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If the past year has taught us anything, it is that we as a collective are capable of improvising, adapting, and overcoming the curveballs life throws at us. Of course Bear Grylls had meant for these to be the qualities that made one an ideal soldier, but in all fairness, the past year has been something akin to a battle in itself.
Not one to be left behind in the race to keep up with the changed circumstances—ever since the lockdown came into effect around the world in March—the art world, too, and has been swift in improvising ways to adapt. Auction houses and galleries have not missed a beat in moving their operations online and coming up with new ways to sustain the business. These spaces that have been catapulted into the digital space, are now faced with the challenge of navigating this virtual world, and at the same time, keeping the attention of both, the seasoned buyers and the newbies in the game.
Like every other sector of the economy, the heat of the sudden standstill was felt by the art world as well, be it galleries or artists. But it hasn’t been all downhill. And a lot of it has to do with some of the biggest auction houses in the world being quick in moving their wares online, while maintaining the level of client servicing expected of them.
Renowned names in the game like Sotheby’s Christie’s, and ones closer to home like Pundoles Auction House, and Saffronart have reported heartening sales throughout the lockdown since March, and they only seem to be growing.
When One Door Closes, Two Virtual Ones Open
Although apprehensive about the turnout at first, Sotheby’s, for instance, hosted over a hundred online sales between March and June, totaling $200 Million.
In June, Sotheby’s further tested the digital waters for the sale of high-value art, with a new innovative format of the live auction. The Sotheby’s Marquee Evening Auction ended up making sales worth $363.2 million, with their specialists in New York, London and Hong Kong taking phone bids live on camera, and the auctioneer presiding over the live stream event in London.
A similar virtual sale by Christie’s, around the same time, called the “global 20th-century art sale”, replaced the company’s live evening auctions in New York. The auction that now spanned across London, New York, Paris, and Hong Kong raised $420.9 million, seeing some works going for double, and triple their estimates.
If anything, the unprecedented success rate of these online auctions by the bigwigs in the game shows a promising future in the sphere.
Millennials who are familiar with the online world, and are comfortable making online transactions make up a large portion of this new clientele that the auction houses and galleries are eager to lock-in.
The lockdown and the subsequent free time that came at the start of it, has led many young ‘buyers’ to venture deeper into the world of art trade to become serious ‘collectors’.
With the requirement for physical presence and the geographic location of the buyer no longer being factors, online sales in many ways have broken walls of exclusivity, allowing a larger number of people, from across the world, access to their events, their catalogues and, to partake in bidding. This has not only lead to a spike in young collectors but also in the sale of works by emerging artists.
Just the ease of participation that the online events allow has boosted the attendance of these events. The response to this new format of art trading has been so positive that it’s hard to imagine any auction house not considering developing it as a permanent feature.
Navigating the Digital Art Market
Online events are unlikely to entirely replace physical auctions, but like all the other aspects of our lives that have been altered to give way to the ‘new normal’, it is likely that they are here to stay, and only going to get bigger. So, anyone interested in collecting would do well to know their way around it.
If you’re a young collector new to the game, or a seasoned player new to the online world, here are some tips, we think, you should keep in mind while buying art online.
- Research, Research, Research: Like the big bad wolf, warnings of the ‘big bad internet’ are drilled into our minds, but it never hurts to reiterate. Compared to physical spaces, the scope for fraud and deception is far higher on the internet. So, it is important that you not only research the artist and the artwork you’re planning on buying but also do a thorough background check of the auction house or gallery, their website, and their legitimacy in the market.
- Read the Fine print: Going to an art fair or an auction in person allows you to see and interact with the artwork. However, things that become obvious to you at first glance like the size, medium, or make of an artwork can be misleading on camera. Make sure you read the details of the piece carefully, to get a clear idea of its dimensions, material, and medium. Furthermore, don’t be apprehensive about reaching out to the gallery and asking after any details that may not be clearly mentioned.
This is a challenge that the auction houses themselves have been conscious of. On tackling this, Edward Tyler Nahem of the renowned auction house, Edward Tyler Nahem Fine Art says, “We’ve succeeded in doing this through the process of better documentation, photography, archiving and relied greatly on personal relationships with collectors to trust you to give them the right advice.”
- Ask For the Receipts: This might seem like something that would be obvious but you’d be surprised at how often it can slip one’s mind. Make sure you receive an authentication certificate with your purchase, and that all your other paperwork is in order,
- Ensure Its Safe Arrival: Being able to buy art from across the world, means the art has to be shipped across the world. Seeing as transportation is when any artwork is most vulnerable to damage, it is important you’re clued in on how it’s being shipped, and to what extent the seller is willing to take responsibility for its safe delivery. Furthermore, be mindful of the extra shipping costs, taxes, and overheads you might have to incur.
What The Future Holds
Galleries and Auction houses were already starting to explore the digital space before, but the pandemic forced them to fast track the process and steer blindly through the storm with little to go by. However, auction houses like Christie’s and Sotheby’s taking the lead, have set the tone for the future of online sales. Being able to provide a seamless experience with online sales has solidified its place in the art market as a viable option.
Furthermore, art spaces have found creative ways to use digital storytelling and digital marketing to garner interest as well as facilitate easier access to all their works, ushering in a new, exciting time for the art market.
In turn, they have also seen a higher level of engagement with not just the classics by old masters, but the less known artists selling for far higher than the estimates. And this convergence of the art market with media and telecommunication is likely to get further entwined in the future.
All things considered, the lockdown has opened an alternate—sometimes preferred—pipeline for collectors to buy art, and it seems like it will continue to have a significant presence in the art market, even when the physical spaces are back running in full capacity.
Don’t know where to start your collection? Look through the collection of corporates here to find out what’s popping.


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French finance minister Nicolas Sarkozy has asked supermarket industry representatives to cut prices by 3% by September and 5% by 2005 in order to increase consumers’ spending power.
In return Sarkozy is offering to give supermarkets more flexibility in expanding their existing stores, reported Dow Jones International News. Under the new proposals, big supermarket companies, such as Carrefour, would no longer have to apply for permission to extend existing stores.
Sarkozy also proposed an end to brand range agreements between manufacturers and retailers. Such deals may include commitments by retailers to stock a whole range of products under a certain brand in exchange for certain benefits from suppliers.

domain: news


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India's interim finance minister, Piyush Goyal, said today: 'I am sure all mothers and sisters will be very happy to hear that sanitary pads are now 100 percent exempt from tax'. While the changes will offer relief to the middle-income households and small businesses, sources say the government stands to lose revenue to the tune of Rs 15,000 crore.
Or, as Jaitley said, "If you did away with that 12% and brought that down, you probably won't have any Indian manufacturer left, it will be only the Chinese products which will be sold in the Indian market". In its last meeting, the Council had approved the basic principles of GST return design and directed the law committee to finalise the return formats and changes in law.
However, that raincloud is something we can only deal with once the move comes into effect from 27 July.
After a year-long campaign, the GST on sanitary napkins has finally been abolished.
The highest tax bracket of 28 per cent has been rationalised further with rates on daily-use items like perfumes, cosmetics, toiletries, hair dryers, shavers, mixer grinder, vacuum cleaners, lithium ion batteries, being lowered to 18 per cent.
However, the decision to raise quarterly filing of returns from Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 5 crore annual turnover, may not actually materialise, fear tax experts.
While the GST rate on sanitary pads was cut from 12% to zero, rakhis were exempted from the tax as well, Finance Minister Piyush Goyal told reporters here. They will have to, however, pay taxes monthly.
Finns protest Trump-Putin meeting
Trump also expelled dozens of Russian diplomats earlier this year in response to the poisoning of a former Russian spy in the U.K. Clinton tweeted Sunday night, ahead of the President's first official summit with Putin, taking place in Helsinki, Finland .
After the latest rounds of rate cuts by the GST Council on July 21, only 35 items are left in the 28 per cent tax slab, an official said.
As per NDTV reports, lawmaker Sushmita Dev had launched a petition to demand a reduction or total removal of taxes on pads, citing that about 70 per cent of women in the country could not afford them.
All traders, excluding small enterprises and a few exceptions, will now file returns on a monthly basis, the release said.
During the meeting, the council also made certain amendments to the GST Act including raising the upper limit of turnover for opting for composition scheme from Rs 1 crore to Rs 1.5 crore.
A Committee led by Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi will look into ways to promote digital payments using these modes.
Taxpayers who are yet to register under the GST have been given a final extension till August 31. With the stabilisation of revenue, the rate on many items were gradually reduced.


