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Given her style, her public persona and her ever growing brand name, it seemed only natural that KISS 100 personality Adelle Onyango would take some kind of detour into fashion.
She has. But of course, fashion with a purpose.
She has come out with the Anyango Capsule Collection – a project that she embarked on alongside a number of creatives and its purpose was a way for her to honour her late mother, Mary Onyango.
Adelle says that she took some of her mothers characteristics that she aspires to, and alongside her team, helped to bring them to life: “I teamed up with Pauline Cosmetics for the limitless lipstick, Nairobi Apparel District for the jacket and powerful women badges and Olive-And-Annie for the strength necklace.”
The jacket in particular, brings out the force of a woman: “I want you to feel POWERFUL when you wear this jacket; when you’re going through something tough – I want it to serve as a reminder for you,”
She recently unveiled the jewelry line ‘Strength’ which sold out on the week of its launch, but that can be ordered from her website www.adelleonyango.com.
The last piece is a lipstick line branded Limitless: “It’s to honour the most important person in my life who I’ve always wanted to immortalize and share with the world in my way – my late mum! I’ve wanted to do it for two years…!”
Watch the making of the first piece on the #Anyango line:


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In an effort to thwart off time-theft and loiterers, Apple has decided to add Facebook to the list of banned websites at retail locations nationwide. When I asked some of the geniuses today whether or not anyone noticed the change, they all said that Facebook stopped working sometime in the past week. One of the geniuses’ said, “Apple Stores have become a regular Internet Cafe, so placing the most popular time-killer [Facebook] of them all on the banned-list will certainly help everyone get a chance to test out the computers”.
As you may have heard, MySpace was banned in May of 2007 from all Apple Stores. When asked why Apple said “Nearly 2 million people visit Apple Stores every week. We want to provide everyone a chance to test-drive a Mac, so we are no longer offering access to MySpace in our stores.” Apple Stores, which now total 251 worldwide, see an average of 15,744 visitors weekly per store (Q4, 2008). So, currently, about 16 million people per month are now denied the right to jump on for a minute (or an hour) to update their status or do their daily stalking. It will be interesting if Facebook will see a slight dip in traffic this month due to the change.
Shashank Jain, founder of good-name, a young and energetic entrepreneur has always been fond of technology. His liking for technology made him go for engineering in computers. During his studies, he learned & worked on different computer languages & OS including HBCD, Linux, etc. He also has a keen interest in ethical hacking.

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Since the world class Liza discovery in 2015, ExxonMobil has expended more than GY$45 billion on local suppliers in the South American country of Guyana. The company said Wednesday in an activity update that more than 700 Guyanese vendors have been supplying a range of goods and services to support its operations which has to date resulted in over 8 billion barrels of oil equivalent being discovered and the start of production last December.
“Since 2015, GY$45.7 billion were spent with hundreds of local vendors. In 2019 alone more than GY$24 billion, were spent directly with more than 700 Guyanese vendors providing goods and services ranging from food to engineering. This represents a 74% increase in expenditure compared to GY$14 billion spent with Guyanese vendors in 2018,” the company stated.
Concurrently, the number of Guyanese supporting ExxonMobil Guyana’s exploration, development and production activities has grown by 77% in 2019, now representing more than half of the total workforce. There are now nearly 1,900 Guyanese supporting the company’s activities.
The Centre for Local Business Development (Centre) has also released a list of planned 2020 tenders to provide goods or services related to ExxonMobil Guyana and its prime contractors. Uploaded to the Centre’s Supplier Registration Portal, the list supplements ongoing efforts to provide Guyanese businesses information regarding upcoming opportunities available in the oil and gas industry.
“Local suppliers are important to the success of our operations, and through the Centre, we continue to strengthen the capabilities of Guyanese businesses; improving their competitiveness and the country’s overall industrial base,” said President of ExxonMobil Guyana Rod Henson.
The Centre continues to be a reliable resource for information on safety, technical standards, procurement opportunities, tendering processes and project-specific information. It provides mentoring, access to financial support services and business-to-business networking opportunities.
ExxonMobil said in its activity update that planning is underway for a Supplier Forum later this year which will allow for direct engagement with the company and its prime Contractors. The Centre held a similar forum in December 2018.
The Centre was established in 2017, to assist small and medium-sized Guyanese businesses build capacity and improve their competitiveness. To date, more than 2,100 Guyanese business are registered and in keeping with its mandate, the Centre provided coaching and mentorship to more than 450 businesses. 15 Guyanese companies are receiving mentorship for ISO 9001 compliance, while four companies were certified and one company has reached compliancy.
“Using a multi-tiered approach, ExxonMobil focuses on building workforce and supplier capabilities as well as strategic community investment. Continued growth of local content is exactly what we want to see as we continue to partner with Guyana,” Henson indicated. Looking ahead, he noted that a steady phased approach to future development projects such as Liza Phase 2 and potentially Payara will help further progress local content.
The Liza Phase 1 project began oil production in December 2019, while the Liza Phase 2 startup is anticipated by early 2022. A third project, Payara, is currently undergoing government approval processes, and could start up as early as 2023.


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Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer is promising to be away from the job for just a "limited time" when she gives birth to twins later this year, but the development only adds to the uncertainty some investors have long had about Yahoo.
Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer is going to give birth to twins while trying to deliver a long-promised turnaround at the struggling Internet company.
Yahoo on Wednesday unveiled a new mobile application allowing users to exchange live video, text and emoticons, without audio.
Yahoo said Tuesday swung to a loss in the second quarter but that revenues grew as the Internet pioneer refocused its efforts on mobile and other growing sectors.
Yahoo is moving forward with the spinoff of its sizable stake in China's Alibaba Group, and announced a name for it: Aabaco.
Female CEOs are outpacing their male colleagues in pay, although they remain vastly outnumbered in the top echelons of American companies.
The value of Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer's pay package surged last year, mostly due to gains in the Internet company's stock price that came despite concerns about the overall health of Yahoo's business.
US Internet giant Yahoo said it was expanding its online offerings, unveiling 18 new video series with which it hopes to attract a larger audience and advertisers.
Yahoo is still struggling to boost its revenue nearly three years into CEO Marissa Mayer's tenure, magnifying concerns that the Internet company holds little value beyond its lucrative Asian investments.
Yahoo will try to harvest revenue from mobile applications outside its own crop of services as CEO Marissa Mayer scours the digital landscape for more growth opportunities.


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July 10, 2017
U.S. beef trade evolving, part 1: imports
by Derrell S. Peel, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Specialist
There is a growing recognition that international beef trade will play an increasingly important role in the U.S. beef industry in the coming years. Within the dynamics of global beef trade it is important to understand changes and trends in U.S. beef trade. The quantity of U.S. beef imports and exports has varied considerably over time and so has the shares of trade among major countries that trade beef with the U.S. Some of these changes are related to specific events, such as the occurrence of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) in 2003, political changes or currency exchange rate impacts. Some, however, are just evolution of markets over time due to changes in production and/or demand in the U.S. and other countries. This article focuses on U.S. beef imports.
The latest monthly trade data shows that total beef imports in May were down 1.7 percent. For the year to date, January-May, total beef imports are down 9.0 percent year over year. This follows a 10.5 year over year decrease in U.S. beef imports in 2016.
Australia, historically the top source of U.S. beef imports, is currently the third largest source, down 24 percent in May and down 34 percent year over year for the year to date. Australia has accounted for about 29 percent of U.S. beef imports over the past decade but only represents about 21 percent so far this year. Australia will likely rebuild some market share in the coming years with herd rebuilding following the drought forced herd liquidation in 2014 and 2015. Imports of beef from New Zealand were down 14.5 percent year over year in May and are down 19.6 percent so far in 2017. New Zealand beef represents about 22 percent of beef imports so far in 2017. New Zealand has consistently averaged about 20 percent of U.S. beef imports over the past decade.
With the year over year decline in imports from Australia and New Zealand, Canada is currently the largest source of U.S. beef imports. May beef imports from Canada were up 3.4 percent year over year but year to date imports from Canada are down 3.6 percent from last year. Canada accounts for about 23 percent of beef imports in 2017. Canada has varied as the number one, two or three source of U.S. beef imports in the last ten years. However, Canada’s share of U.S. beef imports appears to have trended down some over time with the current share considerably lower than the 27 percent average over the past decade.
The clearest and most pronounced trend in U.S. beef imports in the growing role of Mexico as a source of beef imports. In May, beef imports from Mexico were up 27.4 percent year over year and are up 29.7 percent for the year to date. Mexico, which accounted for less than 2 percent of beef imports a decade ago, increased to account for over 16 percent of U.S. beef imports in 2016 and represents 20 percent of beef imports so far in 2017.
Imports of beef from Brazil in May were up 50.3 percent year over year and are up 34.2 percent for the year to date. However, the reinstated ban on fresh beef from Brazil in June may slow imports once again, at least temporarily. Brazil has been a distant fifth place source of U.S. beef imports over the past decade, averaging about five percent of the U.S beef import total. Brazil accounted for 5.1 percent of beef imports in 2016 and 5.3 percent so far in 2017.
This year test the forage before you cut!
by Glenn Selk, Oklahoma State University Emeritus Extension Animal Scientist
Summer has definitely arrived in Oklahoma! Hot dry summer weather brings about heat and drought stress on summer annuals. Stressed plants such as the forage sorghums can occasionally accumulate dangerous concentrations of nitrates. These high nitrate plants, either standing in the field, or fed as hay, can cause abortion in pregnant cattle, or death if consumed in great enough quantities. Nitrates do not dissipate from suncured hay (in contrast to prussic acid), therefore once the hay is cut the nitrate levels remain constant. Therefore, producers should test hay fields before they cut them for hay. Stop by any Oklahoma Cooperative Extension County Office for testing details. Testing the forage before cutting gives the producer an additional option of waiting and allowing for the nitrate to lower in concentration before harvesting the hay. The major sources of nitrate toxicity in Oklahoma will be summer annual sorghum type plants, including sudan hybrids, sorgo-sudans, sorghum-sudans, millets, and Johnsongrass. See OSU Fact Sheet PSS-2903.
Some of the management techniques to reduce the risk of nitrate toxicity (Note: the risk of this poisoning cannot be totally eliminated), include:
1) Test the crop before you harvest it. IF it has an elevated concentration of nitrates, you still have the option of waiting for normal plant metabolism to bring the concentration back to a safe level. And experience tells us that we cannot estimate nitrate content just by looking at the field.
2) Raise the cutter bar when harvesting the hay. Nitrates are in greatest concentration in the lower stem. Raising the cutter bar may reduce the tonnage, but cutting more tons of a toxic material has no particular value.
3) Know the extent of nitrate accumulation in the hay and the levels that are dangerous to different classes of cattle; ie, pregnant cows, open cows, or stocker steers. If you still have doubt about the quality of the hay, send a forage sample to a reputable laboratory for analysis, to get an estimate of the nitrate concentration. This will give some guidelines as to the extent of dilution that may be necessary to more safely feed the hay.
4) Allow cattle to become adapted to nitrate in the hay. By feeding small amounts of the forage sorghum along with other feeds such as grass hay or grains, cattle begin to adapt to the nitrates in the feed and develop a capability to “digest” the nitrate with less danger. Producers should avoid the temptation of feeding the high nitrate forage for the first time after a snow or ice storm. Cattle will be stressed, hungry, and unadapted to the nitrates. They will consume unusually large amounts of the forage and be in high risk for nitrate toxicity. “Adaptation” as the only management strategy may not be sufficient to provide complete safety from high nitrate forages.
5) Be sure to read “Nitrate toxicity in livestock” OSU Fact Sheet PSS-2903 closely before cutting and feeding any summer annual hay.
July 10, 2017


