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Representative image Small Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) companies that operate at regional levels are struggling in the face of unprecedented inflation across categories. Several of these companies have witnessed a slump in sales, according to data from Kantar, the data analytics and brand consulting firm, despite the overall categories posting growth. For instance, Ponvandu and Oorvashi, noted South Indian detergent bar brands, lost 17 percent and 8 percent of their sales by volume, respectively, in February, March and April compared to the same period last year, shows data from Kantar. The overall detergent bar category, however, grew 2.3 percent in the period, according to Kantar. Other local brands are in a similar situation. (As shown below) Close Small brands ideally are expected to gain out of inflation, which typically prompts consumer to switch to smaller and cheaper versions when confronted with price hikes in products of daily use. The … [Read more...] about Small FMCG companies struggle despite consumers switching to cheaper products

French President Emmanuel Macron was overheard at the G7 summit in Germany Monday afternoon telling President Joe Biden that neither the United Arab Emirates nor Saudi Arabia have much room to increase oil production capacity, according to Reuters. Macron’s comment comes as a major focus of the ongoing summit is to find ways to ease the energy strain on Europe resulting from the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Both men would like to find ways to replace the roughly two million barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil and additional two million bpd of refined products that Europe had been importing from Russia that is now subject to sanctions, Reuters reported. Biden has been trying to get the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) to increase oil supply for months, and plans to visit Saudi Arabia in July at least in part to force the issue. But, according to energy trader and market analyst Rebecca Babin, “Saudi Arabia and the UAE are bumping up against their … [Read more...] about Macron Caught Breaking Some Bad News To Biden On G7 Sidelines

For the past two years, the United Nations has ranked Finland as the world's happiest country. The U.S. has never scored in the top 10 since the index was launched in 2011, and in 2019 it plummeted to 19th. While Finland seems perennially chirpy, the U.S. is seeing growing rates of depression, drug addiction, and suicide . Here are six reasons that residents of Finland (7.1 percent of whom are immigrants, BTW) are so happy when compared with their American counterparts: 1. Finns pay higher taxes but see more results. According to the conservative think tank the Brookings Institute, Finland collects 44 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) in taxes versus the 26 percent of GDP that the U.S. collected in 2015. (For comparison, Denmark collects 46 percent and Mexico 17 percent.) So taxes are relatively high in Finland, which you'd think would tend to reduce overall happiness. However, higher taxes don't seem to bother the Finns, for two reasons: … [Read more...] about Why Finland Is So Happy (and the U.S. Is So Depressed)

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Being an appreciative leader is not about giving compliments, gift cards or trophies. It’s not about recognition, rewards, kudos or “atta boys.” While these are certainly actions that can boost morale and egos, they are superficial. They’re the easy way out. Being an appreciative leader requires an uncommon kind of thoughtfulness. It requires entering another’s world, experiencing it and then letting that person know what you’ve seen. It’s about sharing the difference that a person’s unique contribution has had on you. Appreciation has a measurable impact on health and well-being Appreciation is not just warm and fuzzy; it has measurable health benefits, including reducing stress and rewiring the brain. When you express appreciation and receive the same, your brain releases dopamine and serotonin, the two crucial neurotransmitters responsible for your emotions. They enhance your mood immediately, making you happy from … [Read more...] about This Leadership Trait Goes A Long Way

Now is the time to start thinking about how to move your business forward. The process starts by forgetting about the past, because no one has ever succeeded in the past. However great "the good old days" were, they're gone forever and not coming back. As you start to reimagine your business -- not rebuild or restore it -- the hardest single issue is going to be people. Maybe that's always the case. And the hardest questions and most difficult choices are going to be about some of the most senior people in your business, those who've been there from the start. As I always like to remind my peers, gray hair is a sign of age, not necessarily of wisdom. But to be clear, this isn't about anyone's age as much as it's all about their energy, skill sets, and expected contributions to the new order. I realize it's a touchy conversation, but as someone who's personally been in the trenches for more than 55 years, I can tell you that it's never been a more critical one to have. … [Read more...] about Who’s Going to Make the Cut?

