Aloe Blacc keen to promote Sri Lanka as attractive investment destination

• Arrives in Colombo for two-day visit through an invitation by GoSL, Sri Lanka Tourism
• Expects to engage with local entrepreneurs, artists, fostering collaborations to benefit both cultural and scientific communities
• Meetings scheduled with local entrepreneurs specialising in cashew and coconut-based products, organic goods, natural energy drinks, and food and agriculture, authentic Ceylon Cinnamon
• Senior Adviser to the President on Science and Technology Prof. Gomika Udugamasooriya says Blacc is prepared to invest in Sri Lanka, including tourism sector

Internationally renowned singer, songwriter, and entrepreneur Aloe Blacc yesterday arrived in Sri Lanka at the invitation of the Government and Sri Lanka Tourism, marking a significant visit that extends beyond music.

He was extended a warm welcome by Senior Adviser to the President on Science and Technology Prof. Gomika Udugamasooriya upon his arrival at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA).

Speaking to the media, Blacc noted that this was his first visit to Sri Lanka and he was excited to visit various parts of the country, whilst also expressing his interest to explore investment opportunities for the development of Sri Lanka.

“My relationship with Prof. Gomika has given me the opportunity to visit Sri Lanka and learn more about the country, to find ways to be part of developing and growth of this beautiful nation,” he said, adding that during his stay he plans to visit the southern beaches, and Sigiriya.

Blacc also expressed that it is a remarkable opportunity to collaborate with the Sri Lankan Government and the National Initiative for Research and Development Commercialisation (NIRDC).

Prof. Udugamasooriya noted that the Blacc was prepared to invest in Sri Lanka, including the tourism sector.

Issuing a statement, the PMD noted that although best known for his chart-topping hits like ‘I Need a Dollar’ and ‘Wake Me Up’, Blacc’s trip underscores his growing influence in biotechnology, healthcare innovation, and entrepreneurship.

Blacc emphasised that he is delighted to contribute to the story that conveys to the world that Sri Lanka is an attractive investment destination.

He also highlighted the unique chance to observe first-hand the numerous investments taking place in Sri Lanka, including both new and established enterprises, as well as the innovative concepts being developed.

Blacc noted his connections with numerous investors in the US and across the globe, to whom he plans to share the story of Sri Lanka’s potential.

During his two-day stay in Sri Lanka, Blacc is expected to engage with local entrepreneurs, artists, fostering collaborations that could benefit both the cultural and scientific communities.

His itinerary includes discussions with senior officials of the Presidential Secretariat, as well as meetings with local entrepreneurs specialising in cashew products, coconut-based products, organic goods, natural energy drinks, and food and agriculture, with a focus on authentic Ceylon cinnamon. Additionally, Blacc will participate in discussions with biotechnology experts, investment forums, and interactive sessions with aspiring musicians and innovators. As part of his visit, he will also explore Sri Lanka’s cultural heritage with trips to Sigiriya and Minneriya.

Aloe Blacc seamlessly blends music, entrepreneurship, and philanthropy. Initially aspiring to be a scientist, he founded Major Inc. in 2022 after contracting COVID-19, focusing on biotechnology solutions to prevent pandemics.

His company collaborates with top scientists to develop treatments blocking viral infections, inspired by his father, a US Marine Corps veteran.

Beyond biotech, Blacc invests in tech start-ups like Polygraf and Giroptic, showcasing his commitment to innovation.

In addition to his business ventures, Blacc continues to make an impact through music and philanthropy. His latest album, Stand Together (2025), promotes unity and resilience, while his humanitarian efforts include premiering ‘Shine’ Aurora Prize for Awakening Humanity ceremony in April 2024 to honour individuals supported by the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, reinforcing his dedication to social impact through music.

Blacc’s visit to Sri Lanka not only celebrates his musical achievements but also showcases his dedication to innovation, science and social responsibility. His multifaceted career serves as a powerful example of how creativity and entrepreneurship can intersect to drive meaningful change on a global scale. Aloe Blacc keen to promote Sri Lanka as attractive investment destination | Daily FT

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Drug companies pay doctors over A$11 million a year for travel and education. Here’s which specialties received the most

Monster Ztudio/Shutterstock Barbara Mintzes, University of Sydney and Malcolm Forbes, Deakin University

Drug companies are paying Australian doctors millions of dollars a year to fly to overseas conferences and meetings, give talks to other doctors, and to serve on advisory boards, our research shows.

Our team analysed reports from major drug companies, in the first comprehensive analysis of its kind. We found drug companies paid more than A$33 million to doctors in the three years from late 2019 to late 2022 for these consultancies and expenses.

We know this underestimates how much drug companies pay doctors as it leaves out the most common gift – food and drink – which drug companies in Australia do not declare.

Due to COVID restrictions, the timescale we looked at included periods where doctors were likely to be travelling less and attending fewer in-person medical conferences. So we suspect current levels of drug company funding to be even higher, especially for travel.

What we did and what we found

Since 2019, Medicines Australia, the trade association of the brand-name pharmaceutical industry, has published a centralised database of payments made to individual health professionals. This is the first comprehensive analysis of this database.

We downloaded the data and matched doctors’ names with listings with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra). We then looked at how many doctors per medical specialty received industry payments and how much companies paid to each specialty.

We found more than two-thirds of rheumatologists received industry payments. Rheumatologists often prescribe expensive new biologic drugs that suppress the immune system. These drugs are responsible for a substantial proportion of drug costs on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).

The specialists who received the most funding as a group were cancer doctors (oncology/haematology specialists). They received over $6 million in payments.

This is unsurprising given recently approved, expensive new cancer drugs. Some of these drugs are wonderful treatment advances; others offer minimal improvement in survival or quality of life.

A 2023 study found doctors receiving industry payments were more likely to prescribe cancer treatments of low clinical value.

Our analysis found some doctors with many small payments of a few hundred dollars. There were also instances of large individual payments.

Why does all this matter?

Doctors usually believe drug company promotion does not affect them. But research tells a different story. Industry payments can affect both doctors’ own prescribing decisions and those of their colleagues.

A US study of meals provided to doctors – on average costing less than US$20 – found the more meals a doctor received, the more of the promoted drug they prescribed.

Pizza anyone? Even providing a cheap meal can influence prescribing. El Nariz/Shutterstock

Another study found the more meals a doctor received from manufacturers of opioids (a class of strong painkillers), the more opioids they prescribed. Overprescribing played a key role in the opioid crisis in North America.

Overall, a substantial body of research shows industry funding affects prescribing, including for drugs that are not a first choice because of poor effectiveness, safety or cost-effectiveness.

Then there are doctors who act as “key opinion leaders” for companies. These include paid consultants who give talks to other doctors. An ex-industry employee who recruited doctors for such roles said:

Key opinion leaders were salespeople for us, and we would routinely measure the return on our investment, by tracking prescriptions before and after their presentations […] If that speaker didn’t make the impact the company was looking for, then you wouldn’t invite them back.

We know about payments to US doctors

The best available evidence on the effects of pharmaceutical industry funding on prescribing comes from the US government-run program called Open Payments.

Since 2013, all drug and device companies must report all payments over US$10 in value in any single year. Payment reports are linked to the promoted products, which allows researchers to compare doctors’ payments with their prescribing patterns.

Analysis of this data, which involves hundreds of thousands of doctors, has indisputably shown promotional payments affect prescribing.

