRAIN) — As announced last year, DT Swiss is changing its ownership structure as longstanding CEO and chairman Marco Zingg has sold his shares to his two business partners.
LAGUNA BEACH, Calif. (BRAIN) — Crankbrothers has a new distributor within Australia: Lusty Industries Pty Ltd.
WILTON, Conn. (BRAIN) — Team Cycling Academy, Israel's first international pro cycling team, has announced that Cannondale will be its official bike sponsor for 2016.
DURANGO, Colo. (BRAIN) — Cycling media veteran Mark Gouge is joining Australia-based CyclingTips.com as its North American sales director.
BOULDER, Colo. (BRAIN) — Stages Cycling will continue to supply power meters to the defending Tour de France champions, Team Sky, in 2016. It will be the third year that Stages has supplied the team.
TALAMONA, Italy (BRAIN) — Italian helmet brand MET is auctioning two special edition MET RIVALE helmets signed by pro racers Steve Cummings and Daniel Teklehaimanot.

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Prices of some laptops and tablets have already fallen, with others expected to drop starting with Black Friday year-end holiday sales in the U.S. this week. Some Chromebook laptops will be available for $199 and some Windows 8 laptops could come down to $250. The price of Windows 8 tablets and hybrids could fall to under $250, while Android tablets could be available for under $100.
Finding a laptop under $200 would have been considered a steal during the holiday shopping weeks last year, but the number of products in that price range has expanded this year. Netbook-style Chromebooks running Chrome OS are the least expensive, while fully functional Windows laptops will cost more. Chromebooks are thin-and-light laptops with limited storage and without a full-fledged OS like Windows. They are intended for people who do most of their computing on the Web, with users likely to use online services for storage.
See PCWorld’s picks for the best Chromebooks you can buy right now
Acer’s Chromebook C720-2848 is the least expensive Chromebook, already priced at $200. It has an 11.6-inch screen, an Intel Celeron 2955U processor based on the Haswell microarchitecture, 16GB of storage, and offers 8.5 hours of battery life.
One possible upgrade is Acer’s $300 C720P Touchscreen Chromebook, which has similar specifications to the non-touch Chromebook C720, but has a touchscreen and 32GB of storage. Other Chromebooks include Hewlett-Packard and Google’s Chromebook 11, which has an ARM processor and is priced at $279. HP’s 14-inch Chromebook 14 has an Intel processor and is priced at $299.
Deals for fully functional laptops with Windows 8 or 8.1 will pop up sporadically, with some laptops with 11.6-inch and 15.6-inch screens already priced at less than $300. Dell has listed Inspiron laptops starting at $199 for Black Friday and an Asus 15.6-inch laptop is on sale via Groupon for $280.
Beyond $300 laptops, HP will sell laptops Friday starting at $399. Toshiba is pitching deals for Friday and Cyber Monday. Prices have already been lowered on enterprise laptops and Lenovo is offering discounts on all ThinkPad laptops.
Before you shop for a notebook, read our laptop buying guide
Microsoft Store is now selling an Asus X102BA-BH41T Touchscreen Laptop with a low-end Advanced Micro Devices processor for $299.99. The company is also planning further discounts on Friday and there may be deals on its Surface RT tablet, which has been selling poorly. Prices of the tablet could fall to $199.99 at the Microsoft Store, Best Buy, Walmart and Staples, according to enthusiast site Neowin.
Another way to get Windows 8.1 is through small-screen tablets such as Dell’s Venue 8 Pro, which is an 8-inch Bay Trail tablet that for a limited time was available for under $230 at Walmart and TigerDirect. A source familiar with the product said the price of the tablet is expected to fall again.
The tablet has 32GB of storage, but the Windows 8 OS occupies a lot of that space. Other tablets such as the Asus Transformer Book T100 will be available with keyboards and could fall to under $300 in the coming days. Windows 8.1 tablets with 8-inch screens now cost about $350.
See our picks for the 10 best Windows 8 devices you can buy right now
For Android tablets, retailer Walmart as part of its Friday deals will sell HP’s 7-inch Android tablet called Mesquite for $89. Many Android tablets could fall to under $150, an example being Dell’s Venue 7, which is priced at $149, but was recently sold for $127 in a short-lived deal. Lenovo’s S6000, an Android tablet with a 10-inch screen and quadcore ARM processor, is already priced at $194.
Pick the right device with our tablet buying guide
Newegg, one of the most popular technology retail sites, is running Black Friday promotions and brick-and-mortar stories like Best Buy and Target are also offering online deals.
Deals will also pop up sporadically at sites such as Slickdeals and Dealnews, with products selling out quickly.


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State of Decay (formerly known as Class3) is the upcoming open world zombie survival game from Undead Labs and Microsoft Studios. The game …
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Gaijin Games confirmed at PAX this weekend that Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien (also known simply as Runner2) is aiming for a …
LocoCycle is probably the most aptly name ever created. It stars two sentient motorcycles: I.R.I.S., the game's protagonist, and the evil S.P.I.K.E. Well, it also co-stars Pablo, I.R.I.S.'s mechanic. He's the poor chum seen being dragged behind I.R.I.S. in the recent gameplay reveal. The game's two-wheeled stars were brought to life by Austin-based Southern Metal Choppers, along with special effects wizards Legacy Effects. I.R.I.S. (above) weighs in at 600 points and, according to our own Nick Santalego and Perry Jackson, is stunning up-close. Below is S.P.I.K.E., the game's villain. The motorcycles are voiced by gaming personality and journalist Lisa Foiles and the Terminator T-1000 himself, Robert Patrick, respectively.
LocoCycle's beginnings sprang years ago from a simple gag gift. Josh Bear, Creative Director at Twisted Pixel Games, received a copy of the (terrible) movie Torque from the studio's Art Director. For some reason Bear sat through the movie, bad motorcycle fights and all. He had a nightmare that night and awoke the next morning with the initial vision for LocoCycle. Production on the game began roughly nine months ago.
Joe Danger: The Movie, the sequel to last year's Joe Danger: Special Edition (which itself was an update/port of Joe Danger from the PlayStation 3) has gone gold. Developer Hello Games tweeted the good news yesterday, and the studio's Sean Murray further spoke of the game's progress and development with TheSixthAxis. He confirmed this would be the last we would see of Joe. “I’m not going to work on a new Joe Danger game again,” stated Murray, “which is really sad and amazing at the same time.”
The game takes daredevil Joe Danger's antics to the next level. In Joe Danger: The Movie the lovable stuntman takes on Hollywood. He'll ski down a dangerous slope, chase bad guys on his police motorcycle, and even ride a mine cart a la Indiana Jones. We adored the first game, so we're really looking forward to seeing what else Joe gets himself into. Hit the jump for a refresher trailer.
UPDATE: We've received confirmation that Joe Danger: The Movie will launch September 14 for 1200 MSP.
Twisted Pixel, the Austin, TX developer behind hit XBLA titles Ms. Splosion Man and The Gunstringer, today released the first gameplay footage of its next release, Lococycle. The game was first glimpsed in teaser form this past June during Microsoft's pre-E3 2012 media briefing. At the time it was clear that Lococycle was a motorcycle racing game of sorts that featured a motorcycle named I.R.I.S. that appeared to have ridden right off of the set of Tron and onto XBLA. Twisted Pixel released a few scant details at the time betraying I.R.I.S.'s profession (assassin) and skill with weapons and hand-to-hand combat.
Today's footage puts to rest any doubts in the minds of gamers that a motorcycle can in fact be an assassin. The wild video shows I.R.I.S. ripping down the asphalt at a blistering pace while dragging a rider behind her and spraying bullets all over the place. That's not the wild part. Later in the trailer, the motorized killer leaves the confines of the road behind and leaps into the air to in hand-to-hand — or wheel-to-hand, to be more precise — combat against some jetpacking assailants. It looks mighty similar to the type of action game combat that has become commonplace in the years since Devil May Cry introduced it.
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Halfbrick has announced some juicy DLC for their best-selling game, Fruit Ninja Kinect. The DLC, titled “8-Bit Cartridge”, will give players a retro feel …


