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La Costa couple debuts ‘Love Tour’ pop-up museum
Over the past decade, Ann Delaney and Kyle Hill ran a wedding supply business where they created party favors, nuptial arches and three-dimensional photo backdrops and props for wedding guests’ Instagram shots.
Now, the La Costa couple has moved beyond the nuptial ceremonies themselves to focus on re-creating the look and feel of romance in their newly opened pop-up exhibit, “Museum of What? Love Tour.”
The 16,000-square-foot exhibition opened on Valentine’s Day evening in a former patio furniture store in the T.J. Maxx shopping center in Encinitas. Inside the building on Thursday morning, a bustling crew of mural artists and designers were putting the finishing touches on the project, which has nearly two dozen three-dimensional room stations and painted backdrops.
Delaney said the Love Tour offers visitors a G-rated, hands-on experience centered on love, romance, friendship and family.
“Over the years we found that people wanted fewer tangible things and more of an experience at their weddings,” she said. “People are craving love and romance.”
Inside the building there are places to hang written notes from a wishing tree, paddle a rowboat under a full moon backdrop, dig for seashells and scratch out love notes in an oversize sandbox, play in a giant pool of pink bubble balls, pose in front of a giant pair of feather wings and attach a lock of love to a fence before a mural of Paris.
Visitors can rake sand in a zen garden occupied by a 7-foot-tall panda sculpture, get chocolate Kisses in the Love & Kisses lounge, ride a flowered swing, pose with a dozen puppy sculptures and “walk” a trio of fake flamingos on leashes. There’s also a chalkboard room where they can write their wishes on the walls and a sassafras wood wall where people can “carve” their initials with brown Sharpee pens. To engage multiple senses, many of the rooms have their own individual scents.
Although many of the exhibits are designed for adults, Delaney said several are geared for children, since she and Hill are parents themselves, with a 9-year-old son and 7-year-old daughter.
Love Tour, which is slated to move next to Orange County, is the first exhibition of the couple’s new company, The Museum of What? Delaney said she and her husband have many as-yet undisclosed ideas in the pipeline for future themed touring exhibits.
Delaney, 38, said she and her husband came up with the idea about three months ago after hearing about the success of other pop-up exhibitions, which are often little more than brightly colored interactive spaces where Instagram users can pose with oversize props in imaginatively designed rooms.
One of the most successful is the Museum of Ice Cream, which has toured the country since 2016 charging visitors $38 to “swim” in a pool of plastic sprinkles, swing on an oversize plastic ice cream bar and ride a giant circus animal cookie carousel.
Because the Love Tour moved from the idea stage to grand opening so quickly, Delaney and Hill didn’t have much time to market their new concept. They also didn’t have many photographs to share on Instagram since most of the props and scenery have been created onsite in just the past 10 days. Nonetheless, virtually all of the 3,000 tickets for this weekend are sold out.
Hill, 34, is a Marine veteran from Arkansas whose passion is creating whimsical designs. One of his favorite items in the exhibit is a “love bug,” a full-size Volkswagen Beetle that he painted and decorated in dark red paint and sparkle glitter.
Delaney’s background is as an artist who has sold her rustic chic artwork, ornaments and designs on Etsy and to clients including David’s Bridal. Many of the designs and props in Love Tour were originally developed for weddings and special events.
Love Tour is on exhibit through March 15 at 220 N. El Camino Real in Encinitas. Admission is $24 for adults and $15 for children ages 3 to 12. Children 2 and under are free. Tickets are sold by timed entry, with a maximum of 200 visitors per hour to reduce wait times. The exhibit is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesdays-Sundays. Advance tickets can be purchased online at museumofwhat.com with limited sales at the door, depending on capacity.
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The Telstra T-Box is a surprisingly popular piece of hardware, but it's not long for this world — a new one should be out very soon. That new media streamer, though, apparently won't support one of the world's most widely used streaming video services.
The AFR reports that the T-Box, rumoured to be imminently discontinued and replaced with a cheaper and more 'net-connected version, will probably not be able to access Netflix when that service becomes available in Australia.
According to the AFR, Telstra has a replacement device ready to go that would supersede the T-Box, a lower-cost unit to complement the more expensive upcoming Foxtel iQ3. The new media streamer doesn't have an internal hard drive to temporarily or permanently store content, though, and will largely be focused on online video on demand services. Despite that emphasis, it won't support Netflix — probably the largest and most high-profile streaming video service likely to be released in Australia in 2015.
The ongoing partnership between Telstra and Foxtel means that a Foxtel Play equivalent is likely to be the main subscription video on demand (SVOD) service on the new T-Box, though Telstra's own BigPond Movies and Foxtel's Presto spin-off should both be available as well. While the lack of Netflix is entirely understandable, since the two companies will be in stiff competition, it may not turn out to be the best thing for the average T-Box-using consumer in the long run. [AFR]

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Information services firm Experian is responding to news that two states are investigating a breach involving a subsidiary that allegedly provided information to a cybercriminal, saying there's been "inaccurate information" circulating online.
Three more banks have filed a class-action lawsuit against Target and security firm Trustwave in the wake of the retailer's 2013 data breach. Meanwhile, two other banks have dropped their separate suit against the retailer and the vendor.
At a Senate hearing, GAO previewed a report that shows cyber-incident response shortcomings at federal agencies. And the FTC chair asked Congress for broad authority in enforcing a federal data breach notification law - if one is enacted.
Information security and privacy work in healthcare environments often requires a depth of specialized knowledge and competency that can be validated through the help of professional credentialing, says CISO Sean Murphy.
Houston-based liquor store chain Spec's says its network was attacked by malware back in October 2012, and the intrusion, which exposed card data and other information, may have continued until as late as March 20, 2014.
Even so-called minor breaches can cost organizations nearly $200,000, according to one finding from NTT Group's annual Intelligence Report. Rob Kraus of Solutionary shares the study's insights and advice.
An analysis of the Target breach prepared for a Senate committee is a political document that might help its patron's agenda but doesn't go far enough to identify technical solutions to help enterprises avoid Target-like breaches.
Following the release of a new report that analyzed how Target Corp. possibly missed several opportunities to prevent a massive data breach last year, U.S. senators grilled the company's CFO about the company's actions.
The No. 1 reason Congress, after five years of intensive efforts, has yet to enact comprehensive cybersecurity legislation is differences over how much liability protection to grant businesses to get them to share cyberthreat information.
A class action lawsuit filed by two banks against Target in the wake of its 2013 breach has an unusual twist: It seeks damages from Target and Trustwave, allegedly the retailer's qualified security assessor. Experts offer an analysis.
A report prepared for a Senate committee provides an extensive analysis of how retailer Target Corp. possibly missed several opportunities to prevent the massive data breach that compromised the credit card details of millions of customers.
As the California Department of Motor Vehicles continues its investigation into a possible breach of its online payments processing system, financial services industry sources explain why a link to recent retailer breaches is unlikely.


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New Delhi: Budget passenger carrier SpiceJet on Tuesday launched its Holi promotional scheme 'colour the skies' with domestic fares starting at Rs 1,699 all inclusive.
The airline's promotional scheme is also valid for international bookings starting at Rs 3,799 for Delhi to Kathmandu.
According to the airline, under the latest offer, tickets on routes like Hyderabad to Vijayawada, Delhi to Dehradun, Guwahati to Kolkata, Ahmedabad to Mumbai and Bangalore to Hyderabad can be booked at Rs 1,699.
Delhi to Kathmandu flights can be booked at Rs 3,799, with discounted fares also available on most other international routes.
The company said that a total of 100,000 seats are available on sale.
The latest discount scheme by the company is one of the many such offers that it has come out with in the recent past to shore up bookings in the lean travel period.
The company said that passengers can make bookings for the latest offer which is now open till midnight Feb 26 for travel period from March 1 to April 20, 2015.
The airline had recently announced a new enhanced schedule effective from March 29. The new schedule offers improved metro connectivity, attractive day return options, attractive non-metro connections and better timings.


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Omani cement producer, Raysut Cement Co., has showed an increased profit in 2016, according to recently released financial results, despite a fall in revenues over the period on weakness in the construction centre.
The company’s unaudited financial results show a post-tax profit of OMR21.2 million (US$55.0 million), 1% higher than in 2015.
Revenues were down 2.2%, however, at OMR92.6 million (US$240.5 million), while the cost of sales also edged up 3.3% year on year to OMR61.1 million (US$158.8 million).
The results preliminary, the company said, and had not yet been reviewed by the board of directors or its external auditors. Approved results would be released in due course.
Located in Salalah, capital of the sourthern Omani province of Dhofar and the country’s second largest city Raysut is the biggest cement producer in Oman.
In addition to ordinary Portland cement, the company produces a number of speciality products for the oil industry, including oilwell cement and pozzolona well cement.
Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/africa-middle-east/16012017/raysut-cement-reports-rise-in-profits/
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Heidelberg Material's CEO Simon Willis is leading a 45-minute session looking at how the heavy building materials industry is creating a pathway to low carbon infrastructure at this year’s Innovation Zero event.


