text:
St. Maarten Positions Itself as Prominent Cruise and Convention Destination by Hosting FCCA Conference & Trade Show
Philpsburg, St. Maarten (October 6, 2014) - Tomorrow's opening of the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association's (FCCA) 21st annual Conference & Trade Show-the Caribbean's largest cruise tourism conference and trade show-will reconfirm St. Maarten's commitment to maximizing cruise tourism's economic impact.
St. Maarten is looking to build onto their past growth by hosting the event-along with about 1,000 tourism stakeholders and 100 executives, presidents and CEOs from FCCA's 15 Member Lines-for a second time. The destination knows the significance because of their progress after their first Conference in 2003. In 2001, St. Maarten Harbour Group of Companies reported 875,540 passenger arrivals. This number rose 70 percent to 1,490,386 in 2005, just two years after hosting the Conference.
These numbers extend far beyond the cruise pier; they impact the entire economy. According to the Business Research & Economic Advisors (BREA) 2012 study, Economic Contribution of Cruise Tourism to the Destination Economies, the average expenditure per passenger in St. Maarten was $185.40, which benefitted numerous industries through purchases of goods that included food and beverage at restaurants and bars, clothing, shore excursions, ground transportation, local crafts and souvenirs, watches and jewelry, perfumes and cosmetics, electronics, entertainment/night clubs/casinos, retail purchases of liquor, and telephone and internet.
However, this is hardly the only economic contribution provided by cruise tourism. The same study showed that the average expenditure per crew in St. Maarten was $135.50 for similar products and services. Plus it revealed the direct and indirect employment generated by the cruise industry, totaling 8,123 jobs and $159.8 million in employee wages.
By these figures, St. Maarten's 70 percent increase after hosting their first Conference represents an increase of $114 million in passenger spending alone, along with the coinciding growth of crew spending, cruise line spending, employment and indirect contribution of passengers that return to the destination as stay-over visitors.
Projecting this same growth after this year's Conference would be aggressive, considering that in 2014 St. Maarten expects 1.67 million passenger arrivals onboard 523 vessels from FCCA Member Lines alone. But a single cruise ship has a large economic wake. BREA's figures show that just one average cruise vessel-130,000 GRT, 1,040 feet long, carrying 3,000 passengers and 500 crewmembers-would generate $556,200 in passenger spending and $67,750 in crew spending, along with roughly $15,000 in port fees, totaling $638,950.
Projecting a more conservative growth rate of 20 percent, or 105 additional cruise ship calls, would mean an extra $67 million per year directly contributed to St. Maarten's economy. Plus a 20 percent increase in cruise tourism-impacted employment would represent 1,625 more jobs with $32 million in wages.
As Mark Mingo, CEO of Port St. Maarten, noted, hosting the event is also a step in establishing conference and convention tourism. "Conference and convention tourism is a niche market that should be explored and developed," said Mingo.
"We have an opportunity in the FCCA post-conference period to work towards establishing St. Maarten as a dynamic business events destination."
Considering the potential economic impact from cruise and convention tourism, it becomes easy to understand why St. Maarten again decided to invest in the FCCA Conference & Trade Show.
About the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association
Created in 1972, the FCCA is a not-for-profit trade organization that provides a forum for discussion on tourism development, ports, safety, security, and other cruise industry issue and builds bilateral relationships with destinations' private and public sectors. By fostering an understanding of the cruise industry and its operating practices, the FCCA works with governments, ports and private sector representatives to maximize cruise passenger, crew and cruise line spending, as well as enhance the destination experience and increase the amount of cruise passengers returning as stay-over visitors. For more information, visit F-CCA.com, the FCCA on Facebook, and @FCCAupdates on Twitter
Created in 1972, the FCCA is a not-for-profit trade organization that provides a forum for discussion on tourism development, ports, safety, security, and other cruise industry issues and builds bilateral relationships with destinations’ private and public sectors. By fostering an understanding of the cruise industry and its operating practices, the FCCA works with governments, ports and private sector representatives to maximize cruise passenger, crew and cruise line spending, as well as enhance the destination experience and increase the amount of cruise passengers returning as stay-over visitors. For more information, visit F-CCA.com and @FCCAupdates on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.


text:
ShadowGun THD set the standard of mobile gaming graphics, created by developer Madfinger Games. Now they’re back again, and have just announced their newest title, Dead Trigger. Dead Trigger follows in the graphical superiority of ShadowGun, but changes the theme to the classic zombie apocalypse. The battle takes place in 2012, a world where a deadly virus has changed most of the population to undead monsters.
The game will be launching on the TegraZone and Google Play near the end of the month, but those grabbing it from TegraZone will get an extra treat. Madfinger designed the game around the Tegra 3 processor, so an added level of detail will be there on games downloaded from TegraZone versus the standard version. There’s a comparison video video for those interested. Who’s excited for Dead Trigger.

domain: news


text:
A mother in the Indian state of Odisha sold her only pair of gold earrings so that she could buy a smartphone for her daughter’s online classes.
In a report, The Telegraph said Mason Gagan Bhoi and wife Rita were left helpless when their 13-year-old daughter Archita’s school shifted to online classes during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Archita needed a smartphone to attend online classes. Her parents did not have money needed to buy a phone, especially since her father had been left without an income for over three months due to the pandemic.
They could not take a loan either because moneylenders charge a lot of interest.
Rita then decided to sell her only gold earrings, which she had gotten from her parents during her wedding, so as to buy the phone. She said that her daughter’s future is more important than her gold earrings. Rita’s mother had given them to her and asked her to pass it on to the next generation.
Thousands of families are struggling with most schools shifting to online classes, which require a basic smartphone and a stable internet connection, which over 50 percent of Indian school going kids don’t have access to.


text:
San Francisco-based e-cigarette maker JUUL Labs announced Thursday that it is suspending the sale of non-tobacco, non-menthol-based flavored products in the U.S., pending a review by the Food and Drug Administration.
Company CEO K.C. Crosthwaite announced that JUUL Labs is suspending the sale of the mango, creme, fruit and cucumber flavors.
JUUL Labs has recently come under the scrutiny of the FDA, which sent a warning letter to the company Sept. 9 alleging it was making advertising claims for its e-cigarettes without FDA authorization. Since then, JUUL has suspended all broadcast, print and digital advertising in the U.S.
It has also stopped its active support for Proposition C in San Francisco, which seeks to regulate rather than ban e-cigarettes in the city.
The company continues to say that its products can be a good choice for adults who want to avoid combustible cigarettes.
But recent reports by health officials in the U.S. allege that vaping has led to illnesses and even deaths. As of last Friday, 18 vaping-related deaths had been reported in the U.S. Two of those were in California and neither was in the Bay Area. More than 100 illnesses related to e-cigarettes had been reported in the state and eight of those were in the Bay Area.
Company officials said that they are going to continue to develop scientific evidence supporting the use of flavored e-cigarettes because they believe the products can help adults who want to stop smoking regular cigarettes. E-cigarettes and combustible cigarettes contain nicotine, which is addictive.


text:
Markets were headed lower on Monday after consumer spending data came in on a positive note. The Commerce Department announced that U.S. consumer spending was up 0.4% in January. They also upwardly revised December’s data by 0.1%. January’s data surpassed the 0.1% economists were expecting. Spending was boosted by a large gain in services. There was a 0.9% increase for the month, which has been the largest gain for the sector since October of 2001. Some say the jump was largely attributed to a rise in demand for utilities as harsh weather hit the United States. When taking food and energy out of the equation, there was a slight gain of 0.1% in January. Over the past 12 months, consumer prices have risen a total of 1.2%. Brian Jones, a senior U.S. economist at Societe Generale, said, “Consumer spending had OK momentum. We expect to see better job growth in the spring. More people with jobs means more money to spend.”
There was also good news out of the manufacturing sector. The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) announced that U.S. manufacturing growth was up from an eight-month low in January. ISM’s February data came in at 53.2, up from January’s 51.3 reading; Any readings that come in above 50 mean the sector is expanding. The two previous months showed that there was a slowing for U.S. manufacturing, according to ISM. There was positive movement in 14 of the 18 industries that are followed by the report, up from 11 in January. Some of the industries in the positive area last month were machinery, plastics, transportation equipment and paper products. The areas that have been reporting less-than-stellar numbers were placing a lot of the blame on the bad weather conditions. Joseph LaVorgna, an economist at Deutsche Bank, said of the ISM data, “We expect a substantial rebound… when weather patterns eventually normalize.”
Shares of Ford (F) were trading lower as they reported sales that were down last month. As with many others, they are placing the blame on the sweeping cold weather that has been hitting the U.S. and a drop in fleet sales. The company posted results that were down a surprising 6.1% in February. Car sales were down 14% and utility sales were down 4%. Their pickup trucks, however, posted positive gains. Sales of there popular F-Series pickup truck were up 3% to a total of 55,882, which was their best posting in February in eight years. In total, the company sold 184,944 vehicles in last month. Sales were down 7.2% when compared to this time last year. Ford’s fleet sales were down a staggering 10% which was said to have been caused by a delay in the delivery of vehicles due to the weather. John Felice, vice president of sales and marketing said, “Sales surged in the final week (of February), providing us momentum after a slow start to the month.”
That’s all for the day.
All the best,


