Ah, the new year has begun in earnest today for those people slinking into the office for the first time this year, so a big welcome back to all trawling through overflowing mailboxes and "in" bins. For the poor souls who shuffled in last week already, I hope you enjoyed your quiet time, as I suspect you're now surrounded by the sounds of a perpetually boiling kettle, the clink of coffee cups and noisy chatter revolving around what your colleagues got up to on holiday. Either way, we hope you had a wonderful New Year and are looking forward to what this year has in store (especially since, if the Mayans have anything to do with it, it'll be our last...) And so far, 2012 has brought us rising online consumer spend; a bump in sales for Frankie's after an altercation with Woolies over ye olde fizzy drinks; the growth of the skin care market in MEA; and possibly two new iPads. But whether you're a believer or a sceptic, why not live like this is our last year and make it a good one! Bring on 2012!

Shan Radcliffe, Retail editor
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