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Sukhinder Singh on selling The Whisky Exchange
Two years have passed since Pernod Ricard bought The Whisky Exchange. Melita Kiely speaks to the exiting owner and new CEO about what’s next.
*This feature was originally published in the July 2023 issue of The Spirits Business magazine.
Since its inception, The Whisky Exchange has been a family affair. Co-founded in 1999 by brothers Sukhinder and Rajbir Singh, the firm celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2019, when selling the business was far from their minds. “We’ve had a lot of enquiries, but we always say no,” Sukhinder told me at the time.
A lot changed between then and now, and in 2021, news broke that The Whisky Exchange had been bought by Pernod Ricard for an undisclosed sum. The sale included the online site, three London bricks-and-mortar shops, Whisky.Auction, Speciality Drinks, London Cocktail Week, and The Whisky Show.
“I’d been to a lovely seminar with the Worshipful Company of Distillers,” Sukhinder explains, “which was about family companies versus being corporate. And, of course, I went into this thinking I was on the side of family company. It was interesting because I would say 70%-80% of the audience were all with a family company. But at the end of the evening, everyone swayed over to the big corporates because what they said was family companies can take a business to a certain point. But big companies can take those companies and globalise, and take them to the next level, which family companies will take a long time to do. That resonated quite a lot.”
In good hands
Afterwards, selling the business to the right like-minded company didn’t seem so unthinkable; in fact, the more Singh considered the options “it made sense”. Talking about his and his brother’s decision to sell the company to Pernod Ricard, he says: “We were happy we were going to give it to someone in good hands, a company that has similar family values to us.”
Since the acquisition, the founders have remained at the helm of The Whisky Exchange as joint managing directors to oversee an agreed two-year transition period. The pair officially relinquished their titles this month (October 2023), leaving the company in the hands of managing director Olivier Gasperin, who was appointed in March 2022, and Nicolas Oudinot, who joined Pernod Ricard in September 2022 as CEO of the company’s newly created direct-to-consumer business unit. The Whisky Exchange will remain a standalone business under this entity, alongside Bodeboca, a leader in premium wine online retailing in Spain, and Spanish firm Drinks & Co.
“If we take a step back, digital transformation has long been a focus for Pernod, not just online businesses, but also online data,” explains Oudinot, who boasts 10 years’ experience working in luxury fashion. “As part of this, the group has been investing over the past few years in acquisitions, having in mind that they would run in parallel with digital, direct-to-consumer initiatives.”
He describes The Whisky Exchange as a “one-of-a-kind” business. “It’s a rich and sophisticated ecosystem, with the site, the shops, the show, the on-trade part of it, the people behind it who have extraordinary knowledge and experience of what they are doing.”
Keeping the company as its own entity in the Pernod Ricard portfolio is essential to its future success, Oudinot assures. “We have our office, our tech, our HR, finance – everything is fully independent,” he says. “The reason for this is to maintain the independence and the neutrality of The Whisky Exchange and Speciality Drinks in their product choices and brand choices.”
The power and importance of e-commerce was never as apparent as during the pandemic, and Singh says that time accelerated the need for online sales. “If it wasn’t for online, all the drinks companies would have suffered; their sales would not have been close to where they were, apart from supermarkets, which are commercial,” Singh says. “Since then, everyone’s looking at e-commerce. LVMH partnered with Campari to buy Tannico in Italy. But like Nicolas was saying, the choice is quite restricted. How many big players are there in the sector? Not many.”
Oudinot assures that The Whisky Exchange will remain a specialist retailer. “We are not trying to compete with Amazon. We’re on the side of offering an experience; it’s about the passion and the emotion, it’s not convenience,” he says.
Singh adds: “When you’re talking about specialist, it doesn’t matter what industry it is, everything is more about that handcrafted element, it’s knowledge-based, it’s expertise, and consumers want that education, they want that confidence and trust in what they’re going to be recommended.”
As such, the three London shops will remain a key part of the business, both Singh and Oudinot confirm. “These stores are very special,” Oudinot says. To him, they are a gateway to get consumers to try more products, to create a tangible means of helping people better understand what they are buying and drinking.
“The Whisky Exchange is not a retailer that is based on random incoming traffic, it’s a destination for people who are looking for something special,” Oudinot says. “This is unique, and obviously it is part of the expansion recipe, so we are looking into store additions. It has to be very well evaluated and prepared, and we may not open hundreds of stores around the world but selective locations, potentially in the UK outside of London, or in key cities around the world. It’s absolutely something we’ll look at.”
Singh reiterates the importance of the human element that comes with the physical stores. The education offered at the shops will also stay: masterclasses in the evening, sit-down tastings, and more. The same goes for The Whisky Show, which has become an unmissable diary date for any whisky enthusiast. “All the ingredients are going to remain,” Oudinot insists. Where Pernod Ricard’s prowess will come into play is with the internationalisation of the business.
“All of this will continue growing, constantly pushing the boundaries to raise the bar,” he continues. “The idea is really to extend The Whisky Exchange globally. It is already a global company, but we will look at the elements we should dial up or dial down in various geographies, while ultimately keeping all the ingredients that make the company great the same.”
Can fans expect to see international editions of The Whisky Show? “Potentially, yes,” Oudinot says. “London is not just targeting local clientele; we already have an international reach. We will not run shows in every key city in the world, as it would not be sustainable. We are in the process of prioritising the geographies and deciding whether it makes sense.”
Online sales by value at The Whisky Exchange are split at around 60/40 between the UK and overseas. “If you look at it in volume, it’s much higher in the UK. It’s probably 80/20 between the UK and abroad, maybe even higher, 85/15. But if somebody from abroad is going to order something, it’s usually higher-value stuff,” Singh explains.
While Oudinot says Pernod Ricard is satisfied with the split, the “scenario now is to increase the international path. The UK market is tough at the moment, but over the longer term, I still believe there is room for growth in the UK,” Oudinot continues. “But obviously as we grow the company, the international part is going to increase.”
Brexit threw up myriad challenges for The Whisky Exchange, cutting its shipping abilities to just five countries in Europe. Singh says there is no difference in how a big corporation or a smaller, independent company can overcome the challenges of shipping from the UK post-Brexit. “The solutions are the same whether they did it or we did it,” he explains, “which is you have to open a hub in Europe and do it that way. Currently we’re shipping to five countries in Europe; that’s all we’re allowed to do. France, for example, is a big market, it’s an important market, and it’s sad that being the closest market to the UK we can’t ship there.”
“Pernod Ricard as a group does not have a magic wand to solve things that The Whisky Exchange alone would not have solved,” adds Oudinot, backing Singh’s previous point that the challenges are the same regardless of a company’s size and stature. “But what we can leverage at Pernod Ricard, and that’s why belonging to a group like that makes a lot of sense, is while The Whisky Exchange remains completely independent in running the business, and the product choice and the brand partnerships, Pernod Ricard has teams in literally all countries. We know the market lawyers, and the tax advisers. So when it comes to exploring a market, or finding out the right setup to open a hub, you have a group that has an extremely granular global footprint and knowledge of each market.”
As the next chapter in The Whisky Exchange’s future quickly approaches, Oudinot notes that the company will continue to work closely with Singh’s Speciality Brands and Elixir Distillers businesses. Singh credits how well Gasperin and Oudinot have integrated into the company and come to gain the trust of its employees. “Change can be difficult, and from a staff point of view, everyone was a bit nervous,” Singh admits. “But Olivier settled in very well, and he gained the trust of all the staff, and that is a testament on its own. It’s been seamless mainly for this reason – everything is about people. And with Nicolas on board, again, the team is getting to know him well, and the trust is there.”
Oudinot echoes Singh’s sentiment: “Thanks to the support of Sukhinder, and thanks to the team with its very strong expertise and passion, this has been a smooth transition. There’s a famous quote that says ‘everything has to change so that everything can stay the same’. We deeply want to preserve the core of the DNA of The Whisky Exchange ecosystem. But there are a number of things that need to change to call on the strengths of the company, and take it to the next level.”
Singh says the sale hasn’t quite felt real to him yet, so seamless and void of drastic changes has the transition been. When that “inevitable” time comes, there will be plenty to keep him and Rajbir busy – not least the building of their own distillery, Portintruan, on Islay in Scotland.
The distillery broke ground last September, and the past months have been busy laying the groundwork and foundations for the site, with steel work having been due to start at the end of June. Singh is excited to finally see the distillery take shape from here on in, but with the challenges that come with building on a Scottish island, he assures that “we’re not in any hurry. Touch wood, everything now seems to be on track. We’re working on finalising the interior designs. Hopefully it should all be built and ready by the end of next year; that’s the plan.”
Since June 2022, Singh and his brother have owned Tormore Distillery, which they acquired from Pernod Ricard. Built in 1960, the distillery had been under Pernod’s ownership since 2005. Singh explains that he approached Pernod looking for a Speyside distillery to complement his Islay plans.
“Pernod still needed liquid, so we have an agreement to supply some liquid back to them. We just took over in December, we’ve got a full new team in place,” he says, explaining there were just five people before the takeover, but two have stayed, and another “seven or eight” employees have been hired – including ex-Macallan whisky maker Polly Logan, who has joined as Tormore’s distillery manager.
Singh says Tormore is at capacity, with no room for expansion – a situation he is at peace with because “to be honest the stock is more than enough, if anything, we’ve got surplus. It’s hardly been used for single malts because it was predominantly for blends. That gives us a great opportunity to start afresh. Nobody knows the brand, which is brilliant. So we will look at packaging, and the liquid; we have tens of thousands of casks to work through to understand the liquid, then hopefully, in a year or so we will launch a product, a single malt under the name Tormore.”
Our conversation steers towards how the current economic climate could affect consumer buying habits and recent trends, particularly as incomes are being squeezed with the cost-of-living crisis. Will premiumisation continue, or will consumers with less disposable income be trading down?
The answer, for Singh, is multifaceted in the short term. He says there will be some trading down, but notes: “The wealthy are getting wealthier, and they’ll always remain wealthy. They have bought their houses; they still have disposable income. Premium people who want, will always be able to buy. I think you’ve also got the speculator, which has probably edged down a bit. The people who, when you’ve got zero interest in the bank, buy whisky or wine. I think the industry itself has to be very careful on the type of products they launch, that they’re not purely catering for the collector. They need to be liquid-first, so that the appeal is much broader. You always get glitches, but whisky is quite a stable, robust product.”
It’s a point both Singh and Oudinot agree on, that there is a bright, prosperous future ahead for the whisky industry – and that The Whisky Exchange and Elixir Distillers will be important players in its success.


