 27 Sep 2010 |
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The start of cyber-warfare?Eugene Kaspersky, co-founder and chief executive officer of Kaspersky Lab, reckons that the recent Stuxnet worm attack was spawned by a team with backing and resources so large that it can only mean that whoever they are, they have backing of their government - whichever that may be.
In a stark warning, Kaspersky says, "This malicious program was not designed to steal money, send spam, grab personal data ... It was designed to sabotage plants, to damage industrial systems." Given the standing of his company, one can only hope that Kaspersky is exaggerating the threat, but that's unlikely - and that means Stuxnet is as great a threat as he says it is. It takes the issue of malware to a whole new plane - and reinforces the need to ensure your own anti-virus and malware protection software is up to date. Rod Baker, General Manager: Content Please send retail news to: retailnews@bizcommunity.com Responses to this column welcomed in our new online editor's column archive. Top stories
RetailResearch panel identifies key SA priorities in supply chains Following the Association for Operations Management of Southern Africa (SAPICS) recent conference, a research panel identified three research priorities in the profession; logistics infrastructure, supply chain integration and operational capabilities. Read more >>Advertisement:
 More Shopper's friendsShopper's Friend, launched in June 2010 and distributed weekly to more than 2 million LSM 6 -10 households across Gauteng, has increased its month-end distribution to 2.7 million households. The increase in the weekly advertising tabloid, carrying retail loose inserts and run-of-print advertising, was initiated at the request of supporting retailers. Read more >>Banking & FinanceTill transactions on the increase First National Bank (FNB) announced yesterday, 22 September 2010 that it is seeing an increased number of customers buying and withdrawing from point of sale (POS) transactions. Read more >>NCR reports on credit impairment levels Credit bureaus create consumer credit profiles based on credit information received from credit providers. The National Credit Regulator (NCR) regulates and monitors registered credit bureaus and the quality of their data. The NCR latest report indicates that the number of consumers with impaired credit records continued to increase. Read more >>Brand newsKWV wins Gold Medal in 'Bordeaux' class KWV's Mentors Orchestra 2008 was a Gold Medal winner in the Bordeaux Blend class of the Tri-Nations Wine Challenge, a 'by invitation only' competition held between Australia, New Zealand and South Africa in Sydney. Read more >>Fragrance-free range for baby Research conducted among mothers with babies younger than 18 months showed that most mothers consider that their babies have sensitive skin by virtue of their 'newness' and lack of exposure to both environmental factors and products. Read more >>KWV gets Level 4 rating KWV has achieved a level 4 BBBEE rating during its recent evaluation. The company started out as a level 7 contributor in 2007 and was on a level 5 last year. This new rating means that it is 100% compliant and therefore a 100% procurement recognised company. Read more >>Fair Cape launches SA's first 1% milk Fair Cape Dairies, manufacturers of Fair Cape Free Range milk and dairy products, claims to be the first to launch 1% milk in South Africa - their Fair Cape Free Range 1% Milk. Traditionally, consumers have had to choose between 2% low fat milk and fat-free milk; however, Fair Cape now gives them the opportunity to choose 1% low-fat milk, milk with half the fat of regular low-fat milk, but with what the company says is a richer, creamier taste than fat-free milk. Read more >>Three Golds for Durbanville Hills The Durbanville Hills cellar won three Gold medals at the recent 2010 Michelangelo International Wine Awards for its 2009 single-vineyard Biesjes Craal Sauvignon Blanc, 2010 Durbanville Hills Merlot Rosé, and 2009 Rhinofields Pinotage. Read more >>Nederburg Edelkeur wins top award Nederburg's 2005 Private Bin Edelkeur, sold exclusively on the annual Nederburg Auction, has won the trophy for top dessert wine at the 2010 Tri Nations Wine Challenge, in Sydney. It was one of 18 contenders for the trophy. Wines are submitted by invitation only, selected by a panel of judges as the finest national examples of their style. Read more >>Clothing & TextilesMenswear roundtable attracts top Cape Town designers, merchandisersFollowing the Cape Town Fashion Council's (CTFC) 'Fashion for Business Programme' (F4B), implemented as a pilot in late 2009, a roundtable series addressing each sector of the fashion industry with the input of local experts and stakeholders will begin. Read more >>Commercial propertyCountry properties can make senseFor a relatively small initial investment, certain country properties and businesses can produce high returns to investors, says Henry Hall of Realtors International in Worcester. Read