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In a down economy, many homeowners would rather remodel the home they have than buy a new one.
So says Scott McDowell, the manager of this weekend's Fall Home Remodeling Show, which continues through Sunday at Century II Expo Hall.
The show, in its sixth year, features 120 vendors, most of them local, selling everything from windows to security systems to hot tubs to log cabins. McDowell expects to draw between 8,000 and 12,000 people.
"We try to have everything a homeowner might want under one roof. It saves consumers from having to drive around and spend gas money and make lots of phone calls," said McDowell, who works for a trade show production company out of Kansas City.
A down economy, however, also keeps the show from being quite as grand as in the past.
This year's show is smaller than previous shows, McDowell said, and the log cabin vendors _ who usually assemble small versions of their popular homes inside Century II _ have scaled back to regular-sized booths.
The size of the show, though, was a draw for Karen Lucas, the owner of a new business called Concrete Designs that specializes in stamping, texturing and staining concrete.
She's worried her business will be lost in the hugeness of the annual Wichita Garden Show, a popular trade show put on in Century II each spring that draws about 40,000 people.
"I knew it was going to be a smaller show, and I thought that would give us a little more visibility," said Lucas, who by Saturday morning had made several appointments to visit prospective clients' homes.
On Saturday afternoon, the show was a maze of sales pitches, As-Seen-On-TV products and Halloween candy.
Couples strolled hand-in-hand, watching vacuum demonstrations, registering to win prizes, and learning about the $1,500 tax credit available to those wanting to install energy-efficient windows.
Among those attending were homeowners Jack and Lydia Davis.
They need to replace their air conditioner and decided it would be easier to travel from booth to booth, seeing what local businesses had to offer.
They'd made an appointment to have a salesman visit their house within the first few minutes of arriving.
"We wanted to be able to compare," Lydia Davis said. "We didn't want to just look in the phone book and make a bunch of calls."
If you go>
FALL HOME REMODELING HOME SHOW
What: An annual show featuring 120 home remodeling-related vendors
Where: Century II Expo Hall
When: Continues from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday
How much: Admission is $5.75, free for children 12 and under
For more information, call 1-800-756-4788


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Here is this week’s news round-up for home business, micro business, sole-traders, freelancers, self-employed and any one who is interested in small business news from Canada:
- A small business perspective, an optimistic outlook: Catherine Swift in conversation with Gordon Pitts, with exclusive video
- Cultivating a corporate culture: New companies start with a clean slate — the perfect opportunity to spell out values and expectations for employees
- Making the move into U.S. markets: Small companies often underestimate cost of doing business south of the border
- A remedy for the operating room: The challenge Persuading hospitals to buy Blue-Zone’s anesthetic gas recovery and recycling service The plan Build up a stock of recycled gas and sell it back to cash-strapped hospitals, which could reduce their anesthesia costs by 25% The payoff Signing up Ontario hospitals, then expanding service across Canada and around the world
- Budget gives Quebec firms access to capital: Quebec Finance Minister Monique Jérôme-Forget unveiled a new stock savings plan in Thursday’s budget aimed to improving access by Quebec companies to much-needed capital
- A smart startup in a tough economy: Despite the gloomy state of the global economy, Stuart Lombard believes his tiny Toronto company, Ecobee Inc., will attract customers who are interested in the green — both the environmental kind as well as the monetary variety.
- Being Prepared Is the Key to Getting a Small Business Loan: Christopher Yuskiw writes about what you have to have to get a small business loan in the Small Business Canada Forum. This is an excerpt from his post:
- Media Advisory – Ontario kicks off salute to Small Business Month: TORONTO, Sept. 30 – Harinder Takhar, Minister of Small Business and Consumer Services, will kick off Salute to Small Business Month at the Ontario Investment and Trade Centre in Toronto. Joining Minister Takhar will be Carissa Reiniger, President of Silver Lining Ltd., a successful Ontario-based small business that helps other businesse…..
As always this list is not exhaustive, but I hope it will give you a little overview. — ST.

domain: news


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FAIRFIELD, Conn., April 5, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Rossi Enterprises LLC announces a new social media campaign for their award winning product Papa Rossi Marinade. The social media campaign will feature new posts, social media contests and the chance to win prizes and money in the near future as well as free Papa Rossi Marinade.
The site; www.paparossimarinade.com will be the focus of the contests with trivia and questions that allow users to learn about business, the art of marinades as well as the Papa Rossi brand. Campaigns in Facebook, Instagram as well as TikTok will highlight the campaign over the next several months.
As always, the Papa Rossi Marinade brand will be run by Mr. Rossi’s children in an effort to teach them the art of business and skills needed to be successful in business. “Children are the backbone of our economy and as they grow and learn it is imperative as parents we teach them the skills needed to succeed in business. Allowing them to run the business, learn from mistakes and correct those mistakes are the best ways to learn success.”
“Papa Rossi’s Marinade provides a tasty new way to marinate and enjoy meats and fishes in a unique way. The sauce can be used as a dipping sauce as well and is a great extension to anyone’s kitchen,” added Matthew Rossi.
About Matthew Rossi, his kids and the Sauce
Papa Rossi’s Marinade is a product of Rossi Enterprise LLC is a single-source provider of sauce and marinade to start with the desire to extend and teach kids the learning power of trying new ideas and getting out there with a great product you believe in. Matthew Rossi, a seasoned CFO started the sauce business after several pushes from his daughters to sell the sauce. With ingredients passed down through generations the trials and tribulations of getting a product to market has been a blessing to teaching young minds how to run a new business. Mr. Rossi leaves the business to his kids to run and learn.
SOURCE Rossi Enterprise LLC


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Firefox 5 has been released
Everyone has their own personal likes and dislikes when it comes to browsers, usually tempered by the add-ons available for it. Firefox went through something of a rough patch over the last couple of years with persistent memory leaks hampering not just the browser’s operation but slowing your entire PC down.
The latest Firefox release – version 5, doesn’t look very different to version 4, but there have been some substantial changes made under the hood to improve its performance. In fact it’s in exactly the area of network utilisation and memory space that the Mozilla coders are promising the most changes. So while it might not be the most exciting Firefox update so far, it certainly looks like being one of the most essential.


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HCN Stock Watch: HD still rides a high
Home Depot (HD) was still feeling the effects of its positive quarterly earnings report Wednesday. Lowe’s stock also did better than most as a result of its similarly strong financials this morning.
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Lumber Liquidators announces fall flooring sale, contest
Hardwood flooring retailer Lumber Liquidators is launching a sale through Sept. 2.
The Fall Flooring Kickoff Sale includes discounts — $1.69 per sq. ft. on its 5-inch Gunstock Oak flooring — a 10%-off coupon and two-year financing for all of its products.
"The fall flooring season is an exciting time for customers to connect to the flooring trends they’re coveting,” CEO Robert Lynch said. “Twenty years of leading our category has created a deep understanding of what inspires homeowners. The best part is we deliver all the quality and beauty without fancy designer prices."
Along with the sale, Lumber Liquidators has launched a contest that runs through Oct. 21, with a $5,00 grand prize for the winner who fills out an entry form and votes for different flooring styles on the company’s blog.
No comments found
Ply Gem agrees to buy Simonton Windows
Cary, North Carolina-based Ply Gem signed a deal with Fortune Brands Home & Security to acquire Simonton Windows.
The deal is valued at about 10 times Simonton’s earnings before interests, taxes, depreciation and amortization — about $130 million — and is expected to take close in October. Simonton’s annual revenues are more than $300 million.
Ply Gem will also acquire SimEx, a vinyl and PVC foam extrusion manufacturing plant in West Virginia, as part of the deal with Fortune Brands.
Ply Gem pointed to several benefits of the acquisition, including the establishment of a strong national residential windows platform, The addition of business in the repair and remodeling market (Simonton’s strength), and the prospect of operational efficiencies.
Ply Gem will operate Simonton Windows as a stand-alone business unit, similar to the way the company’s existing Siding and Window groups operate today. Simonton customers will continue to be serviced through its existing relationships.
The addition of Simonton Windows in full alignment with our strategic growth plan and will better balance the mix of end markets that we serve while strengthening our core capabilities and contributing significantly to revenues in the future,” said Gary E. Robinette, Ply Gem’s President and CEO.
Robinette added that Ply Gem will welcome the experienced Simonton management team to Ply Gem when the deal is closed.
“The sale … will allow us to more sharply focus on our Therma-Tru entry door and Fypon trim business and position us to further increase operating results in 2015,” Fortune Brands CEO Chris Klein said.


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Analysis: Rometty and Whitman evolve the tech industry beyond gender
It’s official -- two of the most powerful people in tech are women. Perhaps more interestingly, they’re also bitter rivals. As of January 1, 2012, Ginni Rometty will be CEO of International Business Machines (IBM). Her adversary? Meg Whitman, former California Gubernatorial candidate and current President and CEO of Hewlett-Packard. In the world of tech, a CEO is more than just a number cruncher or paper-jockey-in-chief. As Steve Jobs and Bill Gates (rivals themselves) both show, tech CEOs are intimately tied with brand image. They also act as master buiders of the company, driving and shaping the focus -- and success -- of the company.
Behind the Rivalry
Once upon a time, IBM meant one thing: The world’s best computers. Nowadays, however, fewer people buy IBM computers, instead buying generic PC-compatible computers. As a result, in 2004, IBM threw in the towel, conceding the market to third-party manufacturers and taking a minority stake in a Chinese hardware manufacturer. IBM relegated itself to the growing server field. Meanwhile, HP has been the leader in personal computer manufacturing since 2007, a fact that no doubt leaves a bitter taste in the mouth of execs at Big Blue.
Meg Whitman is a woman whose business acumen and foresight cannot be overstated. Upon joining eBay in March 1998, the company had 30 employees and estimated revenues of $4 million. On her watch as CEO, the company ballooned to 15,000 employees and $8 billion in revenues by the end of her tenure in 2008. Few remember, but eBay was once a black-and-white web page with nothing more than courier font. After the site crashed on her first day, Whitman built the site anew from the ground up. Whitman also had the foresight to purchase such Internet titans as PayPal and Skype.
Rometty Saves Big Blue
It’s hard to conceive of, but IBM had a branding identity crisis in the mid-aughts that nearly brought the company to its knees. Stripped of its hand in computer manufacturing, the company didn’t know what its new role was. It was Rometty who moved the company into cloud computing and data analytics, two fields that define the company and the future of computing in 2011. Rometty has also overseen the development of Watson (the computer that famously beat Brad Rutter and Ken Jennings on Jeopardy!) for commercial use.
Contrasting Styles and Backgrounds
Rometty and Whitman represent two competing trends in tech: geeks vs. suits. Rometty got her start at IBM as a systems engineer in Detroit, armed with nothing more than a B.S. in electrical engineering and computer science. Whitman, on the other hand, comes from a business pedigree. This is more than a mere academic consideration. Rometty succeeded as a result of her technical innovation and foresight, whereas Whitman’s genius lies in business organization.
One place where the women have a great deal of similarity however, is their path to success. In speaking of Rometty’s promotion, current (and soon-to-be-former) IBM President and CEO Samuel Palmisano stated, "Ginni got it because she deserved it... It’s got zero to do with progressive social policies." The statement could easily apply to both women. Both have blazed trails less as women and more as innovators in their field. Anyone who sees the story here as being about “powerful women” suffers from a critical lack of imagination. Welcome to the new, genderless field of tech.


