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Tata Global Beverages (TGBL) on Tuesday said it has entered into a non-binding term sheet to acquire the branded tea business of Dhunseri Tea & Industries.
In line with its ambition to grow the branded tea business in India, Tata Global Beverages (TGBL) on Tuesday said it has entered into a non-binding term sheet to acquire the branded tea business of Dhunseri Tea & Industries for an aggregate consideration of up to Rs 101 crore.
“The proposed acquisition shall be subject to due diligence, signing of definitive binding agreements and applicable shareholder, statutory/regulatory and other third-party approvals, as may be applicable,” TGBL said in a stock exchange notification.
The branded tea business of Kolkata-based Dhunseri Tea and Industries is currently carried out under the brands ‘Lalghoda’ and ‘Kalaghoda’, which are among the leading local brands in Rajasthan, a market which is dominated by local players, the Tata Group company said in the notification, adding that the proposed acquisition is in line with its ambition to grow its branded tea business in India.
TGBL said during the last financial year, its India tea business clocked a 9% volume growth and 7% value growth across its brands. For the March quarter last fiscal, the tea business in the country registered a 12% volume growth and 11% value growth.
The company on Tuesday reported a 49.71% year-on-year fall in its consolidated net profit at Rs 35.99 crore for the March quarter of the last financial year. It had posted a profit of Rs 71.56 crore in the March quarter of financial year 2017-18. For the quarter ended March 31, 2019, the company’s consolidated revenue from operations grew nearly 5.16% y-o-y to `1,755.46 crore compared with Rs 1,688.40 crore for the same period last year, according to a separate stock exchange filing.
“Profit before exceptional items and tax at Rs 161 crore is higher by 24% compared with corresponding quarter of the previous year mainly due to higher sales, lower commodity cost in international markets and improved performance of non-branded business,” it said.
On international operations, it said, for the quarter the UK business delivered a revenue growth of 4% in underlying terms, led by a volume growth of 7%. For the full year, it registered a volume and value growth of 2% and 1%, respectively.
“Tata Starbucks clocked a strong ~30% growth in revenues for the year. It added 30 new stores during the Year, taking the current store count to 146 stores across India. It recently opened its largest coffee forward store in Bengaluru, celebrating every aspect of the coffee journey through live coffee brewing experience,” it added.


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February containerised export volumes at the Port of Oakland have increased 15.4% compared to February 2019, making it the busiest February for export cargo in the past six years.
Oakland’s exports have now increased year-on-year in five consecutive months and the port attributed much of the volume increase to growth in agricultural exports – especially refrigerated perishables.
John Driscoll, Port of Oakland maritime director, said: “It may be too soon to declare this a rally, but we’re encouraged by our export performance. It shows demand remains string for our customers’ products.”
Increased shipments of chilled and frozen meat products to Asian markets were singled out as one of the main contributors to the increase.
So far in 2020, exports have accounted for 51% of the Port of Oakland’s total volume while imports account for 49% of the total.
February import volumes declined by 9.2% compared to the same period last year, as anticipated due to traditional slumps in cargo volume following Lunar New Year holidays in Asia where most of Oakland imports originate.
Additionally, factory closures in China to combat the coronavirus has reduced output of finished goods sent to the US in containers.
Shipping lines have cancelled 20 voyages to Oakland between February and April as a result of reduced demand for ship space due to China’s manufacturing downturn, the port has said.
As ocean carriers scuttle dozens more sailings to ports worldwide through the spring, the Port of Oakland expects there to be a decline in March import volume as well.

domain: news


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Province Supporting Indigenous Marketplace for Authentic and Local Products
Ontario is investing in entrepreneurial and small business training for First Nation, Métis and Inuit artisans, and supporting an Indigenous marketplace for artisans to sell their products.
Funding will help the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto (NCCT) deliver training to Indigenous people on mentorship, e-commerce, business plan development, financial literacy, money management and how to access financing.
The province’s investment is also supporting NCCT’s Indigenous Marketplace, a pilot project that aims to establish a permanent and sustainable market which showcases the vibrancy of First Nation, Métis and Inuit culture through fine arts, crafts and food.
The next Indigenous Marketplace will be held on Feb. 11, 2017. All items sold are locally grown and produced in Ontario.
Supporting economic development for Indigenous communities is one of many steps on Ontario’s journey of reconciliation with Indigenous peoples. It reflects the government’s commitment to work with Indigenous partners, creating a better future for everyone in the province.
Investing in entrepreneurship training is part of our plan to create jobs, grow our economy and help people in their everyday lives.
- Ontario provided $99,000 to the NCCT to support its Indigenous Marketplace and entrepreneurship training.
- Over three days in December 2016, more than 2,300 people attended the marketplace, generating over $23,000 in sales for vendors.
- Ontario is investing a total of $95 million in the Aboriginal Economic Development Fund (AEDF) over ten years. The AEDF was launched in 2014 and has three funding streams: Regional Partnership Grants, Economic Diversification Grants and the Business and Community Fund.
- Ontario has funded 57 projects with Indigenous partners through the fund.


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The two world-leading suppliers in belting technology – Ammeraal Beltech and Megadyne Group – who came together in a merger in September of 2018, have taken another important step in their integration. In December of 2018, they have announced a new corporate name for their joint operations: AMMEGA.
The integration of these two companies to effectively create a new belting champion spanning industrial power transmission belting and lightweight conveyor belting is ongoing, and continues apace. The new name of AMMEGA will serve principally to unite all of its employees under a common identity and corporate vision and mission. In view of their well-established reputations in their respective markets and their different channel-to-market strategies, which will remain unchanged, their two strong brand names – Ammeraal Beltech and Megadyne – will remain as is.
“Ensuring continuity, especially in the way we serve our valued customers, is a top priority” explains Marc Maisonneuve, AMMEGA’s Corporate Marketing Director.
A new website was launched to promote AMMEGA (www.ammega.com) and to explain the rationale of the merger as well as its benefits to its customers.
Under the AMMEGA umbrella, the two brands will benefit from their synergies, and will combine their knowledge, research and development activities, business systems, and, of course, their people, to enhance their level of customer service and technology.
A mega presence
‘With over 5000 employees, more than 25 manufacturing facilities, and over 100 commercial and sales centers around the world,’ comments Stijn Vriends, CEO, ‘AMMEGA demonstrably represents a new global leader in belting, dedicated to serving its ever-broadening customer base at a time when there is dramatically-increasing demand for automation in many major industrial sectors in every geographical region. ‘We make your business move!’


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Latest News on Application Economy
Showing of 0 - 10 from 3 results
Application Economy - Total results - 3
Apr 28, 2015
Security in application economy: Indian cos adopt new approach, increase security spend"Organisations are realising that they need to increase investment in security, due to the enablement it offers,"...
Apr 16, 2015
17% of APAC consumers prepared to boycott brands with poor app security experienceAbout 75 percent of consumer respondents, who left a brand because of poor load times, said a loading time of six or less seconds was acceptable – and 39 percent of those respondents demand a load time of less than three seconds.
Nov 21, 2014
94% of IT leaders in Asia Pacific feeling the pressure of application economy: SurveyAs a result, 82 percent of enterprises surveyed have adopted or are planning to adopt DevOps to increase application delivery.


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A new report from China says Apple will release a high-resolution MacBook Pro lineup in the second quarter of 2012.
Citing sources in the upstream supply chain, Digitimes says the new computers will boast a display resolution of 2880 by 1800, which should set new standards for panel specifications in the notebook industry. Current MacBook Pro models have resolutions of 1680 by 1050 to 1280 by 800.
Apple has been rumored for quite some time to be planning the introduction of Retina display Macs, and there’s even some evidence of that embedded in Mac OS X code. However, Apple is not alone in this.
The Digitimes report mentions Acer and Asustek as contenders to the high-def throne with the two OEMs also planning to introduce ‘ultra-book’ models with a display resolution of 1920 by 1080. All this is going down around summer 2012, the sources pinpointed.


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The European Travel Commission (ETC), the European Tourism Association (ETOA), the United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA), and the European Travel Agents’ and Tour Operators’ Associations (ECTAA) say that the U.S. travel ban will have a detrimental effect on American and European tourism, urging EU and U.S. authorities to review and cancel the travel suspension.
U.S. President Donald J. Trump announced a 30-day suspension of travel by non-U.S. citizens from Europe’s Schengen Zone to the United States this week, in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Trump said the European Union had "failed to take the same precautions" as the United States had implemented to contain the outbreak.
ETC, ETOA, USTOA and ECTAA say that the ban is not evidence-based, and that it adds more confusion to a beleaguered industry that will likely add more losses to its already-damaged business with long term consequences for the future recovery of jobs and economic growth.
Supporting the official statement from the EU institutions, ETC CEO Eduardo Santander says, "The coronavirus is a global crisis, not limited to any destination and it requires cooperation rather than unilateral action. Planes fly from A to B and B to A, the European tourism sector disapproves this unilateral travel ban without any consultation which will equally affect travel and tourism businesses and citizens at both sides of the Atlantic."
"The President’s statement is puzzling," argues Tom Jenkins, CEO of ETOA. "Having downplayed the significance of the crisis – for which there is some argument – he then stigmatizes an entire continent. This is a global crisis and we need global understanding. As it stands this move disproportionately damages inbound tourism to the United States and punctures confidence in Europe as a destination. Fear is more damaging and spreads faster than a virus."
According to the U.S. Department for Homeland Security (DHS) and the President’s proclamation, the travel ban applies to countries belonging to the Schengen passport-free zone. Non-members of Schengen such as the United Kingdom, Ireland, Croatia, San Marino, Monaco, Serbia, Montenegro among others are not covered by the ban, according to a press release by ETC.