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One is a maverick. The other, a master of the turnaround. But what they share is the belief you can do things better in the auto business.» Read More
PARIS, March 14- Nissan and Daimler have agreed on plans for a 50-50 Mexican joint venture designed to produce future vehicle models for their Infiniti and Mercedes-Benz brands, a person with knowledge of the matter said on Friday.
GENEVA, March 4- Daimler's Mercedes and Nissan's Infiniti plan to pool development of compact cars to cut costs, expand the German carmaker's North American production and broaden the Infiniti lineup, people familiar with the matter said.
PARIS, March 3- Whatever the secret of French carmaker Renault's crisis-defying performance, Carlos Tavares has taken it with him to domestic competitor PSA Peugeot Citroen. An appearance at the Geneva auto show on Tuesday marks Tavares's graduation from former Renault second-in-command and Carlos Ghosn protégé to Peugeot CEO- and Ghosn rival.
TOKYO, Feb 22- Honda Motor Co is considering diversifying its all-Japanese, all-male board by appointing a foreigner and could move as early as Monday, when it unveils its next slate of directors, sources close to the company said.
PARIS, Feb 19- PSA Peugeot Citroen's new boss promised a back-to-basics turnaround as the troubled carmaker unveiled a French-backed rescue deal with China's Dongfeng on Wednesday, along with another multibillion-euro loss.
*Renault targets 5 pct margin, 50 bln euros sales in 2017. PARIS, Feb 13- French carmaker Renault said on Thursday it would lift revenue by a quarter and its operating profit margin to 5 percent in 2017, extending its turnaround plan by a year after a missed sales goal.
YOKOHAMA, Japan, Feb 10- Japan's Nissan Motor Co beat analyst estimates by reporting its steepest quarterly net profit gain in nearly two years as a weaker yen made its export business more profitable and as sales improved in China, its biggest market.
YOKOHAMA, Japan, Feb 10- Japan's Nissan Motor Co beat analyst estimates by reporting its steepest quarterly profit gain in three years as a weaker yen made its export business more profitable and as sales improved in China, its biggest market.
Veterans of the annual World Economic Forum in Davos seized on the wobble as a warning that expectations for a smooth upswing were misplaced, and that recovery would likely be volatile and uneven. "I hear way too much optimism now," Larry Fink, CEO of investment group BlackRock, told the forum.
DAVOS/ LONDON, Jan 24- Top emerging market policymakers moved to allay concerns about their economies on Friday after investors sold off their currencies, raising fears of a broad market rout. "The balance sheet of the government, the banks and households are quite well protected against market volatility," he told a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos.
TOKYO, Jan 24- Nissan Motor Co and Renault SA will combine their manufacturing and research functions in a move that will save the alliance more than 400 billion yen a year, the Nikkei business daily reported on Friday. Under the planned structure, Nissan and Renault will be able to assemble cars, using shared parts, at the same factories, the Nikkei said.
DETROIT, Jan 14- In an escalation of the auto industry's war of words over future green technologies, a senior Toyota Motor Corp executive singled out Elon Musk and other rival executives on Tuesday and made a bold prediction for its hydrogen car.
*Nissan exec sees U.S. market growing by 1 pct at most in 2014. *To need more capacity in Mexico if Nissan hits sales goals.
PARIS, Jan 10- Renault-Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn wants to be succeeded by separate chief executives for the allied carmakers when he eventually steps down as head of both, he told Automotive News in an interview published on Friday.
PARIS, Jan 2- Fiat's deal to take full control of Chrysler on better-than-expected terms has cemented CEO Sergio Marchionne's dealmaking reputation, but he might run out of road to channel that drive into operational success for the business.
PARIS, Dec 16- Renault plans to harness its Formula One renown and alliance with Nissan to build a 3 percent market share as a latecomer to China, after signing a joint venture deal with Dongfeng Motor Group on Monday. Renault owns 43.4 percent of Nissan Motor Co.
PARIS/ HONG KONG, Dec 5- Renault has won approval from Beijing authorities to begin Chinese production in a $1.3 billion joint venture with Dongfeng Motor Group, the carmakers said on Thursday. The 50-50 partnership "will allow Renault to deploy its ambitious strategy in the world's largest automotive market", the French company said in a statement.
PARIS, Dec 4- The rush to Paris's Charles-de-Gaulle airport for flights to China began on Friday, Oct. 11. "There's a big exodus to China right now," a bemused trade unionist at the Paris- based company told Reuters that weekend. It has survived two world wars and become an emblem of France.
*Renault sees Russian market growing next year. BOULOGNE-BILLANCOURT, France, Nov 28- R enault- Nissan will build a second engine with Russian partner AvtoVAZ and aims to overcome a decline in Lada sales in a market set to overtake Germany within two years, Renault's regional boss said on Thursday.
PARIS/ BEIJING, Nov 23- PSA Peugeot Citroen is interviewing candidates to replace Chief Executive Philippe Varin, after Chinese partner Dongfeng said a deeper alliance under negotiation should be accompanied by management change, sources with knowledge of the matter said.


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Cross-fertilisation of technologies in the development of autonomous vehicles and the convergence of different sectors is as astonishing as it is profound.
But an intellectual property (IP) dispute involving Volkswagen and Broadcom, a California-based semi-conductor supplier, tells a different story.
Broadcom filed a $1-billion patent infringement claim against the German automaker. It also called on the courts to impose a ban on VW models containing the semi-conductors. In the end, a deal was struck.
But as expert in patent law Dr Olga Gurgula says: “A myriad of companies from a range of different sectors make patent disputes much more likely in the short term at least.” This is because more companies now specialise in particular systems embedded in self-driving vehicles.
Risk of autonomous vehicle patent war
Dr Gurgula, who lectures at Brunel Law School, says many of the main players “are already aggressively pursuing patent strategies”. She thinks the sector could be in for a bumpy ride and sees parallels with the mobile telecoms industry, where patent wars are common.
“While nobody knows quite what will happen, the ‘cross-pollination’ of sectors could mean more multi-billion-dollar law suits,” she says. “It is possible too that where it’s claimed an automaker has infringed a patent, they may have to stop selling their vehicles until the dispute has been resolved.”
However, Dr Gurgula is keen to stress that a temporary suspension of sales would be the worst-case scenario and most infringements would probably be settled out of court.
Are cross-licensing agreements the future?
Ilya Kazi, patent attorney, shares the view that “patent overlap” could lead to more litigation. However, Mr Kazi, who is a senior partner at Mathys & Squire, doesn’t think it so likely that a ruling in a patent court could prevent autonomous vehicles being sold.
“That would be an extreme and counter-productive step for everyone,” he says. “While it’s true a patent is a monopoly, which has the potential to stop rivals from trading, it’s in the patent holder’s commercial interest to make money from it and, of course, that doesn’t happen if nobody is selling anything.”
Mr Kazi thinks there’s likely to be much more collaboration in this field over the next decade. Some of it, he says “may be friendly and some grudging”, but the net result is likely to be that the key technology is made available at a realistic commercial price.
A myriad of companies from a range of different sectors make patent disputes much more likely in the short term at least
If this is to be achieved, Dr Gurgula expects companies to broker cross-licensing patent deals with each other whenever possible.
Indeed, several key strategic alliances between automakers and technology companies have already been struck. Toyota and Intel, Denso, Ericsson and NTT Docomo recently came together to form the Automotive Edge Computing Consortium, for example.
“Partnerships” the answer
Dr Gurgula says: “In an industry where multiple patents belong to numerous companies, it’s difficult to produce a single product without infringing on others patents. Therefore, for large companies to succeed, the best way forward is to create partnerships and joint-ventures.”
So could this stymie innovation? Mr Kazi does not think so. He says that while there will be challenges ahead, fundamentally the patent system is intended to encourage and reward invention, not to stifle it.
But Dr Gurgula believes that a patent may make it much more difficult for small companies, which are not part of a collaborative consortium, to develop their technologies and compete with patented inventions owned by established stakeholders.
However, she adds: “In the longer term, larger firms that decide to sit on a patent may unwittingly be a catalyst for innovation, as in doing so they may motivate smaller rivals to develop alternative technologies.”
Open Source IP: a viable approach to IP ownership?
“In addition to cross-licensing, in some instances we’ll also see more companies creating open source platforms for their inventions,” says Dr Gurgula. “This is already happening in other sectors, such as the pharmaceutical industry, where companies have gradually started to employ more open innovation business models.”
Mr Kazi adds: “Making some IP open source is an interesting idea and I have advised several clients to consider carefully what bits of their IP to keep proprietary and how to make other innovations available to others, in a controlled manner, which helps grow the overall market and benefits them in that way.”
But for open source licensing platforms to really take off in autonomous vehicle research and development, he notes that larger participants need to be convinced that widely licensing some patents very cheaply, or even for free, will spur innovation in the field and ultimately benefit them.
“Litigation will, of course, still happen,” Mr Kazi concludes. “But most agree that wherever possible commercial co-operation is better than an expensive round of litigation.”


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Apple's stock is hitting new all times thanks largely to an array of products that consumers can not get enough of. But exactly how many iPads has Apple sold so far? More than most people would have predicted.
Apple's touchscreen tablet launched worldwide this weekend and claimed blockbuster sales. Steve Jobs has taken a lot of flack for purposely excluding flash from the iPad, but it looks like he's still having the last laugh. The iPad is as big a hit as the iPhone and is on track for industry-defying sales in 2010.
So how many iPads has Apple sold so far? In the first 28 days of its launch, Apple sold 1 million tablet macs. Now its been 2 months and Apple doubled their sales with 2 million iPads. In January, after Jobs unveiled the "magical" tablet, some industry analysts thought Apple would sell as few as 175,000 units per month. Now analysts predict sales of 7 million or more in 2010!
That makes iPad the real star this past holiday weekend.


