Fuel retailers unhappy with new margin
[Siseko Njobeni] There is no end in sight to the stand-off between the minerals and energy department and fuel retailers over the retail margin after the department on Friday announced a 2,6c/l increase in the margin — a move deemed inadequate by the industry.

Seardel stock firmer after losses shock
[Mathabo le Roux] Clothing and textile manufacturer Seardel has finally clarified the extent of its expected losses for the year to June.

CWG Auction lineup gets international nod of approval
The 2008 lineup of the Nedbank Cape Winemakers Guild (CWG) Auction to be held at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on Saturday, 27 September, has excelled at blind tastings by Wine Spectator in New York as well as Steve Tanzer's authoritative International Wine Cellar, with the majority of the wines breaking the venerable 90 point barrier.


How ethical is eco fashion?
[Renato Palmi] How the colours of fashion have changed. Red was once identified as being in fashion. The colour black arrived as a fashion statement of elegant vogue through the medium of the 1920s "little black dress" designed by Chanel. Now we have green - eco-friendly green. However, how green is green, how ethical is the PR spin around ethical fashion?

Fears of retail recession as sales fall
[Mariam Isa] Retail sales fell 4,6% in July compared with the same month last year the sharpest annual fall since records began a decade ago, fanning fears the key sector was sliding into a recession.

Countdown to the holidays: 100 days to ramp up
[Luc Vezina] Despite the recent gloomy economic news and consumer credit crunch, consumers will still spend hundreds of billions of dollars this holiday season. For retailers, the countdown has already begun and now is the time to start thinking about your holiday marketing programs for the holiday push. Start in September and you have 100 days to grow your business.

Creating a fashion industry in Sierra Leone
[Emily Geminder] Adama Kai calls it the diaspora dress. Whether they see it hanging in her shop window or happen to witness Kai herself marching its proud neckline down the street, everyone has a single question: Where can I get one?

Union launches boycott campaign against chain
[Kea' Modimoeng] The battle between the South African Commercial Catering and Allied Workers Union (Saccawu) and Woolworths over union recognition seems far from over.

Saccawu launches consumer boycott of Woolies
The South African Commercial, Catering and Allied Workers Union (Saccawu) plans to launch a consumer boycott of retailer Woolworths later in the day as part of its efforts to be granted union recognition, it said on Thursday.

Strike by retailer's employees continues
[Siya Miti] The Woolworths employee strike for union recognition has entered its sixth day, after the parties failed to reach an agreement by the initial deadline of Sunday.

AIG's risk, the industry's reward?
[Jonathan Steiman] For much of the last decade, AIG was the shining star in the insurance industry. Last week this all changed, when a liquidity crisis at the company forced the US government to intervene.

Be card wise drive: online safety
There are approximately five million South Africans online, according to www.internetworldstats.com, an increase of some 112.5% since 2000. As more people go online, online banking and financial transactions are becoming increasingly popular - Jacques Celliers, CEO of FNB Credit Card, says it has almost 800 000 online banking customers.

Market, currency plunge following cabinet exodus
[Michael Appel] Markets plunged almost immediately following the news of the resignation of cabinet members on Tuesday, including Finance Minister Trevor Manuel and his deputy Jabu Moleketi, with the All Share dropping 4% and the rand giving up 25 cents to the dollar.

A launch with a Twist
What if a story you were following online ended with a radical twist that came to life on the streets of your city? That's exactly how South Africans were introduced to Twist, the new contemporary fashion brand from Woolworths.


Bubbling rosé wins Cap Classique Challenge
[ActivRetail] The House of JC Le Roux has become the first producer to win the prestigious Wine Magazine Amorim Cap Classique Challenge with a rosé - JC Le Roux Pinot Noir Rosé 2006.


Are you gambling with your pet's health? - Vondis Holistic Pet Nutrition
Feeding your pet a natural, wholesome diet is the right thing to do. It is also the inherent right of your beloved companion animal to receive a diet that is natural, wholesome, real and preservative free.