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Hankering for an iPhone (News - Alert) 4S but longing for the nearly forgotten days of unlimited data? Never fear.
Wireless carrier Sprint Nextel Corp. announced today that it will be carrying the iPhone 4S (as well as the iPhone 4) and it will be offering that now-rare phenomenon of wireless antiquity: the all you can eat data plan, the Associated Press (News - Alert) is reporting this morning. AT&T, the iPhone's first carrier, and Verizon (News - Alert) Wireless, its second, both discontinued their unlimited data plans for new subscribers last year.
Sprint is clearly hoping that the last unlimited data plan from a major U.S. carrier will tempt iPhone fans away from its bigger competitors.
Earlier this week, Apple confirmed that Sprint would sell the iPhone 4S when it launches on October 14, but it was unclear at that time if the carrier would also get the older model. Sprint (News - Alert) began taking orders for the existing iPhone 4 today from customers willing to plunk down $100. It will take orders for the $200 iPhone 4S, which has a faster processor and more memory, starting tomorrow (Friday), reports the AP.
Sprint is offering new iPhone customers its standard smartphone plans, which include unlimited data use. The wireless carrier provided All Things Digital with details about the plans being offered to new iPhone customers.
“We will be offering the benefit of our unlimited plans that start at just $69.99,” said Sprint spokeswoman Michelle Leff Mermelstein.
For the $69.99 plan, subscribers get unlimited data plus 450 voice minutes and unlimited mobile-to-mobile calling. Unlimited calling and data will set you back $99.99 a month. (All Things Digital (News - Alert) notes that those prices don’t include a $10 per month surcharge for smartphones, so iPhone users will really be paying $79.99 and $109.99 for their unlimited plans).
Tracey Schelmetic is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Tracey's articles, please visit her columnist page.
Edited by Jennifer Russell


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Amid the turmoil, several outlets were briefly closed down and the move had affected as some suppliers snapped ties.
Bengaluru: Fast food giant McDonald's Indian arm has reached a settlement with former partner Vikram Bakshi, acquiring full ownership in their joint venture Connaught Plaza Restaurants Ltd, reports said on Thursday.
"Starting Thursday, McDonald's restaurants in North and East, which were run by CPRL, have temporarily closed, for what MIPL said was to conduct a 'comprehensive assessment of operational protocols and employee training," The Economic Times reported.
The US fast food chain was involved in a long-standing legal battle with Mr Bakshi, claiming his company, which operated outlets of the chain in the north and east India, breached the terms of their franchise agreements.
Both McDonald's India and Vikram Bakshi did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.
In August 2017, the Indian unit of McDonald's had ended its pact with Connaught Plaza Restaurants Pvt, which ran 169 outlets in the northern and eastern India, saying its partner violated "certain essential obligations" of the agreement, including the payment of royalties.
Amid the turmoil, several outlets were briefly closed down and the move had affected operations of the fast-food chain as some suppliers snapped ties. But despite warnings from the US-based company, Connaught Plaza Restaurants kept most of the outlets open.


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In this day and age of DVRs and being able to skim through commercials at will, television programs have had to find ways to reinvent themselves and continue to look for means of revenue. That being said, Apple has signed on with NBC, in a move that will see Saturday Night Live cast members create humorous ads that will air during what would usually be commercial breaks on the show, Variety is reporting. While we do not know yet what kind of content the show will create for Apple, it will be featuring Apple products.
Verizon is also joining in on the fun, as SNL's "Weekend Update" anchor Colin Jost will be writing a spot for the carrier that will be starring cast member, Kenan Thompson. However Apple's ad will differ in format from Verizon's.
Saturday Night Live's goal with the ads is to try and develop new content that will hopefully be more appealing to advertisers as well as giving viewers a reason to stay up and watch the show live, versus catching replays on apps and streaming services.
“Everyone is struggling now in a world where there is so much media,” SNL head Lorne Michaels shared. “We are all competing for sponsors, and everything is being reinvented. ‘SNL’ has been reinventing itself from season two.”
With the recent events within US politics, and SNL's knack for political satire, the show has seen a surge of popularity this season. However, NBC is at the same time trying to make the show more appealing to advertisers as SNL is subtly trying to work more advertising into its sketches.
“Comedy is a big force in the culture, and I don’t think there’s a lot of over thinking about doing commercials as there was in the late ’60s and early 70s,” says Michaels. “When I grew up, it was like Jack Benny for Jell-O or Bob Hope for Chrysler or Texaco Star Theatre.”
Verizon's ad should air sometime this month with Apple's slated to follow sometime next month.


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Dunkin' Donuts introduces new line of smoothies
April 24, 2006
by FoodBusinessNews.net Staff
CANTON, MASS. — Dunkin’ Donuts has introduced a new line of smoothies made from yogurt and real fruit. Beginning today, the smoothies will be available throughout New England and Florida, and will roll out nationwide beginning this summer.
The smoothies are available in Wildberry, mango passion fruit and strawberry banana flavors. Each 16-oz serving of the smoothies has 2.5 grams of fat and 360 calories. Depending on flavor, each 16-oz serving also packs in 25% of the Recommended Daily Intake (R.D.I.) of calcium and between 80% to 190% of the R.D.I. of vitamin C.
The new line of smoothies is part of Dunkin’ Donuts effort to expand its snack and on-the-go product offerings, in response to growing customer demand. The quick-service restaurant industry currently serves 296 million servings of smoothies a year with sales representing $1.2 billion per year.


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The Lotus Awards are in bloom once again following a two-year absence from honouring the best work coming out of B.C.’s ad industry.
The Best in Show prize went to Rethink’s “Hockey Heaven” social media campaign for Molson Canadian, which showcased the lengths Canadian hockey fans would go to play their favourite sport.
More than 150 awards were handed out at the November 6 ceremony after organizers allowed the ad industry to submit nominations from the past two years to make up for last year’s hiatus.
All the judges were selected from outside the province to keep favouritism out of the mix and organizers banned so-called “dog-walker ads” or “scam ads” for the first time.
Judge Denise Rossetto, executive creative director at BBDO Toronto, said after combing through the nominees it became evident just how distinct the Vancouver ad industry is compared with bigger cities.
“If you have a higher budget or bigger budget, you can really execute something well but not be as strong with the idea,” she said.
“But I find with the work out of Vancouver, I’ve always admired how simple the idea actually is, how pure the idea is.”
DDB Canada’s Netflix ad, which features a hockey coach giving his team a pep talk by asking them to recall cliches from sports films, took home multiple awards last night.
Rossetto said it’s exactly the type of ad coming from the West Coast that showcases the region’s ad culture.
Last year’s gala was shelved after the organization behind the awards, the Advertising Agency Association of B.C. (AAABC), folded and sponsors dried up.
A new local steering committee stepped in earlier this year and asked the Institute of Communication Agencies (ICA), which runs the Toronto-based Cassie Awards, to relaunch the award ceremonies on the West Coast.
“We were pleased to be able to do something in West market because we tend to be focused on Toronto just because of the number of agencies,” ICA president Jani Yates told Business in Vancouver.
She said she was “pleasantly surprised” by the quality and quantity of submissions that came in and that she hopes the B.C. ad industry will embraces the Lotus Awards even further next year.
A full list of winners is available at the Lotus Awards website.


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Sint Maarten was divided in two parts in 1648 known as the Treaty of Concordia. There is free movement of people and goods. And that is what is breaking the French now. “All the money that France puts into the French part of the island, ends up in the southern part, the Dutch kingdom,” explains Dosière .
The French part is part of the EU; the Dutch part of the island is not. “In the Sint Maarten the rules are more flexible, wages and taxes are lower and consumer products are cheaper. ” On the French part of the island the euro is used and the Dutch side is mainly in dollars.
French officials exchange their salary which is paid in euros immediately to favorable exchange rates in the south. According to Dosière thousands of French do that every month. Thus they win 30 percent of their purchasing power.
They give out their moneys on the Dutch part of the island, because everything is much cheaper there. More and more French entrepreneurs leave and establish their busineses on the Dutch part to earn money.
So the money from the French state goes to the Dutch side, the parliamentary committee concludes. France subsidizes the development of the Netherlands in St. Maarten.
Another problem is that the French part is unwillingly saddled with migrants. “The immigrant’s enter through the Dutch side because there is little monitoring,” says Dosière. ” The Dutch agents know that the immigrant’s still travel to the French side, because they can get free education, health and social benefits. ”
According to Dosière the Dutch Government shrugs its shoulders and is uncooperative to change. ” If nothing happens, France can do nothing but denounce the “Treaty of Concordia”. If necessary get border controls on St Maarten and implement visa requirements. ”