Medical students need to know about this. LightField Studios/Shutterstock

US research also shows that doctors who had studied at medical schools that banned students receiving payments and gifts from drug companies were less likely to prescribe newer and more expensive drugs with limited evidence of benefit over existing drugs.

In general, Australian medical faculties have weak or no restrictions on medical students seeing pharmaceutical sales representatives, receiving gifts, or attending industry-sponsored events during their clinical training. They also have no restrictions on academic staff holding consultancies with manufacturers whose products they feature in their teaching.

So a first step to prevent undue pharmaceutical industry influence on prescribing decisions is to shelter medical students from this influence by having stronger conflict-of-interest policies, such as those mentioned above.

A second is better guidance for individual doctors from professional organisations and regulators on the types of funding that is and is not acceptable. We believe no doctor actively involved in patient care should accept payments from a drug company for talks, international travel or consultancies.

Third, if Medicines Australia is serious about transparency, it should require companies to list all payments – including those for food and drink – and to link health professionals’ names to their Ahpra registration numbers. This is similar to the reporting standard pharmaceutical companies follow in the US and would allow a more complete and clearer picture of what’s happening in Australia.

Patients trust doctors to choose the best available treatments to meet their health needs, based on scientific evidence of safety and effectiveness. They don’t expect marketing to influence that choice.

Barbara Mintzes, Professor, School of Pharmacy and Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney and Malcolm Forbes, Consultant psychiatrist and PhD candidate, Deakin University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Back To Top

Tell-Us

J&K Sports Council, Senior Hockey Players promote Hockey among Toddlers

SRINAGAR, MAY 17: Hockey is rapidly gaining popularity among youngsters in Kashmir, as a result of the joint efforts of the J&K Sports Council and senior Hockey players.

This initiative stems for encouraging the toddlers to play hockey with an aim to attain highly professional hockey playing skills to represent UT as well as the country at national and international platforms respectively.

The training program under this initiative is scheduled to commence from Sunday, 19 May, 2024 and shall continue to be conducted on every Sunday from 9:30 am to 10:30 am.

Meanwhile, recognizing the need for modern facilities, the J&K Sports Council has set up three new Astroturf hockey fields—one in Pulwama and two in Srinagar. These facilities provide a conducive environment for young players to practice and hone their skills.

Despite challenges like extreme weather conditions, J&K Sports council has successfully organized tournaments across different age categories in various districts. J&K Sports Council has introduced great initiative of league tournament matches which has taken Hockey in J&K to the next level.

Another milestone is the introduction of Basic Hockey skills among toddlers. Nuzhat Gul, Secretary J&K Sports council, expressed optimism about the future of hockey in the UT. She emphasized the importance of nurturing young talent and creating a strong foundation for the sport. Toddler Hockey workshop will help to strengthen the foundation of the Hockey, and this program will also be replicated in other districts of J&K, added she. J&K Sports Council, Senior Hockey Players promote Hockey among Toddlers

Back To Top

Tell-Us

How gender inequality is hindering Japan’s economic growth

Siriwat Sriphojaroen/Shutterstock Sarah Parsons, SOAS, University of London 

Japan’s economy is under pressure from rising energy prices and defence costs and the impact of the pandemic. Plummeting birth rates and an ageing population further threaten the sustainability of its labour market. A 2023 study by independent thinktank the Recruit Works Institute points to a labour supply shortage of 3.41 million people by 2030, and over 11 million by 2040. Gender inequality is another significant pressure point. Research shows that a gender-inclusive society and workforce leads to innovation and economic growth. However, Japan has one of the lowest levels of gender equality among G7 countries. It has slipped to its lowest ranking yet in the World Economic Health Forum’s latest Global Gender Report, particularly in terms of women in leadership positions. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida recently declared that Japan needs to urgently raise its birth rate. He also vowed to increase the percentage of women executives in Tokyo stock exchange-listed companies, from 11.4% to 30% or more, by 2030. A policy draft released in June indicates that this will be achieved through

Women face discrimination and restrictive policies in the workplace. Gbbot/Shutterstock

leadership quotas legally imposed on listed companies. Japan has tried this countless times, however, and largely failed. As my research shows, this is because gender norms are deeply embedded in Japanese society. Socialisation of gender norms: Gender norms in Japanese society are tightly connected to patriarchal hierarchies that have evolved historically from the influence of Confucianism. The role of a man is linked to being the breadwinner and head of the family. Women, by contrast, are seen as wives and caregivers, ultimately subservient to the head of the family. Children are taught these norms from an early age. Research shows that Japanese preschool teachers position children in various gender roles by encouraging gendered speech and behavioural patterns. Girls speak softly and act in a cute, non-threatening way. Boys, by contrast, use more dominant language and behaviour. Children’s books and TV programmes often perpetuate these hierarchical linguistic patterns and behaviour. These beliefs and values influence hiring practices and organisational behaviour within the Japanese workplace, which is still based on the male-based

Children are taught gendered roles and behaviour from very early on. Sally B/Shutterstock

breadwinner/female-dependent model. From 1945 to 1991, a period which economists refer to as the economic miracle years, most Japanese women were isolated from the leadership career path. This resulted in low levels of Japanese women in key decision-making positions. Today, leadership is still seen as a male-dominated environment – even when the topic is about female empowerment. Japan was the only country to send a male delegate to the recent G7 delegation on gender equality and female empowerment. Gaining promotions to higher-paid positions relies on long hours and commitment to the company, regardless of gender. Gendered norms therefore result in a significant double burden on Japanese women. Despite having one of the most generous paternity-leave provisions in the world, only 14% of Japanese men took paternity leave in 2021, compared with Sweden’s 90% rate of uptake. Japanese men also spend the lowest amount of time doing unpaid housework (41 minutes a day) among OECD countries. Both the highly gendered workplace and unequal division of household labour mean that women are more likely than men to miss out on promotions, take on lower-paid irregular jobs, and/or only consider 

Household division of labour continues to be unequal. Kazoka/Shutterstock

having one child. Work-life expectations are unrealistic. And in the workplace, women face discrimination and harassment, as well as restrictive expectations of gendered behaviour and appearance. Yoshiro Mori stepped down as head of the Tokyo Olympics organising committee in 2021, after sexist remarks he had reportedly made in a Japanese Olympic committee meeting caused an international furore. Mori was quoted as saying women talk too much, and that when “allowed into” high-level meetings, they take up too much time. Failed solutions: Previous Japanese government initiatives to raise the birth rate and improve gender equality have focused on introducing quotas for female leadership and executive boards, more childcare places, and enhanced parental leave. However, these have either failed to reach their target or have become tokenistic. In fact, recent initiatives are reported to have exacerbated gender inequality and driven some women into poverty. Singapore recently embarked on a similar mission as part of a national gender equality review. Its government has gathered ideas and feedback from women’s and youth groups, private organisations, academics, policymakers and the wider public. This has resulted in a policy wishlist and report, the findings of which will be implemented into both policy and education. Improving gender

equality must start with early-years education.  My research shows that this approach would work for Japan, too. It could allow people to voice their opinions and wishes in an open debate – which chimes with Japan’s cultural preference for decision-making achieved through consensus – rather than making direct criticisms of the patriarchal order. Such a review would need to look at all stages of life and aspects of society that are involved in the socialisation of gender roles, and the impact these have, from both a human rights and an economic perspective. There is already evidence that gender inequality is leading to mental health issues in Japan, especially for divorcees and single mothers. This review would also offer an opportunity for feedback from the younger generation. Research shows that many younger Japanese are becoming disenchanted with traditional gender roles. They are looking at new ways of living by choosing careers outside the echelons of power within Japanese society. They are also rejecting the institution of marriage. Japan has the opportunity to rewrite its gender equality trajectory. Doing so would hopefully include other representations of gender and diversity that have so far not been widely accepted within Japanese society, or protected within the law. Same-sex marriage is still unconstitutional in some prefectures. Societal change at this level will take a generation. The conversation needs to start now. Sarah Parsons, Senior Teaching Fellow and Lecturer in East Asian Business, SOAS, University of London This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Raising transparency in the online advertising ecosystem

The explosion of online advertising is raising serious data privacy concerns. / @IMDEA Networks Institute 

The online advertising business, led by companies like Google or Facebook, generated over $200 billion revenue in 2017, with an inter-annual growth over 15 per cent. This online advertising explosion is raising serious data privacy concerns

The online advertising business, led by companies like Google or Facebook, generated over $200 billion revenue in 2017, with an inter-annual growth over 15 per cent. This online advertising explosion is raising serious data privacy concerns.

