Online Sales Out Do The High Street
March 29, 2009
Online sales continue to boom, while high street stores continue to struggle with fewer sales. According to a recent survey of top 10 UK favourite retailers, Amazon came second and Ebay also made it to number ten, only 3 years ago Amazon was in 21st position.
As more and more people shop online, internet retailers are becoming more popular than many long established high street shops.
In the midst of the recession shoppers are finding it easier to price compare online, from the comfort of their own home, to ensure they get the bargain they’re looking for. Plus online retailers generally have far lower overhead costs and so are able to remain more liquid while others are having cash flow troubles. Lower costs are keeping internet sellers more competitive where everyone is more price sensitive than ever.
There are also promotional vouchers and online discount codes offered on a variety of products and services including fashion, gadgets, books, CDs, DVDs, hotels, travel and food. The offers range from money-off to free delivery and customers are taking advantage of online bargains compared to in-store promotions.
Struggling high street stores should look to improve and increase their online offering to keep up with the game.
Serving Police Have Convictions Too!
March 11, 2009
According to reports out this week over 1000 police officers in service have a criminal record. These figures have been exposed following a request by the Liberal Democrats under the freedom of information act.
The report has said that there were a range of offences; 93 for dishonesty, 59 for assault and 3 for burglary, plus 210 further officers have either resigned or been dismissed since 2004 due to convictions.
The request by the Lib Dem’s has led them to advise police chiefs to “get tough on bad apples”. The figures come from statistics from 41 out of 52 forces.
Chris Huhne, spokesperson for Lib Dem home affairs told the Sun:
“I can’t see how an officer convicted of dishonesty can perform duties effectively. Any prosecutor would be reluctant to call them as a witness for fear of being taken apart by the defence.”
According to The Association of Police Officer officers that had committed crimes would not automatically lose their job.
Police Chief Constable, Peter Fahy, from Greater Manchester Police said:
“Where an officer has committed misconduct, a range of disciplinary actions can be taken including a reprimand, fine and reduction in rank or dismissal. Each case is judged on its merits.”
It does seem to me, very much like one rule for one and another for everyone else. This is very hypocritical and should be sorted out. I’m with the Lib Dem’s on this one!
Workers Doing Unpaid Overtime In Britain On The Up!
February 27, 2009
According to reports this week UK workers are putting in on average 7 hours unpaid overtime for their employers each week. With the onset of the recession some workers are putting in many more than this.
The TUC has released survey results done on UK workforce showing that employees in finance, public service and research and development are working far more hours for no extra pay.
On the flip side, overtime hours had dropped for estate agents, insurance and pensions as there was not enough work to go around.
Brendan Barber, TUC General Secretary said:
“The recession is bringing new pressure for people to work unpaid overtime. Workers in some industries are racking up the hours to complete the job quicker, but elsewhere work is drying up and workers do not have enough work to fill normal hours, let alone overtime”.
According to the TUC British employees work more hours than the rest of Western Europe.
I’m proud to be British, but sometimes I think it would be better to live elsewhere!
Komodo Dragon Attack
February 26, 2009
An Indonesian Park Ranger was rushed into hospital after being attacked by a Komodo Dragon. According to sources the man needed more than 30 stitches to his hand and foot.
The 46 year old man was at his desk, sat in his hut when the giant reptile climbed in to join him. The Komodo Dragon can only be found on three islands in the world and Rinca is one of them. The attacked man, Main, wrestled with the Dragon until it let go. Main then climbed out of his window, as people rushed to his aid and then him to hospital. They then used sticks to get the dragon out of the hut.
Main said:
“I’m lucky I survived, nothing like this has ever happened to me… in 25 years on the job. I’ve never been attacked.”
Attacks by Komodo Dragons are very rare, with only one death in 35 years.
Too Much Time On Facebook
February 19, 2009
The psychologist Dr Aric Sigman has said that we all need to get off Facebook and such social networking websites and get a life. According to Sigman, the amount of time we spend with each other has dropped and this new culture is affecting our health.
Sigman reckons that the use of these sites could affect the way our immune system, genes and bodily functions work. Ultimately leading to a detrimental effect of our mental health.
Sigman said:
“Social networking is the internet’s biggest growth area, particular among young children. A quarter of British children have a laptop or computer in their room by the age of five and they have their own social networking sites, like the BBC’s myCBBC. It’s causing huge changes.”
I think that it is fair to say that we all spend too much time on social networking sites. Let’s all have some quality time with our friends and loved ones and step away from the laptop!
Industry Trends
February 18, 2009
As the global economy shifts and mass production is moved to newly industrialised countries in the Far East. Production in the UK has had to change, becoming more bespoke. This is enabled by modern, computerised machinery and equipment that allows smaller batches, often as one off’s.
For this reason the marketing channels in the UK are pushing personalised purchasing, predominantly in the form of gifts. Once on a website, it is only a matter of clicks to product personalised canvas prints, mugs and photo books all totally unique to you. Plus, now due to improved production methods the prices are very reasonable for your one off gift or art for your home.
Often when entering someone’s home there are canvas prints of their family or pets. On Valentine’s Day a personalised gift made with an online photo site, makes the perfect present special.
I like photo books, they are so much better than albums, as there is so much more functionality to play with. When you get back from an event or holiday, it is so much easier to upload your photos onto the computer and download them into a photo book, designed exactly as you want. Plus it means that you don’t have lots of loose photos lying around, but do have evidence of your good time for friends to peruse over.