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Why Millennials Shouldn’t Be Your Only Focus When Marketing Pet Products
Marketers in all industries have been obsessed with targeting millennial shoppers for several years now, and pet industry marketers are no different. It makes perfect sense for pet marketers to better understand and court millennial pet owners. After all, as of 2016, 35 percent of U.S. millennials own pets, making this age demographic the largest pet-owning consumer segment, according to the American Pet Products Association (APPA).
But smart marketers also know they can’t throw out the baby (boomer) with the bath water, so to speak. The same APPA survey that shows millennials overtaking boomers in pet ownership also reveals that baby boomers still account for 32 percent of U.S. pet owners in 2016 (the most current data available). In addition, they’re also bucking the trend of declining pet ownership that has historically occurred when pet owners reach age 70. And given that boomers control nearly 70 percent of U.S. disposable income, baby boomers are still substantial drivers of pet-related spending — especially in the pet food category.
BABY BOOMERS AS A PET-OWNING GENERATION
Born between 1946 and 1964, members of the baby boomer generation were 52 to 70 years old in 2016. (Note: Stats from 2016 are often used throughout this piece to make comparisons easy. More recent data may or may not be available.) Boomers are living longer — and better — than their predecessors. As a group, baby boomers have typically been on the cutting edge socially, economically and professionally. They’re still driving trends, specifically in terms of what it means to age and retire. Not only are boomers financially stable, but they’re educated, active and energetic.
One phenomenon that has accompanied American baby boomers is the explosion in pet ownership. Did you know that boomers were the first generation of Americans to bring pets into their homes and make them part of the family? That’s right, baby boomers love their pets. This generation is often credited for creating the pet industry and for being the first to “humanize” pets. As their human children have left home, baby boomers have turned their attention to and spending on their “fur kids.” These empty-nesters channeled their love for their pets into fueling triple-digit growth in the pet industry. So at this time, pet-owning baby boomers are still looking to buy pet products.
In terms of total U.S. spending, baby boomers are still the largest group at 44.9 million consumer units (CU), a term often interchanged with households but not quite the same, and the biggest spenders overall at $2.8 trillion at mid-year 2017. With that much spending at stake, it makes economic sense to aggressively market to baby boomers. Yet only 5 to 10 percent of marketing dollars are targeted toward the 50-plus demographic.
REACHING BABY BOOMER PET OWNERS
With baby boomers making up such a large segment of the pet-owning population, it’s essential for animal health and pet care industry marketers to know how to speak to baby boomers’ wants and needs. What are the best ways to reach these pet owners? The answers may surprise you.
Computers and online marketing are still the way to go.
It’s a myth that people over the age of 50 aren’t spending time online. A recent Pew Research Center survey found a whopping 87 percent of 50- to 64-year-old adults report using the internet regularly. Use doesn’t drop much with age: 82 percent of adults aged 65 to 69 and 75 percent of 70- to 74-year-olds are online. Although baby boomer pet owners don’t spend as much time on the internet as millennials (3.1 vs. 3.5 hours daily), the difference is not huge — an average of 24 minutes daily — according to APPA research.
The top three online activities of baby boomers? According to a study by DMN3, they are:
- Using search engines
- Using email
- Shopping for products or services
When shopping online, baby boomers report that they prefer to use computers and laptops rather than smartphones and tablets. However, a Millward Brown digital study found that one in four boomers use their smartphone to shop online.
Shopping isn’t the only thing baby boomers do online. They also visit news sites, watch video clips and seek health information, preferring to use computers and laptops over mobile devices. So before you put all your pet product eggs in the mobile basket, keep in mind that baby boomers continue to use computers for most of their internet activities.
Baby boomers take their time when making buying decisions.
Part of the reason why baby boomers prefer shopping online with their computers and laptops is that they do their due diligence when researching what to buy. They’re less likely to buy things on a whim and more likely to read the fine print and understand the nitty-gritty details before making a purchase. The reading that’s required as part of this due diligence is much easier to do on a large desktop monitor than on a small smartphone screen.
Because boomers take their time when making buying decisions — and because they’ve seen it all (or almost all) — it’s important that marketers be authentic, transparent and trustworthy. Gimmicky marketing tactics that rely on impulse are less effective for this generation. Instead, pet industry marketers need to provide convincing reasons why your product or service is worth baby boomers’ consideration.
They’re not afraid to read. Don’t be afraid to let them.
With so many people having short attention spans, using large blocks of text has become taboo in many marketing circles. Many marketers are using more emotion-provoking videos and pictures in place of text, which is a great approach when marketing to younger generations. Baby boomers, however, grew up reading newspapers, magazines and books, not just for news but for fun. You can still use concise copy when marketing to pet-owning baby boomers, but they also appreciate having things spelled out. At the same time, give them the opportunity to dig into the details if they choose. Just don’t bother with a lot of slang or short abbreviations.
The best online marketing channel for boomers is search engines.
For online marketing to baby boomers, there’s no more effective channel than search engines. In a study done by DMN3, boomers were asked about actions taken as a result of watching videos online, using social media or using search engines. Search engine use prompted a greater percentage of baby boomers to take a variety of additional actions, including making a purchase, than social media or online videos. That makes search engine optimization (SEO), proper keyword targeting and content marketing important tools to have in your marketing mix.
Don’t completely ignore social media when marketing to baby boomers.
Think baby boomers don’t “get” Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest, Twitter or Instagram? Think again.
Yes, search engines are effective at getting boomers to take action, but don’t overlook social media as another way to target pet-owning baby boomers. The vast majority of boomers have at least one social media account, with YouTube and Facebook being the most popular. Social media sites like Facebook allow marketers to narrow their target market and focus on specific segments of the population. This makes targeting baby boomers very convenient for marketers.
The best offline marketing channels to reach baby boomers are traditional ones.
Baby boomers were the first U.S. generation to grow up with television, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they still engage with traditional media outlets like TV, radio, newspapers and magazines. According to APPA research, boomers spend an average of 3.1 hours per day watching TV, the same amount of time that they spend online. In addition, the DMN3 study mentioned earlier found that TV was the most significant influence in getting boomers to search online for information and better than friends and spouse/significant other.
Choose your words wisely when marketing to baby boomers.
Baby boomers may be aging, but they don’t consider themselves to be old. In fact, being called “old” is among the pet peeves of this generation. So when marketing to this segment, be very aware of how your messages are framed — just be sure to integrate age-appropriate visuals in marketing materials.
SEGMENTATION IS KEY
Like nearly every other consumer category, the pet care audience includes boomers. They’re a diverse group — not unlike millennials — who are educated, active and healthy. And at this time, many boomers are still working, frequently full time. Appropriate segmentation of pet owners — by life stage and other factors — will be key to getting the right message to the right audience at the right time.


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New Delhi, Oct 29 (IANS) Spelling new hope for farmers, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has identified new high-yielding sugarcane varieties that are also resistant to water-logging, salinity and drought.
Sunday, October 29, 2006 11:33:18 AM
New Delhi, Oct 29 (IANS) Azadpur Mandi, one of the largest fruit and vegetable wholesale markets in Asia, is soon to go online to modernise its working and bring in greater transparency in trade transactions.
Sunday, October 29, 2006 8:28:19 AM
Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 28 (IANS) Kerala has urged the central government to set up some of its proposed science research institutes in the state.
Saturday, October 28, 2006 6:29:54 PM
Bangalore, Oct 28 (IANS) West Bengal, the latest state joining the IT bandwagon, has showcased its strengths and offerings in the knowledge sector at India's premier tech event Bangalore IT.in here.
Saturday, October 28, 2006 5:31:35 PM
New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) The Indian capital's central business district of Connaught Place will go wi-fi from Jan 1 that will facilitate easy internet access for businessmen, tourists and others.
Saturday, October 28, 2006 12:56:52 PM
New Delhi, Oct 28 (IANS) With plans to make Delhi a world-class city ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games, the capital's busy commercial and business hub Connaught Place will be connected through a wi-fi system to make Internet access easy for the thousands of businessmen and tourists.
Saturday, October 28, 2006 10:12:28 AM
Bangalore, Oct 27 (IANS) The Karnataka government has decided to set up five satellite cities around Bangalore to decongest India's silicon hub and attract investments in the knowledge sector in the IT-savvy state.
Friday, October 27, 2006 10:36:22 PM
Patna, Oct 27 (IANS) Bihar, where once former chief minister Lalu Prasad saw IT as an elitist preoccupation, has approved a proposal to introduce e-governance in all its 8,479 panchayats at a huge cost of Rs.252 million (Rs25.2 crores).
Friday, October 27, 2006 6:37:02 PM
Patna, Oct 27 (IANS) Bihar has approved a proposal to introduce e-governance in all its 8,479 panchayats at a cost of Rs.252 million, state Cabinet Secretary A.K. Chauhan said Friday.
Friday, October 27, 2006 3:12:28 PM
Kolkata, Oct 27 (IANS) Communist patriarch Jyoti Basu Friday said formation of trade unions in the IT sector is a must but the body should function like 'essential services'.
Friday, October 27, 2006 2:37:18 PM
News Sci-Tech Articles Index


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More Britons than ever head abroad
Last updated at 15:30 29 April 2005
The number of overseas holidays and short breaks taken by Britons is set to rise from 33 million in 2000 to 49 million by 2010, a report from travel giant Thomson predicted today.
And more than half of all holidays will be booked online within the next four years, the report added.
At present, about 25% of all holidays and flights are sold on the internet - up from 15% this time last year, Thomson said.
Low-cost flights are the top travel item bought online, followed by villas and cottages, last-minute deals, hotels, charter flights and holidays.
The report showed Italy was the top destination for do-it-yourself holidays primarily booked online with more than 60% of travellers arranging their own trip, followed by Spain at 56% and Portugal at 48%.
But travellers heading for Egypt still preferred booking a complete holiday through a tour operator, with only about a quarter choosing a DIY holiday option.
The Dominican Republic, Thailand, Tunisia and Morocco were other top destinations where people were less likely to tailor-make their own trip.
Although travel agents currently remained the favoured way for people to book, the role they played in the holiday booking process was set to change in the future.
Thomson anticipated that travel agents would become lifestyle consultants who were able to match people's complete leisure-time breaks to suit their interests, hobbies, family and relaxation needs.
They will also sell a wider variety of travel-related products and services, such as pre-holiday keep fit packages at local gyms, instant digital photo processing, foreign language packages, house-sitting services and holiday music CDs.
Thomson marketing director Miles Morgan said: 'Because people are travelling more frequently, we expect they will use a variety of different booking methods.
'The web will be the main area of growth, but we fully anticipate there will be a role for travel agents in five years' time as long as they create an exciting interactive shopping experience in convenient locations and offer a high level of expertise.'
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- Broadcasting legend Sir Bruce Forsyth has died aged 89
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OpenDNS, Google, and Verisign have built new technology into their Internet operations that is designed to accelerate the delivery of data worldwide. The technology augments the Domain Name System (DNS), which provides the numeric Internet Protocol (IP) address needed to get data to an Internet domain.
"Anybody using OpenDNS or Google Public DNS will immediately get the benefits of this technology," says OpenDNS CEO David Ulevitch.
Google proposed the technology last year, and it has been under discussion for longer than that, according to Ulevitch. "Google is committed to making the Internet faster--not just for our users, but for everyone," says Google engineer Dave Presotto.
The technology uses the first 75 percent of an IP address to narrow down a general location, and then the DNS resolver finds the exact IP address in question, enabling data to be delivered more smoothly by solving the problem of Internet latency. Although the technology has yet to be standardized, Ulevitch thinks it will happen within a year.
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This is exciting news people need to have an appreciation for the small changes that will impact how we use technology. Baby steps to one day having minimal or no latency. Good job
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NARS Pure Radiance 2012 Campaign
Tinted moisturizer has come a long way and even ladies with the deepest skin tones will be able to find the perfect match for them. For a smooth and flawless look without a heavy “cake face” feel, you’ll be excited about the latest in beauty booty.
At least that’s what NARS is working to promote with the launch of their 2012 campaign of their Pure Radiance Tinted Moisturizer with SPF 30/PA+++. Available in nine shades the new line will be available February 1st exclusively at Nordstrom and then globally in March.