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Another year's behind us, and that means it's time to fire up our magical truth-seeking missiles and see which Android manufacturers are writing checks they can't cash.
The arena of broken dreams? Upgrades, of course. With Google's Android 4.1 Jelly Bean release out in the wild since summer, the software is slowly but surely making its way to devices 'round the world. But while phone- and tablet-makers love to spend time talking about their plans for keeping gadgets up-to-date, some of them don't seem to spend quite as much energy making sure those promises come true.
I keep a close eye on the status of Android upgrades, and that gives me a front-row seat to what companies say and what they actually do. Sometimes, the level of disparity is disheartening.
So gather 'round, boys and girls: It's time to keep 'em honest. Here's a look at which Android manufacturers failed to keep their word for device upgrade promises in the fourth quarter of 2012.
HTC's broken promises actually stretch back to the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich release -- yup, the one unveiled way back in October of 2011. HTC's been promising ICS for its Thunderbolt and Droid Incredible 2 for more than a year now, but aside from the occasional vague "it's still coming!" remark, owners of the phones have yet to see a thing.
It's tough to say whether the blame lies with HTC, Verizon, or some combination of the two -- but regardless of where you point your finger, the situation is smothered in the stench of upgrade promise fail.
LG's made some impressive strides in hardware lately, but when it comes to the company's own self-branded phones, keeping up with software promises continues to be a source of struggle. LG has an embarrassingly bad track record with Android upgrades, and its list of unfulfilled assurances grows longer with each passing quarter.
The latest entry is the company's Optimus G phone, which -- despite being the basis for Google's flagship Android 4.2 device, the Nexus 4 -- is still waiting for its Android 4.1 upgrade to arrive. LG promised that the phone's upgrade would appear before the end of December.
And don't even ask about the list of LG phones still waiting on long overdue Ice Cream Sandwich upgrades. It's bad enough to make you cringe.
Moto's in the midst of a major transition, and -- thanks to Google's influence on the company -- is starting to show signs of a newfound focus on reliable upgrades for its products. Still, the company has a lot of old baggage in its hands, and that means some pre-acquisition promises are getting pulverized.
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Kim Kardashian caused a stir among passersby on a sunny Saturday afternoon as she left a SKIMS photoshoot in Los Angeles. The 41-year-old celebrity rocked an all-pink outfit that accentuated her well-sculpted body. Following the shoot, she made a trip to the beloved tourist attraction, Ripley’s Believe It Or Not!, situated on Hollywood Boulevard.
In Los Angeles, Kim Kardashian was seen departing from a SKIMS photo shoot. The 41-year-old star showed off her toned body in an all-pink ensemble. A Balenciaga zip-up hoodie in bright pink covered her upper half, while her curves were highlighted by form-fitting leggings. Kim topped off her look with a small purse and silver-framed sunglasses. Her platinum blonde hair flowed and matched her lively attire seamlessly.
Kardashian turned heads recently by donning a vibrant pink Balenciaga zip-up hoodie that covered her muscular upper body. She combined the top with snug leggings that accentuated her curves and added some height to the ensemble with stylish high heels.
Effortlessly chic: Her platinum blonde locks flowed down her back, perfectly matching the vibrant colors of her ensemble. In 2019, Kardashian teamed up with entrepreneur Jens Grede to create SKIMS. However, the brand’s original name of Kimono caused controversy and accusations of cultural appropriation. To address this issue, they changed the name to SKIMS in August of the same year. SKIMS enjoyed a successful launch, raking in $2 million in profits and selling out within ten minutes. The brand continued its rapid rise, reaching an impressive $1.6 billion valuation after just two years in operation.
Back in 2019, Kim Kardashian teamed up with entrepreneur Jens Grede to launch a clothing brand called “Kimono.” Unfortunately, the duo faced backlash for cultural appropriation. As a result, they decided to change the name to SKIMS in August of that very year.
The initial launch of the company proved to be a massive triumph as it generated a staggering $2 million in profit. The products were such a hit that they were sold out in a mere ten minutes!
The company has achieved remarkable success, garnering a valuation of $1.6 billion in just two years of operation. This feat is a testament to its exceptional performance. SKIMS, a fashion brand founded by Kim Kardashian, has prominently featured members of her family, such as sister Khloe and half-sister Kylie, in its advertising campaigns. Kardashian herself frequently appears in promotional materials, demonstrating her hands-on approach to supporting the brand. Additionally, SKIMS provided items to Team USA during the 2020 Summer Olympics and 2022 Winter Olympics, a significant achievement. As of March this year, the company was valued at an impressive $3.2 billion.
When it comes to promoting SKIMS, the Kardashian family is all in. Many members of the clan have given their stamp of approval to the brand. Khloe and Kylie, among others, have even appeared in advertisements for the beloved shapewear line.
The well-known figure in the fashion world has chosen to be proactive when it comes to promoting her brand. She often appears in the advertising for her clothing line to add a personal touch.
In March, the company achieved a significant milestone by being valued at $3.2 billion dollars. Kardashian shared her vision for her brand in an interview with Vogue UK. She emphasized the importance of creating clothing that caters to people of all shapes and sizes, offering a range of colors, and being size-inclusive. Kardashian expressed her appreciation for feedback from their consumers and their commitment to bringing newness and excitement with each release. The company strives to revolutionize the next generation of underwear, shapewear, and loungewear.
Expressing gratitude, the influencer on social media thanked her colleagues and herself for recognizing the value of the feedback and criticism provided by their audience.