Pravda Vodka - Cornucopia Industries
Pravda Vodka, imported from Southern Poland, was introduced to the South African market two years ago. Most of the vodkas found in SA are made from cane sugar, molasses or potatoes. Pravda Vodka is made from rye wheat and natural spring water which gives it a distinct taste.


Three new taste temptations from Cadbury - Cadbury South Africa
Tempt your tastebuds this spring with the launch of Cadbury Dairy Milk's three new decadently delicious chocolate flavours. This indulgent Cadbury Dairy Milk range includes Fudge and Biscuit, Almond and Orange and Cashew and Coconut. Hitting the shelves from September 2008, this is a limited edition range so you'd be wise to stock up!

Smoke-damaged clothes for charity
[Thabo Jijana] The Exact clothing store, which was affected last month by a devastating fire in Port Elizabeth‘s central business district, on Thursday donated hundreds of clothing items to charity.

Online retail survival: Back to basics
Online retail has boomed over the last two years with at least 1014 online stores active at the end of 2007, according to Word Wide Worx Executive Summary on Online Retail in South Africa 2007. What does this mean for online retailers?

Apple's clever iTunes 8
[Matt Vella] Every time Apple introduces another version of iTunes, it risks turning a large yet muscular media organiser and shopping centre into a bloated, unnavigable mess. iTunes 8 gets it right and adds some useful features like Grid view and a so-called Genius playlist creator. For the next version, however, Apple may need to pull another "leapfrog".

SA fish restaurant a catch in Europe
[ActivRetail] Ocean Basket opened its first European restaurant on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus in July. The 80-seat restaurant has a prime spot in the popular resort of Paphos, on the south-west coast of the island.

PPI for August jumps to 19.1%
South Africa's factory gate price known as the Producer Price Index (PPI) has increased by 19.1% year-on-year in August compared with that at August of 2007.

Leverage your green
A recent study released in the United States finds that while most Americans canvassed in the study have not seen or read Al Gore's work film and book on global warming, they are still receptive to marketing drives that push green issues.

Social networking and the multichannel shopper
[Louis Columbus] Attaining the optimal mix of product selection, pricing and content in catalogues and collateral, and the tailoring of guided selling and navigation within multichannel management strategies is too important to leave to just trial and error.

How to create packaging that kills knockoff products
Package design can be a key advantage in beating generic and house-brand products.

How smarter packaging can eliminate instruction manuals
Want a great way to cut costs on the packaging of your product? Try printing the instructions for your product on the package itself. By doing so, you eliminate wasted hours spent on producing and inserting separate instruction sheets.

Extreme package makeover
Does your product have the self-confidence it needs to interact with people? Perhaps you did not think it important but your product could be suffering from self-esteem issues and unfortunately when your product doesn't feel good, neither does your bank account.

Performers promote paraffin and road safety
[ActivRetail] ComutaNet, South African commuter advertising company recently joined forces with petroleum giant Engen to promote road and paraffin safety amongst commuters residing in South Africa's informal settlements.


Uchumi hunts for loyal customers
[Walter Wafula] Uchumi, a Kampala supermarket, has unveiled the first retail shopping club in a bid to attract and retain its customers. The supermarket launched the U-Club, a customer loyalty initiative, which comes with a U-Club Card.


Michelangelo gold medallist Méthode gift box

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Pongrácz, the Méthode Cap Classique inspired by the charismatic Hungarian nobleman, Desiderius Pongrácz, is now available in a stylish gift box ready for the festive season. Composed in the classic French tradition of the noble grape varieties, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Pongrácz has just been crowned with a gold medal at the 2008 Michelangelo International Wine Awards. It has a wonderful foaming mousse and persistent bead with a classic yeast and biscuit character that culminates in a full, fruity finish. The gift set includes two flute glasses and retails for around R150.00 at leading stores.

Kids ad regulations need monitoring
[Sashma Sharma] South African marketers are currently grappling with the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) of SA's recently published Food and Beverage Code - the objective of which is to regulate the advertising of food and beverage products in general, and in particular, the advertising of such products to children under 12. While the ASA's aim is to protect the advertising industry from disrepute or damage public confidence in it, the driver of similar, but somewhat more draconian measures in the UK has been the increasing onset of childhood obesity.