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Jones Apparel Group Inc. will sell its Barneys New York luxury chain to Istithmar PJSC, an investment firm owned by the Dubai government, for $942.3 million after Japan's Fast Retailing Co. dropped out of bidding.
The transaction will close in the third quarter, Jones said Thursday. Fast, owner of the Uniqlo casual clothing stores, said earlier in the day it wouldn't raise its offer.
Istithmar, which twice raised its initial offer for the luxury chain to counter Fast, may add to the seven Barneys locations, which sell Helmut Lang clothes and Fendi handbags, said Arun Daniel, an analyst with ING Investments LLC in New York. Jones Chief Executive Officer Wesley Card is shedding sportswear brands to focus on the Jones New York, Anne Klein and Nine West lines.
"Barneys is in a unique position in its high-end niche, and that segment of the market is performing well," Daniel said. "That is where the opportunities are to come in and expand the brand and add square-footage growth."
Istithmar said in February that it will spend $1.7 billion this year buying retail, industrial and financial services companies. Since 2003, the firm has acquired New York properties including the W Hotel Union Square and a $1 billion stake in London-based bank Standard Chartered PLC.
"Barneys is a unique global asset with incredible growth prospects within the luxury market," Istithmar Executive Chairman Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem said Thursday.
Jones agreed in June to sell Barneys to Istithmar for $825 million. Two weeks later, Fast offered $900 million, which Istithmar matched Aug. 5. Later that day, Fast countered with a higher bid of $950 million.
Jones would have to pay a $34.7 million breakup fee should it cancel the Istithmar agreement, making that Fast bid worth less.
"We won't make another proposal," Fast spokesman Takashi Igarashi said. "The price we suggested was very different from what they had in mind."


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Editor’s note: Each Monday, Talk Business & Politics provides “Money Talk,” a wrap-up of banking and financial news. ––––––––––––––––
ST. LOUIS FED: IS THE U.S. DUE FOR ANOTHER RECESSION?
Recent global growth concerns have caused significant stock market turmoil since August 2015, when China devalued the yuan. The potential slowdown in the rest of the global economy has renewed concern of a recession beginning in the U.S. In addition, U.S. economic recovery since the Great Recession has been slow. Although the unemployment rate has dropped from 10% to under 5%, many other labor market statistics still show some weakness.
For example, Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen cited elevated involuntary part-time employment, low labor force participation and slow real wage growth in her December remarks. The slow labor market recovery and vivid memories of the Great Recession may exacerbate concerns of a future recession.
A recent article by Fed economists YiLi Chien investigates the possibility of the next recession occurring soon from the perspective of U.S. business cycle history.
MOBILE BILL PAY ON THE RISE, INDUSTRY STUDY SAYS
Visits to biller websites from mobile devices grew 42% over the past year and now make up 24% of all website visits. During these visits, bill payment is the number one activity, followed by bill views and customer self-service, according to a study by Fiserv Inc. that examines the progression of mobile bill payment and billers’ approaches to mobile bill pay and presentment (MBPP).
Data from more than 130 billing organizations in various industries, including utilities, insurance, telecom and financial services, also revealed that 54% of billers now offer mobile bill payment to their customers with 23% set to deploy in the next six to 12 months. This marks an increase of 40% in the number of billers currently offering the service, compared to 2014. Forty-two percent of billers believe increased mobile billing and payment usage will significantly increase the adoption of paperless e-billing and payments.
The Fiserv “Fourth Annual Biller Mobile Bill Pay Benchmark” white paper is available here.
AEDC TO HOST TWO WORKSHOPS FOR MINORITY BUSINESS OWNERS
The Arkansas Economic Development Commission’s (AEDC) Small and Minority Business Division will host two workshops this month geared toward minority business owners. The Certification Training Workshop will be held Wednesday, March 16, from 9 to 11 a.m. at AEDC’s Rockefeller Conference Room, 900 W. Capitol Ave., Suite 400, in Little Rock. The Minority Business Loan Mobilization Guaranty Program workshop will follow at the same location from 2 to 4 p.m.
To register for one or both classes, visit ArkansasSMBworkshops.eventbrite.com. For information on other minority business services, call AEDC’s Small and Minority Business Division at 501-682-2559 or visit www.ArkansasEDC.com.


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The fresh Postal Service system gifts an alternative choice to pay day lenders and you can other organizations you to definitely target vulnerable communities with outsize charge and you will appeal pricing.
An earlier style of which facts misstated just how many American property which can be unbanked otherwise underbanked. It is 5 percent. Additionally misstated and therefore federal department learned that more than step one inside 5 Black colored and you may Hispanic adults is actually unbanked or underbanked. It actually was brand new Federal Put aside.
The latest You.S. Postal Solution quietly began providing paycheck-cashing attributes during the several East Shore article practices last week, analysis an idea you to definitely financial experts state has the possibility to changes how low-wage and you will underserved People in america access their funds.
Postal users are now able to receive paychecks inside Washington, Baltimore, Falls Church, Va., and also the Bronx, to possess Visa provide notes topping out within $five hundred, an agency spokesperson told you. Postal officials be prepared to expand the brand new pilot towards a larger studies with increased places and you can borrowing products, including bill-expenses features and you will ATMs, based on about three anybody a part of the application which spoke toward the condition of anonymity to talk about painful and sensitive business plan.
Postal financial might a beneficial Democratic hobby horse in recent times, which have activists and you can people in politics claiming it remedies a couple of issues: brand new Postal Service’s precarious economic standing additionally the traps of many U.S. homes face so you’re able to strengthening wealth and you may being able to access their cash.
Into nation’s 14.1 million unbanked and you can underbanked people, the master plan gift suggestions a government-supported replacement for salary-cashing locations and you will pay day lenders, and therefore address insecure populations that have outsize fees and you will interest levels. Democrats welcomed the idea in years past: Sen. Bernie Sanders payday loans for bad credit (I-Vt.) produced postal banking element of their 2016 and 2020 presidential platforms, and it also is used by the Biden-Sanders Unity Task Push included in President Biden’s 2020 promotion schedule.
USPS is wanting aside a different sort of company, which will change just how millions supply bucks and you can make ends meet
New pilot system, while you are minimal into the level, signifies this new mail agency’s really committed force for the economic services from inside the ages. Although it offers money purchases, they dropped most other financial functions inside 1966. The applying in addition to signals one to most useful management try offered to this new style, an older postal certified involved in the application form said, despite having particular reticence throughout the plunge with the a unique type of business who would want significant scientific and you will personnel improvements.
The thing is, speaking of very modest procedures, the official said. It’s a small toe-in water. I think [this new Postal Provider] is just seeking to see what sorts of bite each goes discover. It’s the symbolism that counts.
Commitment officials told you they expect the applying to-arrive most other post organizations nationwide following holiday season. The brand new Postal Services will quickly begin advertisements the new paycheck-cashing solution, and can make use of the enhanced feet visitors inside the agency’s level seasons to gauge user notice and you can effective price issues.
The brand new really-getting of the Postal Solution – that people in the world therefore extremely support – later on try partly going to other individuals during these type off lengthened attributes, erican Postal Specialists Commitment, told you in the an interview. New products will not just have the brand new post office doing well from the somebody, but provides from inside the necessary money.
The fresh new force and additionally places Postmaster General Louis DeJoy – that provided millions to Republican causes, in addition to Donald Trump’s 2020 presidential venture – within the category with a few of their most powerful Democratic critics. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-Letter.Y.) delivered regulations in the 2020 to reauthorize a larger room off postal financial features. She even offers required DeJoy’s capturing because of refuses from inside the agencies performance.
Provider criteria keeps fallen greatly as the DeJoy took the fresh helm within the having an eye toward reducing will set you back and you will searching for this new revenue; the new send service has $188.cuatro mil in the liabilities and that is projected to lose $160 billion in the next ten years.


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The Giumarra Companies has announced the passing of Stu Monaghan.
Mr. Monaghan passed away on Tuesday, 26 February in Vero Beach, Florida after an eight-month battle with brain cancer. He was 52 years old.
He spent over 30 years of his career in the fresh produce industry, working in various sales and management roles, and joined Giumarra in early 2017.
“We will always remember Stu’s commitment to our industry, good sense of humour, and ability to connect with growers and customers alike,” said John Corsaro, CEO of the Giumarra Companies. “Our friend will be deeply missed. We offer our condolences to his family during this difficult time.”