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Entrepreneur Connect Africa is a platform aimed at using digital as an opportunity to foster dialogues around job creation and showcase inspiring SME’s whose stories seldom get told in main stream media.
Looking at the critical issues facing South Africans right now which includes the lack of job opportunities and continued high unemployment is of a growing concern. Despite these challenges formidable, unwavering South African Entrepreneurs continue to impact social economic change through job creation in business models that have staying power.
“The opportunity to profile uncelebrated Entrepreneurs whose stories remain untold has motivated our JT Comms networks to create disruptive platforms that allows us to tell the Entrepreneur story digitally so as to connect to wider ecosystems, ” says Vanessa Perumal architect of a pioneering platform which holds promise to offer dynamic business lessons from leading trailblazers.
With South Africa’s entrepreneurial penetration now at its highest level since 2013, the global entrepreneurship monitor’s (GEM) details in its 2017/2018 report, that the total early-stage entrepreneurial activity (TEA) in South Africa is at 11.0%, 4.1 percentage points higher compared to 2016’s score of 6.9%. Also in 2017, StatsSA reported that 39% of unemployed South Africans had never worked before. And among youth, that figure was 60.3%.
In the third quarter of 2017, 30% of South Africa’s 10.3 million youths aged 15-25 were not in employment, education or training. The number of youths neither learning nor engaged in income-generating activities has risen from two million in 1996.
Further, chronic unemployment is also a quandary among older workers, many of whom have been unemployed for five years or more. Among 50-65-year-olds, this was true of 47.4%. By the fourth quarter of 2017, the overall expanded unemployment rate had declined by 0.5 percentage points, but was still 36.3% at national level. The world average is 7.9%.
With an strong desire to make a dent and redress on these horrifying stats, Deshun Deysel on ‘Entrepreneur Connect Dialogue’ invites us in conversation to ponder as to how we can use entrepreneurship to help reduce the rate of unemployment.
The first season of the weekly nine episode online business programme features commentary and offering insights on all diverse aspects of entrepreneurship, business and economic news, as well as educational interviews with leading business influencers and entrepreneurs.
Through this series Deshun who is the world’s first Black female high altitude mountaineer unpacks relevant everyday business topics in a warm and engaging style -covering all topics that pertain to the entrepreneurial journey, with subjects ranging from finance, BEE scores, challenges with funding to the latest trends on how to get a better cash flow system.
Speaking to entrepreneurs both still starting out and established, the first season of the show features an exciting line up of interviews with people such as Mankwane Chakela, founder and owner of Le Looks, a high-end hair studio with over five branches spread over Johannesburg. Media innovator, Busi Ntuli, whose passion for African content and exposure led her to found Trans Africa Radio, an online radio station which only plays African music. Kgomotso Sediane, MD of Khabane Majestic Holdings; a software development company that implements and perfects IT strategy by using different UX techniques and Catherine Lund who established OnQ Research, a full service South African based Clinical Research Organisation which data manages and conducts clinical trials all over the continent to understand the subtleties and nuances of conducting clinical research in different African countries.
“Often business and finance are viewed as exclusive only to a few, however with ECD, we want to take viewers, particularly entrepreneurs and those who aspire to embark on this route on a journey that will teach and simplify more about such subject that affects their daily lives,” enthuses Deshun Deysel, host of the first season of Entrepreneur Connect Dialogues.
Using her acclaimed skills and highly sought after expertise as an international speaker and business coach, Deysel who herself is an entrepreneur, runs an international entity, Deshun Deysel & Associates which lists some Fortune 500 companies and disruptive start-ups as clients; D&A provides business and executive coaching to a new breed of digitally savvy leaders.
Produced by JT Comms TV, Entrepreneur Connect Dialogues can be seen on JT Comms TV on Tube. The show is currently planning its second season and open to showcasing entrepreneurs across our country and continent and offers opportunities for big business looking to improve their BB-BEE score cards, partner with entrepreneurs and help scale small businesses.
Global Guide For Entrepreneurs, Innovators Launches In Johannesburg
Startup Guide partners with SAP Next-Gen, Tshimologong Precinct to bring global guidebook to Johannesburg innovation ecosystem; calls for nominations.
Calling all entrepreneurs, accelerators, innovators, co-working spaces and experts in the City of Gold: Startup Guide, the leading global guide for start-ups in high-growth innovation hubs in Europe, the US and Middle East, is open to nominations in Johannesburg.
Founded in 2014, Startup Guide is a creative content and publishing company that produces guidebooks and tools to help entrepreneurs to connect to communities and resources in the leading start-up cities around the world. Its global footprint covers some of the most innovative and thriving start-up ecosystems in the US, Europe and the Middle East, including those of London, New York, Berlin, Tel Aviv, and Stockholm. After launching in Cape Town earlier in the year, Startup Guide now moves to Johannesburg.
According to Sissel Hansen, Founder and CEO of Startup Guide, South Africa’s largest city is emerging as a key innovation hub for start-ups.
“Johannesburg has recently emerged as a growing ecosystem for start-ups and entrepreneurs in Africa, particularly in the tech industry. We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to create a comprehensive guide of resources for aspiring founders wanting to do business in South Africa’s largest city.”
Startup Guide Johannesburg was launched at Wits University’s Tshimologong Precinct, one of Johannesburg’s newest high-tech addresses in the vibrant inner-city district of Braamfontein. Tshimologong, which means “new beginnings” in Setswana, focuses on the incubation of digital entrepreneurs, commercialisation of research and the development of high-level digital skills for students, working professionals and unemployed youth. Lesley Williams, CEO of Tshimologong Precinct, says: “South Africa is fast-becoming a go-to source for innovation, especially in the tech sector. We believe the introduction of a dedicated resource for the startup ecosystem in Johannesburg will unlock significant opportunities for innovation hubs such as ours to more easily connect with entrepreneurs, experts and other roleplayers, ultimately providing a more supportive environment for growth.”
Startup Guide has partnered with SAP Next-Gen, a purpose driven innovation university and community for the SAP ecosystem enabling companies, partners and universities to connect and innovate with purpose linked to the UN Sustainable Goals for Development. Ann Rosenberg, Senior Vice President and Head of Global SAP Next-Gen says:
“We strive to connect digital innovators in an open innovation community to drive the future success and growth of industries through the use of technology. As we have witnessed in other high-innovation cities around the world, the introduction of knowledge resources – supported by opportunities for collaboration and partnership in an open ecosystem – enhances the overall success of entire start-up communities. Johannesburg’s world-famous energy and business acumen will greatly benefit from the launch of Startup Guide Johannesburg and the support of industry partners, including SAP Next-Gen and the Tshimologong Precinct.”
Cathy Smith, Managing Director of SAP Africa, adds that the partnership with Startup Guide aligns well with the company’s commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals. “As an organisation we are committed to achieving the high ambitions set out by the SDGs. However, it is virtually impossible to do so alone: the concept of partnership with likeminded purpose-driven organisations and initiatives is vital not only to realising the SDGs but to foster a greater and more inclusive innovation ecosystem in Johannesburg and across the African continent.”
Nominations for the Johannesburg edition of Startup Guide are now open. If you know a start-up, entrepreneur, programme, space, accelerator, or experts and would like to see them featured in the book, please visit https://startupguide.com/shop/startup-guide-johannesburg and submit your nomination.
Aspirations For SMMEs In South Africa
Research released earlier this year, revealed that there are only 250 000 formal SMMEs in South Africa.
Entrepreneurs who have started up a business over the past 10 years have done so in an environment that has been largely negative, with slow economic growth and an unstable political landscape. “So, all in all, a very difficult setting to launch, grow or even maintain a business,” says Bizmod MD, Anne-Marie Pretorius.
Pretorius says that many entrepreneurs who operate in South Africa can be forgiven for often wondering if the slog is worth it. Yet they continue – despite economic uncertainty, strikes, retrenchments and downscaling. “It is this tenacity that sets entrepreneurs apart, and I often wonder how much more successful they would be in an easier and more supportive environment.”
Below, Pretorius shares her ideal pro-entrepreneur outlook for the future:
- Greater policy certainty on all key government policies from land reform to regulations surrounding labour broking.
- Being able to do away with bad policy faster. An example of where this did not happen was in the changes of visa requirements; leading to an unnecessary dent in our tourism industry, an industry that should be targeted for growth.
- Lower compliance requirements for companies with a turnover under R50 million. The cost of compliance for smaller enterprises is significantly higher in comparison to their income and the cash they have available. Smaller companies need simpler frameworks where compliance is required. A portal similar to SARS e-filing, which makes compliance across various pieces of legislation clear and simple, would be ideal.
- The Labour Relations Act is a key piece of legislation that has done a lot to protect the rights of the employee. It has attempted to balance the power relationship between employee and employer. Some innovation is however required in labour practices, allowing for mutually beneficial flexible working relationships that keep pace with the changing work environment.
- Buy small, buy South African! A framework whereby large corporations and government would have to allocate a certain minimum percentage to buying from smaller local companies. There are encouraging signs that this is happening more, however this is still not an ingrained practice. In addition, consumers should be more informed on what items are South African produced, in order for them to be encouraged to purchase locally.
- Easier access to funds enabling entrepreneurs to grow their businesses. There are currently a few options available, but all of the options require significant governance and red tape. Whilst this is understandable from the lenders perspective, it does hamper the agility and growth of companies.
- Make good financial governance aspirational, attractive and easily accessible.
- The process for tenders to be corruption free and fair, enabling more companies to add value.
- Pay SMME’s on 30 days or less. Enormous pressure exists on smaller companies when not paid on time. They simply do not have the cash flow to carry a debtor’s book of 90 days and this inevitably hampers their growth.
- Tax SMME’s at a lower tax rate. Profit tax should be lowered in order to drive entrepreneurship.
- Creating a platform that makes it simpler to employ young individuals with potential and create support programmes for SMMEs to upskill them. There is a significant financial and time investment required to train a young person, which can make SMME’s sometimes wary to do so.
“If we are able to make only some of these ideals a reality, there is no doubt that we would see economic growth, entrepreneurial growth, and more employment opportunities,” concludes Pretorius.
Related: A – Z Easy Small Business Ideas
South African Students Win R50 000 In The Universities Business Challenge
Students from Mangosuthu University of Technology beat 500 students from 13 different universities across South Africa.
The Overlings from Mangosuthu University of Technology are the 2018 winners of Cognity Advisory’s Universities Business Challenge (UBC), sponsored by General Electric (GE). The winning team of four students are walking away with R50,000 to turn their business idea into reality.
Launched in July this year, the UBC has seen 500 students from 13 different universities across South Africa participate in a business simulation competition designed to develop entrepreneurship skills.
When the competition launched, all teams were challenged to form virtual companies and to virtually manufacture and sell bicycles.
The final 10 teams were from the University of Limpopo, Mangosuthu University of Technology, Vaal University of Technology, University of KwaZulu-Natal and North-West University.
During the two-day final, the teams played six rounds of simulations. Each simulation gave the teams a chance to re-evaluate their progress and better certain areas that needed improving. The winning team realised during one of their simulations that in order to maximise profits they would need to introduce two new products and market it differently from their initial product. They paid special attention to their customer’s needs.
The aim of the UBC was designed to tackle South Africa’s high level of youth unemployment. Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) that South Africa’s official unemployment rate increased by 0.3 of a percentage point to 27.5% in the third quarter of 2018.
Nkosinathi Sokhulu from the winning team said, “Even though we didn’t have a great presentation we made the most profit. This experience taught us a lot about ourselves and business. Most of the decisions that we made came from serious debates. We learnt that market research is crucial when starting a business. We learnt that marketing starts and ends with the customer.”
“Based on this market research information we realised that it was important for us to introduce two new products and this, in addition to the main product we were selling, helped us to maximise profits. We saw an opportunity to add more products and it paid off” said Mbali Tshozi.
Tope Toogun, development advisor and CEO of Cognity Advisory said, “All the teams showed tremendous promise and I was very impressed by their levels of engagement with one another and their tenacity.”
“We really want to ensure that students are equipped with the necessary skills to not only start a business but to run it effectively. While we have selected one winner, our hope is that each team has benefitted by having learned the skills needed in the workplace.”
“The competition is designed to develop the ‘soft skills’ that are important for those wanting to set up their own business or simply be successful at work. With rising unemployment and ongoing talent shortages, having these skills is crucial for those wanting to get a job.”
The UBC, now in its second year in South Africa, will continue into its third year in 2019 and will run as the Africa Enterprise Challenge (AEC).
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It’s never fun bringing bad news to Corvette enthusiasts, but these are troubled times we are living through. With fuel costs and materials rising to new highs almost daily and inflation now pegged at 8.6%, it’s almost surprising that we went as long as we did without a substantial price increase on America’s Favorite Sportscar.
This afternoon we got the news that pricing will be increased on the 2023 Corvette Stingrays across the board effectively immediately by $2,300. The new pricing effects all trim levels of the Stingray and as well as some of the popular options which are also seeing increases.
The 1LT 2023 Corvette Coupe will now start at $64,200 which doesn’t include the $1,395 mandatory delivery fee. With that fee, the starting price out the door is now $65,595.
Here is the new pricing for the 2023 Corvette Stingrays in the very right column which includes the $1395 freight charge. The left hand column was the previous pricing before the announcement:
$63,295 – 1LT Coupe – $65,595
$70,595 – 2LT Coupe – $72,895
$75,245 – 3LT Coupe – $77,545
$70,795 – 1LT Convertible – $73,095
$77,595 – 2LT Convertible – $79,895
$82,245 – 3LT Convertible – $84,545
In addition to the trim pricing, some popular options are also seeing price increases:
AH2 – GT2 Bucket Seats – $1,695
BV4 – Personalized Interior Plaque – $295
D30 – Color Combo Override – $659
E60 – Front Lift – $2,595
EYK – Chrome Badges – $395
NGA – Black Exhaust Tips – $395
R6X – Custom Interior Trim and Seat Combination Override – $695
Some other prices going up are the Brake Calipers, Seat Belts, and colored Stitching:
Brake Calipers (Yellow, Bright Red, Edge Red) – $695
Seat Belts (Orange, BLue, Red, Yellow, Tan) – $495
Stitching: 3LT Yellow or Red – $495
According to the new pricing document, these new prices are effective June 13, 2022.
Now that the GM “Bean Counters” have weighed in with new pricing info for the 2023 Stingray, perhaps we can now finally get that Z06 pricing that everyone is waiting on.
We have reached out to Chevrolet PR for comment as well as to ask about Price Protection for those customers with existing orders in the system. Here is what they sent us:
The MSRP of the 2023 Corvette Stingray coupe and convertible has increased effective June 13. Customers with sold orders submitted prior to when the price increase became effective will not be impacted by the change. We monitor and adjust pricing on all our products regularly, and we’re confident the Corvette remains a winning formula of performance and attainability.
Our friends at the MECF also have the pricing changes and this text was highlighted on their version:
Retail sold order price protection eligibility dates are dictated by the customer and dealer order dates as follows:
-Customer order date must be prior to the date of the price increase.
-GM systems order date (date dealer enters in GM system) must be no more than one workday after date of the price increase.
2022 Corvette Prices Increased for the Z51 Performance Package, Front Lift, and Destination Fee
June 2022 Corvette Production Update
Chevrolet Launches Much Improved Build and Price Configurator for the 2023 Corvette Stingray