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Nvidia rides Tegra wave
Nvidia Corp forecast quarterly revenue and margins above Wall Street estimates as it quickens its expansion beyond personal computers into a thriving market for tablets and smartphones.
With PC sales suffering from economic uncertainty and a growing consumer preference for tablets, Nvidia has staked its future on leveraging its graphics expertise to make high-performance processors, branded Tegra, for mobile devices. But it faces tough competition from the likes of Qualcomm Inc, Texas Instruments Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.
Nvidia won spots for its Tegra chips in two of the highest-profile tablets to be launched in 2012.
In June, Microsoft Corp unveiled its Surface tablet using Nvidia’s Tegra chip, while Google Inc launched its Nexus 7 tablet, which also uses Tegra 3 and has had strong sales.
The devices mark the first forays by Microsoft and Google into a tablet market dominated by Apple Inc’s iPad.
Shares in the company once known mainly for its high-end graphics cards have gained more than a quarter in value since June, just before Microsoft and Google announced those product launches.
“Going forward, the key focus is going to be Tegra, Tegra, Tegra,” said Evercore analyst Patrick Wang. “I think it would be hard to argue that there’s significant organic growth left in the discrete graphics market.”
Consumer products revenue, the bulk of which comes from the Tegra business, leapt 35.5 percent in the second quarter from the first, more than double the growth of Nvidia’s traditional graphics unit division.
Consumer products accounted for more than 17 percent of total revenue in the quarter, up from 14 percent in the first quarter.
As PCs lose popularity with consumers, those computers are increasingly being manufactured without discrete graphics chips like the ones Nvidia designs.
The recent Nexus and Surface announcements follow some earlier disappointments for the company, including Samsung’s reliance on its own chips instead of Nvidia’s.
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Sbe Entertainment’s high-style Katsuya Japanese restaurant in Laguna Beach will close its doors tonight, Monday, March 4, after less than two years in operation. All locals will receive a 50 percent discount off all menu items at Katsuya today, spokesman Robbie McKay said by email.
The restaurant paired master sushi Chef Katsuya Uechi with design impresario Philippe Starck and turned out beautifully composed dishes and signature cocktails in a sleek, modernist space. At its opening in June 2011, a high-brow crowd, drummers and former Mayor Toni Iseman welcomed Katsuya’s Sam Nazarian to Laguna, at the time experiencing a flurry of new restaurant openings such as Starfish, 370 Common, Broadway and Asada.
By September, the restaurant discontinued offering lunch, stepped up midweek discounts to locals, but rarely seemed to bustle on weekends.
The Los Angeles-based company that operates three hotels and a dozen restaurants is pursuing a new Orange County location for the brand, said a company statement.
Despite the closure, sbe remains committed to Laguna through its partnership in the Umami Burger property, the statement says.
SBE gutted and remodeled the former Hush restaurant, creating a spacious dining area partially ringed in glass. The building is owned by Allan Simon, who also owns the Indy.


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This just in: people like shopping online! (copyrighted story, must credit MTR). Americans spent 6 billion dollars in online shopping last Monday through Friday, presumably lured in by a bunch of online sales (Cyber Monday and all) and just finding it convenient. That dollar amount is a new record. According to ComScore, we spent $18.7 billion in November and the first two days of December, which is an increase of 15% over last year. Now naturally, online sales are increasing steadily all the time, part of the ongoing effort to wipe out all physical retail stores (an effort spearheaded by the National Federation of Frustrated Guys Who Are Made To Shop). But a 15% jump is kind of huge. What’s causing it? Is the economy so much better? Is the Kindle that popular that it’s leading to a bunch of other sales?
Here is where I’d offer analysis but I have none. Witches?


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Amazon made 10x more money than any other ecommerce site during 2016 holidays [Slice data]
Slice Intelligence says Amazon earned 38 pct. of all online revenue in the US for the second straight year.
Based on a panel of more than 1.3 million US online shoppers, Amazon claimed 38 percent of all online revenue during the just-completed holidays. That’s a slight gain over its 37.9 percent share during the 2015 holidays.
But it’s also another sign of the company’s ownership of US ecommerce dollars. According to Slice’s panel, Best Buy was again the No. 2 ecommerce site during the holidays, but with only 3.9 percent of all online revenue, it earned about one-tenth of what Amazon earned. This eye-opening chart shows how big Amazon’s lead is over the rest of the top ten ecommerce sites.
Apple saw the biggest year-over-year growth, going from 1.7 percent in 2015 to 2.4 percent last year. Walmart, Macy’s, Nordstrom and J. Crew all saw small declines in ecommerce revenue share.
Online sales were up 20 percent overall during the 2016 holidays, Slice says.
Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily MarTech. Staff authors are listed here.
New on MarTech


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Verizon has released its Q1 results for 2017 via the news portion of the company website and things are looking mostly good for Big Red so far, with strong customer loyalty and market share growth. The service provider's phone connection "churn" numbers – which, for the unaware, is a market term used to describe customers lost as cancelled out by new customers gained – is shown at less than 0.9 percent for the eighth straight quarter. Tablet churn rested at 1.5 percent for the quarter. Meanwhile, the company has seen 49,000 new smartphones added to its network with a year over year growth figure of 1.2 percent. That brings the company's total number to 108.5 million connections. On the other hand, prepaid connections grew to 5.4 million, a difference of 0.5 percent. Internet of Things revenues increased by around 17 percent from last year, which includes a total in telematics revenue of $214 million.
As to Verizon's wired services, total revenue dropped 0.6 percent from 2016's numbers. Total Fios revenue grew by 4.7 percent and the company gained 35,000 Fios Internet connections while losing 13,000 Fios Video connections. The company also gained new market share with the addition of new agreements between the company and both new and established clients. These are reported to include Block Institute, the State of Connecticut, Georgetown University, HRC ManorCare and Xplor. The wired side of the business also jumped from a loss of $67 million across the same time frame last year to $293 million in income, which is not an insubstantial shift. Company expenditures for the first quarter came in at $3.1 billion, with a large portion of that probably coming down to the finalization of Verizon's XO Communications acquisition. That acquisition was part of the company's efforts to remain competitive since it provided the service provider with substantial fiber optics assets. That number also likely includes boosts to the total number of Verizon small cells on the wireless side of things.
Unfortunately, the total of Verizon's operating revenues in this quarter came in at a 7.3 percent decrease year over year – only bringing in $29.8 billion. Some of that may be down to the company losing 307,000 postpaid connections, 289,000 of which were phone contracts. That's a pretty heavy loss since retail postpaid makes up a decent chunk of the company's revenue stream. AOL, one of Verizon's company's, also suffered a 4 percent decrease. That is explained in the report as being due to "a higher percentage of programmatic advertising." Looking forward, however, the company expects the rest of its performance in 2017 to be mostly consistent with 2016. Moreover, it has set a 2018 to 2019 time frame for returning to former credit rating profile from before 2014 and expects to spend between $16.8 billion $17.5 billion over the course of the year to keep its network competitive.