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French retailers Boulanger and Auchan are each recalling air conditioning units sold at their online and physical stores following reports that they may be fire hazards.
In the hot summer months, portable air conditioning units become incredibly popular as a way to quickly cool a room in an otherwise stuffy house or flat. Most of the time, they are efficient and safe, but occasionally, models that pose risks make it through initial assessments.
This is precisely the case of the ECM9 made by Essential B and sold at Boulanger and their partner store, Connexion, between 1st April 2020 and 26th June 2023.
Additionally, the Qilive brand Q.6771 model with the bar code 3245676776744 sold at Auchan, both in store and on the company’s website, as well as at their partner stores, is in the crosshairs.
Both models are being recalled for posing fire risks.
WHAT TO DO IF YOU HAVE ONE
Consumers are being asked to follow certain protocols if they own one of these air conditioning units.
For the Essential B product, Boulanger asks that the device first be unplugged and then use discontinued. The distributor can be contacted free of charge on 08 00 30 01 45 from Monday to Saturday between 9am and 7pm to arrange an appointment for a technician to come and verify whether the unit is safe or not.
For the Qilive unit, Auchan too asks that owners unplug and refrain from using the device, then to return it to a store to receive a full refund.
PROACTIVITY FROM COMPANIES
Boulanger stopped sales of these units after reports of several dangerous incidents, and has reached out to a “significant proportion” of customers who bought this product. For those not yet alerted, the company is stepping up its awareness campaign to get the word out.
For its part, Auchan started an information campaign on 7th August.
If consumers want to report any problems, they are encouraged to do so by contacting the French government via the Signal Conso website.
Make sure you’re never left out of the conversation.


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Since their launch back in January, sports-focused multi-channel network The Whistle has enjoyed some impressive rapid growth. In that short time, the sporty MCN has hooked over 6.7 million subscribers with its carefully curated network of 135 partner channels, conquering the YouTube sports vertical along the way. Earlier this month, The Whistle celebrated their success by opening a brand new studio in Dallas to complement their existing offices in New York and LA. With over 1 billion views under their belts, the all-stars of YouTube sports are setting their sights on a new goal: Xbox.
Last night, the Whistle launched its own free native app for the Xbox featuring exclusive video content from their network of partners. The Whistle has locked down partnerships with some of the most popular sports creators on YouTube and scored deals with most of major league sports. The network currently boasts partnerships with the NFL, MLB.com, MLS, the PGA Tour, NASCAR, The Harlem Globetrotters, Major League Lacrosse and the Association of Volleyball Professionals, all of whom will provide content for the app.
The Xbox platform and the Whistle already share a similar target demographic, and the platform is popular as a home for sports gaming, making the potential for crossover appeal high. The Whistle is hoping to meet its target demographic where they live according to EVP Brian Selander. “Our goal … is to bring compelling sports content to the platforms where fans are spending their time.”
Brands are already showing an interest in the community that The Whistle has built. Subaru has jumped in to sponsor the launch of the app. The car manufacturer has also collaborated with Whistle partner and Ultimate Frisbee star Brodie Smith on a video that will be featured on the platform to promote the launch.
Share this article because The Whistle is swinging for the fences!


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From today until Sunday, the Soweto Theatre will play host to the Gauteng Township Economy Business Week (GTEB Week 2017) and Funding Convention, aimed at driving the growth of the African economy through entrepreneurship.
Sponsored by Standard Bank and South African Black Entrepreneurs Forum (SABEF) in association with the Department of Small Business Development, GTEB aims to address the issues of access to funding and enterprise development opportunities for township entrepreneurs in Gauteng, especially in disadvantaged areas.
Over the four days, various workshops, business showcase, panel discussions and a food and crafts stall will be held. Over 5 000 entrepreneurs from Soweto and surrounding Gauteng townships will also have the opportunity to discuss the main issues hindering their success with government organisations, enterprise development organisations, funding agencies, banks, investment companies and venture capitalists.
“The aim of GTEB Week is to deal with the issue of financing and funding for black entrepreneurs,” said Lebo Gunguluza, SABEF Founder “We want township entrepreneurs to get better access to funding and enterprise development opportunities.”


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The push for 4K has finally become a winner as the average consumer is defaulting towards 4K and leaving 1080 in the dust. These TVs are selling better than they ever have, and a lot of this is thanks to the fact that 4K has finally reached the price point of where 1080 used to stand. Now the decision is obvious when it comes to making an upgrade or a new addition to your home. However, 8K is already popping up as a competitor as manufacturers keep the war going with something new to dangle above everyone’s heads.
With that, Sony is preparing to launch their new Z9G Master Series lineup of 8K TVs into the market this summer. The lineup only has two models at this time, and as usual, they will be reserved for buyers with a huge budget to help pay for the R&D that went into the making of market-ready 8K. I say that because the lineup features a 98-inch masterpiece, that will only set you back $70,000 (you could buy a brand new Tesla Model S for that kind of cash). The other model is just a tad smaller, at 85-inches, which still makes it quite the monster itself. The 85-inch option comes with a much more reasonable price tag, of just $13,000. Although, that might not sound as reasonable to you (I am just weighing the difference between dollar per inch).
Both of the Z9G Series models will be launching sometime in June of this year, just a few months away. They come with new hardware specs inside to deliver a full UHD HDR experience that should blow your mind (if you can afford it).
With this, Sony is also launching their new A9G Series of 4K TVs, which will act as their latest 4K flagships, ranging from $3,499 to $7,999 in price. These models range from 55-inches to 77-inches in size, and will also accompany their more reasonably priced X950G Series that starts at just $1,399 for the 55-inch option, and works upwards depending on the size from there.
You’ll be seeing these two series hit the market spread out between now and June, just before the Z9G monsters hit the market right after.


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Trade and consumer events to be woven into group's first European show.
— May 6, 2014
The denim-wash pioneer worked with brands such as Guess, True Religion and J Brand at seven laundries in the U.S. and Mexico over the past three decades.
— Apr 29, 2014
After several years of struggles and a weak first quarter, the company believes its jeans business will return to growth this year.
— Apr 28, 2014
From New York to Los Angeles, and thousands of points in between, wearing jeans took on meaning beyond casual comfort on Wednesday.
— Apr 24, 2014
Plans to expand retail into New York and other major markets.
— Apr 22, 2014
In a bid to become a brand embodying L.A.’s creative lifestyle, Genetic Denim has attracted two prominent entrepreneurs: Peter Morton and Jimmy Iovine.
— Apr 16, 2014
The Wal-Mart alumnus will report directly to ceo Chip Bergh.
— Apr 14, 2014
The 2,150-square-foot store is the Hennes & Mauritz AB-owned denim label’s first freestanding unit in France.
— Apr 10, 2014
The company is adjusting distribution of its subbrand to life after Macy’s, and moving more of Hudson’s production to Mexico.
— Apr 10, 2014
Dockers and women’s Levi’s business struggle as sales in the Americas fall.
— Apr 8, 2014
Fashion, music, video art — they all merged into a spectacular, over-the-top event celebrating the first collection designed by Diesel's artistic director.
— Apr 3, 2014
The brand is also preparing to launch a new store concept later this year.
— Apr 2, 2014


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Every serious news organization - and even the not-so-serious ones - offer their content across multi-platform environments. Tablet applications among news providers - iPad being the current leader among the tablet universe - are core to any multi-platform strategy, falling squarely in the mobile delivery camp.
However, Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation wants us to believe that The Daily
- an iPad-only daily
news application - is unique and cutting edge.
"Created every day of the year with all original content for the iPad," The Daily's
promotion reveals. This claim of producing content "every day of the year" for the iPad is mirrored quite well by a host of other national well-established and award-winning news organizations - including Washington Post
, New York Times
, and The Wall Street Journal
In fact, The Daily
is already being compared
, a development that is likely not something Mr. Murdoch had anticipated - nor is it something that he is enjoying, as The Daily
seeks to charge its users $40 per year and Flipboard
But when considering Mr. Murdoch's considerable investment in The Daily
, we may be better able to understand the hype behind what is otherwise a yawn among claims of novel content delivery. According to The Huffington Post
, the initial investment
in The Daily
totaled $30 million.
The entire endeavor appears quite similar to the fiasco Conde Nast explored with their launch of business-to-business lifestyle morph, Portfolio
. Originally billed as the next big thing in business reporting, Portfolio
quickly imploded - and is now a backwater web-only placeholder within the Conde Nast publishing conglomerate.
And while Conde Nast is a privately-held entity, News Corporation is a publicly-traded company - so the results of its iPad-only experiment will be more visible for those who are interested in keeping score.
While Mr. Murdoch should be commended for his willingness to embrace new platforms, news content consumers - many of whom already have subscriptions to other sources - would be wise to scrutinize the hype around this release and others that are sure to come in the future.