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After Android 9 Pie launch, Google made an announcement that they will follow a numerical order for their future OS versions. So after 2019’s Android 10, we are here to give you an insight on the upcoming Android 11. Yes, it is a bit far fetched since Android 10 has just started rolling out to every device, but we can stay assured that we will see a new Android OS launch in the mid-2020s. Soon after Google unveils the key feature updates in this launch in the mid-2020s, the company will start working to bring the new OS version to the pixel devices by Q3 of 2020. And after Android 11 is up and running on pixel devices, it will be distributed for any manufacturer to use and provide software updates to all the other latest smartphones.
24/01/2020: Recently on the Geekbench benchmark platform, Google Pixel 4 device has been spotted with Android R Operating System which is the code name of Android 11 until the introduction of the final build. This suggests the developer preview build release of the upcoming OS could be around the corner.
27/12/2019: Current Android OS allows users to record a single video upto 4GB in Size. This limit was introduced in 2014 with the Android 5. The limitation was mainly because of the writing speed of the storage module. Now, it seems the 4GB file size limit will increase as most of the phones use UFS 2.1/ 3.0 that offer faster read/write speeds. However, as of now, we don’t know about the maximum size limit. As per Xda Developers report, the upcoming Android 11 will allow a user to record a single video over 4GB in size.
When will Android 11 be released?
- The Android 11 expected to be announced on May 12, 2020, and the final release may begin to roll out from September 2020 to Pixel phones.
Google I/O 2020 is set to take place between May 12 and May 14 at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View, California. Google pulls the curtains on the new Android features at Google I/O. They later put the features together and roll them out with their new pixels device by September. The pixel devices are always the first ones to come with the official Android updates, following which other brands start rolling out Android for their devices. Last year it was Oneplus to follow google, this year anyone else might take that crown.
Recently, Google accidentally published the developer preview page for upcoming Android 11. However, Google was quick to take down the page but its screenshot was already captured by AndroidPolice. The page reveals that the latest OS will provide extended support for foldable devices and stronger protection for user privacy. It is expected that Google will start rolling out first developer preview for its next version of Android from March 2020.
Here are Android 11 features we want to see in 2020
- Scoped storage
- A Better Dark mode
- Nearby Sharing
- Extended Chat Bubble
As of now, there is only one key feature we can say about affirmatively, that is scoped storage. It was meant to be a feature for Android 10, but due to the issues faced by Android developers, it has now been postponed for the next Android. What scoped does is that restricts access to a user’s files and information to any app, which results in faster app processing, better security and improved app permission requests.
There is a long way for some other confirmed features on Android 11, as most flagship devices on the market have not yet even received the latest Android 10 updates. As soon as we have all devices running on Android 10, we will have more news about confirmed features of the next OS version.
A better dark mode
A lot of popular apps now are optimized for Android’s all-new dark mode, like youtube, Instagram and so on. But there are still some cases where texts become invisible as soon as turn on dark mode. Talking about Gapps, we have google search recommendations going completely invisible in all the black as this mode was not fully optimized for it. Yes on some apps it looks really good and gives the OS a cleaner look but if the app cannot function properly in dark mode, then the new visible change doesn’t make the user experience better.
There was a time when you can just tap two phones together and files are delivered over to the other device instantaneously through Android Beam, which used NFC to do it. But with Android 10’s launch, we no longer have this feature anymore. Now you need to go through a bunch of steps to share a file with someone close via Wifi, that too through another 3rd party app. So the users are hoping that Google will come up with something to make file sharing among Android devices faster and easier like before. As per XDA Developers report, Google is working on AirDrop rival which will be dubbed Nearby Sharing to replace Android Beam.
Extended Chat bubble
Facebook messenger’s bubble feature that keeps a conversation floating overlay of all the apps makes conversations faster and easier to do so while using other apps too. This handy feature is also now available in Google’s new message app and Hangouts app. We don’t see Whatsapp, Instagram and other such messaging compatible apps with this new feature. So it would be appreciated if this bubble chat feature becomes compatible with these other messaging apps too, where most of our conversations happen.
Android 11 may include “Share-to-Print” feature to enable a universal “Print” option to the Android share sheet. Now when you click on the share button to send an image or PDF you will see the “Print” option. If you click on that option you will see the printing menu where you can choose your desired printer. This feature will also let you convert and/or resize your file as required for the printers automatically.
List of Phones Expected to Receive Android 11 Update


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Private Firms Beat Down Depot Prices Of Fuel Making It Lower Than That Of NNPCL
Prices of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol have reportedly been reduced at some private depots.
The Secretary, Abuja-Suleja, of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Mohammed Shuaibu made the revelation.
According to him, the cost of fuel is set to come down in the coming weeks, given that more marketers including the independent markets would soon join the importation of the product.
He confirmed that some private depot owners were already cutting down the cost of the commodity, lower than the rate being sold by the NNPCL.
According to him, IPMAN was ready to compete with the NNPCL and major marketers to force down the cost of petrol nationwide.
He submitted that “The sector has been deregulated and, of course, if you have the power you will go and import. It is not going to be only the major marketers, independent marketers are also picking interest and t. will be competition.
And, of course, I know that sooner than later, the price of petrol will be forced down, particularly once the products from marketers start hitting the country from next week. This is because market forces will now determine the price.
“It is not going to be solely imported by NNPCL again, for instance, this week, the private depots reduced their prices, different from what NNPCL is selling. So it is a reduction lower than what NNPC is selling.
“With time there will be healthy competition. We know major marketers are expecting products in weeks and we will compete with them when our products start coming. This will further reduce petrol prices.
“People are lamenting. The price was raised by over three times its previous cost, coupled with the economic crisis in the country. So the patronage has been very, very poor.”
Recall that last month, the Chief Executive, of Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Farouk Ahmed, said some newly licensed importers of petrol were expecting their cargoes in July.
“The market is open already, we have to follow the regulations. So we have rolled out user-friendly policies. Some of them (marketers) have already started putting their applications in place.
This is because we don’t want to create a gap.
“NNPCL is slowing down on their importation, so we have to have someone who is closing up on that gap that NNPCL is creating in order not to have a shortage in the country.
“But NNPCL is also monitoring the replacements that they have. We agreed that NNPCL will continue to import until such a time when we have a critical mass of other importers,” Ahmed had stated in Abuja


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According to Pew, broadband growth among all American adults slowed, but grew 22 percent among African-Americans.
Following several consecutive years of double-digit growth, broadband adoption among U.S. adults slowed dramatically in the past year, according to a report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
The report - based on survey responses from 2,200 adults submitted during April and May - found that 66 percent of American adults currently access the Internet via a high-speed home connection. That represents just 5 percent growth compared with the 63 percent that reported doing so in 2009, and a significant slowing in the rate of adoption compared with the 15 percent increase witnessed between 2008 and 2009.
However, growth in adoption among African-American users far outpaced the national average, and all other demographic groups. The report found that 56 percent of African Americans now use a broadband connection, representing a 22 percent year-over-year increase compared with the 46 percent that reported doing so in 2009.
That data suggests a substantial portion of the three percent national growth could therefore have been driven by adoption by African-American users. Pew suggests the broadband adoption gap between African-Americans and white Americans has almost halved in the past year, now representing an 11 percentage point gap between the two, which stand at 56 percent adoption and 67 percent adoption, respectively.
Pro Rank Tracker is a cutting-edge ranking tracking tool for keeping you up-to-date with all the latest changes in the rankings of your websites and videos.
Jack Marshall was a staff writer and stats editor for ClickZ News from 2007 until August 2011.
US Consumer Device Preference Report
Traditionally desktops have shown to convert better than mobile devices however, 2015 might be a tipping point for mobile conversions! Download this report to find why mobile users are more important then ever.
E-Commerce Customer Lifecycle
Have you ever wondered what factors influence online spending or why shoppers abandon their cart? This data-rich infogram offers actionable insight into creating a more seamless online shopping experience across the multiple devices consumers are using.
October 13, 2015
1pm ET/ 10am PT
November 12, 2015


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Bentley, the latest automaker to jump on the luxury SUV bandwagon, just found its first Bentayga buyer.
Speaking with Bloomberg at the Frankfurt Motor Show this week, Bentley Americas CEO Michael Winkler says Queen Elizabeth will take delivery of the first production-spec Bentayga.
Having test-driven a prototype a few weeks ago, Queen Elizabeth will use her Bentayga on her Scottish property for hunting trips. Although the most aggressive off-roading most Bentaygas will likely see is a gravel road, it’s good to know at least one will be put to good use – by Her Majesty the Queen, no less.
The Bentayga, powered by Bentley’s twin-turbocharged 6.0-litre W12 engine, pumps out 600 horsepower and 664 lb.-ft. of torque. It starts at US$229,000, but Canadian pricing has yet to be revealed.