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June 16 marked a major milestone for the propane industry as the Freightliner Custom Chassis Corp. (FCCC; Gaffney, S.C.) S2G propane-fueled bobtail went into full production. FCCC is taking orders now, and about 25 trucks had been delivered as of late June. Initial reviews have been positive, but as is the case with most products, the process has not been glitch-free. The Burton, Mich. location of AmeriGas, which is using the truck on a pilot project basis, has given the truck high marks, although it experienced some low-idling problems with the bobtail early on. FCCC, however, fixed that problem quickly, said AmeriGas area director Mike George.
He told BPN the reduced cost of operation has been the truck’s biggest advantage. That is especially the case in the summer months when the price of propane is lower.
“You’re looking at almost a 50%-per-gallon difference to operate the truck,” George stated. “That’s the big ‘wow’ factor. It’s a cleaner-burning product, so I don’t expect to have as high maintenance costs with the vehicle.”
A participant at a ride and drive during last year’s National Truck Equipment Association Work Truck Show commented, “Quiet, really quiet. I’m really pleasantly surprised. It drives like a car. Minimum cab noise. You wouldn’t even know you’re driving a truck.”
Although some marketers were still apprehensive about ordering at this early stage and were taking a “wait-and-see” attitude, the many positive comments must be gratifying for all the companies involved with putting together the bobtail. FCCC built the vehicle chassis, Powertrain Integration (Madison Heights, Mich.) produced the engine, and CleanFUEL USA (Georgetown, Texas) designed the fuel tank system assembly and the fuel rail system assembly.
It might seem like it has been a long road to get to this point, but Bryan Henke of FCCC notes that the process has not been much different than that of any original equipment manufacturer (OEM) product. OEMs typically start manufacturing products by unveiling pilot units to test how they will run through the production line. That took place about a year ago for the S2G. Then comes “pre-series,” a limited production run to make sure the production process is working as planned. That took place around March of this year.
Now that the product is in full production, Henke says FCCC as of late June had several hundred orders, which were spread fairly evenly around the country. Propane marketers can order the bobtail from any of about 600 U.S. FCCC dealers.
The S2G will not just be available as a bobtail, however. Production is underway now for the bobtail, but the unit will go into production around the first quarter of 2015 for crane truck and box truck configurations as well. The chassis is also made for the Thomas Built Bus Co., and the school bus chassis using the same propane fueling system is also in full production.
Also like any OEM project, the S2G went through extensive testing to get to this point. FCCC built the pre-series units specifically for in-field testing. The company put the vehicle through several hundred thousand miles of durability testing, altitude testing on the rugged terrain of the Rocky Mountrains, including Pikes Peak, in Colorado, and cold start testing in –30ºF temperatures and colder in Bemidji, Minn.
“This is very typical of how we want to validate a vehicle’s design,” Henke explained.
Dealer buy-in is also important in any OEM product release, and Henke stressed that the FCCC dealers understand the features of the bobtail. They know alternative fuels because the company has been involved with natural gas products. The company showed the vehicle at an FCCC event in Wisconsin in June, and gatherings like that have achieved good results. A recent Southern Connecticut FCCC S2G event resulted in the sale of several trucks.
“The FCCC dealers are energized,” he said. “They’re seeing results with the trucks and getting more engaged with it.”
It’s been a long road since General Motors phased out its 8.1L engine from the medium-duty truck market at the end of 2009. Tucker Perkins, chief business development officer of the Propane Education & Research Council (PERC), recalled that the phase-out took place during the heart of the U.S. financial crisis that resulted in the government’s bailout of GM. The automaker had a buyer for its medium-duty truck division, but the deal fell through. Perkins, who was with CleanFUEL USA at the time, described GM’s medium-duty truck program as “successful by any stretch of the imagination.” Sales of the propane version of the 8.1L were just beginning to grow, and many users were satisfied with the propane-fueled bobtail. After GM’s exit from that market, PERC, CleanFUEL USA, and Blue Bird Bus bought GM’s remaining inventory of 8.1L engines to continue the Blue Bird propane school bus program.
CleanFUEL USA and Powertrain Integration immediately began working on a brand new engine, which is an 8.0L to replace the 8.1L and features more horsepower, torque, and fuel efficiency along with lower emissions. The engine has gone through various changes since the original pilot version.
“It’s amazing how the vehicle integration from the fuel system to the engine itself, to noise, to air intake, to just about everything, has evolved over the past several years,” Henke noted. “If you would have looked at the pilot unit we did several years ago and what we have today, there are significant changes, because we just weren’t satisfied with the status quo.”
The ability to start the vehicle in extreme cold weather was a big area of focus for the S2G. According to Henke, cold-start was an issue for liquid injection systems when he worked for a company that sold vaporized systems. But he and his team were pleasantly surprised when they heard that the S2G had no trouble starting in –30°F and colder temperatures in Bemidji.
“I thought, really, we’re getting cold-start without a block heater? We are. That’s unheard of,” Henke stated.
The S2G team also paid close attention to noise. The group worked to make sure the vehicle would be quiet for the driver and for residential customers’ neighbors.
“It wasn’t just making sure it ran right,” Henke said. “Propane marketers remember the past. They have great memories. We certainly did not want to have issues that these guys had in the past 10 to 20 years ago.”
Along with stringent testing in areas such as noise, starting, and cooling, additional durability testing involved running the vehicle continuously around the clock. That testing revealed some mostly minor mechanical issues that the team addressed. In mid-December, Perkins told BPN that the team resolved a few technical issues in areas such as engine calibration and oil leaks.
“In some cases they were minor nuisances in our opinion, but not acceptable,” Henke noted. “Maybe for some other applications, a little leak here or there or a little noise rattle here or there after 60,000 or 100,000 miles might be acceptable, but it really wasn’t to us. So we wanted to make sure that we shook this vehicle down. I think we’ve accomplished that.”
Meanwhile, FCCC is working on marketing the product to potential users and educating its own dealers. “We’re letting FCCC dealers know the product is in full production, because they’ve been waiting quite a long time,” Henke explained. The company will hold a special event in Gaffney in late summer so potential buyers can get hands-on experience with the truck.
Many marketers are ready now. Trevor Beaudry, propane manager for Beaudry Oil (Elk River, Minn.), said his company has one S2G on order and was set to receive it in August or September.
“We decided to order one for the fuel savings and to support propane for motor fuel use,” Beaudry said. “We think if it is successful then there will be opportunity for the vehicle in different industries.”
McMahon’s Bottle Gas (Dayton, Ohio) has not ordered the S2G yet, but plans on doing so next year. “We really want a propane bobtail, but we wanted to give them a year to work out the bugs,” said Brian Buschur of McMahons.
Other marketers are on the fence. “We have considered ordering one, but were not sure how long we would have to wait to get it,” said Daren Parker of Parker Gas Co. (Newton Grove, N.C.). “I am still not sure when the first ones will be available. I have not test driven one. I obviously would like to see this thing work out, but am kind of skeptical about being the guinea pig.”
The truck won’t be for everyone, of course. Kevin Lechner of Lechner’s Propane (East Branch, N.Y.) test drove the vehicle at a recent Ray Murray Inc. open house in Lee, Mass. Although he said using a propane-fueled bobtail would lower his operating costs, he would not order one because his location is in a mountainous area.
“The automatic transmission is constantly shifting, so in my location, it’s not so much of a ‘pro’ for me,” said Lechner, addressing the pros and cons. He now prefers diesel-fueled bobtails with standard transmissions because they can be more easily fitted with a “Jake brake” that uses engine compression to slow down the vehicle so the driver does not have to pump the brakes as much while traveling downhill.
Gary France of France Propane (Schofield, Wisc.), past chair of the National Propane Gas Association, drove the bobtail at the Work Truck Show and also at the joint Georgia/South Carolina Propane Gas Association convention in July, 2013. He has two main concerns: the price and the transmission. He wonders why the vehicle is priced about $12,000 more than a comparable diesel version, and he has also heard concerns from truck builders about the S2G’s Allison transmission.
“When your bulk truck manufacturer is skeptical, it kind of makes you not feel real comfortable, either,” France said.
He believes that propane marketers must have confidence in their own fuel as a delivery fuel and that they need to get the propane-fueled bobtail out in the field. “It’s hard to expect the customer to buy or use autogas if we’re not using it, and I think right now there’s a little reluctance on some of the marketers as to why they have to pay such a premium for that truck.”
He does feel the truck has “a good solid chassis.” But the price tag and transmission will be his main concerns until he sees them out in the field in real-world conditions. His test drives took place with an empty barrel, and he contends that a truck is best judged with a full barrel.
On the plus side, another ride and drive participant at the Work Truck Show said the vehicle had “great visibility and it turns nice and tight.” Another, whose current fleet includes a 2012 Freightliner with a Cummins diesel, commented that the S2G had just as much power.
Lechner said that although he would not be able to use the truck, the S2G’s turning radius and visibility were two positives. “If you’re in a city environment with a tight residential area, the turning radius is wonderful.”


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Sri Lanka to promote tourism with Brazilian travel agencies
Sri Lanka’s Embassy in Brazil has reportedly organised an event to promote Sri Lanka as a tourist destination for Brazilian and South American tourists. The programme was initiated recently in collaboration with the Brazilian Association for Travel Agencies (ABAV-DF) at the embassy premises in Brasilia.
According to reports, this is the first-of-its-kind event organised by the embassy with the participation of a large number of travel industry representatives since the opening of the mission in 2002 in Brasilia.
Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Brazil Sumith Dassanayake addressing the gathering had noted the importance of the contribution made by the tourism industry to the island’s economy.
Dassanayake has also called on the Brazilian tour operators to promote Sri Lanka as a destination amongst Brazilians and South Americans. “Even though over 100,000 Brazilians had visited the Asian region in 2018, only approximately 2,800 Brazilians had visited Sri Lanka,” the Ambassador has been quoted as saying.
The Brazilian Association for Travel Agencies President Levi Jeronimo has noted that Sri Lanka is a “must visit” destination that provides diverse activities and attractions in close proximity with value for money.
Brasilia Secretary of Tourism Vanessa Mendonça has also stated that her organisation would extend its fullest co-operation to the embassy to promote Sri Lanka tourism in Brazil.
Jetwing Travels (Pvt.) Ltd. General Manager Daminda Dinesh and Aitken Spence Travels (Pvt.) Ltd. Portugal Resident Sales Representative Nelson Cortez had also participated in the event virtually and promoted the tourism packages their companies offered.
Sri Lanka’s tourism authorities together with the country’s overseas missions are engaged to promoting the tourism industry in new tourist source markets. Sri Lanka has already received wide exposure in the international media as a must visit destination while also being listed as a top island destination by leading travel publications. After facing pandemic challenges and the economic crisis, Sri Lanka’s tourism industry is once again on the path to recovery by showing a growth in tourist arrivals to the country. The growing business potential in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry has attracted many foreign businesses/investors including leading hospitality brands to the industry, especially in the leisure and hospitality sectors. Local tourism authorities are also exploring new tourism concepts for promotion. With the country’s economy engaged in an overall economic expansion and the increasing business potential and opportunities, foreign businesses/investors could confidently explore the growing opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry, especially in the leisure and hospitality sectors as well as the development of supplementary infrastructure facilities.
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Check out which companies are making headlines before the bell:
Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway – The two companies and JPMorgan Chase have announced a partnership to explore ways to address health care concerns for their US employees. The stated goal of the partnership is improving employee satisfaction and reducing costs. The news has hit the shares of pharmacy benefit managers like Express Scripts, CVS Health, and UnitedHealth, as well as insurers and drug store operators.
Pfizer – The drugmaker reported adjusted quarterly profit of 62 cents per share, 6 cents a share above estimates. Revenue beat forecasts, as well. Pfizer also gave an upbeat 2018 forecast, and became the latest company to announce employee bonuses and increased investment stemming from the new tax law.
Aetna – The insurer earned an adjusted $1.25 per share for the fourth quarter, 5 cents a share above estimates. Revenue topped forecasts and Aetna, which is the process of being acquired by CVS Health, saw profit jump more than 75 percent compared to a year earlier.
Corning – The glass and fiber optic components maker beat estimates by 2 cents a share, with adjusted quarterly profit of 49 cents per share. Revenue also beat forecasts. The results were driven by strong demand for Corning's Gorilla Glass used in smartphones and other products.
PulteGroup – The home builder matched forecasts with adjusted quarterly profit of 85 cents per share, but revenue missed Street forecasts. The company reported a more than 12 percent increase in revenue, as it sold more homes at higher prices.
JPMorgan Chase – The bank announced that Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon will stay on for about five more years. The company also promoted executives Daniel Pinto and Gordon Smith as co-presidents and co-chief operating officers. Both have been mentioned as potential successors to Dimon.
Maxim Integrated – Maxim is in talks to be acquired by Japan-based chipmaker Renesas, according to sources who spoke to CNBC. A deal for the US chip company could be worth about $20 billion, although a deal is not imminent and may not happen.
MetLife – MetLife postponed its fourth-quarter earnings release and said it would revise some of its prior financial reports. The insurer took that action due to overdue monthly pension benefits, and said it planned to increase its reserves up to $575 million to cover the expense. MetLife also said the Securities and Exchange Commission has inquired about the pension matter.
Rambus – Rambus reported in-line quarterly earnings at an adjusted 19 cents per share. The chipmaker's revenue was slightly above forecasts, however Rambus gave a weaker-than-expected current-quarter outlook.
Revlon – The cosmetics maker's CEO Fabian Garcia is stepping down from that post in February. Board member Paul Meister will take over temporarily while Revlon searches for a new CEO. Garcia had joined Revlon from Colgate-Palmolive in 2016.
Apple – Apple supplier Murata Manufacturing said a Monday report of a 50 percent production cut for the iPhone X appears to be overstated. The Japan-based company said it had not seen that large a drop in component orders from Apple.
Blue Apron, HelloFresh – HelloFresh, a key competitor for meal kit service, Blue Apron, said it is seeing a pickup in revenue growth. The German firm said it hoped to break even by the end of year and said sales had picked up in the U.S., its biggest market.
SAP – SAP saw 2017 results on the lower side of analysts' forecasts, after the business software company's CEO had forecast a "dynamite" fourth quarter for the company's cloud business. Separately, SAP announced the acquisition of cloud-based sales management software maker Callidus Software for $2.4 billion.
Blackstone – The private-equity firm is in talks to buy a roughly 55 percent stake in the financial and risk business of Thomson Reuters, according to a Reuters report quoting sources familiar with the matter.
Och-Ziff Capital Management – Och-Ziff director William Barr will depart the board, amid a battle for control of the hedge fund firm. An SEC filing said that Barr's decision stemmed from a disagreement over CEO succession.
Microsoft – Microsoft issued an emergency security update designed to disable an Intel patch. The patch had been designed to fix problems with one of Intel's chips, but caused computers to reboot an excessive number of times.
Wynn Resorts – The casino operator's stock remains on watch after representatives of CEO Steve Wynn met with Macau's gaming regulator over claims of sexual harassment. Wynn has denied the allegations.
Stein Mart – The discount retailer said it would explore strategic alternatives, given a challenging retail environment. Stein Mart said it would not provide any further updates until a transaction takes place or if the board determines such disclosure is appropriate.