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Jim Baron, our friend and colleague from American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA), visited PSS in June, 2008. Jim, who is ATSSA Communications and Public Relations Director, interviewed several PSS staff members for an article that appeared in the ATSSA Signal magazine, July, 2008.
We added the sub-titles. Other than that, the article, as published, follows:
"You may need a GPS or assistance from MapQuest to find it, but it’s there. Nestled in the heart of a vibrant east side Cleveland, Ohio neighborhood you will find ATSSA member company Plastic Safety Systems (PSS), Inc.
Proudly led by President David E. Cowan, the vibrant company that specializes in “everything plastic” hasn’t let up on production or pace since moving into a former potato chip factory in 1968.
That was the year that PSS was officially born – a “spin-off” of Electro General Plastics Corporation – whose specialty at that time was custom vacuum-formed automotive parts and materials. If you were behind the wheel of a White-brand diesel truck or a shiny new Chrysler automobile back in the late 1960s, chances are, parts of the dashboard, the glove box or elsewhere in the vehicle came off the Electro General Plastic Corporation line, as did lighter-gauge products, such as lunchroom trays and the small plastic boxes grocery stores and Japanese restaurants put take-out sushi into.
One might say that the glory days of Electro Plastics came to an abrupt end in June 1968, when the company’s building completely burned to the ground.
“It was, at that time, the largest fire in Cleveland that year. The company burned to the ground. Fortunately, no one was injured,” said Bruce Owens, vice president of sales.
Fortunately, the company did have adequate insurance to cover the huge loss and a call was made to Chrysler Motors – one of their biggest customers – to deliver the bad news about the fire.
“We were told if we could resume production in six weeks, they’d keep us on. That was all the motivation we needed,” said Owens.
PSS wasted no time purchasing new tooling, machines and equipment for a huge move into their present day building where they immediately set-up and resumed operations. It was an old building, built in the late 1800s, but it offered plenty of room for the company to get settled, begin production and grow.
Things were going extremely well for the company, when in the early 1980s, a huge decline in the automobile industry occurred. A slowdown in that industry meant a slowdown for PSS, so the company began to look at ideas for products that they could design, produce and sell on their own – disconnecting from the automobile industry and other clients that they were serving.
Back then, Dick Dorbin was the PSS “Idea Man” who had a keen interest in a brand new, up and coming industry called “traffic control.” Dorbin was constantly at the drawing board, creating such things as generator-powered portable traffic lights which, at the time, were 20 years ahead of their time. He also created other innovations and conducted experiments with traffic control cones and other ingenious roadway safety devices that he would constantly introduce to the Federal Highway Administration for review and consideration. It was during this time that Dorbin came up with a totally new concept – a one-piece orange barrel to delineate traffic, versus the bulky, heavy metal drums that were in use across the country at the time.
The year was 1981, and at that time, plastic drums were mainly a two-piece plastic design that included the top piece of the drum and the base, weighted by bulky sandbags. Dorbin’s new design – the PSD-4™ series drum – included something all-new in the industry – a flange to allow sandbag placement on the outside of the drum. The drum also featured 18-inches of retroreflective surface facing traffic, and eight-inches of retro on each side.
Dorbin took his new drum to the Federal Highway Administration for their approval; FHWA determined that the drum “met the intent of the Manual (on Uniform Traffic Control Devices – MUTCD).” On that very day, Dorbin and PSS were off and running in the roadway safety industry.
[This picture, taken in October, 2008, shows a PSS PSD-4 Drum still in use. It's over 20 years old, and is showing its age. The plastic has retained its shape, and the color has not faded very much, but the sheeting has fallen off. PSS does not recommend deploying any temporary traffic control devices that have little or no retroreflective sheeting.]
By 1985, several companies across the country started catching on with the plastic drum concept and by then, the Feds dictated that drums be “18-inches in every direction.” PSS immediately made adjustments to comply with the new standard, but they knew much more could be done to improve the device.
In 1992, PSS came out with an all-new, totally redesigned LifeGard® drum – which today is historically referred to as “The Original Sandless Drum,” and that’s because it is.
PSS designed their new one-piece drum to include a sidewall of a recycled truck tire at its base as an exterior “ballast” to keep the drum securely in place on the roadway. The result was a lower-cost and weight, and a product that was virtually indestructible. That same year, a tire recycler in Youngstown, Ohio was located who had the equipment to cut truck tire sidewalls to a 36-inch width exactly, with the finished product weighing in at 25 pounds. This 36/25 combination was a perfect fit and weight for PSS’ new drum.
Cowan said, “The health of this company relies on the development of new products, and that’s what we’re doing every day.”
Today, on the PSS radar scope, are innovations in permanent roadside safety hardware, with an eye on other products in the near future. In addition to the LifeGard® drum, PSS currently distributes plastic crash cushions, barricades, delineators, barrier markers, fencing, parking blocks, speed bumps, and several other miscellaneous traffic control safety devices."
Jim's article captures the PSS story through Summer, 2008. As of this writing, August, 2013, 5 years later, we note that Dave's comments about new products were quite prescient. Indeed, PSS launched two major product initiatives in 2008-09; those products now comprise a healthy portion of our business.
PSS in essence created a new traffic safety category with RoadQuake, our temporary portable rumble strip. And with SafetyWall and SafetyRail, PSS pioneered the development of ADA-Compliant pedestrian barricades, too.
Just wait'll you see us 5 years from now. Stay tuned!


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News - General News - Government
Palaszczuk government announces $3000 EV plan
Details of Queensland’s $55m Zero Emission Vehicle strategy unveiled, FCAI not convinced
17 Mar 2022
By MATT BROGAN
THE Annastacia Palaszczuk-led Queensland government has announced details of a $55-million package it says will help drive the state’s commitment of net-zero emissions by the year 2050.
Including a $3000 incentive for buyers of new electric vehicles priced up to $58,000 (and capped at $45 million), the Queensland Zero Emission Vehicle Strategy 2022-2032 also outlines plans for a further $10 million to extend the state’s electric-vehicle charging network, which is in addition to its ongoing commitment to install a zero-emissions bus fleet in the state from 2025 onward.
Premier Palaszczuk said the investment would make EV ownership more affordable for Queensland residents.
“We are going to make the cost of buying electric cars just that little bit cheaper,” said Ms Palaszczuk. “My government will provide a $3000 subsidy for anyone buying an electric vehicle up to the value of $58,000.”
Queensland transport and main roads minister Mark Bailey echoed Ms Palaszczuk’s remarks, adding that the state’s drive toward a low-emissions future was an important step in recognising a fundamental shift in the Australian transport system.
“This (announcement) will see Queenslanders get money back for switching to electric vehicles, and the Palaszczuk government build more charging infrastructure across the Sunshine State.
“We revolutionised electric-vehicle travel through the Queensland Electric Super Highway, which is being expanded to almost 3800km, and now Queenslanders will have even more charging stations to use.
“Not only does this encourage people to buy electric vehicles… It gives the automotive industry confidence to set up shop in Queensland – this strategy signals a fundamental shift in our transport system.”
Mr Bailey said Queensland was already reaping the benefits from the Palaszczuk government’s commitment that, by 2025, every new urban bus added to the SEQ fleet will be a zero-emission vehicle, with local manufacturers, including Bustech and Volgren, setting up shop in the state.
Energy, renewables, and hydrogen minister Mick de Brenni said the strategy would support more Queenslanders to contribute to the reduction in transport emissions, suggesting residents will also save “millions” of dollars in the fuel spent to power the state government’s vehicle fleet.
“As a government (are) taking direct action by supercharging our government fleet, QFleet, to become electric, going EV-first for all new vehicles where there is a suitable EV option,” said Mr de Brenni.
“Transforming the QFleet will save Queenslanders millions in fuel costs, but most significantly, when they have done their service with frontline workers – our nurses, community carers and educators – these high quality, fully serviced, usually low-kilometre used vehicles will be available for Queenslanders at highly affordable prices.
“That will deliver a clear signal and pipeline to car manufacturers, battery and minerals manufacturers and charging infrastructure manufacturers that Queensland is the place to grow their business and continue to build on our state’s successful jobs and economic results.”
The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries (FCAI) cautiously welcomed the Queensland government’s announcement.
The FCAI said the strategy would provide opportunities to own an electric vehicle to more Queensland families and road users, but added that it was “perplexed” by figures that suggest the state was targeting 100 per cent zero-emission new passenger vehicle sales by 2036.
“The FCAI believes the (Palaszczuk) government’s continued focus on developing EV recharging infrastructure and fleets is vital in supporting the penetration of EVs into the Queensland market,” said FCAI CEO Tony Weber.
“(However), the primary policy objective is to reduce CO2 emissions and our pathway to this objective in the transport sector needs to be a holistic one – electric vehicles alone will not achieve this in Australia.
“The pathway to reducing emissions through to the mid-2030s will rely on a range of low-emission technologies that include plug-in hybrid, hybrid, and even highly efficient internal combustion engines in addition to pure EVs.
“Improvements in fuel quality and the introduction of a broad-based and nationally consistent Road User Charge scheme, as well as a vehicle-emissions target, are all needed to bring the best low and zero emissions technology to Australia.
“We look forward to working with governments at all levels to send these policy signals, which will be vital in achieving our emission reduction across the light vehicle fleet,” he added.
2nd of March 2022
Viva Energy to build hydrogen station in Geelong
Australia’s first publicly accessible commercial hydrogen refuelling station gets the green light
1st of March 2022
EVs of interest to Australian police
Trials of electric police cars in the US inspire thought from Aussie law enforcement
22nd of February 2022
OEMs welcome cash boost for clean fleets
Future Fuels Fund pumps $127.9m into helping fleets transition to cleaner vehicles
14th of February 2022
Tritium’s US-based EV charging facility is go
Tennessee production plant to contribute to America’s growing EV highway charging network
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Research General News
Motor industry news