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A few months ago, V.M. Jagtap grudgingly decided he could do with seriously lower production, running just one shift five days a week at his Ranjangaon auto parts factory near Pune. He made a few more grudging decisions: to diversify out of the auto sector, to merge units that make much the same things for different firms, and, as part of that, to lay off one-fourth of his workers.
Jagtap’s underutilized factories epitomize the state of affairs of the 5,000-odd small- and medium-scale auto parts makers—those with annual turnovers of Rs.100-500 crore—in Maharashtra’s Pimpri-Chinchwad industrial cluster that are facing the heat owing to the prolonged slowdown in India’s automobile sector. Several other firms in the Pimpri-Chinchwad auto belt, too, are preparing to diversify into seemingly safer businesses.
Jagtap’s desperation is understandable. He’d been reduced from operating his Ranjangaon factory for three shifts six days a week, and his unit at Bhosari in the same Pimpri-Chinchwad belt too is underutilized.
His companies, Fairfield Castings Pvt. Ltd and Ranvik Engineering Pvt. Ltd, earned combined revenue of Rs.80 crore in 2012-13, which seems unlikely now. To save on costs, Jagtap is considering merging units that make sheet metal parts for Tata Motors Ltd, Fiat Group Automobiles India Pvt. Ltd and Piaggio Vehicles Pvt. Ltd, among others. But the merger, which he hopes to conclude by end-March, will also mean asking at least 25% of the 250 people employed by his factories to leave.
“I can’t absorb this shock any more,” said Jagtap, outlining plans to diversify into manufacturing steel tubes and reducing his firm’s exposure to the volatility of the automotive sector.
Car sales in India rose 12% to 133,486 units in August compared with 115,705 units a year ago after declining for nine months in a row, as the slowing economy, high interest rates and negative sentiments have dissuaded buyers from making new purchases. The numerous small auto parts makers have been hit the hardest.
“The policy for small-scale is only on paper. Such industries have to fend for themselves,” said Srinivas Rathi, a partner at Platemasters, a manufacturer of sheet metal press components for auto makers.
The revenue of the Rs.50 crore firm that has been supplying parts to Tata Motors since the 1990s declined by 25% in the first quarter of fiscal 2014. “OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) have changed their ways of doing business. They want better quality, but at the same cost,” said Rathi.
Of the 700 auto component firms listed with the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India, 70% are small companies, said Vinnie Mehta, executive director of the industry lobby. “This (small firms) is the weakest link in the supply chain,” he said.
Mehta attributes the high number of such suppliers to the low entry barrier of yesteryears. But with auto makers becoming more process-oriented and conscious of quality, the small companies were already struggling to survive unless they had the requisite quality, technology and skilled workers, he said.
Add to this the slowdown in the auto sector that has left these companies grappling with an inventory pile-up in their factories and high fixed costs spread over the production of fewer parts. Not to forget the high working capital management and interest costs charged by banks due to the suppliers’ stretched balance sheets.
“We are walking a tightrope,” said K.H. Badami, director at Dynamic Industries Ltd, which counts Tata Motors and Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd (M&M) among key customers for its sheet metal and stamping parts. Owing to the slowdown, his firm’s revenue in the past six months has halved from Rs.4 crore a month earlier.
Dependence on Tata Motors
Another problem is that many of these parts makers draw more than half of their revenue from Tata Motors and the rest from M&M, Piaggio, Bajaj Auto Ltd and Volkswagen Group Sales India Pvt. Ltd.
Clearly, the high dependence on Tata Motors—which saw its passenger car and commercial vehicle sales drop to 877,799 units in fiscal year 2013 from 926,353 units earlier and its profits contract 76% to Rs.301 crore—has put parts makers in a spot. Many of these firms have been supplying to Tata Motors for over three decades.
Auto makers say they have always encouraged auto parts firms to diversify customers and products, and are doing their bit to help them.
“We don’t share a cold relationship with our suppliers and work as partners,” said Rajan Wadhera, chief executive (technology, product development and sourcing) for the automotive and farm equipment sectors at M&M.
Though M&M does not deal with small- and medium-scale firms directly, it encourages its top suppliers, who farm out work to smaller firms, to improve efficiency and diversify into varied segments.
“The downturn is the best time for them to revisit the processes and strategies,” Wadhera said.
Tata Motors has always encouraged suppliers to develop multiple customers, spokesperson Minari Shah said in an email. For the auto components industry in Pune, there is a wide variety of customers that include makers of two-wheelers, three-wheelers, trucks and passenger cars. Also, Pune being in the proximity of Mumbai, exports are a viable possibility, Shah said.
Cost of inventory
Reading out a text message from an M&M supplier, Badami of Dynamic Industries said, “Our customer has asked us to not supply any material for W201 (code name of M&M’s utility vehicle XUV500) for the remaining days of the month (June). I have no choice but to bear the cost of the inventory now.”
With auto makers scheduling production cuts to align supply with depressed demand, such a communication circulating among the stakeholders in the supply chain is not unusual. While those at the top of the pyramid are able to survive by virtue of their scale and size, for small suppliers like Badami, staying afloat becomes a challenge as the slowdown also means he has to arrange for working capital from banks as payments from customers gets stretched.
“The real impact on us as a supply chain is working capital management, besides, of course, being tied down with non-moving inventory,” said Asheet Pasricha, joint managing director at Trinity Engineers Pvt. Ltd. The company’s mainstay is supplying forged parts to medium and heavy commercial vehicle makers.
With the demand for trucks and buses dropping to 793,150 units in fiscal year 2013 from 809,499 units in the year before, Trinity’s revenue shrunk 15% last year. In the first quarter of this fiscal year, revenue has been down 15-17% compared with last year. “So far we have refrained from retrenchment, but if the situation continues, (we) would be forced to do so,” he said.
Pasricha’s firm has drawn up a way to deal with the sudden drop in demand for parts from auto makers and the resultant loss the suppliers face—a graded pricing structure with pricing closely linked to volumes. “When the volumes pick up, we give discounts and vice-versa. This has enabled us to protect bottom line,” he said.
Another risk is that of delays in the launch of a vehicle, which would leave a supplier saddled with all kinds of inventory including raw material, work-in-progress and finished goods, said Sulajja Firodia Motwani, vice-chairperson of Kinetic Engineering Ltd, which supplies engine parts and aggregates for Tata Motors’ Nano car. The line set up for the Nano is currently operating at 55% of its installed capacity because of tepid sales, according to Motwani.
Motwani has straddled the other side of the business as well, with Kinetic Engineering manufacturing two-wheelers. “Life for OEMs is not easy either,” she said, pointing to the escalating costs of product development and marketing, and shrinking product life cycle.
Small suppliers in the Pimpri-Chinchwad belt have also been affected by the structural changes in the auto components business over the past decade, say experts.
Auto makers agree. Over the years, auto makers have raised their expectations of suppliers and want them to graduate from merely manufacturing parts to supplying entire systems so that auto makers can focus on their core functions of research and development, product development and marketing, said Kumar Kandaswami, senior director and country leader for manufacturing at consultancy Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India Pvt. Ltd.
While large suppliers have coped well with the structural transformation by buying technology and diversifying the customer base, the smaller ones are stuck in neutral due to their lack of financial muscle, managerial bandwidth and low volumes.
“These firms are extremely vulnerable as for them pricing and cost is the only differentiator to get business. They deal in low value, undifferentiated products,” said Kandaswami. Their stretched balance sheets mean they cannot raise fresh debt and no private equity funds are interested in these firms, he said, and added: “They are caught in a bind. The only asset they have is real estate. The sector is ripe for consolidation.”
Even as small- and mid-sized suppliers are caught in a time warp, their customers—auto makers—have moved on. They have been consolidating their supplier base each passing year to cut costs and improve efficiency.
M&M, for instance, has halved its vendor base from 800 five years ago. They are also increasingly depending on sister firms for parts and aggregates—Tata Motors has Tata AutoComp Systems and M&M has Mahindra CIE (formerly Mahindra Systech).
Surviving the downturn
To tide over the slowdown, many of the auto parts makers in the Pimpri-Chinchwad area are looking at diversifying into non-auto sectors. Kinetic Engineering has adopted a so-called backward integration strategy to beat the blues. Besides tightening costs, Motwani’s firm has moved back some of the processes that it had asked vendors to supply.
This, according to Motwani, will help the company utilize its manpower better. Moving functions like a turning and forging operation will ensure better absorption of fixed costs and reduction in overall costs, which eventually will translate into better margins, she said.
“Diversifying in non-auto like power generation has enabled us to keep our heads above water,” said Trinity’s Pasricha, adding that he expects the share of non-auto business for his company to increase from 12-13% to 30% in the coming years.
Fairfield’s Jagtap, after 37 years in the auto parts business, says he has given up hope on the sector and plans to begin producing electric resistance welded pipes for engineering firms by the end of December. “My elder son is against investing in automobile sector,” he said.


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Amazon is now offering the massive 83-inch Sony Class A90J Series OLED 4K UHD Smart Google TV for $5,998 shipped. Regularly $8,000, this is $2,002 off the going rate, a couple bucks below Best Buy’s current sale price, and the best we can find. This is also a new Amazon all-time low and the first really notable price drop on Sony’s massive 83-inch 2021 model. This BRAVIA XR OLED 4K panel is perfect for sports, movies, and current-generation gaming with a 120Hz refresh rate, HDMI 2.1 connectivity, and “input lag as low as 8.5ms.” It is also a Google TV with direct access to thousands of apps and all of your favorite streaming services as well as HDR 10, Dolby Vision, Google Assistant and Alexa support, AirPlay 2 casting, and more. On top of the four HDMI jacks, you’ll find a pair USB ports, Bluetooth, built-in Wi-Fi, and various audio options. Rated 4+ stars at Best Buy. Head below for an 85-incher starting at $1,798.
Amazon is also now offering the even larger 85-inch Sony X85J 4K Ultra HD LED Smart Google TV for $1,798 shipped. Regularly closer to $2,500, this is another Amazon all-time low and a particularly notable alternative to today’s lead deal for folks looking for a giant display. It also has a 120Hz refresh rate and HDMI 2.1, but it does trade the glorious OLED panel above for a nearly as nice LED setup. We also have the smaller version of this particular TV on sale starting from $798 and you can get all of the details on those right here.
For something more affordable, you’ll want to hit up our recent coverage of Amazon’s latest new Omni Fire TVs. Now starting at new all-time lows, you can score Amazon’s newest models from just $285 shipped and get even more details on the lineup in our launch coverage right here. Head over to our 4K TV deal hub for even more options.
More on the Sony Class A90J Series OLED 4K UHD Smart Google TV:
Introducing Sony’s best-ever OLED TV, with awe-inspiring contrast and our brightest-ever OLED picture. The BRAVIA XR A90J OLED TV, powered by the all-new Cognitive Processor XR, features next-generation technologies that redefine the viewing experience. Engineered for beauty inside and out, the A90J brings a premium, minimalist-inspired design that fits even the most sophisticated of aesthetics.
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© Reuters. A human being walks earlier a JD.com’s advertisement promoting Singles Day purchasing pageant, at a subway station in Beijing, China October 26, 2023. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photograph
By Casey Corridor
SHANGHAI (Reuters) -China’s most significant e-commerce participant Alibaba (NYSE:) Team explained it recorded yr-on-yr advancement above this year’s Singles Day profits time period that finished at midnight on Saturday, though rival JD (NASDAQ:).com documented profits volumes at a history large.
Info provider Syntun, meanwhile, approximated cumulative gross merchandising volume (GMV) sales across main e-commerce platforms rose 2.08% to 1.14 trillion yuan ($156.40 billion) compared with expansion of 2.9% past 12 months.
Originally a 24-hour on-line buying celebration held on Nov. 11 just about every 12 months in China, the Singles Day competition – a nod to the digits in the day – has expanded into months of promotions across the country’s key e-commerce platforms and in bricks-and-mortar stores.
Expectations for product sales development for the festival, which is considered as a gauge of consumer assurance, ended up subdued this year as the economic climate struggles to recuperate.
Last yr, when China was emerging from COVID-19 curbs, Alibaba, the country’s most significant e-commerce participant by marketplace share, did not disclose the yuan price of its income for the festival for the 1st time.
Once again this calendar year, it explained only that gross sales were being optimistic, without having supplying aspects, for its e-commerce platforms Tmall and Taobao.
Alibaba, set pressure on merchants to cost aggressively this Singles Day, and at the start out of the pageant in late Oct, said it would give 80 million items at their deepest lower price of the yr.
Analysts observed this as an try to battle back towards rivals these types of as Douyin and PDD Holdings’ Pinduoduo (NASDAQ:) that have changed the landscape of Chinese e-commerce in recent a long time by marketing lower-value and discounted merchandise year-round.
Discounts of 40%-50% were being considerably much more common than in preceding years as a final result. A Bain and Corporation report unveiled very last week located that 77% of the 3,000 buyers it surveyed experienced prepared to expend less or the very same quantity on Singles Day compared with last 12 months.
Bain said shoppers meant to spend on requirements this kind of as tissues, handwash, prompt noodles and pet food, when investing down and acquiring much less in discretionary or huge-ticket groups these types of as home appliances and furnishings.
A number of consultancies predicted Singles Working day GMV development across platforms could return to double-digit progress for the first time since the pandemic, but the ultimate income image will just take time to emerge. The GMV figures take into account the benefit of all orders placed, and do not seize the amount that will be returned later on.
Analysts and field executives be expecting return costs to be high this calendar year as individuals obtain extra in buy to receive larger sized discounts on checkout, only to return the objects they do not need. Goods relevant to overall health and wellness and out of doors life had been envisioned to outperform, with global models this sort of as Nike (NYSE:) and Lululemon (NASDAQ:) anticipated to promote very well.
Alibaba claimed that profits of highway bikes jumped by 300% for the duration of the very first hour of gross sales.
Colour cosmetics, usually a strong performer all over the Singles Working day income time period, had been envisioned to wrestle this calendar year as make-up demand remains very low practically a 12 months just after China lifted rigid COVID-19 limitations.($1 = 7.2891 renminbi)