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With COVID-19 still dominating the narrative across the global banking industry, arguably the biggest challenge lenders will face in 2021 is how best to maximise the customer experience amidst such a challenging environment. Indeed, given the low interest rates that have continued to weigh heavily on banks’ net interest income (NII)
It’s fair to say that 2020 has been among the most consequential years ever for the fintech (financial technology) industry. Thanks in no small part to a deadly pandemic that swept across much of the world, consumers, households and businesses alike have all had to depend on the digital world a whole lot more than at any time previously.
We all love to be popular, but banks could forgo the increasingly sophisticated attention of cyber-criminals who are employing the latest technologies to commit cyber-theft, with the financial industry as their favourite target. Can banks do anything to protect themselves, or are they helpless victims of this new breed of bank thief? Fortunately, there are practical steps that banks—and customers—can take to strengthen their armour against cyber-security breaches.
As COVID-19 continues to transform our daily lives in significant ways, traditional banking models have come under intense pressure. Technology is facilitating a rapidly evolving landscape for financial services, with the execution of financial transactions no longer solely under the stewardship of conventional financial institutions.
BDO Unibank has been the bank of choice for Filipinos for decades, rewarded for its dedication to satisfying customers’ needs with high rankings. The Philippines’ Enhanced Community Quarantine has tested BDO’s dedication to its stated values, but it has proven faithful to its CORE commitments to clients. Even in stressful times, BDO is on track to fulfil its vision of serving as many customers as possible as expertly as possible.
Increasingly, core banking services no longer occur within the brick-and-mortar walls of a community’s bank. Financial services have broken out into mobile and online banking, with fintechs and neobanks competing with incumbent banks on their own turf. Banks should adapt to digital advances, but building customer trust is the make-it-or-break-it ingredient. Innovation will constantly change, but the need for relational trust between bank and customer will always remain the same.
Interview with Ms. Jelena Galić, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Executive Board, AIK Banka
Serbia has endured mixed political and economic conditions but today is enjoying a period of economic growth. One of its top banks, AIK Banka, is well positioned to take advantage of this favourable climate, having determined to serve its clients in the most innovative ways possible while maintaining its long-standing reputation for stability and integrity. CEO Jelena Galić recently updated us on AIK Banka’s progress in fulfilling its client-satisfaction drive.
In the old days, banks could work independently of others providing financial services, but not anymore. As the world becomes more interconnected, banks are being drawn into emerging ecosystems comprised of old and new players. Cooperation and integration are the names of the game for both incumbents and newcomers such as fintechs and virtual banks, but putting the blocks in place to build the infrastructure is easier said than done.
Southeast Asia, with a high percentage of its population still underbanked but with growing economies and widespread smartphone adoption, is prime territory for fintech upstarts as well as pioneering incumbent banks. The race is on, and many players have jumped in, with ASEAN governments promoting the contest, which is pushing the limits of financial services to new boundaries. The ultimate winners, of course, will be the commercial and retail customers.
The issuance of new regulation is not always met with elation, but financial and accounting industries in the European Union have reason to applaud the new PSD2, as it brings advantages for customers and businesses alike. Although the advantages for customers are clearer, such as increased control over their personal data, banks, too, will benefit from such features as better data, increased security and, in the end, more satisfied customers.


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Ferretti Group Welcoming Wally to the Family
Ferretti Group can now boast as having the widest range in Italian nautical industry with the announcement of the entry of Wally to the portfolio.
At the opening of Boot in Düsseldorf, Ferretti Group has announced the entry of Wally, the iconic luxury nautical brand and emblem of design and innovation, within the portfolio of its brands. This comes from an exclusive agreement of the Wally brand and the Group will further enrich their range, making them the widest and most innovative of the entire Italian nautical industry.
This exclusive license agreement will be from 2019-2022 and Ferretti Group will invest in over 84 million euros in the development of the brand and in the design and construction of new product ranges. The new Wally models will be built at the Ferretti Group shipyards, in particular the shipyard in Ancona will be the reference plant for Wally’s largest yachts.
Ferretti Group will also present the first project of the new era, the 48 Wallytender, which will be one of the most anticipated premières at the Cannes Yachting Festival 2019, during the Düsseldorf press conference
Alberto Galassi, CEO of Ferretti Group, said: “There has long been a mutual fascination between us and Wally and from today we will continue to develop this extraordinary brand with method, vision and investments. And with the same energy and creativity that have lead Ferretti Group the top of the yachting world. As yachting enthusiast, I’m looking forward to discover the boats that will come from the exclusive collaboration with Luca Bassani: it is easy to foresee that they will push the frontiers of innovation and aesthetic avant-garde to new echelon.”
Wally will return to the Boot in Düsseldorf, where it had not been exhibiting since 2004, with a booth which stands out for its innovative and technological concept, elegantly expressing all the styles of one of the most iconic brands of the nautical world.


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Aug 31, 2022
Conversica Continues Partner Ecosystem Momentum With New Exec from Salesforce
Eron Sunando joins as Vice President of Global Alliances and Business Development
FOSTER CITY, Calif., August 31, 2022 – Conversica, Inc., the leader in Conversational AI solutions for enterprise revenue teams, today announced the addition of growth and strategy expert Eron Sunando as Vice President of Global Alliances and Business Development.
With over 20 years of experience, Sunando will scale Conversica’s partner ecosystem and leverage his past success to supercharge Conversica’s indirect channel go-to-market strategy. His addition to the team demonstrates continued momentum in Conversica’s pursuit of strategic growth and using partnerships to add value for its customers. Earlier this year Conversica announced an integration with customer success platform Gainsight and prior to that the company announced a partnership with 6sense, a leading platform for B2B organizations generating predictable revenue. The company currently offers more than 600 integrations across the marketing, sales, and customer success ecosystem.
“We want hyperscale (aka non-linear growth) by building a partner ecosystem with companies that serve many industries. This allows us to better serve our customers and add to the capabilities of our products with value-add services,” says Jim Kaskade, CEO of Conversica. “With a deep understanding of technology across a number of of industries in the U.S. and abroad, Eron Sunando has the expertise to scale our partner-led joint development which will produce new capabilities in Conversica’s portfolio. We are the leader in revenue-centric Conversational AI solutions. Now we need to become the leader in each industry vertical by applying our success to specific domains with our partners.”
Digital Transformation Leader
Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Sunando previously worked at Salesforce as VP of Commerce Cloud product strategy and growth. He helped Salesforce’s customers and partners imagine and design their industry transformation possibilities and strategies toward a more customer-centric and scalable digital business. He has held various senior positions in sales, consulting, operations, and technology management roles, bringing customer intimacy through cross-industry knowledge, innovation, product development, and Go-To-Market experiences. Sunando has extensive international work experience spanning the U.S, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Japan. “Building the Strategic Alliance and Business Development function will drive Conversica’s nonlinear business growth as we take our platform headless, allowing our partners to drive ‘on platform’ innovation for customer success,” added Sunando. “We will look to add industry capabilities to our portfolio and invite partners to jointly build unique smart AI solutions as we expand our offerings and alliances.”
Conversica’s AI-powered Digital Assistants supercharge revenue teams for growth. They enable Marketing, Sales, and Customer Success teams to acquire untapped revenue through perfectly structured conversations. With billions of human interactions spanning more than a decade, Conversica’s AI Assistants have learned to influence and persuade customers and prospects throughout the customer journey lifecycle. Unlike chatbots, they are powerfully human and can hold meaningful conversations at every touchpoint. They fuel the conversations that create brand loyalty and maximize every revenue opportunity. They know how to say just the right thing at just the right time to help grow revenue, improve customer experience, reduce costs, increase operational efficiencies, and build brand awareness. Conversica’s Conversation Automation platform is used by leaders nationwide to get the conversation going and build the workforce of the future, today.
To learn more, visit conversica.com and follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.
Conversica Media Contact:
Meriane Morselli, on behalf of Conversica


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Amazon is crushing Walmart, eBay, and Target in the growing mobile shopping space
AP Photo/Ted S. Warren
According to a new note published by Oppenheimer this week, Amazon's lead in the mobile shopping space is growing by a wide margin, tripling the number of US unique visitors to its mobile app over the past two years. Meanwhile, its biggest competitors like Walmart, eBay, and Target saw almost no growth in the same time span.
On top of that, Amazon's mobile app is increasing its penetration rate in the US, with 50% of US online shoppers now on its app.
"At the end of 2014, Amazon had roughly the same number of mobile unique visitors as Walmart and eBay, in the US. As of December 2016, Amazon has more unique visitors than the apps of those two companies' combined," Oppenheimer wrote in the note.
"Amazon is well positioned to benefit from the shift to mobile shopping," it added.
These changes are particularly important for Amazon as more online shopping is expected to move from desktop PCs to mobile devices (typically smartphones or tablets) in the near future.
BI Intelligence forecasts mobile commerce sales will reach $284 billion, or 45% of the total US e-commerce market, by 2020 - up from $33 billion, or 11% of the total US e-commerce market in 2014.
- Over 60 schools in and around Bengaluru receive bomb threat, students evacuated safely
- TVS Motor Co sales rise 31% to 3,64,231 units in November
- Johnny Depp unknowingly taught Ranveer Singh the craft of acting
- Midcap index rising for last 21 sessions, hitting fresh highs since November 16
- Global smartwatch shipments up 9% in Q3, Fire-Boltt & Huawei hit new highs: Report