more >>Corporate Social InvestmentWoolworths joins Save the Rhinos campaign Woolworths has partnered with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and pledged funds from the sale of limited edition reusable bags to help combat rhino poaching. WWF will receive R10 from the sale of each bag. Read more >>DistributionKiri Chef block out now Kiri Chef block, made from cream and fresh milk from France, is best suited for baking, cooking and entertaining; it blends easily and is aimed at the cheese cake market, with the packaging containing recipes and instructions for a tasty original cheese cake or baked cheese cake with the distinct delicious Kiri taste. Read more >>e-Commercebidorbuy launches in Kenya South African online marketplace, bidorbuy, has launched its Kenyan operation with over 18,000 products on offer. Read more >>FranchisingA decade of fast pizza This month, Scooters Pizza celebrates 10 years as a successful franchise since its start in September 2000 in Westville, Durban. It has expanded to 128 stores nationwide and one of its top priorities is franchisee profitability. Read more >>Woolies gets it wrong on franchises [Micheal Blebly] Pick n Pay supermarket chain founder Raymond Ackerman yesterday took a swipe at rival Woolworths' recent decision to end its franchise agreements. Read more >>Green sustainabilityInternational green practice comes to SA The new communications practice, OgilvyEarth, will be driven by Ogilvy agency, Zoom and is headed by Steve Massey as MD, Sello Leshope on strategy and Deon Robbertze on creative. It has launched this month as the South African division of the international OgilvyEarth organisation help South African businesses and brands become sustainability leaders. Read more >>International World Tourism Day focus on biodiversity - 27 September 2010 Monday 27 September is World Tourism Day - a day earmarked annually by the United Nations to celebrate the benefits of tourism linked to the social, economic and environmental factors of the host country. This year's theme focuses in on the importance of biodiversity and the role of sustainable practices in future tourism developments. Read more >>BMW most sustainable car company again The BMW Group has been named as the automotive industry's Supersector leader for the sixth consecutive year, and is therefore the world's most sustainable automobile manufacturer. This was the conclusion of the SAM Group, published in its latest evaluation for the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI). Read more >>Health & SafetyInternational SOS celebrates 25 years on World Tourism Day On World Tourism Day - today, 27 September 2010 - International SOS celebrates its 25th year in business. Read more >>HospitalityNew touch of royalty at V&A Scheduled to open in March 2011, Newmark Hotels' latest project in Cape Town's Victoria & Alfred Waterfront is the five-star boutique Queen Victoria Hotel. It joins others in the local hotel group, the Victoria & Alfred Hotel and Dock House Boutique Hotel & Spa. Read more >>New coffee system from Ciro Lavazza, Italy's number one espresso brand is reportedly the first to introduce the blue capsule coffee system to the industry. Read more >>Unilever Food Solutions Chef of the Year awards The Unilever Food Solutions Chef of the Year awards, held last week in Durban attracted local and international talent, as talented chefs competed for their share of R90 000 in cash. Petrus Madutlela (Le Quartier Francais, Cape Town) took first place, a R15 000 cash prize and the overall title of Unilever Food Solutions Chef of the Year 2010. Read more >>Knysna, Paarl have best wine listsThe diamond award for the best 2010 Diners Club Winelist nationally went jointly to Zachary's Restaurant in Knysna and Bosman's Restaurant at the Grande Roche in Paarl, it was announced late last week. Other awards went to The Turbine Hotel & Spa in Knysna, Best Platinum; Punchinello's in Johannesburg, Best Gold; and Collisheen Estate near Umhlali in KwaZulu-Natal, Best Silver. Read more >>Informal retailingCape Creative Week opens this week Cape Town's inaugural Creative Week (23 September to 3 October 2010) is geared to showcase its creativity in design, music, film, digital media, fine arts and craft products. The programme aims to position the city as a core of global design and to support its bid for World Design Capital 2014. Read more >>RegulatoryWaste conference will unpack new legislation Department of Environmental Affairs is currently finalising the following standards under the NEM: Waste Act, 2008: Waste Classification Regulations; Standards for Assessment of Waste for Landfill disposal; and Standard for disposal of waste to landfill. These standards will replace the Minimum Requirements Series of documents. Read more >>Win for SA consumers, SA manufacturer SA consumers have won, as has an SA manufacturer of panel heaters after High Court rules against imported products. Read more >>ResearchSA's wealthy 'real' consumer attitudes, lifestyle uncovered [Issa Sikiti da