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In the other direction, Germans are set to spend a good EUR 59bn on travel abroad in 2006 (+ 2 percent). "Thanks to the strong euro, demand will again be particularly strong for long-distance travel", said Muntzke. "A good year after the tsunami disaster southern Asia will again see a strong rise in revenue. But Turkey will also remain popular. And Majorca will again benefit from the influx of budget fliers." According to the forecast, the global tourism industry is set to grow by 4 percent.
Last year revenue from foreign tourists and business travelers in Germany rose by an estimated 4.5 percent to around EUR 23bn. Four-fifths of this came from tourists from neighboring European countries. Trips to German cities were particularly popular. The most guests last year came from the Netherlands, closely followed by the Swiss and Americans.
In 2005 Germany just managed to defend its title as World Travel Champion, ahead of the USA. Austria, having toppled Spain as the most popular destination in 2004, managed to defend its lead. Spain, in second place, benefited from the sharp rise in short holidays, fueled by the budget airline boom. Italy and France were in third and fourth position.
In the tourism year 2004/2005 German travel organizers recorded sales of just under EUR 20bn, an increase of 4 to 5 percent on a year earlier. Following the deep crisis between 2001 and 2003, when sales plummeted by 20 percent, the holiday industry has now enjoyed two years of growth. But the industry is still short of the record figures seen in 2001.
In 2005 travel agencies notched up only modest sales growth of 1 percent. Over the last two years the increase adds up to 4.5 percent, less than half the increase seen in the organizers' market. The reasons for this are to be found in growing multi-level and direct marketing and the expanding online business of holiday providers.


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November 9, 2023
Global pharmaceutical labeling innovations – an executive roundtable
Senior Director of Sales, Life Sciences
In the dynamic realm of pharmaceuticals, Loftware has always been at the forefront of revolutionizing labeling and artwork management. We recently had the incredible opportunity to host an exclusive roundtable event, where we brought together four prominent figures from the pharmaceutical industry. Our esteemed panel featured field luminaries, each contributing unique insights and perspectives on global pharmaceutical labeling innovations. I was thrilled to take part in and see this unique gathering come to light. The panel participants included Sheetal Kulkarni-Alur, the Executive Director and Head of North American Regulatory Affairs at LEO Pharma A/S; Deb McNaughton, the Vice President of Global Labeling, Publishing & Product License Support, Global Regulatory Operations at Pfizer Inc.; Brandon Stempo, a Principal Consultant in Regulatory Affairs Labeling at Opus Regulatory Inc.; and Cham Williams, the Associate Director of Safety, Regulatory, and Quality Solutions at IQVIA Inc.
As the world's leading provider of cloud-based Enterprise Labeling and Artwork Management solutions, Loftware was honored to facilitate this event. Our mission has always revolved around working collaboratively with industry specialists to ensure our solutions enhance accuracy, traceability, compliance, and efficiency in the pharmaceutical industry. This roundtable was a significant milestone in our journey toward achieving this mission.
The roundtable discussions delved deep into the intricate challenges and promising trends in modernizing pharmaceutical labeling and supply chain activities. This industry is fraught with formidable regulatory complexities, making labeling arduous. However, the experts at our roundtable strongly believe that labeling technologies are the key to overcoming these hurdles and embracing the industry's evolving landscape.
Key takeaways from the roundtable
One of the critical topics of discussion focused on the standardization of global labeling operations. Cham Williams of IQVIA pointed out that while the fundamental labeling processes remain consistent across the industry, the true challenge lies in finding the right balance between standardizing processes and customizing labels to cater to the unique requirements of local markets. Flexibility was also recognized as a vital component, particularly when adapting to the variations in different regions.
Another focal point of the conversation was the integration of labeling with existing business applications. In the pharmaceutical industry, precision in data collection and content management is non-negotiable. The roundtable participants weighed in on how the integration of automated labeling processes with existing systems, such as ERP, manufacturing execution systems, and product lifecycle management software, can ensure the delivery of accurate and consistent data. This approach streamlines the process and minimizes the risk of duplication errors, as highlighted by Deb McNaughton from Pfizer.
Streamlining regulatory updates and compliance was a crucial area of discussion. Companies often face the challenge of managing diverse regulatory requirements across different regions and encounter several translation complexities. The panelists recognized the potential benefits of "componentization," a concept that simplifies data management and streamlines the process of handling modifications.
The age of digital transformation demands increased supply chain efficiency and agility, which was another hot topic of discussion. The global pandemic underscored the need for early communication between regulatory and manufacturing functions, particularly when launching new products. It emphasized the importance of connecting systems and data across various functions, from regulatory operations to the intricate web of the supply chain.
eLabeling, a game-changing innovation, emerged as a critical theme as well. eLabeling offers real-time information through QR codes to online resources, significantly reducing the waste generated by preprinted materials. The experts unanimously supported the shift towards a global e-labeling approach, with exceptions when necessary. The focus is on ensuring data accuracy and operational efficiency.
Learn more about pharmaceutical labeling
Loftware is dedicated to helping shape the future of pharmaceutical labeling through collaboration, innovation, and knowledge exchange. This event exemplified the power of initiating crucial conversations to drive change and collectively paint a brighter and more efficient future for the industry, one label at a time, and I couldn't be prouder to have been part of it.
You can view the full video discussion here.
- Supply Chain
- Track and Trace


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Seven years after launching as a news feed aggregator, Austin-based OneSpot Inc. is shifting its business model with an online tool designed to improve the content and targeting of banner advertising.
Instead of conventional banner ads that users reflexively block out, OneSpot has developed software designed to convert information from blogs and white papers into what used to be called “advertorials,” or advertisements in the form of a news articles.
For example, a home improvement store may run an article that includes tips on how to save costs renovating a bathroom.
Such content, which takes a soft-sell approach, is automatically sent to thousands of websites to test for responses. Using automated machine learning, the content is then moved around until it finds the websites that generate the most response, CEO Matt Cohen said.
The approach intended is to convert content that is typically read only within the first 48 hours after posting into information that could be reconstituted to attract prospective customers when placed in a banner ad on websites that include related topics.
“The job of advertising like other content is to be interesting,” Cohen said. “It dramatizes how advertising in its own way is content.”
Early customers include Remington shavers, Home Depot Inc. and Mike and Ike candies.
OneSpot, founded in 2005, previously combined multiple sources of online content such as real simple syndication, or RSS, into news feeds. Since late 2011, it has pivoted with its latest business model that Cohen recently launched publicly.
OneSpot, which employs 10 workers, is backed by a syndicate of angel investors who put $550,000 into the company in January. It’s now completing a $700,000 round of funding, Cohen said.
Cohen is a former partner at local venture capital firm G-51 Capital. He also was senior vice president of operations and chief technology officer for New Century Network, a New York-based content and advertising network.
In early 2010, OneSpot received $682,000 of a planned $1 million round of funding from a syndicate of 12 investors, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The funding came a little more than a year after the company closed a $4.2 million Series A funding round. Investors included Dallas-based Silver Creek Ventures.