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While the cows on Old McDonald’s farm were limited to a moo moo here and a moo moo there, the California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB) has launched Cali CowChat, or what it calls a “virtual California cow app,” that allows users to send messages in a “California cow voice” while simultaneously pushing California dairy products to a national audience.
The Cali CowChat app gives consumers the ability to create a customized California cow avatar – which includes the ability to change its color, features and the shape of its spots, as well as to add accessories – and connect with friends “in an entertaining and original way” by sending personalized voice messages in the aforementioned voice to friends through Facebook Connect.
CMAB, which says it executes advertising, PR, research and retail and foodservice promotional programs on behalf of California dairy products, says consumers can connect with friends by sending voice messages to users in their Facebook contact list via “walkie-talkie-like functionality.” When the message is opened, the sender’s personalized California cow appears on the recipient’s phone and delivers the message in its unique animated California cow voice.
Michael Freeman, vice president of advertising for CMAB, says voice modulation software creates the unique cow voice. It allows users to “voice text [their] friends in a way,” he says.
“The sounds coming out of your voice are really funny and fun to play with,” he adds. “We’ll be monitoring how much people use the different features and think the sharing of voice messages will be one of the most popular.”
Users can also interact with their cows by milking them, shaking them up to make them dizzy, tickling them and moving them around the screen.
CMAB has also produced a YouTube video to explain how the app works.
The Cali CowChat app is free to download and is available for iPhone users. After a soft launch in May, it has been downloaded 81,000 times.
Freeman says CMAB plans to watch how well the iOS version does before making a decision about releasing an Android app.
The idea for the app came from CMAB’s strategy to expand beyond TV and traditional advertising and get into spaces where its target audience spends time.
CMAB’s primary target is women between the ages of 25 and 54 who have children at home because they tend to make most of a household’s dairy purchases, Freeman says.
“Moms are on a lot of screens during the day, so we have to be in the mobile space if we want to be where they spend a lot of time,” Freeman says. “Apps are a way for us to create some extended engagements with moms, get them to play with our brand, our seals and our characters – in this case, the cow avatar – and, basically, at the end of the day, create a stronger emotional connection to California dairy products.”
According to Freeman, California dairy products – mainly cheese, butter, ice cream and yogurt – are available across the U.S. and are expanding into Asia.
“California produces 21% of the nation’s raw milk, but only has about 12% of the population, so we have to find a home for these products,” Freeman says.
Real California Milk has 220,000 likes on Facebook; @RealCalifMilk has 2,100 followers.
Cali CowChat is the second mobile app from CMAB. The Real California Cheese Pair Savvy app launched in December 2010 and gives consumers ideas for paring California cheeses with wine, beer and chocolate.
CMAB says California is the nation’s leading milk producer. It is an instrumentality of the California Department of Food and Agriculture and is funded by the state’s more than 1,500 dairy families.
A digital marketing strategy is important for every business seeking for further growth, but how can you create an effective one? More ... read more
If you’re a brand selling high-consideration, ‘big ticket’ items like appliances, cars or luxury goods, the customer journey is vitally important.
Spotify, the popular digital music service, is getting into the video ad game with a new ad offering called “branded moments.” Currently, ... read more
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Bengali Hunt Desk: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing the nation on Tuesday, appealed to the country's 1.3 billion people to use more Indian products. The Home Ministry has since ordered the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) to sell only indigenous products in canteens and stores. It is heard that 50 lakh family members of 10 lakh CAPF jawans buy goods from this canteen.
Addressing the nation on Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for making the country self-reliant and using local products. In this direction, the Ministry of Home Affairs on Wednesday decided that from now on, only products made in the country will be used in CAPF's canteens and stores.
This instruction will be applicable in every CAPF canteen of the country from 1st June 2020. All the CAPF canteens in the country have an annual turnover of Tk 2,600 crore. 5 million family members of 1 million soldiers buy items from these canteens.
Home Minister Amit Shah said, “I urge the people of the country to use more and more of the products produced in the country.” This is not the time to lag behind. We have to turn this epidemic into an opportunity. If every Indian uses materials made in India, then in just five years, the country's democracy will be self-sufficient. ”
Yesterday Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri narendramodi He made an appeal to make the country self-reliant and use local products (products made in India) which will definitely pave the way for India to lead the world in the time to come. pic.twitter.com/KlYD9Z7UVt
– Amit Shah (AmitShah) May 13, 2020
Amit Shah said, “Let us all strengthen the hand of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in this journey of self-reliant India by increasing the use of indigenous products.”


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Replica football shirts are big business, very big business indeed. For example, Juventus some a staggering 520,0000 replica Ronaldo shirts in JUST 24 hours. In comparison, Leeds United sold 4,000 grey/pink away shirts on the first day they were on sale.
It was that grey/pink combination that divided Leeds United’s fanbase. Even though it broke records, and was sold out of a first-run within a week, it was a kit release that didn’t meet universal acclaim from Whites fans. Some liked it, some loved it, some derided it.
The main bone of contention was the colour scheme not being suited to a Leeds United away kit, especially not in their centenary season. It’s brash, it’s brave and it’s seen by its critics as being not in keeping with what Leeds United is all about. Those critical of it mention that it says something when the keeper’s kit is better than the away attire.
However, all this criticism could be about to be redrawn with news that United are to release a special 4th kit this year – a kit more in keeping with what it means to be Leeds. News of this release, and hints at the direction it would tatake came via United CEO Angus Kinnear in his usual programme notes (below) before the Nottingham Forest game yesterday.
Justifying the release of the great/pink kit and the upcoming release of the 4th kit, Kinnear said:
”The simple rationale is that we don’t want all of our 100-year celebrations to be retrospective. Traditionalists can rest assured that three of our four kits this season will be heritage-driven, but we wanted one kit to appeal to a new generation of Leeds supporters for our next century.”
The new, commemorative 4th kit is thought to be being worn on October 19th versus Birmingham City, this game happening two days after the Whites 100th birthday. One thing that can be guaranteed, if Leeds hit this release right, they can expect record sales of this 4th kit.


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We were thrilled when Stationery giant Signet asked to interview us for an upcoming Blog/Magazine feature recently. With over 60,000 clients, We've been working with Signet for a couple of years now and we love their products!
When they approached us about the feature, we happy to share our story and some insights regarding about our e-commerce packaging solutions and the importance of the unboxing process. From eco-friendly options to protecting our items from damage during transit, we were thrilled to share our story in the February - June 2020 Edition of Signet Magazine.
You can view the article on their website here.
For those who aren't able to see the hard copy version, you can view the article on their website here.


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Turning Stone Resort Casino had actually revealed a significant recruitment effort today, which they have actually called “Enter the Game.”.
The recruitment project launches with a premiere of the “Enter the Game” marketing project. From more than 100 workers who auditioned, almost 60 were picked to “star” in the recruitment project.
“Our workers have actually been the structure of our success, which is why we wished to make them the stars of this brand-new project,” stated Ray Halbritter, Oneida Country Agent, nd Country Enterprises CEO. “Our current growth has actually been enormously effective, and as we move into the next stage of growth, we’re wanting to cause more fantastic individuals to assist us to build on our numerous achievements.”.
Presently, website and ecological evaluations are being carried out, when those are done building can start, authorities stated.
Strategies likewise are moving on with the growth of Turning Stone. The casino prepares to construct a $100 million high-end retail shopping center/entertainment complex. It will be linked to the Exit 33 entertainment place, authorities state.
Strategies likewise are moving forward with the growth of Turning Stone
The tasks will be across the board, consisting of bartenders, food service employees, dining establishment personnel, supervisors, casino dealerships, retail employees and personnel for the upcoming PGA championship event, she stated. Staffing is required for the upcoming performances at the casino, which Abdo stated has actually been reserving bigger acts.
Strategies likewise are moving forward with the growth of Turning Stone. The casino prepares to develop a $100 million high-end retail shopping center/entertainment complex. It will be linked to the Exit 33 entertainment location, authorities state.
The Oneida Country opened Yellow Brick Casino in Chittenango in June 2015.
The 49th PGA Professional Championship game will be dipped into Turning Stone in June.
In addition, the need for catering has actually enhanced, Abdo stated, and the casino requires assistance because of the department along with seasonal employees. The casino likewise is tailoring up for its growth, which calls for a 300,000-square-foot high-end retail.
The Oneida Indian Country, which runs the casino resort, prepares to employ 300 generally full-time employees in the next 3 months, stated Kelly Abdo, promoting the Oneida Country.
Presently, the casino utilizes about 4,500 individuals in mostly full-time positions, Country authorities stated. This will include another 300 to that.


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Latest Toshiba Corporation Stories
IRVINE, Calif., Nov. 4 /PRNewswire/ -- Toshiba Storage Device Division (SDD), a division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc.
NEW YORK and BRISTOL, Conn., Nov. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Toshiba and ESPN, two companies built on innovation, today announced a new multi-platform sponsorship ad campaign launching in November and running throughout December of 2010.
CAMBRIDGE, England, SAN FRANCISCO and IRVINE, Calif., Oct. 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Autonomy Corporation plc (LSE: AU. or AU.L), a global leader in infrastructure software for the enterprise, today announced that Toshiba America Business Solutions Inc.
SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- SATA IO Working Group Booth # 425, IDF 2009 -- Toshiba America Electronic Components, Inc. (TAEC), a U.S.
IRVINE, Calif., Sept. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Toshiba Storage Device Division (SDD), a division of Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc.
IRVINE, Calif., Sept.
NEW YORK, Sept.
WAYNE, N.J., Sept. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Toshiba America Consumer Products L.L.C. ("Toshiba"), a market leader in home entertainment products, underscores its commitment to high-definition entertainment with the introduction of its first Blu-ray Disc player.
IRVINE, Calif., Sept. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Toshiba Storage Device Division (SDD), the pioneer in small form factor hard disk drives (HDDs), today announced a new series of 5,400 RPM 2.5-inch HDDs offering up to 640GB(1) of capacity.
- A person who stands up for something, as contrasted to a bystander who remains inactive.
- One of the upright handlebars on a traditional Inuit sled.