Advertisers track users when they are online by shadowing them as they browse websites, perform web searches or watch movies. Tracking companies build a profile of each user based on such activities.

Collecting and processing personal data and then offering it to interested parties often means maintaining a balance between sustaining the many gains the industry brings and concerns over the privacy of internet users.

The TYPES ["TransparencY and Privacy in the onlinE" advertising business] project "protects individuals' privacy while empowering them to control how their data is used by service providers for advertising purposes," says Rosa Araujo, from Eurecat (Barcelona, Spain), project coordinator for the EU-funded initiative. 'By raising end user trust and advertiser transparency, all stakeholders of the advertising ecosystem stand to benefit.'

Arturo Azcorra, director of IMDEA Networks Institute (Madrid, Spain), says one of ten consortium members that have collaborated in the project, says about the results achieved, "TYPES has created solutions that protect user's privacy while empowering them to control how their data is used by service providers for advertising purposes.

"At the same time, TYPES has raised awareness about the need to take decisive action to protect users' online rights and to ensure that the use of personal data, if and when it happens, is transparent and entails a reasonable value added to users."

Keeping internet advertisers in check

TYPES has created tools designed to support the idea of a healthier, more transparent and thriving online advertising sector. This suite of tools enables users to 'better understand how their personal data is used online, ultimately building a strong foundation on which both industry and they can thrive,' continues Araujo.

The Web Browser Plug-In (available as corporate and open-source versions) and Network Proxy tools concern privacy violation detection and safeguarding. Araujo explains that they allow users to 'know what information is being collected and tracked by websites and advertisers, among others.'

Data valuation tools estimate the value that the online advertising market or users associate with different data which is mostly unknown and particularly difficult to assess. Software includes the Web Survey tool, Data Valuation Web Portal, YouTube Video Valuation tool and the Facebook Data Valuation tool. 'Divulging such information would be beneficial for both end users and the online advertising industry,' notes Araujo.

TYPES also developed Data Broker, a privacy-by-design advertising and marketing solution. Araujo stresses that it 'helps end users to share and benefit from their data in the digital advertising ecosystem.'

Products to boost business and protect privacy and personal data

Some solutions are ready to hit the market, while others are well on their way. The corporate Web Browser Plug-In is being commercialised for SMEs. One of the project partners, a digital agency, will offer the open-source version to its customers.

The subsidiary of a global security services company is expected to introduce the Network Proxy tool to its client base.

"This is a huge success for the project and the potential it can offer, because the company has a portfolio of several dozen companies who purchase solutions for improving their users' web experience," emphasises Araujo.

The Web Survey tool is freely available on the project website. Several partners intend to offer the Web Portal as a public service, aimed at maintaining transparency and creating awareness among citizens of personal data's value.

There are plans to apply for public research funds to maintain the Facebook Data Valuation tool, which informs Facebook users in real time about the money they're generating for the social networking website. It's the only product of its kind in the marketplace. A patent has also been issued for the Data Broker algorithms.

"Key market players and national organisations from the advertisement sector have expressed concern about the impact the project will have on established business models," continues Araujo. "Despite this, there's a certain underlying realisation that something needs to be done regarding transparency, and that the EU's new legislative framework for data privacy that comes into force in 2018 will make tools not only relevant, but needed."

"The rise of the digital economy must not be equated with a loss to our privacy, even more when it is a fact unprecedented in history that minors have become major users of the services provided. The existence of parental controls is not enough to protect them when it comes, for example, to sharing their location in real-time," concludes Azcorra.

"IMDEA Networks will continue work about the online advertising ecosystem in the context of the recently launched "MyBubble" initiative in collaboration with University Carlos III of Madrid and the MIT. MyBubble focusses on the personalisation filter, the so-called "filter bubble" generated by online services on the basis of our preferences and interests, and how it influences the information we access." Source: domain-b.com

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Facebook moves to make electoral ads transparent and accountable

• Facing widespread criticism for the handing over of personal data of 87 million users to a political consultancy, Facebook has decided to increase transparency and accountability for electoral and issue ads.
• CEO Mark Zuckerberg will appear before the US Congress next week to address queries relating to the harvesting of personal data of 87 million users by Cambridge Analytica, the British political consultancy, which worked for President Donald Trump's campaign.
• The company announced important changes to the way it manages ads and pages on Facebook and Instagram, its photo and video-sharing social networking service. “These are designed to increase transparency and accountability, as well as prevent election interference,” said Facebook.
• "Advertisers will be prohibited from running political ads electoral or issue-based until they are authorised, Facebook said, announcing plans to make advertisements on its platform more transparent.
• Last October, FB had allowed only authorised advertisers to run electoral ads. It has now decided to extend the requirement “to anyone that wants to show ‘issue ads’ — like political topics that are being debated across the country.”
• It is working with third parties to develop a list of key issues, which will be refine over time. Advertisers will be prohibited from running political ads — electoral or issue-based — until they are authorised. The ads will also be clearly labelled ‘political.’
• The company said it is investing in artificial intelligence and adding more people to help find advertisers who should have gone through the authorisation process. “We realise we won’t catch every ad that should be labeled, and we encourage anyone who sees an unlabeled political ad to report it,” said an FB statement. ”Source: https://www.domain-b.com/

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Kraftly, Ministry of Textiles sign deal to promote handlooms

New Delhi: The e-Commerce marketplace Kraftly has announced signing of an MoU with the Development Commissioner of Handlooms from the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India.

As a part of this exclusive agreement, Kraftly will now be selling products directly from weavers and artisans. For better customer satisfaction, these products will come under the 'Indian Handloom Brand' to prove the authenticity of the products.

This partnership allows Kraflty to engage with weavers and groups from four major Handloom producers - Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Assam and Andhra Pradesh.

The 'Indian Handloom Brand' is an initiative launched by the Prime Minister of India for promoting quality handloom products and encouraging weavers and artisans to showcase their artwork for the rest of the country to see.

"We are extremely excited about associating with the Handloom segment of the Ministry of Textiles," said Co-founder and CEO Kraftly, Saahil Goel.

Now, Kraftly will be selling 'Indian Handloom Brand' products through our portal. We are looking forward to enabling the artisans and weavers to promote their products directly through the Kraftly platform and help in building an online presence for these sellers.