Worst Baby Shower Ever
February 18, 2009
Generally, the worst that can happen at a baby shower is that you received duplicate gifts, have to indulge in boring games and over eat rich foods. Last week however, the baby shower events to unfold were totally out of the norm, with people being charged for murder, other charges flying around, far too dramatic for a run of the mill baby shower.
A man turned up at the baby shower party in Mississauga looking to collect a debt; instead he was given a deadly stab wound by none other than the 7 month pregnant guest of honour. Only moments earlier the mother to be was slicing up bananas for her guests’ fruit tray.
Jazmine Besito organised the events said:
“I saw everything and it wasn’t very pretty, a baby shower gone wrong, totally wrong.”
According to Besito, Jay Kumar Atha burst into the expecting parents’ home and demanded repayment. None of the guests knew what the money was for however, Atha threatened he would take the TV and computer if they did not pay up.
Besito then said:
“He was disrupting everything and told him to come back when the baby shower was done, and he just wouldn’t leave”
According to guests when he started grabbing at the computer the pregnant woman went at him with the knife stabbing his chest once.
The pregnant Ms. Lanthier has been charged with second degree murder and her common law husband Mr. Malik with being an accessory after the fact.
According to local police the debt was related to money owed to Atha for drugs.
CSA: Incompetent and Corrupt
February 13, 2009
A colleague of mine is the muse for my Blog today. I am quite sure he has the worst luck in the world and quite frankly likes to tell us all about it. Luckily for us, his misfortune is actually quite laughable!
We know when he opens his pay check every week because of the torrent of abuse that streams out of his mouth! Any we all know what the abuse is about, he literally gets deducted such a large proportion of his salary its ridiculous.
He pays £170 PER WEEK to the CSA (which is more than the average UK person earns), has no rights and doesn’t get to see his children. How is this fair? When my parents divorced, though they didn’t like each other for a while, they didn’t punish me by denying me access to one of my parents.
Anyway, the CSA don’t know how much they are taking from him and have taken too much. Two months ago he first requested a statement of payments and tried to find out what he supposedly had paid and owes. Then a month ago he rang to chase the statement again, which still hadn’t arrived. They said that they had sent it to him and his employers, neither of which had received it! Then yesterday he received something from the CSA and to his surprise it was not the statement he in fact was waiting on. My colleague had received someone else’s back details. If in the wrong hands they could have done a lot of financial damage, if the poor guy had any money left after the CSA finished with him!
The CSA are effectively a government run debt recovery agency, unregulated and above the law. Not only this they are a completely inept, incompetent and corrupt.
On another note, I really feel for fathers for justice. Why are women given all the power? I hate those women who use their children to get back at their ex’s. I think that they whole system is flawed and needs to be looked at again.
Our culture has evolved a lot over the last 15 years and family law needs to keep up with that. Nowadays mothers work as much as men and often men have leading roles within their children’s lives, often as house husbands. Men need to be recognised as a necessary factor in the family and a childs life.
Something needs to be done with the CSA!
These Boots Are Made For Walking
February 9, 2009
I went shopping at the weekend and ventured into Primark. It’s crazy in there, bargain shoppers everywhere!
I saw a pair of motorcycle boots, they were very cool. I didn’t buy them as I was weary of me looking like too much of a greebo/emo/goth. I think I would have gotten away with it though; they were patent and shiny, so all in all quite girly. Though, the chances are that I wouldn’t look all that feminine in them!
These days I am too attached to my Ugg boots for anything else. I used to have an underlying hatred for all women who wore Uggs. It was something about them being pretentious and WAG like. In my eyes anyone who wore them was a WAG wanna be and I just didn’t want to be associated with that.
Now I have joined the dark side and own a pair of Uggs. You will never find me out of them! They are so comfortable; like little gloves of heavenliness wrapped around my feet.
Maybe people will find me pretentious now, but honestly I don’t care. Uggs are the most comfortable footwear in the whole wide world and I am happy that I own some. Perhaps when I find myself driving a Range Rover that I didn’t buy myself, I will have really crossed the line.
For now I’m happy to be me, just me in my Uggs.
Snow Hits Britain
February 2, 2009
Britain has come to a virtual standstill after heavy snow fall. Bus, train and flight services have been cancelled or delayed, with many travelers becoming stranded.
The majority of the UK is blanketed in snow, with the heaviest fall in many years. The Met Offices has issued a severe weather warning for the South and South East, with driving conditions said to be treacherous.
Of all London airports only one runway at Gatwick is still open resulting in long delays.
The Transport for London website said:
“All London buses have been withdrawn from service due to adverse weather and dangerous road conditions.”
The AA has advised people to keep warm clothes in the car adding:
People often treat their car as an overcoat. But when you break down you are suddenly vulnerable to the weather. If you break down on a motorway, the safety advice is to get out of the car and wait behind the barrier. Unless you have extra clothes you really are flirting with hypothermia.”
Everyone must be very careful when travelling anywhere in the snowy weather. I for one am hoping to be sent home from work as the weather will get so bad. I just hope I get snowed in at home and not work. I think getting snowed in at home is just what everyone needs!
It is funny that some countries deal with treacherous weather conditions all the time. When England gets hit the whole country comes to a standstill. I think we English in particular are real drama queens!