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ClearPath Solutions Finds CEO for P. Terry’s Burger Stand
March 5, 2019 – Irvine, CA-based executive search firm ClearPath Solutions has placed Todd Coerver as the new CEO of restaurant chain P. Terry’s Burger Stand in Austin, TX.
Leading the assignment for the search firm were founder Helen Lao; Amy Wilson, partner, SVP of talent; Jessica Dyer, VP of talent; Jack Wilson, VP of talent; and Nancy Persinger, associate partner.
Mr. Coerver, the former CEO of Denver-based Larkburger, began his new role last week, about a month after Larkburger shuttered six of 14 locations and announced a major rebranding of its remaining restaurants.
“It was an honor for ClearPath to be chosen among several elite search firms for P. Terry’s CEO,” said Ms. Lao.
Mr. Coerver led Larkburger for just two years. Before that, he spent seven years at Taco Cabana, where he served as chief brand officer and chief operating officer. He’s also former vice president of marketing and innovation at Whataburger. Both Whataburger and Taco Cabana are based in San Antonio.
“I’m truly honored Patrick and Kathy have entrusted me to shepherd their very special company forward,” Mr. Coerver said. “I’ve always been a huge fan and I’m excited at the opportunity to return to Texas to help them write their next chapter.”
Patrick Terry, owner of the burger outfit, described Mr. Coerver as the perfect individual to move P. Terry’s forward. “There were so many great candidates it was almost overwhelming,” he said. “But from an experience and culture standpoint, Todd just fit like a glove on a hand.”
Mr. Terry, who is stepping down as chief executive, said he intends to stay involved with the business. “I’m not going anywhere but I do see myself spending more time in our stores with our employees and our customers,” he told the Austin Business Journal.
Although he said he will miss being the primary decision-maker for the company, Mr. Terry said he had full confidence in his team. “Hiring incredibly competent people allows you to step aside and watch them work,” he said.
Mr. Terry and his wife Kathy started P. Terry’s in 2005 and now have 15 locations in the Austin area. “Running this amazing ship for almost 14 years has been like nothing else,” he said. The company has four other locations in central Texas scheduled to open in the next year and a half, and will also expand to Houston. A location in San Marcos is expected to open in May.
After 15 years in corporate HR, Helen Lao had a vision for a better way to find talent and balance being a mom. So in 2010, she founded ClearPath, an executive recruitment firm that reimagined the way organizations find next-level talent.
ClearPath’s first hires were all stay-at-home-moms who were professionals in their pasts, and looking for ways to contribute.
Over the past six years, Ms. Lao and her team have reinvented the recruitment model as they see it and leveraged technology to find better candidates faster, and to empower women to “have it all.”
Today, ClearPath has 20 team members in the U.S. from coast to coast. “We’ve worked with hundreds of the nation’s top retailers, restaurants, and franchises,” she said. “And we continue to innovate on how to make executive recruiting more efficient and effective for companies of all sizes and stages.”
Mr. Terry is also founder of Taco Ranch, which has two restaurants in Austin. Mr. Coerver will oversee Taco Ranch as well as P. Terry’s.
Last year, Southern Living magazine highlighted P. Terry’s with a headline declaring that “Texas Is Hiding America’s Best Burger Chain.” In a statement at the time, Patrick Terry hinted at the brand’s expansion plans.
“Next year as we dip our toe out of the Austin market, it should give us an indication of future growth and perhaps allow us a presence in other major markets in Texas,” he said at the time. “And from there, who knows?”
Boutique Search Firm
ClearPath Solutions, a boutique search firm founded in 2010, focuses on restaurants and retail. The firm prides itself on assigning a full team to every search, as opposed to just one recruiter. Its specialties include: executive search, recruitment,coachingand training,and humanresourceconsulting.
Ms. Wilson joined ClearPath Solutions in 2011. She holds a bachelor’s degree in human resources from Ottawa University.
Ms. Dyer came to the firm four years ago. In addition to her VP of talent role, she was previously talent acquisition partner for ClearPath Solutions. She has also worked as a leader in job matching for eMatchPhysicians, talent acquisition specialist for Paul’s TV, executive team leader for human resources at Target and senior search consultant for Carson Kolb Healthcare Group. She has a bachelor’s in business administration, marketing management, from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.
Mr. Wilson, who joined ClearPath in 2012, has also served as corporate talent acquisition partner for HNTB and senior corporate recruiter for Quest Diagnostics. He has a bachelor’s degree in human resource management from Park University.
Ms. Persinger, who joined ClearPath Solutions in 2010, was previously a franchise partner with Express Oil Change & Tire Engineers and a strategic account manager for AT&T. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Rutgers University, Newark.
Contributed by Scott A. Scanlon, Editor-in-Chief; Dale M. Zupsansky, Managing Editor; Stephen Sawicki, Managing Editor; and Andrew W. Mitchell, Managing Editor – Hunt Scanlon Media


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Robots - news on Plastech
On June 13 and 14 of this year, Wittmann Battenfeld celebrated its 10th anniversary at its Kottingbrunn facility. More than 1,400 guests accepted the company’s invitation to take part in this event and celebrated with Wittmann Battenfeld.
From May 29 to June 1, Wittmann Battenfeld will present to interested trade visitors latest injection molding technology as well as automation and peripherals at the Plast in Milan.
At the Plastpol 2018, from 22 to 25 May, the Wittmann Group will present with its subsidiary Wittmann Battenfeld Polska ultra-modern injection molding technology, automation and peripherals.
ENGEL is set to welcome visitors to the smart factory at Elmia Polymer 2018, Scandinavia’s biggest trade fair for plastics and rubber processing, which takes place from May 15th to 18th in Jönköping, Sweden.
At the Chinaplas 2018, Wintec - member of the Engel group of companies - will demonstrate with two machine exhibits how high quality can be combined with cost effectiveness and energy efficiency for the most varied requirements of standard applications.
From April 24 to 27, WITTMANN BATTENFELD will present latest injection molding technology for the plastics industry to trade visitors at the Chinaplas in Shanghai, the largest plastics fair in Asia.
With WITTMANN 4.0, the WITTMANN Group is presenting the only solution in the injection molding industry so far, which fulfills all requirements in terms of complete data acquisition and offers maximum flexibility for the combination of several production cells as well.
Gebo Cermex, part of the Sidel Group and world leader in packaging line engineering and material handling solutions, has recently signed a supply agreement with KUKA AG.
FANUC will exhibit three of its all-electric ROBOSHOT injection moulding machines at FAKUMA 2017
Improving productivity and ease of use
At Automaticon 2017 Comau will present the most recent solutions for packaging and palletizing.
At Koplas 2017 Engel will provide demonstrative examples of the opportunities created by digitalisation and networking.


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BEIJING (AP) - As if by magic, the new Harry Potter movie has popped up in China - courtesy of the country's notorious copyright pirates.
"Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" has not been officially released in China, and it only opened Friday in the United States and Britain.
But by Tuesday, video disc peddlers were selling illegal copies of the smash movie, with Chinese subtitles, for the equivalent of just $1.20. The packaging showed the boy wizard on a flying broom and shots from the film.
The copies were apparently filmed with a video camera in a theater, possibly in Taiwan, where it debuted over the weekend. The images were dark and grainy, the sound fuzzy. At one point, a member of the audience walked past the camera.


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The Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI), a government-funded think tank, has developed a new organic light emitting diode (OLED) lamp, which has an electricity consumption efficiency four times higher than that of typical incandescent electric lamps.
The ETRI-developed white OLED lamp has an efficiency of 70 lumens per watt, more than four times higher than the typical 15 lumens per watt of incandescent lamps. Remarkably, the new OLED lamp is also an environmentally-friendly invention in which no mercury is used.
In a lab environment, the OLED lamp has a lifetime of 10,000 hours, 20 percent longer than existing fluorescent lamps' 8,000-hour lifetime. The OLED lamp market is expected to be worth about W3 trillion (US$2.4 billion) by 2015.


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By: Adrian Mosqueda, October 19, 2021
Last month El Salvador became the first country to recognize Bitcoin as legal tender. The decision has faced a wide array of opposing opinions. Supporters identify the benefits such as providing a viable alternative for those that do not have access to traditional banking solutions. However, the decision has also been heavily criticized by those that consider the move too risky because of the volatile nature of the cryptocurrency. Some business owners also express concerns regarding their poor understanding of the “virtual currency” and how to implement it in their daily transactions. But what does this revolutionary implementation mean for the global financial landscape?
Due to international commercial law, Bitcoin is also authorized as legal tender under all the treaties where El Salvador is a member. This could bring serious implications in the way international corporations conduct business with El Salvador-based businesses. For example, businesses outside of the country could be required to find a way to pay with bitcoin to vendors in El Salvador. Undoubtedly, this will cause one of two outcomes. Either Bitcoin will be implemented in some capacity by these businesses, or they will find somewhere else to obtain the same goods. The first scenario could lead to an even wider acceptance of bitcoin ultimately benefiting those who favor it. The latter outcome is surely the least desired by Salvadorean business owners who heavily rely on international transactions to stay afloat. The domino effect will negatively affect the country’s economy and will cast even more doubts on the government’s decision.
This decision’s far-reaching effect can also influence the way the United States views this emerging industry. For example, United States regulators have tried to implement existing rules for businesses and individuals who deal with virtual currencies like Bitcoin in the last decade. The fact that now Bitcoin is recognized as legal tender in a jurisdiction directly contradicts language from some U.S regulators. For instance, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) described virtual currencies as currency that have no legal tender statute in any jurisdiction. That determination directly determined the level of disclosures and rules that businesses and individuals dealing with in this industry had to comply with. If Bitcoin is now legal tender under some jurisdiction, U.S regulators may take a position of applying rules that have traditionally only been applied when dealing with traditional currencies.
The World Bank has stated that it could not help El Salvador in adopting bitcoin “given environmental and transparency shortcomings.” However, the World Bank seems to be trying to create its own cryptocurrency to stay relevant. Although it is too early to see what that looks like, there is a risk of a more centralized structure compared to Bitcoin. For example, the public could be forced to acquire this new cryptocurrency directly from banks and restrict the usage of third-party crypto sites. Whether it is with Bitcoin, or with a new solution, the current financial system is evolving to adapt to current trends. Hopefully, innovation will consider those who have traditionally been left behind by the banking world and give them an equal chance in the system.
El Salvador’s move can start a domino effect in global financial institutions. Although El Salvador is a small country, if some other countries adopt a similar position regarding Bitcoin, we could see a huge impact on the global financial landscape. Other countries from South America seem to be already considering the adoption of Bitcoin. If the adoption in a small country is having a significant effect, any number of countries that follow will create a sea of changes worldwide. Even if some other jurisdictions do not adopt Bitcoin as legal tender, they might develop their own virtual currency. Although Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies rightly bear a bad reputation due to volatility and even their environmental impact, they are on their way to becoming the backbone of the global financial structure.


