Is it worth being ripped off?
Many retailers in South Africa's luxury goods markets are sacrificing long-term volumes for short-term profits.

PnP's structure of discontent
[Rob Rose] Governance at Raymond Ackerman's Pick n Pay is under the spotlight after the retail doyen came under pressure at last week's AGM to dismantle the structure through which his family controls the company.

Bid to get tough on high prices
[Sanchia Temkin] Consumers may be able to challenge suppliers if the price seems to be unfair.

BER sees tough times ahead for retailers
Most retailers expect business conditions to worsen during the third quarter, says the Bureau for Economic Research survey.

Retail sales drop over two months
[Mariam Isa, Economics Editor] Retail sales dipped 0.3% in April compared with the same month last year, after a revised annual fall of 1.5% in March.

JSE threatens to suspend King, Labat for failure to submit results
[Nicola Mawson and Thabang Mokopanele] Franchise fast-food company King Consolidated and technology company Labat Africa have been threatened with suspension from the JSE if they do not submit their results by the end of the month.

Nersa gives Eskom 13.3% average increase
[Luyanda Makapela] South Africans will be paying on average 27.5% more for their electricity with effect from 1 July.

Retailers to meet at World Food Business Summit
Top retailers from around the world will meet from today, Wednesday 18 June 2008, at the 52nd World Food Business Summit to discuss rising food prices and food security.

Food, petrol prices drive inflation
[Luyanda Makapela] The price increases of food and energy are the main drivers of inflation, according to the South African Reserve Bank's (SARB) quarterly bulletin released on Thursday, 19 June 2008.

Dis-chem plans franchises
[Adele Shevel] Family-business retailer intends to list on JSE.

Diamonds are a chef's best friend
Swiss Diamond is said to be one of the most durable cookware ranges in the world, with its innovative diamond base reportedly four times more heat conductive than copper. Its patented process uses up to 200,000 diamond crystals per pan.


Local whiskey sails away with gold
Three Ships Bourbon Cask Finish, the 100% South African blended whiskey, won gold and Best In Class at the prestigious 2008 International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC), announced in London on Tuesday, 17 June 2008.


SA student designers set to make a positive difference to the environment
This year's Design Achievers Awards have emphasised the wealth of talent inherent in young, ‘up and coming' South African designers.

Cook with Pravda Vodka - Cornucopia Industries
In most cases brown spirits and wine are used for cooking, and vodka is associated with cocktails. An alternative, however, is a delicious pasta sauce with smoothness to match its main ingredient: Pravda Vodka.


Roaring with baked flavour

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Snack giant Simba, has expanded its portfolio to offer baked options to ensure that moms can keep their kids smiling without worrying about Trans fats, MSG, tartrazine or artificial colourants. “Family well-being has taken a far more important role in family life in recent years. In recognising these trends, we are constantly embarking on innovative ways to transform our brands and provide improved alternatives for our consumers,” says Lauren Siebrits, CEO Simba. The new Baked Simba snacks are available in-store and come in three flavours and shapes: Puffs (120g, RSP R6.99), Twistees (120g, RSP R6.99) and Naks (160g, RSP R6.99), with strip packs available for R5.99.

The best time to send an email
[Aaron Smith] The email messages you send out will be much better received if they arrive at a time when the recipient is more likely to be in the right frame of mind to read them. If they arrive at any other time - particularly if they arrive along with a raft of other messages - there is a good chance they will end up being deleted ... unwanted and unread.

Why do we search?
[Gord Hotchkiss] How do we interact with search pages and the impact on brand relationships? Let's look at why we search in the first place.

CRM for the video game industry: tough crowd
The audience for video games is zealous but fickle, and because of that, game studios have a unique challenge in attracting and retaining customers. While the tools they use are similar to those of other industries, studios have learned to be creative in the marketing tactics that support the effort.

Parents, not peers, lead young people to newspapers
A study of the habits of young people in three countries found that television continues to be their most important source of news and information for the young, despite the rise of the internet.

Teens learn from advertising on social sites
Research in the United States indicates that while American teens spend a lot of time online, their whole life does not revolve around the Internet... it seems they prefer the real experience to the online one.