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Vespa plans to sell only 1000 limited edition VX models named Esclusivo
Vespa has recently launched a limited edition variant of its VX model called the Esclusivo VX. The company will be selling only thousand scooters of this edition. To give it exclusivity over the standard VX variant, these scooters will bear a badge with a serial number between one and one thousand.
The Esclusivo showcases new body graphics, a matte black colour option, similar to the one seen on the Vespa S, a two tone saddle, three-spoke alloys finished in black, and a disc brake upfront.
On the mechanical front, the Esclusivo will be powered by a four-stroke, 125cc, single-cylinder and air-cooled engine that is mated to a CVT gearbox, similar to the standard VX variant.
With an official launch just around the corner, the Esclusivo VX has already hit showrooms, and is priced at Rs 73,387 (ex-showroom, Pune).
What do you think about this News
Need an expert opinion on your car and bike related queries?

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Businesses and independent retailers have a legitimate place on Facebook. With an unimaginable 600 million members and a more routinely visited website than Google, Facebook promises more than friend requests and fan bases, but also acts as a marketing tool to access the millions of shoppers that login on a daily basis. Yet after two […]
Facebook Pages are used as a platform to publicize contests, products, and more. But what features allow your customers to interact with you?
Success comes with experience; therefore, learned best practices and real life applications may help you in becoming a successful Facebook retailer.
Independent retailers utilizing social networks appears to be smart advertising. Nonetheless, Forrester Research claims Facebook appears to be a waste of independent retailer resources.
Social networking, often seen simply as a way for friends to keep in touch, has been pounced upon by big corporations and institutions. These companies understand the value of being seen as, “your friendly motor manufacturer,” or something to that effect. A sector where this can be even more valuable is independent retailing, including small […]
There seems to be a disconnect between what customers say they want out of social media and what businesses think they want.
Research has found with money tight, small businesses are turning to free social media to draw and retain customers.
More than just a social network site, it might well be the new frontier for retailers looking to develop more personal shopper-relationships.
Marketers are excited by the recent announcement by social networking giant, Facebook, of an upcoming location based feature. The new feature would allow users to include their location as part of their status updates, and it is already being investigated by corporations and independent retailers alike, as a means to increase brand awareness and drive […]
A new blog from online Drop Ship site DropShipAccess.com outlines some easy steps to utilizing social media as part of your independent marketing effort, especially using Facebook. Making the case for going online to reach new and potential customers, the blog notes that: * Facebook, has more than 500 million members; * More than 85% […]


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Amazon’s newly introduced Amazon Transcribe Medical is an automatic speech recognition technology that understands medical lingo – abbreviations and all – and can transcribe a doctor’s speech to text.
Two years after Amazon announced the Amazon Transcribe service, a tool that automatically converts speech to text complete with natural formatting and punctuation, the company announced Amazon Transcribe Medical, a similar tool that has been optimised for clinical settings.
This tool would automatically convert the speech of doctors reading aloud their clinical notes to text in real time. According to Amazon, clinicians don’t need to feed the tool punctuation by saying things like “comma” or “full stop” – these details are understood by the technology.
Once complete, these text files can then be sent to electronic health record systems or AWS language services like Amazon Comprehend Medical, which pulls out specific medical information from unstructured texts.
Matt Wood, the vice-president of AI at Amazon Web Services, told CNBC that the purpose of this technology, “is to free up the doctor, so they have more attention going to where it should be directed. And that’s to the patient.”
Likewise, this could potentially save resources in clinical settings, as human scribes and third-party transcription services will be less frequently needed. Amazon states that the service is HIPAA eligible meaning that it protects the privacy of individuals’ medical data.
Right now, Amazon Transcribe Medical is available in the East and West regions of the US. – AFP Relaxnews


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Binance.US is suspending XRP trading. The major cryptocurrency exchange is not the only one to remove the token from its exchange as Ripple faces a lawsuit from the SEC.
Binance.US has announced suspending XRP trading in a blog post:
“Effective Wednesday, January 13, 2021 at 10am EST, XRP will be delisted from Binance.US. XRP trading and deposits will be suspended.”
While deposits will be stopped altogether, withdrawals will need what Binance has called a ‘Tag/Memo,” a unique identifier detailed in a separate post.
The announcement also says that clients who recently bought the token with an ACH/debit card can withdraw their funds beyond the holding period. Additionally, the Spark token airdrop will still apply. Details for how clients will claim for that are still unclear.
Coinbase, OKCoin, Bitstamp, Bittrex, and others have all made similar decision in the last few days, directly responding to the SEC’s allegations against Ripple. The lawsuit claims that the company profited $1.38 billion from selling unregistered securities.
On the other hand, major U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase seems to be getting its own share of legal saga, as the firm faces a class-action lawsuit for receiving commissions gotten from the sale of XRP tokens.
According to a court document, Thomas C. Sandoval, the plaintiff, has filed a class-action lawsuit against the San-Francisco based crypto exchange. The plaintiff alleged that Coinbase sold XRP as unregistered security and received commissions.
In the lawsuit filed in the Northern District Court of California, Sandoval, a Missouri resident, said that he bought XRP twice on Coinbase before the SEC lawsuit and paid the exchange platform a commission.
However, the Plaintiff alleged that Coinbase knew that XRP was a security but still went ahead to sell the token to its clients. Moreover, the lawsuit claims that the crypto exchange acted in violation of California’s Unfair Competition Law (UCL), stating:
“Defendant’s actions were also “unfair” as that term used in the UCL, in that by selling XRP securities Defendant gained an unwarranted competitive advantage over digital asset exchanges that only sold commodities. As a result of Defendant’s conduct, Coinbase received commissions from Plaintiff and all other Class members.”
In addition, the Plaintiff is seeking compensatory damages, attorneys’ fees, and any other relief as decided by the court.
The lawsuit comes on the heels of a recent announcement by Coinbase exchange to pause XRP trading on its platform. It revealed that it would halt trading of the token in January 2021. Meanwhile, Coinbase filed with the SEC to go public with an initial public offering (IPO). The IPO is reportedly valued at a whopping $28 billion.


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Having spent the last few months on the road offering glimpses of their new album, Break the Cycle, “It’s Been Awhile” since Staind returned to their hometown of Springfield, Massachusetts.
Which helps explain why the estimated crowd of more than 4,000 fans waiting hours in line for an autograph session Thursday at the Westfield Shoppingtown Mall in nearby Enfield, Connecticut, gave the subdued quartet a hero’s welcome.
According to industry buzz, Staind’s second major-label album is perched to outsell last week’s Billboard 200 albums chart-topper, Tool’s Lateralus, by approximately 50,000 copies (see). A member of the band’s camp claimed to have heard that Break the Cycle sold 250,000 copies Tuesday, its day of release. If the prediction holds true, it would mark the second week in a row that a rock album debuted at #1, following months of pop and hip-hop titles in the top slot.
“I didn’t expect those first-day sales for sure,” singer Aaron Lewis said humbly yesterday while mentally prepping for a three-hour signing session. “I would have been extremely ecstatic for having that as first-week sales. For that to be our first-day sales is just unfathomable.”
Staind will spend the Memorial Day weekend performing at radio festivals in Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan and Washington, D.C., before resuming their Open Your Eyes Tour, with Cold and Puddle of Mudd, Wednesday (May 30) in Norfolk, Virginia.