Silva] The findings of the Crucial Research Engaging Affluent Markets (CREAM), released yesterday, Wednesday, 22 September 2010, in Johannesburg, have uncovered what was perhaps misrepresented or untapped previously: the 'most comprehensive insights' of South Africa's wealthy people. The study was conducted by the newly established RamsayMedia Research Solutions, a joint venture between RamsayMedia and Bateleur-Khanya Research Solutions. Read more >>Communications providers need retail outlets, but... Communications providers say the retail channel is essential for success, but stores must evolve to match consumers' needs; Accenture research finds planned retail expansion will focus on improving customer service. Read more >>Retail marketingFirst Lucky Star winner The first winner in the Lucky Star R1 million promotion, currently running nationwide, has been announced. Read more >>Model search by ElleThe Elle New Fresh Face Competition is a campaign to find local modelling talent to take the local industry forward. In association with Woolworths, the magazine is looking for a beautiful, young woman who represents a shared optimism about South Africa and the future, to be the face of South Africa's fashion and represent the values and dynamic nature of the people of South Africa. Read more >>Big T makes Guinness Book of Records Officially verified by Guinness World Records on 15 September 2010, the world's biggest T-shirt is currently on display in an aircraft hangar in Johannesburg. Read more >>How to use email marketing to nurture sales leads Sales teams are often faced with too many leads to follow up on, and no idea as to which lead is more likely to generate a sale. However, lead nurturing email marketing can qualify your leads. According to GraphicMail*, when all's said and done what a business needs to stay afloat is sales. Be it selling your pitch, your service or your product, you need people to buy into it. Read more >>RetailersRetail trade seen at 6.9% y/y Jul vs 7.4%[Zeenat Moorad] South African retail trade sales at constant (2008) prices for July are expected to decrease to 6.9% year-on-year (y/y) from 7.4% in June, according to a survey of leading economists by I-Net Bridge. Forecasts among the ten economists ranged from 5.3% to 7.9%. Read more >>SecurityStuxnet a harbinger of new age in cyber-warfare? Kaspersky Lab's experts believe that Stuxnet manifests the beginning of the new age of cyber-warfare in which the primary aim is to conduct sabotage; the experts also believe the attack has nation-state support and backing. Read more >>Santam issues immobiliser warning Short-term insurer Santam is urging South African motorists to double-check that their vehicles are locked after they have pressed the immobiliser button. The company says that modern remote devices can interfere with your vehicle immobiliser and there have been recent reports of thieves using remote devices - which can include a common gate remote - to counter a vehicle's locking action. Read more >>TechnologyEmerging mobile call centre trend South Africa's call centre industry is growing at a steady rate of approximately 8% per annum and employs about 54 000 call centre agents*. Accompanying this growth is a vast opportunity for operators and technology service providers alike, whereby a dynamic nature in call centre trends exists. Read more >>Corporate RICA solutions From a corporate perspective, meeting the RICA deadline of 31 December 2010 is a lot more complex than private compliance, as many organisations have a substantial number of SIM cards within their company, without a clear view of who the users are. Read more >>IPhone 4 launched in South Africa MTN launched the IPhone 4, the generation next in Smartphones, earlier this week. The device marks the next phase in communication technology and the progressive convergence of function. MTN says its network, significantly upgraded for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa, is well positioned to support the increased functionality and bandwidth demands of new generation Smartphones. Read more >>
Growth accelerates in UK financial services sector - CBI/PwC LONDON, UK: Activity in the UK financial services sector grew in the last three months at the fastest rate since June 2007, although this growth was much slower than was expected, a new survey reveals today (Monday, 27 September 2010). Read more >>Banks squeezing building societies out of mortgage market [Published by Datamonitor] LONDON, UK: The mortgage market is finally showing signs of recovery in the UK but it is the banks that are dominating. The top six banks increased their share of gross lending to 85%, leaving building societies struggling to keep up, finds Datamonitor. Read more >>London back on the podium as hotels smash occupancy records LONDON, UK: The city's hotels will lap the rest of the UK over the next year, boasting record average room rates of nearly £130 (about R1430) in 2011 - the latest PwC UK Hotels Forecast reveals. Read more >>More International news...