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MANILA, Philippines – An alleged major distributor and supplier of fake medicines was arrested in Tondo, Manila, with P1.2 million worth of counterfeit medicines seized from him.
In a statement on Sunday, November 25, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) identified the suspect as Alexis Asistio, 36.
He was arrested after FDA agents and police inspected his residence, also serving as a warehouse, last October 29. A search warrant had been issued last October 22 by Manila Regional Trial Court Branch 26.
Retired police chief superintendent Allen Bantolo, officer-in-charge of the FDA Regulatory Enforcement Unit, said Asistio does not have any license from the FDA, whether as a manufacturer, importer, exporter, distributor, or dealer of medicines.
The following fake medicines were seized from Asistio:
- 298 boxes of Bioflu (100 tablets per box)
- 200 boxes of Biogesic (500 tablets per box)
- 195 boxes of Alaxan FR (100 tablets per box)
- 395 boxes of Medicol Advance (100 tablets per box)
- 148 boxes of Neozep Forte (100 tablets per box)
- 48 boxes of Solmux (100 tablets per box)
- 18 boxes of Kremil-S (100 tablets per box)
- 8 boxes of Dolfenal (100 tablets per box)
- 8 boxes of Flanax Forte (250 tablets per box)
- 5 boxes of Gardan (200 tablets per box)
- 3 boxes of Imodium (200 tablets per box)
- 4 pieces of Dermovate ointment
“Asistio and his cohorts are believed to be distributing and selling these assorted fake OTC (over-the-counter) products to sari-sari and other similar small stores in and around Metro Manila at cheap prices, and offering substantial profits for the vulnerable and uninformed storeowners,” Bantolo said.
According to the FDA, drug manufacturers Zuellig Pharma, Johnson & Johnson, Unilab, and Pfizer confirmed that the seized medicines were indeed fake.
“The presence, proliferation, and selling of counterfeit OTC medicines in the market poses great danger and health risks to the consumers,” said FDA Director General Nela Charade Puno.
“The public should be wary and vigilant against those fake OTC meds. Consumers should buy them only from reputable drug stores,” she added.
Asistio now faces charges for violation of Republic Act No. 8203 or the Special Law on Counterfeit Drugs.
Back in March, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered a crackdown on manufacturers and sellers of fake medicines. – Rappler.com


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Hunt Marketing, an integrated marketing firm based in Oxford, Miss., has formed a strategic partnership with Sunshine Quality Solutions (Sunshine), a John Deere dealer with 17 locations across southern Louisiana.
"We're excited about our partnership with Hunt Marketing," said Sunshine CEO Rob Richter. "We value building solid relationships with the people we serve and are looking forward to working with a company that shares in that commitment."
Hunt Marketing began the production process for the Sunshine brand in October 2021.
"We're so grateful for the opportunity to work with the Sunshine team," said Hunt Marketing CEO and President Will Hunt. "The passion they have for what they do is infectious, and we're honored to play a role in helping them grow even more."
"We're really looking forward to our future with Hunt Marketing," said Grace Vest, marketing coordinator for Sunshine. "Their team knows John Deere, and we're excited to work together to develop some great creative for the Sunshine brand and our customers."
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GE’s risk-taking good for Louisville and customers
- Staff Louisville Business First
At a time when numerous businesses are sitting on a lot of cash waiting for some magical sign that a robust economy is just around the corner, General Electric Co. is investing heavily in the future.
Thankfully, a lot of that investment is coming at the Louisville-based GE Appliances division.
In the last few years, GE has pumped more than $800 million into Appliance Park. The company has launched four new product lines this year alone.
This week GE introduced a new high-efficiency, top-loading washing machine, which was engineered right here in Louisville. That follows the launches this year of a hybrid water heater, a French door bottom-freezer refrigerator and a new dishwater line.
The introduction of these state-of-the-art appliances has led to a significant number of new jobs and a whole lot of red ink. More than 1,500 production workers have been hired at Appliance Park this year. In the last two years, about 500 engineers have been signed on.
All that investment and a sluggish home-building market has not been good for Appliance Park’s bottom line recently. It lost $55 million in 2010, $50 million last year and probably will lose $80 million this year.
But those numbers should turn to black very soon. The home-building market is rebounding, and there is a growing demand for high-efficiency, energy-saving appliances.
GE is in a great position to capitalize on that demand because it was willing to invest in its business at a time when others might have been more conservative.
There’s a lesson to be learned from the way GE reinvented its appliance business. First, it had to reach an agreement with its unions to assure it could make a competitively priced appliances in the United States.
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Foreign travel is set to plummet this year with the restrictions and potential quarantines that could be imposed for many holidaymakers - but the leisure industry in Lancashire is expecting a 'staycation' boom.
As many as 40% of British people are planning a domestic holiday this year, according to research by Autotrader.
However, tourism boards are encouraging people to wait until there's less of a threat from the virus, while some local businesses are saying there is not enough government support to plan for such demand.
The latest advice from the government suggests that hospitality businesses such as hotels and restaurants may start to open from the 4th July - but many are saying it looks unlikely at the moment.
Business owners across Lancashire, a county rich in eye-catching coastlines and beautiful countryside, will have their eyes glued to that all-important R number, hoping they can welcome back customers soon.
'We've lost well over £10,000 in lost bookings - but it still might not be the right time'
Blackpool is one resort that could face an influx of tourists if holidaying at home becomes the trend this summer.
However, some hotels are saying that a lack of time, money and guidance from the government means it will be difficult to prepare for a busy season with coronavirus-based restrictions.
Jill Priestley, one of the proprietors of the Hornby Villa hotel in Blackpool, says she's banked on reopening on the 10th July but "honestly can't see that happening".
Regulations around social distancing and a stronger focus on cleanliness means even domestic holidays will look different - something that smaller businesses might struggle with.
"There's not much practicality, we've tried to do our dining room with tables two meters apart, but as we're a small hotel that only gives us four tables - that's half our capacity," she told us.
"The government should look at helping hospitality a bit more," she said.
The lack of communication or any clear guidance so far from the government has led to anger from some hotel managers - including Jill.
"I've been scouring and searching for guidelines but there's nothing out at the moment," she said.
"There's no indication - obviously there's the two metre distances but that's the only thing we know at the moment.
"Do we do services for guests, such as pouring them coffee, are we going to be allowed to serve breakfast, will staff have to wear PPE, there's so many questions we've not got the answer for."
The £10,000 figure only includes that lost from cancelled bookings, and not money from rooms that might have been booked but couldn't due to the crisis as the hotel stopped accepting reservations.
Most of the money has been recovered in the form of a government grant, but the hotel owner is saying they still need more support.
"The longer they leave it until we can reopen with 50% capacity, the less time we have to purchase things to keep people safe," Jill said.
Blackpool's current status in terms of transmission rate of the virus could compound the problems for local businesses, as tourists are put off the area.
"I've seen comments on Facebook pages saying they'd go nowhere near Blackpool, calling it a breeding ground for the virus," said Jill.
"I actually don't think people might be too inclined to book as soon as July with how the virus is at the moment."
To her loyal guests, Jill couldn't be clearer in her desire to see them again but once there's no risk of them being affected by the pandemic.
"Please, come back when it's safe, and adhere to government guidelines," she said.
'We look forward to seeing you here soon... when the time is right'
That's the message from Ribble Valley Borough Council, who are encouraging people to keep sticking to the government's coronavirus restrictions, while they plan the picturesque borough’s return to the ‘new normal’.
They've released a film showcasing the striking landscape and historic attractions that bring so many tourists to the Ribble Valley, alongside a clear message - 'not yet'.
The council’s tourism officer, Tom Pridmore, said: "This has been a particularly challenging time, with the whole of the tourism industry in lockdown."
"We are, however, drafting a response and recovery plan to promote tourism in the borough, when it is safe to do so for visitors and the community," he added.
Tourism and hospitality are a major part of the Ribble Valley economy, contributing over £260million to the local economy, with visitor numbers increasing year-on-year by seven per cent.
And the proposed reopening of the Clitheroe to Hellifield line, which will see the restoration of rail links between Clitheroe and Skipton, Leeds to the east and Lancaster and Carlisle to the north, could be bring tens of millions of pounds to the local economy and East Lancashire as a whole.
Therefore, getting the tourism industry moving again is a vital step for the borough - but only when it's safe for tourists and businesses.
The Ribble Valley Response and Recovery Plan has been introduced by the council for consultation, which details how the area can come out of the other side of the pandemic.
The recovery phase involves promoting responsible tourism, supporting local businesses, and marketing the area at a time when competition over tourists will be “fiercer than ever”.
“Ribble Valley is an incredibly special place, alive with innovation and home to many entrepreneurs, tourism and hospitality businesses," said Amanda Dowson, chairman of the Ribble Valley Tourism Association.
“We have recovered from difficult times before and with change, creativity and collaboration we can recover again,” she added.
'We're really positive about staycations'
Quite Simply French in Lancaster is one venue that would expect to benefit from a rise in domestic tourism.
The gourmet restaurant attached to a small boutique hotel would be just the kind of place that would attract people looking for a short break in the city.
However, whether that has a positive effect on their bottom line, and whether guests will be getting the experience they’re expecting, is all down to the regulations - and management says that they need more clarity from the government.
“There’s no guidance on things like using partition screens on your tables rather than the two metre rule because that will be a really useful piece of information,” said Rob Mason, manager of Quite Simply French.
“We’ve spent money on having bespoke screens made between tables but if they tell us that they’re not enough then that will be a real issue, not only for us but for other restaurants too,” he told us.
“If we’re forced to keep tables two metres apart we’ll lose a minimum of 35% of our capacity, if we lose so many tables especially on a Friday and Saturday that equates to about £125,000 lost over a year,” he added.
To get ahead of the competition, Quite Simply French has been moving to meet what they expect the guidelines to be before the government advice is released, so they’re not “scrambling at the last minute” to get the business COVID secure.
“My aim is to go above and beyond what the government is expecting so when customers come in they see how seriously we're taking their safety and the safety of our staff, in terms of making sure that we're doing all our due diligence,” Rob told us.
“It took a good couple of weeks to get automatic soap dispensers and screens in the restaurant and they all cost more money,” he said.
Despite the concerns over regulations, the concept of a staycation boom is something that the restaurant and hotel has been planning for and is excited about.
The venue has been putting together packages for dinner and breakfast, adding extras such as free prosecco in their rooms, alongside cocktails and amuse-bouches to entice holidaymakers.
“I think that people will still want to get away and I think staycations are something that we will benefit from and something that we’re really positive about,” Rob said.
Staycations will allow people and the economy to start getting to some kind of new normality - and according to Rob, people should start being given the option to be able to start visiting leisure venues again once it’s as safe as it can be.
“We have to reach a point where people have to take ownership of what they want to do personally. As long as the R rate is kept under control, people should be given the option that if they choose to go into a restaurant and as long as they’re doing everything they should do, then they should be given the option.
“If this track and trace system says there’s a spike in Lancaster then we absolutely should be locked down for the good of the NHS and the greater community but we have to reach a point where we need to start opening things back up,” he said.