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Central Group and SIGNA, a leading European real estate and retail group, join hands to unveil LAMARR. Set to be a luxury department store in the heart of Austria, LAMARR is another proud expansion into Europe by the renowned Thai retail group.
As the first foreign department store to ever enter Europe in over eight decades, LAMARR is promising to offer a variety of services. Throughout the eight floors, visitors won’t only be presented with the world’s leading luxury brands, but also local Viennese brands. LAMARR will serve as a well-rounded destination, going beyond shopping into medical services and spa treatments, as well as art exhibition and event spaces.
The department store will blend in with the lush scenery of the city with a 1,000-square-metre rooftop park, created for recreational purposes. On top of that, LAMARR is also connected to the Thompson Vienna hotel, which will predictably be a popular destination for dining as well.
The name LAMARR may sound familiar to some, and that’s because the department store is named after the iconic Hollywood actress from Vienna, Hedy Lamarr. She lived a glorious life in the 20th century, known by many as the most beautiful woman in the world. Tos Chirathivat, Executive Chairman and CEO of Central Group, explains at the announcement gala: “Her exceptional and multifaceted qualities perfectly represent our LAMARR – a world-class luxury department store with complete lifestyle offers and state-of-the-art design and experience.”
LAMARR will also exhibit several life and work aspects of its namesake Hollywood icon through the Museum Cafe and decorations across the building.
LAMARR is scheduled to open in 2024. Learn more about the project here.
[Hero and featured image credit: Central Group]


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Dear Teroxx Community,
This week we saw a digital asset market which saw larger bounces towards the weekend.
As usual, we are also providing detailed videos for those who want to delve deeper into the subject.
Digital Asset News
As the data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView show, the weekend was mostly quiet for BTC/USD, with even a slight squint in the direction of $43,000 and the psychologically important $40,000 mark seems to have been consolidated.
Friday’s unexpected price jump initially caused some crypto experts to worry that it was a “fake,” but those fears have already been dashed as there has been no significant retracement.
“I don’t think Bitcoin’s upside is over yet,” as crypto analyst TechDev is now optimistic.
His colleagues also join in this tenor. For example, William Clemente points to the 41,000 US dollar mark as the next important hurdle, which could favor a jump to 50,000 US dollars.
“The price trend is actually pretty clear on BTC right now,” as the analyst notes. To this he adds:
“The green zone is forming the bottom. I would like to see a higher low now so that it can gradually move up in the long term. Once we break above the $40,000-$41,000 level, it can continue toward $47,000. From there, the last major resistance is at US$58,000.”
BXM Operations AG, a company founded by Bitmex CEO Alexander Höptner and CFO Stephan Lutz, has announced the acquisition of German bank von der Heydt. The two sides have already signed the purchase agreement, but the deal still needs to be approved by the German financial regulator (Bafin).
However, financial details are not yet known.
After the acquisition, which is expected to take place in mid-2022, Bankhaus von der Heydt will continue to operate “as an independent business unit” within BXM Operations. The private bank was founded in Munich in 1754 and is one of the few banks in Germany to offer custody and tokenization of digital assets.
Bitmex Group intends to use this business to drive expansion in the European region. CEO Alexander Höptner, formerly head of the Stuttgart Stock Exchange, clearly states his growth ambitions and plans to use the experience of Bankhaus von der Heydt to create “a powerhouse for regulated crypto products in the heart of Europe.” To this end, it has also already launched Bitmex Link, a brokerage service that enables trading of digital assets in Switzerland. This illustrates that companies related to digital assets are now making acquisitions in the traditional financial world!
After video game giant Nintendo presented its latest quarterly results a few days ago, the company expressed “interest” in the Metaverse during a Q&A session, while also making great “potential” in incorporating blockchain and non-fungible tokens (NFT) into the video game world. So far, however, there are no concrete plans and in general Nintendo wants to proceed cautiously in this regard.
David Gibson, senior analyst at MST Financial, had elicited the relevant statements from the gaming company when it asked in a tweet for its assessment of Metaverse and NFTs.
For Nintendo, the key question is “what value can be added” to players and fans of the brand with the implementation of these technologies. So as long as this is unclear, there will be no move towards Metaverse just yet. The Japanese video game giant is considered to be tradition-conscious and conservative in the industry, but in the past it has also repeatedly relied on innovations that have permanently changed the gaming world. Now that more and more game manufacturers are venturing into blockchain gaming and Metaverse, it is naturally being watched with excitement to see how the forge of successful titles such as Zelda, Pokemon and Super Mario relates to the innovative technologies.
Technical term of the week
Minting: Minting is part of mining. It does not require a lot of computing power. Minting happens when a new block is hashed for the first time in the network. Example: verifying that block 0 belongs to block 1, which is also called proof-of-stake. So minting only refers to “adding” new blocks, tokens or coins.
Mining and minting together create a secure blockchain and distribute new tokens decentrally across the network. While minting merely merges new blocks, mining verifies and confirms the transaction.
Bullish outlook: $40,000 long-term support establishment would strengthen the market and sustain the further trend.
Bearish outlook: If this trend continues only in the short term, the market could quickly see sell-offs and retest the support zones.


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Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over daily movements, we do like to keep an eye on market changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.
Building permits jumped to a five-year high this morning, but stocks still finished flat, as the market appears to be stuck in neutral, with earnings in the rearview mirror and no major events on the horizon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJINDICES:^DJI) finished almost exactly unchanged, up just 0.26 points, as a late-session dip once again killed what would have been modest gains for the day. The S&P 500 was up just 0.01%, while the Nasdaq ended above 4,000 for the first time since 2000, gaining 0.6% on the day.
For October, requests to build new homes reached 1.034 million, outpacing expectations of just 932,000, indicating that the housing market, a major engine of this year's bull run, continues to improve. The figure was up from 974,000 in September, which was also reported today, because of the government shutdown, and also beat expectations. Other reports showed home values continued to increase. Elsewhere, consumer confidence fell, dropping to 70.4. That was below expectations, and down from 72.4 in the Conference Board's last report. The new rating is a seven-month low for the index, which was in the 80s this summer, and seems to bode poorly for the holiday shopping season. Concerns about employment and wages weighed on consumers.
Disney (NYSE:DIS) led the Dow today, moving up 2.1% to a new all-time high as UBS increased its earnings estimates on the entertainment giant and lifted its price target to $78. The Swiss bank said ad revenue from next year's World Cup should help benefit the media company, which owns ESPN, the world's largest sports network. Disney has had a strong year, with its shares up more than 40% as it's seen increased sales at its theme parks, and its TV assets continue to churn out cash.
Barnes & Noble (NYSE:BKS) shares finished down 6%, as the bookstore chain disappointed in its third-quarter earnings report. The Nook, once seen as the savior of the retail chain, continued its demise, as sales in that division dropped 32.2%. Overall, sales fell 8% at the company. Despite the drop in sales, profit improved on cost-cutting as adjusted earnings per share came in at $0.15, much better than estimates of a $0.03-per-share loss. Still, management saw revenue continuing to fall by the high single digits over the next six months. With Amazon.com gaining in power and the Nook faltering, it's unclear how Barnes & Noble will stay afloat long term.
Finally, shares of Jos. A. Bank (UNKNOWN:JOSB.DL) and Men's Wearhouse (NYSE:TLRD) jumped 11% and 7%, respectively, after Men's Wearhouse offered to buy the smaller men's retailer for $55 a share, or $1.5 billion. The offer comes after Jos. A. Bank had proposed to acquire Men's Wearhouse back in October, and Men's Wearhouse's retaliatory offer seems to indicate that both companies see a combination as being in their interest. Jos. A. Bank released a statement saying it will evaluate the proposal and release a response in due time. Shares of both companies could move higher as the market anticipates a deal.


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The first ShowFx World Conference in the Urals region took place in Yekaterinburg.
On November 16, the first ShowFx World Finance Conference in the Urals region was held in Yekaterinburg`s Atrium Palace Hotel. Russia`s Ural mountains region became a new place for ShowFx World extending its presence around the country. The event gathered many guests and participants, among which there were leading forex brokers, educational projects, and the mass media. Every guest had a great opportunity to meet representatives of forex brokers, to get to know about up-to-date trading services and technologies, and to take professional advice. The speakers were recognized specialists in financial markets and trading such as Victor Pershikov, Gennadiy Babak, Sergey Belyaev, Arthur Uryupin, and Timur Nigmatullin.
In addition to exciting seminars and workshops conducted by the ShowFx World speakers, the conference attendees were invited to participate in traditional draws held by organizers together with InstaForex. According to the results of the draws, happy winners were awarded three $500 gift certificates, iPhone, Samsung Galaxy Tab from InstaForex and Samsung Galaxy S Advanced smartphone from ShowFx World.
The final stage of the conference was the award ceremony for the Miss Insta Asia 2013 winners, the most popular online beauty contest by InstaForex. The exhibition visitors could get acquainted with the beautiful participants and meet Miss Insta Asia 2013, Svetlana Vilchinskaya, who won the main prize of $20,000.
The first ShowFx World event in the Urals region`s beautiful and dynamic city, Yekaterinburg, passed successfully and effectively, leaving a lot of positive emotions for the guests and participants.
See you next time at a ShowFx World event in Yekaterinburg!
ShowFx World brand deals with exhibition arrangements all over the world. All exhibitions by ShowFx World always mean the most comfortable and handy communication sites for financial markets\' participants ranging from service consumers and special media to large-scale brokers and institutional banks. ShowFx World never keeps away from any fast growing city or region. That is exactly why ShowFx World brand has entered Yekaterinburg, the foremost city between Asia and Europe and the third significant city in Russia.
Nowadays, Yekaterinburg is not only Russia\'s industrial capital city, but also one of the largest financial centers in Eurasia. In Yekaterinburg, lots of foreign companies have founded their representative offices, the financial sector is on the strong track; there are plenty of startup banks, funds and investment trust companies providing services to over 200 thousand enterprises and organizations in the city.