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Arianna Huffington is no stranger to wanting to make the world a better place. Her empathic reputation is renown and world-class. She continually demonstrates what it means to be a leader who puts humanity first no matter the circumstances. Huffington has been busy lately developing two unique partnerships with organizations to further her humanity-first ambition. First, Huffington's organization, Thrive Global , a behavior change technology company, recently partnered with SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) and launched a mental health and wellness pledge. Huffington divulged that in concert with Johnny C. Taylor, SHRM CEO, the two of them felt very concerned that employee mental health and wellbeing services could be de-prioritized as a result of worsening economic conditions and a challenging business environment. As a result, both Thrive and SHRM partnered to institute an organizational pledge for … [Read more...] about Arianna Huffington: Putting Empathy Into Action Yet Again

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin When it comes to sustainability and fashion, particularly the fast variety, it would be an understatement to say the industry has a few problems. First and foremost, fast fashion is the third biggest polluter globally , with textile production contributing more to climate change than international aviation and shipping combined . But there’s also the more shadowy and therefore dangerous misperception that the spending behemoth of Gen Z has been molded in a wholly Thunbergian image; despite a considerably raised bar of eco-intentions the infamous specter of the values-actions gap (the disparity between what people say they value/will do vs. what happens when it comes to the crunch) reveals a very different story. Zalando’s Reality Check Fuels Partnership Affirming this, in April this year German multinational e-commerce giant Zalando (45m active consumers, 23 markets and 4500 brands including 300 designer labels) … [Read more...] about Zalando Joins Forces With Save Your Wardrobe To Chase Net Positive Fashion Ambition

- A + A WASHINGTON (June 27): New orders for US-made capital goods and shipments increased solidly in May, pointing to sustained strength in business spending on equipment in the second quarter, but rising interest rates and tighter financial conditions could slow momentum. The nearly broad rise in orders reported by the Commerce Department on Monday occurred despite deteriorating business and consumer sentiment, as well as heightened fears of a recession. The gains partly reflected higher prices. The Federal Reserve is aggressively tightening monetary policy to quell inflation. "There's some inflation behind the increase in orders, but, nevertheless, there are a lot of dollars flowing through the economy right now," said Christopher Rupkey, chief economist at FWDBONDS in New York. "Businesses would not order new equipment if they thought consumers and other companies were looking to pull back their purchases." Orders for non-defense capital goods excluding … [Read more...] about US manufacturing shows resilience despite rising interest rates

Beau Wangtrakuldee, Ph.D., is a scientist, entrepreneur, and founder of AmorSui, a modern protective apparel company redesigning personal protective equipment (PPE) to empower women with greater function and protection in lab and medical settings. She spoke to Doreen Lorenzo for Designing Women, a series of interviews with brilliant women in the design industry. advertisement advertisement Doreen Lorenzo: Have you always had an interest in design? Beau Wangtrakuldee: The way I think about it, science and design are really closely related. You design to solve a problem. You conduct a science experiment to solve a problem. I’m a former Ph.D. scientist, so I’d work in the lab on drug discovery, antibacterial drugs, and material science. It’s all about problem-solving, creating something that can actually resolve an issue or a challenge. What inspired you to launch AmorSui? advertisement One day when I was conducting an … [Read more...] about Yes, PPE can be reusable. AmorSui is making sure of it

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Our global society is heavily dependent on space-based technologies. Most of us are aware that space positioning, weather and communications systems are critical to our transportation activities. I’m writing this article on a plane that is using GPS to route my flight safely around severe weather patterns that have been identified by satellites. If I finish this article inflight, I’ll upload it for publication at Forbes via a geosynchronous communications satellite. Still, many people would be surprised to learn that modern factories also depend on satellites . Manufacturing automation systems synchronize the operations of multiple robots on their production lines using the timing signals provided by GPS satellites . In fact, GPS is really a collection of 24 (plus spares) orbiting atomic clocks, each continually broadcasting time data. Your Uber is guided by tiny differences in the time signal emanating from four or more … [Read more...] about Cyber Threats Beyond Earth: Securing In-Space Manufacturing