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Shifting trade winds
Uncertainty doesn’t deter Virginia exporters
Business took Robert Janssen this spring to Mexico and Saudi Arabia — two countries where the prevailing opinions of President Donald Trump are on opposite ends of the spectrum.
Janssen is president of Northern Defense Industries Inc. (NDI), an Alexandria-based technology and critical infrastructure company specializing in air, land and subsea security systems. International sales have made up a major part of the company’s business since its founding in 2002.
In April, Janssen traveled to Saudi Arabia, where business leaders had overwhelmingly positive views of the current administration. But just a few weeks earlier he had been in Mexico, where the company does business with its Navy. There, given Trump’s promise to build a wall along its border with the U.S. and his attacks over the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the administration remains quite unpopular.
But while Mexican business owners may share their sentiments over a beer, politics rarely enter business discussions. “Business is business,” says Janssen, whose company this year entered VALET (Virginia Leaders in Export Trade), one of the state’s export development programs.
“Business can be affected by politics, but if you’re an international businessman bringing value-added goods and services to a customer that needs them, you do proper negotiations, and you ensure it’s a win-win for everybody. Typically, everyone leaves politics and emotions out of it.”
Trump has long derided globalization and international trade deals as unfair to the U.S. and its manufacturers. His presidency comes at a time when Virginia is making a major push to increase exports to diversify its economy.
And while Virginia business leaders say Trump’s positions have introduced some uncertainty into the international marketplace, the state’s exporters still are eager to seek new markets.
“We certainly have been dismayed by some of the rhetoric that has been coming out of Washington on trade, but it has not stopped us from continuing to push the important role it has for us in the commonwealth,” says Todd Haymore, Virginia’s secretary of commerce and trade. “I would argue that it’s helped us double down on the narrative about the important role trade plays for us.”
Since taking office in January, the Trump administration has withdrawn from an Obama-era trade pact with Pacific Rim nations (the Trans-Pacific Partnership), informed Congress it plans to renegotiate the NAFTA, slapped 20 percent tariffs on Canadian softwood lumber and signed an executive order instructing his Cabinet to scrutinize any major trade deficits with countries.
Trump also has threatened to ignore unfavorable rulings from the World Trade Organization (WTO) — an organization that settles disputes among its 163 members.
Despite the threats to current agreements and Trump’s rhetoric, state officials haven’t been deterred.
Gov. Terry McAuliffe, for example, continues to travel on foreign trade missions. Since Trump’s election, he has visited Southeast Asia, Japan, South Korea, Japan, Australia, Mexico and Canada. Most recently, McAuliffe traveled to Europe. In June, while announcing an agreement to promote trade with a Mexican state, the governor tweeted that Virginia builds “opportunities NOT walls!”
“Uncertainty is more of the general concern,” says Art Moye, executive vice president of the Virginia Maritime Association. “Trade itself tends to overcome these political influences. Trade is all about supply and demand, and trade is more dictated by consumers than political processes or a particular administration.”
The importance of trade continues to rise in Virginia, becoming a major factor in the growth of its economy. Virginia exported goods and services worth $35.2 billion in 2015, according to the Brookings Institution. A recent study by the Virginia Chamber of Commerce showed that nearly 30 percent of the commonwealth’s economic growth can be attributed to exports.
“The reality is that international trade has created huge new markets and the potential for tapping into them … is unprecedented,” says Van Wood, a Virginia Commonwealth University international marketing professor who works with companies examining export opportunities. “What we really don’t need to say is: ‘Let’s cut back on trade.’ We need to get more people involved to take advantage of these markets.”
The future of NAFTA
Throughout his campaign and presidency, Trump has slammed NAFTA as an unfair deal, reportedly almost scrapping it in April before deciding to renegotiate the agreement.
Since NAFTA went into effect in 1994, Virginia’s exports to its neighbors have grown exponentially. Last year, Virginia exported almost $3 billion in products and services to Canada, its No. 1 export destination. In the mid-1990s, Virginia did around $1.3 billion in exports with Canada. Last year, Virginia exported $1.3 billion in goods and services to Mexico, up from $257 million since NAFTA was enacted.
Brett Vassey, president and CEO of the Virginia Manufacturers Association, says the dialogue about NAFTA actually has spurred interest in exporting. “In a sort of a strange turn of events, even though there’s a lot of discussion by this administration about leveling free trade agreements, the reality is there’s a whole new focus on international markets and exporting American goods,” says Vassey. “It really has engaged people.”
NAFTA also can be important in driving foreign direct investment (FDI) by international companies that open operations in the U.S., says Paul Grossman, vice president of international trade for the Virginia Economic Development Partnership. “Some internationally owned companies that are making a product here in Virginia, employing Virginians, are exporting first to NAFTA countries and then to South American countries,” he says. “So it’s a location factor because of these trade agreements. If those are in peril, then the FDI aspect becomes tougher attracting these companies in the first place.”
The proximity of Canada and Mexico also make them easier markets for many U.S. companies to enter. That certainly was the case for Jamie Baisden, the president and CEO of QMT Windchimes in Manassas Park.
His company has exported its custom-tuned wind chimes to Canada for almost a decade and has established itself as a “non-resident” importer there.The designation makes the company’s shipping, customs and pricing process more efficient. The non-resident importer status only is possible with a country with a good working relationship with the U.S., Baisden says.
“What I do know is that the healthy relationship between the United States and Canada has made expanding my business and jobs in the U.S. easier than if I was trying to sell into a country where we had poor relations,” says Baisden. “We’ve gone through the process of becoming trusted partners. That’s not going to happen in a country where we have poor relations, especially for a small company like us.”
While Virginia’s trade promoters believe scrapping NAFTA altogether could have been devastating to relations with its neighbors, they say the agreement could use some updating.
NAFTA was put in place almost 25 years ago, well before the development of e-commerce. In addition, the agreement doesn’t cover services, which now make up more than half of Virginia’s exports. “That’s a challenge because, by and large, they aren’t really covered by NAFTA,” says Grossman. “That’s an area where Virginia could benefit from a modernized agreement.”
Looking for fair trade
While Virginia’s exports to its neighbors have soared since the agreement took effect, NAFTA played a role — along with automation and competition from China — in the decimation of textile, apparel and furniture industries in Southern and Southwest Virginia.
One of the survivors of that tumult wants to see more fairness in the world marketplace. That could be achieved through tougher enforcement mechanisms and trade deals that encourage a level playing field, says John Bassett III. He is chairman of Vaughan-Bassett furniture in Galax, the largest wood furniture bedroom manufacturer in the U.S. Vaughan-Bassett’s furniture-making plant is the only one left in the city, which used to have six.
The decline of the U.S. furniture manufacturing could have been less severe if U.S. exporters knew their rights in the international marketplace, Basset says.
Bassett led a campaign in 2004 that ultimately resulted in the WTO ruling that China illegally dumped furniture on the open market. Had the industry known its rights, fewer American furniture companies would have folded, he says. “It was a total tsunami, and the industry disappeared. Not all of them should have.”
Bassett says he supports globalization but believes the U.S. government needs to do a better job of ensuring that U.S. companies can compete fairly. “We have to compete in an international marketplace, but we shouldn’t be asked to compete with one arm tied behind us,” says Bassett. “Our government has to be more vigilant to ensure that American businesses and manufacturers, primarily, [compete] on a level playing field.”
Scrapping a Pacific trade deal
In his first week of office, Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade agreement negotiated for seven years among Pacific Rim nations.
“That was a tragedy in my opinion,” says VCU’s Wood. “We had an opportunity to not only lower tariffs again across a wide spectrum of goods and services and across a wide spectrum of countries, but we had a real opportunity to assert American leadership on a policy front — democracy, capitalism, etc.”
In May, the 11 remaining countries in the pact agreed to move forward without the U.S.
The deal had a lot of support in Virginia, including from theVirginia Manufacturers Association. The association had hoped the deal could open markets for several industries, such as heavy equipment, chemicals, and even food and beverage.
One of its concerns is that, with the U.S. withdrawal, China will seize growth opportunities in these markets. The manufacturing association still hopes the U.S. can make trade deals in the region.“If this administration can cut a better deal for the American manufacturer, then we are all in,” says Vassey. “But we don’t want to see them sit idle while the Chinese eat our lunch.”
Navigating a complex future
Amid Trump’s array of protectionist rhetoric, only two things are certain in international trade: the complexity and length of time required to make major changes. For example, it could take years to renegotiate and implement a new NAFTA deal.
“Things move slowly, and they’re very complex,” says Grossman. “But in the meantime, Virginia companies can and should be marketing themselves because ultimately international trade, like all business, is consumer-driven.”