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New Delhi [India], April 29 (ANI): The Indian processed food market is expected to grow to USD 470 billion by 2025 from USD 263 billion (2019-20), professional services firm KPMG said in a report released on Thursday.
The pandemic has given rise to a new normal with sustainable food chains, growing preference for healthy food and localised food supply with increased trade barriers, it said.
Innovative products focused on wellness, health and nutrition are likely to see a huge opportunity in the domestic market. Adopting a collaborative approach is the key to catalyse growth in the industry, said the report.
To ensure a faster scale up of quality infrastructure in line with industry requirements, government partnership with private players through appropriate PPP models need to be considered.
“The post Covid-19 world looks promising for India’s food processing industry as it recalibrates it, providing India with an opportunity to capitalise on increased opportunities, calibrate its strategy and gears up to capture new markets,” said the report.
It said the government’s Production Linked Scheme (PLI) Scheme is likely to encourage players and enhance their processing capacities to meet the demand for rising challenges.
“There is a huge potential for complimentary industries such as ingredients, food processing equipment, food logistics and food packaging. To enhance competitiveness and meet the hygiene needs at a scale, the players specially MSMEs will require high quality testing and certification infrastructure.”
The report said rural areas and tier 2/3 cities are expected to continue driving the demand for processed food. Hotel/Restaurant/Cafe (HoReCa) segment will play a critical role as it recovers from the aftermaths of Covid-19.
In the post Covid-19 era, there is likely to be a surge in non-tariff measures including stringent sanitary and phytosanitary measures (SPSs) and technical barriers to trade (TBT) by major economies to ensure food safety against transmitted chemicals and diseases, the report added.
There has been a significant shift from non-sustainable food systems to environmentally sustainable food systems across the entire value chain for food processing. There has also been a steady growth in use of organic and bio-ingredients in the food supply chain.
The report said India’s food processing exports have remained low and dominated by low value-added products. Indian products are non-competitive in terms of price and quality in exports market.
There is significant potential for enhancing exports from India to the top 10 food importing countries of the world where India has a limited presence. Major segments of potential include fisheries, meat and marine, and dairy.
The government can support the exporters by negotiating free trade agreements (FTAs), lowering non-tariff barriers (NTBs) and expeditious implementation of remission of duties and taxes on exported products (RoDTEP) scheme.
At the same time, said the report, there is a direct need for increasing cold storage capacity in the absence of which scalability of perishable products has been challenge. Digitalised supply chain, smart warehousing and logistics using industry 4.0 technologies can help India reduce wastage during storage and transit
The food processing industry is one of the mainstays of global economy with a value addition of USD 1.7 trillion. (ANI)


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Sport Chek creates a checklist for inspiring everyday athletes
2019 MOY: Susan O’Brien streamlines Canadian Tire
Sport Chek takes more inclusive approach to sport
Strategy’s most read of 2018: The Olympics
In the News
How Sport Chek is preparing for the winter
The retailer is striking a balance between driving traffic for in-demand products and not sparking stressful holiday crowds.
Corner Office Shifts: Second Cup gets new lead marketer
Plus, Plan International to welcome new Canadian CEO, as execs depart Loblaw and Canadian Tire Corp.
2019 Strategy Awards: Content flows from data stream
How Black & Abroad, Sport Chek and Radio-Canada tapped into the power of data to change perceptions and drive purchases.
Sport Chek opens up concept store just for kids
The retailer targets parents seeking fashion for active youth with a location at Toronto's Vaughan Mills shopping centre.
MAOY Gold: Touché’s data-driven transformation
The agency introduces a new team and positioning statement as part of its focus on data.
Sport Chek puts a new face on its ads
The retailer moves away from sweat and grit to focus on the real people serving its shoppers.
Sport Chek opens women-focused concept store
The Calgary location is a first for the retailer as it looks to recognize its female shoppers.
Which Olympic spots win with women?
A report from Harbinger shows which ads have resonated most with women, as well as when they are tuning in to the games.
New Balance finds your stride
The brand brings its 3D scan experience for runners and other athletes to Sport Chek's newest flagship.
Under Armour and Sport Chek’s quest for youth
The brands search for athletes of the next generation to be featured in a new advertising campaign.
Check it out: Sport Chek celebrates the #GreatOnes
A new spot narrated by Wayne Gretzky uses real footage to show the power of a father's support.
Sport Chek takes its real-time messaging offline
Can the popular social strategy work on traditional media? The sports retailer tested the waters during the Raptors' playoff run.
L’Oreal, Mondelez and FGL sports are trying to infuse new thinking with a jolt of hands-on learning.
Sport Chek slows down
The retailer's "spring training" platform targeted at women takes a different approach to show the path to physical betterment.
Sport Chek takes on the ‘retailer playoffs’
The brand positions itself as a destination for gift-giving, not just sports gear, ahead of the holidays.


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Like others socioeconomic sectors, coronavirus has made an adverse effects on supply-demand chain of poultry products among cities and villages in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa where chicken’s price was surged to record Rs296 per kilogram.
The poultry products including chicken was beyond the purchasing power of low income class during the holy month of Ramazan.
Prior to the pandemic, a poultry farm chicken was available on Rs160 per kilogram in local markets but now-a-days it was being sold at Rs 296 at Peshawar after its supply was slightly affected from others provinces and districts due to travel restrictions.
Vice President, KP Poultry Association, Ashraf Khan told APP that coronavirus had marred poultry business viz-a-viz affected supply-demand chain among provinces and inter districts.
He said thousands of laborers attached with about 3,300 poultry farms including 148 controlled sheds and 300 eggs production units were hit hard by coronavirus pandemic in KP.
“Majority of poultry farms are located in Hazara and Malakand Divisions from where poultry supply has been affected owing travelling restrictions and lockdowns that caused substantial increase in prices of chicken in Peshawar” he said.
Besides transportation cost, he said prices day-old chicks, broiler eggs and poultry food were also enhanced, causing a substantial increase in prices of the commodity during Ramazan.
Ashraf said the poultry sector was producing about 11 million day-old chicks in a month with the help of 1.5 million people attached directly or indirectly with the industry.—APP


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Earth Day is every day for local company with launch of Encore Program
that keeps quality office furniture out of landfills
SAN ANTONIO — As Earth Day approaches, Office Furniture Liquidations is launching its Encore Program to bring back the best furniture, keeping quality, used furniture in the office and out of the landfills.
Office Furniture Liquidations (OFL) offers high-quality, used, commercial-grade office and hotel furniture acquired through business liquidations, remodels, or real estate lockouts. Premium prices were already paid by the original owners, so buyers get name brand furniture such as Steelcase, Knoll, and Herman Miller for a fraction of the new retail price.
OFL’s Encore Program is a selection of high-quality furniture tagged for priority resale when the customer is ready to move on. If the product remains in quality condition, OFL will return the inventory to the showroom for the next customer to purchase.
“Our business model has helped businesses downsize their office space and employees create productive work-from-home offices,” OFL CEO Erik Darmstetter.
“In doing so, we have been able to make an impact on our regional environmental footprint by saving high-quality furniture. In fact, OFL reduces the amount of unnecessary waste from entering the landfill by more than 300,000 square feet annually.”
According to 2018 research by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), each year, Americans throw out more than 12 million tons of furniture and furnishings, and of that, more than 9.9 million tons of furniture were landfilled.
Earth Day is April 22. The 2022 theme is “Invest in Our Planet,” and is focused on accelerating solutions to combat our greatest threat, climate change, and to activate everyone – governments, citizens, and businesses – to do their part. Earth Day encourages all to recognize our collective responsibility and to help accelerate the transition to an equitable, prosperous green economy for all.