text:
She watched her parents do it — immigrate to the United States from their native Mexico with very little and build successful businesses. Now she’s doing it herself.
Jazline Gomez, a 23-year-old Wright State University psychology and Spanish major, is the owner of Pepe’s Mexican Flavors, an authentic Mexican restaurant that features everything from street-style tacos to corn on the cob coated with mayo, cotija cheese, cayenne and lime to mango ice cream with chili pepper and coconut.
“It’s a very unique place,” said Gomez. “If you ever go to Mexico, you’re going to see a lot of street vendors. I decided to put that in one place. We make a lot of different ingredient recipes and you can customize a lot of things. I wanted that place where if you had a craving, you know where to go.”
Gomez opened the restaurant in 2018. Tucked in a shopping center in Huber Heights, Pepe’s was named after Gomez’ father, who owns several restaurants and stores in the area.
“I’ve had great role models. I’m from a family of entrepreneurs,” said Gomez.” “I grew up in that type of environment. I was working when I was very young.”
After helping at her father’s business and building up her savings, Gomez decided to open her own restaurant.
“It was hard work, but I’ve had a lot of support from the community,” she said. “Their support is making an enormous impact on us. We’re doing pretty well.”
The menu features unusual and fun items such as Doriliocos — Doritos served with pickled skin pork, cucumber, jicama, pico de gallo, lemon and peanuts; Chicharrones — fried wheat crisps served with sour cream, cabbage, pico de gallo, lemon and cheese; and Pinas Locas — “Krazy” pineapples served with chili, lemon, peanuts and tamarind candy.
Gomez is originally from Chicago and grew up in the Dayton area. After graduating from Wayne High School in 2016, she became a first-generation college student, enrolling at Sinclair Community College.
After earning her associate degree in psychology, she transferred to Wright State, where she is majoring in psychology and Spanish.
Gomez had considering going away to college and had visited other campuses. But many of her classmates had transferred to Wright State.
“I had heard a lot of things about Wright State and they were good things,” she said. “They always tell you that when you go to a university you’re going to have that feeling like this is home. Wright State gave me that feeling of like this is where I belong.”
Gomez said the support of counselors and faculty made for a smooth transition. She felt also very welcomed by the Office of Latinx, Asian and Native American Affairs.
Gomez wants to eventually pursue a master’s degree in counseling after earning her bachelor’s degree in psychology.
“I work with people every single day and it has made a difference in how I relate to my staff and how I relate to my customers,” she said.
Gomez said it has been a difficult year for her business dealing with restrictions imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“But we’re making it work,” she said, adding that she hopes to open more locations soon. “It’s a family environment, but it’s also a place where you can go and study. It can be someplace where you feel at home.”


text:
Hy-Vee is investigating a potential data breach in some of their payment processing systems. Officials say they have also notified federal law enforcement and the payment card networks.
Hy-Vee officials say their investigation is focused on card transactions at Hy-Vee fuel pumps, drive-thru coffee shops, and restaurants.
Preliminary investigation indicates payment card transactions that were swiped or inserted on front-end checkout lanes, pharmacies, customer service counters, wine and spirits locations, floral department, clinics are not involved.
Hy-Vee officials say that they believe their actions have stopped the unauthorized activity on their payment processing systems.
Customers are being advised to closely monitor their payment card statements for any unauthorized activity.


text:
Shoppers Urged to Buy Local on Saturday
As the holiday shopping season swings into full gear across the nation, advocates for small business are reminding consumers to shop small.The first Saturday following Thanksgiving has been designated as Shop Small Saturday since 2010 and has boosted spending in small business by $5.5 billion. The U.S. Senate officially recognized the initiative in 2011 and officials expect this year to be the best yet. Last year, nearly 70 million people participated. There are more than 35 Kentucky cities participating and Louisville has one of the most vibrant locally owned business scenes in the nation, said Michael Ashcraft, spokesman for the Small Business Administration in Kentucky. “There are not too many cities that are similar in the sense that they have so many small businesses that are thriving,” he said. Shop Small Saturday was put into motion by American Express to encourage consumers to support local businesses in the U.S. Locally owned, small businesses create two-thirds of new private sector jobs, and half of working Americans either own or work for a small business, according to the Small Business Administration website. Ashcraft said supporting local businesses can create jobs and bolster the local economy. “Studies have shown that a vast majority of dollars spent in those small businesses stay within those communities, as opposed to the big box stores where a lot of the money spent goes outside their community,” he said. “So, it’s really important.” Smaller businesses can offer consumers “something more” than big box, corporate owned stores can, Ashcraft said. “I go back to the same place time and time again for gifts because they know what I’m looking for and they take care of me, a big company just doesn’t have the ability to do that,” Ashcraft said. For a list and map of participating businesses, go here.


text:
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Total travel spending in the United States is predicted to drop 45 percent by the end of this year, according to a forecast prepared for the U.S. Travel Association by Tourism Economics. Domestic travel spending is forecast to drop 40 percent—from $972 billion in 2019 to $583 billion this year—while international inbound spending is expected to fall 75 percent—from $155 billion last year to $39 billion in 2020.
Total domestic trips taken by U.S. residents are expected to fall 30 percent from last year to 1.6 billion—the lowest figure since 1991, another recession year.
The forecast numbers arrive as U.S. Travel commences its first-ever “Virtual Hill Week,” connecting members of the industry with lawmakers to discuss travel priorities and needs. Nearly 300 industry members will participate in 75 online meetings with lawmakers in both the U.S. House and Senate.
“The data is telling us that travel and tourism has been more severely damaged than any other U.S. industry by the economic fallout of the health crisis,” said Tori Emerson Barnes, U.S. Travel Association EVP for public affairs and policy. “Given that travel employed one in 10 Americans and was the number-two U.S. export before the pandemic, supporting this industry through to the recovery phase ought to be a national priority. Our asks for lawmakers are substantial, but they’re also simple: we need relief, protection, and stimulus for the travel industry to make it past the worst of the crisis and help power an economic recovery.”
Among the policy priorities members of the travel industry will discuss in Congress this week are extending Paycheck Protection Program eligibility to destination marketing organizations (DMOs); tax incentives, including a temporary travel tax credit and tax credits for personal protective equipment (PPE) and facilities sterilization; protection from COVID-related lawsuits for businesses that follow health and safety guidelines; and a federal backstop for the issuance of pandemic risk insurance to give businesses financial cover from future outbreaks or another wave of infections.


text:
Full Circle has kicked off the #StartWithASponge marketing campaign. The new campaign is designed to encourage consumers to swap a plastic cleaning sponge for a natural cellulose cleaning sponge, which is plant-based and equally hard-working, the company said.
To kick off this movement, Full Circle swapped out all 45,000 plastic cool-down sponges at the TCS New York City Marathon earlier this month with ones made of cellulose. According to the company, the sponges are made from plant pulp and break down naturally over time.
To participate in the #StartWithASponge campaign, consumers are asked to take a pledge, receive a pledge kit in the mail, and call on others to do the same on social media. Full Circle won’t be selling the kits, however, as long as someone signs up for the kit and refers a friend, they will receive a free sustainability kit.


text:
Top stories in the papers this week 31 July – 6 August 2012
Northern Ireland shoppers heading to Republic for bargains; Examiner appointed to food producer; New Centra store creates 30 new jobs in Cork
7 August 2012
1. Northern Ireland shoppers heading to Republic for bargains
Cross-border shopping has gone full circle with consumers from Northern Ireland now heading south for bargains, the Irish Independent reports. Due to a weak euro, consumers can save more than €90 on items like iPads by visiting the same high street stores south of the Border. Most groceries are still more expensive in the Republic however, although the differences are small.
2. Examiner appointed to food producer
The High Court has appointed an interim examiner to Tipperary-based group, McEvoy Family Foods Ltd. The Irish Examiner reports the company got into financial difficulties due to factors that include high start-up costs, lack of bank funding, and bad debts. Interim examiner Neil Hughes has been given 100 days to come up with a scheme of arrangement with the firm’s creditors that, subject to High Court approval, will ensure the firm can continue to trade.
3. New Centra store creates 30 new jobs in Cork
Centra has announced the opening of a new store and cafe at the Kevin O’Leary Group showrooms on the South Douglas Road in Cork, ShelfLife reports. Creating 30 jobs and following a €1million investment, the 6,000 sq ft store and adjoining cafe owned and operated by local businessmen John and Kevin O’Leary opened on 3 August.
4. Shop worker admits £1m lottery con
A shop worker has admitted attempting to falsely claim a £1 million lottery prize. The Irish Times reports Farrakh Nizzar told Maureen Holt (77) she had won nothing when he scanned her EuroMillions ticket at a c-store in Greater Manchester. He reportedly told her he would throw away the ticket but then later attempted to claim the winnings. However the ticket was found to have been purchased on Mrs Holt’s Tesco Clubcard and Nizzar has been remanded in custody ahead of his sentencing hearing on 20 August.
5. Ratings firm issues Tesco warning
Tesco’s UK headquarters were dealt a blow, the Irish Examiner reports, when a key ratings agency placed the retailer on negative outlook due to lower profits and a weakening hold on the UK market. Standard & Poor’s said ongoing pressure from intensifying competition, weak consumer spending and lower profits could trigger a downgrade to its risk profile and credit rating.
BWG, Donnelly in €50m deal with 21 jobs (Business World)
Spar worker still in serious condition (Irish Times)
US drought to spark 20% hike in bacon price (Irish Independent)
Tesco launches UK’s first virtual supermarket at Gatwick airport (Guardian, UK)
New retail centre proposed for Rush (Dublin People)
UK dairy farmers lead by example (Irish Examiner)
Half of Irish businesses on verge of collapse, new survey shows (Irish Independent)
Greencore meeting expectations as revenue rises (Irish Times)
Greggs profits and sales hit by record summer rainfall (Guardian, UK)
Failed retail ventures rise by 77% (Irish Examiner)
Ireland’s love affair with cash continues (Irish Independent)


text:
Although Samsung had sent out a software update to Galaxy S8 and S8+ device on April 21, many users have been complaining about an issue with Samsung’s Device Quality Agent (DQA).
These folks kept seeing a “DQA keeps stopping” notice and thankfully, Samsung hasn’t turned a deaf ear to this predicament.
The Seoul-based manufacturer has released a software update under the label “urgent” but this is a fairly small update measuring at only 1MB.
If you didn’t already know, Device Quality Agent is important for users to check their Wi-Fi quality on their Galaxy S8 devices. However, this particular problem seems to have only affected users in the US and Canada.
The update has been available since April 24 so, it should have reached all Galaxy S8 and S8+ devices by now. Have you seen the update on your device? If you have, leave a comment if it has fixed the annoying error on your device.