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Capcom has stated previously that the company was open to doing more Disney remastered editions of previous NES games, such as Darkwing Duck and Chip N’Dale Rescue Rangers. That statement seems to have changed, as on the Capcom Unity forums, Capcom employee Jimmy Rey has stated that the fate of remastered editions of these games will be decided by how well DuckTales Remastered performs.
“The better DuckTales does, the more likely we’ll do another.”
It’s not surprising to see Capcom have the wait-and-see attitude with future remastered releases, as DuckTales Remastered has been reviewing mediocre in the press. You can check out our review of the game here.
- Shigeru Miyamoto says VR must be affordable
- Zelda: Breath of the Wild has to sell 2 milli
- Ziggurat shown off on Wii U in new gameplay v
- Miyamoto: we’re not talking about NX be


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Christchurch-based pharmacy and animal healthcare firm said it is confident it will see a significant increase in earnings in FY20 after reporting a less than stellar result for the year ending June.
Company chief executive John Cullity said 2019 was a year of high activity and strategically important for the group, as it set the foundation for the next wave of growth.
“The group continues to operate in highly competitive markets and this year was no exception,” Cullity said. “We have withstood the changing market dynamics and competitive pressures and delivered both solid underlying earnings growth and another strong cash result.”
Ebos has posted an increase in annual net profit to $137.7 million from the $137.3 million on the previous year while sales fell 0.8 per cent to $6.93 billion, reflecting lower hepatitis C medicine sales in Australia and the impact of reform of Australia’s pharmaceutical benefits scheme. The two combined have caused reduced revenue by $425 million.
The company posted a 5.2 per cent increase in its underlying profit.
A loss on the sale of surplus property, transition costs for new major warehouses and transaction costs all had a $6.7 million one-off impact on the bottom line.
Ebos spent $93.6 million on acquisitions and raised $175 million in fresh capital during the year.
“We commenced operations in two brand new facilities in Brisbane and Sydney providing further warehouse capacity,” Cullity said.
“We also moved to 100 per cent ownership of TerryWhite Chemmart, signed the Chemist Warehouse Group pharmaceutical contract and retained Blooms The Chemist, one of our largest independent pharmacy group customers. These were all great outcomes for our Community Pharmacy division.”
The group’s healthcare segment generated a 4.6 per cent increase in underlying EBITDA for the year, underpinned by solid growth from their Australian business unit. In Australia, healthcare revenue declined by 3.5 per cent to $183 million, however excluding the impact of the reduction in hepatitis C sales and the impact of PBS price reforms, revenue growth increased 5.2 per cent.
The company said the New Zealand healthcare segment delivered earnings in line with last year, with revenue growth of 8.7 per cent largely offset by higher labour and freight costs in our wholesale businesses.
Revenue growth in community pharmacy, excluding the impact of lower Hepatitis C sales and PBS reforms, rose 3.0 per cent.
Ebos has also announced Mark Waller will retire as director and company chair at the end of the annual meeting scheduled for October 15.
Waller, who joined Ebos in March 1984 as chief financial officer before assuming the position of executive officer in 1987, led the group on an ambitious yet disciplined growth strategy, overseeing many successful mergers and acquisitions, including the purchase of Symbion in 2013 for $1.1 billion.
According to the company, under Waller’s leadership, Ebos grew to become the largest trans-Tasman healthcare and animal care company with revenues in excess of $6 billion.
After handing over the reins as CEO in 2014, Waller remained on the board before assuming the position of chairman in 2015.


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This Knightsbridge store will be the brand's very first in Europe.
This will be smashed burger brand's 15th restaurant overall.
Plenty of Halal options at the famous Portobello Market.
Could they be the first to introduce Naga Doner to Kensington & Chelsea borough?
This is the brands 10th restaurant, with Halal beef available alongside lamb & chicken.
We reported last year that they'd be opening near Victoria and Albert Museum.
"People dumb enough to pay money for this", says one Halal blogger.
The restaurant is run by Indian Caterer and Restaurateur Madhu’s.


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GRA initiates Excise Tax Stamp public sensitization
The exercise was to as part of measures to access the compliance level and to educate them on the need to use the Excuse Tax Stamps on all their products.
Tax stamps are small stickers with security features, supplied by government to some manufacturers and importers to affix to their products before they are release onto the market.
The stamps once fixed on a product provides significant guarantee that the products are authentic.
Mr Emmanuel Kofi Nti, GRA Commissioner General, said in 2013 the Excise Tax Stamp Act 873 was passed, and lots of discussions have been done with major stakeholders to ensure its effective implementation.
He said one of the weaknesses of the State is that, while it wants to rake more revenue to pursue its agenda, some stakeholders have been faulting it and have been under reporting their level of sales.
He said with the increase in smuggled goods, illicit products and counterfeit product into the market, the GRA is embarking on the exercise to ensure the good of the people, and for the authority to raise the revenue for government to pursue its agenda.
Mr Nti said the programme was re-launched in August 31, 2017, as part of government’s effort to address the counterfeiting of products on the markets and to improve revenue generation.
“This exercise we are embarking on today is in two folds, first to raise additional revenue for the State and to also curve the infiltration of illicit and counterfeit products dominating the market now,” he said.
He said the process has not been deferred saying GRA want to build the country into a better place where there is greater accountability, and goods on the market are properly accounted for and of high quality.
He said the implementation of the tax stamps policy was not an imposition of additional tax by government but a measure to protect genuine businesses from counterfeiters and also to ensure that more people and businesses pay their due taxes.
“We want to ensure that goods that people consume are of good nature, because it is quite disheartening to hear of the increase of various diseases which have become paramount in the country in recent times, all because of the consumption of illicit products people are selling without paying tax,” he said.
He reiterated that, government through the Ministry of Finance and GRA have resolved that excise tax should contribute its fair share of the State’s revenue.
Mr Kwaneba Apau Anto, Chief Revenue Officer, GRA said the focus for today’s exercise was basically on tobacco products after which Alcoholic and non-Alcoholic drinks, bottled water and textiles would follow.
He noted that currently the government would bear the entire cost of the stamps supplied to businesses, and as such stickers are given for free at the GRA office and retailers are expected to go for it, adding that after the six months the tax stamps would be sold to retailers.
He urged retailers to make good use of the opportunity and visit the GRA office for the stamps to avoid their good being seized or removed from the market and the appropriate sanctions imposed after the six months.
Some of the shops visited included, The Oxford Street Mall, Koala, Airport Shell mall, and the Accra mall.


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Tokenizing WNBA Highlights
On its website, the non-fungible token platform NBA Top Shot unveiled the launch of a collection of digital assets representing the highlights of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA).
Dapper Labs (FLOW), the company that developed NBA Top Shot, is therefore bringing the WNBA into the phenomenon of NFTs. The idea is to offer fans the possibility of owning a historical moment of a season as a collector’s item. It will go from a series of dunks or even winning shots.
The NFTs were launched this Friday, August 27 on the NBA Top Shot platform, in particular around an inaugural pack that represents collectable cards from professional players such as Brittney Griner, Skylar Diggins-Smith, Sabrina Ionescu or A’ja Wilson. .
Caty Tedman, Head of Partnerships at Dapper Labs, said:
“We would like to create a truly dedicated environment for WNBA fans that gives them the same kind of experience as NBA fans. The objective is also to create parity between the male and female league. “
This integration comes as the WNBA seeks to capitalize on the influx of new fans. Indeed, the league has recently had strong audiences and has developed many agreements with streaming services and partnerships like that of Dapper Labs.
“It is the only major team sport to have increased its TV audience during the pandemic,” said Caty Tedman.
Either way, it is very likely that success will be there. Indeed, since the launch of the platform, its community has only grown and now reaches one million members.
For NBA Top Short, this resulted in a significant purchasing volume for its NFTs, with an amount equivalent to nearly $ 750 million.
👉 To discover – NFTs juggernaut Dapper Labs raises $ 305 million to develop its NBA Top Shot app
Photo credit: NBA Top Shot logo (CNW Group / Dapper Labs, Inc.)
Receive a recap of crypto news every Sunday 👌 And that’s it.
About the Author: Anthony Bassetto


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Wednesday 9th September, 2020
Denmark is taking the next step in digitalising its purchasing process by rolling out the mandatory use of electronic catalogues and electronic orders through the Peppol Network. The country has long-term plans of enhancing the buying and selling process for businesses towards public authorities through their involvement with Peppol.
From 1 January 2022, public administrations within the country will be required to make part of their purchases electronically, by creating e-orders via e-catalogues, for certain categories of goods and services. Suppliers will receive these document types electronically via an accredited Peppol Service Provider.
E-documents are to be sent through the NemHandel platform, which began integration with the Peppol network in 2017. Peppol is an open network which makes e-procurement between suppliers of goods and services and public authorities easy, efficient and secure.
Since 18 April 2020, Danish public authorities have been able to receive Peppol e-invoices via the Peppol Network. All public authorities must be affiliated with the Peppol Network via Nemhandel’s Business Register. Peppol-based e-catalogues and e-orders will be mandatory for public entities from 2022.
Suppliers must be able to receive e-orders and have e- catalogues on the covered purchasing categories. The purchasing categories are already e-commerce mature. Once suppliers have received an e-order, they can convert it to an e-Invoice. Order placement and invoicing will take place electronically and automatically without the need for manual intervention.


