China's marketing challenges

BEIJING, CHINA / NEW YORK, US: The meteoric rise in the spending power of the Chinese consumer presents unique challenges for marketers, according to a new study released by Forbes Insights and the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA). 13 Apr 2011 07:51

Germany's retail turnover to rise by 2%

NUREMBERG, GERMANY: According to calculations by GfK GeoMarketing, retail sales are likely to be 2% higher this year than in 2010 and reach a total volume of €406* billion. However, if prices climb relatively steeply this year, this could dampen consumers' willingness to spend and consequently impact retail sales. 30 Mar 2011 08:57

Asian contact lenses markets perform well

SINGAPORE: The contact lens industry continues to perform well in 2010, registering a healthy 12% growth across the five combined markets monitored by GfK Asia - Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan. According to GfK's full year retail audit findings, all these markets expanded in value within the range of 9 to 12%. 29 Mar 2011 07:53

RIM announces retail channels for BlackBerry PlayBook

WATERLOO, US: Research In Motion, based in Waterloo, in the US, has announced plans to make the highly anticipated BlackBerry PlayBook tablet available in more than 20 000 retail outlets in the US and Canada. 23 Mar 2011 12:13

Germany: eBooks not yet a mass market product

NUREMBERG, GERMANY: eBooks are already bestsellers in some countries. The major online retailer Amazon recently reported that it sold more eBooks than paperbacks in the USA last year. However, electronic books continue to be a niche product in Germany. 23 Mar 2011 12:02

Branded pharmaceutical websites drive conversions among prospects and patients

RESTON, US: comScore, Inc, a leader in measuring the digital world, has released results from its fifth annual Online Marketing Effectiveness Benchmarks for the Pharmaceutical Industry. The study supports previous findings that exposure to online display advertising and branded websites provides a positive lift in awareness and favourability toward pharmaceutical brands. Visitation to branded websites also continues to provide the most significant lifts in prospect conversion and patient refills. 22 Mar 2011 08:55

Retail websites reach 75% of European internet audience each month

LONDON, UK: comScore, Inc, a leader in measuring the digital world, has released results from a study of online shopping in Europe. In January 2011, 270.6 million unique visitors in Europe visited sites in the retail category, representing a market penetration of 74.5% of Internet users, up 8.5 percentage points versus last year. 22 Mar 2011 08:24

Judging panel announced for 2011 Diageo Awards

LONDON: The panel of judges has been announced for the eighth Diageo Africa Business Reporting Awards set to take place on 30 June 2011. The annual awards aims to encourage more prolific reporting of economic opportunities in Africa and to celebrate excellence in business journalism. 15 Mar 2011 10:37

UK consumer confidence stabilises, but no bounce-back

LONDON, UK: The GfK NOP Consumer Confidence Index for the UK has increased 1 point this month, to -28. February saw small increases across 3 of the 5 measures; personal financial situation over last 12 months and over the next 12 months and the major purchase index. 2 Mar 2011 06:08

ACP Magazines holds readership lead in vibrant Oz market

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA: Highlights of the latest Roy Morgan Research readership survey in Australia reveal that ACP magazines are continuing their good performance. 2 Mar 2011 06:05

Nothing for a rainy day - a fifth of Brits have no savings

LONDON, UK: While the financial crisis and economic downturn have focused attention on the need for consumers to shore up their finances, worrying new research from Mintel, finds more than a third (35%) of adults admit to having less than £500 (about R5500) reserved for a rainy day - and as many as one in 5 (19%) Brits have no savings at all. 1 Mar 2011 10:00

Shoprite competition closes in

[Stafford Thomas] "Shoprite has taken advantage of the strong rand to invest in a lot of real estate in Africa by opening 16 additional stores in Nigeria this year and planning three new stores in Ghana," says Shoprite CEO Whitey Basson. 28 Feb 2011 09:30

3D won't prevent Britons spending less on electricals

[Published by Verdict] LONDON, UK: By the end of 2011 sales of electrical goods will have fallen by £2.2 billion (About R25 billion) compared to 2007 as the golden age of new products comes to an end and new technology like 3D struggles to have an impact on the market, finds Verdict, one of the Datamonitor group of companies. 28 Feb 2011 06:09

Blu-ray sales up in Western Europe and Japan

NEW YORK, US: media control GfK International, a leader in international media and entertainment tracking servicing the global entertainment industry, has announced the release of its 2010 Year End Home Video Retail Sales Report. 28 Feb 2011 06:04