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Runaway Prius Shows Toyota Hasn't Solved Acceleration Problem
The driver, James Sikes, said he was accelerating to pass another vehicle on Interstate 8 when his Prius suddenly took off on its own.
"I pushed the gas pedal to pass a car and it did something kind of funny ... it jumped and it just stuck there," said Sikes, 61, at a news conference. "As it was going, I was trying the brakes ... it wasn't stopping, it wasn't doing anything and it just kept speeding up," Sikes said, adding that he was pushing down so hard on the pedal, he could smell the brake pads burning.
A California Highway Patrolman was dispatched to help Sikes to slow the vehicle, which had reached speeds of 94 miles an hour. After pulling alongside the Prius, the officer told Sikes over a loudspeaker to push the brake pedal to the floor and apply the emergency brake. After the vehicle's speed dropped to 50 mph, Sikes was able to turn the engine off and coast to a stop. The entire episode lasted about 20 minutes.
Toyota has dispatched a field technician to examine Sikes' car and "offer assistance," according to Toyota spokesman Brian Lyons. The company has repeatedly denied that electronics as a source of unintended acceleration, instead attributing the problem to sticky accelerator mechanisms or to gas pedals getting hung up on bulky floor mats. In an effort to solve the problems, Toyota has recalled some 8.5 million vehicles to trim gas pedals or insert shims to eliminate stickiness. It has also recalled 2010 model year Priuses to correct a computer software problem in their anti-lock braking systems.
Highway Déjà Vu, But This Time, Driver Is Believed
Sikes' experience was eerily similar to the one recounted in testimony Rhonda Smith gave before a House committee last month. In October 2006, Smith was accelerating to merge onto Interstate 40 near her home in Sevierville, Tenn., when the accelerator on her Lexus ES 350 sedan jammed and the car sped uncontrollably down the road, reaching 100 mph.
Through tears, Smith told lawmakers she thought she was going to die. After several miles Smith's Lexus slowed of its own accord and she was able to pull into the median and stop the car, which she then had towed away. But she criticized Toyota and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for not taking her claim seriously.
Last August, a California Highway Patrolman and three family members were killed after the rented 2009 Lexus ES 350 sedan he was driving accelerated uncontrollably to about 120 mph on a San Diego freeway and crashed. Relatives of the officer, Mark Saylor, and his family are suing Toyota, blaming the world's largest automaker for their deaths.
Estimates suggest Toyota could face tens of millions of dollars in wrongful death and injury lawsuits. That's on top of the $3 billion or more it could cost the company to settle 89 class-action lawsuits that have already been brought by Toyota owners, who claim massive safety recalls have caused the value of their cars and trucks to plummet. The number of owners claiming lost value is estimated at 6 million or more, according to an Associated Press review of cases, legal precedents and interviews with experts.