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Manitoba Safeway workers ratified a new four-year collective agreement with their employer Sunday night.
The UFCW Local 832 members pushed back against major concessions sought by owner Sobeys in an overwhelming vote.
“I couldn’t be more proud of our bargaining committee and our members for giving us such a strong strike mandate that made this deal possible,” said Jeff Traeger, president of UFCW Local 832.
“This is our first full round of negotiations with Sobeys since they took over ownership of the Safeway brand in Western Canada, and they were pushing hard for major concessions since day one, it wasn’t until the final hours of bargaining that we were able to make serious movement and come up with a tentative agreement that works for both sides.”
The new contract protects the memberships no-cost benefits, dental plan, and seniority rights. The agreement also includes wage increases in the third and fourth year of the contract.
UFCW Local 832 represents roughly 2200 workers at Safeway stores across Manitoba.


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Ducati Diavel 1260 is available in two variants - Standard and S.
Ducati Panigale V4R is the most powerful road-legal production bike on sale in India.
The new Panigale V4 25 Anniversario 916 is a part of the 25th anniversary celebrations of the Ducati 916.
The Ducati Multistrada 1260 Enduro in red colour scheme is priced at Rs. 19.99 lakhs and the Sand, is priced at Rs. 20.23 lakhs.
Ducati India announced the launch of their all new motorcycle today - the 2019 Hypermotard 950.
The scooter has a range of 75 km.
Ducati Diavel price is Rs 18 lakhs. But it is being sold at Rs 12 lakhs, on road.


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7 Ecommerce Trends You Need To Know For 2022
January 28, 2022
Ecommerce is growing—and fast.
In recent years, 80% of internet users in the U.S. made at least one purchase online. With the pandemic speeding up online shopping adoption, that order volume continues to rise. And despite challenges around the global supply chain, things are looking rosy for the ecommerce sector.
Even so, ecommerce changes fast and consumer preferences can be, well, fickle. That’s why we asked some of the sharpest minds in ecommerce today this question: What’s next for ecommerce in 2022?
Here’s what they had to say.
1. Growth of Influence: Social Media and Creators
Every week, 78% of people watch videos online. TikTok, YouTube, and Snapchat are basically omnipresent in modern society. With video becoming such a popular mode of consumption, marketers have taken note. The video marketing industry grew to $135 billion in 2020.
But where’s that money going? Retail expert Nicole Leinbach Reyhle thinks it’ll be social media companies and creators cashing those checks.
“As we push forward in 2022, live social media selling will rise among all social media platforms and across the generations. Companies such as Comment Sold and Open4Sale will help drive this, with retailers and consumers alike leveraging these opportunities to connect with each other in engaging, interactive ways despite social distancing and the continued desire for many customers to want to shop from the comfort of their homes. This also gives brick and mortar stores a chance to reach customers and move inventory from their businesses, something that is always appreciated,” said Nicole Leinbach Reyhle, founder & publisher at Retail Minded.
2. Educational How-to Content
Kat Ambrose, Content Marketer at Shogun, thinks the future of ecommerce in 2022 is going to be all about one thing: education content. Here’s why:
“Scaling DTC brands are starting to see the value of creating sites with not only a fast, engaging shopping experience but one that customers keep returning to learn. Plant-based protein brand, Daring, is a great example of this. Their “How to Cook” page includes several videos on how to cook each type of “chicken” they offer, while they continue to update their recipe page for fresh inspiration,” said Ambrose.
And she’s not wrong. A study by The Content Marketing Institute asked respondents what the most important content marketing methods were. A whopping 77% said educational content marketing.
Educational content marketing works because you’re putting the needs of the customer first. Rather than just selling products to them, you’re helping them make a decision about a problem they’re trying to solve. And if you do that right, then they’re more likely to look to you to solve that problem.
3. Brands Getting Into NFTs
NFTS (Non-Fungible Tokens) aren’t just expensive .jpgs of CryptoPunks. Even ecommerce brands are starting to buy into the buzz surrounding them.
There’s no clear one-size-fits-all strategy about how to use them. NFTs and ecommerce are still sailing in uncharted waters, but the opportunities abound in this new frontier. Some brands could look to sell them for profit, and others to use them as part of a loyalty program.
Here’s what Jenny Gyllander of ThingTesting had to say:
“More brands will start to dip their toes into the world of NFTs, whether it be to finance their business, activate their community by offering perks or incentives, or using them in marketing to signal that the brand is active in the space. There will be trial and error as brands determine what works for them and look into what kind of technology they’d need to use to create and sell their own NFTs. I expect to see digital assets more integrated into ecommerce experiences for brands as they figure out their own approach to the buzz around NFTs.”
4. Highly Personalized Customer Journeys
The next ecommerce trend of 2022 will be focused on highly personalized customer journeys.
Take a look at DTC brand Doe Lashes: They have an interactive quiz on their website that matches customers to the perfect lashes. Their quiz gathers details about customers’ eye shapes, natural lash size, and even what cartoons they watched as kids—all as part of a strategy to create a personal experience that’s unique to the customer.
Nik Sharma over at Sharma Brands is in full agreement:
“I believe that a huge ecommerce trend is going to be personalizing the customer journey. That doesn’t mean that your name is going to be written on the page, but when you get to a site, there is going to be a very clear angle in which a product or brand is marketing itself to you. For example, if you go to JUDY’s site in San Diego, it might have a message about wildfires and earthquakes, versus going to the same page in Florida, it would speak about hurricanes.”
5. Product Line Diversification
It’s harder and harder to stand out as a DTC brand online—there are now thousands of them. It’s no surprise that a lot of ecommerce brands are shifting strategies to get their voices heard. That’s why we think product line diversification is set to become an ecommerce trend in 2022.
“Expansion can help brands respond to shifts in consumer behaviors, not just product preferences or trends. In 2016, Dyson released the Supersonic hairdryer after observing the uptick in hair coloring and studying the global hairdryer. Their solution put their core technology in the hands of a new market by solving their everyday pain points, making a product that was lighter, faster, and less damaging,” said marketing consultant Grace Clarke.
A great example of this is swimwear brand Summersalt. Once known for their colorful line of swimwear, they now offer outerwear, clothes for traveling, and even underwear.
We’re sure to see more and more companies spinning out from their hero product and pivoting to more diverse product lines in 2022.
6. Post-Purchase Experience
The job isn’t over once a customer has made a purchase. The entire post-purchase experience is a golden opportunity to create a loyal customer, not a one-time buyer.
“Post-purchase experience will be more important than ever as the acquisition of new customers becomes more challenging. The last trend of personalization helped improve the customer experience on the site and brands are now going to take that data to be more intentional with how they communicate with their customers after the purchase.”Jason Wong, CEO of Doe Lashes
The post-purchase experience has always been an important part of ecommerce. It sets the bar on whether your brand met their needs and whether they’ll recommend you to friends and family in the future.
And like Jason said, in the increasingly crowded online marketplace, taking care of your customers every step of the way will only become more important.
7. Speedy Checkout
Modern customers aren’t always known for their patience. Ecommerce platform loading times are a key part of the buyer’s journey, and websites that lag are sure to be left behind in 2022. But brands that can deliver lightning-fast checkout experiences?
As one Lulemon customer put it:
“One-click checkout is a must. I had a recent online shopping experience with Lululemon and it legit blew my mind how fast I went from cart to ordered,” said writer Michael Keenan.
The ecommerce brands that will win big in 2022 will be those who can guarantee a rapid checkout experience. That means providing:
- A well-designed checkout experience
- Lighting-fast one-click checkout
- And next-day delivery with order tracking and notifications
A fast checkout experience means fewer abandoned carts, a higher sales conversion rate, and happier customers.
Getting all that right can be tricky. At Bolt, we’re focused on helping ecommerce brands provide a checkout experience so fast you barely realize it’s there.
Get Ready for Ecommerce Success in 2022
With an eye on these trends, you can be sure to stay ahead of the curve with your online business in 2022. Start planning and taking action now to make the coming months your most profitable to date.


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Here’s a new look at Respawn Entertainment’s Titanfall
Word is that some Xbox One Day One edition bundles won’t be available day one
Phil Spencer is mad he didn’t think of Xbone before other people
Bungie has confirmed that Destiny will have a public beta in the early part of 2014 and the new trailer teases the game release window
Mighty No. 9 is now coming to just about every platform under the sun
Destiny’s PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 box art has been revealed
The Xbox One is likely coming to a city near you!
True survival horror returns in 2014
Does the Xbox One have a slew of sharing features we didn’t know about?
Pull off the perfect bank heist, provided you pre-order Thief


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The Amsterdam based collective will be making their first appearance on these shores at Village Underground tomorrow night.
Started as a YouTube channel back in 2008 by Maris Goudzwaard, Liquicity now has over half a million subscribers and has grown into a record label whilst also putting on events around Europe. After many years of public demand, this Friday 16th January will see the Liquid DnB stronghold making its bow in the UK with a showcase at Shoreditch’s Village Underground. Sold out with only 50 tickets on the door, the highly anticipated event will see British producers such as Fox Stevenson, Rameses B, Hugh Hardie and Fliwo, line up alongside German selector Champion and Dutchman Maduk. The latter recently dropped his round up of 2014 mix, which serves as a perfect warm up for those set to head down to Village Underground tomorrow.
Advance tickets for Liquicity’s event at Vilage Underground tomorrow – Friday 16th January, are sold out, although there will be 50 tickets on the door. Find out more about Liquicity here.