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Story Brews communications has bagged the public relations mandate for Bengaluru-based investment and workspaces firm, Bhive Group after a multi-agency pitch.
The agency will help the Group in forging industry alliances across various forums and platforms and build thought leadership within the market.
Founded by Shesh Rao Papilikar, Sandeep Gupta and Monnappa Bayavanda, Bhive Workspace has been operational since 2014 and available on 16 locations in Bengaluru.
Commenting on the mandate win, Natasha Gupta, Founder of story Brews said, “Story Brews, since its formation in April 2021, has partnered with leading companies & start-ups to promote their brand & building thought leadership. Bhive’s mandate adds to our portfolio and will be a key account in terms of servicing and promotion. Our long association and understanding with the real estate sector, technology and financial services sectors will help us in making a stronger pitch for the brand’s promotion.”
“We have always believed in right kind of brand presence for BHIVE. Right messaging of our brand to external world becomes extremely crucial. It is important to have a PR agency which is able to give its time to understand the founders and the brand essence. Natasha and team is really able to do that extremely well. We are happy that we partnered with Story Brews,” said Shesh Rao Paplikar, Founder & CEO, BHIVE Group.


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Tampa, FL: Prominent Bay area ad agency, Ad Partners, was awarded 2021 Support Partner of the Year by FSC Franchise Co. the parent company of Beef ‘O’ Brady’s and Brass Tap. The ceremony took place at the national conference in Orlando this past July, signifying the very first time Beef ‘O’ Brady’s and Brass Tap have united under a single conference, a move to further unify both brands under their parent company.
“We could not feel more thankful,” says Darlene Levi, Ad Partners’ Executive Vice President & Managing Director, who oversees the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s and Brass Tap accounts in addition to others. “We’ve been working with both brands for more than a decade and have developed a strong working relationship with their executive team. We thrive on the synergy and collaboration and take pride in seeing their success.”
Beef ‘O’ Brady’s, founded in Brandon, FL in 1985, currently has 142 locations in 21 states, and is one of the largest family sports pub chains in the country. Brass Tap, founded in 2008, has 44 locations in 16 states and is one of the nation’s largest Craft Beer Bar and Entertainment franchises. Both brands are major players in Florida.
“We have come to rely on Ad Partners in different areas,” says Heather Boggs, Chief Marketing Officer at FSC Franchise Co. “From developing a complex App for the Brass Tap that manages a database of over 50,000 craft beers … to producing imaginative TV campaigns that position Beef’s as a value leader … they always deliver.”
Chris Elliott, Chief Executive Officer at FSC Franchise Co., agrees with Boggs, citing the relationship his executive team has fostered with its ad agency. “Strong partnerships play a crucial role in franchise growth, and you can see it in the results. Beef’s is on track this year to achieve record-breaking sales.” He adds, “In many ways, Ad Partners feels more like an extension of our home office team than a separate entity. We can always count on fresh ideas and smart, tactical thinking.”
Ad Partners, headquartered in Tampa, celebrates its 18th year in business this November. Other notable clients include Amscot Financial, one of the fastest growing financial services companies in Florida … Vigo Importing Company, the leading national yellow rice brand … and Elevance Health (formerly Anthem) which runs a portfolio of leading Medicare Advantage plans including Freedom Health and Optimum HealthCare.
Says Ad Partners President, Tony Ceresoli: “We’ve never been focused on adding name after name to our client roster. We prefer deeper, close-knit relationships with category leaders because we’re good at identifying strategic opportunities that move the needle.” He adds, “We’re genuinely vested in each client’s success, and we only grow when our clients grow.”


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Underwriters Laboratories (UL), a global leader in safety testing and certifications, and BYD Ltd Company signed a strategic cooperation agreement in ceremonies at BYDâ€™s Shenzhen headquarters today. Chairman and BYD President, Chuanfu Wang and Vice President of UL and General Manager of ULâ€™s Global Energy and Industrial System Department, Mr. Jeff Smidt, attended the signing ceremonies where UL announced that BYDâ€™s New Energy Monitoring Center would become the first UL certified lab in Asia to offer UL testing services. UL also announced the first certification of a 250 KW solar photovoltaic inverter in China (with both a UL and CEC certificate). The BYD 250 KW inverter is the first Chinese inverter with UL certification and the third in the world of its size to be certified by UL. UL awarded BYDâ€™s photovoltaic inverter with “UL witness laboratory and WTDP” qualifications and awarded certificates for BYDâ€™s 3.3 KW On-board EV charger and 5 KW home inverter â€“ all these products are the first to be certified by UL in the Asia-Pacific region. Meanwhile, BYDâ€™s New Energy Monitoring Center is also the first lab in Asia with a UL certificate and will provide testing and inspection services for other (non-BYD) customers in the Asia region.
â€œUL hopes to be able to help Chinese manufacturers, including BYD, to enter the international markets and offer the most competitive solutions using internally developed technical superiority and experience in the field of new energyâ€
UL is the world’s leading authority in third-party certifications, with over 118 years of experience. UL was the also the first company to provide photovoltaic product safety testing and certification in 1986. UL has published several safety standards for charging equipment and car batteries. From of which has become the US national standard. UL began providing battery certification services for BYD in 2000. As the relationship between the companies has strengthened, both companies decided to expand the scope of cooperation to new energy fields, including solar energy and electric vehicles. BYD and UL aim to make full use of their technological advantages to promote the safety and sustainability in the development of China’s new energy-based industry. Mr. Wang said, “BYD is constantly expanding the field of new energy technology and product quality through independent innovation â€“ this forms the core foundation of our competitiveness in the domestic markets. UL has credibility in the global markets and thatâ€™s why we choose to cooperate with them. Obtaining UL certification authority is not only a recognition of our products but of our integrity as a company.â€
“UL hopes to be able to help Chinese manufacturers, including BYD, to enter the international markets and offer the most competitive solutions using internally developed technical superiority and experience in the field of new energy,” Mr. Jeff Smidt said. “BYDâ€™s vision of ‘Three Green Dreams’ and ULâ€™s mission ‘To build a safer world’ complement each other. Both of our companies are committed to the sustainable development of the new energy industry.”
BYD is ranked #1 at the top of Bloombergâ€™s and BusinessWeek’s 2009 Tech 100 List (https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100520006751/en/BYD-Tops-Bloomberg-Businessweek%E2%80%99s-12th-Annual-Tech) and is the leading manufacturer of advanced, environmentally-friendly battery technologies like the BYDâ€™s Iron Phosphate battery used in BYD electric vehicles and electric busses. BYDâ€™s solar panels and LED Lighting systems have CEC, TUV/CE and UL listings, and the company enjoys rapid growth in consumer electronics space and electrified transportation sector manufacturing under its BYD brand. BYD is the fastest-growing Chinese automotive and green energy technology enterprise. The Company trades on the Hong Kong Exchange (HKE) under the ticker numbers (HK.0285 â€“ BYD Electronics) and (HK.1211 â€“ BYD Company Ltd.), as well as on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange under the ticker number (002594 – BYD Company Ltd.).
UL is a premier global safety science company with more than 100 years of proven history. Employing nearly 9,000 professionals in over 100 countries, UL is evolving the future of safety with five distinct business units â€“ Product Safety, Environment, Life & Health, Verification and Knowledge Services â€“ to meet the expanding needs of customers and the global public.
Tags: asia pacific region, China, chinese manufacturer, chinese manufacturers, cooperation agreement, energy industry, energy monitoring, energy technology, environment, global energy, global market, Hong Kong, international markets, leading authority, ltd company, monitoring center, new energy, product safety, solar energy, solar panels, solar photovoltaic, sustainable development, technical superiority, ul certified, underwriters laboratories
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Vivo T3 launch Date Price in India: Vivo is going to launch a new smartphone in India soon. The special thing is that this phone is going to be for special gamers. The price of the phone is also going to reduce significantly.
15 days of the month have passed and still companies are launching smartphones one after the other in India. Recently the launch date of Realme Narzo 70 Pro 5G was confirmed. Which is going to be launched in the country on March 19. In this race, Vivo is also preparing to launch a new phone. Let us know about it in detail…
Vivo T3 Launch Date in India
The launch date of Vivo T3 has been revealed. Also, the price and features of the phone have also been leaked before the launch. This phone will be launched in India on March 21. Let us tell you that Vivo T3 smartphone is going to be an upgrade of Vivo T2, which was launched last year at a starting price of around Rs 15,999. It is being said in the leaked report that the price of Vivo T3 will also be the same.
— Mukul Sharma (@stufflistings) March 15, 2024
Vivo T3 Teaser Video
The company has so far shared many teasers of Vivo T3. The smartphone is going to come in Crystal Flake color, which is seen in white and green color with crystal cut pattern on the back. The teaser also shows that the smartphone will have a triple rear camera setup. The company will introduce Turbo Charge technology in Vivo T3, which means that this phone will come with fast charging support.
Will get 44W fast charging support
The company has not yet revealed how many watts of fast charge support will be available in the smartphone. According to leaks, 44W fast charging can be available in Vivo T3. This phone will be available for purchase through Flipkart. A microsite of this phone has also gone live on the e-commerce platform. Let us tell you that this phone is going to be the best phone for gamers in the price range of Rs 20 thousand because the phone will have a 4 layer cooling system.
Vivo T3 Features
MediaTek Dimensity 7200 chipset is going to be available in Vivo T3, which the company will offer with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB onboard storage. The smartphone will have a 6.67-inch Full HD+ display with 120Hz refresh rate and 1,800 nits peak brightness.
Vivo T3 Camera Features
The phone is going to have triple rear camera setup for photography. According to the report, the primary camera of Vivo T3 will be 50-MP and it will come with a 2-megapixel Bokeh lens. Although there is no information about the third camera yet, it is being said that it will be a wide angle lens. This phone can get a 16-megapixel camera for selfie.


