Screen-pull, Flight radar app 0700, Monday 30th June 2014
Hit the 'airlines' tag below for other reasons to fly...
Monday, 30 June 2014
Saturday, 28 June 2014
Everyone wants a bite of the Apple pie...
Ireland has announced a consultation process with business and other interested parties, as it prepares to tweak its tax regime for a post-global-reform corporation tax world.
Apple, no doubt, is among a wide number of multinationals with operations in the Republic that are also considering their options for the most likely post-reform, and post-inquiry, scenarios.
However, to quote David McWilliams, the global ground has shifted and countries such as the US will not tolerate the wholesale looting of its corporate tax base and the countries that facilitate this behaviour.
Watch this space for bigger tweaks...
Friday, 27 June 2014
Shopping for exercise – how to burn up to 800 calories per trip…
A new article in Femail First and Promotionalcodes.org.uk describes 10 instore exercises with appropriate calorie counts, that will either revolutionise assumptions about shopping behaviour, or get you certified…
These include:
- Squats instead of bending to access the bottom shelf
- Trolley-lunging to express aisle-rage at giggling onlookers
- Arm-curls with tins to escalate the potential engagement
- Leg raises to demonstrate ‘if only’ world cup moves, or more aisle-rage
- Side-lunges into the chiller-cabinet to cool down and avoid retaliatory moves
In fact, the entire repertoire of gym-moves within the price of an enhanced weekly shop…
Alternatively, why not let your fingers do the walking, online…?
These include:
- Squats instead of bending to access the bottom shelf
- Trolley-lunging to express aisle-rage at giggling onlookers
- Arm-curls with tins to escalate the potential engagement
- Leg raises to demonstrate ‘if only’ world cup moves, or more aisle-rage
- Side-lunges into the chiller-cabinet to cool down and avoid retaliatory moves
In fact, the entire repertoire of gym-moves within the price of an enhanced weekly shop…
Alternatively, why not let your fingers do the walking, online…?
I forgot about Price-comparison apps.....!
Andy Murray's Scottish restaurant has been criticised for selling alcohol at up to six times its retail value.
Thursday, 26 June 2014
Walgreens-Boots, where next, when?
Walgreen Co, the largest U.S. drugstore operator, withdrew its profit and revenue forecasts for 2016 on Tuesday, saying it had yet to work out several aspects of its planned acquisition of European drug retailer Alliance Boots Holdings Ltd.
Walgreens, which bought 45% of Alliance Boots in 2012, and has an option to buy all of the Switzerland-based company in 2015, said it would update investors about the proposed purchase of the rest of the Europe's largest pharmacy chain owner and issue a new forecast by late July or early August. Combined synergies continue to generate savings albeit slightly lower than forecast, hence the withdrawal of the 2016 forecasts.
The real issue is the probability that Walgreens will respond to pressure from some shareholders to do a so-called "tax inversion" deal with Alliance Boots that would shift Illinois-based Walgreen's tax domicile overseas and reduce its tax bill. Their US tax rate is 36% and this would reduce to 21% if they transferred to Switzerland.
A possibility has to be consideration of availing of Ireland's tax rate of 12.5%.
However, to quote David McWilliams, the global ground has shifted and countries such as the US will not tolerate the wholesale looting of its corporate tax base and the countries that facilitate this behaviour.
This could mean that globally harmonized tax rates are on the way, but may take several years to implement.
Meanwhile, companies in Walgreens' position may choose to make a change sooner, rather than later.
For this reason, suppliers might usefully anticipate the possibility of Walgreens completing their acquisition of Boots earlier than the 2015 deadline...
Time for NAMs to complete some what-ifs on a 2014 move, and act accordingly?
Walgreens, which bought 45% of Alliance Boots in 2012, and has an option to buy all of the Switzerland-based company in 2015, said it would update investors about the proposed purchase of the rest of the Europe's largest pharmacy chain owner and issue a new forecast by late July or early August. Combined synergies continue to generate savings albeit slightly lower than forecast, hence the withdrawal of the 2016 forecasts.