Video on PCs captures share of TV screen time
Recent findings released by Ipsos MediaCT from motion shows that the percentage of video consumed on a TV among video downloaders and streamers in the United States declined from 75% in February 2007 to 70% in February 2008. A significant drop in overall ‘share of screen time' was seen with the growing contingent of digital video users, says the report.

Help raise R1.5 million for children with cancer
Danone Clover has launched its 'Caring for Our Children' 2008 campaign and this year, the company has promised to raise R1,5 million for the CHOC Childhood Cancer Foundation for the establishment of a much needed CHOC House in East London.

Visiting vino
In early September, RMB WineX returns to Cape Town for the sixth consecutive year, compliments of Rand Merchant Bank, to offer wine-lovers the opportunity to visit many of the Cape's wine routes over three days. With over 1200 wines per night on offer, from close to 200 South African and international producers, visitors will be spoilt for choice.

BPA-free bottle now available
Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical found in polycarbonate baby bottles, won't harm most people, but it can be released when such bottles are heated and could pose risk to newborns and infants. Now, however, there is a baby bottle that is claimed to be totally free of BPA and reputedly completely safe for infants.

Intl leaders discuss high oil prices
An energy meeting, focusing on rocketing oil prices, concluded Sunday, 22 June 2008, in Saudi Arabia's Red Sea city of Jeddah, with a statement calling for "improved" transparency and regulation in oil production and financial markets dealing in crude.

R12bn VW contract to create over 100 jobs
[Bathandwa Mbola] Volkswagen South Africa (VWSA) in Uitenhage has been awarded a R12 billion contract to manufacture diesel particulate filters which will secure over 100 jobs in the Nelson Mandela Bay region where it is based. The deal is one of the biggest export contracts for a single part ever awarded to the company, VWSA Director David Powels said in a statement.

China, US pledge to expand cooperation
China and the United States have pledged to further expand mutual cooperation at the 4th round of their Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED) in Annapolis, USA, on Tuesday, 17 June 2008.

How Africa rates in world trade
East Asian economies Hong Kong and Singapore occupy the top two positions in the Enabling Trade Index ranking, followed by Sweden and Norway, according to The Global Enabling Trade Report 2008, released by the World Economic Forum. Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Switzerland and New Zealand complete the top 10 list.

Bridging the advertising-merchandising gap
Avail Intelligence CEO Rolf Elmer on bridging the advertising-merchandising gap.

For once in your life, hang around a bit
Introduced in May 2008 as a first of its kind in Africa, the GreenHabitatHanger is a 100% recyclable eco-friendly hanger designed in a bid to curb the endless stream of plastic and wire retail hangers that ends up in South Africa's already overburdened landfills. The new hangers offer an environmentally friendly option for advertisers seeking new ways of reaching the consumer. The space provides a platform from which to advertisers can extend new and existing marketing and advertising campaigns, straight into the homes of consumers, while at the same time enabling your brand to deliver on a reduced carbon footprint commitment. The cost is just R1.65 per side per hanger, which can be customised to accommodate different types of garments and are available in a junior range for baby, toddler and children's clothing. More product information is available at http://www.greenhabitathangers.co.za

Yummy new look

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Nola has refreshed the packaging of its Yum Yum No Added Sugar Peanut Butter to bolster the image of the brand and emphasise its healthy-conscious properties. The fresh, new packaging has moved from yellow and pink to a more dominant blue and yellow design for a stronger on-shelf presence and a more youthful appeal. The updated Heart and Stroke Foundation logo is more prominent, to allow easy identification of the endorsement with a clear 'no added sugar' stamp. Topped with a blue lid, the peanut butter still has the same delicious taste with no added salt, sugar or preservatives.
- ActivRetail

Virgin workouts at Vida
Virgin Active and Vida e have teamed up to keep caffeine lovers warm this winter with a new campaign offering a free workout session.