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What we know about Nokia Normandy
Nokia Normandy has made fresh rounds on the social media, the big mystery cloud that has been hovering over the much talked about project from the Finnish manufacturer faded away with the latest pieces of the puzzle, screenshots revealing the potential user interface of the phone made a debut on twitter and became the hottest topic on the internet.
The screenshots features the notification area and a home screen of the Normandy. The left screenshot is the home screen, which resembles the Windows Phone 8 live tiles. The shot of the home screen complete with tiles might throw you off in the first glance as it seems like Normandy is a windows phone but the BBM app icon present on the screen assures you that it will run on android.
The android version used in Normandy is a forked version which is what Amazon does with its Kindle Fire, something thats not aligned Google’s own version. The User Interface of Normandy offers a mix of Android and Windows phone one might say that it is an interesting combination by Nokia that is sure to be a hit among the user.
The leaked pictures also show some applications on the home screen which are not available for Windows Phone along with a notification center. It is rumored that the handset will come with the usual Nokia and Microsoft applications that ship with its Windows Phone lineup like Nokia Camera app, Here Map etc. Many believe that Nokia has done a worthy job with the customization, if the leaked screenshots are legitimate, offering users the facility of Google’s OS with the simplicity of Windows Phone.
The technical specifications are still unknown at the moment, but rumors hint that, the handset should come with a 4GB storage with microSD card 512MB of RAM, a Snapdragon processor, and a 4-inch display.The handset will be equipped with a single button, just like the one found inside the Asha handsets. Apart from these there isn’t much news about the specifications that the phone will bring to the table.
We will need to wait and see how Nokia will proceed with this project but for now many hope that Normandy become a real deal as an Android phone by Nokia has been long over-due.


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Going premium in times of a slowdown in a saturated category like soap seems to have worked for ITC. The company made a relatively late entry into the soaps category in 2008, but it is the premium soaps portfolio which is growing faster than the mass offerings in its personal care portfolio.
SandeepKaul, Chief Executive, Personal Care Products, ITC, said, “Today, our premium brand of Fiama Di Wills gel bars is the fastest growing brand in portfolio while mass brands such as Vivel and Superia continue to be the largest selling. Our belief is that there has to be design and product development during times of a slowdown backed by the right technology.” Scientists at ITC’s innovation centre have been working towards creating products which are different from the regular offerings in penetrated categories like soaps. Considering the slowdown in GDP growth has hit the FMCG category as well, premium brands seem to have benefited more than the mass offerings in ITC’s portfolio.
“Slow GDP growth has affected the FMCG industry. However, it has been the best year for Fiama Di Wills gel bathing bars. Getting bath gel in the form of soap bar has worked and this has been a clear differentiator in the almost 100-year-old soaps category,” added Kaul.
Industry observers also say that the premium end of the FMCG category has been relatively less impacted. VikasDaga , Partner McKinsey & Company, said, “While for most premium brands there is scope for growth, in the case of ITC, it is about having a differentiated value proposition which has worked for them in competitive categories like soaps.”
Moreover, for most premium brands the gap between spends and earnings is not that much, making it a better proposition during times of a slowdown when spends on any brand are being slashed.
Targeted advertising by ITC has helped its brands. “We believe in having dialogue with the consumers instead of having one way marketing with them. In such cases it is dialogue through the digital media and social media which has helped us in creating brands,” he said.
“ITC is planning a quantum jump in volumes and image of its soaps portfolio. It is catering to the aspirations of Indian consumer. Despite being present just a couple of years in the FMCG business, it is giving stiff competition of some of the big FMCG players,” said Jagdeep Kapoor, MD, Samsika Marketing Consultants.


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- Saudi Arabia-based B2B automotive platform Autobia has closed a $2.5 million Seed funding round, led by Sadu Capital and supported by Wa’ed Ventures by Aramco, Raz Holding, Techstars, and a group of angel investors.
- Founded in 2021 by Emad Daghreri and Ahmed Alawfi, Autobia provides automotive aftersales and spare parts.
- The recent funding will be used to fuel Autobia's expansion in Saudi Arabia, attract new segments in the automotive aftersales industry and its adjacent markets, and invest in talent acquisition and technology development.
Autobia, a cutting-edge B2B platform for automotive aftersales and spare parts, proudly announces the successful completion of a $2.5 million seed funding round. The investment round was led by Sadu Capital and supported by Wa’ed Ventures by Aramco, Raz Holding, Techstars, and a group of angel investors.
Launched in 2021 by Emad Daghreri, a serial entrepreneur and partner at Tam, with one successful IPO under his built, and Ahmed Alawfi, a strategic leader and seasoned entrepreneur with a robust background in technology and investment, Autobia seeks to reshape the automotive aftersales market in Saudi Arabia by offering a seamless platform for retailers and maintenance shops to order wholesale spare parts through its app. The platform creates a streamlined supply chain, bridging the gap between supply and demand while giving businesses access to the digital and logistical infrastructure necessary for success in a rapidly evolving market.
Emad Daghreri, highlights their goal of empowering businesses with efficient selling capabilities through data-driven innovation, optimized pricing strategies, trend identification, and personalized recommendations, stating, 'We are dedicated to ushering the automotive aftersales industry into the new era of digitization in Saudi Arabia. Ahmed Alawfi, also emphasized Autobia's core mission of transforming the industry through streamlined supply chain solutions, enhancing operational efficiency, unlocking greater sales potential, and ultimately benefiting end customers with improved availability and competitive pricing.
Qusai AlSaif, CEO of Sadu Capital commented “We found that the automotive aftersales industry in Saudi alone is worth SAR 21 billion, and it’s still operated manually. Autobia introduced a unique technology solution providing instant pricing, a large selection of parts and connecting them to a wide variety of wholesalers and suppliers. Sadu's investment is driven by massive opportunity coupled with an impressive team tackling it at a time when Saudi Arabia is playing a larger role in the automotive industry and becoming a great logistical hub”
To date, Autobia has traded over 1,000,000 spare parts via its platform, with fulfilment centres in Riyadh and Jeddah connecting to an extensive network of wholesalers for unparalleled market availability. Currently supporting 23 brands, Autobia plans to expand its offerings as the company grows.
The recent funding will be utilized to further Autobia's expansion within Saudi Arabia, attract new segments in the automotive aftersales industry and its adjacent markets, and invest in talent acquisition and technology development to strengthen its data-driven approach and infrastructure capabilities.


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from The Conversation
– this post authored by James Brown, Aston University
It’s hard not to notice that the range of gluten-free foods available in supermarkets has increased massively in recent years. This is partly because the rise in the number of people diagnosed with coeliac disease and gluten sensitivity, and partly because celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Miley Cyrus and Victoria Beckham have praised gluten-free diets. What used to be prescription-only food is now a global health fad. But for how much longer? New research from Harvard University has found a link between gluten-free diets and an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.


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Apple will use the Academy Awards show on Sunday to feature a new teaser advertisement focused on the
iPhone, Macworld has learned. The new ad was described as being made for the Oscars, although no further details on the content of ad were available.
The 79th Academy Awards telecast airs on ABC this Sunday at 8 p.m. Eastern. Last year, 38.9 million people watched the Oscars ceremony on ABC.
Apple’s “1984” advertisement — shown nationally during the 1984 Super Bowl — introduced the Macintosh and remains one of the best-rated advertisements in history, in polls taken many times since then. The company has more recently focused its advertising on comparisons between Macs and PCs, using actors Justin Long (as the Mac) and John Hodgman (as the PC).
introduced the iPhone at Macworld Expo in January. While not yet released, the $499 smartphone has caused waves in the wireless market as analysts expect the demand for the touchscreen device to be very high.


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Across the world early stage start-ups are founded by individuals between the ages of 25 and 35 years. In 2011, McKinsey & Company published a report on entrepreneurship conduciveness in G20 countries, that said “319 million people (were) engaged in early-stage entrepreneurship across the G20 nations, with a majority in the BRICS countries.” The report goes on to further list “new ventures from inception to critical size” as an important pillar of entrepreneurial foundations in countries.
A 2013 report by Ernst & Young ranks India at #11 among the G20 countries in terms of access to finance to start-ups. On its part, the Indian government recognizes this and has given shape to various public policies so that strong businesses are born, and can create more jobs and growth. In addition to the Start Up India scheme launched in January 2016, our government launched the Stand Up India programme in April 2016 to facilitate greater access to finance for start-ups by underserved segments of society such as Scheduled Castes, Schedule Tribes and women.
The India Story
The economic maturity of an emerging country like India has allowed the government to make certain iterations and improvements in these programmes to offer greater ease of business. But some underlying assumptions render access to finance elusive for several small-scale enterprises. Various stakeholders can contribute to improving this lever of change in the entrepreneurship ecosystem and help give entrepreneurs that initial impetus to succeed.
The public and private sectors can play collaborative as well as individual roles to offer more inclusive policies, enabling deeper and diverse funding options to support every stage of a start-up’s growth path. Precedents from other emerging G20 nations can serve as good examples to learn from and apply to local conditions.
The Brazilian government unveiled the INOVAR program in the year 2000 to encourage innovative companies, and facilitate access to capital. Through its key components – INOVAR Fund Incubator, Brazil Innovation Forum, Brazil Venture Capital Investment website, INOVAR Business Prospecting and Development Framework, and its capacity-building & training programs, INOVAR has fostered the venture capital ecosystem in Brazil.
In 2012, the government in United Kingdom introduced Start Up Loans, a programme personally overseen by the Prime Minister, that offers affordable finance to new and early stage entrepreneurs along with mentoring, and business advisory.
The Indian government also focuses on innovation and sustainable business through its Start Up India and Stand Up India programmes. Relaxations in respect of the age of the start-up and cashflow documentations have also been made recently to include more new ventures within its gamut.
But the specifics of funding need further awareness and more flexibility. For example, the basic funding conditions seem to imply that all early-stage entrepreneurs can ‘manage’ the deficit between the government funding on offer and the actual cost of the project. Also, what about the assumption that every start-up will need a large amount of capital, and will base her or his business model from a certain scale?
Several ventures start as what may be termed as ‘solopreneurships’ (single individual doing everything) or other ‘unorganized’ models of small businesses, eventually expanding to offer employment to the larger community. In fact, 45% of India’s employment outside the periphery of agriculture is derived from the unorganized sector. But merely because they need even less than the minimum amount that the government promises to offer in programs such as Stand Up India, they disqualify.
Many of these small-scale entrepreneurs resort to ploughing their own savings into the business, or borrowing from family or friends, or even local money lenders at the seed stage. But do we know how much this amount is, typically? And at what interest cost it is borrowed?
The Russian government created Russian Venture Company (RVC) in 2006 to provide low-cost financing to early-stage innovative start-ups. Termed as a ‘fund of funds’, RVC invests in select venture capital funds for innovative companies, dedicated to early-stage financing.
The Small Business Association, USA facilitates loans, funding access, mentoring, consulting, student clubs, and support for each stage of funding supported by the Small Business Saturday program.
The Start Up India programme has a similar focus too, with a fund of funds of 10,000 Cr INR. Details of recognition of start-ups and venture capitalists, and approvals of tax benefits have been made public periodically. In addition, INR 623.5 Cr from the fund of funds have been invested in 65 start ups so far (as on 16 June 2017). But do all or majority of first-time entrepreneurs even know about Venture Capital and Angel Investors as options to seek funding? How do VCs and Angels perceive new businesses? Can the Government intervene further to encourage corporates and VCs to offer seed/ pre-seed capital to small scale businesses?
Micro-credit for Macro Development
In India, start-ups and SMEs are treated separate from each other, in that, about three-fourths of
SME funding comes from bank lending and the rest is divided between IPOs and venture capital.
Credit guarantee is a key feature of both, the Start Up India as well as Stand Up India programmes. But how many of our small-scale entrepreneurs understand the concept of credit rating. Also, what about the non-banking finance options? Do small scale entrepreneurs apply for, or even know about the possibility of loans from non-banking financial institutions? How many have been rejected/accepted and why?
The main objective for emerging economies such as India to foster the growth of start-ups, is to create livelihood and alleviate poverty. Access to Finance as a lever of change in the Indian entrepreneurship ecosystem has a long way to go before it addresses every need, especially in the seed and pre-seed stages. How can the government and the private sector collaborate as well as independently overcome limitations and ease this initial financial need of start-ups, and accelerate the growth of small scale enterprises?


