 6 Jul 2009 |
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Bad eggs?
Shan Radcliffe, Retail editor retailnews@bizcommunity.com Responses to this column welcomed in our new online editor's column archive. Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net. Top stories
RetailTop vintages at 35th Nederburg auction This year marks the 35th anniversary of the Nederburg Auction - an auspicious year indeed as it also sees South Africa celebrate 350 years of winemaking excellence. Once again, local and international buyers and connoisseurs will be afforded the opportunity to purchase the cream of South Africa's wines from the 156 entries on auction, many of which have garnered accolades at both local and international wine shows, attained coveted listings on airlines or achieved five-star ratings in respected wine guides. Read more >>Decline in truck sales starts to slow[Artwell Dlamini] Vehicle manufacturers expect the precipitous decline in the truck market to bottom out in the second half of this year. Read more >>IFA grows its stake in Boschendal IFA Hotels & Resorts has acquired a further 5.25% stake in Boschendal, taking its stake in the winelands estate to 37.33%. Read more >>Seven finalists to hit New Talent design ramp Seven young designers have made it to the finals of the Elle New Talent Awards 2009 in partnership with Mr Price. Selected from a pool of 70 entries, the finalists will each showcase a range at the Elle New Talent Show at the 2010 Sanlam South African Fashion Week on 16 September 2009. The winner will also get a chance to redesign items from their range to be sold in selected Mr Price stores under the Project label. Read more >>New car sales spark flicker of hopeAt last there is a flicker of hope in new car sales in South Africa with June accounting for 33,124 new vehicle sales - a healthy 12.5% increase over May 2009. Read more >>Pierre Cardin 'to sell everything'PARIS: Days before turning 87, French fashion legend Pierre Cardin is stripping off a large part of his China empire and he told AFP he was "going to sell everything I own." Read more >>Brands credited with revenue increase at AVI[Kgomotso Mathe] Consumer goods group AVI's revenue for the 11 months to last month was 12.4% higher than in the comparable period of the previous year. Read more >>Car makers to hike rather than slash prices[Artwell Dlamini] Vehicle manufacturers look likely to hike, rather than slash, car prices in the short term, even though the rand has clawed back some of its lost ground. Read more >>AssociationsEskom tariff hike to hit tenants hard[Simpiwe Piliso] The SA Property Owners' Association has slammed a decision by the energy regulator to grant Eskom a 31.3% electricity price hike. Read more >>Rebate system must be exposed - SolidarityThe trade union Solidarity on Tuesday, 30 June 2009, called on the Competition Commission to expose the rebate system between certain suppliers, retailers and wholesalers, the union said. Read more >>Banking & FinanceOnline shopping for the credit card-less There is general growth in South African e-commerce, and online stores are set to benefit from the new users entering the market. That said, the pool of online users is still relatively small, and to make matters worse, of those who do have access to the internet, only 18% actually make purchases online. However, proudly South African virtual cash equivalent MiMoney is changing that by giving credit card-less individuals the ability to make purchases online. Read more >>Brand newsMorkel signs with Puma Puma has signed a long-term full technical contract with big-hitting Proteas all-rounder Albie Morkel who will now launch sixes with a Puma bat in hand. The deal runs from 1 July 2009. Read more >>Mageu gets smooth [ActivRetail] Traditional African energy drink Mageu Number 1 is introducing the latest addition to the family, Mageu Number 1 Smooth, a smoother, creamier drink available in three new flavours: Lemon & Lime, Strawberry Cream, and Banana Custard. Read more >>SABMiller announces BEE dealSABMiller, one of the world's largest brewers, on Wednesday, 1 July 2009, announced a proposed Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) transaction worth about R6 billion, which will place about 10% of the company's shares under black ownership. Read more >>SA olive oil wins international honours [ActivRetail] Willow Creek Olive Estate was awarded top honours at the L'Orciolo d'Oro olive oil competition in Gradara, Italy, recently - with its flagship Directors' Reserve Extra Virgin Olive Oil winning the intensely fruity category. Read more >>New board appointments for PnPRichard van Rensburg has been appointed as an independent non-executive director and Suzanne Ackerman-Berman and Jonathan Ackerman as alternate directors of Pick n Pay Stores Limited, the company announced today, 30 June 2009. Read more >>Corporate Social InvestmentRegeneration project comes to Khayelitsha[ActivRetail] Grand-Pa will launch its Regeneration Project in Khayelitsha in the Western Cape on 4 July 2009. The project will give individuals within the community the chance to earn an income through recycling, as well as contribute to the upgrading a communal property of their choice. Read more >>Knitting warmth into winter [ActivRetail] Now in its fifth year, the Med-Lemon winter campaign is on a roll with groups of committed women gathering to knit thousands