"We have got the 'Indian Handloom Brand' and 'Handloom Mark' logo on our website as well, and aim to create an additional source of livelihood for the weavers and craftsmen, and further promote the dying arts and handicrafts of India," added Goel. Source: ummid.com

Back To Top

Tell-Us

10 fresh restaurant marketing ideas for 2016

Qsrweb: By Evan Hayes, vice president of finance, Belly, When you own or manage a restaurant, you likely wear multiple hats. Your primary concern is ensuring your customers enjoy a high quality meal and leave to share their experience with their family and friends. You manage your employees, prepare the food, keep the books, handle supply, and interact with customers. When each day is over, the last thing you have time to do is develop and actively maintain an effective marketing strategy. Perhaps your social media presence has been nonexistent, or your once loyal customers are not returning as often as you would like.

This may sound like a lot to balance, and it is, but today there are marketing techniques that won't break the bank and will help you save time. Use these restaurant marketing ideas to take your business to the next level in 2016.

• Take loyalty seriously — Did you know it costs a business 5-7 times more to acquire a new customer than it does to sell to an existing one? Not only that, but on average loyal customers spend 10 times more over their lifetime. By taking customer loyalty seriously and offering customers the ability to earn rewards for visiting your business, you'll be able to retain your most profitable customers and allocate resources you might have wasted on customer acquisition, to more value-add activities.
• Build a simple, elegant website — Almost 50 percent of restaurant website traffic takes place on mobile devices, according to a Gourmet Marketing.com article. Restaurants that offer responsive mobile websites convert up to 64 percent of searchers. There are many high quality DIY websites that enable restaurants to build their own mobile friendly websites like Squarespace and Wix. Website content about you, your restaurant and your multitude of seasonal menus should be limited to only a few, clearly defined options (e.g. menu, order, contact, locations). Mixed Greens, a local business in Chicago, gets an A+ for website functionality and design.
• Grow your customer review bank — Your reputation can make or break your business. The sheer volume of reviews doesn't really matter. Instead, the number of positive reviews becomes your restaurant's lifeblood. Sites such as Yelp, Urbanspoon and Zagat provide a medium for customers to express their likes and dislikes about your food, ambience and customer service. According to a survey conducted by Dimensional Research, people who had a poor interaction were 50 percent more likely to share it on social media than those who had a good experience, and 52 percent were more likely to share it on an online review site such as Yelp. Be sure to stay on top of your business's reputation by responding publicly to all reviews. You should also give your most loyal customers the ability to review your business on Yelp — increasing the likelihood that they'll leave a positive review!
• Become a social media medium — The number of social media outlets customers' have available rivals the number of Crest toothpaste options found at your local grocery store (last count was 38 at my local store). It's important not to get lost in the myriad of options but instead, remain focused on nurturing the ones that matter the most. Once you've created a Facebook page and Twitter handle for your restaurant, focus on gathering more "Likes” and "Tweets" by driving customers to talk about their visit online. There are also quite a few social media management tools available to help you manage your social media presence, including Sprout Social, Hootsuite and Buffer.
• Gather data on your customers — It is not 1995, yet some restaurants continue to have customers drop their business cards in a fishbowl or hand write their email addresses on a piece of paper at the register. Or better yet, some restaurants collect absolutely no information about their customers. Gathering data about your customers is no longer optional in today's highly competitive, online world. Offering a digital loyalty program brings traditional offline data-gathering methods online by allowing your restaurant to collect actionable data on your customers and make decisions that positively impact your business.
• Participate in the on-demand economy — According to Mike Jaconi, contributor for Business Insider, the on-demand economy is defined as "the economic activity created by technology companies that fulfill consumer demand via the immediate provisioning of goods and services." Companies such as Postmates, GrubHub and Caviar are worth considering because of their ability to extend the existing reach of local restaurants and to have a positive impact on labor allocation toward food delivery and on-demand ordering.
• Use mobile to gamify customer experience — It's no secret that we all love our smartphones. As customers, we live in a much more mobile world compared to a decade ago. By embracing the mobile trend, restaurants that partner with loyalty apps or offer their own app are seeing an increase in engagement and activity that can lead to stickiness, deeper connections and greater loyalty. For example, Tropical Smoothie was able to decrease time between customer visits by 50 percent by surprising and delighting their customers. Using their loyalty program, they emailed their customers to visit for a chance to win a free smoothie.
• The farm-to-table and local fresh wave is here to stay — By not offering your customers locally sourced food products, you're missing out on a two-sided advantage on which other restaurants that do offer local are capitalizing. From a food perspective, providing locally sourced ingredients means you're offering customers fresh, high quality ingredients that generally command higher prices and better margins. From a marketability perspective, offering farm-to-table ingredients means the perception of your food quality is much higher than it otherwise would be. Additionally, you create the perception that you're building goodwill within the local community by supporting small local farmers. Restaurants that offer farm-to-table options and that source many menu items locally include Farmhouse in Chicago and Redbird in Montana.
• Offer online reservations — If you currently don't offer a way for customers to book reservations online, you should consider signing up for an online reservation like OpenTable. Online reservation tools provide new and existing customers with a fast and easy way to book new reservations, change reservations and share their experiences.
• Allergen friendly and gluten-free — The point here is to expand your audience — continue to cater to the majority of us without food allergies — but now find select partners to source allergen-friendly options that make it possible for the family of four who has a child with celiac disease to enjoy food at your restaurant. You offer whole-wheat pasta on your menu, so why not also offer brown rice pasta? Offering allergen-friendly and gluten-free options doesn't have to be a yes or no, black or white decision. It is possible to safely provide alternatives either made in-house or sourced from certified allergen or gluten-free partners such as Sweet Ali's Gluten Free Bakery or Defloured. Source: http://www.qsrweb.com/

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg to take two months of paternity leave

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Friday he would take two months paternity leave after the birth of his daughter. Silicon Valley technology firms had rushed to extend parental leave allowances as also other benefits as they attempted to recruit and retain talent, though many workers choose not to take advantage for fear of falling behind at work or missing out on promotions. Facebook, the world's biggest online social network, allowed its US employees to take up to four months of paid maternity or paternity leave, which could all be availed at once or throughout the first year of their child's life, a policy which was generous by US standards. Zuckerberg announced in July that he and his wife, Priscilla Chan, were expecting a baby girl. According to a 2015 study by the Society for Human Resource Management 21 per cent of employers it surveyed offered paid maternity leave, and 17 per cent provided paid paternity leave. "This is a very personal decision," Zuckerberg wrote on his Facebook page, along with a picture of a stroller, a yellow baby carrier and his dog, Beast. Zuckerberg wrote on Facebook, "Priscilla and I are starting to get ready for our daughter's arrival. We've been picking out our favorite childhood books and toys. "We've also been thinking about how we're going to take time off during the first months of her life. This is a very personal decision, and I've decided to take two months of paternity leave when our daughter arrives. "Studies show that when working parents take time to be with their newborns, outcomes are better for the children and families. At Facebook we offer our US employees up to 4 months of paid maternity or paternity leave which they can take throughout the year. "Every day things are getting a little more real for us, and we're excited to start this next stage in our lives." Source: Article, Image: flickr.com

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Raymond invests Rs 61.68 cr in RLCL