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Nissan has launched a redesigned Rogue crossover for the 2021 model year, all decked to go head to head with its market rivals from Toyota and Honda. But more than the attractive styling and improved interior, the automaker wants to give its model more fighting chance by offering a special test drive arrangement for potential buyers.
The unique setup instituted in some dealerships in the United States allows interested customers to test drive the new Nissan Rogue and Toyota RAV4 side by side. Nissan thinks this could be successful in encouraging buyers to pick the Rogue model over its Toyota counterpart.
Nissan is expecting 500 of its dealers to participate in the test drives that will see the automaker send rented 2020-2021 RAV4 XLEs to their lots. From December 11 to January 11, prospective buyers will have the opportunity to do the test drives.
Based on data from September 2020, Nissan is lagging behind Toyota in terms of sales between the two models. Nissan managed to sell 167,401 units of the Rogue crossover, while Toyota sold 302,574 units of the RAV4. This does not include sales of the newly redesigned Rogue, which went on sale in the US just last month.
Priced $160 higher than its predecessor, the 2021 Nissan Rogue retails for $26,745. It’s slightly smaller than the previous version of the model but slightly larger than the current RAV4, which is offered at $27,225.
Both models are equipped with a naturally aspirated 2.5-liter inline-four, although the RAV4 delivers a bit more power and also comes with a hybrid variant. And despite being smaller in size, the Toyota model yields more cargo space than its Nissan rival.
The absence of a hybrid option does not faze Nissan, though. The automaker says it has no plans to revive the hybrid Rogue that it sold from 2017 to 2019.
In terms of the combined fuel economy, the two models are on par with each other. The Rogue ranges from 28 to 30 mpg, while the RAV4 is rated at 27 to 30 mpg. Both are also offered with front-wheel-drive as standard, while an all-wheel-drive is available as an option. The slight difference is in the transmission with the Rogue getting a continuously variable automatic transmission and the RAV4 getting an eight-speed automatic.
Aside from the base model, the 2021 Nissan Rogue is also available with a Platinum version for $36,5252. The 2021 Toyota RAV4, meanwhile, includes a front-wheel-drive LE variant ($27,255) and a plug-in hybrid Prime model ($39,275) in the lineup.


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Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C) on Friday said its fourth-quarter profit decreased despite modest growth in revenues. However, the numbers topped the market’s projections.
Fourth-quarter net profit declined to $3.2 billion or $1.46 per share from $4.31 billion or $1.92 per share last year but came in above the consensus forecast. Excluding the impact of Asia divestitures, earnings per share were $1.99, up 4%.
Meanwhile, total revenues moved up 1% annually to $17 billion and topped expectations, reflecting active customer engagement amid increased consumer and corporate confidence. At $92.21, book value per share was up 7% year-over-year.
Shares of Citigroup dropped early Friday immediately after the announcement. The stock has gained about 6% in the past twelve months.
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Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) is one of the most innovative technology companies, constantly transforming the business to align with the rapidly changing digital economy. While aggressively participating in the digital
Software giant Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) on Tuesday reported higher revenues and earnings for the second quarter of 2022. The results also topped expectations. At $51.7 billion, second-quarter revenues were
When online platforms thrived on the unusually strong traffic growth during the shutdown, as home-bound people turned to video-streaming and gaming sites, there was speculation that the trend might reverse


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The meme of the weekend was a TechCrunch report that Facebook is working on its own phone. Facebook quickly distributed a detailed denial of any phone-building activity, trying to cut the story at the knees by stating it’s not building a phone, but it is working on adding support for Facebook Connect into mobile operating systems and building a broadly accessible HTML5 version of its site. But the idea clearly has staying power, and why not? It’s a good one. Facebook should start working outside its core competency very soon to do things like make phones.
Creating a better mobile experience would significantly help Facebook in its competitive fight against Google (s GOOG). Right now, Google might be inept at social, but it’s clearly trying to do better, and it will. Google’s best social assets are the Gmail platform and the rapidly adopted Android mobile OS. A Facebook phone, even one built on Android, would help erase some of the very real advantage Android gives Google through the on-phone address book and the ability to help shape other people’s mobile apps.
Facebook might be an emerging technology juggernaut, but it’s narrowly focused on building a social networking platform. Meanwhile, Google often releases products that extend its influence in unexpected, non-core and seemingly off-topic ways: Google Maps and Google Earth, Android, Chrome and Chrome OS, regional fiber deployments, even the Lunar X Prize for moon travel. While search advertising is still where Google’s big bucks come from, it’s these other projects that make the company pervasive and keep it innovative. When Google was six years old, as Facebook is now, it launched Gmail. The most experimental and non-core thing Facebook has done recently is to essentially rip off its former employees’ startup Quora with the launch of Facebook Questions.
That Facebook says it’s not “building” a phone doesn’t mean all that much. The Facebook phone story has a strong déjà vu factor, given that Google recently made its own phone to demonstrate the capabilities of Android. That project, the Nexus One, has already been aborted, with Google saying the example the phone had set has been absorbed by other handset makers. Google, of course, didn’t actually construct its own phone; it partnered with HTC. Similarly, Facebook could easily customize and brand a phone without “building” it. It would, of course, try to improve on some of the pitfalls of the Nexus One, like direct sales, customer service and competing against carrier and handset partners.
Obviously, the idea of embedding Facebook more deeply into phones makes tons of sense. It’s already happening. I get a thrill every time I get a call on my Droid Incredible from a Facebook friend I’ve never talked on the phone with, and see his or her name and picture pop up on my screen when the call comes in, thanks to Facebook-Android integration. Facebook already has 150 million active mobile users for a range of apps, partnerships and mobile web offerings (and they are twice as active as non-mobile users), but the company’s mobile offerings almost always lag far behind the development of its main website and are long overdue for significant refreshes.
A Facebook-branded phone could have:
- A dynamically updated, global, mobile address book that has everyone’s number I rightfully have access to, but prioritizes those I actually talk to often. Facebook already has filtering capability like this powering its news feed. The concept of deleting numbers (unless they’re for an ex you really shouldn’t call when drunk) or updating contact info should disappear.
- A display of whether contacts are available based on information from interpreting their IM status, their location, whether or not they’re on a call, scheduled meetings, and other integrated calendar and real-time factors.
- Ways for other mobile developers to easily hook into Facebook to make them socially relevant and share activity with Facebook. This could include activity stream information as well as integrated Facebook Credits payments, Facebook Places check-ins and other actionable information. It would also be a great way for Facebook to improve and extend its advertising.
That’s just my quick stab at brainstorming features; I’m sure other people could dream up many more imaginative and useful concepts. Maybe the idea of building a social phone is too obvious — indeed, it’s already been done by INQ with much success. Many of these features could be implemented with improved Facebook integration into other people’s mobile operating systems. Facebook should probably think bigger and more radical.
For more discussion about the future of mobile, you should check out GigaOM’s third annual Mobilize conference in San Francisco on Sept. 30.
Image by Sean Percival.
Please see the disclosure about Facebook in my bio.
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Why Ebix Is Willing To Pay A Steep Premium For Yatra
Ebix bid $7 a share, lower than Yatra’s listing price of nearly $10 but a premium of about 85% to prevailing prices.
After a string of smaller bites of India’s internet economy, Ebix Inc wants to chomp a big one: travel portal Yatra.com.
Ebix has invested close to $700 million in the country through EbixCash since 2017 to buy more than a dozen firms—three of them luxury travel operators, Mercury Travels, Delhi-based Leisure Corp, and Via.com. It has now offered to acquire Yatra for about $336 million in what will be its largest acquisition. The Nasdaq-listed firm bid $7 a share, lower than Yatra’s listing price of nearly $10 but a premium of about 85 percent to prevailing prices.
It’s chasing the opportunity, not the value, Devendra Agarwal, chief executive of investment banking firm Dexter Capital, said. “If you look at Ebix’s acquisitions over the last two years, they are trying to build an empire in financial, healthcare, insurance and the travel verticals—both offline and online,” he said. After acquiring Via.com, according to Agarwal, losing Yatra will be an opportunity lost.
India’s internet economy has been on steroids of faster data speeds and increasing smartphone usage since Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. unleashed a tariff war. That prompted investors to pump bigger heaps of cash. According to a Boston Consulting Group-TiE report, the market is estimated to bulk up to $250 billion by 2020, growing twice its size in four years.
Travel is among the fastest-growing categories. According to a February presentation by Yatra, the segment is poised to grow from $51 billion in 2017 to $85 billion by 2022, with the share on online platforms increasing from 39 percent to 45 percent.
If the deal with Ebix goes through, Yatra will become a challenger to No. 1 MakeMyTrip, which consolidated its domination by buying Ibibo in 2016. Travel acquisitions, Atlanta, U.S.-based Ebix said, have already helped it report gross sales of about $2.5 billion. With Yatra, it wants to cross-sell forex, travel insurance and visa services.
“The synergies are perfect,” Robin Raina, chief executive officer of Ebix Inc, told BloombergQuint. Yatra’s acquisition will help nearly double the gross sales to $4.5 billion. “It will make us the number one player in the corporates travel business.”
Yatra is yet to report a full-year profit but posted a $2-million profit in the three months ended December, with an operating loss of about $2.2 million, according to its filings. Ebix reported an operating income of $41.5 million, with a profit of $8.5 million for the quarter.
But travel is a small part of Ebix’s overall businesses. Of its revenue of $497.8 million in 2018, Raina said about 16-17 percent came from the travel segment.
Still, if the Yatra deal materialises, synergies after three to six months of work will be able to convert the portal into a 30-percent-operating-margin company, Raina said. EbixCash, which is eyeing an initial public officer by the end of this year, expects the Yatra deal to help it rake in $150 million quarterly revenue and $45 million operating income by then from India alone.
Corporate travel services will give the company an edge against MakeMytrip, Raina said, adding that it doesn’t want to grow at the expense of operating costs. “I’m eyeing a 30-35 percent operating margin from the business. If that means we won’t reach revenue level of MMT, that is okay.”
Still, taking on MakeMyTrip is easier said than done. MakeMyTrip, its investor presentation said, dominates the travel market with 63 percent share as of 2017. The combined share of Yatra and Cleartrip is about 26 percent.
Emailed queries to MakeMyTrip on possible competition from Ebix-Yatra combine remained unanswered.
Sanchit Vir Gogia, founder and chief executive officer at Greyhound Research, MakeMyTrip has reached a point of maturity where it offers customers a predictable experience. With Ebix’s strong financials and understanding of travel business, it will be able to mount a formidable challenge to MakeMyTrip, he said over the phone. “[But] it will take some credible evidence of Yatra.com offering highly competitive customer experience at the same or a lower cost.”
Even so, according Agarwal, Yatra.com alone doesn’t stand a chance against Makemytrip-Goibibo. If the acquisition goes through, it will not only be an excellent deal for Yatra shareholders but will also make it a formidable challenger. “How well they execute will be the key.”
Watch the full interview here:


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Carlos Ghosn’s Middle East adventure may cost him everything
If it turns out that Ghosn did use Nissan’s business partners in the Middle East to move millions of dollars, how did this bypass financial controls?
Tokyo — Soon after Carlos Ghosn was taken into custody last autumn, kicking off a bizarre legal odyssey that’s transfixed the automotive world, some wondered whether the financial crimes he’d been accused of were serious enough to warrant the shocking arrest of Nissan Motor’s fabled chair.
Turns out that was just the opening act. The initial arrest last November — over what some viewed as a relatively minor charge of understating compensation — was a tactical move to buy time to analyse money flowing to and from Oman, according to people familiar with the matter. Additional charges followed. Nissan executives have since been co-operating with Tokyo prosecutors and received plea agreements in at least two instances, according to the people, who asked not to be named discussing a private matter.
The ousted automotive titan is now facing far more serious charges that he enriched himself via a web of complex financial transactions involving business partners in Oman and Saudi Arabia, as well as in his ancestral home of Lebanon, where he’s still lionised as a visionary.
With prosecutors confident they could make a case, they arrested Ghosn again on April 4, just weeks after he’d been released on bail. In the latest allegation, Ghosn is accused of siphoning off $5m out of a total $15m in funds that Nissan sent to an overseas distributor between 2015 and 2018, according to Japanese prosecutors. That figure excludes more than $15m that Nissan found Ghosn to have sent there in prior years, according to people familiar with the matter.
Representatives for the Japanese prosecutors’ office and Nissan declined to comment beyond what they’ve said publicly.
In Lebanon, where he has investments in real estate and vineyards, Ghosn still has plenty of defenders in the country, where his image has graced national postal stamps
While Japanese authorities didn’t disclose the name of the distributor, an investigation by Renault and Nissan has found payments made under Ghosn that allegedly went to Suhail Bahwan Automobiles, Nissan’s exclusive distributor in the sultanate, according to people familiar with the matter. Some of those transfers may have gone toward things such as a yacht and a start-up run by Ghosn’s son, according to their findings.
“The new charges are more substantive and serious,” said Stephen Givens, a professor of law at Sophia University in Tokyo. “Things could change for Ghosn’s prospects if it turns out he was actually embezzling Nissan’s money.”
For his part, Ghosn continues to deny all charges of financial wrongdoing. In a statement, he said his latest arrest was “outrageous and arbitrary” and that he “will not be broken”. And in a French TV interview just before his detainment, the former Renault CEO, who’s a French citizen, called on President Emmanuel Macron’s government to “defend me and preserve my rights”.
Ghosn rose to the top of the automotive industry thanks to his turnaround of Nissan, once given up for dead under the weight of heavy losses, in the early 2000s. He built one of the industry’s biggest car alliances, which includes Renault and Mitsubishi Motors. Until last year, he was a Davos Man business celebrity admired for his knowledge of five languages, cosmopolitan upbringing in Lebanon and Brazil, as well as gold-plated business connections.
In Lebanon, where he has investments in real estate and vineyards, Ghosn still has plenty of defenders in the country, where his image has graced national postal stamps. “It’s a conspiracy and I felt that they wanted someone else to replace him,” said Racha Nassif, an administrator at a private school. “I’m very proud of him still.”
In his upcoming Japanese trial, Ghosn’s past triumphs will mean little as prosecutors bring forth evidence detailing his business dealings with two prominent Middle East business partners: Khaled Juffali, the scion of a powerful business family and chair of one of Saudi Arabia’s biggest conglomerates; and Omani billionaire Suhail Bahwan, who controls Nissan’s sole distributorship in the sultanate.
In both instances, prosecutors have charged Ghosn with aggravated breach of trust, legal jargon for abusing one’s corporate position for personal gain, under Japan’s Companies Act.
In the case of Juffali, prosecutors alleged in December that Ghosn improperly shifted personal investment losses to the Japanese car maker. A key issue is a derivatives transaction that a company linked to Ghosn made with a Japanese bank. It unraveled when the yen soared during the 2008 financial crisis, saddling Ghosn with $16.7m in unrealised losses, and prompted the lender to demand more collateral.
Prosecutors allege that Ghosn first transferred his position to Nissan and later shifted the investment back onto the books of his affiliated company, with Juffali providing a letter of credit to satisfy the bank. Prosecutors are also scrutinising $14.7m in payments Nissan made to companies controlled by Juffali.
Both Ghosn and Juffali, who hasn’t been charged with any crime, deny any wrongdoing. “The $14.7m in payments over four years from Nissan were for legitimate business purposes to support and promote Nissan’s business strategy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and included reimbursement for business expenses,” according to a statement issued in January on behalf of the Khaled Juffali Company by its New York-based public relations firm.
Juffali played a key role in settling a dealership dispute with a local partner that had depressed Nissan’s Middle East sales, and helped get government approval for a joint venture called Nissan Saudi Arabia, according to the statement. He also helped Nissan get approval and funding for a new plant in Saudi Arabia, it said.
The transactions to Oman and Lebanon may have then been used for the personal benefit of Ghosn and his family, according to people familiar with the matter
The Juffali family is one of the most powerful in the region and are direct descendants of Khalid ibn al-Walid, whose Meccan tribe played a pivotal role in the early history of the country.Founded in 1946, EA Juffali & Brothers has evolved into one the kingdom’s most prosperous businesses by teaming up with international partners, including IBM, Massey Ferguson, Siemens, Robert Bosch and Michelin, according to its website. Ghosn and Juffali have known each other for years.
In Oman, Suhail Bahwan Automobiles, which is Bahwan International Group Holding’s flagship company, has been Nissan’s distributor since 2004. A year later, the partnership paved the way for the opening of what was then Nissan’s largest showroom in the world.
Renault has said it’s uncovered suspicious payments to companies in the Middle East. The transactions to Oman and Lebanon may have then been used for the personal benefit of Ghosn and his family, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not be be named because the details aren’t public.
A Paris-based spokesperson for the Ghosn family denied any wrongdoing by Ghosn and said reports on Oman payments, use of the airplanes and the start-up are part of a smear campaign to make the former executive look greedy. A spokesperson for Suhail Bahwan Automobiles couldn’t be reached for comment.
As Nissan investors prepare for an April 8 extraordinary shareholder meeting to formally kick Ghosn off the company’s board, several unsettling questions hang over the car maker. What is Ghosn’s legal exposure in France, where prosecutors have been given evidence about the suspicious payments in the Middle East, not to mention possible financial misconduct tied to the executive’s Marie Antoinette-themed wedding celebration at the Château de Versailles?
If it turns out that Ghosn did use Nissan’s business partners in the Middle East to move millions of dollars for personal use, how did this bypass the company’s financial controls and attention of top executives in the region and back at headquarters? How long will former Ghosn protégé and current Nissan CEO, Hiroto Saikawa, run the company?
“There must be strong evidence that they had to take him in again,” Koji Endo, a senior analyst at SBI Securities, said of Ghosn. “It will take an immense length of time for this case to be settled with his re-arrest and all the convoluted problems.”
The answers, should they come, seem likely to found in the desert sands of the Arabian Peninsula.