text:
By just about any reasonable measure, The Economist is doing pretty darn well for a magazine. As the print world frequently looks to be in a state of perpetual implosion, The Economist stands out as one of the print publications that’s not only surviving, but thriving.
While struggling print publications like The New York Times mull a paid content strategy from a position of desperation, The Economist is going paid from a position of strength.
As The Guardian reported on Tuesday:
The Economist is restricting the number of articles that online readers can
view for free, the latest sign that publishers are rethinking their attitude to
Only articles from the last 90 days will be available to general readers,
rather than 12 months under the current system. From 13 October, anything more
than 90 days old will be put behind a pay wall and thus be available to
It doesn’t stop there: The Economist’s current print edition will also go behind the paywall.
According to Ben Edwards, who runs the Economist website, “We consider this to be a premium reading experience and plan to develop the
online edition of our magazine for our most loyal and engaged readers:
subscribers“. Edwards has good reason to be confident: The Economist’s continued success during these tough times demonstrates that it has a viable product consumers see value in.
And that’s precisely why The Economist is likely to get away with (and benefit from) its raising of a paywall. While other publications grapple out of necessity with a digital makeover that includes paid content, The Economist, because of its health, has the luxury of choosing what goes behind the paywall. It’s simply adding to the value of a subscription that many consumers already see significant value in. Struggling publications, on the other hand, will have to convince consumers that there’s value in their paid offerings.
That may be a bit easier to do if and when it becomes harder to find content that isn’t behind a paywall. But that said I think everyone in the print business would agree: it’s always preferable to make important business decisions when you’re sitting in the catbird seat.
Photo credit: centralasian via Flickr.


text:
Lancaster Colony Reports Third Quarter Sales and Earnings
May 14, 2003
Lancaster Colony Corp. recently reported net income of $18,047,000 for the company's third fiscal quarter, ended March 31, 2003. Net income totaled $28,807,000 for the corresponding quarter of a year ago, when the company benefited from a pre-tax distribution of $15.6 million ($.26 per share after taxes) received under the Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act (CDSOA). Basic and diluted earnings per share for the fiscal 2003 third quarter were $.50 per share compared to $.78 in the year-ago quarter. Third quarter net sales were $260 million, a 4% decline from net sales of $271 million in the third quarter last year. Net income for the latest quarter also included pre-tax income of $2.4 million ($.04 per share after taxes) related to the liquidation of LIFO inventories carried at substantially lower prior years' costs. In the third quarter last year, net income included a similar LIFO pre-tax benefit of $0.4 million ($.01 per share after taxes).
A replay of a recent conference call webcast is available at http://www.lancastercolony.com .


text:
It might seem like it’s hard to come by a designated driver when you’ve been out drinking for the night, but that could be why people in California have embraced Uber as a way to get home after a night out on the town. The only problem? Uber seems to have its own issues with drunk driving.
A recent report detailed how the California Public Utility Commission found that Uber failed to suspend or investigate their drivers in California after passengers reported that they were driving drunk. They looked at a period of time between August 2014 and August 2015, and during that year they reviewed customer complaints and the action Uber took from those complaints.
The review looked at one hundred and fifty-four complaints, and they found Uber had violated zero-tolerance rules for drunk driving on one hundred and fifty-one different occasions in that year alone. In total Uber only followed up with the drivers on twenty-one complaints. Because of that lack of follow up Uber now faces just over one million dollars in fines.
But Uber is speaking out against the investigation, and although they aren’t disputing what was found in 2014, they are letting the public know that they’ve changed their policies since that year and have since cracked down on drunk driving. One of the new policies is that if a driver is under the influence of alcohol or drugs, he or she will be permanently deactivated from the Uber network.
If Uber wants to ensure their drivers never drive drunk again, there’s an easy solution: make voluntary ignition interlocks a part of the contract each Uber driver signs before driving. By having an ignition interlock in the vehicle of every Uber driver, a customer in California can feel safe knowing that the designated driver they choose to get them home safely that night actually will get them home and the company can relax knowing there’s no way a driver will be able to drive drunk.


text:
Even with the shutdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic earlier this year, it appears 2020 will go down as the fourth-best in the history of the RV industry.
Pent-up demand, the pandemic and long-term trends favoring the industry contributed to the surge, and that’s important for the regional economy, as tens of thousands of people are employed at Elkhart-area businesses that either supply or produce most of the nation’s RVs.
According to the RV Industry Association, factory shipments to dealers jumped 43.4 percent to 42,513 in November compared to the same month a year ago, and shipments for the year are up 3 percent, even with the shutdowns that lasted from six to eight weeks.
The shift from empty plants to full production caused whiplash for those who keep a close eye on the industry.
Click here to read the full story from Ed Semmler in the South Bend Tribune.
“When the federal and state governments decided to shut down the economy, I thought ‘holy cow,’ and expected the worst for Elkhart County,” said former county Commissioner Mike Yoder, who will move into a new role as Bristol town manager on Monday.
“But then I started hearing from RV executives that there was still a lot of interest,” he added.


text:
Home furnishings retailer Housing Units is investing £200,000 to upgrade its store this year, the firm announced today.
Housing Units, which is based in Failsworth, Greater Manchester, said it would mark its 65th anniversary by revamping and relocating several departments, introducing new retail areas and creating new offices for its staff and management.
Director Nick Fox said: “We're finding that we need to expand some departments because of the level of demand, but we're also finding that when we do that sales figures increase. Several departments are already outstripping forecast as a consequence.”
Housing Units has already extended its Wickentree restaurant three times in a year due to demand. It has also introduced a pager system enabling customers to browse the store until their table is ready.
The business, established in 1947, stocks 30,000 lines and posted revenues of £18.47m for the year to last March, up from £18.12m. Pre-tax profits rose from £399,000 to £420,000.
Housing Units employs more than 200 staff, including top-hatted doormen.


text:
There has been ton of Brawl Info released and most of them are spoilers. You have been warned. Check after the jump to be spoiled.
Your source for the most up-to-date Nintendo news covering the Nintendo Switch.
Manage Cookie Settings
© Pure Media LLC


text:
Latest news bitcoin price31 comments
Storm bot net detection
This act would not use cooperation from every graphic Bitcoin user, or the best of any financial of governing authority. If even a conversation of users were to move to Bitcoin-P, drowned computation strides and the future, said users would be officially approved to the representatives of a future reply glut resulting from intruders punctuating out.
Users of virtual Bitcoin would make the data in full, golden the loss of most if not all of your computer programming. But I am under no data that Bitcoin-P will ever disclose, given the best bent of most Bitcoin greases. Abatement, lose your city-earned wealth to a senior management dashboard at some controllable future date..


text:
Santa Clara, CA--July 23, 1996--I-Cube Inc. (Campbell, CA) announced that Kevin Daroca has joined the company as vice president of sales. A veteran of the semiconductor industry, Daroca brings more than 13 years of related sales experience to I-Cube.
Most recently, Daroca served as vice president of Asia Pacific sales for Quality Semiconductor (San Jose, CA). Daroca was the company's director of Asia Pacific sales before being promoted to vice president. His responsibilities included all business development throughout the region.
2605 Winchester Blvd.
Campbell, CA 95008
Fax: (408) 341-1899
Return to Headlines


text:
According to the rumors, Apple isn’t done with notch on the iPhone just yet, and they might not be for the foreseeable future. However, one potential change we’re seeing is that according to the rumors, Apple could shrink the notch a bit. Previously leaked photos have shown a smaller notch, but how much smaller are we talking about?
Thanks to photos obtained and published by Macotakara, we might have an idea. The photos show a mockup of the iPhone 13, kind of like a 3D printed model. As you can see in the photo above, it is smaller compared to the iPhone 12. However, it isn’t exactly smaller by a considerably margin.
While it is noticeably smaller, we wouldn’t exactly say the differences like night and day. For day-to-day use, we imagine that most people probably wouldn’t even notice, unless you’re constantly comparing it to its predecessors. To Apple’s credit, there aren’t that many smartphones that have managed to solve the front camera under the screen yet.
We have seen some phones that have attempted this, but nothing from the major brands just yet. We’re not sure how long it will take for Apple to figure this out, but in the meantime, you probably should get used to seeing the notch for future iPhone models.


text:
Meat deficit forecast in Russia in 2016
It has suggested that Russian consumers in general were unhappy as they had lost the ability to purchase quality imported products, and were not willing to switch to Russian alternatives.
“There are risks of not gaining full compensation for lost volumes of food imports, banned from a number of countries,” stated the report. “This includes some meat product categories, as well as dairy products, in particular some types of cheese.”
“In addition, after becoming used to high-quality products, Russian buyers are refraining from purchasing Russian alternatives of lower quality [compared with the banned products],” the report added. “So Russian consumers will not spend money on domestic products when there is a deterioration in quality.”
Representatives of the meat and dairy industry association criticised the Accounts Chamber’s report, while consumer protection organisations hinted that at least some part of the study made sense.
Meat, dairy, cheese
“Russians should not fear a deficit in meat, dairy and cheese products in 2016,” said vice-president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs David Yakobashvili. “Our neighbours, including Belarusian [manufacturers] offer good-quality products,” he said. “We can always use them [to meet the internal demand].”
However, he admitted that the process of substituting imports in the meat industry would be slow, due to the long payback periods needed for investment projects and the limited opportunities for companies to purchase imported equipment and components
The National Meat Association (NMA) also stated that Russian consumers need not fear a shortage of meat in 2016.
“It is strange that the Accounts Chamber has not applied statistical data, which show that our dependence on imports decreased significantly compared to 2014,” stated the NMA’s head of the executive committee Maxim Sinelnikov. “According to the NMA’s forecasts, at year-end our dependence on imports will amount to only 6%.”
Pork, poultry, beef
According to official statistical data, last year Russia faced the biggest decrease in the volume of pork imports which reduced by 40% to 362,100 tonnes (t) against 603,000t in 2013. Imports of poultry decreased by 19.8% to 355,900t from 443,600t in 2013 and supplies of beef decreased 8.2% to 534,700t from 582,700t.
As a result, the overall reduction in meat imports reached almost 400,000t, and this year the reduction in meat imports will be similar, amid the devaluation of the Russian rouble. Production volumes for pork in 2014-2015 are expected to rise by 239,000t, poultry by 307,000t, and beef by 30,000–40,000t, according to data from the country’s Agriculture Ministry.
Experts suggested the policy to replace imports still lagged behind the reduction in imports. However, an important factor will be a decrease in consumption, which is forecast to drop from 10.8m t in 2014 to 10.5m t this year.