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Premier Foods has added two limited-editions to its Cadbury Cakes squad to help retailers make the most of World Cup fever.
Available now, Cadbury Football Cakes and Cadbury Football Gateau carry themed packaging and a football emblem on each cake to drive differentiation from the core range.
Premier Foods says that the cakes lend themselves to secondary siting opportunities in-store, helping retailers drive additional sales at a time when people will be on the lookout for fun, football-themed products.
Carolyn Longcroft, Senior Brand Manager for Cadbury Cakes at Premier Foods, commented: “Cadbury Cakes is famed for its seasonal products which really help to drive category sales. We wanted to make sure we were giving retailers the chance to replicate this success over the summer period, particularly as the upcoming football tournament will give sports fans even more reason to get together. We’re confident that we’re kicking off the season the right way and theming some of our popular cakes will help drive engagement and sales.”
The Cadbury Football Cakes carry an RSP of £2 for four, while the Cadbury Gateau RSP is £3 (serves eight).


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Usually July is a slow month in business for all, but not at Corbett Restaurant Group. We started the month of July off strong when we announced the sale of Wild Willy's Burgers in Worcester.
We recently had a Corbett Restaurant Group team dinner at the newly opened Finn McCool's in Boston, and the food was dynamite if you haven't checked it out already.
President Todd Smith was also featured in UpServe's article "Restaurants Rethink Everything As Market Pains Pile Up" as well as the Boston Business Journal's Lessons Learned.
A Facebook post also just told us that our friends from our restaurant sale in South Boston at Certified Meatball Company will be opening soon!


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Google is the most popular search engine in the world with over 60% of searches occurring on the web.While that is not a bad thing, there are some other companies that do better.Google, Microsoft, Yahoo and Bing are among the top free search engine providers on the net.The chart below lists the top 20 free search providers in terms of number of visits.Google is by far the most used free search pro...
By now, it’s pretty obvious that the internet giant has its sights set on Google+.
Now, it seems as if the internet giants may be considering merging.
Sources close to the deal tell Mashable that the two companies are looking to acquire a major part of Google+ as well as other search engines, including the one they already have.
According to these sources, Yahoo is looking for a substantial chunk of Google, with Google+ likely not part of the deal.
Yahoo has previously made clear it wants to keep Google’s business, with sources telling Mashable they’re working on a merger.
This news comes as Google has been losing users to other search and other social networks.
Google+ is an extension of Google’s search engine and is one of the fastest-growing parts of the internet, with more than 20 million monthly users.
Yahoo’s acquisition of Google would give it a significant foothold in Google+ and a lot of money.
Yahoo also owns Yahoo Search, Yahoo Finance, Yahoo Travel, Yahoo News, Yahoo Music, Yahoo Shopping, Yahoo Tech, Yahoo Sports, Yahoo Video, Yahoo Fitness, Yahoo Movies, Yahoo Photo and Yahoo Finance.
Google+ was launched in 2014 as a way for people to share photos and videos with each other on the internet.
It was later developed into a popular video-sharing service that was a hit among younger users.
Google says it now has more than 60 million active users on its Google+ platform.
But Google has struggled to keep up with demand.
According to data from Google Trends, it lost more than 13 million users from July to September 2017 than it gained.
Google also reported that its share of the US internet search market fell to just 0.6 percent in 2018.
The acquisition of Yahoo’s search and video businesses would be the first major Google acquisition in at least three years.
The search giant has been working with Yahoo on a series of acquisitions.
It bought Yahoo!
for $3.6 billion last year and then bought AOL for $4.3 billion in 2018, which valued it at $25.5 billion.
But those deals were done without Google’s input, and Google has since shifted its focus to video and search.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai recently told investors at the company’s annual shareholder meeting that he was working with his board of directors to “revisit and reevaluate our strategic vision for Google.”
Yahoo, on the other hand, has not made any changes to its strategy and is still pursuing acquisitions.
The acquisition of a major chunk of the Google+ business, however, would give Yahoo a significant presence in the search and social networks that are a huge part of Yahoo! business.


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Data warehouse Snowflake Computing has announced it has joined the Adobe Exchange partner program.
Together, the companies will work to empower customers with data-based decision making, providing customers a best-in-class customer experience management (CXM) solution.
Adobe Experience Cloud VP, ecosystem, Amit Ahuja said: “As the world’s leading customer experience platform we constantly look for ways to innovate and create the best data experience for our customers.
“Snowflake’s unique cloud-built architecture has the potential to enrich our joint customers’ experience and drive impactful multi-channel experiences for our user’s customers.”
The Adobe Experience Cloud easily brings together critical customer data – behavioural, transactional, financial, operational, and third-party data – into a single source of truth.
Armed with these insights and powered by Snowflake’s instant cloud data warehouse, Experience Cloud users will be able to make smarter and quicker data-driven business decisions based on what their customers want in real time.
Snowflake VP of strategic customer acquisitions Vince Trotta said: “Our partnership with Adobe demonstrates our dedication to creating lasting relationships with our customers and their clients.
“Together, we’re empowering joint customers to embrace the deep insights data provides, which ultimately unlocks new business potential for users and their customers.”
The sexiest singles in the nation (according to Channel Nine, at least) are back on airwaves with Love Island Australia on Monday, October 4, at 9.00pm after The Block on Channel 9 and 9Now. Aussie sweetheart Sophie Monk will return to host (and play Cupid) alongside new addition, comedian Stephen Mullan a narrator, in the world-renowned reality TV […]
Yotpo is officially expanding into Australia, off the back of significant market growth with massive Aussie names, a landmark investment from Shopify and a plan to help local Aussie e-comm explode. Yotpo’s ANZ userbase includes names like Zoe Foster Blake’s $180M Go-To Skin Care, e-commerce fashion queen Princess Polly, and billion-dollar streetwear brand Culture Kings, […]
Progress has today announced the availability of Progress Sitefinity DX 14.0. This agile, flexible and extensible platform allows organisations to create an ideal digital experience platform (DXP) tailored to their unique needs and objectives with new capabilities for low-code integration and chat-driven engagement, as well as enhanced headless content delivery. The digital world is transforming […]
Tangram has announced that they have signed a partnership with monday.com. the work operating system (Work OS) where organizations of any size can create the tools and processes, they need to manage every aspect of their work. Israeli-based monday.com and Australian-based Tangram form an irresistible team of experts offering unique solutions to agency problems. monday.com […]
Leading Australian market research data brand, RDA Research, provides actionable consumer intelligence to help businesses inform decision making and growth strategies. RDA Research wanted to make its unique consumer data available for addressable digital targeting and required a data onboarding partner to help activate their data in an online environment.
Storytelling agency Enthral has appointed Channel 7 reporter and sports presenter Sean Sowerby as its new senior PR and content manager in Melbourne. Sowerby (pictured) started his award-winning career at 3AW before spending more than 15 years in television. Enthral founder and manager director, Cameron Smith, spoke of the significance of Sowerby joining the agency. […]


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As a follow up to my last blog post, I am including the second of a three part series about the “sustainability” of the MSC labeling. MSC labeling is again called to task. Hopefully a great idea will maintain/gain some great standards and guidelines for buying fish. What we wish it to be, though, isn’t yet. Certainly listen to the three programs devoted to this topic or read this entire article (and the MSC’s response to the accusations) but here is an excerpt from the next NPR segment:
But many environmentalists who have studied the MSC system say that label is misleading. “We’re not getting what we think we’re getting,” says Susanna Fuller, co-director of marine programs at Canada’s Ecology Action Centre. She says the consumer, when purchasing seafood with the blue MSC label, is “not buying something that’s sustainable now.”
If the label were accurate, Fuller says, it would include what she says is troubling fine print: The MSC system has certified most fisheries with “conditions.” Those conditions spell out that the fishermen will have to change the way they operate or study how their methods are affecting the environment — or both. But they have years to comply with those conditions after the fisheries have already been certified sustainable.
Gerry Leape, an oceans specialist who sits on the MSC’s advisory Stakeholder Council on behalf of the Pew Charitable Trusts, says the MSC’s policy is baffling. “It’s misleading,” he says, “to put a label of sustainability on a product where you still don’t have the basic requirements.”


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Motive Television, a British television software and services company, has announced a joint venture on a project called Tablet TV with Granite Broadcasting Corporation in the U.S. The duo is unveiling plans for a terrestrial technology that would deliver live broadcast TV signals and video on-demand services directly to tablets and smartphones over the standard ATSC broadcast signal. The news comes at an interesting time, as we just learned Aereo, a service that offers similar functionality (albeit in a completely different way), has won another legal battle against big networks.
The technology could be demoed as early as a few months from now, and field testing will follow later in the year. Pending a successful test, a commercial launch could then take place at an unspecified time thereafter. Ongoing development will be taking place at Granite’s KOFY station in San Francisco, according to Motive.
Tablet TV would enable consumers to view local broadcast stations live, record content with DVR functionality, datacast delivery of on-demand video and offer integrated social media features specific to the service.
According to Peter Markham, Chairman of Granite Broadcasting Corporation, the idea is to disrupt the way Americans enjoy their favorite content from broadcast channels by making it easily accessible on the growing number of tablets and smartphones in the market.
“As a broadcaster, we see Tablet TV as a source of additional viewing convenience for the public and a win-win for the industry,” said Markham. “Granite is looking forward to being the test site and business partner with Motive on this exciting new technology.”
Motive has already patented the technology in Europe, and has also filed with the U.S. Patent Office. Development will focus on completing the Tablet TV process of taking something used mainly for broadcasting over-the-air (OTA) signals to ATSC-enabled TVs and applying it to mobile devices, so they can pull in the same signal. Though there were few specifics in the announcement, Motive has also patented software called “Anytime Anywhere” to enable time-shifting, on-demand viewing and the ability for broadcasters to offer additional movies and shows directly to these devices. Thus far, only the iPad and Android tablets were mentioned in the announcement- no word yet on whether this will include other platforms.
Leonard M. Fertig, CEO of Motive, said the pilot demo would be the focus because it will be shown to those in the broadcast industry first in order to prove Tablet TV’s technical and consumer appeal.
We’re curious as to how this technology will work. We can see how a dongle could enable the reception of TV broadcasts by the tablet, but how do you sort out the DVR function without robbing your already memory-starved tablet of much-needed storage space?


