Description: At one time, mutual fund companies dominated the retail sales market for mutual funds. And part of those days were big deferred sales charges (DSC) levied when retail investors wanted to cash in their holdings. But many players in the industry have moved away from deferred charges, to the point where Globe and Mail… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Data security
Lighter than expected
Description: There were still lineups of course. And many retailers were offering deals. But Black Friday this year seemed to have less retail store traffic in the US than in some prior years. Of course, now with some retailers opening on Thanksgiving Thursday, some consumers may have already made their purchases. And online purchases were… Read more »
Megabrew!
Description: The Globe and Mail categorized it as a “megabrew”. The two largest brewers in the world have combined to form an organization that will account for approximately 1/3 of the beer produced worldwide. Anheuser-Busch announced that is purchasing SAB Miller PLC for about $143 billion. Some maneuvering may be necessary in both the US… Read more »
What’s app doc?
Description: You could call it social media for physicians, or as the Globe and Mail called it, Instagram for doctors. But for a patient in rural Louisiana, Figure 1 Inc, a Canadian startup, could be called a leg saver. By sharing images on Figure 1, doctors were able to spot that the ulcer on the… Read more »
Mobile gaming rewards
Description: McGill grad Jeremy Zuckerman is looking to disrupt the world of mobile gaming. He plans a unique strategy of paying cash rewards to players of games offered by his company WINR Games. Success does not come easily in this $21 billion industry, so it will be interesting to see if Jeremy’s reward ploy works… Read more »
A sweet story
Description: It’s spring. The sap is flowing. And the world’s largest maple syrup producer, the Province of Quebec, is facing increased competition from American competitors. Whereas Quebec once controlled 80% of the market through its tight supply management system, it is predicted that by 2018, that figure could drop to 63%. Source: Globeandmail.com Date: April… Read more »
Costco beats Walmart
Description: Costco – the huge warehouse style retailer – beat Walmart and Target in sales growth in the most recent quarter. Costco was up over 8% versus about 1.5% for Walmart and 3.2% for Target. Perhaps in a bit of a surprise though, Costco shares fell about 0.1%. Source: Globe and Mail.com Date: March 5,… Read more »
Really, really, really smart t.v.
Description: Many were perhaps shocked this past week when Samsung revealed that while you are watching television, your television may be listening to you. While perhaps no one is quite sure what is going on in the mysterious cloud, Samsung’s new terms of use for its smart t.v. alerts users that spoken words and personal… Read more »
Jones Soda and the Seahawks
Description: Jones Soda is a small soft drink company compared to the giants Coke and Pepsi. But Jones is using its unique location – across the street from the home field of the Seattle Seahawks – as a marketing advantage, sending along its promotional RV to the Super Bowl in Arizona. There Jones Soda continues… Read more »
Target leaving town
Description: Many were caught by surprise last week when retail giant Target announced it was ending its Canadian experiment and closing all of its stores here. Many have speculated on what went wrong in this strategic misstep. Impacts of Target’s withdrawal may be difficult to assess, but it will certainly hit the retail real estate… Read more »