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Epic Games have officially confirmed the Fortnite x Dragon Ball Super collaboration with a tweet. Here’s everything you need to know including when the Dragon Ball Super skins will be coming to the game.
We’ve come a long way since the first Fortnite collaboration was released back in chapter 1 season 4. The Marvel Avengers x Fortnite collaboration created a buzz in the gaming industry with a larger collaboration taking place the following year.
Although it’s unlikely we’ll get another season based solely on a collaboration like in chapter 2 season 4 when the entire season was Marvel-themed. However, it’s clear Epic Games are looking to grow their metaverse with more characters from different games and movies.
Last month, there were rumors a Dragon Ball x Fortnite collaboration would be coming to the game before the end of chapter 3 season 3. However, at the time, there wasn’t any further information beyond the partnership taking place.
A couple of weeks ago, Fortnite leakers stated that the Dragon Ball Super x Fortnite collaboration would be coming at some point in August and that there would be four Dragon Ball Fortnite skins coming to the game.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Fortnite x Dragon Ball Super collaboration including what skins to expect when the collab will go live, and more.
When is Dragon Ball Z Super Coming to Fortnite?
Epic Games have officially confirmed that Dragon Ball Z Super skins will be coming to Fortnite on August 16th, 2022. According to data miners, there will also be seven weeks of challenges for the Dragon Ball Z x Fortnite collaboration. However, we don’t know if there will be free cosmetic rewards available for completing these challenges.
However, we’ll know more information during downtime for the v21.40 update. We’ll be posting all the latest news and leaks from the patch, so be sure to keep an eye out on all of our coverage over here.
Dragon Ball Super Fortnite – Goku & More
We know for a fact that there will be four Dragon Ball Z Super Fortnite skins that’ll be added to the game. We’re not sure if they’ll all be available in the item shop at once, but it seems likely.
Goku, Vegeta, and Beerus are Dragon Ball Super Fortnite skins that have been confirmed by leakers and different teasers to be coming to Fortnite on August 16th. There will also be an Attack Ball Glider along with a Dragon Ball Super Fortnite Battle Bus and a unique event tab in the lobby.


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PANAJI: India is third behind the US and China in the magnitude of startup ecosystems in the world and with the ‘Startup India’ campaign completing five years this month, the inaugural ‘Prarambh – Startup India International Summit’ on January 15 & 16, will be an occasion to display the innovative ideas and form strategy to excel in the future.
To be organised by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Government of India, on a virtual platform; ‘Prarambh’ will bring together iconic Indian and global entrepreneurs and thought leaders along with some of the fastest growing startups and senior bureaucrats. John Chambers, Elon Musk, Desh Deshpande, Muhammad Yunus, Kiran Mazumdar Shaw; Rajan Anandan; Sanjeev Bikchandani, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Indra Nooyi to name a few; are set to enlighten the gathering and boost their morale for future revolution.
Creating awareness about the highly-awaited event to inject vigour in the Indian economy hit hard by the pandemic, FICCI hosted a road show webinar for Goa on Tuesday afternoon.
Ankita Anand, IAS, Director of Department of Information Technology, Government of Goa, was the Keynote speaker and urged startup enthusiasts to “keep starting because the start today could be a revolution tomorrow.” She also explained the progress made by the ecosystem in Goa with 108 certified start-ups coming into existence since the policy was implemented in 2017.
Ankita also revealed that the state government promoted startup events in places like Sanquelim and Quepem, thus making a conscious effort in convincing the people that coming up with a startup is not just a city-based business domain.
Earlier, Dr. Ajai Chowdhry, founder, HCL and Chair, FICCI Startup Committee, emphasised the importance of entrepreneurship in the “post-Covid19 complex and uncertain world” and urged the start-ups to register with the Government e-Marketplace (GeM). With ‘Swayampurna Goa’ campaign being in line with Make in India initiative, Dr Chowdhry remarked that Goa has a great opportunity to attract start-ups from all over India while also underlining that Goa is a great place to live.
Kavya Bhandari of Startup India team, provided an insight into the benefits of the campaign as well as spelled out the objectives of the upcoming Prarambh international summit 2021.


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Most Americans have never heard of a company called WiLan, but that company is now claiming that it should get a cut of many of the cable modems sold in the U.S. The Canadian company, which used to make wireless products, now makes its living suing companies for patent infringement. This week, it sued Comcast (NSDQ: CMCSA), Charter (NSDQ: CHTR), and Time Warner Cable (NYSE: TWC), saying those companies use cable modems that infringe a patent it bought in 2007.
This is far from WiLan’s first time in court, but it does appear to be the first time the Ottawa-based company has gone after cable companies, and the first time it has sued over this patent, which it acquired from the two California inventors, Larry Wagner and Peter Moss.
WiLan was founded in 1992 as a wireless company, but didn’t make it in the marketplace. Since 2006, it’s focused on buying patents and licensing them, which has grown its revenue from a bit over $2 million in 2006 to $35.4 million in 2009. WiLan is one of a few public patent-enforcement companies, and its stock is traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
It’s an interesting choice by WiLan to go after the cable companies, which don’t manufacture their own cable modems or have much to do with their designs. But patent law allows a patent-holder to go after anyone who makes, uses, or sells a patented invention, which gives a company like WiLan a wide choice of targets.
Suing three giant cable companies allows WiLan to pursue damages on a large scale, and it might be easier than going after the numerous modem manufacturers. Those modem makers may yet be sued over this same patent, which claims to cover the DOCSIS standard, or the protocol that all cable modems use. By naming that standard in its complaint, WiLan is making clear that it believes that every cable modem in the U.S. is a violator of its patent, and thus a potential target. This is not to say that WiLan is at all likely to go after individual users, but it speaks to the scope of the complaint.
WiLan has filed more than 20 patent infringement lawsuits since 2007-but previously it has sued over wireless broadband standards like 802.11 and 3G. The cable companies, which are huge and important customers of companies like Arris that actually made these modems, will likely ask for the modem manufacturers to indemnify them in this suit. That could take the form of direct intervention in the lawsuit, or they might get asked to quietly foot the sizeable legal bills that will result from this suit.
WiLan’s latest lawsuit, like most of its other lawsuits, was filed in East Texas, a venue whose courts and juries are considered friendly to patent plaintiffs. The company has hired the McKool Smith law firm, which is responsible for more than its fair share of the big patent verdicts in the past few years, including two East Texas verdicts against Microsoft-on behalf of VirnetX Holdings and i4i-which totaled more than $400 million.


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BOGOTA – Better weather and a more robust harvest of the 2010 replanted areas with rust-resistant varieties, in addition to the initial harvests of the 2011 replanted areas, will increase production to 10.8 million bags in 2013/14, says the Coffee Annual report on Colombia, recently issued by USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.
Production is forecast to increase further in MY 2014/15 to 11.9 million bags GBE if weather remains favorable. The looming El Niño phenomenon and likely drought conditions could impact production during the second half of the calendar year.
Post estimates that Colombian coffee production will increase to 10.8 million bags GBE in MY 2013/14, 8.5 percent higher than the previous year. Post forecasts production to increase further in MY 2014/15 to 11.9 million bags GBE — if the favorable weather conditions remain.
Around 300,000 hectares with rust resistant coffee varieties have been replanted since 2010 and near half of that area is currently in mature productive capacity. Although at a lower intensity, the coffee replanting program with rust-resistant varieties continues and will support further increases in production.
Since 2013, the weather patterns have returned to more normal conditions, stimulating the production recovery. Production has returned to historical levels of 10 million bags GBE going back to the 1960’s, but still below the 2008 peak year of 12.5 million bags GBE.
According National Center for Coffee Research (CENICAFE), climate change has initiated a trend in declining photoperiod, which has impacted flowering and stressed coffee trees, damaging the productive potential.
In addition, IDEAM has indicated the El Niño phenomenon is on the horizon and will create drought conditions towards second half of 2014, which could stem the ongoing production recovery and affect coffee quality. Drier weather conditions could provoke broca, or cherry borer, outbreaks, also impacting coffee quality and exportable supplies.
The rust resistant replanting efforts are now beginning to show results, benefitting further from more normal weather conditions. This recovery is evidenced by the increase in monthly harvest data year-on-year (y-o-y). Coffee production through March 2014 reached 6.0 million bags GBE, a 34 percent increase from the same period a year before.
In spite of the PIC subsidy in 2013, lower prices created challenges for coffee growers to meet debt burdens, thus reducing investments in fertilizers and pest controls. The lack of investments inputs could also have a negative impact on the productive potential of the replanted coffee in the near term.
There are two peak harvest periods during a calendar year of coffee production: the main harvest period from October to December, produces 60 to 70 percent of total production; and, the second harvesting period from April to June, or the “mitaca” crop, harvested mainly in the central coffee region of Colombia. FEDECAFE estimates that there are 553 thousand coffee farmers in Colombia, a figure currently in dispute with some speculation that there are actually about 300-400 thousand
Approximately 95 percent of Colombia’s coffee growers farm on less than 5 hectares of land. Small farmers with less than 5 hectares of land are responsible for approximately 69 percent of coffee production in Colombia.
From 2009-2011, excessive rains from the la Niña phenomenon negatively impacted production through creating ideal moisture conditions supporting the spread of rust.
The spread of coffee rust affected about 40 percent of the planted area from 2009 to 2011, but has since declined. A coffee replanting program that began in 2010 with the rust-resistant Castillo variety (a hybrid of domestic varieties and a variety native to East Timor), in addition to other methods of disease control and improved weather, appears to have managed and reduced the impact of coffee rust.
Colombian growers regularly replant on a rotating schedule across landholdings, removing older, less economically viable trees from production.
Not all replanting in recent years has been with the Castillo variety and farmers have expressed concerns with the Castillo’s productive efficiency, in terms of kilograms of green coffee per tree, and low cupping quality, a key factor for selling to the premium coffee markets.
Many farmers, as a result, continue to plant traditional varieties while applying other methods of disease control, such as the application of fungicides. As well, defensive replanting, such as creating an outer buffer of disease resistant varieties, with more traditional varieties within that buffer, is another method to minimize the impacts from rust. Regardless of the approach, attempts to control coffee rust have been effective.