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Business News›halli labs
Coinbase hires Pankaj Gupta from Google Pay to lead India centre
Pankaj Gupta, as vice president of engineering at Coinbase Global, will be the cryptocurrency exchange’s site lead for India, responsible for building the team here from scratch.
Here's why Indian companies are betting big on AI
It's now a frenzied race. Companies are diverting more and more resources towards AI capabilities.
After Appsfly, Walmart Labs acqui-hires Int.AI
The world’s largest retailer acquihired micro-app startup Appsfly in September, merging the latter’s sixmember team with its customer experience engineering group.
It’s official: Google acquires ‘Where is My Train’ owner
Google on Monday said the startup will join a team that will “continue to build on the current offering and more”.
Google building up team for greater India play
Google has increased the focus on building products for India that it looks to also take globally, which has led the company to make key appointments in senior leadership roles in India.
- Go To Page 1
A little nudge will set off product manufacturing revolution hereThe government is implementing policies that are encouraging government agencies and public sector enterprises to purchase products and solutions from startups, but this needs more push.
AI will play a huge role in your lifeThanks to artificial intelligence, businesses and consumers will benefit from reduced costs, improved efficiency and more choices.
Here is how young entrepreneurs are making sure you have the great Indian coffee experienceThis is a trend that started five years ago, with third- and fourth-generation coffee planters deciding to offer A-grade beans to the Indian consumer.
How Google struck gold in India’s Halli Labs acquisitionGoogle’s acquisition is the latest in a series of such buyouts by top global tech companies in the field of deep learning.
Google acquires Bangalore-based artificial intelligence firm Halli LabsEven though India has become the third largest market for start-ups, acquisitions by global technology companies have been few.Load More
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—Brian Foster, Senior VP of Operations Inventure Foods
See the latest issue of innovator, our informative customer newsletter and register to receive future editions.
Ishida X-ray Inspection Systems
Ishida IX-GA-65100 X-ray Inspection System
Ishida now includes a brand new model specifically designed to detect defects and foreign objects in large cases and cartons of product. The new IX-GA-65100 features a 25.50" wide product conveyor and an inspection chamber that accommodates packages up to 10.62" tall.


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Organisers of a "spectacular" screening of Back To The Future have cancelled the event for a second night running, once again disappointing thousands of ticket holders.
A bunny at the Playboy Club in the Sixties, Lady Sandra Bates has been hosting parties ever since. So when doctors told Sandra, now an art agent, that she couldn’t attend three nights of private views for new exhibition Lust this week, due to osteomyelitis, she came up with a plan. She has installed a bed in La Galleria in the Pall Mall Gallery, will lie in it and host horizontally. “I was devastated when my consultant told me I should cancel it,” she said, before finding the solution.
02 September 2013
Cult fashion blogger Catwalk Queen catches the flamboyant American at Somerset House
02 May 2013
I want flattering trousers for my big bottom. Do they exist?
12 April 2013
Luxury-goods giant Kering, previously known as PPR, has snapped up France Croco — described as a “high-quality crocodilian skins” tannery in France.
27 March 2013
Next season’s treats and trends from the capital of chic
05 March 2013
The country's most exciting young designer cemented his place in a supergroup of global fashion designers at London Fashion Week today.
18 February 2013
British luxury brands Alexander McQueen and Stella McCartney helped French group PPR post a 28% jump in net profit for 2012.
15 February 2013
French luxury goods group PPR has snapped up China’s answer to Tiffany — a jewellery brand called Qeelin.
11 December 2012
30 November 2012
THE Duchess of Cambridge takes a trip down memory lane today as she visits her old preparatory school in Berkshire to celebrate St Andrew’s Day.
30 November 2012
- Secret Cinema: Back To The Future screening cancelled for second night running
- CCTV released in hunt for thug who slashed autistic boy for 'looking at someone funny'
- The dignity of Peaches Geldof's grieving husband, Thomas Cohen
- Stars pay tribute to ex-Chelsea youth player Jordan Tabor who died on holiday in Turkey
- Commuters hit by 'brutal' heat on London's transport network that it would be illegal to transport livestock in
- Lib Dem MP David Ward apologises for Gaza tweet
- Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams tells British Airways to 'sort your s**t out'
- Arsenal fans join pro-Palestine protest in west London as Middle East conflict intensifies
- Police smash car windows to save life of dog locked inside on the hottest day of the year
- Boris Johnson accused over sales of London fire stations
- For rent at £780 per month: Kentish Town studio flat with bed two feet from the ceiling
- Wrecked by runaway bus: inside the house destroyed by driverless double-decker


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The European Investment Bank (EIB), which is expanding its use of blockchain technology for other mainstream financial instruments and businesses, has issued the first digital version of a sterling bond stored on the distributed ledger.
According to a report from Reuters, the EIB used a private blockchain to house the digital Sterling bonds. To increase openness, the organization intends to float another copy of the digital Sterling bonds on a public blockchain.
The debut (1) of the digital pound bond on the blockchain was made possible thanks to a collaboration between three of the most prominent names in the financial services industry.
The global French bank BNP Paribas SA, the British financial corporation HSBC Holdings plc, and RBC Capital Markets are some examples of these.
According to a story published by Reuters, the virtual Sterling bond is a $61.60 million variable rate bond that took its lead from the euro-denominated digital securities previously launched by the European Investment Bank.
The new offering is receiving praise from professionals in the field. Ricardo Mourinho Felix, Vice President of the European Investment Bank, remarked that the new product marks a new milestone in the ecosystem of financial products.
He issued a statement, "This new financial mechanism will offer extra fund flow that the EIB will spend in initiatives with global effect."
The role that the European Investment Bank plays in shaping the economic environment of the sector in the European Economic Area is highly significant and vital. The bank is filling a vacuum in the market by offering support for commercial and public organizations in the EU that have specified products and services through specialized products.
Offerings of EIB
To fulfill one of the EIB's relevant investment requirements, HSBC and the European Investment Bank formed a partnership to provide trade financing for €200 million for Greece's mid-caps and small and medium-sized businesses. The funding was created to assist export-focused startup businesses in Greece, which play an essential role in restoring economic stability.
"Our collaboration with the EIB inspires the widening of global trade by assisting small and medium-sized firms in trading internationally," adds Vinay Mendonca, chief growth officer for global trade & receivables finance at HSBC.
"Our collaboration with the EIB inspires the widening of global trade by providing small and medium-sized businesses with access to international markets."
"Building upon the success of the existing agreements, the Trade Finance Facility is being expanded by an additional €200 million, which will assist even more Greek businesses in expanding their operations and achieving greater levels of success."
The rising inflation that has plagued numerous markets worldwide over the previous year has resulted in a distinct downturn experienced by the global economy.
The protracted conflict between Ukraine and Russia, which has resulted in an energy crisis in the area, is having a particularly detrimental effect on the European economy, which is notable for being depressed far more than any of the others.
The actions taken by investment companies such as the EIB are assisting in cushioning the effects that these global uncertainties are having across the board. This move is expected to deliver dividends in the medium to long run.


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Digital-only bank Monzo in talks with the Post Office over deal to allow customers to pay in cash, founder reveals
- Monzo has no branches and users can only bank using smartphone app
- Tom Blomfield said it could follow in the footsteps of Starling - who has a deal with the Post Office - to let customers pay in cash
- Post Office banking director also revealed it makes a loss on banking services
Monzo CEO Tom Blomfield told MPs the start-up bank was in talks with the Post Office
Digital-only bank Monzo has told MPs it has entered discussions with the Post Office to allow customers to deposit and withdraw cash in its branches.
Tom Blomfield, chief executive of the start-up which has no branches, told the Treasury Select Committee yesterday that cash transactions were not 'going away'.
It comes as cash-use continues to fall, with card payments - especially contactless ones - rising rapidly.
Under the arrangement, the Post Office would offer Monzo customers a service to pay in cash for a small fee.
Blomfield added: 'For the vast majority of other services, our customers prefer to use a mobile app which is open 24 hours a day.'
Fellow smartphone bank Starling already inked a deal with the Post Office in November last year, enabling its customers to deposit cash and cheques in any of the Post Office's 11,500 UK branches.
In the same committee hearing, the banking director of the Post Office Martin Kearsley told MPs that it was in discussion with UK banks to renegotiate the service it offers them, revealing it lost money on it.
The Post Office processed 130million transactions last year for cash withdrawals and deposits.
He told MPs that the service was not profitable, but added 'we are in discussions with banks to change that position.
'If you put the entire cost of supporting our cash infrastructure related to the banking agreement that we've got, it is not profitable.'
Conservative MP Nicky Morgan, who chairs the committee, raised the concern that banks were relying on the Post Office 'taking up the slack' following branch closures.
Monzo, which has gained popularity with its 'hot coral' coloured debit cards, raised £20million from customers in a crowdfunding drive last December.
Customers of the east London-based bank were able to invest as little as £10 or as much as £2,000 through Monzo's app.
It also revealed last month that 1.4million customers made nearly 178million transactions last year.
THIS IS MONEY'S FIVE OF THE BEST CURRENT ACCOUNTS
Santander's 123 Lite Account will pay up to 3% cashback on household bills. There is a £1 monthly fee and you must log in to mobile or online banking regularly, deposit £500 per month and hold two direct debits to qualify.
First Direct's First Account offers a £50 switching incentive to new customers and £100 if you switch away after six months (T&Cs apply). It comes with a £250 free overdraft and requires a £1,000 monthly deposit to avoid a £10 monthly fee.
M&S Bank's Current Account offers £180 in gift cards to switch and stay or £220 to existing M&S credit card holders. You earn 1 M&S point for every £1 spent on the card. You need four active direct debits, to pay in £1,250 per month and register for online banking and statements.
RBS's Reward Account offers 2 per cent in rewards on seven types of household bills paid by direct debit, plus the bank is currently handing out £150 in cash to switch. It comes with a £2 monthly fee and requires a £1,500 minimum monthly deposit, you must also log in to mobile or online banking.
Nationwide's FlexDirect come with 5% interest on up to £2,500 - the highest interest rate on any current account - plus a fee-free overdraft. Both perks last for a year.