text:
Apple's iPad 5 will launch after the iPhone 5S, a new report has suggested.
Asian tech blog Macotakara (via Trusted Reviews) claims that the heavily-rumoured tablet will release in time for Christmas, but not during September as previously expected.
Its launch will be preceded by the release of the iPhone 5S.
Sources suggest that the device will be capable of making and receiving telephone calls thanks to the addition of an an integrated microphone and a cellular compatible SIM port.
New colours are said to include navy blue, gold and grey.
It is believed to be 33% thinner and lighter than its predecessor, but will keep its 2048 x 1536 Retina display by using a thinner 0.2mm piece of glass.
Apple will reportedly produce 2 million to 3 million units for launch, with LG Display, Samsung Display and Sharp all expected to be supplying display panels for the iPad 5.


text:
‘Muppets’ blamed for vandalism
“Drunken muppets” have been blasted for their “pointless damage” of Steelo’s Guns & Outdoors, after a can of Emu Bitter was thrown through the shop-front window.
Owner of the iconic Narrogin store Bevan Steele took to social media to give those responsible for the $2000 in damage the chance to confess their crimes.
The offer was never taken up and three males captured on the shop’s CCTV allegedly throwing the full can of Emu Bitter have now been reported to Narrogin police.
The incident occurred around 2.30am on Monday in Egerton Street.
Get the latest news from thewest.com.au in your inbox.
Sign up for our emails


text:
Prime Time International director of marketing Mike Aiton said colored peppers suffered minimal weather damage and are peaking now through mid-March as usual.
Prime Time has more than doubled last year’s acreage of mini peppers.
“Vegetable, tomato and row-crop people in Mexico have not experienced anything like the row crops and vegetables in Yuma and Coachella,” Aiton said Jan. 28. “The Mexican market is fairly stable.”
Vancouver-based marketer The Oppenheimer Group also reports normal peak bell pepper volume from Divemex production sites in Etzatlan and Culiacan that escaped the cold.
More of Guadalajara-based Divemex’s production will appear under the Fair Trade label, as certified hectares have increased to 139 from 72 in 2011.
Oppenheimer’s Mexico bells run through May. The marketer also launched an organic heirloom tomato program in October that’s expected to run until June.
As January ended, Crown Jewels Produce was just starting to see good quantities on cucumbers, said Luis Corella, director of Mexican produce.
Squash was tight, he said, as it was for most shippers.
Zucchini f.o.b. prices were mostly $28 for 4/7 bushel cartons on Feb. 13.
Between its acquisition of new growers and warming weather, Crown Jewels expects to boost package count for all vegetable items 25% to 30% this spring from last spring
“Price on cucumbers is probably average, but it’s a nice average compared to the last couple of years,” said Greg Cardamone, general manager of vegetables for L&M Cos. Inc.
Production generally lagged on vegetables, Cardamone said.
“Everybody’s behind,” he said Feb. 4. “Growers will catch up. We’ll have the same yields, just later. Probably late February or early March.”
Mexican watermelons could be the slowest to recoup volume, as that crop was hit not just by cold in the north but rains and mildew to the south.
Volume was down as much as 70% from typical February levels, said Brent Harrison, president of Nogales-based Al Harrison Co.
“The watermelon industry will definitely see a hit in volume for the next couple months,” Harrison said.
He forecast high prices through March with little relief expected from Central American supply.
Honeydews also sustained damage in January’s weather.


text:
NEW YORK, September 09, 2021–(Business enterprise WIRE)–Sign Intent, a chief in economic calculators for the electronic age and winner of the FinovateSpring 2021 “Greatest of Present,” has been chosen for a 2nd consecutive time to present at FinovateFall 2021, which requires place September 13-15 in New York.
At the moment, 90 per cent of banking internet sites have economic calculators. In actuality, investigate shows that getting at minimum one particular calculator for vital products can help maximize website traffic and improves a money institution’s funnel. Having said that, most calculators have failed to preserve up with the occasions.
Also, several models are investing important quantities of funds into material advancement to expand their Search engine optimization plans – and they must. But while content material educates at a higher-stage, calculators supply a amount of personalization that content material can’t obtain.
According to Matthew Covi, CEO and co-founder of Signal Intent, “Calculators have important research-desire across most banking products and expert services, and calculator visits have proven to produce 7x the buy intent of ordinary site visits. With extra than two million men and women in the U.S. seeking for fiscal calculators each solitary day, there is a substantial option.”
Covi ongoing, “Integrating productive calculators into internet sites can be an economical way to optimize the site visitors coming to web sites and hold persons engaged. We search forward to showcasing this up coming 7 days at FinovateFall.”
About Signal Intent
New York-dependent Sign Intent is transforming the way money institutions tutorial consumers by way of their obtaining journey. Acknowledged for its next-technology calculators, Signal Intent provides contemporary, digital resources that assist banking companies, credit rating unions, mortgage loan companies and insurance coverage organizations compete in today’s landscape. Winner of the Finovate Spring 2021 Most effective of Exhibit, Sign Intent’s remedies are made for the digital age – created to win far more consumers, seize improved shopper information and help go leads faster in the period of digital transformation. Which is why the firm is trusted by economical institutions nationwide, like four Fortune 1000 companies and two Prime 20 Mortgage Loan providers. For much more info, pay a visit to www.signalintent.com.
View source edition on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/house/20210909005604/en/


text:
Google shuts AI-driven service 'Duplex on the Web' - San Francisco News
by IANS | Updated Dec 03, 2022
According to a note on a Google support page, Duplex on the Web is "deprecated" and will no longer be supported as of this month.
"Any automation features enabled by Duplex on the Web will no longer be supported after this date," said the update.
"As we continue to improve the Duplex experience, we're responding to the feedback we've heard from users and developers about how to make it even better," a Google spokesperson told TechCrunch.
"By the end of this year, we'll turn down Duplex on the Web and fully focus on making AI advancements to the Duplex voice technology that helps people most every day," the spokesperson added.
The company introduced Duplex on the Web during its 2019 Google I/O developer conference.
Duplex on the Web enables Google Assistant to perform different actions on the sites.
These actions are performed in full view of the user, who can stop the process and take back control at any time.
"Duplex on the Web trains periodically against your site to enable Google Assistant to perform certain actions," according to the company.
If Duplex on the Web is enabled for your site in Search Console, Google Assistant can offer to perform supported actions for site visitors.
- 90% reduction in Covid deaths after booster dose: Study
- PagerDuty CEO faces backlash after quoting Martin Luther King Jr in layoff memo
- $3.1 mn spent on privacy last year in India: Report
- Apple may launch foldable iPad with 'carbon fibre kickstand' in 2024
- Google Pixel Tablet may come with 2 dock options
- Google terminates thousands of accounts pushing Chinese disinformation
- Acer launches new laptop with latest AMD Ryzen 7000 series processor in India
- iPhone 14 Crash Detection false alarms causing problems in Japan
- Most customers don't trust organisations over their data use in AI
- Mark Zuckerberg now puts Meta's middle managers on notice


text:
News & events
Time capsule placed in new Romanian factory foundationsThe construction of our new plant in Râsnov, Romania, was marked by a historic event on April 9, 2021. Together with our partner, Eren Grup, we placed a time capsule in the foundations of the new building.Read more
PsiControl has created the user interface for JDE Professional's Cafitesse coffee machine
How do you create a graphical user interface for a consumer product while keeping costs down? That is the question around which the multinational STMicroelectronics (STM) recently proposed a blog in cooperation with PsiControl.
Construction of our new factory in Romania continues at full speedThe construction of our new factory in Rasnov, Romania, continues at full speed. The site preparation has been completed and building work is now in full swing. Work is currently proceeding on three fronts.Read more
Visit PsiControl at Caravan Salon 2021 in Düsseldorf
Caravan Salon in Düsseldorf is the largest international event for caravanning and camping. From August 27 to September 5, 2021, PsiControl will be exhibiting at the fair for the third time.


text:
Apple released a wireless version of its Mighty Mouse.
The new Mighty Mouse uses Bluetooth for the wireless connectivity (up to 30 feet). The optical laser tracking engine is supposed to deliver 20 times the performance of standard optical tracking.
A 360-degree clickable scroll ball, a touch-sensitive top shell and force-sensing side buttons make this new Apple Mouse really mighty. Apple takes $69 for the new Wireless Mighty Mouse. Available at the Apple Store (free shipping).
Don't Miss: Sam's Club Black Friday 2016 Details
Don't Miss: Nintendo Switch: Everything You Need To Know


text:
Honda Motors India is set to shake up the compact SUV segment with its upcoming launch of a brand new SUV that will rival the Hyundai Creta. Scheduled for a June release, this model is the latest addition to a growing segment that has seen the likes of the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara, Toyota Highrider, Kia Seltos, Nissan Kicks, Skoda Kushak, and Volkswagen Tigun compete in recent times.
The high demand for compact SUVs has led to a surge of new models in the segment, with Tata and Mahindra also preparing to launch their own offerings. Honda’s new SUV, built on the platform of the City sedan, is expected to feature a host of modern features and a sporty design to compete in this cutthroat market.
With a flat and wide bonnet, sharp LED lights, muscular-looking wheels, and a sporty design, the new SUV is set to impress. Top-mounted rear spoilers and taillights inspired by the new generation WR-V are some of the unique features that will be included. The SUV will boast a clean dashboard, premium safety features, comfortable seats, a fully digital instrument cluster, a wireless charger, and automatic climate control.
The new SUV will come in two engine variants: a 1.5-liter naturally aspirated and a 1.0-liter turbocharged engine, both offering an estimated 121 PS power. The SUV will also offer a 5-speed and 6-speed manual gearbox, along with a CVT gearbox.
While the price has not been officially announced, it is expected to fall between 12 to 18 lakhs in India. With the growing demand for compact SUVs, Honda’s new SUV is sure to make waves in the market and appeal to customers looking for a modern and sporty vehicle.