Spreading the chocolate love
Pillsbury's chocolate lovers campaign running across 180 Pick n Pay hypermarkets and supermarkets is one that every chocolate connoisseur should be on the look-out for. From 26 May - 7 July 2008, boxed shopper stoppers will be providing consumers with a Chocolate Lovers 8-page recipe leaflet and coupons worth R2,50 for core Pillsbury Chocolate Baking Mixes. The pamphlet contains tasty ways of using Pillsbury baking mixes such as the Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix, Triple Chocolate Cookie Mix and Rich Chocolate Cake Mix. Create special chocolate moments with brownie goody bars with frosting and peanuts in the middle and turtle cake with caramel, pecans and chocolate. Noir bars, a seductive layered bar, will not disappoint and contains deep rich chocolate, dark roast coffee and cream cheese. - ActivRetail

Bill will pave way for product liability claims
[Sanchia Temkin] If insurance premiums for manufacturers and suppliers increase once the Consumer Protection Bill is passed into law, is it likely that those costs will be passed on to the consumer?

Slashdot cofounder on the self-cannibalization of online advertising
"The next evolution [in online advertising] will be behavioral targeting, compared with contextual targeting. Right now, throwing up an ad from a financial service company, for instance, next to an article about banking is primitive, really. What these companies who advertise really want to know is who these people are who are reading the articles and how can they target them," said Jeff Bates, cofounder of Slashdot.

Online retailers take the gap left by Amazon move
[Lesley Stones] Local online retailers hope for a windfall after Amazon take action following thefts.

Contact centre concerns
[Peter Ryan] Contact centre pricing and attrition levels are worrying outsourcing providers globally.

"Eggs, milk and a blood test, please..."
The Pick n Pay Pharmacy in the new Woodmead Hypermarket recently launched a new concept of a primary care clinic. As a departure from the conventional pharmacy clinic, the retailer has partnered with the Medical Nutritional Institute and a pathology group, Drs. Du Buisson, Bruinette and Kramer, to create a range of services.


Shops to suffer as sales fall
[Zweli Mokgata] Small retail businesses are expected to close shop during the course of the year along with job losses in the banking sector as a result of depressed trade conditions.

Bertelsmann to close down China retail bookshop chain
The business has failed to achieve its targets, says Bertelsmann, which is both a book publisher and retailer as well as a major music and TV investor.

Security metrics at the grassroots level
Figuring out the state of your security program involves dealing with a lot of noise - vendors, consultants, auditors and other outsiders whose message is coated with layers of personal bias and agendas. Metrics are the objective way to go, writes columnist Ed Moyle. However, tackling a metrics initiative can be overwhelming - unless you start small.

Internet, cyber crime to take centre stage at conference
[Michael Appel] The role of the internet and the effects of cyber crime in the 21st century will be investigated during the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Ministerial Conference in Korea this week.

JF Hillebrand awards supply chain partner
the company of wine people recently won the JF Hillebrand Supply Chain Partner of the Year Award for 2008.

Boost for ‘green' batteries
[Ruqaiya Ansari] Car manufacturers and electronics makers join forces to meet demand for ‘green' batteries.

US lags on cellphones' marketing potential
They're hip, hot and everywhere on the planet. But despite a drumbeat about mobile phones being the new frontier in the ad world, marketers have been slow to dial it up, particularly in the USA. That's in part because creating a mobile strategy and message remain a challenge.

Are wind farms set to become the next dotcom bubble?
[Alex Desbarres] In the current context of soaring turbine prices, supply bottlenecks and record wind farm valuations, carefully crafted entry strategies are key to growing profitable and competitive wind portfolios.

Govt rules out maize as a source for biofuels
[Shaun Benton] With food prices having risen dramatically in recent months, Minister of Trade and Industry Mandisi Mpahlwa on Wednesday, 18 June 2008, emphatically ruled out the use of maize as a crop source for biofuels.

Marketing's forgotten child
E-mail marketing is fast, cheap - and a big mystery. There are very few tools at the marketer's disposal to gauge a campaign's success. Blogger Ron Shevlin, a senior analyst at Aite Group, contends it doesn't have to be that way, and suggests one possible e-marketing feedback mechanism.

Better tech support in 3 easy steps, Part 3
You've assembled your team of top tech support ninjas. You've talked to every department in the company, made the necessary compromises, and won them over to your side. Now it's time to face your customers with your new and improved help desk, writes Journyx's Randy Miller.

The terrible 2.0s
[Denis Pombriant] To call anything a 2.0 version - be it Enterprise 2.0, CRM 2.0 or Web 2.0 - is to imply that the new version is enhanced, extended and just plain better than 1.0. However, the problem with 2.0 is that it often breaks so far from 1.0 that it abandons what was good about 1.0.