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Mighty No. 9 Delayed Again
Ben Sheene / Jan 25th, 2016 No Comments
Mighty No. 9 has been delayed again and is now expected to be released at some point in spring 2016.
Keiji Inafune sent a message out to Kickstarter backers of the game announcing news of the delay. Mighty No. 9 was slated to release a week from now on Feb. 9. Inafune cites network issues and the bugs inside them, specifically when it applies to matchmaking. Fixing the issues with the online modes results from the fact that it is being ported to nearly every console available and that the game’s Unreal 3 engine is no longer being supported. Unfortunately, Inafune and his team at Comcept were not able to resolve the problems in time despite working up to the last minute.
“For this 3rd delay of the game, we have no excuses for disappointing our fans and especially our backers once more,” said Inafune. “We want to take this chance to express our sincerest apologies to everyone who has looked forward to the release. Although we are far past our original release date, the release of Mighty No. 9 is still right around the corner. We are all working hard to make sure that we can finish and release the game to all of our fans as quickly as possible, and ask once more for your support of this project that we have created together over these last few years.”
The vague spring 2016 release date is given because Inafune wants to make sure everything is in order before making another announcement.
Game delays happen but it seems to be particularly devastating in the case of Mighty No. 9. The game was one of the biggest Kickstarter projects because fans loved Inafune’s work at Capcom and this looked like the Mega Man game they haven’t had in years. But to be pushed from April 2015 to September 2015 to be delayed at the last moment into February 2016 to be delayed at the last moment again doesn’t instill much confidence. It’s possible the lack of hype around the game’s release could be attributed to rumblings of these problems. The real question might be, though, is if most Kickstarter backers and fans think problems with online modes are a good enough reason to push the game back yet again.
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tags: Comcept , Keiji Inafune , kickstarter , mega man , Mighty No. 9


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On the eve of the Alibaba Group’s famous 11.11 global shopping festival, the world is battening down the hatches in preparation for a deluge of gigantic numbers. Records will tumble: More shoppers, more sales, more merchants, more transactions, more packages, more money.
And to hear Alibaba co-founder and executive vice-chairman Joe Tsai tell it, the concept of buying globally and selling globally – from a mass-market, business to consumer perspective is really only just starting.
The eCommerce phenomena was not invented in China, but China is now unquestionably its global driving force.
The collective purchasing power of 1.3 billion Chinese, coupled with 20-odd years of low double-digit annual real wage growth in China has created a consumption monster with a voracious appetite (increasingly for international goods.) Add to this mix the ubiquitous smartphone and you start to see how this beast got so big.
The Alibaba’s 11.11 festival puts a marketing spotlight on that consumptive power for a day each November 11. But the reality is this is 365 day a year opportunity, and its one where Australian brands have been late to the game.
So first to the numbers. In 2016, the 11.11 festival attracted hundreds of millions of shoppers to the platform. It created 657 million separate parcels for delivery, through peak transactions of 175,000 per second generating US$17.8 billion in gross sales. All in a frenetic 24-hours on a single platform.
In the several days that follow the festival, tens of millions of people will be deployed across the globe of fulfilment missions – literally delivering the goods ordered in a frenetic 24
Last year, about 100,000 brands sold products though the festival.
“This year we will have more than 140,000 brands that are going to be doing business on the Alibaba platform, trying to reach Chinese consumers,” Joe Tsai told a media conference in Shanghai on Friday evening – just ahead of the mid-night launch of the festival.
“That’s a 40 per cent increase compared to a year ago. And of those 140,000 brands, 60,000 of them are international brands, really a representation of the international nature of the festival.”
That 40 per cent increase in brands participating in the festival is an indicator for growth in the broader numbers for this year’s 11.11. Forecasts are suggesting gross sales of US$23 billion to $24 billion.
There are a few things worth keeping an eye on this year beyond the raw numbers, Joe Tsai says, foremost of which is its progress toward the “new retail” concept. Alibaba reckons it has made substantial progress in bringing together the online and offline retail experience – the holy grail of retail.
“Today’s consumer expectations are getting higher and higher. It means we have to work harder and harder to implement a retail strategy in order to satisfy those expectations,” he said.
What’s driving the incredible growth of the 11.11 Singles Day is the power of the Chinese consumer. There are more than 300 million middle class consumers in China, a number that is expected to double by 2020.
Every year, disposable income grows, and every year – according to Joe Tsai – this group wants better quality goods and they want a better quality of life.
“This powerful group is propelling the consumption [trends] in China and will shift the economy from an export and investment-driven economy and into a consumption economy,” Mr Tsai saod.
“Consumption as a percentage of GDP in China is only about 40 per cent. But if you look at the developed markets like the United States, consumption is approaching 70 per cent,” he said.
In a Chinese economy worth about US$12 trillion, that’s about US$4.5 trillion in consumption. But as that proportion gets toward 70 per cent, it is going to be a very significant number – somewhere around US$7 trillion or US$8 trillion.
“In 1999, when Alibaba was founded, the GDP per capita in China was $870. Today the GDP per capita is more than $8,000. That’s a 10x increase in GDP per capita in just the last 18 years.”
The high growth in real wages and the relatively high levels of household savings in China “has resulted in a huge amount of surplus cash on the household balance sheet,” Mr Tsai said.
All of which amounts to incredible consumption power in China that is driving online commerce and festivals like 11.11.
Which brings us to Australia and its belatedly growing interest in the China market. There are about 1,300 Australian and 400 New Zealand brands on Alibaba’s Tmall and Tmall Global platforms.
The Alibaba Group officially set up in Australia just last February with long-time employee Maggie Zhou installed as managing director.
“Our focus is really to enable merchants in Australia and New Zealand to create opportunities (on the Alibaba [platform], Ms Zhou said.
“If they can sell more product into China and get access to other markets, then they are going to thrive,” she said.
Alibaba has launched the Taobao World service – a platform that promotes China-based brands to the worlds 100 million-plus overseas ethnic Chinese.
The Taobao World service was established in ASEAN as its first base of operations. But the company setup the service in Australia as its first western market – a test bed of 1.2 million ethnic Chinese in Australia before moving to the US, Canada and Europe.
James Riley traveled to Shanghai as a guest of the Alibaba Group.
Do you know more? Contact James Riley via Email.


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Updated : 1 month, 1 week ago IST
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 25 (ANI/NewsVoir): Greaves Electric Mobility Pvt. Ltd., the e-mobility arm of Greaves Cotton Limited, and one of the leading players in the electric vehicles segment announced the completion of its acquisition of 26% stake in electric-3 wheeler manufactu
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 25 (ANI/PNN): Vazirani Automotive, one of India's innovative startups, is all set to launch, one of a kind expression of art, Ekonk.
Nicosia [Cyprus], October 25 (ANI): Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, failed to achieve positive results in his two latest trips to the United States and Russia. This may be attributed to the fact that the autocratic Turkish leader has become overconfident, thinks that he can play
New Delhi [India], October 23 (ANI): Chief Justice of India NV Ramana on Saturday pushed for "complete financial autonomy of the judiciary" through the establishment of a National Judicial Infrastructure Authority (NJIA) of India.
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], October 22 (ANI/PRNewswire): Blockedge Technologies Inc., a subsidiary of SecureKloud Technologies Ltd. announced the launch of its Blockchain Network Management Platform.
Washington [US], October 21 (ANI): To make work schedules easier for its users, tech-giant Google is adding new dedicated focus time entries to Calendar that will auto-decline meetings for the users.
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India]/ Palo Alto (California) [US], October 21 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Uniphore announced today that it has completed its acquisition of Jacada and is unveiling the industry's most comprehensive platform that will further enable enterprises to transform customer expe
Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], October 21 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Bengaluru-based technology trendsetter Knowledge Lens today announced that their IIoT Platform iLens (UnifyTwin), has been positioned by Gartner as a Niche Player in the 2021 Magic Quadrant Report for Industrial IoT Platform
Seoul [South Korea], October 21 (ANI/Global Economic): Genesis announced on the 20th that is has been named '2022 Best SUV of the Year' by the U.S. automobile magazine MotorTrend.
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 20 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE: ROK), the world's largest company dedicated to industrial automation and digital transformation, has been playing a significant role in enabling radical transformation in the manufacturing ind
Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], October 20 (ANI/NewsVoir): To gauge the market outlook and consumers' sentiments pertaining to four key verticals - Gold (Jewellery), Consumer Electronics, Automobile (two-wheelers), and Apparel, Aroscop conducted intensive pan-India studies and released report
Boston [US]/ Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], October 19 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Boston based FinTech company, Tera, has launched a full-stack AI powered finance automation platform to help businesses save time and money by offering a unified experience in managing banking, corporate cards,