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Rebalancing Plant Hormones for a Stress-free State12 months ago -
Stoller’s chief chemist shares the basics of plant growth regulators and how they work.
With the aim of helping plants reach their maximum potential and better cope with environmental stressors, many companies are turning toward biologicals and harnessing what already exists in nature. Hormones are one such example and are present in plants, animals and humans. While the use of synthetic hormones in livestock production has been controversial during the past decade, it’s been seen as a more sustainable approach to maximizing yields in crop production.
However, the use of hormones in plants and agricultural production is nothing new. In fact, the first discovery and use of plant growth regulators (PGRs) was in the 1930s when acetylene and ethylene were used to enhance flower production in pineapple, according to the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
Since then the market has seen significant growth. MarketsandMarkets estimated this sector was worth $1.6 billion in 2015. With a compound annual growth rate of 3.6 percent from 2015 to 2020, it’s forecast to be a $1.9 billion industry by 2020.
While the use of PGRs is not new, the science and researchers’ ability to understand what happens to the plant at the molecular level is. Thus, companies are bringing new and better products to market. One such company that’s made a name is Stoller, which was founded in 1970 by Jerry Stoller, the company’s president and CEO. An international expert on plant development and nutrition, Stoller has since grown the company to include 14 subsidiaries and more than 600 employees in more than 50 countries.
According to the company, the value of its products can be found in employees’ understanding of plant hormone balance, how it relates to crops and the impact hormonal activity has on plant development and performance. Ritesh Sheth, who serves as chief chemist and global director of business compliance, explains how PGRs work.
“Plant growth regulators are an essential component of a plant,” Sheth says, adding that they help increase nutrient uptake and affect how plants deal with stress. “When a plant is growing, it’s
always facing different types of stress.”
During stressful times, he says the plant naturally down regulates different types of hormones to survive.
With PGRs, we are bringing those hormones back into balance, Sheth explains, and providing the most efficient way for the plant to uptake nutrients. In the end, this helps the plant maintain its yield potential and acts as a buffer to different stressors.
Plant growth regulators can be applied as a seed treatment and as a broadcast or foliar application. Depending on the product, PGRs can be mixed with herbicides and fungicides.
Sheth says PGRs can be applied to non row crops throughout the growing season. Additionally, Stoller’s formulation specialists have made products that can be added to other fertilizers without concerns about dissolving.
“We’ve made the formulation not only easy to apply but also compatible, which is very important because it has to be compatible with everything else that [farmers] are adding,” he says.
This summer, Sheth was at the Ag Media Summit talking about one of the company’s newest products, Fortified Stimulate Yield Enhancer Plus. Sheth says what makes this product different from others is that it has four plant growth regulators, rather than three.
“The fourth plant growth regulator is a fourth auxin, which is an IAA fast-releasing auxin,” Sheth says. “What you see on the market is a slow-releasing auxin, called IBA, which degrades very quickly in solutions.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture recognizes five groups of hormones: auxins, gibberellins, cytokinins, abscisic acid and ethylene.
Sheth says their patent-pending formulation makes it stable — giving growers quick action and enhancement from the beginning. This means better photosynthesis and energy coming into the plant.
“Every plant has potential, but what’s stopping it from growing?” Sheth asks. “It’s the stress factors. It’s the environmental factors. With the ever-changing environment, we need to provide the right tools to help it survive through those changes.”[rate_this_page]


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ST. LOUIS — An article posted to a prominent foodie website features two St. Louis restaurants that are known for their pizza. That’s pretty good because there are only 10 spots on the list.
Eat This, Not That writer Carly Terzigni calls St. Louis, “One of the pizza capitals of the United States.” She features Imo’s and Pizza A-Go-Go on her list, 10 Iconic Pizza Restaurants That Still Serve Old-Fashioned Pies.
EatThis.com has more than 110 million readers a year. The website and magazine were inspired by columns Men’s Health, that expanded into a series of books that have sold over eight million copies. The website and their presence on social media are among the most popular places for food news on the planet.
The article features some of the US pizza places that still serve pies with the same recipes when the doors first opened. Some of the restaurants on this list are over 100 years old.
The pizza parlors from St. Louis have not been around for over a century. Imo’s started in 1964 and Pizza A-Go-Go began in 1967. We all know that there are plenty of amazing restaurants in St. Louis. Terzigni also states, “The city is filled with pizzerias that have been in operation for generations.”


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If the following rumor turns out to be on the right track, quite a few Nokia fans will be pretty underwhelmed. That is because although the leaked Nokia Lumia 920
is expected to be marketed as a PureView device, the actual megapixel count of its image sensor will allegedly be far lower than expected.
Another Nokia Lumia 920 feature that the tipster mentions is wireless charging
, enabled by a conductive strip embedded in the back plate of the smartphone. What's more is that the handset will comply with the Qi standard for wireless charging, meaning that it will work with Qi-supporting charging docks. Last but not least, it is claimed that 32GB of on-board storage will be available, alongside a gig of RAM, a dual-core 1.5GHz processor, and a 4.5-inch display with HD resolution.
The Lumia 920 is expected to be announced at the press event that Nokia is hosting on September 5, and that is when we'll find out whether any of the information above holds water. Rest assured that we will be keeping a close eye on the event.


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Sell-off buzz for Aegis as chief executive Lerwill announces departure
Aegis has parted company with boss Robert Lerwill following a row over his stewardship of the advertising group.
The chief executive will leave by the end of the week with a 'golden goodbye' of up to £650,000 after falling out with new chairman John Napier.
Lerwill's departure reawakened hopes that Aegis will be sold or broken up, sending its shares soaring 9¼p or 19 per cent to 59p.
The most likely bidder is Vincent Bollore, the chairman of French rival Havas, who owns 29 per cent and has been fighting Lerwill for seats on the Aegis
board for almost three years.
Unhappy departure: Aegis CEO Robert Lerwill is leaving after disagreements with new chairman John Napier
Alex de Groote of Panmure Gordon said: 'My guess is that Bollore will now force a coming together of Havas and Aegis.'
Merging Aegis with Havas would save tens of millions of pounds at a time when companies are slashing their marketing budgets amid the deepening economic gloom.
Since taking the chair in June, Napier has been exploring ways to revive Aegis' flagging share price.
These include seeking a rapprochement with Bollore – a move that met with strong resistance from Lerwill, said sources.
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Saturday October 3, 2015 14:01
TOYOTA Motorsport GmbH has announced that the wait is over; the GT86 CS-R3 has successfully become the first new rear-wheel-drive rally car to be granted FIA homologation in the 21st century.
After an extended development, prolonged by the challenge of being the first rear-wheel-drive in the previously-exclusive front-wheel-drive R3 category, the car is now eligible to compete in any rally which runs to FIA regulations, including the World Rally Championship!
Tuesday September 15, 2015 12:49
The facelift (and buttlifted) 86 has now been spotted out testing [see all photos]! From what we see, the front bumper will get a new bigger air intake and also headlights with new graphics and what looks to be LED lights.
At the back the photographer spotted LED rear lights, a slightly changed bumper and a bigger wing.
Monday November 3, 2014 11:24
The Scion Tuner Challenge 2014 competitors are facing the home stretch as they put the finishing touches on their Scion FR-S project cars for the debut at the SEMA Show, starting tomorrow [Video]!
Thursday October 9, 2014 10:59
Toyota has unveiled the the limited edition 86 14R60, inspired by the 86 Griffon concept.
Tuesday October 7, 2014 15:31
Graysgarage shares with us this great video look at visualizations of the flow structure and aerodynamics of the first generation Toyota MR2, second generation Mazda RX7, fourth generation Toyota Supra, and brand new Scion FR-S (Toyota GT86, Subaru BRZ).
Thursday September 25, 2014 12:40
Tuesday August 12, 2014 11:39
The second annual 86EXPO took place this past weekend in Virginia. Just as with the first 86EXPO, the format consisted of an auto-x and car show.
Check out the photos and videos from attendees inside!
Monday July 14, 2014 13:47
For the 2015 BRZ, Subaru has given the BRZ an updated version of the iconic World Rally Blue color (same as on 2015 WRX/STI). The new color code is 07X (versus the older “02C” version), as seen in these photos.
The 07X World Rally Blue (WRB) color is tri-color/tri-level — containing a base coat, shading coat, and clear coat (compared to the 02C WRB which was just a base coat and clear coat).
Check out more comparison photos HERE.