of scarves to keep orphaned children warm. Read more >>e-CommerceNew website for Jump.co.za Jump.co.za, the South African online shopping comparative search engine launched its new website, yesterday, Monday 29 June 2009. Improved search speed and new features are among the benefits offered. Read more >>Amazon turns gears of internet tax wars[Mike Pearson] USA: More companies are joining in the fight over internet taxation begun by Amazon.com. Read more >>ExhibitionsCountdown to gaming and comic event Thousands of gamers and hobby enthusiasts from all over the country will once again this weekend converge on Jabula Recreation Centre in Sandringham, Johannesburg for the 17th annual consumer gaming and comic event, ICON, which features interactive gameplay, comics and collectibles, hobby-related events, anime screenings and a variety of events. Read more >>Bookings open for 2010 Joburg Wine Show The organisers of The Wine Show Joburg, which took place from 29 - 31 May have declared the 2009 show a success, both in terms of attendance and product sales, and have already opened bookings for next year, they announced earlier this week. Read more >>Juliet Cullinan Standard Bank Wine Festival 2009 After 18 years, Juliet Cullinan Standard Bank Wine Festival remains a small, elite showcase for the finest Cape wineries. Standard Bank remains committed as the sponsor of the exclusive festival after nine years. Read more >>Designers try a revamp of Islamic abayaPARIS: Ahead of the Paris couture shows, top designers have joined a tricky exercise to glam up one of the world's most traditional pieces, the abaya, the long black overgarment worn by millions of Arab women. Read more >>Green & OrganicGrowing interest in 'green' commercial buildingsWhile awareness of the benefits of 'green' buildings is still in its infancy in South Africa, interest is already being expressed in the marketplace regarding energy-saving commercial buildings, says Geoff Stroebel, GM of Pam Golding Commercial. Read more >>Health & SafetyTaiwan police seize cocaine-laced alcohol TAIPEI: Taiwanese police said Thursday they had confiscated some 200 cases of alcohol imported from the Netherlands after it was found to contain slight traces of cocaine. Read more >>HospitalityWill hotel greed kill SA's tourism brand beyond 2010? [Dr Nikolaus Eberl] At last week's final LOC press conference for the Confederations Cup, LOC board member and SA minister of human settlement, Tokyo Sexwale, called upon the ‘Barcelona Effect' for maximising the tourism legacy beyond 2010, saying that “Brand South Africa aims to create a legacy that is similar to what Barcelona did in 1992, when the Olympics were organised in Barcelona. We want tourists to remember Brand South Africa long after the tournament.” [poll] Read more >>The oyster parade [Linda Stafford] Ten days in which to indulge the two extremes of your nature — health nut and hedonist — is the promise of the annual Pick n Pay Knysna Oyster Festival. So if you want to keep fit while you risk getting fat, not to say provide enormous fun for your family, it's definitely the place to be from 3 - 12 July 2009. Read more >>Import/ExportSA thinks again on import tariff pledge [Mathabo le Roux] The government is considering raising import tariffs on garments to maximum levels agreed to by SA in the World Trade Organisation (WTO), contradicting its undertaking as part of the Group of 20 (G-20) countries not to resort to protectionist measures in the global economic downturn. Read more >>Instore mediaCampaign shines in-store - ActivRetail
LogisticsDHL to triple regional hubs in China SHANGHAI: German logistics giant DHL plans to open 10 new regional transportation hubs in China this year, state media said Wednesday, 1 July 2009, tripling the number of such centres it operates in the country. Read more >>ManufacturingManufacturing sector rebounds[Shireen Darmalingam and Danelee van Dyk] This week's economic data might confirm that the worst part of the manufacturing recession is behind us. Read more >>SA economy risks de-industrialisation - DaviesThe South African economy risks de-industrialisation due to the impact of the economic crisis, Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies said on Tuesday, 30 June 2009. Read more >>SA apparel industry needs to work with govt [Renato Palmi] After much stalling the South African government has published and intends to implement through the Department of Trade and Industry a rescue package for the clothing and textile sector that incorporates skills development, capital investment and the controversial proposal of increasing tariffs on apparel imports. Read more >>Beige earnings upRetail and wholesale manufacturer Beige Holdings on Monday, 29 June 2009, advised that it expected its headline earnings per share for the year to end March 2009 to decline between 15% and 35% based on previous published prior year results. Read more >>PackagingCounterfeiters fake Swiss rubbish bagsZURICH: Counterfeiters who already make a fortune from fake Swiss watches and army knives have now turned to making a business out of fake Swiss rubbish bags. Read more >>RegulatoryDawn raider is consumers' white knight[Chris Barron] We've had South African Airways, Telkom, the car industry, the banks, the dairy industry and the bakers. Each time they've protested their innocence and each time the Competition Commission, under