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Kraton Corp., a chemical and polymer company, went relatively unnoticed for years, but it suddenly doubled in size in a late 2015 acquisition and became the region's top performer in the Chronicle 100 ranking.
Kraton makes chemicals, rubbers and adhesives that go into roads, medical equipment, cars and daily hygiene products, and the company bet big when it bought Arizona Chemical for $1.37 billion in cash about 18 months ago. Now, Kraton, which went public in 2009, is solidifying its standing as a major global player in specialty chemicals.
"Many people probably have never heard of Kraton, but they probably touch Kraton in any given day," said Kraton's chief executive, Kevin Fogarty.
Kraton's specialty polymers and chemicals range from synthetic rubbers on pens and razor blades to asphalt ingredients that make roads longer lasting. They make diapers stretchier, adhesives stronger and plastic automotive parts more flexible and durable.
Historically, Kraton's products are petroleum-based, but the Arizona deal diversified its portfolio into pine wood pulp materials and chemicals that still serve a lot of the same markets and customers.
The acquisition made Kraton's debt load exceed the value of the company at first, so a lot of investors were skittish. However, Kraton is outpacing its timing to cut $135 million in annual costs, said Jason Freuchtel, an analyst with SunTrust Humphrey Robinson investment bank in Atlanta, and it is more than following through on its promises.
"They have executed well so far and shown signs of proving the naysayers wrong," Freuchtel said.
Kraton's stock price jumped more than 70 percent from the beginning to end of 2016, and it's continued to rise this year. Kraton's annual revenues jumped nearly 70 percent, while its 2016 net income of $107 million compared to a 2015 loss of $10.5 million.
Freuchtel sees additional value and potential in Kraton because of its growth through substitutions. Essentially, Kraton products are replacing those made from other materials. For instance, he sees Kraton's products that go into synthetic latex gloves in the health care sector replacing the natural rubber latex gloves that can cause allergic reactions.
Kraton opened a $200 million polymer plant in May in Taiwan. Most of its plants are overseas and in the Midwest. It doesn't have any plants in Houston. Out of 1,900 global employees, only 140 of them are in the Houston headquarters and a local research center. It's that research and development that Fogarty touts for making products that are cheaper, better-performing and more environmentally sustainable.
"We grow by finding new applications that don't exist today," Fogarty said. "We want to create growth and that's not easy to do. Most of the opportunities we'll serve are being served today by something else."
Kraton's origins date back to the U.S. government constructing facilities to make synthetic rubber for tires of military vehicles during World War II. After the war, Royal Dutch Shell bought some of the facilities and created its Kraton division named for Kratos, the Greek god of strength. Kraton eventually specialized in so-called thermoplastic elastomers that use heating techniques to make synthetic rubbers and other polymers like the soles of shoes.
Opting to get out of some of the speciality chemicals niche, Shell sold Kraton in 2001 and the business bounced around under the ownership of various private equity groups until finally going public in late 2009.
Bill Hyde, senior director of olefins and elastomers at IHS Markit, said Kraton has found success in a specialty chemicals niche that requires a lot of customer service and technical expertise. It's not easy for a company to just jump in, he said.
However, Kraton suffered from September through February from surging costs of its top raw material, butadiene, courtesy of a temporary blip of production outages, climbing Chinese demand and wild speculative trading. Since normalizing again, specialty chemical companies like Kraton are seeing their profits rise again.
Now that Kraton is back in a growth mode again, the challenge is getting customers to embrace change, Fogarty said.
"The biggest barrier we have is the risk aversion to change," he said. "It's not that they're against it, but boy do they test the heck out of it before they adopt new technology."
Our people lose plenty of sleep and hair before getting new products approved, he joked.


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Sanofi, Abbott sue Glenmark over Tarka patent
MUMBAI, India Sanofi Aventis and Abbott have filed a lawsuit against Glenmark Pharmaceuticals in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey, according to reports. The lawsuit is to prevent Glenmark from manufacturing Trandolapril/Verapamil Hydrochloride, the generic of the anti-hypertensive drug Tarka.
The two companies are seeking a court order blocking Glenmark from selling the drug until the patent expires in 2015. Glenmark believes it is the only applicant to have filed an application for this product with a paragraph IV certification. If Glenmark successfully challenges the patent, it will be entitled to a 180-day exclusivity period.
The product had sales of $100 million in the U.S.
FDA approves Teva’s generic Trileptal
The Food and Drug Administration has granted final approval to Teva for its application to market a generic version of Trileptal, by Novartis, for the treatment of epilepsy.
The generic, oxcarbazepine, will be available in 150, 300 and 600 mg tablets. Teva will begin shipping the drug in the near future.
Teva is currently involved in patent litigation concerning this product in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey. A trial date has not been set.
The brand product had annual sales of approximately $690 million in the United States for the twelve months ended Sept. 30, 2007, based on IMS sales data.
Biogen’s lack of buyer interest triggers stock price dive
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Biogen has reported that after two months of looking for a potential buyer, it has turned up no serious offers, which led to a 27 percent drop in the company’s shares, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Biogen said in a statement that it “did not receive any definitive offers to purchase the company” and would abandon exploration of a sale. Within a few minutes of the announcement, Biogen lost nine months of increasing business by buyout rumors.
Pharmaceutical firms may have been discouraged by Biogen’s high price—its market value had grown to $25 billion after the company announced its intention to sell. Last month, Sanofi-Aventis’ chief executive called Biogen’s price “a little high.”
Biogen has three main drugs on the market—Avonex and Tysabri for multiple sclerosis and Rituxan for cancer and rheumatoid arthritis. Some analysts said uncertainties about the future of the drugs were too great for buyers. Tysabri has been linked to a rare brain disorder, prompting close regulatory scrutiny.
The stock price fell from $75.88 to $55.50 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.


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Chinese search giant Baidu has almost doubled its income over the last year and made more than half a billion dollars in profit. Baidu said turnover in the fourth quarter was up 94.4 per cent to $371.3m (RMB 2.45bn) and operating profit was up 175.8 per cent to $193.2m or RMB 1.275bn. This gave China's largest search engine …
"total revenue of $1.19bn for fiscal 2010 and net income of $534.1m"
That's nearly 50% net profit. To anyone paying Baidu for anything, ask them for a discount - a big one!
- Nokia: Read our Maps, Samsung – we're HERE for the Gear
- Kaspersky backpedals on 'done nothing wrong, nothing to fear' blather
- Episode 9 BOFH: The current value of our IT ASSets? Minus eleventy-seven...
- Too slow with that iPhone refresh, Apple: Android is GOBBLING up US mobile market
- Analysis Uber, Lyft and cutting corners: The true face of the Sharing Economy


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The singer, who has never performed at these awards, could wear a pair of heels from her upcoming glitzy collection.
“I say: ‘Let’s Get Loud’ at the voting booth,” Clinton told the crowd from the stage.
Some stars have embraced performance kicks with a variety of hues for their outings and workouts.
The singer and designer, who share a love of bold footwear, will release their collection in January.
The star opted for the designer’s Swarovski-encrusted platforms for her party in Las Vegas.
Lopez paid tribute to victims of last month’s nightclub shooting in Orlando, Fla., with “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda.
Both style icons stepped out to support the politician in eye-catching ensembles.
Enhanced athletic offerings & sped-up supply chain initiatives at Kohl’s excite analysts; Global Brands & CAA form mega partnership.


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Online footwear retailer Zappos has today launched an iPad app called Zappos Now, presented in the form of a digital lifestyle magazine.
It will be updated monthly, and allow users to shop directly from the app with free next business day shipping with no minimum order value.
The app has been available to download since December 8th, and within this first week or so, Zappos has seen the average user spend over 40 minutes reading the magazine.
The app also includes sharing features that allow users to share the articles and products they view with others right from the app.
Will Young, Director of Zappos.com in San Francisco, said that this presents an opportunity to ‘wow’ customers with something new.
I think people expecting this to be a shoe catalogue will be pleasantly surprised to see it is actually an exclusive editorial fashion and lifestyle magazine.”
The inaugural issue features a report on colour trends, an interview with Zappos.com stylist Brooke Hyden, a feature on online fashion community LOOKBOOK.nu, as well as information on travel destinations, current style trends and a holiday gift guide.
Zappos is not the first to create magazine style content for the iPad, or rely on an editorial edge to differentiate itself, so perhaps this isn’t quite the ‘new’ idea that Zappos thinks it is. Net-a-porter launched an identical offering in July 2010, with great success. ASOS did the same a year later in August 2011.
However, the concept is still new enough to be appealing to consumers, particularly when considering the bonus of free shipping on any order.
Plus, we all know how effective a print catalogue can be (54% of consumers use them at least once before making a purchase) – and transposing this onto a mobile device allows users to act immediately if they see something they want.
Zappos is renowned for great customer service, and combining this with a visually exciting offering onto a tablet could be really successful.