Sujata Sachdeva, Suiting fabric maker Raymond has invested Rs 61.68 crores in Raymond Luxury Cottons (RLCL) by subscribing to equity shares. As speculated earlier, the company also confirmed appointment of Sanjay Bahl as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) after M Shivkumar resigned from the post. “RLCL has allotted the equity shares and the investment of Raymond Limited in the equity share capital of RLCL now stands at Rs 127.68 crores constituting 75.69 percent of the equity capital,” Raymond said in a BSE filing. Bahl's appointment was effective from November 16, 2015. Bahl, a chartered accountant has over 25 years of experience in FMCG, fertilisers, construction products and retail. Of late, Raymond is shifting its energies to refurbish its stores, while investing in marketing and advertising initiatives to drive margins and woo the young audience. The company’s focus on ‘Made to Measure’ personalised clothing stores are also expected to contribute positively to the company’s bottomline in future. Though costs on these new initiatives may pressure margins in this segment in the short term, according to the analysts, improved performance could boost sales and profitability in the long-term. Source: Article

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Steffi Graf appointed brand ambassador of Ayurveda in Kerala

The Kerala tourism department was given sanction to sign a pact with Graf to become Ayurveda brand ambassador as part of the department's 'Visit Kerala Scheme'. Tennis legend Steffi Graf, 46, was appointed as the Ayurveda brand ambassador of Kerala on 24 June. The state cabinet unanimously took the decision, said chief minister Oommen Chandy. The Kerala tourism department was given sanction to sign a pact with Graf, to become the Ayurveda brand ambassador as part of the department’s ‘Visit Kerala Scheme’, according to Chandy. The tourism department held discussions and reached an agreement with the former number one tennis player. Kerala’s Ayurveda, an ancient system of health care, is famous for its holistic effect on the body as well as the mind. It attracts people from all over the country and abroad, every year. Graf, who had bagged 22 Grand slam single titles, retired in 1999. She married former World No. 1 (mens’) tennis player Andre Agassi in October 2001. Graf was ranked World No 1 by Womens’ Tennis Association (WTA) for a staggering 377 weeks, in total. Source: Article, Image: https://commons.wikimedia.org

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Synthetic Fibres: a New Trend in China

Yarn Expo Spring 2015, one of the leading fibre and yarn trade events in Asia, wrapped up on March 20 with a steady growth in its visitor number. The three-day event, which commenced on March 18 in the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai), was the second edition in Shanghai after it relocated from Beijing in 2014. The fair attracted nearly 21,000 trade visitors from 46 countries and regions – with the top five being Mainland China, India, Korea, Turkey and Hong Kong – representing an increase of 3% compared to last year. “We are very happy to see the growth momentum continues into this year after we achieved a significant jump of over 200% last year when we first came to Shanghai to host our Spring Edition,” said Ms Wendy Wen, Senior General Manager of Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd. Altogether 238 exhibitors from 15 countries and regions participated in the fair, while the popular Indian Pavilion and Pakistani zone returned once again. “Our members were all happy with the fair as we could make business contacts with not only Chinese customers, but also with those from outside China, such as from the Middle East,” said Mr Ravindranathan Narayanasamy, Joint Director of the Cotton Textiles Export Promotion Council (TEXPROCIL) from India, co-organiser of the Indian Pavilion. “This year, around 30% of the total visitors that came to our booths were from overseas, and 70% were from Mainland China,” he continued. Indonesian exhibitors also agreed that this fair was a stepping stone for them to open up the global market. “This fair is important to us as we can meet with customers from around the world and we are happy with the responses we’ve got so far,” said Mr Anupam Agrawal, Director – Spun Yarn Business at PT Indo-Rama Synthetics Tbk. Overseas exhibitors find Yarn Expo a good platform to boost sales: As the Chinese yarn and fibre market begins to improve, many fibre suppliers from around the world are trying to capture this opportunity to extend their business into China, and Yarn Expo Spring 2015 is one of the most ideal platforms to achieve this goal. “We saw more Chinese end users and manufacturers coming to the fair this year, showing an improvement in the visitor quality,” Mr Narayanasamy said, stating based on the results from the past several editions, 30% of visitors that came to the Indian Pavilion actually made an order with the suppliers after the fair. Lahoti Overseas Ltd was one of the exhibitors under the Indian Pavilion that benefited from the enhanced visitor flow. “Our main purpose is to meet new customers here and we are satisfied with the results. Right now, we are exporting 2,000 tons of cotton yarn to China per month and with the help of this fair we want to increase it to 3,000 tons by the end of this year,” said Mr Vijay Nate, the firm’s Vice President in Export. Echoing Mr Nate’s positive views is another Indian exhibitor: Square Corporation Synergy Exim Pvt Ltd. “I can see our Chinese customers are ready to make orders now, and I am confident that by the end of this year our export volume to China can increase by 20% and I think this fair can help us achieve this target,” said Mr Vivek Verma, Managing Director of the enterprise. Mr Henry Yang from Lih Shyang Industrial Co Ltd in Taiwan was also happy with the new business potential brought by this fair. “We are extremely happy with the outcome of this fair. We met some very serious buyers from Finland. And I can tell they are very interested in our products, and what’s even more exciting is that they are looking for large-quantity orders. I regret not coming to this fair earlier,” said the manager of the Taiwan nylon textured yarn producer. Synthetic fibres: a new trend in China: Other than a trade platform that brings the whole industry under one roof, the fair never ceases to impress buyers with the latest product trends, such as synthetic fibres that featured in the Chinese Pavilion which attracted a lot of attention. “China is getting better and better at producing man-made fibres, and the new trend in the country is that more and more cotton yarn producers are shifting their business focus to the synthetic fibre side,” said Mr Dickens Chen, Business Consultant at Shanghai Jiancheng Consulting Firm. Sharing the same idea is Mr Xiaobing Min, Sales Manager of Chu-li Nano-material Technology Development Co Ltd in China. “Functional synthetic fibres will be under the spotlight next year and this is where the whole Chinese fibre market is heading right now,” Mr Min said. With an expertise in producing synthetic fibres, the Chinese Pavilion became a popular spot for overseas buyers and Richardo Barboss from Portugal was one of them. “I am mainly looking for Chinese products as they have higher quality. I think specialty fibres, such as flame retardant fibres, will be popular as such products can be used in the home textile, sportswear and automobile sectors,” he said, stating he found a wide selection of such products at the fair. Besides the latest products that are on offer, a Trend Area located in the Chinese Pavilion also revealed next year’s fibre developments. “Other than looking for products, I also came to find inspirations and learn about the product trends. I went to the Trend Area and found it is helpful for me,” said Jun Du from Baoxiniao Group Co Ltd, a famous brand-name garment manufacturer in Mainland China. Cotton yarn buyers happy to see wide selection of Indian and Pakistani premium products While synthetic yarns are the rising star in the market, cotton yarns still remain attractive to some buyers. “This fair is good as it has a complete selection of Indian and Pakistani exhibitors,” said Mr David Lei, Vice General Manager of Hebei Spring Textiles Co Ltd in China. “I am here mainly to learn about the new development in Indian and Pakistani cotton yarn products, and I am thrilled to see that their quality is getting much better now,” he continued. Mr Mike Glukhikh from Russia was also amazed by Indian and Pakistani cotton yarn quality. “The product variety at this fair is good, and the product quality from India and Pakistan is improving rapidly, and I believe they will gain more market share in the future,” the Purchasing Manager of Sparta, a Russian garment manufacturer, said. Yarn Expo showcased a wide spectrum of natural and blended yarns including cotton, wool, flax / regenerated flax, and man-made fibres and yarns as well as specialty products including elastic, and fancy and blended yarns. The next edition will be held from 13 – 15 October this year in the National Exhibition and Convention Center (Shanghai). Yarn Expo Spring is organised by Messe Frankfurt (HK) Ltd; the Sub-Council of Textile Industry, CCPIT; China Cotton Textile Association; China Wool Textile Association; China Chemical Fiber Association; China Bast & Leaf Fibres Textiles Association; and China Textile Information Centre. By Lim Chang-hyun. Source: Article