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Mike Newton, Director, Wealth Management & Portfolio Manager, Scotia Wealth Management
Focus: North American large caps and ETFs
We have successfully emerged from the dog days of summer where news flow was very light, which was a welcome anomaly compared to the past several summers. However, this placid backdrop is not likely to last very long.
A variety of indicators suggest that recession risks in the next six to 12 months remain muted and thus support a constructive medium-term view for global market performance. In particular, the lack of overheating pressures, solid consumer demand and labour trends along with supportive central bank policies suggest this current economic and market cycle remains well in place. In the near-term there are a variety of event risks which could trigger profit-taking following the gains of the past six months including central bank policy meetings (U.S. Fed & Bank of Japan, September 21), OPEC summit (September 26), first U.S. presidential debate (September 26), U.S. budget deadline (September 30), and IMF meetings (October 7).
Much is written about equity valuations and the seemingly high levels we are currently witnessing in North America, leading many to argue equity returns will have to fall or remain low for several years to correct the overvalued conditions.
Overall, current valuation levels are not a reason to be overly bearish on the medium-term equity market outlook. Historically, equity bull markets have always come to an end when recession risks climb to significant levels (which are not present currently). We would caution investors from “jumping the gun” and becoming overly bearish simply because stocks begin pausing. We are entering into a typically tricky seasonal period for markets with volatility levels at recent lows, suggesting opportunities could materialize in the not-too-distant future. Within this context, we would use any material weakness in coming weeks as an opportunity to put any available cash to work.
Most recent purchase: Sept. 12th at US$54.35
- Starbucks is a high-quality business with a beloved brand, stellar management and attractive growth prospects.
- The company has increased revenue for 23 of the past 24 years, and its five- and 10-year average returns on invested capital are over 20 per cent.
- It is estimated that food now makes up over 20 per cent of sales.
- Perhaps the most underrated aspect of all their recent acquisitions is their potential to position Starbucks as a premier packaged consumer goods company with distribution channels outside its coffee shops.
- With 13,000 locations in the U.S, there are still more additions coming with 600 new openings in 2016 alone including express stores and stand-alone drive-through locations.
- The company has 6,100 locations in the China/Asia Pacific region today, though it plans to increase that number to 10,000-plus by 2019. The region could rival the U.S. in store count by 2025.
Berkshire Hathaway (BRKb.N)
Most recent purchase: Sept. 7th at US$149.68
- Given its great balance sheet and defensive characteristics, Berkshire looks like a solid choice in a near record-priced stock market.
- In that regard, Berkshire's public stock portfolio was recently estimated at $130 billion, of which 70 per cent is concentrated in Kraft Heinz, Wells Fargo, IBM, Coca-Cola and American Express.
- The company remains a highly profitable conglomerate that is generating after-tax operating earnings of about $18 billion.
- Because it pays no dividend, Berkshire’s profits accrete to book value and replenish the company’s large cash balance, enabling Buffett & Co. to engage in further earnings-generative acquisitions.
- The cash balance at the core insurance operations stood at almost $62 billion at the end of June, little changed from the end of 2015 despite a $32.7 billion cash acquisition in January of Precision Castparts.
Most recent purchase: Sept. 7th at US$19.94
- Someone said that “Twitter is the world’s best pub. Too bad they don’t sell drinks.”
- With more than 305 million monthly active users and 80 per cent of revenue coming from native mobile ad formats, Twitter still represents one of the best plays on the growth of mobile.
- The street is almost uniformly “hold” on the name and the questions surrounding monetization strategies continues to dog Twitter stock, presenting investors with a reasonable valuation.
- Last week, water was poured on takeover rumours when the board signaled that no active bids are on the table.
- It remains a unique asset with strategic value (to someone) and for that reason I am recommending a small position for speculative portfolios only.
Past Picks: September 10, 2015
Walt Disney (DIS.N)
- Then: $102.60
- Now: $93.64
- Return: -8.73%
- TR: -7.49%
- Then: $45.16
- Now: $54.19
- Return: +20.00%
- TR: +20.00%
Alimentation Couche-Tard (ATDb.TO)
- Then: $60.12
- Now: $64.54
- Return: +7.35%
- TR: +7.35%
Total Return Average: +6.79%


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Love’s Opens New Michigan Location Providing 70 Truck Parking Spaces
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Love’s Travel Stops (Love’s) announced today that it is now serving customers in a new location in Holland Charter Township, Michigan.
The new store officially opened its doors on Thursday. The new travel stop, located at 9790 Adams St. (off I-196, Exit 52), provides 70 truck parking spaces and will add 55 new jobs to Ottawa County.
“Love’s is pleased to bring another convenient, clean and friendly location to the Great Lake State,” said Tom Love, founder and executive chairman of Love’s. “Holland Charter Township is an ideal location because of its proximity to the interstate and the heavily traveled Grand Rapids, Michigan, area. We’re excited to serve even more Customers in this growing community.”
The 11,000 square foot facility will boast a Love’s Truck Tire Care center, 6 diesel bays, 70 truck parking spaces, laundry facilities, 7 showers, a CAT Scale and more. The Oklahoma City-based company plans to donate $2,000 to the Holland Police Department during a ribbon cutting ceremony planned for January 28.
“We welcome Love’s to Holland Charter Township,” said Terry Nienhuis, supervisor of Holland Charter Township. “Love’s Travel Stops will support our region’s manufacturers of today and those located here in the future. Love’s has already had an immediate impact and will continue with providing jobs to our citizens.”


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Given how hot-headed some people can get over recruiting, it was a matter of time before Michigan commit Logan Tuley-Tillman began seeing the repercussions of his social media actions.
As John noted on Sunday, Tillman made it about as clear as possible he would not be signing with Ohio State by setting a piece of their recruiting mail aflame. To drive the point home, Tillman took a picture of the burning literature and posted it on Twitter.
As one might expect, that didn’t sit too well with some OSU fans. Tillman, an offensive lineman from Peoria, Ill., told Yahoo! Sports he has received “a couple [of] death threats” following the tweet.
“And they’ve been sending my mom messages on Facebook,” Tillman said. “I just told her you can’t listen to it because it’s one of he biggest rivalries in sports.”
Tillman was also on the receiving end of some Ohio State hate while attending a Nike camp in Columbus, when the lineman wore a Michigan hat in a local mall.
“I was up there and the fans were cussing me out and they were saying ‘(expletive) you’ and stuff like that while I was walking through the mall,” said Tillman. “It wasn’t like in my face. They were like saying things and then would power walk away. One of them actually threw something at me, but it didn’t hit me. So, that’s how it started.”
Clearly, some people need to get a grip on recruiting and the shenanigans of some high school kid. There is no excuse for a death threat, but Tillman’s apparently okay with stirring the pot and whatever expletives are thrown his way as a result.
For the second time in less than a month, two members of the Purdue football program have found themselves on the wrong side of the law.
This time around it’s a pair of freshmen, linebacker Wyatt Cook and defensive end Chazmyn Turner, who are in a bit of a predicament, with the Indianapolis Star reporting that both players were arrested over the weekend. Cook was charged with minor consumption of alcohol while Turner was charged with possession of marijuana.
No details of what led to the arrests and charges were made public. The program is aware of the incident, but have not stated what if any punishment either could be facing.
Cook was a three-star member of this year’s recruiting class, Turner a two-star. Neither has played in a game this season.
In the middle of last month, two freshmen cornerbacks, Evyn Cooper and David Rose, were arrested and charged in connection to stolen bicycles. Those two were members of this year’s recruiting class as well.
It is no secret that Under Armour is making a nice serious push in acquiring university apparel deals, but the Texas Longhorns is not one it will be likely to whisk away from The Swoosh. According to one report from the Austin American-Statesman, University of Texas officials broke off a meeting with Under Armour and are now expected to stay with Nike moving forward.
The University of Texas has been a partner with Nike since 2000. The contract between the two gives Nike an exclusive window in which it can match or improve on any offers made to the school from rival companies such as Under Armour or Adidas. It is unknown if Under Armour made a formal offer to Texas or how much such an offer could have been valued. What is pretty much commonly known is the Texas brand is still a nice asset in the athletics apparel business, even if the Longhorns are struggling on the football field. Having Texas wear your gear is still a quality investment, which makes Texas a highly sought-after commodity.
Per the American-Statesman report, Texas is expected to sign what would be the biggest deal currently going in collegiate athletics. Considering the handsome deal recently signed between Nike and Michigan, that would mean Texas would be looking forward to more than $169 million from Nike. Michigan signed a 15-year contract valued at $169 million, which will bring an end to its current relationship with Adidas in 2016. As part of the deal, Michigan will become the first football program to wear the Jordan brand logo on its football uniforms. Could Texas be the next? For now that is just something to ponder.
Nike recently lost partners at Arizona State and Miami. Last year Notre Dame began a new partnership with Under Armour, signing a $90 million contract.


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Trade between SA, Switzerland growing
Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies met with his Swiss counterpart in Berne on Thursday.
BERNE - Trade between South Africa and Switzerland has been growing steadily over the last few years, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said on Thursday.
Earlier, he met with his Swiss counterpart in Berne.
South Africa exports minerals and agricultural produce to the European country, while it imports manufactured machinery and pharmaceuticals.
Exports to Switzerland have grown 30 percent annually, Davies said.
The landlocked country is not part of the European Union (EU).
In light of the euro zone crisis, it is important to strengthen economic ties with Switzerland, Davies said.
The country's unique vocational education system, which supports apprenticeships, was also discussed.
Switzerland's very low youth unemployment rate has been attributed to its schooling structure.
Davies said while this does not fall under his mandate, he called on local businesses to promote skills training.


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MachineGames’ Xbox exclusive Indiana Jones game will mix camera perspectives to create a more cinematic gameplay experience.
Created by the developers of Wolfenstein, the currently untitled Indiana Jones game is expected to release sometime in the next few years. But what exactly is the upcoming action game?
In the latest episode of the XboxEra Podcast, insider Shpeshal Nick claimed that the in-development game will switch camera perspectives during gameplay. While the game will be third-person, there will also be numerous sections that take place in first-person.
“I don't know if it is finalized or not, because the game I think is still quite a bit away, but from what I've been told, from what I've heard, it's going to be both,” Nick said on the podcast. “Not like Starfield where you get to pick, but there'll be specific - as far as I'm aware, there'll be specific sections. Some will be in third person, some will be in first person. I have no more detail than that.”
When the new game was announced, many expected the title to be a third-person, Uncharted-like experience. Similar to prior games in the series, such as Indiana Jones and the Emperor’s Tomb or Staff of Kings, the game was expected to be entirely third person.
However, it seems that MachineGames will be utilising its experience in crafting AAA first-person narrative games for its Indiana Jones title. While the game may not have the majority of its gameplay in first-person, players will have the opportunity to engage in some systems from Indy’s perspective.
This wouldn’t be the first game to mix-and-match perspectives during gameplay. For example, Metal Gear Solid is famous for taking place in third-person, but allowing players to move into first-person for more precise aiming. It’s far from the only game to do so.
However, as Shpeshal Nick points out, MachineGames’ Indiana Jones title is still deep in development without any hint at a release date. While Lucasfilm isn’t happy about the game’s Xbox exclusivity, the game is still going to launch on the Microsoft-owned platform.
MachineGames’ last massive hit was 2019’s Wolfenstein: The New Colossus. Since then the developer has made two spin-offs: Wolfenstein: Youngblood and Wolfenstein: Cyberpilot. The developer also created a Quake Expansion Pack, Dimension of the Machine.
Alongside its Indiana Jones game, the Swedish game studio is allegedly working on the end of its Wolfenstein trilogy. However, the studio has yet to confirm if it is indeed working on the new FPS game – we sure hope so.
The new Indiana Jones game will release sometime this generation on Xbox Series X, S and PC. You’ll also be able to play it on Xbox Game Pass and Xbox Cloud Gaming.