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Android Gains Support
Despite a slow start, Google's Android operating system is beginning to gain in popularity, with worldwide sales of devices featuring Android expected to jump tenfold this year. That's according to the research firm Strategy Analytics, as cited by Reuters.
The first phone featuring Android, T-Mobile's G1, debuted in the U.S. last year, with many more to come, from Samsung and other manufacturers, later this year.
"Android has fast been winning healthy support among operators, vendors and developers," Strategic Analytics' senior analyst Tom Kang said as part of the announcement. "Android is now in a good position to become a top-tier player in smart phones over the next two to three years,"


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Los Angeles-based Media 8 Entertainment has tapped Liz Mackiewicz as senior veep of worldwide distribution.
She will be responsible for overseeing all sales, licensing and distribution activities on behalf of the company, beginning May 1.
Media 8’s Cannes slate includes “The Girls Guide to Hunting and Fishing,” “The Horror Chronicles” trilogy and “Lovewrecked,” starring Amanda Bynes.
Move comes after Media 8 vet Brian O’Shea ankled this month to head a foreign sales division launched by Gigi Pritzker and Deborah Del Prete’s Odd Lot Entertainment.
Mackiewicz comes to Media 8 from First Look Studios, where she had served since 1996, most recently as senior VP, worldwide sales and distribution.
While at First Look, Mackiewicz was involved with films such as “Titus,” “Illuminata,” “Before Night Falls” and “Waking Ned Devine.”
Media 8’s most recent productions include New Line Cinema’s “Running Scared” and “The Upside of Anger.”


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If any category provides a stellar opportunity to study the importance of packaging in consumer goods, it may well be progressive adult beverages. The competition has become fierce, and success requires not only the right product but also the right package.
Mike Ferrari, president of Ferrari Innovative Solutions LLC and retired from Procter & Gamble as associate director for package development, believes digital printing is ready for a surge in packaging. He discusses why—and the potential roadblocks at CPG companies.
The Honorable Sam Johnson, member of Congress, presented a flag of the United States of America, which was flown over the US Capitol in recognition of McDowell Label for 30 years of innovation and manufacturing in the USA.


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New Zealand food prices declined in July, adding weight to speculation that softer inflation will prompt the Reserve Bank to keep the benchmark interest rate on hold until next year.
The food price index fell 0.7 percent from June, its first decline in four months, as discounting led to lower prices for beef and processed meat, Statistics New Zealand said. The index was 0.1 percent lower than July last year, the first annual decline in 14 months, led by lower prices for fruit and vegetables, the agency said. (See graph below)
Food prices are one of the components eyed by economists as they evaluate the pace of inflation, as they make up about 19 percent of the broader consumer price index compiled by Statistics New Zealand. Weaker inflation means the Reserve Bank may hold off raising the official cash rate again until next year, analysts said.
"The result adds to recent inflation indicators pointing to a subdued inflation environment for now," ASB Bank economist Christina Leung said in a note. "With the Reserve Bank already having put through 100 basis points of OCR increases this year, we expect it will now pause until next March to assess the effects of the tightening it has done to date."
The Reserve Bank will probably increase the benchmark rate four times next year, with interest rates peaking at 4.5 percent at the end of next year, Leung said.
July food prices fell from June as fruit and vegetable prices slipped 0.9 percent; meat, poultry and fish prices slid 2.2 percent; and grocery food prices declined 0.7 percent, the statistics agency said. Meanwhile, non-alcoholic beverage prices rose 0.2 percent and restaurant and takeaway food prices remained unchanged, it said.
Compared with July a year earlier, fruit and vegetable prices were the only subgroup to record a decline, sliding 5.9 percent, Statistics New Zealand said. Meantime, meat, poultry and fish prices increased 0.5 percent; grocery food prices rose 0.2 percent; non-alcoholic beverage prices gained 1.5 percent; and restaurant and takeaway food prices advanced 2.2 percent, it said.
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A new mobile network is launching today (November 19) in the UK, with the aim of shaking up the mobile market and offering an ethical alternative to consumers.
The People's Operator offers competitive rates for calls, texts and mobile, but the key difference is that the firm will give 25% of its profits away to good causes through the TPO Foundation.
TPO consumers can also direct the firm to give 10% of their monthly spend (after VAT) on mobile services to a cause of their choosing, ranging from major charities to local groups.
"It's really as simple as that. Just by switching network and using your mobile phone as usual, you can make a difference," said the firm.
The People's Operator is launching today as a pay-as-you-go network, but intends to start pay-monthly deals and SIM-card-only options in early 2013.
Calls and texts are currently free between TPO users, but PAYG calls to other networks cost 12.5p per minute - around half the cost of the major UK operators - and texts are priced at 7.5p each. Mobile data costs 12.5p per Mb.
TPO's launch charity partners include the NSPCC, Dimbleby Cancer Care and Childline.
Based in London's Tech City hub, The People's Operator is what is known as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO), which means that it 'piggybacks' on one of the networks owned by the big UK operators - Vodafone, EE (the joint venture of Orange and T-Mobile) and O2.
The company would not reveal which of the networks it is using, but The Next Web claims that it has agreed a deal with EE.
Andrew Rosenfeld (chairman), Mark Epstein (vice-chair) and Tom Gutteridge (vice-chair) founded The People's Operator and they are the sole shareholders.
Rosenfeld was chairman of the NSPCC Full Stop campaign, which raised around £250 million for vulnerable children in the UK.
In a statement on the TPO website, TPO chief executive Alex Franks said: "The People's Operator was started by a team of people who wanted to use everything they had learned at work to make a real difference in a completely new business model.
"We have brought in top talent from across multiple disciplines to build a great team. We hope TPO will make a huge difference to causes across the country and empower people and organisations to make their mobiles matter."


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If you need a car – perhaps a Ford Crown Victoria – a motorcycle, a guitar or even clothes, Lane County has an opportunity for you.
It’s the County’s annual on-line sealed bid auction of hundreds of surplus items. The auction, heavy on vehicles and equipment, will be held on-line September 25th through 27th.
Items may be viewed at the Lane County Fleet Services Building Thursday and Friday from 8 to 5, and Saturday, 8 to 3.
More information available by clicking on “2014 Fleet Auction” on the Lane County home page.


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Michelle Malkin updates the Absolut advertising controversy, reporting that, having angered many Americans with an ill-conceived ad campaign picturing the entire American Southwest, including California, Texas, New Mexico, Utah, Colorado, Arizona (and beyond the Southwest: Oregon, along with most of Wyoming, and much of Idaho) incorporated into Mexico, in the face of mounting criticism, Absolut withdrew the offending ad and apologized, and then the Swedish company, now part of France’s Pernod Ricard, announced its launch of new Gay-oriented advertising.
Bar owner Matthew Rogers of Pt. Richmond, Calif., sent this note to the company: â€œI run a bar in Pt. Richmond. â€¦ After seeing your ad campaign where you show a western map of the United States in which California is part of Mexico again, Iâ€™ve decided to do the following: 1) Never carry Absolut. Ever; 2) Lower the price of Ketel One vodka to $2 a shot indefinitely to build loyalty; 3) Print a copy of your ad and put it above the Ketel One drink special; 4) Tell all my friends and family what Absolut thinks of the United States of America and our right to enforce border laws. I am on the frontline of illegal immigration and its effects. Where are you? Oh, yes, Sweden. Good riddance.â€
Absolutâ€™s initial response to complaints was to hang up on consumers who phoned and to delete their e-mail without bothering to read it. But the controversy spread like a California wildfire stoked by Internet Santa Ana winds. In the first of two statements, Absolut Vice President of Corporate Communications Paula Eriksson attempted to douse the flames by touting the companyâ€™s embrace-diversity ethos. â€œAs a global company,â€ she pedantically intoned, â€œwe recognize that people in different parts of the world may lend different perspectives or interpret our ads in a different way than was intended in that market. Obviously, this ad was run in Mexico, and not the U.S. â€” that ad might have been very different.â€
That arrogant, p.c. sanctimony had the effect of pouring gas on the flames. So over the weekend, Eriksson issued a new statement announcing withdrawal of the ad. It was comically titled â€œWe apologizeâ€ â€” and disingenuously argued that â€œIn no way was the ad meant to offend or disparage, or advocate an altering of borders, lend support to any anti-American sentiment, or to reflect immigration issues. â€¦This is a genuine and sincere apology.â€ …
Fresh off its Aztlan debacle, the company announced its newest campaign this week featuring an ad titled â€œRuler,â€ described as â€œa humorous look at gay men and their fascination with perfect, eight-inch â€˜memberâ€™ measurements.â€
The brand’s two new, daring print ad executions include: “Ruler,” a humorous look at gay men and their fascination with perfect, eight-inch “member” measurements, while “Stadium” engages on the issue of gay marriage when one half of a gay couple “pops” the question during a sports outing. Created by SPI Marketing/Moon City in New York, these new lifestyle-driven ads build on a heritage of advertisements that prominently featured gay artists since 1984.
“As a long-time supporter of the gay and lesbian community, we acknowledge that you can’t simply speak to gay men and lesbians as consumers, but instead need to make real connections to their lives which we believe we are achieving with our new creative executions,” said Jeffrey Moran, ABSOLUTÂ® spokesperson. “As a company, we respect gay men and lesbians not simply in advertising messages, but behind the scenes as well. We’re not gay-washing here.”
The preferred brand of vodka for gay and lesbian consumers, ABSOLUTÂ® was one of the first major brands to place an ad in a gay magazine 27 years ago and is a long-time supporter of events and causes important to the gay and lesbian community.
Dominique Poirier also notified us of Absolut’s apology.