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Smart Korea,Smart Culture,Smart Tourism

Kwang-shik Choe, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST)

SEOUL, KOREA – K- pop and Korean  drama’s  increased  popularity, along

with Psy’s “Gangnam Style” becoming a worldwide viral hit, has fostered greater interest in Korean culture. As opposed to the catchy and stylish K-pop and Korean dramas seen across the world, ordinary Koreans seem unable to afford cultural activities in this highly competitive society. People here work the longest hours in the OECD member nations, and the majority of them have the usual passive leisure activities – watching TV, taking a nap or taking a walk (36.2%) - rather than participating in active cultural arts (7.2%), sport (9.5%) or travelling (4.7%). Without being exposed to active cultural activities, many teenagers are struggling with mental problems such as school violence and game addiction, and employees frequently relieve their stress through binge drinking. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) is now encouraging a more creative cultural environment for the public to improve their quality of life as well as their professional productivity. “One Person, Two Talents” ‘One Person, Two Talents’ is the recent focus of Kwang-shik Choe, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST), encouraging the public to regularly participate in one sport as well as one cultural activity such as music, art, or musicals. “As creativity is the biggest growth engine and measure of competitiveness in the future of a smart society, it is essential for the public to have diverse cultural experiences. The MCST is planning to foster more public sports and music programs as the five-day
work and school week expand, and to encourage more talent donation programs – contributing individual talents to public welfare. Personally, I started to learn Danso, a Korean short bamboo flute, and it provides me with immense refreshment. Now, I am proud of being able to play ‘Arirang’, a Korean folk song,“ the minister said. ‘One Day, Two Nights’ is another slogan the minister has advocated to foster a more productive and creative leisure environment. “The MCST is promoting domestic tourism for the public to travel to various places throughout the country for one day and two nights, and also to boost regional economies. Korea has many beautiful tourist attractions that are not well known, so the MCST has selected ’99
Must-Visit Tourist Attractions’. The list, compiled by local travel experts after a thorough examination of tourist attractions across Korea, will be useful for both Korean and foreign travelers alike.” Smart Tourism: “With the rapid penetration of smart devices – reaching 30 million - and the advanced digital infrastructure, the MCST is stimulating smarter tourism. Tourists can reserve hotels, purchase train and airline tickets in real time via their smart phones, as well as share travel information and experiences with social

Minister, Kwang-shik Choe, visits Baengnyeong Island for one day and two nights.

 networking services in real time. ‘Visit Korea 2.0’ is the representative application through which visitors can conveniently find tourist attractions, restaurants, accommodation, and shopping information. They can also easily locate destinations with mapping services and way-finding services.
Besides, the ‘Korea Smart Tour Guide’application provides audio services and digital contents for the tourists to better enjoy the stories behind Korea’s major historical heritages, as well as national museums,” he said. For foreign tourists, the language barrier which is the biggest obstacle for travels, can be removed with the help of ‘Genietalk’, the Korean-English interpretation application, developed by Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute (ETRI). Providing 270,000 Korean
words and 65,000 English words, it boasts over an 80% successful interpretation rate in a real-life situation. It is expected to add six more languages including Japanese, Chinese, and Spanish by 2018. For a tourist to report a complaint, visitors can call 1330, which is offered in four languages, Korean, English, Japanese and Chinese. Smart Cultural 
Exchange: “The MCST also took an initiative in promoting a global cultural exchange with the advancement of smart technology. As seen from the huge ripple effect of Psy’s “Gangnam Style”, SNS has become an effective channel for the fast and easy delivery of content. We have been running
Korea Culture Centers across the world to exchange diverse cultures through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Flickr. They allow local people to experience the traditions and history of Korea through specialized programs, events, and multiple learning resources. On top of this, Korean cultural arts are promoted and shared in collaboration with Google Art Project, an online
platform through which the public can access high-resolution images of artwork housed in the initiative’s partner museums. Currently, around 5,000 pieces of Korean art are posted on the website.” The advancement of personal smart devices has had an influence on the Korean content industry – games, film, music, and animation – which has steadily grown for the past few years. The amount of content exported increased to USD 4.3 billion in 2011, an increase of 35% from the previous  year. Korean game companies
such as NEXON and NCsoft account for around 60% of the total content exported and ranked 6th in global market share. Keeping pace with the smart trends, they are now focusing on developing games transcending the boundaries of the Internet, mobile, and game consoles. K-pop and Korean
dramas, which used to center around Asian regions, are now expanding into other continents through social media. Psy’s “Gangnam Style”was viewed on YouTube throughout 222 countries. Promoting Korean culture overseas has helped improve the perception of Korean people, as well as the economy. Minister Choe also emphasized the importance of global content exchange. Quality content is created based on cultural diversity and

experiences that serve as momentum to raise the value of the Korean content industry.  In the early 2000s, we used to have an abundance of co-productions of films and dramas with Chinese and Japanese industries, but now it seems a little stagnant. The MCST plans to encourage more global content exchange in the form of joint production and personnel exchanges.
Indeed, personnel exchange of producers and actors have been on the rise recently. It is essential for the government to enable more diverse content to be introduced across the border.Under the vision of ‘Envisioning a greater tomorrow through culture’, the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism is now aiming for enjoyment, harmony, and progress through cultural promotion. “The MCST is aiming to re-energize life as well as the creativity of work by fostering cultural activities and increasing global cultural exchange, along with the help of the increasing number of smart devices,” he said. Visit Korea 2.0, Source: Koreaittimes

Back To Top

Tell-Us

CMI named as a finalist for the PMA Impact Award in packaging

Columbia Marketing International (CMI) has been named as a finalist for the 2014 PMA Impact Awards in Excellence in Packaging for their innovative single serving cherry package.The Produce Marketing Association reported that, 56 companies entered 67 products for consideration. Twenty packaging submissions have been chosen by the Impact Award committee as finalists for 2014. According to Steve Lutz, Vice President of Marketing for CMI, Go-Go Fresh sweet cherries was introduced during the 2014 season with the intent of providing packaging specifically targeting the convenience store channel. “More and more consumers are shopping convenience stores looking for fresh fruit options. The conventional grocery store 2 lb. cherry bags are far too large for convenience stores so fresh cherries were rarely seen in this channel despite the fact that cherries are a high demand and high impulse product. The new CMI Go-Go Fresh single serve bag really opened the convenience store channel for the first time.” The Go-Go Fresh graphics displayed eye-catching retro graphics which appealed to a wide range of consumers. According to Lutz, in addition to being the first single serving cherry bag, it also features messaging that is important to convenience store shoppers.  “Our consumer research showed that the displaying of nutritional information and fibre content are important purchasing factors for many consumers. We used the new packaging to call out these benefits as well as highlight that our cherries are GMO free.” “We look forward to an expanded roll out of the CMI single serving cherry packaging during the 2015 season,” said Lutz.

To view CMI’s Go-Go Fresh cherry video, please click here.