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Twitter has just announced a major change for its mobile apps with the removal of the Activity and Discover tabs on the mobile apps. Twitter apps on Android and iOS will now simply show the trends through the search bar, which can be activated by tapping the search icon on the app. Some users have already seen this feature on Android, but we never had an official announcement from Twitter regarding the change.
Top trending hashtags will even show an image and description next to them, which gives users a better understanding of what it actually stands for. Twitter explains the feature in its blog post:
We know that trends aren’t always self-explanatory, so now you’ll see a description below each trend. Since trends tend to be abbreviations without context, like #NYFW, a description will make it clear that this trend is about New York Fashion Week. The new trends experience may also include how many Tweets have been sent and whether a topic is trending up or down.
The mobile apps are said to be updating already, so you should see these changes on your devices anytime now. Twitter recently posted an update to the Android version of the app by removing some of the unnecessary buttons on the app and this new feature will go a long way in enhancing the user experience as well.
Source: Twitter Blog
Via: Android Central


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When a global glut drove the price of coffee beans to a historic low five years ago, Julio Flores almost shuttered the hillside coffee farm that had been in his family for four generations. But today Flores's farm is prospering as soaring demand for premium coffee brings new wealth to the old fields of Central America.
"We fought and fought and focused on higher quality, and we have left the crisis behind us," said Flores, 49, wearing jeans and a straw hat as he walked around his leafy, seven-foot-tall coffee plants with beans ripening for a December harvest.
Flores said what saved his farm was a clearer understanding that First World consumers want only the best beans in their cappuccinos and lattes and that they are willing to pay for it.
So he stopped using chemical fertilizers and pesticides, planted avocados below the 4,500-foot elevation that is generally required for the best beans and tended more carefully to his mile-high coffee plants.
Now, instead of selling 100 pounds of beans for $42 as he did in 2000, he is raking in $115 for the same amount of higher quality beans. Better still, he said, if he is certified as an organic grower next year as he expects, he aims to earn $150 to $200.
"A revolution has taken place in five years," said William Hempstead, a director of the Guatemalan National Coffee Association, which has been helping farmers increase quality to further distance themselves from such mass producers of commercial grade coffee as Vietnam.
Industry analysts said the shake-out in the coffee industry has caused pain across the region, resulting in the loss of at least half a million jobs. The industry now employs about 1.2 million people in Central America, down from about 1.7 million five years ago, according to official labor statistics. Guatemala lost 250,000 of its 650,000 coffee-industry jobs.
Unemployed coffee workers have moved to already overburdened cities, and others have gone illegally to the United States looking for work. Families who have depended on coffee for generations have been displaced, and countless coffee farms have been abandoned.
But Hempstead and others said that rather than dying, the industry is now bouncing back with a greater emphasis on top-quality coffee. While that has not restored the industry to its former glory, it has brought rare good economic news to this impoverished region.
Analysts said the shift to high-end coffee had been supported by the United States government, which sees it as an opportunity to improve economic stability in its back yard. Conservation groups also are working with farmers to help them earn more money so that coffee farms survive, because they help the environment by preventing erosion and harboring wildlife.
Large U.S. coffee corporations, Central American governments, U.S. aid agencies and international conservation groups are working together to help the industry, said Charles Oberbeck, who is in charge of the region's coffee programs for the U.S. Agency for International Development.
"The unlikely bedfellows," he said, may all be working for differing reasons, but the effect is clear: Guatemala's coffee export earnings rose from $233 million two years ago to over $300 million this year. A similar rebound is occurring in neighboring Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Honduras, which all depend on coffee production.
"The crisis taught us that quality sells," said Henry Hueck, a Nicaraguan coffee farmer who sells his coffee to Bewley's Ltd., based in Ireland. "It used to be a given that people bought your coffee. Now all people are talking about is quality coffee."
Oberbeck said U.S. coffee companies are paying above-market prices to secure the world's best coffee because "they don't want to kill the goose that laid the golden egg."
While there is a huge supply of commercial-grade coffee -- often grown in the sun in lowlands in Africa and Asia and Brazil -- Oberbeck said there is a less abundant supply of what is considered the best coffee. He said the growing demand for top-quality coffee has turned out to be "lucky salvation for the industry" in Central America. Guatemala in particular is reaping the benefits as it emerges "as the world leader in quality coffee," he said.
According to industry figures, Guatemala ranks second to Colombia in the overall amount of quality coffee it produces, but ranks first in the percentage of its crop classified as the highest quality -- and that percentage has been rising steadily.
Guatemala's elevation, volcanic soil and rainfall produce beans with distinct flavors -- from chocolaty to fruity -- setting it apart from coffees used in canned or instant coffee, industry experts said. Some Guatemalan coffee is grown at elevations as high as 11,000 feet, with farmers tending to it on mountains so steep they have to tie a rope around their waists to make sure they don't fall. "It's so steep you can literally fall out of your farm," Oberbeck said.
Coffee experts compare their industry to the wine industry, with consumers wanting a gourmet arabica more than a routine robusta, just as people want a fine cabernet sauvignon over a red table wine.
There has also been a noticeable upsurge in Japanese buyers, including the giant beverage company Suntory, which has descended on Guatemala looking for velvety bodies, lively aromas and just the right aftertaste. Japan, once a tea-drinking nation, is now the third-largest importer of coffee, after the United States and Germany, according to the International Coffee Organization.
The competition among buyers from wealthy countries is also helping coffee producers in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Honduras and the southern Mexican state of Chiapas.
New Internet auctions begun this year exclusively for the region's gourmet coffee attracted bidders from New York to Tokyo and are helping raise prices and recognition in Central America.
The U.S. government has allocated nearly $20 million for regional coffee programs to be spent through USAID from 2002 to 2006. The agency is helping farmers with technical and marketing advice. U.S. officials said supporting the coffee industry makes sense because coffee remains a vital export and employs hundreds of thousands of the region's poorest.
When things go wrong in those fields, "we really feel the effect in our back yard," said Martin Raine, a U.S. economist at the World Bank who focuses on Central America. Environmental and conservation groups have become involved in the shade-grown coffee movement, praising small farms such as Flores's for the steps they have taken to protect the environment.
"We call them coffee forests because so many of them are so gorgeous," said Sabrina Vigilante, a marketing manager for Rainforest Alliance, a New York-based organization.
On the steep road to Flores's farm, named The Forest, he points out one abandoned coffee farm and another paved over for a new housing development. But at his place, mockingbirds, doves and parakeets fly under a canopy of cypresses and cedars. He said he has planted 4,000 trees on his 400 acres, all part of a strategy to become certified as organic and environmentally friendly.
Flores also said he now likes drinking specialty coffees, such as cappuccino, a drink that many of his beans are used for in the United States. He has even asked his aunt in Bethesda, Graciela Carcamo Stukey, to bring him an espresso machine on her next visit.
Coffee workers earn about $4 day -- the price of some brews at U.S. coffee shops. Farmers and workers interviewed said that working conditions have improved in many cases as foreign buyers, who want to be seen as socially responsible, express concern.
Flores said he is planning a new health clinic on his farm, adding that producing better beans means more profit for him and higher pay for his workers.
"I benefit and so do my workers," he said. Flores even said he is hiring, rare good news in an industry that has been shedding workers.
Rosendo Tubac, 32, said he was jobless for two rough years when the coffee farm where he worked went out of business. He said he and his wife scrambled to sell sandwiches in the street to feed their four small children.
Now, working at The Forest, Tubac said, "times are better."


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Rick Spence is one of Canada's foremost experts on entrepreneurship, innovation and opportunity. The former editor and publisher of PROFIT, The Magazine for Canadian Entrepreneurs, he writes a weekly column for the Post's Entrepreneur section. Rick is also a sought-after speaker and business-communications consultant.
Quebec city-based Poka has raised two rounds of financing from venture capitalists in Quebec and Silicon Valley — The company now has 32 employees
Write-ups in two gift guides put out by Hollywood influencers Gwyneth Paltrow and Cameron Diaz may have created a gold rush for crystal gift box maker Little Box of Rocks
Putting aside eastern spiritualism, meditation and sister circles, the journey of the Canadian entrepreneurs behind the Bali conference Awakened Women resembles that of any startup
Recently, four tech entrepreneurs told failure stories at the first “F*d-Up Friday” event in Prince George, B.C., providing the two dozen or so attendees with some valuable lessons
The Valley's Day of the Dead or "failure wake" drew 200 techies, from raw startups to Valley veterans, to honour fallen companies and botched business plans
Entrepreneurs gathered in San Jose at QuickBooks Connect, a community-building user conference organized by Intuit, to explore their common future
The family behind Nora is eshewing capital and retail channels, while they try to go it alone on the internet
At a recent summit of Canadian growth companies, entrepreneurs learned they had to expand their businesses and grow as leaders or be left behind
When the CEO of RBC joined a panel of tech entrepreneurs with no news of progress, this columnist decided to ask the entrepreneurs what banks could be doing differently
Rick Spence: Linamar CEO Linda Hasenfratz is intent on continuing the remarkable growth begun by her father Frank, who founded Linamar in 1964 in his basement before turning it into a global leader
The airport is well on its way to meeting that goal as it attracts more international passengers than any other airport in North America except JFK in New York City
Between budgeting for the unexpected costs of life and running a farm and ensuring there is money for the known expenses, there is lots to learn
After the launch of Touch, Oculus will offer best combination of VR equipment available to a general consumer. At least for the moment
'When I trained, I never imagined I wouldn't be able to treat an infection. I went in to cure and here I am with a patient I can't cure'
Trico may not belong to any earthly species, but he moves and behaves – and, sometimes, is just as frustratingly unmanageable – as a real dog or cat