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Jones-Hamilton Co. announces that Aaron Vanemburg has been promoted to Sales Manager in the company’s Animal Nutritional Health Division. He will be responsible for managing the sales team and sales initiatives for the AFG® and PWT® product lines.
“With the accelerated growth of AFG in the poultry industry and the recent expansion of our sales team, I’m excited to accept this new role,” said Vanemburg. “The growth of AFG knows no bounds and I’m looking forward to what the future holds.”
Vanemburg brings to the role more than 22 years of poultry industry experience encompassing animal health and live production. He holds a bachelor’s in Poultry Science from the University of Arkansas.


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“Just like the original Canvas 2, the Canvas 2 2017 can help the company get back in the game”
Back in 2012, Micromax launched the Canvas 2 A110 – a smartphone which possibly catapulted the homegrown brand to the big league. Five years later, the company is hoping that the Canvas 2 (2017 edition) will repeat the same feat, as it faces challenges from other established companies as well as Chinese players. In a way, the strategy is same as Nokia’s, which under its new parent HMD Global, is re-launching the iconic Nokia 3310 (first impressions). We were present at the launch event yesterday, and seems like Micromax has done its homework well as it’s going back to its roots to offer consumers what they want from their smartphone that’s priced attractively. But the question on everyone’s mind is whether this will help the brand get its mojo back?
The Indian brand woke up from slumber in March this year and its refreshed portfolio started with the launch of the Micromax Dual 5 (review). It’s the first smartphone in its lineup boasting a dual-camera setup along with promising chip-level security, and is its priciest offering yet… with a price tag of Rs 24,999. The manufacturer also took the covers off an affordable 4G VoLTE offering, in the form of the Bharat 2 (first impressions). Focussing exclusively on online consumers, it also introduced a new series under the Evok branding, and launched the Evok Power (first impressions) and Evok Note (first impressions) smartphones, priced affordably under Rs 10,000.
Unlike its earlier approach of throwing everything at the wall, and seeing what sticks, Micromax now has a clear and differentiated strategy for its products. As per Shubhajit Sen, chief marketing officer, “the brand will have a separate set of devices to focus on different segments. In the sub-Rs 6k entry-level segment, we have Bharat and Vdeo series. The consumers of the budget category of Rs 6,000 to 12,000 are moving online, and so is Micromax with its Evok range.”
He further added, “the Canvas range would not only cater to the budget segment but the mid-range tier between Rs 10k and 20k as well, which is still dominated by offline sales. For that, we have the Dual portfolio, which will soon see more smartphones with dual rear cameras. And that’s where Micromax is projecting its latest launch, the Canvas 2 2017.”
Based on our brief time with the Micromax Canvas 2 2017, we think that the device is an interesting package. The compact 5-incher bears a resolution of 1,280 x 720 pixels and comes powered by a quad-core processor, which is mated to 3 gigs of RAM. It has an expandable storage of 16GB and is the first phone from Micromax to boot Android 7.0 Nougat. For imagery, it flaunts a 13-meg sensor at the back and a 5MP selfie camera. But that’s not all, the smartphone bears the tagline “Unbreakable”, which comes from the fact that its display gets a protective coating of Gorilla Glass 5. The latest-gen offering from Corning claims to boast 4x better drop failure rate than other protective glasses. On top of that, the company is offering a warranty of one year for a one-time screen replacement. Making the deal even sweeter, Micromax has partnered with Airtel to offer unlimited calls and data to existing and new prepaid consumers. Users will be able to get 1GB of data every day, unlimited A2A voice calls and up to 400 minutes of calling to other operators (limited to 1,500 minutes in a week).
It’s clear that Micromax has its task cut out. It’s new strategy is interesting, but is that enough? In the online segment, it will need to rise above the popularity of brands like Xiaomi and the Lenovo-owned Moto. And in the offline category, it’ll be up against the advertising-heavy offline phone makers such as OPPO and Vivo. But one area which some competitors may not be as strong on, is the service aspect. While Micromax isn’t exactly known for that, its decade of experience in the Indian market gives it a leg-up. The Canvas 2 2017 is certainly a step in the right direction as its one-time screen replacement offer, along with the special offers for Airtel users, could sway buyers in its favour. And we hope that the Indian brand will continue with such initiatives to improve the consumer confidence.


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Rotate, a beer bar located in the heart of Shoreditch, north central London, has become the first bar in the city to accept bitcoin via the Lightning Network.
Rotate only started taking bitcoin in March, but for a long time before that, the bar had been a hangout for cryptocurrency investors and enthusiasts. Twice a month, 30 to 40 of them would gather in the bar to exchange ideas and find partners. Taking bitcoin for payment seemed like a natural development.
The people who pay with bitcoin are the same regulars interested in cryptocurrency. Now at last, they could buy beer with their crypto savings and get 20% off coffee and drinks.
Rotate partnered with Lightning Pay, a UK payments startup, which will take care of transactions over the Lightning Network. The bar’s owner, James Stell, said Lightning Pay “helped us set up our payments solution and [will] provide ongoing help when required.”
He also said Lightning Pay offers immediate conversion to fiat and transfer of funds to bank account should they wish it, which the bar owners plan to do “as the transaction volume becomes more meaningful.”
Before moving to the LN, customers who paid with Bitcoin had to wait for at least one block confirmation on the BTC network before they could leave the bar. Things sped up thanks to Lightning, and waiting for confirmation is no longer necessary since transactions are processed off-blockchain at the time of purchase, and then confirmed on-blockchain at a later time, probably long after buyers has been served their drinks.
The bar generates invoices through BTC pay server, but James said he wants to set up a custom on-site solution with a Lightning and Bitcoin node.
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Restaurant is first in town to ‘give away’ leftover food
PUBLISHED: 14:19 16 January 2020 | UPDATED: 14:40 16 January 2020
A Bungay restaurant has become the first in town to give its leftover food away in an effort to curb food waste.
Pomegranate restaurant, on Earsham Street, wants to prevent its unused food from getting binned at the end of each shift by giving it away at a fraction of its regular price.
The restaurant began giving away its food using the app Too Good To Go, which puts people in touch with restaurants and businesses that have leftover food.
"So far we have had a really good response. It can really help a small local business, and of course it helps the environment," Pomegranate manager Kinsey Foster said.
"Because all our food is freshly cooked everyday, and we can't know what people will order in the evening, we can put on the app what will be left over and people can come and collect it."
Pomegranate typically give away dishes that would cost around £15 for £5, just a third of the cost.
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The restaurant, which is soon going to celebrate its first anniversary in the town centre, began their food waste scheme last Saturday, January 11.
So far they have "always sold out" and avoided having to put perfectly good food in their bins.
Miss Foster said: "It all would have just got put in the bin as we cannot keep it or re-heat due to health and safety. It's about reducing wastage more than anything. The app takes most of the payment but it's about reducing wastage."
According to Too Good To Go, wasted food is responsible for nearly 8pc of greenhouse emissions.
The restaurant said they hoped more businesses in the town centre would follow their lead.
"Other businesses should definitely consider this. For some it's not a good idea but we are not wasting food. From the other point of view we are also getting people who might have never tried our food to come into the restaurant for the first time. It also helps those who might not have been able to afford our food.
"It's a win-win for everyone: the business, consumer, and environment too."
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The phrase the "Internet of Things" was coined a decade ago to advance the concept that just as everything in the world has a physical location that can be shown on a map, everything could also be given an IP addresses in order to map it in cyber-space. The idea has been advanced by all the smart devices communicating today in cyber-space--from computers to smartphones to IP-enabled surveillance cameras.
WiFi microchips abound, but most of the "things" in the world of electronics are too simple to use them: household appliances, fitness equipment, smoke alarms, motion-sensors, thermostats and thousands of other essential devices do not have the processing capabilities necessary to manage IP addresses and join the "Internet of Things." Of course, anything can be made "smart" by adding a high-end radio-frequency (RF) communications processor, but that sharply increases the price of the most inexpensive devices. It also sharply increases the size of the smallest devices.
Now Texas Instruments is aiming to make the humblest of our electronic devices smart by offering complete RF modules costing just a few dollars and measuring only a half-inch square and a tenth-of-an-inch thick. Using the new TI SimpleLink family of RF modules, now almost any device can afford to get smart and join the Internet of Things.
TI has crammed all the necessary RF components onto a single chip, making even the humblest electronic devices smarter by giving them an IP address.
"The biggest obstacle for TI was reducing the software burden placed on the device," said Matt Kurtz, platform marketing manager for TI’s wireless connectivity business unit. "TI already had the expertise to make very low-power RF chips, but we took an extra six months to develop the software that makes our SimpleLink chips work with nearly any processor."
The application processors in most WiFi-enabled devices today were chosen specifically so that they could support the complex Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) software stack that enables secure communications over the Internet. However, many of the simple electronic devices we use today are so inexpensive because they use less expensive processors called micro controllers.
"When electronic device makers used to ask us about adding WiFi, our first response was to tell them they would need to upgrade their micro-controller to handle the necessary software and security stacks," said Kurtz. "However, we came to realize that was the wrong answer.” This led to the development of the SimpleLink family.
The first application of the TI WiFi-on-a-chip was made by TI customer The Crow Group, which was able to retrofit a SimpleLink module into its home security control panel with just two weeks of effort. Other efforts with LS Research and Murata, which are taking TI's WiFi on-a-chip and packaging it in a FCC-certified module, demonstrate how any electronics maker can now afford to upgrade its devices so that they can join the Internet of Things.


