Industry News

AAP June 29, 2012 THE finalists from The Voice will release debut albums on the same day to give the three a fighting chance of turning their popularity into record sales. Full offerings from Darren Percival, Rachael Leahcar and Sarah De Bono will be available on July 13 in a carefully managed strategy by their record company Universal. Consisting of 10 tracks, each album will feature songs performed on The Voice, the artist’s debut single and a handful of new covers. Percival’s album Happy Home has his version of Stevie Wonder’s For Once In My Life and Paul Young’s Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home). Fans of Leahcar will be able to relive the singer’s stunning rendition of La Vie En Rose by Edith Piaf and Over The Rainbow by Judy Garland on her release Shooting Star. De Bono has covered Duffy’s Warwick Avenue and Usher’s Burn on…

Barry Urquhart, Marketing Focus AN EPIPHANY During June, I experienced a rare epiphany when I addressed a national conference for United Equipment and facilitated a related workshop for the participants. The briefing was from Managing Director Peter Court who had developed the conference theme “Great Expectations”. What a revelation. Research into the topic and perspective revealed previously unrecognised possibilities for enhanced relationships and client satisfaction. Read the Full Article

Blair Speedy June 05, 2012 The Australian The Athlete’s Foot website makes recommendations, although it also urges shoppers to come into a store for a personalised fitting SHOE franchise The Athlete’s Foot is venturing into online retailing, the arena most responsible for poaching its sales. Ivan Hammerschlag, chairman of franchisor RCG Corporation, said the company had no choice but to try tackling its internet competitors head-on, despite a cost disadvantage that meant it would be unable to match them on price. “The world’s changed. Customers want to shop on the net and if you don’t let them do it they’ll buy from someone else,” he said. The company previously relied on high service levels to combat the threat of online sales. The TAF website makes shoe recommendations based on sex, weight, footprint and pattern of shoe wear, although it also urges shoppers to come into a store for a personalised…

Tim Webb The Times June 25, 2012 OIL PRICES could slump as low as $US70 a barrel in the coming months as analysts warned of an impending “oil glut”. Prices for Brent crude, the European benchmark, have already fallen from $US120 to under $US90 a barrel in less than two months as the eurozone crisis deepens and concern about the global economy mounts. The collapse will offer some much needed respite to motorists and energy bill-payers. At the same time as the world’s developed countries are consuming less oil and consumption growth rates of developing countries such as China start to slow, supply is plentiful. Production from Opec, the cartel of oil producers responsible for about one third of global output, is at a four-year high as Libya’s production recovers after its civil war and Iraq increases its output. Leo Drollas from the Centre for Global Energy Studies, which was…

Jun 22, 2012 CSNews NEW YORK — Coca-Cola Co. will distribute its first dairy beverage to several states starting in July, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Core Power, a high-protein workout-recovery shake, is owned by Fair Oaks Farm Brands and will ship to approximately 10,000 groceries, convenience stores and specialty stores by fall 2012 through the distribution deal. “This new brand is part of an exciting category for consumers and retailers that is still in the early stage of its growth potential,” said Deryck van Rensburg, president of Coke’s North America venturing and emerging brands unit in a written statement. Core Power, which comes in 11.5-ounce plastic bottles and retails for about $3, comes in honey, chocolate, vanilla and strawberry banana flavors. It test launched in 2009 in Texas under the name Athletes HoneyMilk before being rolled out in Colorado. Coca-Cola’s initial distribution will expand its presence to…