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I'm taking a different approach to this blog post, but then again this story is about a new brand of evil.
I will be quoting from story that I got off the LA TIMES website. You can read the full story here. The comments in black are from the article. My rebuttal appears in RED which is the color meat should be.
Would you eat mystery meat grown in a lab if doing so was better for
the environment? HELL NO!
The debate may seem abstract, but scientists could turn
a test-tube burger into reality by October.
The $330,000 project
being conducted by Mark Post, chairman of physiology at Maastricht
University in the Netherlands, involves a cow’s stem cells (where they going to get these stem cells? From cows right?) and funds
from an anonymous private investor.
Post has already created
several small strips of muscle tissue that, once he makes thousands
more, will be mashed together to create a burger patty.These strips are a yellowish off-white color due to a lack of blood in the tissue.
... coming up with alternatives is a pressing
concern, according to researchers who claim (yeah, and I claim Lettuce is the Devil) that conventional livestock
production is devastating to the environment and dangerous for human
"Animal farming is by far the biggest ongoing environmental catastrophe," said Patrick Brown, a biochemist at Stanford University
School of Medicine. Brown is working on a separate project aimed at
creating meat substitutes -- and eventually dairy and other products --
using plant materials. (Vegan bastard! Yeah I know the article doesn't label him a such but who the hell else would want to replace meat with plant materials.)
Supermarket shelves have seen growing a growing number of mock meats (not unlike the false gods the bible warns against)-- known as meat analogues -- as the ranks of vegetarians and vegans grow. (Fungus and mold grows too, but that doesn't mean it's a good thing)
PETA is offering a $1-million prize to the first producer who manages to sell in-vitro chicken meat in 10 states by the end of June. (PETA should spend that million actually taking care of animals rather than euthanizing 90% of the pets under their care)
for meat worldwide will boom 60% by 2050, (and here I thought vegans and vegetarians numbers were growing. You;d think that meat would be in less demand) according to Nicholas
Factory farms take up
massive swaths of land and suck up enormous energy reserves while
crowding together animals who, in those closely confined quarters, could (shoulda, woulda, coulda)
spawn outbreaks of E.coli and other food-borne illnesses, he said.
Here is this Meat Man's take. I'm not fool enough to use the word never. If the world truly did go to complete shit I might eat a test tube burger but I promise that long before that happens you won;t be able to find so much as a single squirrel running around my neighborhood.
Hell's I'll boil my old leather shoes and eat them before I'll sink my teeth into a salad or a snot colored burger created in a lab.


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The popular Denim maker- Levis will be scaling the investment in its stores in India. The market will be considered and made a priority for the sales growth. There is also a fear of recession in many developed and developing countries.
According to Harmit Singh, global chief financial and growth, “Globally, the first half of 2023 is probably going to be a little tougher than the second half. The consumer in the western worlf is a little tight with higher inflation and high energy prices. But, we are long on India, its consumers, the economy as well as apparel growth”.
India has a attractive market for apparel brands. This has happened with the youngsters specially. The youngsters are embracing the fast-growing fashion brands such as Zara, H&M, Levis, etc. They have become a success in the country. Levis started with just one store in India and now it has 400 stores across 150 cities in India. This reflects the number and the growth in sales in India which is Rs.1154 crore in 2021-2022.
As compared to the rivals, the figures are not in comparison with Levis because of the wholesale prices of the franchise partners. There is a apparel segment which is in terms of consumer price. Wearing smart formals and smart casuals in the corporate sector, among youngsters has become a trend over the past few years which will be fuelled by the millenials and GenZ.


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SAN DIEGO — The question of whether Salt Lake's popular comics and nerd culture convention violated trademark laws when it named itself a "comic con" is now before a jury.
And with dozens of similar events across the country using the term, both with and without permission from San Diego Comic-Con International, the verdict in the case likely will be felt nationwide.
The two conventions have been locked in legal combat since the summer of 2014, when the organizers of Salt Lake Comic Con, still in the first year of their company, drove their branded Audi to San Diego Comic-Con International at the height of its longstanding annual event.
But the Salt Lake organizers maintain that based on the long list of similar events using the name around the country, they had every reason to believe they could call themselves a comic con. They insist the widely used term has become too generic to be protected by trademark, a situation known as "genericide."
The four-man, three-woman jury began deliberations just before 1 p.m. Thursday, the eighth day of trial. Jurors considered the case for about three hours before leaving for the day, with deliberations set to resume Friday morning.
In a blistering closing argument Thursday, Callie Bjurstrom, an attorney for San Diego Comic-Con International, accused the Salt Lake organizers of deliberately and maliciously capitalizing on the brand that took the nonprofit organization more than 45 years to build.
And it will take more than $12 million in damages from Salt Lake Comic Con to repair that brand, Bjurstrom said.
"We are not interested in making money off of this; that's not what we're after. We just want our brand back," she said. "I know that seems like a lot of money, but the harm is real."
By comparison, since it started in 2013, Salt Lake Comic Con has brought in nearly $3 million in profits, before paying its legal fees, according to testimony during the trial.
Salt Lake Comic Con's founders, Dan Farr and Bryan Brandenburg, are also being sued as individuals.
If the jurors find in San Diego's favor, they will also be required to decide how much in damages to award.
If Salt Lake Comic Con loses, it will appeal the decision, according to a post on the organization's Facebook page Thursday.
San Diego Comic-Con, which has been holding events since 1970, has a trademark on "comic-con" with a hyphen, but was unsuccessful in its 1995 bid to trademark "comic con," with a space. The event maintains, however, that its trademark covers the term "comic con" in all its iterations, and Bjurstrom emphasized to jurors that when it comes to infringement, "the hyphen doesn't matter."
Pointing to emails she called "a smoking gun" in the case, Bjurstrom alleged Farr and Brandenburg didn't unknowingly violate the trademark, but used the term deliberately in order to build up their own event.
In the messages, Farr and Brandenburg discussed "hijacking" the comic con brand as "part of our magic formula" for success.
"This case is about stealing, taking something that is not yours, something you have no right to. It's about right, and it's about wrong," Bjurstrom insisted.
She also pointed to Salt Lake Comic Con's overnight success.
"It took San Diego Comic Convention over 30 years to reach 70,000 attendees. The defendants got there in just one convention. The hijacking worked," Bjurstrom said.
But Michael Katz, Salt Lake Comic Con's attorney, noted that, as Brandenburg explained in one email, the founders saw "comic con" as an abbreviation for "comic convention." They were referring to the circuit of 140 fan conventions scattered across the country, he said, not to San Diego Comic-Con.
"The comic con world is large, and when you factor in that some of these events have 60,000 to 100,000 attendees," Katz said, "… that's a massive world out there."
Farr and Brandenburg maintain they did nothing wrong, didn't infringe on any trademarks and didn't damage San Diego's organization, according to Katz.
"We're here to clear our name," he insisted.
While Bjurstrom argued the similarities between Salt Lake Comic Con and San Diego Comic-Con's names create a likelihood of confusion, Katz maintained the evidence presented in the case shows fewer than 100 people out of hundreds of thousands have been confused.
And among all the attendees, vendors and celebrities participating in the long list of conventions in dozens of cities, Katz argued that "comic con" is being referred to generically.
"It's place name, to say where they were, and comic con, to say what they were.' That's the reality of the marketplace," he said.
Katz added that when people buy their tickets to those different conventions, the vast majority of them know exactly which city and which event they're going to.
Industrywide generic use of the term comic con goes back more than just a few years, Katz said. As an example, he showed the jurors a clipping from San Diego Comic-Con's 1983 souvenir program, which included a quote from then president Shel Dorf saying that when he moved to San Diego, "I decided the West Coast needed a good comic con."
As far as San Diego's trademarks on its iconic "eye logo," showing a cartoon eye peering out from the event name, and its trademark of "Comic Con International," Katz argued there is no similarity to Salt Lake's logo and name.
But Bjurstrom emphasized to jurors that it doesn't matter how many conventions in the country are calling themselves comic cons, "there is only one comic con, and it's right here in San Diego."
Those other conventions, she said, are all "infringers" that don't need to be considered for San Diego to prove its case, and San Diego is not required to police those other trademark violations if it doesn't want to.
For the most part, San Diego chooses to avoid lengthy and costly lawsuits, but "we are pursuing the worst offenders first," Bjurstrom explained.
Once the legal battle is over, she said, San Diego Comic-Con doesn't care if Farr and Brandenburg continue running a comic and popular arts convention in Salt Lake City.
"Just pick another name," Bjurstrom emphasized.
In his arguments, Katz also questioned the high amount of damages San Diego is seeking, claiming the organization has failed to show any quantification of how it has been damaged.1 comment on this story
San Diego Comic-Con's brand is doing exceptionally well, he argued.
Katz noted that while more than $9 million in requested damages has been requested for a three-month "corrective advertising campaign," San Diego's representatives have said they usually spend between $20,000 and $30,000 for a month of advertising. He also pointed out that the advertising cost was estimated for New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, San Francisco and San Diego, not for Salt Lake City.
"You can't award what was never measured and never happened," Katz said.


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Facebook reports continued growth despite controversies
Facebook has revealed steady revenue and user growth in its latest financial results amid ongoing controversies around the social network.
It said revenue in the last three months was up 29% on the same period last year, while monthly active users rose 8% to 2.45 billion.
The results come on the day the firm reached a settlement with the Information Commissioner’s Office following an investigation into the use of personal data in political campaigns.
The social media giant has also faced criticism over a policy on political advertising it says it will not remove ads including false claims, citing freedom of expression.
In its latest financial results, Facebook reported total revenue for the last three months of 17.7 billion US dollars (£13.7 billion), up from 13.7 billion dollars (£10.6 billion) this time last year.
Advertising revenue has also risen – from 13.5 billion dollars (£10.5 billion) to 17.4 billion dollars (£13.5 billion).
“We had a good quarter and our community and business continue to grow,” Facebook founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said.
“We are focused on making progress on major social issues and building new experiences that improve people’s lives around the world.”
The social network’s net income for the quarter also increased, rising from 5.1 billion dollars (£3.9 billion) a year ago to six billion dollars (£4.7 billion) in the last three months.