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Action on Sugar call for a ban on excessively high sugar and calorie milkshakes sold in high street restaurant and fast food chains.
Action on Sugar have ranked family restaurant Toby Carvery as serving the most ‘shocking shake’ with its ‘Unicorn Freakshake’ containing an alarming 39 teaspoons of sugar – that’s over six times the recommended daily amount of sugar for a 7- to 10-year-old. The next worst offender is Five Guys Banana and Chocolate Shake with an excessive 37 teaspoons of sugar - the equivalent of drinking over four cans of cola.
Traffic light labelling
To mark its 3rd National Sugar Awareness Week (12-18 November 2018) Action on Sugar is now calling for mandatory traffic light coloured nutrition labelling across ALL menus, while the UK government is consulting on menu calorie labelling. The new survey by Action on Sugar, who are based at Queen Mary University of London, concludes that all products sold in high street restaurants and fast food chains (with nutrition labelling available online) would receive a ‘red’ (high) label for excessive levels of sugar per serving.
Registered Nutritionist Kawther Hashem, Researcher at Action on Sugar based at Queen Mary University of London says:
“Undoubtedly some of these milkshakes contribute to excess sugar and calorie intake, and it is shocking this information is hidden from the consumer, who would struggle to find it. It is time the government introduced legislation to force companies to be more transparent about what is in their products by displaying clear nutrition information online and in the outlets, at all times.”
Banning sale of high sugar milkshakes
Furthermore, the group of leading experts is calling for a ban on the sale of milkshakes that exceed a calorie limit of 300 kcal per serving. This contrasts with Public Health England’s ambition to achieve only a 10% reduction in sugar by mid-2019 and a further 10% by mid-2021 to meet the 20% overall target, which will still leave these milkshakes with vast and unnecessary amounts of sugar.
Holly Gabriel ANutr, Nutrition Campaigner at Action on Sugar adds,
“It is unnecessary and unacceptable to sell milkshakes with over half an adult’s daily calorie needs in a single serving. There should be a limit of 300kcal per serving on these drinks. If you choose to eat out in a restaurant or cafe, you could unknowingly be consuming up to four times the amount of sugar and calories compared to a similar product from a supermarket, which demonstrates how easy it is to reduce sugar and calories.”
Action on Sugar also investigated the sugar and calorie levels in milkshakes sold by supermarkets and found that 90% of the 41 products surveyed would receive a ‘red’ (high) label for excessive levels of sugars per serving as sold. Of note, two contain no added sugars and all the sugars in those products are from milk.
The government is currently running a consultation on calorie labelling for food and drink served outside of the home which closes on 7 December 2018.
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Sustain advocates food and agriculture policies and practices that enhance the health and welfare of people and animals, improve the working and living environment, promote equity and enrich society and culture.


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FedEx Express (FedEx) is enhancing its services into and out of the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi with the launch of a new flight connecting the city to the FedEx Express Hub in Guangzhou, China.
The integrator said the new four-times weekly Boeing 757F route will significantly cut the delivery time between Europe and Vietnam and substantially improve transit times for all inbound flights to Hanoi.
The European Union (EU) and Vietnam are currently finalising a trade and investment agreement, and FedEx said it would serve to deepen the trade links between the two.
FedEx said Vietnam exporters shipping from Hanoi will benefit from the best transit time for shipments to major business centres in Asia, including China, Singapore, Malaysia and the Philippines, in just one business day.
Shipments to Europe and North America will arrive in two business days. For all shipments to Hanoi, transit times will be reduced by one business day. Shipments from Europe will reach Hanoi in two business days, and shipments from North America arriving in three business days.
FedEx Express Europe and chief executive officer of TNT, Bert Nappier said: “This new flight demonstrates our continued commitment to enhance our global capabilities to connect customers and create opportunities for individuals, entrepreneurs and businesses large and small to grow.
“With ongoing expansion in the manufacturing and technology industries, rapid growth in e-commerce and an increasing demand for healthcare services, the enhancements from this new flight strengthens our capabilities and supports the further development of trade possibilities between Europe and Vietnam.”
Recent research commissioned by FedEx Express found that the main European markets, as well as the USA, China, and India are the top export destinations for Vietnam’s small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).
Those SME leaders he integrator said are optimistic for the continued growth of exports, claiming support from logistics partners being a key factor in this growth.


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There are all manner of rumors concerning the next-generation ‘C7’ Chevrolet Corvette, with stories ranging from the possibility of a mid-engined platform to all-wheel drive powertrains and even the arrival of a dual-clutch transmission. Although there isn’t much substance to any of these rumors, we can confirm that for the first time in the Corvette’s history design studies for the latest model are being accepted from outside the U.S.
General Motors design studios from across the globe have been tasked with creating a potential design for the C7 Corvette, which is expected to bow in around late 2012.
The information comes directly from GM's vice president of global design, Ed Welburn, who described some of the creations as being “absolutely phenomenal”.
According to Welburn, the Corvette suffers from an image problem among younger buyers and in international markets--and to a certain degree, he’s right. Data from influential market research firm J.D. Power and Associates shows that the current average age of a Corvette buyer is 54. It doesn’t help that sales of the current C6 model last year were also down 48 percent on levels just one year prior.
GM's solution is to create a car that’s more youthful and sophisticated in appearance. Some key areas Welburn hopes to address with the new design is the Corvette’s proportions, which he wants to make smaller and more aggressive, as well as its interior, which in the current model is universally slammed for poor quality. Welburn has also previously revealed that the new Corvette will get a split rear window along with some other vintage styling cues--expect some influences from the 50th Anniversary Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Concept pictured above.
For more information on the C7 Chevrolet Corvette, including a computer-generated preview rendering of the car, head over to MotorAuthority.com.
[Automotive News, sub req’d]