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Important Research: clothing Apparently, is enough to keep germs from flatulence out of the environment.
Drink up!: “There’s More Bourbon Than People in Kentucky.”
Afghanistan: Talking to the Ambassador.
Gone to Pot: “More than 60 percent of people surveyed in the study said they supported legalization because they agreed with arguments saying it would increase tax revenues, create a profitable new industry, reduce prison crowding and lower the cost of law enforcement.”
Free Market?: Not in health care, there isn’t.
Every once in a while, Rand Paul says something insightful: Apparently, it happened the other day.


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Independent beds and mattresses retailer Sussex Beds has revealed the rebranding of its delivery fleet with a fresh new look.
Sussex Beds has presented “Beddy Mercury”, the first of its new branded vans, with four others given names as part of its marketing strategy, and a bit of fun too.
John Rayment, Operations Director at award winning family run retailer Sussex Beds, said: “We only have a couple done so far and two more next week, with the last to follow in January.”
“All will be in the new blue branding, with features including 30 night comfort trial, Family Business and Eco-Disposal.
“Our team were then asked to suggest names, which were then voted for with the five winning names chosen to be printed on our new vans.”
The chosen names for the other four are “Meryl Sleep”, “Sleep Gonzales”, “Dozee Rascal” and “Shaun of the Bed”.
The van rebrand follows its recent announcement to open its first store in Surrey after completing an agreement to take the former M+Co store on High St in Horley, which is expected to open on Saturday 14 January 2023.
The new 6,000sq ft store marks another milestone for the retailer, entering its third county, while the store brings its portfolio to 14 locations. It is also planning to open a store in Caterham with more planned for the year ahead.


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Texas Wine Lover
Posted by Patient Zero | 06.26.15 | 5:49 pm
BY JEFF COPE
Virus Vodka was introduced to Texas less than a year ago. In August 2014, Virus Vodka debuted its Erlenmeyer Flask inspired bottle and gluten free, kosher certified, six times distilled vodka for the first time at The Texas Package Stores Association (TPSA) Show in Fort Worth.
The response was overwhelming and growth or as the owner shrouded in secrecy as Patient Zero attests, the virus began to spread rapidly. By December 2014, Virus Vodka officially launched in Dallas. Within three months the brand was picked up by over 100 liquor stores in Texas and by five months Houston, San Antonio, Austin, Longview, Anna, and Corpus Christi were all infected and carry the brand. Simultaneously, Virus Vodka received a silver medal in bottle design at the Davey Awards and a Gold Medal for Branding at the MarCom Awards.
Last month Virus Vodka participated as the sole liquor sponsor in Texas Frightmare Weekend, took home a silver for taste and packaging at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition and another silver for packaging at the Communicator Awards. The brand also had a presence at ComicPalooza and is now gearing to bring their Virus to the Alamo City Tattoo Festival June 12th-14th, the Best Little Brewfest in Texas on June 20th, and back to the TPSA Show on July 26th. Virus Vixens will be at each event to promote and sample the deliciously affordable vodka made in America, which retails for $19.99 and is currently distributed solely in the state of Texas.


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First EV Dealership to Launch in Fall
June 24, 2020—Jolta, the first-ever electric vehicle dealership, is set to launch in Miami this fall, according to a press release.
The new dealership will be comprised of three main components: a curation of electric vehicles, onsite charging stations, charging solutions and installation services.
Jolta will offer e-cars, e-bikes, e-scooters and e-motorcycles at the dealership, and will allow consumers try out the EV products before purchasing them.
According to the release, Jolta is finalizing its selection of cars and other EVs, and will launch its first store in the fourth quarter of 2020 in Miami. The company plans to open 14 other dealerships in other major U.S. cities by 2025.


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Imagine a three floor closet filled from floor to ceiling with fashion’s most desirable labels–Chanel, Hermes, Rolex, Louboutin and Vuitton. Texas socialite, Theresa Roemer’s 3000-sq-ft fashion shrine is the stuff girls dream of. Recently, however, the focus of her closet has turned into an ironic twist of fate.
Earlier this month, the famous closet was burglarized of more than $1 million worth of fashion. Surveillance video showed the theif ransacking the she-cave and taking off with three Hermes Birkin travel bags at $60,000 each, ten Rolex watches and ten to 12 Chanel and Cartier watches.
The story continues, this week as the person claiming to be the burglar stepped forward to the Houston Press and alleged that his haul of stolen items are all fake. You read correctly, the former socialite, beauty queen and philanthropist has a 3000-sq-ft closet of fake Hermes, Chanel and Rolexes. To prove his point, the robber sent several of the fake items to the Houston Press and the paper has authenticated the samples as fake too.
Theresa responded with an interview to the Houston Culture Map, “She never pretended that everything in her closet was high-priced, although she has proof of sale from Neiman Marcus and other retailers for most items…Not everything is a million-dollar design [and] that she never claimed that everything in her closet was expensive,” the website says.
This is just further proof that fashion can easily be an illusion and a covetable closet may not be what it seems. Lets chuckle about the robber who got taken and just hope that Theresa didn’t file insurance papers.


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As businesses in New York and around the world remain closed and struggle to grapple with the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic, many small and midsize galleries are seeking to migrate to online marketplaces and virtual showrooms. Such transitions, however, can prove difficult for dealerships that lack the resources or the staff to digitize their inventories. In recognition of the hardships facing smaller galleries, David Zwirner is offering to share its online display rooms with twelve other New York dealers.
According to the New York Times, Zwirner conceived of the initiative, titled “Platform: New York,” in collaboration with his children and the younger staffers employed by the gallery. Among the smaller galleries that were invited to share the behemoth’s digital presence are 47 Canal, Bridget Donahue, David Lewis, Essex Street, and Queer Thoughts. The participants will be invited to feature two works by a single artist on the project’s site, which will debut on April 3.
“It’s been a tough situation for everyone, but all things considered, our gallery has been fortunate—we’ve been able to quickly move our exhibitions and presentations online, since we already have a digital space built out,” David Zwirner director Thor Shannon told Artnet News. “Recognizing that not every gallery is in this exact same position. . .we realized that something we could concretely offer was the digital infrastructure that we already have in place.”
International art fairs have also begun to move online, as large-scale art events are canceled and postponed in waves as the global health crisis continues to escalate. Fairs are a vital means through which many galleries make sales, meet new clients, and promote their programs. Art Basel and UBS’s 2020 Art Market Report states that art fairs generated $16.6 billion in sales in 2019 and that dealers also netted 45 percent of their annual sales by participating in the fair cycle. One of the first to embrace the need to give galleries an alternative fair platform was Art Basel.
The art-world giant launched its digital initiative, the Online Viewing Rooms, after the company decided to cancel the 2020 edition of its Hong Kong fair because of COVID-19. The project’s site featured more than 2,000 works from 235 galleries—more than 90 percent of the exhibitors that intended to participate in the Hong Kong event. While mega-galleries including Zwirner, Gagosian, and Hauser & Wirth, which already have strong digital profiles, reported sales in the six-to-seven-figure range during the initiative’s weeklong run, measuring how the platform benefited smaller galleries may be more difficult.
Maho Kubota, proprietor of the young Tokyo-based Maho Kubota Gallery, said that they were thrilled when the gallery received inquiries from the United States and Europe about the works they listed by artist Teppei Takeda, who remains relatively unknown in the international art scene, and were able to sell work on the new platform. While Alex Logsdail, the executive director of Lisson Gallery, said that the Viewing Rooms was “not a substitute for the pace and interaction of an art fair,” he said that taking part in the new initiative was still a “worthwhile experience.”
Frieze, which called off the 2020 edition of its New York fair earlier this month, will also set up an online viewing room. The nearly two-hundred exhibitors that had signed up for the fair, which would have taken place at Randall’s Island Park from May 7–May 10, will be able to upload works onto Frieze’s platform and app for free. In an email reviewed by Artnews, fair organizers informed participants about the initiative: “The Frieze Viewing Room gives new and established collectors, museum professionals, and the public the ability to digitally explore and acquire art from you and other world leading galleries. We hope that the refund and the Frieze Viewing Room will provide support for your business during this difficult and unprecedented time.”


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Lanxess Forecasts Bigger-Than-Estimated Drop in Quarterly Profit
Lanxess AG (LXS), the chemical maker that joined Germany’s benchmark DAX index in September, forecast a larger-than-estimated drop in profit for the current quarter on weak demand in the tire and automotive industries.
Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, amortization and one-time items will probably fall to between 160 million euros ($207 million) and 180 million euros in the quarter, the Leverkusen, Germany-based company said today. That compares with 369 million euros a year earlier. Norbert Barth, an analyst at Baader Bank, had forecast 250 million euros.
Lanxess is budgeting for profit to decline in 2013. Earlier this month, the company announced it will idle synthetic rubber factories in Belgium and the U.S. because of weak orders from the auto industry. Europe’s car-market contraction accelerated in February, with registrations dropping 10 percent from a year earlier, the Brussels-based European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association, or ACEA, said on March 19.
“The outlook is disappointing,” said Baader’s Barth, who has a buy rating on the stock. “We already saw the announcement that the market is difficult. But it’s surprising that they expect 2013 to be lower.”
Lanxess, which expects a pick-up in demand in the second half, will give a more precise outlook for the current year when it publishes its first-quarter report on May 8, it said today.
The maker of synthetic rubber is proposing to increase its annual dividend payment 18 percent to 1 euro a share for the year 2012, it said today. A payout of 95 euro cents was expected, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
“In this persistently volatile environment, Lanxess will continue to focus on cost discipline and its proven flexible asset management,” the company said in the statement.
A plant making butyl rubber, used in the inner linings of car tires, in Zwijndrecht in Belgium will be closed for four weeks in May. Production of ethylene propylene diene monomer, or EPDM, used in wiper blades and door sealants, in Orange, Texas, will be stop for as many as six weeks, spokesman Daniel Smith said earlier this month.
The company is sticking to medium term targets for earnings of 1.4 billion euros in 2014 and 1.8 billion euros in 2018, it said today.
Lanxess, which is moving its headquarters to Cologne, said today that the new building will be inaugurated on Sept. 3. Some 1,000 employees will move into the new building on the banks of the Rhine river.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Simon Thiel at email@example.com