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13 May 2018
By Mark Beer, Chief Executive, Dispute Resolution Authority
In 2017, the United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan celebrated 25 years of friendship and diplomacy. The UAE is Kazakhstan’s largest Arab trade partner, with close to $643 million in bilateral trade recorded in 2017. Over the last decade, the UAE has made substantial investments, exceeding $2 billion in a wide array of economic sectors in Kazakhstan, financing projects in strategic areas, such as oil and gas and food security.
Announced by Chinese President Xi Jinping at Nazarbayev University in Astana in 2013, the re-birth of the Silk Road as the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has spurred nations into hyper-connectivity mandates across trade, investment, energy and infrastructure. BRI includes the most ambitious infrastructure project the world has ever known – and the most expensive. Its expected cost is just under one trillion dollars and when complete, the Belt and Road will connect 65% of the world’s population and 30% of its GDP.
The UAE and Kazakhstan are both acutely aware that, with a supply chain composed of land and sea routes running from China to Scandinavia and the Middle East, an innovative, flexible and global legal network to support commercial rule of law is crucial. BRI should not only create opportunity, but it should also enable progressive justice in terms of security, protection and certainty that people and businesses need to trade and innovate securely.
In recent weeks, DIFC Courts and a delegation from the Supreme Court of Kazakhstan met in Dubai to discuss their role as Courts of the Future, the Fourth Industrial Revolution, China’s Belt and Road initiative and the need for the world’s courts to collaborate to provide greater access to justice.
Whilst such collaboration between institutions might be viewed as exclusively underpinning the commercial rule of law and trade, the trickle-down effect cannot be overlooked. Measures being taken by both the UAE and Kazakhstan to improve the effectiveness of justice feed into larger national plans for creating more sustainable and diversified economies. For the UAE, it is Vision 2021, and for Kazakhstan, it is Plan of the Nation – 100 Concrete Steps.
The myriad of technological advancements that define the fundamental re-shaping of businesses in the 21st century make it essential for high-level connectivity and innovation. Expectations from the private sector increasingly require the bold engagement of public service and of regulatory agencies. The DRA’s ambition, through continued outreach to global judicial systems, is to contribute in creating a level-playing field between BRI participants, by re-engineering the way commercial justice is designed and delivered.
As goods and services travel across the world along the BRI, they will seamlessly cross borders, so we need a seamless judicial platform that can do the same. The answer is to make sure that when the dispute comes into the “real world,” the court system can understand that virtual supply chain and deliver a decision that can be executed around the world. The creation of a court that focuses on connectivity and the enforceability of its judgments will ensure the success of the BRI by facilitating the quick resolution of disputes in a neutral forum.
The future of courts will be one of supporting supply chains operating virtually, with dispute resolution encoded into the blockchain, with virtual currency and with the most likely dispute being one of coding. Those supply chains will develop and advance to the point that smart contracts will replace traditional contracts, and we’ll see them become ubiquitous even for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating on a public blockchain. Soon we’ll see not only the contract encoded into the supply chain, but also the applicable laws and regulations. At that point, it will be the blockchain itself which resolves most contractual disputes.
This blog is taken from an article featured in The Astana Times. To read the full article please see https://astanatimes.com/2018/04/belt-and-road-initiative-one-vision-of-justice/


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JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A study released by the Center for Retail Research estimates that U.S. retailers will lose $8.9 billion over the holiday season due to shoplifting, employee theft and vendor and distribution losses.
Who pays for that? Shoppers -- about $98 additional on each shopping tab.
The report estimates retailers will see the biggest loss from employee theft -- about $4.7 billion. General shoplifting will take around $3.8 billion worth of goods, and companies are estimated to see about $400 million in losses from vendors and distributors.
The number compared with last year's shoplifting estimate is up by 4 percent.
So why does it cost shoppers when people steal?
"People pay more simply because when you steal, you're taking away from the profits of the store, which means they've got to now replace that one item that you stole," Channel 4 crime analyst Ken Jefferson said. "They already paid for it once. Now they're paying for it twice."
The newly released information about shoplifting includes the top 10 most stolen items (see at bottom of story).
The No. 1 item people steal when they are shoplifting? Alcohol.
Liquor store owner John Stephens says about 10 to 15 percent of his store's sales are stolen each year.
"Not only do you lose the profit, you lose the money you put into it and it effects every part of your business," Stephens said.
Stephens has a monitor at the front of his store, cameras everywhere customers look, and two people on staff during peak hours who are very involved with customers.
"I think we've discouraged them by being in their face, by asking, 'Can we help you?' and being right next to them," Stephens said.
He said he sees suspicious behavior a couple times a week and that they come in the form of all walks of life.
"There is no demographics of who's going to steal from you," Stephens said.
He said the most common item stolen from his store is vodka.
"It's just opportunity," Stephens said. "They don't intend to do it. It's just, 'Nobody's watching me. I can do this.'"
The ninth most popular item stolen? Jewelry.
Miriam's Jewelry Store was broken into last February. Three men stole about $25,000 worth of jewelry. Since then, the store has tightened security, including having a locked-door system.
"We have to actually let you in and let you out," store owner Miriam Alexander said.
The store also upgraded its camera system, has a German Shepherd dog to keep guard, and has a security guard on its premises at all times. It also hired a Jacksonville Sheriff's officer to come in two weeks before Christmas to act as security.
"I think we're doing everything we can to keep anything from happening to us again," Alexander said.
Top 10 most stolen items:
- Women's clothing and fashion accessories
- Perfume and health and beauty gift packs
- Electronic devices such as smartphones and tablets
- DVD gift sets and game consoles
- Food and Christmas decorations
- Electrical goods such as hardware/DIY products
- Watches and jewelry
- Chocolates and confectionery
Copyright 2012 by News4Jax.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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The bill termed as “Team USA Made in America Act of 2012” will be introduced next week by U.S. Senator Joe Manchin and his seven democratic colleagues that includes U.S. Senator Charles Schumer of New York.
A press release from Senator Manchin’s office quoting, Senator Manchin said. “This idea is pretty simple: When the best American athletes are representing this country, they should be wearing the best ’Made in the U.S.A.’ uniforms”.
Last week (July 13, 2012), U.S. Senator Charles Schumer wrote to Lawrence Probst, Chairman, United States Olympic Committee about his disappointment on the use of non-U.S. made uniforms for the U.S. Olympic team.
His letter has criticized the use of Chinese made goods and has urged the United States Olympic Committee to reconsider the decision to use Chinese clothing.
There has been uproar in the United States Congress on the use of Chinese made uniforms for the United States’ Olympic team ever since the news broke out last week.
Yesterday, Xinhua, the Chinese official news agency in a commentary retaliated against the recent uproar in the United States stating that some U.S. politicians have displayed shades of hypocrisy.
Furthermore, the commentary states that the U.S. Olympic uniform fiasco is a typical election year politics dominated by economic growth and job creation.
The National Council of Textile Organizations (NCTO) has recently stated that the U.S. textile and apparel companies have the necessary capacity to supply uniforms for the U.S. Olympic team.
A recent press release from NCTO stated that, “Chinese Advantage” has sharply narrowed in the United States due to enhanced productivity in the United States, increasing labor costs in China and high transportation cost towards the shipment of textile goods from China.
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- News tagged "laptop"
Tuesday, 10 Jan 2012
A short while back, we reported that Acer will be placing big bets on Ultrabooks, and the result is what you see here today -- the Acer Aspire S5. One of the more important tidbits was that Acer will be moving away from producing "cheap" products, and it is clearly evident in the Acer Aspire S5.
HP has just announced the HP Envy 14 Spectre, an Ultrabook that has a Gorilla Glass lid and palmrest. The material seems to be a refreshing change from the usual aluminum or magnesium alloy that we're used to seeing. However there seems to be certain concerns regarding its Ultrabook legitimacy.
Tuesday, 20 Dec 2011
Analysts have predicted that Apple will lose their share of the ultra-portable segment, currently dominated by the Macbook Air, which makes up an estimated 49% of all Apple notebook sales. This prediction is reliant on the Ultrabook (as per Intel's specifications) segment picking up speed in 2012.
Wednesday, 7 Dec 2011
Taiwanese memory module manufacturer, Adata Technology has reported that rising demand for tablets, and an influx of short lead-time orders from the Ultrabook sector, led to SSD sales staying at high levels. Hopefully, the strong demand reported will lead to lower SSD prices.
Monday, 21 Nov 2011
Details on the upcoming slew of Apple products indicate certain design changes to accommodate bigger, better components used in the iPad and iPhone, and a thinner MacBook Pro.
Wednesday, 16 Nov 2011
The Dell XPS 14z that was released in China in October, has now been launched throughout the globe. Consumers who have put off getting the 15z because it was too large, can now zero in on the smaller Dell XPS 14z.
Tuesday, 13 Sep 2011
Microsoft's upcoming desktop / mobile OS, Windows 8 will play an integral role in Intel's fortunes moving forward, and it very well may go both ways.
Tuesday, 6 Sep 2011
While many smartphones promise a holistic experience with its capabilities, Korean telecommunications provider KT has upped the ante with something more: an Android smartphone that docks into a tablet, laptop and a gaming peripheral.
Thursday, 28 Jul 2011
Exploding Lithium-Ion batteries may soon become a thing of the past. Researchers from Layden Energy have come up with a more heat and corrosion resistant Lithium-Imide battery.
Wednesday, 27 Jul 2011
The rumours surrounding Apple producing a super-sized MacBook Airs -- or skinny MacBook Pros -- are getting louder and more substantial.