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Woe is the rival company that predicts failure Apple and its products, particularly the iPad.
Tablets & eBook readers
Can you bring your iPad to work? Or will you get in big trouble? With a nod to David Letterman's Top Ten list Signs You've Purchased a Bad iPhone, here are our signs that grease the wheels for iPads to roll into the enterprise.
With tablets invading the enterprise, IT departments are facing new challenges around controlling mobile connectivity expenses.
In an event in Sydney today, Acer unveiled its iPad 2 competitor: the Iconia A500 Android tablet. It's set to hit Australian retailers in mid-April.
Semiconductor companies in Taiwan plan to hire thousands of new employees on the island this year to meet the fast-growing global consumer demand for smartphones and tablet PCs.
Chinese PC maker Lenovo said it launched its first tablet computer, the LePad, in China on Monday, marking the company's entrance into one of the hottest emerging areas of the gadget sector.
Asustek Computer will hold production of netbooks at last year's levels as sales of tablets eat into the market for portable PCs, a company product specialist said on Friday.
Google will not release the source code for Honeycomb, the version of its Android mobile OS optimized for tablets, until it completes work to make the software better for smartphones and other devices, the company said Thursday.
Apple's iPad 2 may have only been available for order online this morning, but you'll already be waiting up to a month for the second-generation tablet -- Apple's Australian store already shows a shipping date of three to four weeks.
Kingston today announced it has started shipping 4GB and 8GB Class 10 microSDHC cards, offering a minimum sustained write rate of 10 megabytes per second. The company also sells a 16GB Class 10 microSDHC card.
Optus has updated its micro SIM 3G data plans for the iPad, as Apple's latest iPad 2 launches in Australia this afternoon.
Research In Motion announced on Thursday that users of its PlayBook tablet will be able to run Android and Java applications.
BlackBerry PlayBook users won't initially be able to get their BlackBerry e-mail directly on the tablet, but will have to tether a BlackBerry phone wirelessly to it, a Research In Motion executive said this week.
Apple's hotly anticipated iPad 2 will launch this Friday in Australia, with prices starting at $579 for the entry level 16GB Wi-Fi version. We've rounded up everything you need to know about Apple's latest tablet.
Apple's hotly anticipated iPad 2 is launching tomorrow in Australia, but if you're not interested in dual-cameras, and a slightly revamped design, why not pick up an original iPad on the cheap?
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"If you are planning on buying now to sell on in the next few years, you are insane," says Margaret Penrose of The Buyer's Agent which finds top end properties for clients. "If you plan on staying, however, it is a fantastic time to buy
Mulvaney says business is picking up, albeit with a different set of negotiating skills... There are two markets out there at the moment: the 'have to sells' and the 'might sells' You need to sort the two from each other and work on the have to.
We will always get the best price possible," says Mulvaney. "I was recently with an agent and we had reached the point of sale. He told me at the last minute he wanted an extra € 20,000. My client was keen to give the € 20,000, but I refused. A few moments later, we had a sale agreed.
I learned the hard way how to buy property, so I wanted to make it easier for people" said Karen. "I think there is amazing value out there at the moment
Audrey Casey & Margaret Penrose from the Buyers Agent give their top tips for buyers. "In the current market buyers are in prime position to negotiate.
There are no rules on approaching vendors," says Mulvaney. "If you want a house badly enough, you'll do it
Margaret Penrose is a buyer's agent and says her specialist hardball purchasing skills are presently cutting huge amounts off properties she buys for clients.
Reach for the stars when you're house hunting. Don't feel you can only afford a doer-upper," says Mulvaney, who believes that vendors who won't budge on price do themselves no favours.
And even though people trying to sell one house and buy another can easily get stuck in the current market, she believes the buyer's agent can help them too – because the agency will also handle sales, although privately.
In the U.S. nobody goes to an Estate Agent if they are buying property. They go to a Buyer's Agent. Estate Agents are vendor's agents and they look after vendors interests. More and more people here are realising this and hiring a buyer's agent.


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Korean TV Reporter Min Song-ah revealed how she lost 18kg during an interview with fashion magazine 'GanGee'.
She posted pictures of herself online, showing off her glamorous new look.
She was known more for her role as a TV reporter for popular entertainment news programs on Korean TV, but surprised fans with her marriage with a guy 9 years older than her.
Her luxury wedding at a premium hotel made headlines at that time, eports K-pop Insider.
Min Song-ah is probably the only model to become a brand ambassador for a women's beauty brand when she was 7-months pregnant.
Since she retired from her entertainment career, she became an artist. Her career change is just as dramatic as her physical transformation.
Go to Lollipop for more stories.


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The European cyber security market of products and services protecting organisations from such breaches was worth $22bn in 2016 and is expected to grow at 8% p.a. to 2018, predominantly driven by increasing spend on services.
As solutions become increasingly complex, the cyber security industry is responding. In particular, specialist security service providers, with managed security service (MSS) capability and cross-border footprints, appear best-positioned to address customers’ fast evolving needs.
Service providers such as NTT, NCC Group and SecureLink are early frontrunners, proof of the ability of security-focussed service providers to grow beyond specific local markets through a mix of organic growth and M&A. These specialist providers appear well positioned to be able to meet current customer needs, and must continue to innovate and adapt to future cyber security challenges.


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Things were looking up for Jason Zenga in late 2019 and in early 2020.
The personal trainer worked out of a gym based in Santa Monica, California, where he taught classes twice a week. He also worked as an independent corporate trainer through a partnership with his friend, where they’d go to offices and train employees at companies across Los Angeles.
But business began to dry up in March, as local and federal governments began implementing stricter policies to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus. All of a sudden, the gym that employed Zenga closed. There were no offices to go to train employees at, and Zenga could only train the last few of his clients virtually. He had to apply for unemployment benefits.
“All the uncertainty was frustrating,” Zenga told CNN.
Meanwhile, across the country, Atlanta-based trainer Bria Young found her business booming during the pandemic. When gyms began to close, Young transitioned to packaging workouts into online digital programs on her website, and began selling them.
“It completely flip-flopped, I didn’t even need to go back to in-person training,” Young told CNN. “I was able to find a new passion during this pandemic.”
There’s no question that the fitness industry has been upended by the pandemic – and for some trainers like Zenga, the last 10 months have proved to be financially devastating. For others, like Young, the pandemic has turned into a fruitful opportunity to pivot to virtual full time.
Fitness industry lost 480,000 jobs due to Covid-19
The fitness industry employed 3 million part-time and full-time employees prior to the pandemic, and as of October 1 at least 480,000 jobs have been lost, according to the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), a global trade association for the health and fitness industry.
“While other small businesses could pivot and sell online or do take-out orders, health clubs, and their staff of personal trainers and group instructors, had no real opportunities to earn revenue,” IHRSA spokesperson Sami Smith told CNN in an email.
Capacity restrictions on gyms meant “fewer people are visiting the club, which also translates to less personal training sessions and group exercise classes,” Smith said.
“Some clubs and trainers have successfully pivoted to make money with outdoor workouts and virtual classes, but these are nowhere near enough to cover the difference.”
Patrons stopped going to the gym once Covid-19 hit
Prior to the pandemic, more than half of US exercisers were working out at home, according to a September report from the market intelligence agency Mintel.
With Covid-19 wreaking havoc on the US, people are even less likely now to go to their local gym.
“When asked about their comfort level returning to certain activities, over half of consumers said they were not comfortable going back to the gym,” Mintel’s report found.
That meant a blow to a lot of personal trainers’ pockets.
“All of a sudden it’s a number missing from your bank account,” said Chiheb Soumer, a personal training and wellness expert based out of Los Angeles, whose entire business model at one point was training in corporate offices.
“I lost 50% of my personal training clients because people are just scared. Gyms are closed so unless you have your own gym or you train outside, it’s tricky.”
Going virtual didn’t work for everyone
The pivot to virtual was not an easy one across the board for personal trainers.
“I know trainers now who are doing security because they don’t have enough clientele, they’ve been forced to do other jobs,” said Ricardo Cornett, a trainer in Atlanta.
Zenga, the Los Angeles trainer who applied for unemployment, said he wasn’t the biggest fan of virtual training.
“It’s really hard to establish a connection with someone who you’ve never met in person and if they don’t have access to equipment,” he said.
While Zenga did try virtual training, he said “the attendance rate was super low, but the attrition was super high” because people would come in, check it out and never come back.
Virtual training was also very difficult for him because he charged for all his virtual sessions, whereas other trainers did it for free.
“The only people that stuck around with the online stuff were people who knew me,” Zenga said.
Soumer, Zenga’s business partner, said it’s also difficult to give directions for exercises virtually and see if clients are doing it correctly. That’s why he enjoys “the personal part of personal training much more.”
Going virtual meant getting creative
The pandemic has also changed the entire job of a personal trainer, one that is solely based on human interaction in a time where interacting can mean contracting the virus. Personal trainers have had to become more creative and entrepreneurial than ever before.
“Never in my life have I ever had to be quite so creative professionally,” said Samm Haden, a trainer based out of Los Angeles, who said that the pandemic has allowed her to “find a whole other level of creativity.”
Both Haden and Young, the Atlanta-based trainer, went the virtual route – and saw a lot of success.
Haden initially took a week and a half off to brainstorm how she could move forward during the pandemic. She began doing live videos on Instagram three times a week, which transitioned into 30-day online video challenges on YouTube that she films with her family. As part of that challenge she created accountability groups on Facebook, so people could feel more connected.
“It allows people to feel like they’re getting to know people as they’re working out and building a relationship,” Haden told CNN. “That helps people feel committed to people and accountability with other people.”
Similarly, Young said she always had a dream of going online despite training in a gym prior to the pandemic. When everything started changing, she began offering her gym program online, and created different challenges like “Squatober,” bikini and nutrition challenges, which more than tripled her income.
Young said she plans to take a step back from the in-person training going into the new year.
“I’m realizing I can reach a lot more people being online with my training,” Young said. “Hopefully I can create an app at some point.”
Trainers remain hopeful about the future
Personal trainers tend to be very positive people for the most part, said Soumer, the Los Angeles trainer.
“Even if you want to stay positive, you can’t deny that this year is harder than previous years,” Soumer said. “So many gyms closed, so many trainers lost their jobs. It sucks.”
But trainers – like he and Zenga – still have hope that the fitness industry will bounce back, eventually.
Soumer still has four clients – going forward he plans to work on things he can control. He’s revamping his social media presence and building a website.
Zenga, who was on a cross-country road trip at the time this article was written, said he plans to head back to Los Angeles and open a boxing gym.
“As soon as the government let’s us operate,” he said, “we’re ready to rock.”