text:
May The Fourth Be With You
Just days ago, The Trump/Pence Campaign released the classic chest thumping campaign ad, bragging about accomplishments in the president’s first 100 days. Today, May The Fourth, another administration released an attack ad depicting their political opposition in much the same way the Trump Ad depicted theirs. But this wasn’t an ad from North Korea, or ISIS, or Russia. It was an attack ad funded by a tyrannical empire. Like the Trump ad, it was the typical deep-voiced ad with black-and-white grainy pictures, overt slams against the opposition and dire warnings about trickery. In Trump’s ad, red stencil style graphics depicted the word ‘FAKE’ over the faces of well known news anchors prompting CNN to release a statement explaining why they chose not to air the ad.
In response to the Donald J. Trump for President campaign’s accusations of ad censorship: pic.twitter.com/0Rbanpf0dn
— CNN Communications (@CNNPR) May 2, 2017
CNN’s refusal to air the ad sparked outrage and a frantic tantrum from the campaign’s executive director Michael Glasner, who toed the line about censorship and drove home the ‘fake media’ narrative.
“This is censorship pure and simple. By rejecting our ad, CNN has proven that it supports censorship is biased and fears an opposing point of view. President Trump’s loyal supporters know the truth: The mainstream media mislead, misguide, deceive, and distract.”
Glasner’s statements have a lot in common with the ideals of this other propaganda machine. The calculated attempt to defame anyone or anything not in perfect lock-step with the Trump Administration is classic Trump. Noncompliance is seen as an affront to liberty and the Trump agenda. The theme of this new ad echo Trump’s. Where the Trump ad depicts news coverage as ‘FAKE’, this ad depicts opponents and critics of the Empire as deceptive manipulators and ‘subversive’ dressers. The look of each ad is the same and one leader with deep-edged worry lines and pock-marked skin texture resembles the other. In short, one wanna-be emperor is mimicking the behavior of the most notorious emperor the wold,or Coruscant has ever seen. Watch the Empire’s Ad below.
And May The Fourth Be With You.
Leave a Reply


text:
Moulds. Die-moulds. Stamps.
7th International Specialized Exhibition
June 18-21, 2012, Crocus Expo, Moscow, Russia
7th International Specialized Exhibition ROSMOULD 2012, supported by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation and the Russian Association of Automakers, took place on June 18-21, 2012 in Crocus Expo International Exhibition Centre, Moscow, Russia. This unique trade show having no counterparts in Russia and Eastern Europe has for 7 years remained one of the key elements in the international network of mould-and-die trade fairs, alongside with such acclaimed events as EUROMOLD (Germany), AMERIMOLD (USA), EUROMOLD BRASIL (Brazil), ASIAMOLD (China), INTERMOLD (Japan), DIEMOULD (India), ARABIAMOLD (UAE) and AFRIMOLD (South Africa).
The bulk of the technologies exhibited at ROSMOULD 2012 was comprised by the products of Russian and global leaders of mould industry, such as Volga Machine Building Plant (Russia, Togliatti), Mould and Stamp Plant (Russia, Nizny Novgorod), Izhspetsmash (Russia, Izhevsk), PlastProduct (Russia, Kaluga), Techosnastka (Russia, Moscow), Geco (Portugal), HASCO (Germany), Fodesco (Finland), Neotronics (Taiwan), Staubli (Germany), Werkzeugbau Ruhla (Germany). A substantial number of major global manufacturers of machinery and tooling from 20 countries of the world, including DME Europe (Belgium), Madaleno (Portugal), Thermoplay (Italy), Mazak (Japan), Synventive (USA), Huntsman (Netherlands), Pedrotti (Italy), Formconsult (Germany), Oitti Tools (Finland), presented their recent developments via their distributors in Russia.
ROSMOULD visitors also had the opportunity to appraise the products of less celebrated but quite promising manufacturers of tooling, that are capable of ranking among the giants of the industry in the not too distant future. The total of 252 Russian and foreign companies, as well as representatives of technical universities and leading specialized media, took part in ROSMOULD 2012. The fair drew over 6200 visitors, mostly specialists of Russian production facilities and R&D departments, top and middle managers, researchers, press representatives and students majoring in engineering.
It can be pointed out as an important trend that at least a quarter of ROSMOULD 2012 exhibitors was constituted by companies involved in 3D modeling and prototyping, which stands in perfect agreement with the fair’s concept: “From the idea to series production”. Among the exhibitors presenting prototyping equipment and software, there were major multinational market players, like ACTech (Germany), Objet (Israel), Autodesk (USA), Kisters (Germany), as well as a number of Russian companies working in the same field (Bee Pitron, ADEM, CSoft, Art-Up Studio, Range Vision), which was welcomed as good news by the audience.
The Organizing Committee of ROSMOULD 2012 did its best to strengthen the fair’s international ties and to expand the scope of overseas participation. A sizeable German pavilion was traditionally brought together by DEMAT GmbH (EUROMOLD organizers), a long-term strategic partner of ROSMOULD. The founders of INTERMOLD expo (Japan) took part in the show alongside with Japanese tooling manufactures, whose products, though in high demand throughout the world, have so far been unfamiliar to Russian audiences.
The presentation of the British toolmakers ND Precision Products at 7th International Tooling Summit can be counted among the most remarkable events of ROSMOULD 2012. The UK colleagues demonstrated a number of original developments and, quite probably, managed to break the ice for British mould-makers, whose products have hitherto been sparsely represented on the Russian market. Reports and presentations by Makino (Germany), Foliplast (Russia) and Nika-Rus (Russia) aroused a keen interest of the audience. An important structural element of the fair’s business programme, the International Tooling summit took place on 19th June 2012, comprising 10 speakers and over 70 visitors.
According to most exhibitors and visitors, ROSMOULD 2012 has once again confirmed its well-earned status of the chief event in Russian mould-making. The organizers have succeeded in creating a unique venue for manufacturer-customer communication in the field of mould-making and rapid prototyping, the one that has become a trusted marketing instrument, as well as a true compass to the industry, for the companies interested in promoting their products and acquiring new business partners.
ROSMOULD Organizing Committee thanks the partners, exhibitors and visitors of the show and announces that the next ROSMOULD fair will take place on June 18-20 2013 in Crocus Expo International Exhibition Centre.


text:
Want to join the conversation?
$CCL CFO David Bernstein said the company's capacity increased almost 4% and total net revenue yields were up 5.7%. Booking during 1Q16 was strong with volumes ahead of previous year's historically high levels and at higher prices. For the rest of FY16, cumulative fleet-wide bookings are well ahead at slightly higher prices.
$AGIO plunge 15%.. what's happening... is this going for a toss !
Does anyone feel $SBUX CEO Schultz stepping down could prove a disaster for the company?
$DB is going to cut off services for about 3,400 clients in equities trading.
$F stock slid more than 2% after the company issued two safety recalls involving more than 650,000 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ model cars.
The new CEO of $SBUX, Kevin Johnson, has some pretty large shoes to fill but there are many who have good faith in his ability to do so.


text:
It can be crystal clear that Kelly is ideal that the air on planes is safer than most any other indoor placing, together with most places of work and stores. Not only does it pass by healthcare-quality HEPA filters, but the cabin air is exchanged with outdoors air consistently through the flights.
Specialists consider that the masks have a different and a lot less evident reward for the airlines — they provide passengers with the self confidence they want to book the flights in the first spot.
“I can not converse to the science of irrespective of whether masks enable. But my thoughts with the mask mandate is that they assistance with booking leisure travel,” mentioned Kerry Tan, professor of economics at Loyola Unversity Maryland and an professional on the economics of air travel. “I truly feel like it normally will give travellers peace of brain.”
While business journey and intercontinental travel have however to return to pre-pandemic degrees, leisure vacation is considered to be close to 2019 amounts, primarily throughout the holiday travel time.
The number of passengers who won’t fly for the reason that they will not like masks is probable significantly outnumbered by all those who guide flights for the reason that they know the individuals sitting all around them will dress in masks, Tan explained. Of system he admits that is challenging to show, given that there is no hard proof a single way or yet another.
What is recognised is that in the early days of the pandemic, all the airways had been leaving the middle seats vacant as a way to deliver travellers with some degree of social distancing on board. It was an simple accommodation to make since so number of passengers had been flying in all those early days, when the pandemic brought about demand from customers for air journey to floor to a in the vicinity of halt.
The CEOs of other airways have stated they disagree with Kelly that masks are no lengthier essential. Even Doug Parker, CEO of American Airways, who initially stated “I concur” following Kelly created his statement, afterwards explained he misspoke and did not make it crystal clear that he was only concurring with the belief that the air on planes is secure, not that masks are unneeded.
“We assistance the federal mask mandate. Entire halt. It was issued by the TSA and in consultation with CDC and other wellness professionals to shield the basic safety and perfectly-becoming of our consumers and workforce associates. Our work is to implement the mandate,” Parker stated in a abide by-up statement Thursday evening. “We glimpse ahead to the working day when there will be no federal mask mandate for air vacation, simply because that will mean the pandemic is behind us. But nowadays is not that working day.”
All 4 key airlines declined to speculate if their bookings are assisted or hurt by the mask mandate, but other experts agree that it can be probable a reward.
“It is not a large deterrent for folks to just take outings on planes, so it is really most likely a internet constructive for bookings at this issue,” explained Savi Syth, airline analyst for Raymond James. “This is a service organization. Airlines need to make sure passengers are as comfy as achievable. Even if no one particular likes donning masks, lots of would feel significantly less comfy if other folks are not undertaking so.”


text:
Nov. 9, 2022 (7 PM) --
The National Hurricane Center has released its latest advisory for Hurricane Nicole: https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/#Nicole. Nicole is expected to bring storm surge, high winds, heavy rains and flooding to Florida beginning ... READ MORE
The 2022 Atlantic Hurricane Season begins June 1. Are you ready?
Maybe you think you’re ready—you’ve got some bottled water and canned goods to last a few days. Maybe you plan to get those things, just as soon as you hear the next hurricane ... READ MORE


text: It looks like Rebecca Black finally decided which seat to take—a seat in a Honda. The "Friday" singer just popped up in a Vine video from the automaker—part of a campaign by RPA that sends personalized Vines to Honda fans on Twitter who use the hashtag #wantnewcar."We were promised flying cars. I don’t see any … #wantnewcar," wrote Nick Miners. To which @Honda replied: "Hey @nickminers, we don't have those at the Honda Summer Clearance Event. But we have @MsRebeccaBlack!" In the Vine, Black suggests visiting a Honda dealer on Friday—"or whenever."Check out more of the Honda Vines here. Hey @nickminers, we don't have those at the Honda Summer Clearance Event. But we have @MsRebeccaBlack! http://t.co/SYKywDClZ5 #wantnewcar — Honda (@Honda) July 15, 2013In addition to the Vine promotion, the campaign features TV spots in which Honda dealers humorously respond to real tweets. The "Super Fan" spot replies to an actual tweet from actor Neil Patrick Harris, who asked for advice on selecting a minivan. Check out those ads, and some print work, below.


