DEBATE: Should toy advertising avoid gender stereotypes this Christmas? December 11, 2017 Should toy advertising avoid gender stereotypes this Christmas? Christi Tronetti, marketing director at creative transformation agency isobel, says YES. “Sparkle”, “magic”, “glitter”, “princess” and “beautiful” are still some of the most common words in girls’ advertising. For boys, the list includes “adventure”, “battle”, “power” and “awesome”. The way the ad industry communicates with children is [...]
HMV overtakes Amazon in fight for dwindling DVD and Blu-ray sales October 30, 2017 The decline of DVDs and Blu-rays has allowed HMV to overtake Amazon to be the biggest seller of physical films in the country. HMV has fared well with new releases such as Beauty and the Beast and Logan to take its market share of physical video sales up six points to 22.5 per cent. Amazon’s [...]
Nest Protect review: A wantonly profligate but eminently stylish way to protect against smoke and fumes November 16, 2017 It strikes to the core of everything that’s wrong with western civilization that a smoke alarm, perhaps the most baldly practical device ever invented, something whose sole purpose is to stop you from choking to death on sooty black clouds while you lie in your bed at night, can become a coveted piece of consumer [...]
SpaceX to boldly go where no private company has gone before: The Moon February 27, 2017 Serial entrepreneur Elon Musk will fly two people around the moon next year, boldly going where no private company has gone before. In an announcement late last night Musk said two unnamed private citizens had approached his company, SpaceX, and had paid a “significant deposit” to secure the mission. The announcement could start a new [...]
The warning lights for the next economic crisis are starting to flash January 25, 2018 The global economic zeitgeist has shifted. A decade on from the financial crisis, the world economy can at last see over the hill and make out the features of the “Promised Land” called normalisation. There is a palpable sense that the world economy has crossed three important lines. First, that it is finally achieving synchronised [...]
America’s record bull market: five charts that tell the story August 24, 2018 The US stock market is on its longest bull-run in history. It began on 9 March 2009 and, so far, has lasted nine years, five months and 13 days. As of today, it beats the great equities performance of the 1990s. A bull market is broadly defined as one that rises over time without falling [...]
Apple, Amazon and Alphabet in race to $1 trillion market cap as tech titans post massive sales numbers February 1, 2018 The race to become the first $1 trillion (£701bn) tech giant encountered fresh twists and turns last night as Apple, Alphabet and Amazon revealed their latest results. Apple, the world’s largest firm by market capitalisation, led the way as the trio posted a combined $125bn of sales. It beat revenue and earnings expectations but unit [...]
Train fares are going up by an average of 3.4 per cent in January 2018 December 5, 2017 UK train fares are set to rise by an average of 3.4 per cent next year, above the rate of inflation, the rail industry has revealed. From 2 January 2018, all national rail fares will rise, including both regulated fares, like season tickets, and unregulated fares, including off-peak tickets. The Rail Delivery Group said the [...]
How to buy a diamond December 13, 2017 Buying a diamond is always exciting, whether it's for an engagement ring, a pair of cufflinks or a watch there is so much to consider. Whether you know your pave from your facets, our diamond expert Roland Noser tells all you need to know about investing in the world’s toughest stone. The infamous four C’s [...]
This Aim-listed x-ray firm is set to raise £21m January 25, 2017 Aim-listed radiation detection tech firm Kromek has raised £21m through a conditional firm placing and open offer. The firm placing of 100m shares at 20p apiece was over-subscribed with new and existing institutional investors in the company taking part. At the time of writing, Kromek's share price rose by nearly seven per cent. Kromek provides digital colour x-ray [...]