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KAILUA-KONA — July proved another rough month for Hawaii Island’s most lucrative industry, but tourism officials are hopeful a visitor resurgence is waiting just around the corner.
The Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) initially invested in marketing and media campaigns to counteract international news coverage depicting the island as a disaster area in the wake of the Kilauea eruption, sewing seeds of doubt across the world about safety in travel.
Now, the Hawaii Visitors and Convention Bureau (HVCB) is spending $2 million HTA dollars on a more aggressive messaging endeavor focused heavily on U.S. and Japan travel markets in an attempt to control the narrative rather than mitigate it.
“Our strategy is to change existing consumer perception from ‘It’s just not the right time to visit,’ to ‘Now, this may be the best time ever to visit,’” said Jay Talwar, HVCB chief marketing officer. “Be the first to see what the new lava flow has created.”
Talwar said marketing research has shown that as Kilauea has significantly settled and VOG has dissipated, the prevailing perception of Hawaii Island conditions are changing, spawning opportunity where once there was only apprehension.
“What we saw was, very positively, fear was extremely low and fascination was extremely high,” he explained. “Once people feel that it’s safe to come view what’s left from what the lava created, I think there’s going to be positive demand for the island. … Be the first to see what the new lava flow has created.”
According to HTA numbers from July, Big Island visitor spending and arrivals took a nosedive from last year’s record highs for the second straight month, dropping 7.2 percent to $201.1 million and 12.7 percent to 153,906, respectively.
The island’s occupancy rate also dipped 4.7 percent from last July and Kohala Coast hotels saw a 7 percent decline in revenue per available room.
August numbers, when they’re released at the end of September, aren’t likely to prove much better. But Ross Birch, president of the Island of Hawaii Visitors Bureau, is optimistic that booking numbers could rebound to the same levels as last year, if not improve, from September through Christmas.
He added his hopefulness appears to be shared among the business community, as hotels and activities providers he’s spoken with believe the Kilauea situation has turned a corner.
“What we’re finding out is that people book in the month, for the month,” Birch said. “We’re hearing that from a lot of hotels … for the late summer.”
Volcanoes National Park has announced plans to partially re-open on Sept. 22, though it will do so in limited fashion. Birch said Thurston Lava Tube will remain closed and the Jaggar Museum may never open its doors again. The Volcano House isn’t likely to be ready for visitors in three weeks either, though it may offer some retail services by then.
Still, any accessibility to the park is helpful in handling the visitor load Birch and Talwar are hoping to inspire, as Birch said the closure of the park taught the island’s tourism industry a lesson or two.
“We’ve discovered that we really have a need for product development on the island,” he said. “We have so many great assets and opportunities, but they can’t handle the numbers we’re bringing in as well as Hawaii Volcanoes National Parks did.”
There is no immediate timetable for a finalized reorganization of the park or the development of a new lava viewing area, beyond what can be accessed via helicopter tours, Birch said.
Thus, in the interim, a natural disaster that initially spawned an economic downturn now may create more business opportunities in what was already Hawaii Island’s most prominent and profitable economic sector.
Email Max Dible at firstname.lastname@example.org.


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Figures show uplift in property market over the past few months
AUCTION sales have surged in the first half of this year, with the number of transactions dramatically higher than what was clocked up last year.
The numbers tell a story of a property market rapidly gaining in confidence, especially in recent months, according to consultancy Colliers International yesterday.
Sales in the first half reached $72.39 million. That is 61 per cent up on the $45 million recorded in the second half of last year, and 87 per cent higher than the $38.64 million racked up in the same period a year ago.
Much of the pickup happened in the second quarter, after the stock market rallied and sentiment improved. This month has seen strong sales of $24.7 million, compared with the miserable $3.6 million sales in January and $1.4 million in February.
Jones Lang LaSalle, which conducted the last auction for this month yesterday, said it sold four properties worth $11.29 million, including a $3.45 million Leonie Towers apartment.
Sales were lacklustre in the first quarter because buyers had bid very low and opportunistic prices, said Ms Grace Ng, Colliers' deputy managing director (agency and business services) and auctioneer.
The mood in auction rooms now is decidedly more upbeat, with sellers keen on repricing properties about 5 per cent to 10 per cent higher, said Knight Frank auctioneer Mary Sai.
But the increased expectations do not signal a clear price rise yet. 'Prices were lagging behind the market so the sellers were moving up to match the market,' Ms Sai said. 'Those that we sold were mostly the $800,000 to $1 million types. These are the safe buys as mass market homes aren't likely to retreat much.'
The buying mood has even carried over from mass market homes to some landed and high-end property, said Ms Ng. These include two apartments at The Clift worth $605,000 and $1.047 million.
Few mortgagee sales have occurred this year despite the weak economic climate. The 103 repossessed units on the block represented only about 23 per cent of total properties put up for auction in the first half. This compares with 28 per cent last year, 44 per cent in 2007 and 50 per cent in 1998.
The number is about half of what was put up during the Asian financial crisis in 1998.
In all, there were 54 homes sold through auction in the first half.
'The continued low number of mortgagee sales could be partly attributed to financial institutions attempting to manage their distressed asset portfolio by giving property owners the opportunity to dispose of the property of their own accord,' said Ms Ng. 'There will be less contention over the sale price, as the price is determined through a consultation process with the owner.'
Ms Ng expects to see more mortgagee sales in the second half of the year due to the general lag time of approximately six months or more.
Ms Ng also expects the buying momentum to persist in the next few months, possibly leading average monthly auction sales to surpass $30 million in some months. That could send auction sales over $160 million for the year, almost twice the $83.67 million achieved last year, she said.
Source: Straits Times, 27 June 2009


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The Chinese are getting a taste of their own medicine.
Itís too bad that more than 12,900 children had to get sick and at least four die of kidney failure because of tainted milk supplies for Chinese businesses and government officials to grasp the importance of product safety.
Given Chinaís lax oversight of product safety and indifference to public health, an event like was bound to happen.
And itís not as if Chinese officials had not been warned.
A number of products they have exported have had to be recalled because of the danger they posed to consumers.
This domestic crisis should be the jumping off point for Chinese officials to clamp down on product safety.
If it doesnít, other nations must take steps to protect their citizens from this indifference.


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August 24, 2001
Lazare Kaplan Protects its Laser-Inscription Process
Lazare Kaplan International Inc., the largest diamond cutter and polisher in the U.S., says it has successfully concluded litigation against Pacific Technology Corp. for infringing on its patented laser-inscription process. Both companies are based in New York City.
An Aug. 16 consent judgment in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York requires Pacific Technology to cease making, using, distributing and selling the laser-inscription services and equipment it provided in the past, says LKI. The judgment, which Pacific Technology agreed to, acknowledges the validity and enforceability of LKI's patents and constitutes a permanent injunction prohibiting Pacific from offering services or equipment that infringe LKI's patents.
LKI is the developer and owner of several U.S. and foreign patents for laser inscribing logos, letters and numbers on the surface of diamonds and other gemstones.
- by Julia M. Duncan


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Cover Genius and Scandinavia’s largest travel group Etraveli have become insurance partners to broaden the range of markets cover can be sold in.
Etraveli insurance will be powered by Cover Genius’ XCover insurance distribution platform that enables e-commerce business to sell personal and commercial insurance to their global customers.
The company will also have access to XClaim, Cover Genius’s instant claims payment solution.
XClaim allows for instant payment of approved claims and in over 90 currencies via bank transfers, e-wallets, store credits and top-ups to credit cards and virtual prepaid cards.
Cover Genius’s API global network will allow Etraveli to overcome legacy restrictions in insurance and serve customers in over 60 countries 40 languages across the company’s brands including gotogate.com, Flygresor.se and mytrip.com.
Stefan Born, Etraveli Group director of ancillary sales, said: “We have experience of selling insurance policies with various structures, and are familiar with the limitations, particularly dealing with multiple underwriters across multiple destinations in multiple languages.
“Working with Cover Genius as our trusted partner, we are looking forward to such pain points being alleviated, so that we can open up our market and policy scope.
Angus McDonald, Cover Genius co-founder and chief executive officer, said: “Our XCover platform is configurable for any line of insurance, making it simple, quick and accessible for eCommerce sites that operate in multiple geographies to push a new insurance product live.
“XClaim is a key feature that allows customers to receive instant claim payments in 90+ currencies, or to receive a ‘store credit’ to spend back on the partner’s website.
“This has been a tough challenge for traditional travel insurers for whom the average payment time is 20 days after approval. We’re proud that our technology can be thanked for industry-high NPS averages of 65+ for claims.”


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Hotel & Resort Innovation Expo has revealed its keynote speakers for the event on 19-20 October 2022 in London, UK.
Speakers will include Fabrizio DiMartino, director of e-commerce at citizenM, who will highlight how the pandemic was an opportunity for organisations to fast-track their innovation initiatives; Adrie Vreeke, co-founder and CEO of Capsule Services, who will discuss how the industry can meet the increasing demand of solo travellers with capsule and pod facilities; and Melisa Gooding, sustainability and communications specialist at Lamington Group, who will focus on a net-zero strategy for the hotel sector.
In addition, NoMad Hotel’s Nadim Nehme will highlight how luxury hospitality has evolved and Best Western Hotel Group’s Andrew Denton will reflect on how he transformed several hotels into hospitals to support the NHS during the Covid-19 pandemic. IHG Hotels’ Finlay Anderson and Open Ear and Swell’s Brian d’Souza will also share how to combine traditional sound therapy and modern technology to deliver unique guest experience in spa and hotel settings.
The event will also present industry awards to celebrate the innovations, services and solutions that hotels have provided over the last 12 months.
Sign up for a free ticket to Hotel & Resort Innovation Expo 2022.


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Amazon is known to be sensitive about PLAs, in part because they push down Amazon's "organic" or unpaid search results. Amazon declined comment for this story.
Until 2012, when Google launched PLAs, Amazon pages were often featured prominently in searches conducted by shoppers. Now, they're halfway down the page or worse, crammed down underneath the new PLA format, which prioritizes merchandise photos and comparative prices.
eBay is now the second biggest PLA advertiser, Jefferies estimates, and it may be buying about 6% of all PLAs. That's not a trivial amount of adspend. Companies frequently spend $100,000 or more per month on search ads, according to Marin Software. Google's revenues from PLAs likely increased 269% in 2013, Jefferies believes. Adobe, another digital marketer, says the cost-per-click of PLAs increased 70% in Q4 2013, year over year. Those are both indicators that Google is seeing an increase in the volume of advertisers running PLA campaigns.
If that's true, they're probably also working for a bunch of companies owned by Amazon, too. Soap.com, Diapers.com, beautybar.com and other Amazon brands are, collectively, the sixth biggest PLA advertisers.
And that's why Amazon's absence from PLAs is all the more conspicuous. It is known to have never bought a single one.
Here's a chart of who spent the most on Google PLAs in 2013, from Jefferies:
Disclosure: Jeff Bezos is an investor in Business Insider through his personal investment company Bezos Expeditions.