text:
Stocks Are Tumbling Across The World: Wal-Mart Sees Flat U.S. Sales, Euro-Area Manufacturing, Services Contraction Worsens, G20 & IMF Push for Global Fed, Global Currency, Is The Collapse About To Begin? Marc Faber: Global Stock Markets Are On Shaky Ground
Markets sell-off across the world, Wal-Mart reports earnings
- Asian markets sold off in overnight trading with the Shanghai Composite falling nearly 3 percent following a selloff in the resource sector on weaker commodity prices, and on concerns about liquidity in the market. Europe is getting slammed and U.S. futures are lower.
- Euro area composite index of services and manufacturing PMI fell to 47.3 in February, from 48.6 the previous month. A reading below 50 indicates contraction. The 25 most miserable places in the world >
- Initial claims climbed to 362K, above expectations of a rise to 355,000. Meanwhile, core consumer prices were up 0.3 percent, and headline CPI stayed flat. Flash PMI for February at 8:58 am ET. Consensus is for flash PMI to decline to 55.5. Follow the release at Business Insider >
- Wal-Mart beat expectations when it reported earnings of $1.67 per share, above estimates of $1.57 per share. Revenue of $127.1 billion however came in shy of expectations. It also issued Q1 guidance of $1.11 to $1.16 per share, lower than consensus of $1.19.
Fed Split Over When to Shut Off Cash Spigot
Fed officials, uneasy with potential risks springing from the central bank’s low-interest-rate policies, are split over an early retreat from the experimental programs created to revive the U.S. economy.
Selloff Rattles Asia’s Bond Market
China Shares Lead Asian Stocks Lower
Italy Bears Brunt as European Stocks Fall
Wal-Mart Sees Flat U.S. Sales
We are in serious touble as Wal-Mart which averages 140 million shoppers weekly to its stores had lowest sales. So goes Walmart, so goes the Economy
Here is the key section:
“We are confident that our low prices will continue to resonate, as families adjust to a reduced paycheck and increased gas prices,” Simon said. “We see the underlying health of the Walmart U.S. business is sound, and sales trends are similar to what we’ve demonstrated in the last few quarters.
While headline stories about averting the dangers of an international “currency war” dominated news coverage of the recently concluded G20 meeting in Moscow, the real unreported story is that the global gathering of central bankers and finance ministers is pushing forward with their plan for “supersizing” the International Monetary Fund. The end goal is to transform the IMF into a global Federal Reserve, with the ability to flood the world with huge new volumes of loans and currency. It would also wield vast financial regulatory powers.
The IMF’s unit of account, or “currency,” known as a Special Drawing Right (SDR), is being readied for eventual adoption as the replacement for the U.S. dollar in international transactions, to lead the way toward eventual adoption of the SDR or some other designated unit as the global currency, much in the same way that the euro was foisted upon the people of Europe as a replacement of their national currencies.
KWN: Today Marc Faber told King World News that a major bottom is forming in gold, but global stock markets are on shaky ground. Faber, who is author of the Gloom Boom and Doom Report, was speaking with KWN as the gold market was in the midst of being smashed on Wednesday. This is part I of a series of powerful written interviews that will be released today on KWN.
Eric King: “Marc, you brought up gold, and I know you recommend 25% in real estate, 25% in gold, etc. Your thoughts on the gold market? It’s just been in this long consolidation for almost 2 years now.”


text:
Filter list by:
Thinking| 23 Sep 2019
Yes, it is that time of the year again! If you have entered into a franchise agreement in the last financial year and/or intend to enter into any new franchise agreements in the coming financial year, it is time ...
Thinking| 20 Sep 2019
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission recently completed a compliance check review into disclosure practices in food franchising.


text:
Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a recent earnings call that there could be supply chain shortages in the second half of 2021 for the new iPad and iMac.
You can buy the AirPods Max for $532 from Amazon which is $17 under retail. This is the AirPods Max's lowest price to date.
type_news Apple's iOS 14.5 software update has made a significant change in how users are monitored thanks to the inclusion of a new privacy tool called App Tracking Transparency.
You can get the Apple Watch Series for $299 at Amazon, which is $100 in savings. This is one of the best Apple deals in town right now.
With Apple's iOS 14.5 update now available to download, iPhone and iPad users have the ability to block ad tracking across other companies’ apps and websites.
iOS 14.5 is rolling out now. Here's how to download it to your iPhone and some of the new features that you can look forward to after the install.
The Mac mini M1 with 512GB SSD is on sale for $800 at Amazon. It's this Mac mini M1's lowest price yet and one of the best Apple deals out there right now.
You can get the latest Mac mini with 512GB SSD for just $799.99 at Amazon. It's this Mac mini's lowest price ever and one of the best Apple deals out there right now.
Now $899, The MacBook Air is at its lowest price ever. This is one of the best laptops deals you can get.
Security researchers discovered that Apple's file-sharing feature AirDrop has a severe privacy vulnerability that exposes users' phone numbers and email addresses.
iPad and Mac hardware have more in common than ever with the M1 chip now shared between them, but according to Apple that doesn't mean the two product lines are going to intersect.
Apple is extending its AppleCare+ coverage beyond the traditional three-year window. Now, Mac owners can opt to renew their coverage annually for an indefinite period of time.
Apple AirTag owners have the ability to see the location of the Bluetooth tracking device via Find My, meaning wrongdoers with malicious intent could plant an AirTag on you.
Logitech reveals a new Combo Touch backlit keyboard case with a trackpad for Apple's new 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models.
On the heels of its Spring Loaded event, which introduced new M1 iPad Pros and more, Apple is also announcing the release window of the upcoming iOS 14.5 update.
The iMac 2021 was announced during Apple’s Spring Loaded livestream today, showcasing colorful designs and newfound power thanks to Apple’s M1 Chip.
Apple revealed a new paid podcast service at Spring Loaded, allowing podcast fans to have get premium access to top yappers.


text:
The Jalan-Kalrock Consortium has chosen IBS Software, a Thiruvananthapuram technopark-based SaaS options supplier to the journey trade globally, as know-how companion to ship capabilities in passenger service system to Jet Airways, which is planning to relaunch industrial operations in September 2022.
The firm stated in a press release right here that this choice will present a variety of know-how platforms to help Jet Airways’ relaunch as a people-focused airline for the digital age.
As know-how companion, IBS Software will ship cutting-edge capabilities in passenger service methods (PSS) encompassing bookings, stock and income administration, departure management system, loyalty administration, in addition to a contemporary era web site and cell app, designed to optimize all the passenger and retail expertise, it stated.
Jet Airways stated it’s coming again decided to take know-how, providers, and buyer expertise to a brand new stage.
“In IBS Software, we found an ideal partner with the experience and expertise required to deliver the technology platforms and collaboration that will help us deliver on our promise to bring back an even better Jet Airways to those eagerly awaiting its relaunch, as we enter an exciting new era for the airline,” stated Sanjiv Kapoor, Chief Executive Officer for Jet Airways.
Anand Krishnan, CEO, IBS Software, stated Jet Airways is certainly one of India’s most-loved airways and it’s an absolute privilege to play an element in its extremely anticipated relaunch.
“Jet Airways is committed to putting technology at the heart of its entire operations, and we’re thrilled to partner with their visionary team to continue to change the face of the airline experience in India and beyond,” he stated.


text:
In the US, there have been an unprecedented number of deaths from Covid-19. Although the FDA has now approved the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, some states are struggling with the rollout process, leaving many Americans wondering when they will be vaccinated.
Now, according to various announcements, the largest grocery chains in the country will join the effort, hoping to speed up the process with a huge program that focuses on high-risk groups.
Which chains are offering the vaccination?
The logistics of the rollout differs between states. However, a number of major grocery chains have already started administering shots and have their own plans. These include:
America’s leading retailer Walmart has already begun vaccinating its own pharmacists. It will shortly be rolling out a distribution effort focusing on essential workers and older citizens. Consumers can keep an eye on the company’s plans on its website.
Albertsons, which includes Safeway, Pavilions, Acme, and other stores, started its distribution efforts in Alaska in December. It will continue to provide vaccines at its in-store pharmacies and other non-store sites where necessary. These can be booked online here.
The Kroger Company, which includes various stores like Fred Meyer, Fry’s, QFC, and Ralphs, hasn’t published an official vaccination plan yet. But, it will be posting updates on its website.
Publix is the third largest grocery retailer in the US. The company has a limited number of vaccines and are currently preparing to make appointments on an online system. Consumers can get alerts and updates on their website.
Who will be vaccinated first?
In guidance posted by the CDC, those eligible in the first phase of the immunization program are healthcare workers and permanent care home residents.
Following this, the second phase will provide vaccinations to other frontline essential workers that aren’t in the healthcare industry, the chain’s own workers, and the over-75s.
As the vaccines have a limited shelf life, it’s important to make sure they don’t go to waste. This means that, as noted in the government guidelines, any unused doses can be given to those in the next priority group, although this should be avoided if possible.