For more information: 

• Steve Lutz , CMI, Tel: +1 509-888-3401., 
• Email: SteveL@cmiapples.com, 

Source: Article

Back To Top

Tell-Us

4 things you should know if you think you have no money for marketing

James is a tomato grower. He often hears the word "marketing", and enjoys reading marketing articles on Freshplaza. "Though," he thinks, "marketing is not for me. It is for big companies only, those that have a lot of money and can afford investing in advertising. I have no budget for that, so – in the end – marketing is not for me" James is wrong. First, he should remember that marketing means more than advertising. Advertising is only one step in the marketing process – a wider process that included other things like studying consumers preference, developing products, packagings and brands, and so on. Besides, James should also know that there are ways other than expensive TV and magazine ads to get people familiar with his products and his brand.  Here's what James – and people and businesses in same conditions – can do if the want to grow their sales and profits but have little resources to invest in marketing activities:

• he can develop a better offer than his competitors' for final consumers: innovative products, new product varieties, better and more attractive packaging, a more inspiring brand. All things that do not demand huge investments but can deliver meaningful results
• he can develop a better offer than his competitors' for trade channels: this means using a trade marketing approach, crafting his offer on his customers' (wholesalers, for example) and the customers of his customers needs (restaurants, for example).
• he can invest his little marketing budget in, in-store activities in the shops that carry his products: these activities (for example, POS materials placements or extra displays) are the ones that can bring faster returns in terms of additional sales
• he can create and develop his online presence: these days, and this will be even more the case in the future, consumers are more and more online. Some companies have been able to build successful brands by being great online, with no investments in traditional advertising at all. Indeed the online world has still costs that are accessible to almost anyone. This way, blogging, content marketing, social media can help James and similar business with getting their products and brand known, potentially all over the world.

The conclusion is that marketing is for everyone – not only for big pocketed companies that can afford expensive advertising campaigns. Every fresh produce company can improve its results with good marketing, even with a very limited budget – but in lack of money, they have to work smarter than the competition. If you are interested in fresh produce marketing, download the free e-book "Introduction to marketing for fresh produce" --- Pisani Produce Marketing is a training & consulting agency for the produce world. It has been founded by Maurizio Pisani, former Chiquita and Fresh Del Monte executive. 

• For more info: Maurizio Pisani
• maurizio@pisaniproducemarketing.com
• www.pisaniproducemarketing.com
• Publication date: 9/22/2014

Source: Article

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Pantaloons associates with ‘Bang Bang’

The lead pair of forthcoming Bollywood release ‘Bang Bang’, Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif took to the ramp to unveil a clothing line by Pantaloons, now a part of Aditya Birla Group, inspired by the film. Dressed in a semi-casual ensembles the pair looked relaxed and in their elements. While Katrnia Kaif looked pretty in a white top paired with ripped denim and a black jacket, Hrithik Roshan flaunted a white T-shirt and blue denim paired with a military green jacket. Besides interacting with the media, they also shook a leg on the ramp. Pantaloons has been shifting its focus to private fashion labels, which it believes can bring in better margins. The retailer recently launched three new private brands exclusively for men, infants and plus size individuals. These brands include Byford, a British country inspired sport lifestyle brand for men, Moda targets plus sized individuals and Chirpie Pie is created exclusively for infants in the age group 3-24 months. Source: Fashion United

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Sophie Choudry At Country Club Press Conference

Sophie Choudry was wearing an Alexander McQueen dress with Louboutin shoes and a Valliyan Ring. Actress, Singer and former VJ Sophie Choudry was spotted today looking beautiful in a grey and black dress at the Country Club Press Conference. Sophie as well as Aarti Chabaria, Gauhar Khan and Daisy Shah will be seen performing at the Country Club across the world on New Year’s Eve. Sophie just recently wooed audiences through her dancing skills on Jhalak Dikhla Jaa and has many popular item numbers to her credit. Source: Article

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Advanced Hair Studio "A Grand Solution For The World Cricketing Icons

Jacques Kallis launches Advanced Hair Studio’s latest technology in Mumbai: Ace South-African cricket player Jacques Kallis launched the Advanced Hair Studio’s newly launched technology in Hair replacement, ‘Elite NSG’ in Mumbai recently. The event was held at Trident Hotel, Nariman Point. Kallis, who is also the brand ambassador for AHS claims to have benefited majorly from this technology. For the bald spots and patches where your scalp has gone smooth and shiny, that’s a sign that the follicles

beneath  that particular area are more or less dead. And for that area unfortunately, as of today there is no treatment invented anywhere in the world where they can revive your dead follicles and naturally grow your hair back. So for this area AHS performs world’s most advanced and sophisticated hair replacement procedure. Many other celebrities and sport stars like Ricky Ponting, Michael Vaughn, Martin Crowe have benefited with the Hair Replacement technology. Virender Sehwag too, has undergone the therapy. (Dr. Arihant Surana): So, it was no  surprise that Sahil Madan, now 28, decided, to do something about his receding hairline. He spent Rs.81,000 for the treatment and says he is satisfied with the result. Customers such as Madan—young, urban, well-heeled and just that little bit vain about how they look—are the reason why newspaper s and magazines are replete with before-after ads for hair clinics that offer anything from a treatment to a complete transplant. “Today, we’re not just dealing with extreme cases of baldness. We are seeing a number of young people coming to us to improve the quality and thickness of their hair, so they can

experiment with different  styles and looks,” says Sanket Shah, chief executive officer at Advanced Hair Studio that has branches in India and the Middle East. The company boasts a clientele that includes Warne (who appears in an ad for it wearing a T-shirt saying “No Hair, No Life”), Sourav Ganguly and Jacques Kallis (surely, there must be a connection between cricket and hair?). Not everyone who wants a transplant is necessarily going bald, says Arihant Surana, who has been in the business of implanting hair

for half a decade. “Earlier transplants were linked to baldness; now (people go in for them because) looks also play an important role,” adds Surana, currently medical director (India) at Alvi Armani International, an American chain of hair transplant clinics that claims to have re-maned some of the biggest names in Bollywood and Hollywood, a member of a royal family, a famous football player, and executives at Fortune 500 companies. Indeed, in recent years, grooming has becoming important, even to men, and a mini-boom for everything from beauty salons to cosmetics to hair weaving and hair transplant centres is the result. “India is passing through a phase where grooming is big business. Looking good is considered very important, and more people are spending money on products that do that, especially men. Over 75% of this market is dominated by men. Younger men, as young as

23-24 years old, are increasingly looking at getting hair transplants  done,” says Gaurav Marya, chairman of Franchise India Holdings Ltd, a company that specializes in franchising, which has clients such as Dr A, ADHI India and DHI India. In 2010, the global hair restoration industry was worth $1.9 billion (around Rs.10,260 crore today) and India contributed 14% of that, according to a 2012 report by Francorp, an arm of Franchise India. The market grew at an average rate of 22% over the past three years and is expected to grow by 37% between 2012 and 2015, it said. Analysts said hair care treatment is much more expensive in the West compared with India. The average cost of transplantation in the US is about $4.5 per follicle against just $1.75 per follicle in India, the Francorp report said. And it no

longer appears to be about a mid-life crisis. From 35-40, five years ago, the average age of his patients has fallen to 25-30, claims Surana. Men looking to get married or promoted form the majority of the patients. It isn’t just men. According to Advanced Hair Studio’s Shah, the hair loss problem that was predominantly a “male” issue now also brings in a fair number of women. “Socially, in a country like India, it is perfectly acceptable for a man to be bald. However, this does not hold true for women. Six years ago, 85% of our clients were men and 15% of our clients were women. Today, that percentage of women walking through our doors with hair-related issues has risen to 40%,” he says. The result is a market that is slowly moving towards being more affordable. Arpit Goel, head of marketing at New Delhi-based Berkowits Hair and Skin Clinic, says that pricing has declined with more companies entering the business and better technology. “It’s not for the super rich any more; the upper-middle class, too, can afford it now,” adds Goel who offers services at Rs.1-1.5 lakh, with a facility of equated monthly instalments thrown in. That demand has encouraged hair clinics to