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Category sees explosive growth worldwide driven by new toys-to-life offerings.
Sales of smart toys will reach $2.8 billion in hardware and app content revenues this year, driven by the popularity of the console-connected "toys-to-life" segment, according to new data from Juniper Research.
The company's new study "Smart Toys: Hardware, Apps & Technologies 2015-2020" also found that smart toys that connect to mobile apps and game consoles are emerging as the key market for toy retailers. Bridging the physical/digital divide and even leveraging the cloud to create interactive, intelligent toys, retailers are able to capitalize on both the mobile and console ecosystems.
First popularized by the "Skylanders" franchise in 2011, the toys-to-life segment continues to go from strength to strength, and LEGO’s entry into this market in September with its "LEGO Dimensions" video game will only serve to heighten the market’s success, according to Jupiter.
Juniper's research also found significant regional differences in the likelihood to purchase smart toys.
“Price is one of the biggest hurdles for consumers,” says Steffen Sorrell, research author, Jupiter Research. “The smart toy carries a premium price at the moment, particularly those that connect to mobile devices, although we expect this barrier to lower somewhat by the end of the decade.”
The five countries that had the highest on-average annual spend smart toys per child in 2015 were the U.K., the U.S., Japan, Canada and Germany.


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As Bitcoin heads into 2022, a growing cohort of long-term investors are doubling their cryptocurrency reserves, hoping a December drop was just a celebratory stunt.
Some industry watchers point to the underlying stability of these long-term investments as potentially promising indicators for the fickle cryptocurrency.
Since last July, for example, the amount of Bitcoin held in digital wallets with no exits for more than five months has steadily increased, according to digital currency broker Genesis Trading.
Additionally, the amount of Bitcoin held in “illiquid” wallets – which spend less than a quarter of their inflows – is also increasing, meaning fewer coins are being actively traded, he added, citing wallet data. on several exchanges.
“The number of bitcoins that haven’t moved in over a year has increased since July,” said Noelle Acheson, head of market intelligence at Genesis Trading. “It’s pretty amazing.”
Many investors were nonetheless sent diving for cover in December when the world’s most popular cryptocurrency fell nearly 20%, much the same as the second-largest coin ether, with an appetite for the risk hit by inflation fears and a faster pace of interest rate hikes from the US Federal Reserve.
While Bitcoin and Ether both posted gains last week — up 2.9% to $43,107 and 6.3% to $3,350, respectively — they are still some way off their 2021 highs. of $69,000 and $4,868.
Many cryptocurrency experts warn that no one is known to reliably predict Bitcoin’s characteristic price swings. In 2017, for example, it went from around $1,000 to around $20,000. At the start of 2020, it fell below $4,000 at one point before starting a dizzying rise.
Still, proponents of bitcoin and other coins say the growing acceptance of cryptocurrencies in mainstream financial and investment industries in recent years has bolstered the industry.
Cryptocurrency research firm Delphi Digital said its research showed a similar shift towards investors holding Bitcoin longer, which it says “illustrates a transfer of short-term ‘weak hands’ to long-term “strong hands”.
Crypto data platform Coinglass’ Bitcoin Fear & Greed Index has been hovering between 10 and 29 year-to-date, which could be an indicator of a possible market bottom and buying opportunities, according to Will Hamilton, head of trading and research at Trovio Capital Gestion.
“Previous market lows in July 2021 and March 2020 were correlated with fear and greed scores of 19 and 10 respectively,” he added. For the uninitiated, 0 indicates “extreme fear” and 100 “extreme greed”.
Musk and Doge
There were, meanwhile, more headlines for cryptocurrencies last week.
Meme-based Dogecoin stole the show after Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted that the company would accept it as payment for certain goods. The tweet sent Dogecoin up almost 12%.
“If more people are looking to buy Tesla merchandise with Dogecoin, there’s more demand,” Acheson said, adding that the move could improve fundamentals for Dogecoin.
Another targeted altcoin was the Solana cryptocurrency, with analysts at Bank of America saying the Solana blockchain could take market share away from Ethereum and “could become the visa for the digital asset ecosystem.”
Elsewhere, bitcoin miners rebounded from the mining crackdown in China and recent unrest in Kazakhstan, one of the world’s major bitcoin mining hubs.
Bitcoin’s average “hash rate,” a measure of the power of the Bitcoin computer network, hit an all-time high of more than 215 million terahashes per second on Thursday, according to blockchain data provider Glassnode.


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Fitbit has received dozens of reports that the lithium-ion battery in the Ionic smartwatch watch overheating and have caused burn injuries. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
The fitness tracker company Fitbit is recalling about 1.7 million smartwatches containing a lithium-ion battery that can overheat and burn the user.
The recall is for the Fitbit Ionic Smartwatch; none of the company’s other smartwatches or trackers are affected. Fitbit sold about 1 million Ionic Smartwatches in the
→ Continue reading at NPR - Technology


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By AFRO Staff
Target Corp. recently reached a $3.7 million settlement with the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund over a lawsuit that alleged the major retailer used a criminal background screening policy that discriminated against Blacks and Latinos.
“Target’s background check policy was out of step with best practices and harmful to many qualified applicants who deserved a fair shot at a good job,” said Sherrilyn Ifill, president and director-counsel at LDF, in a statement.
Target (AP Photo/Alan Diaz)
LDF, in partnership with the law firm of Outten & Golden LLP, filed the suit on behalf of a class of job applicants. According to the complaint, Target used an overly broad and outdated system that screened applicants for prior convictions that happened long before the applicants sought employment with Target or that were not related to the positions being sought.
For example, according to the complaint, lead plaintiffs Carnella Times and Erving Smith interviewed with and received conditional employment offers from Target. However, the offers were later revoked when the company discovered Times had earned two misdemeanor convictions 12 years before and Smith had a decade-old drug-related felony.
Under the settlement, Target will institute a hiring process for class members to obtain jobs at any of its approximately 1,800 U.S. based retail stores. Those who would not benefit from a job will get a cash award. Additionally, the giant retailer will hire experts to review and revise its background check process. And, Target will contribute to nonprofits that assist ex-offenders with re-entry.
“I faced many challenges because of a conviction in my early twenties,” said Smith. “But with perseverance, a great support system, and the opportunity to obtain a living wage, I have become a successful tax-paying member of society. Everyone deserves a second chance and I am happy that Target has agreed to offer qualified individuals jobs.”