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The Business of Content
How unemployed college students launched a thriving tech news site
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July 30, 2018
I interviewed Christopher Wink about the early days of running an unknown tech blog, what it takes to launch a site in a new city, and why he’s never been all that interested in building out an advertising business.
The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from
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Uber can now be sued by taxi cab companies over the service’s claims that it offers the safest rides for travelers. Jon Tigar, a Federal District Court judge in San Francisco, issued the ruling on Friday which will allow a lawsuit brought against Uber to go forward.
The ride sharing service had sought a dismissal of the suit.
The ruling came out of a suit filed back in March by a group of taxi companies which accused Uber of false advertising. By making the claim, Uber implies that traditional taxi companies re less safe.
Those companies countered that Uber drivers do not need to have their fingerprints checked or go through government background checks as taxi services require of their drivers.
While Judge Tigar agreed with the claims made by the plaintiffs, he did rule that they could not sue Uber on the grounds of fraud. His ruling was made in accordance with the Lanham Act, a federal law on false advertising. The judge said that the taxi companies were not victims of any false advertising — only consumers can make that claim — but they could sue for any harm which came to their businesses from claims made by Uber if they are proven to have been false in a court of law.


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Kena Betancur/Getty Images
Near-record inflation has cast a shadow over this year’s holiday shopping season, which officially kicked off on Black Friday. Higher prices are a key reason retailers are forecasting another year of record spending. Still, there are relatively deep discounts, if you know where to look.
Here are some trends dominating another messy retail year-end.
We spend more to buy less, but not everywhere.
Overall, holiday shopping costs more, both online and in-store. The National Retail Federation expects shoppers to spend between 6% and 8% more than last year. It’s a higher increase than usual, but inflation – averaging nearly 8% at the end of October – is largely to blame.
Buyers are looking for sales even more than in a typical year. In surveys, more people say they will turn to discount stores and dollar stores for their holiday shopping.
“Prices are going up…and our budget is smaller than last November,” said Manuel Rojas, arriving in a TJMaxx in Hyattsville, Maryland, just outside Washington, DC. He was planning on buying the same dolls he had found last year, and hoping they were on sale.
At a nearby mall, some people said inflation had caused them to reconsider their food spending, but they weren’t quite ready to cut back on holiday gifts.
Some data shows that the prices of certain things have started to drop. Adobe Analytics, which tracks online purchases, noticed some of the biggest price drops yet on electronics and computers, appliances, televisions and clothing.
Clothing, whose prices have fallen in recent months, offers a good illustration of what is happening: many stores have “overstock”, or too many bad things in stock. They ordered too many of the hottest items from last year, only to deal with messy supply chains and rapidly changing (post-)pandemic trends.
While many shoppers want deals, luxury items still appeal to the wealthy
On average, the National Retail Federation estimates that people plan to spend $833 on gifts, cards, decorations, food and other holiday purchases, up from last year.
But take a closer look at family income and the story changes. People in households earning less than $75,000 a year are expected to spend less than last year, an average of $606. Meanwhile, people in households earning more than $150,000 a year plan to spend more, on average $1,304.
This divergence in spending widened over the year as wealthier people continued to buy luxury goods, which had little impact on inflation, while other shoppers started moving from more expensive options and name brands to cheaper alternatives and store brands.
People use their savings and credit cards
Many people are heading into the holiday season with the lowest savings levels in quite some time, having exhausted whatever they were able to save during the pandemic.
People buy on credit. Credit card balances jumped 15% from a year earlier, according to this month’s report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. This is the largest increase in more than 20 years. Adobe Analytics reports a 13% increase in people choosing buy-it-now and pay-later plans over last year.
Given the high interest rates, experts are urging people to pay off any debt as soon as possible.
“If you have existing credit card debt, make a plan to pay it off as aggressively as your budget allows,” Sara Rathner, personal finance expert at NerdWallet, told NPR earlier this month. “I would also say if you have credit card debt, stop using your credit cards.”
#Heres #inflation #vacation #deals #purchases


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A collection of new celebrity chefs are taking the licensing world by storm with their dynamic personalities and unique product extensions.
Meredith Corp.'s publishing and lifestyle brand Better Homes and Gardens has partnered with Lakeside Development Company to build the Innovation Home.
Design house DwellStudio will debut a new furniture collection from Comfort Design and Magnussen Home Furnishings later this month.
The Biltmore licensing program, inspired by the storied North Carolina estate, is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
Nelvana Enterprises has enchanted several new licensees with its animated preschool series "Little Charmers."
SmileyWorld has launched a host of new fashion collaborations featuring the iconic smiley face imagery with retail partners around the world.
The Winterthur Museum has tapped Art Needlepoint for a range of needlepoint designs inspired by the museums' drawings, prints and floor coverings.
Bedding and homewares licensee Character World has appointed Lindsey Bonney as head of supply chain operations for the EMEA region.
The stars of the HGTV series "Property Brothers," twin brothers Jonathan and Drew Scott, are heading to QVC with a new line of backyard décor.
The Walt Disney Company and Swarovski have launched "Cinderella: The Exhibition" in London, showcasing costumes and props from the new movie, Cinderella.
kathy ireland Worldwide has signed a new deal for home cleaning products and is planning a re-launch of the co-branded line of NuGene cosmetics.
Warner Bros. Consumer Products (on behalf of DC Entertainment) and Zak Designs have partnered to create a full line mealtime products.
Television celebrity and entertaining expert David Tutera has teamed with Sage & Co. for a new floral line.
DC Thomson Consumer Products has teamed with pet accessories specialist Rupert’s Pet Shop for a range of Dennis the Menace and Gnasher dog toys.
G Mason Group announced its partnership with Nickelodeon to launch a new pet line featuring SpongeBob SquarePants and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
General Electric has agreed to sell its appliances business to Electrolux for $3.3 billion.
River of Goods is planning a lighting collection inspired by the hit TV series "Downton Abbey," in a deal brokered by Knockout Licensing.
Kip & Sew, the new premium sub-brand of licensee Character World, is planning luxury bedding ranges featuring Disney and Marvel characters in the U.K.
Modern homewares brand DwellStudio has entered two new licensing partnerships with Klaussner Home Furnishings and Magnussen Home Furnishings.
Brand development and licensing agency Carmella Johns Unlimited has appointed Segal Licensing to represent the lifestyle brand Ragnar in Canada.
The Coop has released a new line of pet gear featuring Cartoon Network's animated series "Adventure Time."
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Horsegate: 50% of shoppers won’t pay more for horse-free meat
Any thoughts that current outrage over horsegate might encourage shoppers to pay more for their supermarket food can be forgotten, according to new research commissioned for The Grocer.
In a poll by The Grocer/YouGov Omnibus of more than 2,000 consumers, 50% said they were not prepared to pay even a penny more to ensure their meat does not contain horse (not including vegetarians).
And while 35% were prepared to pay more (15% weren’t sure), the premium most are willing to stump up to ensure greater traceability was less than 10%.
“These 50% aren’t saying it is acceptable for a product to contain horse,” said Richard Cullen, consumer insight manager at the AHDB. “They are saying what they are already paying is enough and that a product should contain what it says on a pack.”
The survey shows growing revulsion as the scandal widened to all corners of Europe this week, with 44% of shoppers concerned this is just the tip of the iceberg, and only 18% confident the industry will get on top of the situation soon.
And with prime minister David Cameron calling on grocery retailers to respond, Sainsbury’s group commercial director Mike Coupe urged the industry to act collectively, and with speed. “Trust in the industry has been greatly impacted. This is an issue upon which longstanding battlelines need to be redrawn. Ultimately we will be judged by our collective and swift action. Events are still unfolding, but we and our regulatory bodies need to proceed calmly but swiftly to get to the bottom of this.”
The Grocer’s research suggests shopper habits are changing. The survey found 32% of meat-eaters who had heard about the scandal vowed to eat less processed beef, with 29% buying more British meat. A further 6% said they would eat less meat, while 2% planned to stop eating meat altogether.
And although only 4% planned to switch supermarkets, 30% said they would shop from a local butcher more often, and 24% vowed to cook from scratch more.
However, consumer habits die hard, with 41% of meat-eaters saying the scandal would not change the way they shop or eat – a statistic that barely varied even by social demographic. Tim Lang, professor of food policy at City University London said he was disappointed but not surprised.
“If you look at BSE, 30% refused to change their eating habits at all, even though there was a serious health issue. People don’t change their diets unless they get heart disease, cancer or pregnant.” ”
To view full survey results