sprout. Advanced Hair Studio, which is present in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai and Ahmedabad, plans to invest Rs.250 crore over the next three years to expand its footprint to 15 cities. Rich Feel Health and Beauty Pvt. Ltd has 58 outlets across 27 cities today, and plans to ramp that up to 250 outlets over the next two years, with a capital expenditure of Rs.50 lakh per clinic. A treatment would cost anywhere between Rs.49,000 and Rs.1.99 lakh. And the competition has resulted in a flurry of ads by rival companies. “If you’re out of sight, you’re out of mind,” says Apoorva Shah, the person behind Rich Feel Health, referring to the crowded market for such treatments, which includes a multitude of fly-by-night operators. “You need firepower for expansion, and in that sense, the private treaty has worked well for us. We had a topline of Rs.1.5 crore five years ago. Today, we have a topline of Rs.60 crores.” Shah’s reference is to an arrangement with Brand Capital, a firm that is part of the Times Group. In return for a stake in the company, Shah gets advertising and promotion space in publications run by the group and also claims to author a column on (what else) hair for the group. The Times Group, which publishes The Times of India and The Economic Times, competes with HT Media Ltd, publisher of theHindustan Times and Mint. The preferred method of advertising is the before-after one, says Marya, with most companies preferring to use celebrities. “They are paid well, so they don’t mind appearing in the ads,” he adds. Then, it’s not as if they can hide the transformation in their appearance. Source: Article1, Article2, Open Images In New Tab Or Window To Find Its Source Of Sharing.

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Smartphone Makers Gear up again for New Product Marketing

BY Yeoun Je-Hyun , SEOUL, KOREA - A group of smartphone makers, including Pantech, Sony, and LG Electronics, are gearing up again to promote new product marketing. After holding their breath due to the business suspension of major telecom operators and the sinking of the Sewol ferry, major smartphone makers are taking steps to keep Samsung Electronics from being the sole lead in the smartphone market. Pantech and Sony will open fire first. Each will release its new strategic smartphone model—Vega Iron 2 and Xperia Z2—on May 2. Vega Iron 2 features a metallic design. Compared to its predecessor model which has a 5-inch screen, it has a bigger screen (5.3 inches) and a more powerful AP (SnapDragon 801). Other specs include a 3-GB RAM and a 3,140-mAh battery, emulating those of Galaxy S5. Sony is set to knock on the door of the Korean market again with its brand-new Xperia Z2 which it showed off first at the CES 2014 in January 2014. Armed with an ultra-thin design and water and vibration-proof function, the Xperia Z2 uses aluminum and reinforced glass materials. With an 8.2-mm thickness, it is mounted with IP58-class water proof function. In other words, it can be used in water depth of 1.5 meters for 30 minutes. Source: Korea-Times

Back To Top

Tell-Us

Restaurant marketers continue to underspend in the digital space

By Noah Glass, founder and CEO of OLO: Every year at the Wall Street Journal’s "All Things Digital" Conference, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers' Mary Meeker presents her compelling "Internet Trends" slideshow, demonstrating that consumers have become even more digital than they were the year before. My favorite slide – one that Meeker refreshes year after year – is a chart that examines "Consumer Media Consumption by Media Channel" as compared to "Advertiser Spending by Media Channel." Meeker uses eMarketer data to examine five distinct channels: Print, radio, TV, Internet and mobile. And every year, without fail, the now famous chart clearly demonstrates that consumers are spending more and more of their media consumption time with Internet and mobile, the digital/interactive channels, leaving in the dust print, radio and TV, the traditional/non-interactive channels. Despite the fact that Meeker was recently named "Queen of the 'Net" by Forbesmagazine ("Mary Meeker Talks Twitter, Waze, Venture Capital And More," July 19, 2012) and despite the fact that consumer media consumption is rapidly going digital, corporate marketers are still spending the lion’s share of their advertising budgets on the traditional channels. Meeker’s 2012 report highlights that the main culprit is print. Marketers dump 25 percent of their advertising budget in the print channel, despite consumers spending only 7 percent of their media consumption time there. At the same time, marketers underspend dramatically in the Internet and mobile categories. This year, consumers are spending 10 percent of their media consumption time with mobile, but mobile receives only 1 percent of advertising spend. You read that right; print gets less media consumption time than mobile and marketers still favor print 25 to 1 over mobile. Beyond the fact that customers are spending their media consumption time with Internet and mobile, the two channels have distinct advantages over the traditional advertising channels. Internet and mobile advertising allow marketers to experiment with small test campaigns and see results before launching high dollar advertising campaigns. The interactive nature of Internet and mobile means that marketers can derive insights from email open rates, click-thru-rates, offer redemptions, website visit scoring and e-commerce tracking. The savvy marketer can use Internet and mobile campaigns to do powerful "A/B testing" through online platforms like Optimizely, where two versions of the same message can be tested against one another in a systematic fashion that accurately and quickly predicts which message will be more effective at scale. Internet and mobile advertising can ultimately demonstrate the return-on-investment (ROI) of each advertising campaign by allowing brands to measure their cost to drive an incremental transaction or, better yet, to win an incremental customer. By contrast, it is very difficult to run small test campaigns for print, radio and TV campaigns, measure different messages in a true apples-to-apples comparison, or determine the impact of campaigns run through these channels. In addition to campaign measurement, Internet and mobile have provided marketers with new tools for customer relationship management (CRM): the ability to identify new customers from existing customers and generate loyal purchasing behavior and brand advocacy from the existing customer base. In fact, digital customer engagement tools in our industry, like Fishbowl, OLO,Paytronix and Zipscene, are coming together to provide restaurant marketers with a full 360-degree view of the customer through powerful reporting dashboards that show rich customer profiles based on how the same customer engages with email marketing and offers, mobile ordering and online ordering purchases, loyalty and gift card transactions, website clicks, social statistics and demographic information. The data generated from these new digital customer engagement tools combine to provide restaurant marketers with a far greater knowledge of their top customers than has ever been possible – and at a fraction of the cost of traditional market research. Restaurant marketers often lament the fact that they are the first to be blamed for declining same-store sales and the last to be recognized when same-store sales are on the upswing. Here too, the measurability of digital advertising is the marketer’s best friend. Breaking down the ultimate goal of driving same store sales into its constituent parts means recognizing that the key performance indicators (KPIs) for restaurant marketers are to drive (1) new customers visiting their restaurant for the first time, (2) more frequent visits/orders from existing customers and (3) larger average order sizes. Shifting to measurable digital/interactive advertising means that marketers can tie their advertising campaigns to improved results in these areas and truly demonstrate causation, not just correlation. No restaurant CEO would question a CMO who can demonstrate the impact of advertising campaigns by quantifying double-digit increases in new customers, visit frequency and average ticket. If interactive/digital advertising is more efficient, powerful and measurable than traditional/non-interactive, how can we explain the prevailing bias toward print? Perhaps it is just hard to teach old dogs new tricks. Nevertheless, now is the time for every restaurant CMO to embrace the digital revolution, retool and prove his/her ability to drive better sales results. Noah Glass is the founder & CEO of mobile and online ordering provider OLO. Highlighting OLO's innovation, Glass has been featured on Good Morning America, The Wall Street Journal, ABC World News and The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch. Source: QSRweb

Back To Top

Tell-Us