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Next month, talks resume in the negotiation of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a trade treaty being hammered out between 12 Pacific Rim nations, which promises the greatest revision of American trade laws since NAFTA.
Despite the substantial impact the TPP will undoubtedly have on American communities large and small, there has been relatively little commentary about it in the national press. However, interesting hints about the ongoing talks can be found — if you’re willing to scrounge in local news sources.
The relative quiet is partly due to the secrecy of the talks themselves — secretive enough that Wikileaks has occasionally involved itself in publicizing new drafts of the TPP negotiations. Congress has granted fast-track authority to the potential agreement, meaning that when the TPP is finalized, Congress will give it an up-and-down vote with no amendment process.
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After years of sensitive multilateral talks, any congressional meddling would torpedo the agreement. At the same time, our elected officials do lobby U.S. trade negotiators, who want to design the agreement so that it won’t receive an embarrassing rebuke from Congress.
We do know in general terms that the talks involve not just the lowering of tariffs, but environmental laws, intellectual property rights, regulatory regimes, and currency manipulation. There are also some unstated geopolitical goals involved in the TPP, namely finding a way to box in and tame China.
But on any one line of a drafted trade agreement, entire industries may rise or fall. In some states, a few closed factories can generate enough outrage to derail a political career. And so it makes sense that our best insights into the TPP have come from local press outlets, which are closer to the industries and politicians that have narrow, tangible interests in an otherwise sprawling deal.
In Wisconsin, for example, legislators are lobbying TPP negotiators to press for opening up Canada to the U.S. dairy industry.
In Maine, senators have begged trade negotiators to tour New Balance’s shoe factories in the interior of their state, which could be adversely affected by a lowering of trade barriers. (New Balance still makes 25 percent of its athletic shoes domestically.) But other companies with a labor force in New England — including Adidas, Saucony, and Nike — have joined together to lobby the other side of the debate. They argue that by lowering tariffs on Vietnamese-made shoes, rising profits will enable them to hire more high-end workers in design and advertising in their American headquarters.
Meanwhile, Maine’s loberstermen and blueberry farmers would like to see tariffs go down to expand the reach of their frozen food products.
In Michigan, automakers want assurances that Japan won’t manipulate its currency to keep out American autos. Michigan pols have suggested that tariffs on Japanese manufactured cars be phased out over the longest possible time in the agreement. United Auto Workers President Bob King is also trying to protect American industries from cheaper Japanese cars.
At the national level, interest in the TPP is defined in abstract ideological terms, and so it has had little purchase. (Last year, for example, an editorial in The Nation called the TPP a "corporate coup.") Populists on the left and right fear trade agreements like these for a variety of overlapping reasons. The left fears a corporate takeover of the political sphere, the right fears the erosion of national sovereignty. Both fear the disappearance or weakening of certain national industries.
At the same time, there is a broad consensus among elite policymakers that trade liberalization will mean increased prosperity at home and abroad, even if there is some "creative destruction" along the way.
Although policymakers hope that the TPP will be hammered out in the first half of 2014, it seems just as likely that the agreement will need several more rounds stretching into next year before it is finished and made public. In the meantime, the place to find the most relevant news and hints about what the TPP might entail might just be your local paper.
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Just Next Door: McAdenville
McAdenville, N.C. — known as Christmas Town, USA — lights up each year to entertain and delight families from all over the area. Located in Gaston County just west of Charlotte, this small textile town, population* 619, hosts more than 600,000 visitors annually from Dec. 1-26 for the Christmas Lights celebration.
The visitors come in cars, buses and trucks — some even park and walk — to experience the wondrous red, green and white lights on more than 375 live evergreens on the two-mile stretch of road that winds through this humble textile town.
It all started in 1956, when the McAdenville Men’s Club decided to decorate nine trees around the community center with the support and approval of Mr. Pharr. Pharr, president of Pharr Yarns, the local textile plant, and his wife are the founders of the Christmas Lights tradition. It was Mrs. Pharr who suggested the use of traditional red, white and green lights and later recommended the addition of a manger scene and lighted trees surrounding the lake as a focal point. And each year the number of decorated trees grew.
Traditions abound in McAdenville. The Yule Log Parade, which the Pharrs introduced to their community in 1950, is based on an English ceremony. A crowd follows the Yule Log being pulled on a decorated sled through town to the fireplace where it is placed and lit to symbolize the light of Christ, serenaded by Christmas carolers and a visit from Santa Claus. There is a saying here that anyone who participates in the parade will have good fortune in the year to come.
McAdenville is experiencing growth and development, so expect to see new houses under construction along the Christmas Lights road this year. If you’ve never been, there is so much to see! Load up the kids with some warm cookies, hot chocolate and snuggly blankets (it’s fun to open the windows and listen to the music). Be prepared for a steady stream of cars meandering slowly on the 20-30 minute drive through town — and bring your own Christmas CDs for the drive home. Weeknights are less crowded than weekends. But if you choose to walk, the Baptist church offers free hot chocolate, coffee and treats Friday and Saturday nights starting Dec. 1.
*according to City-Data.com
• 450,000 red, green and white lights are used each year.
• A dozen men begin testing and stringing lights in August each year.
• Christmas Lights celebration generates an estimated $11.8 million for the local economy.
• More than 75 percent of the 600,000 visitors come from outside Gaston County.
• As few as 500 lights and as many as 5,000 lights might be used on one tree.
Mark Your Christmas Calendar
Nov. 30 – Lighting ceremony 4 p.m.
Dec. 21 – Yule Log Parade 6 p.m.
Fridays and Saturdays — Free hot chocolate beginning Dec. 1.
Nov. 30-Dec. 26
Weeknights: 5:30 p.m. until 9:30 p.m.**
Weekends: 5:30 p.m. until 11 p.m.**
**Lights shut off automatically at times listed, regardless of cars in line.
What’s Next Door
Distance to Neighboring Towns*
Lowell to McAdenville — 1.5 miles
Belmont to McAdenville — 3.3 miles
Gastonia to McAdenville — 7 miles
Charlotte to McAdenville — 16.15 miles
*according to City-Data.com
Eve White is editor of Charlotte Parent.


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California legislators will vote on a invoice to ban the sale of dietary dietary supplements for weight reduction and slimming capsules to anybody beneath the age of 18 in a transfer that might patch what Stanford professors are calling extreme under-regulation within the food plan tablet trade.
California Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens) proposed the invoice to the state legislature in April amid rising scrutiny of the slimming capsules trade. If handed, the invoice, AB-1341, would require a prescription from minors to buy weight-loss or over-the-counter slimming capsules on-line or in retailer.
Consultants are optimistic that the laws might assist rectify what they see as an issue that stretches again a long time. In keeping with Harvard College social and behavioral sciences professor Bryn Austin, pharmaceutical corporations have offered under-regulated weight-loss dietary supplements and over-the-counter slimming capsules to minors in California and not using a prescription for years regardless of the related well being dangers.
In keeping with pediatrics professor Thomas Robinson ’83 M.D. ’88, a lot of the under-regulation stems from the 1994 Dietary Complement Well being and Training Act (DSHEA) that permitted corporations to find out whether or not a dietary complement was protected for distribution.
After related measures have been adopted by the U.S. Meals and Drug Administration (FDA), dietary dietary supplements now not required the identical rules as different meals, that means dietary dietary supplements don’t want a pre-market evaluation from the FDA.
Dietary complement producers “don’t have to point out any proof of security or efficacy which might be required in the event that they did need to go to the FDA,” Robinson mentioned. “As a result of they’re not regulated … they could not embody even the components which can be on the label.”
Robinson added that research have discovered numerous discrepancies between the components proven on the label and people contained within the complement. After analyzing 17 manufacturers of weight-loss and sports activities dietary supplements offered in america, researchers from the American Academy of Scientific Toxicology found 9 prohibited stimulants within the dietary supplements.
As a result of lack of rules, dietary dietary supplements offered for weight reduction are related to well being dangers, starting from hypertension to arrhythmias, Robinson mentioned.
Most slimming capsules which have the best results are amphetamine-based stimulants used to scale back urge for food, in keeping with psychiatry and behavioral sciences professor Eric Stice. Although amphetamine is efficient in quickly suppressing urge for food, Stice mentioned that he doesn’t usually advocate adolescents to make use of amphetamine as a consequence of its excessive addictive potential.
“There’s an elevated danger for habit to an amphetamine-based treatment,” he mentioned. “I’ve labored at plenty of alcohol and drug therapy facilities, and folks develop very unhealthy relationships with these medication.”
One other concern with adolescents utilizing weight-loss dietary supplements and different compensatory weight management behaviors is the danger of doubtless growing an consuming dysfunction. A research conducted by researchers at Stanford discovered that every one compensatory weight management behaviors together with weight-reduction plan, vomiting and use of slimming capsules are correlated with future consuming dysfunction signs.
Stice added that you will need to concentrate on the lobbying efforts by the pharmaceutical trade that encourage the general public to take medication.
“I’m very doubtful about something that comes out of the pharmaceutical trade and their lobbying efforts,” he mentioned. “I’m positive that they’re going to struggle very arduous to stop this invoice from passing in California due to the monetary curiosity at stake.”
Austin echoed Stice’s sentiments and cautioned minors in opposition to buying over-the-counter slimming capsules and weight-loss dietary supplements. The present lack of regulation permits “unscrupulous corporations in California to hawk” these merchandise to kids no matter whether or not or not they’re medically really useful in keeping with Austin.
“Youth, dad and mom and pediatricians within the state know that California’s youth deserve higher,” Austin wrote. “It’s time for daring motion by state lawmakers to assist Assemblymember Cristina Garcia’s very important laws to ban the sale of those predatory merchandise to minors within the state.”