text:
After embattled home goods retailer Bed Bath & Beyond removes its big blue signage and shuts its doors one last time, the spaces that remain aren’t expected to stay empty for long.
Following its April 23 bankruptcy filing, the Union-based company began liquidation sales across its 360 namesake stores and 120 Buybuy Baby locations nationwide and expects to wind down operations by the end of June. As part of the proceedings, leases for those stores, as well as a handful of warehouses and distribution centers, will soon hit the auction block, according to A&G Real Estate Partners, which is serving as the retailer’s real estate advisor.
Subject to approval by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, A&G plans to auction the hundreds of retail stores. Additionally, A&G and JLL Commercial Real Estate will market a data center Bed Bath & Beyond owns in North Carolina, along with nine leases for distribution facilities in New Jersey, Texas, Nevada, Pennsylvania, California and Georgia.
With limited new retail real estate construction since the 2008 financial crisis, acquiring leases at auction is “an efficient way for junior anchor tenants to meet growth goals,” said A&G Managing Director Mike Matlat. “Landlords are among the likeliest bidders for these leases. They’re looking forward to getting vacant spaces back, either to backfill them with single large-format tenants or subdivide them and re-lease them to multiple, smaller operators.”
Given the tight commercial real estate market, bad news for one brand means potential for another.
According to A&G, the sheer size of the stores – which range from 18,000 square feet to 92,000 square feet for Bed Bath & Beyond and between 14,000 square feet to 63,000 square feet for Buybuy Baby – make it “an incredible opportunity for an array of operators nationwide.”
Because the brands tend to occupy prime, visible units at destination retail properties, industry experts anticipate that the soon-to-be vacant stores will generate strong interest from national, regional and local players, particularly off-price retailers, dollar stores, discounters and other growing chains.
Matthew Harding, chief executive officer of North Plainfield-based commercial real estate services firm Levin Management Corp., said a few of those potential tenants include Marshalls, Five Below, Dollar Tree and Dollar General.
Besides creating attractive leasing opportunities, the closings are providing a chance to strengthen tenant mixes, he said.
“The demand for retail space has been strong in ‘21 and ‘22 and into ‘23 here and that has driven down vacancy rate quite a bit,” Harding said. “Retailers and shopping centers are still out there looking for space and in general, Bed Bath & Beyond stores are well located, well configured stores, so that should add up to a pretty good opportunity to not only refill the spaces but refill them with better, more active retailers.”
Levin – which has one remaining Bed Bath & Beyond store and a Harmon location in its New Jersey leasing and management portfolio – is in talks with off-price fashion retailers such as Burlington and TJX-owned HomeGoods and TJ Maxx regarding those spaces, Harding said.
At a two-story Bed Bath & Beyond in Bergen County, commercial real estate services firm Cushman & Wakefield was advised of talks to divvy up the property between retailers, according to Richard Latella, an executive managing director in C&W’s retail valuation and advisory practice. Potential tenants could include Ross Stores, Petco, Barnes & Noble and REI.
A few other big-name retailers have also defaulted on debt this year, including Party City, Tuesday Morning, David’s Bridal and a one-time Bed Bath & Beyond subsidiary Christmas Tree Shops, all of which will present even more box opportunities, he said.
“We’re coming off of some very strong quarters in terms of leasing, increasing occupancy, lower vacancy, higher rental rates, positive rent spreads, retailers are becoming more profitable over the last 18 months,” Latella said.
According to C&W’s latest commercial real estate report for the national retail sector, 2023 is off to a strong start, with openings exceeding closures. Altogether, vacancy rates for shopping centers fell to 5.6%, the lowest level since the firm began tracking numbers in 2007.
Despite positive growth and an extremely upbeat jobs report, Latella believes the sector is entering a period “of uncertainty” and retail will see a pullback in the second half of the year should the U.S. enter a recession.
But, he said, “that could be good news for discounters, which have continued to really do well – companies like Walmart, Target, Burlington, Ross, TJ Maxx – a lot of those names will be names that will be replacing Bed Bath over the next 12 months.”
Harding echoed the sentiment, saying, “Even though we’re in good times now, they don’t always last because it’s a cyclical economy and cyclical business. So, owners of retail real estate really need to be thoughtful about the tenants that they’re putting into the properties and making sure they’re making properties stronger and reinvesting into the properties, as well.”
At one point, Harding said, “Bed Bath & Beyond was a coup to get into your center because they brought in so many people.”
“In their stronger, better days, Bed Bath & Beyond was a great place to go. You went, you picked up stuff that you didn’t think you needed and maybe didn’t really need, but you had a coupon, so that kept people coming in,” he recalled.
Founded over 50 years ago in Springfield by Leonard Feinstein and Warren Eisenberg, Bed Bath & Beyond was the go-to destination for home goods, selling everything from coffee makers to linens to vacuum cleaners. Its everyday low prices, combined with the iconic blue 20% off coupon, proved to be an effective way to lure in repeat shoppers, making the chain a fierce competitor in the world of retail.
Click here to read more about the company’s bankruptcy filing and to take a look back at some major developments from the past year.
However, as online shopping became more popular, Bed Bath & Beyond failed to embrace e-commerce and lost business to rivals with more established digital platforms, such as Amazon and Target. Eventually, Bed Bath & Beyond launched a website, but its focus remained on its vast footprint of nearly 1,500 brick-and-mortar stores.
Faced with a prolonged sales slump, the company brought on Mark Tritton, a former Target executive, to attempt a turnaround. Under Tritton’s leadership, Bed Bath & Beyond took several steps aimed at propping up the business, including scaling back its coupon program, closing underperforming stores and replacing national brands with its own store label products.
After the measures did little to improve Bed Bath & Beyond’s position, the company replaced Tritton in June 2022 and laid out a turnaround plan that included layoffs and store closures. Despite new CEO Sue Gove’s attempts to improve its footing, Bed Bath & Beyond continued to struggle with slowing sales, low inventory levels and competition from big box retailers, prompting the chain to issue a going concern warning in January.
The cash-strapped company spent the next few months closing more underperforming locations as well as shuttering its Harmon FaceValues beauty chain and its Bed Bath & Beyond stores in Canada.
In early February, the company secured a Hail Mary stock offering that was expected to infuse more than $1 billion in equity, however the effort only brought in $360 million.
A month later, the chain launched a stock sale to raise $300 million and said it planned on using the capital on strategic initiatives, such as investing in merchandise inventory, increasing store footprint and realigning cost structure. But the company warned that if the effort fell short, its next move would be bankruptcy.
Latella said, “I really thought that, up until I read where they couldn’t get the money that they needed, Bed Bath might make it because we’ve seen examples of other retailers that have been experiencing negative trends and then have been able to turn around without having to liquidate.”
“Maybe the jury’s not fully out and maybe there’s a chance they do come back. I’m not going to predict that because there’s a lot of things that could happen, but I’d like to see them continue,” Latella said.
“Years ago, when the whole ‘power center’ concept came up, the idea was that you had all these big box category killers and, in many cases, there were two or three retailers that competed in the same space. And, if you remember, Bed Bath & Beyond competed with Linens ‘n Things. Linens ‘n Things lost and Bed Bath & Beyond survived,” he explained.
“I thought that Bed Bath had a great offering. It had a nice niche, and it’ll be sad to see them leave. I’d love to see them make it, but things evolve and change, and that’s what retail does all the time. It’s always evolving and changing,” said Latella, who added that the CEOs who are brought on to turn around a business always “have tough jobs.”
“There’s success stories and there’s a lot of failures along the way,” he said.
As brands like Bed Bath & Beyond reach their end, other retailers continue to expand, particularly in the discount segment. Despite the current economic climate, last year major U.S. retailers opened more stores than they closed – the first time that’s happened since 2016, according to Coresight Research.
Led by Dollar General, Family Dollar, Dollar Tree and Five Below, discount stores opened the most locations, with 1,858 sites launched. By contrast, retailers in the apparel sector – clothing, accessories and footwear – shuttered 750 stores in 2022.
Overall, store closures were down by around 50% in 2022 compared to the prior year. Even if economic conditions worsen, Coresight doesn’t expect store closures to reach the numbers seen in 2019 and 2020. “The retailers of the post-pandemic world are more robust, given their ability to survive lockdowns, supply chain problems and high inflation,” the report’s authors wrote.
“If COVID – when so many people, by necessity, migrated to shopping online, wasn’t the final nail in the coffin of bricks-and-mortar retail, I don’t know what will be,” Harding said.
“Post-COVID, we saw that shopping at physical stores and shopping centers rebounded quickly. People went back,” he said. “And it wasn’t that they did that for a little surge and went back to e-commerce. They got out and then stayed out shopping, and that’s why you see so many retailers out looking for space. A lot of the space that was put back onto the market during COVID or just after COVID has already been absorbed,” Harding said.
“You have to evolve, otherwise you’re going to get eaten up by the competition,” said Harding. “Ultimately the competition makes the better tenants stronger. And I think we’ve really seen that now accelerated by COVID and so forth. Building online presence, building delivery to store, pickup in store, return to store, curbside pickup, all those kinds of things just really made bricks and mortar retailers even better. Or e-commerce retailers with a bricks and mortar presence even better … To stand alone without one of those two things is very difficult these days.”
“People thought Best Buy was going to be done in by e-commerce, right? It’s very easy to order stuff that’s a little bit more of commodity online. You can look at the TV, you can order TV online and it shows up,” Harding said. “But what did they do? They trained and educated their staff and made it a better shopping visit.”
“Even Barnes and Noble, we see opening stores now – which is a retailer that I think a lot of folks thought might not be with us today. But, they pivoted to smaller stores, a little bit different stores, and they’re opening places. People love to go to bookstores, still. So those are a couple of examples of, I think, retailers who have done a very good job,” Harding said.
As for the much-buzzed about retail apocalypse, Latella dubbed it “fake news.”
You have to evolve, otherwise you’re going to get eaten up by the competition … Building online presence, building delivery to store, pickup in store, return to store, curbside pickup, all those kinds of things just really made bricks and mortar retailers even better.
– Matthew Harding, CEO of Levin Management Corp.
“It didn’t really happen, but it was scaring everybody. Over the years, retail has gone through different transformations,” said Latella.
And while COVID “was a real gut punch” that many retailers did not recover from, it was also a “real wake-up call” for every business “to look very hard, all the way through from their supply chains to what they’re offering and even their staffing,” he said.
“The businesses that have adapted have figured out what they want to be, where they need to be, what the right store size is for them and what the right mix for them might be when it comes to bricks-and-mortar and online,” Latella said. “Bed Bath & Beyond didn’t react quick enough and create a more robust e-commerce platform, which is what the retailers that are doing really well now have done.”
“Retail is resilient and it will reinvent itself,” Latella said. “You can’t kill it – it’s going to come back and it’ll find ways to reinvigorate, re-energize and replace what is no longer relevant.”
“There was a lot of talk that retail will no longer be relevant, and everything will be bought online. But I think that’s one of the things that has surprised me a bit — that that has really been subdued and it’s no longer a threat. Retailers have adapted to it. Walmart and Target have both figured out how to compete with Amazon,” he remarked.
“That would probably be my biggest takeaway, that we’ve come through these financial crises,” Latella continued. “Things have maybe chipped away initially at the total retail pie, but the pie comes back again with different ingredients and it’s all still there. It just maybe tastes a little different today.”
Editor’s note: This story was updated at 8:50 a.m. ET May 16, 2023, to clarify plans for a Bed Bath & Beyond in Bergen County.-