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RADA Supporting the ‘Eat Jamaican’ Campaign 2020
The Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) continues to support the Eat Jamaican Month Celebration, on this the 17th anniversary of the event organized by the Jamaica Agricultural Society in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries (MICAF).
The essence of the ‘Eat Jamaican’ Campaign was borne out of the need to encourage consumers to recognize, support and to have a greater appreciation for the range and quality of Jamaica’s Agricultural produce and products.
This year RADA has participated at the Eat Jamaican Day Celebrations held on the lawns of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries on November 25, 2020 through booth display and sampling of local produce by the RADA St. Andrew Social Services, Home Economics Unit.
This was done in an effort to promote the importance of the Eat Jamaican Campaign to the nation’s nutrition and cuisine culture.
The ‘Eat Jamaican’ tenets have become even more purposeful as the nation battles the global pandemic of COVID-19 and its debilitating effects on the society. There is a real need therefore to consume local agricultural produce filled with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals to boost the immune system.
Hon. Floyd Green, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries during the Eat Jamaican Day proceedings reiterated the collective call for stakeholders and individuals to buy with purpose, say yes to fresh, support the nations’ farmers and “Grow what we eat, Eat what we Grow.”


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Foursquare is cracking down on users who have been cheating frequent “check-in” loyalty programs run by local businesses. In a Wednesday blog post, Foursquare said a system will detect when users employ its mobile app to “check-in” at restaurants, bars, retail stores, and other establishments, but aren’t actually arriving at those locations.
For the last seven months, hundreds of businesses have been utilizing the free-to-use “Foursquare For Businesses” platform. The establishments have been rewarding Foursquare users with free drinks, food items, and discounts if they employ the app to “check-in” when visiting theirs stores a certain number of times. An example from a Canadian pizza joint using the platform: “Free slice and drink on your 10th check-in. Free Large Pizza, 1 topping on your 20th check-in!”
Advertisers like that one are drawn to Foursquare due to the sticky nature of the game. For instance, if the user has more check-ins than anyone else for a business, the person becomes the “mayor” of the location until someone out-visits him or her. Eric Pavony, owner of the Full Circle Bar in Brooklyn, NY, said his regular crowd of tech-savvy marketing professionals, artists, and freelance writers take their Foursquare check-ins “very seriously.” He welcomed the news of the brand trying to referee how rewards are gained via the game.
“If that’s possible, I definitely think it’s a good thing,” Pavony said. “It’s good to make sure that the people who take it seriously and use the application the way it was intended…that they get rewarded.”
Foursquare says its “cheater code” will single out fraudulent users that have a global positioning system (GPS) in their phone, denying them check-in points that can be rewarded at businesses. The system will still allow them to check in, the New York-based firm says, but they will not accrue any points that are valued in the game unless they actually visit the establishments.
The company has also evidently figured out a way to block people without GPS on their phones from picking up rewards points. Its blog said: “Since last summer, this has been one of our most requested features and has been one of the trickiest to get just right.”
The white-hot Foursquare brand has almost doubled its user base in the last three weeks, going from 400,000 to at least 750,000. Reports are swirling that Yahoo is considering buying the company for $100 million. The Sunnyvale, CA-based Web portal is likely attracted to Foursquare’s possible future as a geo-couponing platform as well as a potential local marketing juggernaut in general.
What’s more, Wednesday’s announcement marked the second time in the last month Foursquare has reached out to local businesses. During the week of March 8, it began offering businesses a free-to-use dashboard to track activity associated with their locations. The metrics include total check-ins, the number of check-ins that get posted to Facebook and Twitter, and total unique visitors.
If Foursquare’s cheater detection system works, those businesses won’t have to look at their stats with a suspecting eye. In theory at least, they’ll know that users aren’t sitting at home on their couch while stacking up check-ins in order to pick up a freebie from the establishment.
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A class action lawsuit against an internet-connected pleasure device highlights the potential pitfalls a growing number of companies will face as they embrace ... read more
Google sparked a small firestorm last week as reports surfaced that its intelligent assistant device Google Home delivered an unsolicited advertisement to unsuspecting owners.
According to Internet Retailer's newly released The Best Digital Marketers in E-Commerce report, Target is the most effective marketer in online retail. So why is it struggling overall?
The rise of YouTube and digital video generally has a lot to do with the rise of the internet and the abundance of digital video content. But YouTube's ascendency is also the result of Google's savvy use of algorithms.


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On the World Oceans Day (8 June) IWC Schaffhausen announced its support for a pioneering environmental project, spearheaded by Cousteau Divers.
Tagged “IWC”24 posts that have this tag
New, aviation-inspired IWC Schaffhausen timepieces took off at the SIHH 2019 in Geneva this January.
Following the launch of the exceptional anniversary collection and the Pallweber tribute watch at the SIHH, IWC went on celebrating its 150 years of history with a brand new Manufakturzentrum. Last week we saw the recently inaugurated facilities from the inside as well as from a bird’s-eye perspective.
At the SIHH 2018, IWC Schaffhausen celebrated the 150th anniversary of its establishment by presenting 27 Jubilee novelties, including the IWC Tribute to Pallweber Edition “150 Years”.
PRESS RELEASE: IWC Schaffhausen celebrates 150 years in 2018 – the company presented a special Jubilee collection at SIHH 2018 that consists of 27 limited-edition models.
With the 2017 IWC Da Vinci Automatic line the company put women in the focus this year.


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The company is targeting $ 15,000 for the new electric vehicle.
After months of waiting, Harley-Davidson’s LiveWire brand unveiled its second all-electric motorcycle, the new medium-weight Del Mar. Built on the brand’s new Arrow platform, it has a 60kW motor capable of accelerating electrically from zero to 100 km / h in less than four seconds, Electrek reported.
The Del Mar 21700 battery is housed in a structural housing that doubles as part of the motorcycle frame, reducing the overall weight of the vehicle. To make the new Del Mar even easier, LiveWire has integrated a handful of components, including the on-board charger, into a single unit mounted outside the battery’s structural housing. In total, it’s about 25 percent lighter than LiveWire One.
A light motorcycle
LiveWire expects Del Mar to cover about 160 miles on a single charge. In addition, the electric vehicle will have built-in GPS and cellular connectivity, which will allow the company to launch new motorcycle software features and adjust its performance through OTA updates. One feature you won’t find on Del Mar is fast DC charging.
Unfortunately, it is limited to level 1 and 2 load level.
Following the unveiling, LiveWire made 100 $ 17,699 Del Mar “Launch Edition” motorcycles available for pre-order. The needles sold out almost instantly. As for the production model, which is expected to go on sale sometime next spring, LiveWire said it is targeting a price of approximately $ 15,000.
For context, LiveWire One is currently the brand’s most affordable electric motorcycle, with a starting price starting at $ 22,799 before federal subsidies.
LiveWire also suggested that it began developing a third model based on the Arrow platform.


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Jeff Boyer of Creative Colors International in Dallas-Fort Worth is Featured on KDAF (The CW) Serving Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex talking about CCI's leather repair and restoration services
DALLAS (KDAF) — If you’re thinking of buying a new couch to replace on old one, you might hold off. Creative Colors can help repair the wear and tear of an old couch to make it look like new.
Jeff Boyer, owner of Creative Colors, shares how they restore leather, vinyl, heavy fabric, plastics, carpeting to save homeowners and business owners 50 to 90 percent on furniture repairs.
“In our advertising, we communicate to homeowners that we can save them as much as 50 to 90 percent versus buying new,” Boyer said. “That usually shakes out mathematically, once the work is done.”
Most repairs can be done in-home same-day, meaning there’s little to no downtime and you can get back to using your furniture almost immediately. Besides leather, Creative Colors also does repair work for a range of surfaces and fabrics for residential homeowners and also commercial businesses, including restaurants, medical facilities, professional office buildings and even aircraft interiors.
For more information, watch the full segment above or visit the Creative Colors International website.


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RJ Scaringe, the CEO of electric vehicle company Rivian, has surprised the internet with a diplomatic, optimistic response to a question about Elon Musk’s Tesla.
In a recent video, an interviewer asked Scaringe what he thought about Tesla and the company’s Cybertruck. While many expected the CEO to take the opportunity to attack Rivian’s competitor, Scaringe instead spoke about Tesla’s positive impact on the auto industry.
“I think it’s great that a product like that exists in the world,” Scaringe said. “We need to have a choice, we need to have variety, so it’s great to see something that’s so different that’s there. I hope that there’s lots of different choices that give lots of different kinds of customers [options].”
Electric vehicles are one of the most evident ways to help decrease our pollution footprints. The Environmental Protection Agency reports that the average gas-guzzling passenger vehicle creates more than 100,000 pounds of carbon pollution per year, and the U.S. Department of Energy asserts that EVs and hybrids have significantly lower environmental downsides.
Because EVs are so important to our movement toward a greener future, it’s essential that the auto market has a robust array of options for customers.
“Often in the context of the tech space, we think of a single winner, or maybe a small set of winners,” Scaringe explained. “In transportation, by definition, there need to be many winners, so there needs to be 20 to 25 successful auto manufacturers building electric-connected vehicles, so our success doesn’t require someone else’s failure, and vice versa, and it’s just very different when you think about traditional big tech where there’s one or two really highly concentrated winners.”
TikTok users shared their pleasant surprise at Scaringe’s thoughtful response.
“I own a Rivian truck. It’s fantastic. And his response makes me so happy to own it,” one commenter said.
“What a great response,” another user wrote.
“I like him already,” a third user commented.
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Tag Archives: target
Whether you procrastinated on buying gifts or just need an air fryer immediately, you can order from these stores and get your purchase the same day.
If you can’t shop Prime Day (because you don’t have Prime membership), these sales are open to everyone, not just Prime members.
Prime Day isn’t the only sale going on this week. Here’s What to buy where from Walmart, Target, Best Buy and. of course, Amazon.
Target is luring in early holiday shoppers by kicking off their October Toy Sale for 2020.
Walmart’s Big Save event runs through Oct. 15 and features deals on TVs, small appliances, toys, fashion and more.
Our experts predict the best prices and models for 4K TVs for Black Friday 2020.
We discuss which retailers will change their holiday shopping sales best to address the pandemic during Black Friday 2020.