the quiet but able leadership of Shan Ramburuth, has proved them wrong. Read more >>Winds of blame blow through retail chains[Sure Kamhunga and Kgomotso Mathe] Nearly two years after slapping a record fine of R98m on food group Tiger Brands for being part of a price cartel, the Competition Commission has in its sights supermarket chains whose perceived market dominance is being compared to the wind that you can feel but can't see. Read more >>Strict laws to control sale of cellular phones, sim cards[Vivian Warby] Government is to implement strict laws on the sale of cellular phones and sim cards to help curb serious crime in the country. Read more >>SA supermarkets to be investigated[Zweli Mokgata] Economists and analysts have welcomed the Competition Commission's decision, announced yesterday, 29 June 2009, to initiate an investigation against SA supermarket chains for possible contraventions of the Competition Act. They say food inflation continues to rise, while interest rates, input costs and commodity prices have dropped. Read more >>ResearchMobility 2009 reveals SA's cellular gapThe South African cellular market reached a milestone of 50-million connections at the end of 2008 - but only 68% of these represented individual users. This is according to World Wide Worx 2009 annual Mobility study, released yesterday 2 July 2009. Read more >>MasterCard survey: SA consumer confidence declines Despite the decline, however, South Africans remain optimistic overall and are the third most optimistic in the Asia-Pacific, Middle East, and Africa region. The MasterCard Worldwide Index of Consumer Confidence was released on 1 July 2009. Read more >>Retail marketingMarketers aim to self-regulate consumer tracking online[Deborah Yao] USA: Companies that track consumer behaviour online for advertising purposes are vowing to make their practices more transparent and to give people a way to decline being shadowed. Read more >>Retail servicesService in a recession[Howard Badler] The buzzword in the world these days seems to be “recession”. How will your company stay afloat during these challenging times, especially when research has shown that it costs up to five times more to get a new customer than retaining your existing customer? Read more >>Jellybeans and Tabasco: a recipe for loyal customers, memorable brands [Jo Duxbury] Your customers are potentially your best salespeople. If you want to get them talking positively about your brand, consider thoughtful, low-cost, high impact touches that will surprise and delight them. Read more >>RetailersUplift with arrival of larger size bras [Gillian McAinsh] A new range of lingerie designed and manufactured specifically for South Africa‘s bigger busted women has arrived in Port Elizabeth. Read more >>Woolworths reports R79m forex lossRetail group Woolworths on Wednesday, 1 July, said a non-cash, unrealised foreign exchange loss of R79 million would be recognised in the income statement for the year ended 30 June 2009. Read more >>SecurityATM users warned of hoax e-mailAn e-mail advising ATM users to type in their PIN codes in reverse to alert police to criminal activity was a hoax, the SA Banking Risk Information Centre (Sabric) warned on Wednesday, 1 July 2009. Read more >>TechnologyAsia seeks to boost music salesHONG KONG: Rampant piracy and a crumbling market for CDs has put the music industry in Asia under immense pressure, but experts are hoping that technology and social media will help fill the gap. Read more >>Samsung's internet enabled TV hits East Africa market [Walter Wafula] Samsung Electronics has unveiled a flat-panel TV with a provision to access content on various websites, in East Africa. The 29mm LED TV was launched in Kenya at the end of June 2009. Read more >>Gizmodo founder launches new gadget site WASHINGTON: The founder of two of the most popular gadget sites on the Web, Gizmodo and Engadget, launched another destination for technology junkies on Wednesday, 1 July 2009. Read more >>Happy 30th birthday, Walkman TOKYO: Thirty years ago Sony launched the Walkman, a gadget which revolutionised the way people around the world listened to music but has since been overtaken by an icon of the digital age, the iPod. Read more >>TrainingCentre to help Mpuma farmers grow[Siphiwe Nyathi] Mpumalanga farmers will soon have access to all the advice and technical facilities they need to make a success of farming. Read more >>
Brand newsFresh new website for I&J - I&J Fishing company and food producer I&J's new-look website is now live. The main communications objective set for the new website was to reinforce I&J brand positioning and create relevance to consumers. Read more >>Retail servicesCourses set for August and September in Johannesburg and Cape Town - Quo Vadis CommunicationsOrganisational communication training specialists, Quo Vadis Communications, is to run two additional courses before the year's end to meet demand. Read more >>RetailersGet inspired at the Tyger Valley Matric Dance Inspirations Exhibition - Tyger Valley Tyger Valley Centre will be hosting the Matric Dance Inspirations Exhibition from Thursday, 2 to Sunday, 5 July. The exhibition will showcase Vintage cars and sensational designs from Billie Boutique, Edgars, Evita Peroni, Hip Hop, Kleins, Monsoon, Rage, Rolo Cosmetics, Shabby Chic and Uzzi. Read more >>
 
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