The real issue is the probability that Walgreens will respond to pressure from some shareholders to do a so-called "tax inversion" deal with Alliance Boots that would shift Illinois-based Walgreen's tax domicile overseas and reduce its tax bill. Their US tax rate is 36% and this would reduce to 21% if they transferred to Switzerland.
A possibility has to be consideration of availing of Ireland's tax rate of 12.5%.
However, to quote David McWilliams, the global ground has shifted and countries such as the US will not tolerate the wholesale looting of its corporate tax base and the countries that facilitate this behaviour.
This could mean that globally harmonized tax rates are on the way, but may take several years to implement.
Meanwhile, companies in Walgreens' position may choose to make a change sooner, rather than later.
For this reason, suppliers might usefully anticipate the possibility of Walgreens completing their acquisition of Boots earlier than the 2015 deadline...
Time for NAMs to complete some what-ifs on a 2014 move, and act accordingly?
Wednesday, 25 June 2014
Deductions - the last retail frontier?
Given that margins, cost & selling prices, credit periods and trade investment have hopefully been pushed to their limits, Deductions remain as the final route to retail profitability enhancement.
With over 70% of deductions representing pricing and promotion issues and resulting deductions caused by misunderstanding, misinterpretation and time lags in communicating trade deals, it is vital that suppliers avoid the inevitability of settlements in favour of the customer by reducing process "disconnects," which cause preventable deductions i.e. supplier doing things one way, and customer another…
Deductions have to remain a supplier-driven issue.
Whilst future legislation may focus on unauthorised deductions, suppliers that take collaborative steps with the retailer to reduce preventable deductions can have a significant impact on their bottom line:
- Suppose a supplier has £3m in preventable deductions and a 5% net margin
- Preventing £1m in deductions because of internal changes and improved processing of retail requirements will cause any saving to flow to the bottom line
- A 5% margin means £1m saving is equivalent to £20m in incremental sales
In other words, by identifying and agreeing to compatible policies and processes, supplier and customer can avoid all this non-productive paperwork, and produce increased profits for both.
Alternatively, why not wait until deductions reach US levels of 7% of your sales before elevating deductions-management to the No.1 agenda position it deserves...?
NB. Well worth checking through the full GCA survey for additional GSCOP insight
A hard lesson in CV precision at Myer Au: a tweak too far?
Apparently the retailer has sacked its newly appointed general manager of strategy and business development on his first day because of alleged discrepancies on his CV.
The claims appear to have included spells as managing director and vice-president of Asia Pacific for Zara, and key roles at Tesco China, Walmart and Homeworld...more on NamNews
In a world of total transparency, where even a little ‘month-slippage’ on a Linkedin profile can be validated, it is preferable for both parties to get CV details right at the point of job-application, and thereby avoid the job-holder nightmare where a performance-fault triggers the wisdom of corporate hindsight…
The claims appear to have included spells as managing director and vice-president of Asia Pacific for Zara, and key roles at Tesco China, Walmart and Homeworld...more on NamNews
In a world of total transparency, where even a little ‘month-slippage’ on a Linkedin profile can be validated, it is preferable for both parties to get CV details right at the point of job-application, and thereby avoid the job-holder nightmare where a performance-fault triggers the wisdom of corporate hindsight…
Teen usage of 'social media' just in...
New research published in The Atlantic may cause you to challenge assumptions on what defines social media and its usage...
Worth drilling down for specific insights, but thoughts to ponder:
- For young people, Facebook is the newspaper, and websites are the authors
- Mobile attention is flowing to apps and away from homepages
- Key challenge for digital publishers is making their content sharable in competition with other sites' content
- Content is king, but distribution is the kingdom.....
Derek Thompson, The Atlantic
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