LogisticsIMPERIAL Logistics wins three Logistics Achiever Awards - IMPERIAL Logistics IMPERIAL Logistics was awarded Gold and Silver at the prestigious 22nd Annual Logistics Achiever Awards (LAA), as well as a Special Merit Award for the authoritative, annual State of Logistics™ survey alongside the CSIR and US. Read more >>
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X Factor makes the X1 Xeptional [Henrie Geyser: motoring editor] BMW is quite proud of the fact that it has created a whole new motoring segment with its rather strange and rather expensive X1 creation - but to define precisely what it is, or pretends to be, is no easy task. And for that very reason it's also not easy to weigh it up against the opposition. Read more >>More Motoring news...
As one with nature, and Exeter [Brian Berkman: contributing editor, travel] When your lodge is in the Top Five out of 39 Speciality Lodging in Sabi Sand Reserve on www.TripAdvisor.com and every one of the 35 reviewers award the highest possible score, you know you're dealing with a special property. It isn't surprising to learn that there is three staff to every guest. Even when its full house, there are only ever eight suites occupied. Read more >>I left my heart in Dulini [Brian Berkman: contributing editor, travel] Visiting an &Beyond camp is like visiting no other since being part of the &Beyond experience becomes the focus rather than the lodge. This includes being initiated into &Beyond culture by your ranger, at your first meeting. Read more >>Ethiopian Airlines to get Boeing 777-200LR With the delivery of its first 777-200LR in November 2010, Ethiopian will be the first airline in Africa to operate what is claimed to be the world's most technologically advanced, and longest-range aircraft. Read more >>More Travel news...
New music video and tour from Wrestlerish Wrestlerish have released the music video for the third single from their debut album, "The Rude Mechanical" and are embarking on a short national tour between 24 September and 9 October, 2010. Read more >>Bonga's Beats - Debuts and comebacks [Bonga Percy Vilakazi] Bonga Percy Vilakazi looks at this week's new releases, debuts and comebacks. Read more >>More BizLounge news...
Appeal for funding to help save Africa's rhinos Africa is experiencing a ferocious resurgence in rhino poaching, caused by illegal demand for rhino horn from Asia. South Africa, the stronghold of Africa's rhino population with more than 80% of the 24 000 rhinos left in Africa, has been losing more than 20 rhinos a month. If the current trend continues, the rhino conservation gains of the last decade will begin to erode.
"Nothing in life is so hard that you can't make it easier by the way you take it." - Ellen Glasgow "It is not the employer who pays wages -- he only handles the money. It is the product who pays the wages." - Henry Ford "Anybody can cut prices, but it takes brains to produce a better article." - P. D. Armour "Teamwork is the ability to work together toward a common vision. The ability to direct individual accomplishment toward organisational objectives. It is the fuel that allows common people to attain uncommon results." - Andrew Carnegie
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