text:
Odyssey Marine Exploration announces third quarter 2008 results
- On 23/11/2008
- In People or Company of Interest
- 1 comments
Odyssey Marine Exploration, Inc. (OMEX), the world leader in the field of deep-ocean shipwreck exploration, today filed a quarterly report with the Securities and Exchange Commission detailing results of the Company's third quarter 2008.
For the third quarter of 2008, Odyssey reported revenue of $2.2 million, compared to $1.3 million in the third quarter 2007.
The Company also reported a net loss of $6.5 million, compared to a net loss of $5.4 million in the third quarter 2007. The net loss per share for the third quarter 2008 was $.13, compared to a net loss of $.11 per share in the third quarter 2007...
...An agreement was negotiated during third quarter 2008 with Arqueonautas Worldwide for the exclusive worldwide marketing rights to the collectible quality coins from their SAGBPo Jose shipwreck project.
These coins have not been available for sale previously and we are marketing them through our authorized distributors.
This project is expected to generate revenue through sales commissions beginning in the fourth quarter 2008 and has allowed us to expand our distribution network with new product to prepare for future Odyssey shipwreck products and stories....


text:
Workers at the Bravo Tekstil factory complex in Istanbul, Turkey are demanding their back wages and severance after working without payment for three months followed by the sudden shutdown of their factory. As CCC reports:
“The workers have sought justice in Turkish court and won their case. Legally they are owed the full three months of wages and severance payments. As over one year since the closure of the factory in July 2016 there is no satisfactory solution in sight yet, the workers, supported by the union, decided to launch an online petition. They are calling upon conscious consumers to support their campaign for reimbursement for their three months of unpaid labour.
Sudden factory closures are not uncommon in the garment industry, in which competition is fierce and capital flexible. Within the garment industry supply chain, power is concentrated at the top, where major brands such as Zara, Next and Mango make high profits and have a lot of leverage over the factories vying for their orders. Past precedents in Indonesia, Cambodia and Latin America, involving major brands such as adidas, Nike, H&M and Walmart, have shown that brands can and should take responsibility to ensure that abandoned workers in their supply chain are paid their legally owed back wages and severance.”See the original news here


text:
DECEMBER 8, 2003
Williams and O2
The word on the street in Formula 1 circles is that Williams is about to add another new sponsor to its impressive roster with stories suggesting that the Grove team will soon announce a deal with the mobile communications company O2. The company was demerged from British Telecom in November 2001 and a month later became the first third generation network in Europe with a service in the Isle of Man. After a $1.6m bond issue the company launched the O2 consumer brand in May 2002 and the business now has nearly 20m customers in the UK, Germany, Ireland and the Isle of Man. The company has a turnover of more than $7bn and in growing strongly in Europe.
If confirmed this will be the latest in a series of telecommunications sponsorships in Formula 1, the most recent of which is a deal between Renault F1 and DoCoMo.
|Print News Story|


text:
Waitrose are updating the café menu to offer brunch options
Waitrose has added a brand new brunch menu to its café selection, focusing on enhancing their “all day brunch” experience.
The Waitrose cafés offer customers a chance to try some of their award winning products such as Waitrose No.1 Amber Canadian Maple Syrup drizzled across Brioche Custard French Toast with Yoghurt & Berries.
New Waitrose Cafe Brunch Menu
Highlights from the menu include
Brioche Custard French Toast £5.50
Welsh Rarebit with Ham Hock on Toast £5.75
Eggs Royale with Scottish Oak Smoked Salmon £9.00
The menu, which has eight new dishes, will change seasonally to showcase the best produce at the time and gives the opportunity to showcase new and upcoming trends across brunch foods.
The brunch dishes will be available from 11am – 3pm (all day Sunday)


text:
Upscale hotel asks paying guests for COVID-19 financial help
Plea for donations a sign that “times are clearly tough”
An upscale Seattle hotel’s plea to paying guests for financial help with surviving the coronavirus pandemic has been met with raised eyebrows among travelers. It is now the subject of an investigation by its corporate owner.
The pitch paints a dire picture of how badly the hotel industry has been ravaged by the historic downturn in business due to COVID-19.
After checking into his room at the downtown Motif Seattle hotel last week, Alex Kremer flipped on the TV and was astonished to find a message soliciting “COVID-19 Support for this hotel.”
The hotel asked guests to make a $25 “one time gift” to help it through the pandemic.
“I understand things are really hard for the industry right now, but for a hotel to ask for essentially free money (plus tax!) was something I’d never have expected,” Kremer said in an e-mail to SFGATE. “It didn’t upset me as much as it did underline just how desperate times must be right now for a hotel to even consider putting a message like that up there.”
The Motif hotel is part of Hyatt Hotels. A spokesperson for Hyatt said the message went against company practice.
“As soon as we were made aware of the situation, we immediately investigated with the hotel and its IT provider, and the message was removed from guestroom TVs immediately,” a spokesperson said. “We are looking into the situation further, and at this time, we believe this was an isolated situation.”
Kremer said he paid north of $150 for his stay at the Motif, a boutique 319-room hotel. He said he also paid a $20 “destination fee.”
But Kremer said extras that typically come with a stay at the chic property were lacking.
“There were no amenities during my stay. No housekeeping, the hotel restaurant was closed, and the front desk was staffed by extremely friendly and professional folks that normally work in HR and IT at the hotel,” Kremer said. “Times are clearly tough.”
Kremer shared his hotel’s pitch on Twitter. Some followers said they were troubled about being asked to make a donation to a hotel that's part of a for-profit company with a market cap in excess of $5 billion.
In June, the hotel temporarily laid off 91 employees, according to WARN notices filed with Washington State.
Hyatt’s revenue per available room dropped 89.4 percent in the second quarter of 2020. The global hotel chain reported a net loss of $236 million because of the effects of the pandemic compared eiyh the same period in 2019.
San Francisco-based Airbnb received similar criticism in July when it sent e-mails to its users asking them to consider sending “kindness cards” with an option to send a financial donation to previous hosts.
Chris McGinnis is SFGATE's senior travel correspondent. You can reach him via email or follow him on Twitter or Facebook. Don't miss a shred of important travel news by signing up for his FREE weekly email updates!
SFGATE participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.


text:
“That isn’t hype – but it’s a fact based on diligent research as well as feedback from our hundreds of users,”
New York City, NY (PRWEB) August 22, 2012
With momentary memory lapses and ‘senior moments’ plaguing millions of people each day, few would argue that an improved memory can afford a wealth of benefits. Today, the creators of one of the world’s leading memory training software packages shares their top benefits with the world.
Ultimate Memory™ was designed and developed by a leading team of software and memory experts.
“Our platform is the result of years of diligent research and work,” says Marc Slater, Managing Director of the company behind the Ultimate Memory™ platform.
He continues, “There is huge demand out there for a digital tool that allows people to increase their memory capacity and power. We tasked ourselves with creating it!”
In a statement from the company, the top benefits of an improved memory are claimed to be:
- Ability to remember names and faces
- Improved potential to remember quotes and scriptures
- Better recall of lists
- Improved retention and recall of facts
- Speech improvements
- Ability to remember complex series of numbers
“There is no denying that the above skills can help millions of people around the world. With the ability for these benefits to be transposed into all areas of life, the argument for ongoing brain training has never been stronger,” Slater adds.
The company’s Ultimate Memory™ system is critically acclaimed for its ability to improve brain power, function and memory with as little as ten minutes of use each day.
“That isn’t hype – but it’s a fact based on diligent research as well as feedback from our hundreds of users,” Slater concludes.
For more information, please visit: http://www.ultimatememory.com
About Ultimate Memory™
Ultimate Memory™ is the market’s leading memory improvement software package.
Scientifically proven to improve memory with as little as ten minute’s user per day, Ultimate Memory™ is also backed by an iron-clad guarantee.
Containing many innovative strategies, tutorials, tips and exercises, users benefit from a myriad of varied ways to learn.


text:
Chromecast Ultra can’t stream photos from Google Photos at 4K resolution
The Google Chromecast Ultra was launched as an upgrade over the previous Chromecast. Featuring 4K playback with HDR and Dolby Vision, the Chromecast Ultra also came with an Ethernet port to facilitate smoother 4K streaming. Needless to say, the primary selling point of the Chromecast was its 4K capabilities.
However, the Ultra does not always stream in 4K, even when you think it should. When casting photos from the Google Photos app to a Chromecast Ultra, the content is cast at 1080p resolution, even when other conditions are fulfilled. So even if your Chromecast is linked to a 4K TV, and the content you wish to cast from Google Photos is higher resolution, the Ultra will restrict itself to 1080p.
We reached out to Google for comment on the issue, to which they confirmed that this is intended behavior for now.
“Thanks for reaching out. Just confirming that at this time, 4K photos will not cast in 4K resolution with Chromecast Ultra.”
While there is nothing inherently wrong with casting at 1080p in this instance since it affects only a subset of use cases, it is still an important point for the end consumer to know since 4K support is a key selling point of the device. The Ultra boasts of 4K capabilities, but not in each and every situation. Despite the shortcoming, the Chromecast Ultra continues to be a great additional accessory for your 4K TV. The company recently refreshed the standard model, but not with 4K support, so the Ultra is still the device to get if you want 4K casting support.
It is unknown if Google plans to push an update to support 4K casting through Google Photos on the Chromecast Ultra. We will update the article in case we come to know.