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Mountain View, California (STLNews) – Google is giving the Show-Me-State an economic boost. Google announced on Monday that 16,000 Missouri businesses, publishers and nonprofits used Google search and advertising tools to connect with the people and communities they serve, generating $2.98 billion in economic activity. By using Google products businesses increased their online presence and were able to grow, bringing more money and jobs into the local economy. This is the 10th year Google has released its Economic Impact Report.
A recent national study by Deloitte found that over 80% of small businesses surveyed are not fully using online digital tools. The same report determined the following:
Digital small businesses are nearly three times as likely to have created new jobs in the last year.
Digital small businesses are seeing four times higher revenue growth
Digital small businesses are almost three times as likely to reach more customers via increased calls, leads and sales inquiries
Digital small businesses are three times as likely to have exported a product or service
“For small businesses across the U.S., the web is the most powerful tool to attract new customers and retain existing ones,” said Mary Ellen Coe, President of Google Customer Solutions. “Last year, our search and advertising tools helped generate billions of dollars in economic activity for millions of businesses – helping to create a lasting impact on local communities. And we look forward to working with Missouri business, nonprofits and publishers to help their businesses grow.”
Google’s Missouri Economic Impact Report detailed how Armini’s, a home and recreation furnishing company in St. Louis, used digital tools to increase their online presence and reach customers. Amini’s runs targeted ads across Google’s Search and Display networks and uses Google Analytics to optimize its campaigns on the fly. Amini’s recently implemented Google’s conversion tracking and saw a 40% increase in leads and a 620% increase in location requests in six months.
To support more small businesses, Google launched its Grow with Google initiative to help create economic opportunity for Americans. Drawing on Google’s history of building products, platforms, and services that help people and businesses grow, the initiative aims to give Americans access to the best of Google’s training and tools to grow their skills, careers, and businesses. More about these resources are available at grow.google.


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The Durbarmarg businesses pulled their shutters down on Monday to protest the banning of roadside vehicle parking by Kathmandu Metropolitan City.
The businessmen protested “symbolically” by closing their shops for an hour from 4:30 to 5:30 pm.
The businesses staged the protest through the Durbar Marg Development Board. The board has demanded that one line of vehicle parking be allowed in the country's poshest shopping area.
KMC has banned vehicle parking in coordination with Kathmandu Valley Traffic Police since December saying that's the only way to resolve the road congestion.
Retail shop owners of high-value products say their businesses have been hurt as the customers find no parking spaces near the shops.
The “symbolic” protest saw slogans being chanted against KMC Mayor Balendra Shah.
NepalMinute lens man captured some moments of the event.


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The Wisconsin group that negotiated $3 billion in tax incentives for Foxconn Technology Group has problematic oversight practices, a state audit has found, raising fresh concerns about the costly incentives states use to attract economic growth.
The Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., a quasi-public entity, awarded state tax credits to companies that ultimately didn’t create the number of jobs they had promised, the independent Wisconsin Legislative Audit Bureau found in a report released last month. It also paid companies using state tax dollars for jobs created outside of Wisconsin, the report said. The audit found that only 35% of the jobs promised by companies from 2011 until 2018 were actually created, based on data from awards that had ended.
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The average jewelry store gets 30% of its sales during November and December. If the last two months of the year are slow for a jewelry store owner this means they will most likely not make much of a profit for the year. Jewelry stores truly wait all year long for two months. This year was surprisingly up considering the slow economy of the past. The jewelry retail sector is up 2.6 percent over last year for the same time frame according to Mastercard.
“Last year, jewelry merchants were pummeled by the economic downturn, weak consumer spending and lack of available financing, which forced companies such as Finlay Enterprises and Robbins Brothers to liquidate. As a result, an estimated five percent of the nation’s jewelry retailers shuttered their doors for good, said Gassman, citing figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.”


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Sales: $10.3 billion
Sales: $10.3 billion, but that total includes food storage products.
Key Personnel: H. Fisk Johnson, chairman and chief executive officer; Mark H. Eckhardt, executive vice president and chief financial officer; Salman Amin, chief operating officer; Kelly M. Semrau, chief sustainability officer; Steven P. Stanbrook, chief operating officer of international markets.
Major Products: Household cleaners, disinfectants and insecticides. Brands include AllOut, Autan, Baygon, Off! and Raid insecticides; Drano drain cleaner; Duck, Scrubbing Bubbles bathroom cleaner; Caldrea, Mr. Muscle and Mrs. Meyers household cleaners; Glade air freshener; Grand Prize, Kiwi and Pledge waxes and polishes; Shout laundry stain remover; Windex glass cleaner, Ecover and Method home cleaning products; Deb cleaning products for the I&I sector.
New Products: Glade—Elegant Blossom and Oud, Scented Gels, Auto Plug-Ins for Auto; Deb—reformulated hand soaps; Method—cleaning wipes in lime + sea salt, pink grapefruit and lavender; and hand wash in sea breeze and fresh pineapple. Acquisition—Sun Bum.
Comments: Sources estimate SC Johnson’s sales rose 3% last year, but company executives insist their success isn’t all based on profit. CEOs around the world are waking up to the fact that their companies can do better when it comes to caring for the planet. SC Johnson has been doing better for years; it was one of the first companies to create an ingredient transparency program, champion renewable energy platforms and aggressively seek out ways to reduce its plastic packaging footprint. For example, since March, the Windex Vinegar trigger bottle has been made from 100% ocean plastic. Last fall, a worldwide coalition of leading businesses (SCJ was one) and governments came together to tackle the growing global crisis of plastic pollution with the signing of the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment at the 2018 Our Ocean Conference in Bali, Indonesia.
“We measure our success not by the financial report of the next quarter, but by what we can do to make the world better for this generation and the next,” said Fisk Johnson, chairman and CEO of SC Johnson. “We are making ambitious commitments and taking united action to create a new plastics economy that helps stop plastic from becoming waste.”
The commitment includes:
- Taking action to eliminate problematic or unnecessary plastic packaging by 2025.
- Taking action to move from single-use toward reuse models where relevant by 2025.
- Making 100% of plastic packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025.
- Significantly increasing recycled content in plastic packaging by 2025.
- Making 100% of SC Johnson plastic packaging recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025. Currently, 90% of SC Johnson’s plastic packaging is designed to be recyclable, reusable or compostable.
- Tripling the amount of post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastic content in SC Johnson packaging by 2025 from 10 million kilograms to more than 30 million. As part of this, SC Johnson will increase the percentage of PCR plastic that it uses in its North American and European bottles from 20% today to 40% by 2025.
- Expanding the number of concentrated refill options for SC Johnson products by 2025. Since 2011, SC Johnson has been making concentrated liquid refills for its Home Cleaning trigger bottle products in the US. Each trigger bottle is designed to deliver 10,000 sprays so it can be refilled and reused an average of 13 times, every time avoiding a single-use alternative. The company will continue to expand its variety of concentrated refill options, enabling consumers to reuse packaging and reduce waste.
- Continuing to remove excess plastics wherever possible. SC Johnson has been relentlessly focused on designing unnecessary packaging out of its products. From 2011 to 2017, the company has removed 9.5 million kilograms of materials from its packaging.
- Championing curbside recycling of plastic film. SC Johnson will continue its effort to make curbside recycling of flexible plastic film such as Ziploc brand bags a reality in the US. SC Johnson is also promoting reuse of Ziploc brand bags, which are made to be reused many times.
In the area of ingredient transparency, earlier this year SC Johnson expanded its program to Latin America.
Just last month, SC Johnson accquired Sun Bum sun care and personal care products. A purchase price was not disclosed.


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All publications for 14.02.2022
Ubisoft has new Might & Magic game in works, planning to reinvent one of its biggest fantasy franchises
It looks like Ubisoft plans to revive the Might & Magic series. The company’s studio in Shanghai is now hiring for the position of senior brand manager for its next game based on the world-famous franchise.
Techland’s Kornel Jaskuła on Dying Light 2 development and narrative: “Not a typical sequel”
Dying Light 2 Stay Human has climbed the sales charts like they are some parkour-friendly rooftops. The game’s production, however, has not been without challenges. We spoke with Kornel Jaskuła, senior producer at Techland, about the game’s development and its narrative, as well as the company’s growth and the way the pandemic has affected the internal processes.
Genshin Impact developer miHoYo launches HoYoverse to unite its games and brands into one virtual world
Chinese studio miHoYo has revealed its metaverse ambitions, launching new brand HoYoverse. Its main goal is to produce more content and create one virtual world, which will unite the company’s products globally.