Dept of Health warns of Chinese contamination products
[Gabi Khumalo] The Department of Health has called for any product of Chinese origin that may contain milk or dairy products to be detained until the department is able to run tests on certain products.

Consumer bill misunderstood
[Sanchia Temkin] Dire warnings by some business organisations over the cost and legal implications of the Consumer Protection Bill may be an overreaction, said a legal expert.

Report points companies to potential trouble areas
The Global Risk Network has launched its second Global Growth@Risk report ahead of the Forum's Annual Meeting of New Champions in Tianjin, China. The report considers a number of short-term and longer-term risks to growth for both markets and corporations.

Boosting SA customer service
Altius Investment Holdings recently acquired a stake in the online complaints management and consumer affairs portal, getclosure!.

How small stores can lure holiday shoppers
[John Tozzi] A cold retail wind is already starting to signal a tough holiday season, and small stores could be the hardest hit. Unable to compete on price with their big-box counterparts, smaller retailers need to emphasize customer service and target their most loyal customers.

ANC political crisis spells uncertainty for South African BPO sector
[Peter Ryan] Recent political instability in South Africa, culminating in the removal of South African President, Thabo Mbeki, and the resignation of several of his cabinet colleagues, may discourage offshore business process outsourcing (BPO) investors. However...

Prepaid electricity now available from vending machines
Psitek has added prepaid electricity vouchers to Kazang, its vending solution that takes electronic prepaid services to under-serviced areas in South Africa. The new service facilitates the electronic sale of recharge vouchers for prepaid electricity meters.

'Micro' foods store opens in Jozi

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Woolworths officially opened its ‘Micro' Foods store at Amdec's 28 Harrison Street in Johannesburg last week. The 500m² store is the first of its kind in a central business district and its success could herald the roll out of a number of similar stores which the group is currently considering in major CBDs across South Africa. The selected location is in one of the most vibrant quarters of the Johannesburg CBD - in the heart of the city's financial district and is ideally situated one block south of the 'Government precinct', and about two blocks from the Gauteng Legislature building.

Tsvangirai calls for urgency to address food crisis
Harare: Prime Minister-designate Morgan Tsvangirai says Zimbabwe faces "disastrous consequences" if it does not speed up the formation of a new power-sharing government to deal with the deepening food crisis in the country.

Freys wins Famous Brands Supplier of the Year award
Freys Food Brands has scooped the title of Famous Brands Supplier of the Year 2008 both in the Perishables category and as the overall Supplier of the Year. In the process, the company was also awarded the title of Key Account Manager of the Year 2008.


Investing in farmers crucial to battle high food prices
[Michael Appel] Investing in Africa's farmers will be instrumental in the global response to the rising price of food, believes United Nations (UN) Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

MySpace music: A sound salvation?
It looks like recording labels are willing to give music away for free if it means not having to deal with iTunes - the No. 1 online music vendor and the No. 2 nemesis of music execs, due to its rigid pricing.

MySpace starts singing for its supper
[Michael Liedtke] MySpace launched its music-streaming service Thursday, complete with major advertiser sponsorship and the support of the four major record labels. The record companies see MySpace's effort as a way to erode the dominance of iTunes, while MySpace is mainly trying to keep its audience from defecting.

New cellphone software for the visually impaired
Vodacom is launching three new 'speaking phones' as part of its drive to make cellular communication accessible to people with special needs, specifically customers who are blind or partially sighted.


Same song, DRM-free medium: SanDisk sells albums on memory cards
[Renay San Miguel] USA: SanDisk is launching a line of memory cards containing full albums without DRM that play at a high-fidelity bitrate of 320 kilobits per second. Will the public buy into the idea of a physical storage medium in this age of downloads?

Web 2.0: paradigm shift for enterprises
A new report, ‘Enterprise Web 2.0', just published by Butler Group, one of Europe's leading IT research and advisory organisations, reveals how speed, agility, mobility, innovation, and reuse are forcing organisations globally to push aside old technologies, models, and architectures to make way for the brave new world of Web 2.0.