New Air Ticket???

Not a bad design at all, I like this. Very stylish and modern look. But it would be good if they use less bag and have something more environmentally friendly.

Business Ideas (Gadgets) Inside Out Umbrellas

Are you one of those who hates to bring umbrellas, finding it cumbersome with water still clings to the surface after use. Or finding it troublesome to carry around. Well now this foldable umbrella might be your solution. With a small bag attached, it can be use to contain the water and let you carry around like a handbag, instead of hooking to your arms.

What do you think?



Image Source: Yanko Design

Business Ideas (Gadgets) Soap Bank

Ever wonder what to do with your favorite soap that has become too small to use easily? Well we have the "SOAP BANK" to help you resolve the problem.

Business Ideas (F&B) Multi Use Instant Coffee

The usual instant coffee are just small satchet containing sugar, coffee and cream powder. It's easy - just pour into cup with hot water. And the convenience just stop there, because you need to find a stirer to mix. But this design by Hye-Yeon Choi instant coffee satchet is really straw containing the instant coffee powder. After pouring the content into the cup, you can use the straw to stir.

Image Source: Yanko Design

Pop-up nightclubs launch in Singapore

Interesting to find traces of Singapore over the internet.

I guess pop-up is the next thing.

Business Ideas (Entertainment) - Weeknight Clubbing for 9-5 crowd

Did I hear any horrays out that? I guess clubbers will be thrilled with this. No cheers from me, cos i dun club but this may be a good business idea though.
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Nightclubs may operate seven days a week in many cities, but working professionals who partake in their late-night offerings outside of the weekend tend to regret it the next day. With such schedule-bound partiers in mind, Toronto's Gladstone Hotel recently launched an earlier alternative that still lets revellers get to bed on time.

The Gladstone's Granny Boots series of dance parties take place each Wednesday night beginning at 7:30 and ending promptly at 10—"so you can go home, watch 'Law and Order' until 11 pm and go to BED," as the hotel puts it. The events are held in the Gladstone's Melody Bar, which is already famous for weekend karaoke nights, and feature different performances and
livingroom DJs each week. Admission is free.

We also spotted something similar in Belgium, where Bart Van Orshoven's After Work Parties draw large crowds—and corporate sponsors—in various venues in Antwerp, Gent, Leuven and Brussels. The parties start at 7 pm and doors close at 9 pm to ensure a decent-sized crowd from the start. At 1 am, everyone is sent packing.

Of course, in addition to the legions of business people and other working stiffs out there who can't afford to stay up late, there's also the substantial crowd of older people who still like to party but simply don't want to be up during the wee hours. Catering to such consumers could be the key to attracting a whole new segment. As the saying goes, the early bird gets the worm—or, in this case, the entertainment dollars! ;-)

Website: www.gladstonehotel.com/events/show.cfm?id=791 — www.afterworkparty.be
Contact: dance.granny.boots@gmail.com — bart@afterworkparty.be

Employee - Company's Most Valuable Assets

I think the most under-rated assets in a company is human resources, and also the most difficult to assess value. Most companies failed to comprehend this and I find they tend not able to go far or grow big.

I wonder is it their ego that caused them not to value employee other than themselves or that they just dun see the importance of it. In any case, to have staff resigning or failure to attract capable staff can cost the company their future.

I guess this is why Google provides such good facilities and working environment. After working with them, I bet no one wants to leave.

Crowdsourcing a Make-It-Yourself Restaurant

Lately crowdsourcing seem to be the 'in' thing to talk about when coming to setting up business. I guess this makes the consumer more involved in the formulation of the business and hence spending more.

Sex, drugs and oil: corruption scandal rocks US agency

Why am I not surprised? Maybe cos the business is such a lucrative business and to protect interests, corruption will definitely happen. All these seem like coming out from movie scripts.

Yesterday local news also reported a case of corruption by a official in MOM.

I do think that in every business, there would some form of corruption, be it in terms of monetary or gifts. I dun think it is that easy to eradicate, only minimise.

One way to help minimise is to protect the rights of whistle blower. Without them, usually things are gone unnoticed.

Read the article here - http://sg.news.yahoo.com/afp/20080911/twl-us-government-oil-corruption-7e07afd.html

Singapore luxury hotel dedicates floor to the ladies

I really like the idea. Just a small change, can create hype for the publicity for the hotel and create better revenue. Very clever!

I bet ladies would love to have such attention.

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SINGAPORE, Sept 9 - A luxury boutique hotel in Singapore has set aside a whole floor for women, decking it out with designer amenities and female-only staff.

The Naumi hotel, which opened this year in Singapore's central business district, said the concept was intended to give women travellers a sense of security and privacy in luxurious surroundings.

"There weren't any hotels we knew that had a dedicated floor for ladies," marketing manager Adeline Quek told Reuters.

"More women are travelling around the Asia Pacific, whether it is for work, business or leisure and we wanted to provide them with a sense of peace and a feeling of being at home.

The 40-suite hotel has five ladies-only suites, hidden behind a glass panel on one floor which is accessed by a key card system. A sign on the panel reads "Naumi says... for ladies only" and men are strictly forbidden.

Special female touches on the floor include in-room cosmetics such as make-up remover, toner and aromatherapy products from all-natural Australian brand Aesop and pink and grey flowery wallpaper.

Quek said guests were mainly business executives and well-heeled women on shopping trips or holiday from Europe, Australia, Indonesia and Hong Kong. Occupancy of the floor has been 80 percent since the hotel opened, she added.

And if female guests want to entertain men in their room, Quek said the hotel recommends they stay in their regular suites.

Rooms at the Naumi are priced at between $420 and $600.

Philosophy Of The Stock Market

Once upon a time in a village, a man appeared who announced to the villagers that he would buy monkeys for $10 each.

The villagers, seeing that there were many monkeys in the forest, went out and started catching them.

The man bought thousands at $10 each. As supply started to diminish and villagers started to stop their efforts, he announced that now he wouldbuy them at $20 each.

This renewed the efforts of the villagers and they started catching monkeys again. Soon, the supply diminished even further and people started going back to their farms.

The offer rate was increased to $25 each and the supply of monkeys became so scarce that it was an effort to even see a monkey, let alone catch it.

The man now announced that he would buy monkeys at $50 each.

However, since he had to go to the city on some business, his assistant would now buy on behalf of the man.

In the absence of the man, the assistant told the villagers 'Look at all the monkeys in the big cage that the man has collected. I will sell them to you at $35 each and when my boss comes back, you can sell them to him for $50 each.

'The villagers queued up with all their savings and bought all the monkeys.

After that, neither the assistant nor the businessman could be found anywhere but the monkeys were everywhere!

==================
LOL!! Well this kind of sums up what the stock market is all about.

Higher fee for international mailing

Business Times - 06 Sep 2008
SingPost warns of higher fees
SINGAPORE Post has warned of a potential increase in its net terminal dues payments for international mailing. This comes after it was announced at the recent 24th Universal Postal Union (UPU) Congress in Geneva, Switzerland, that Singapore would be reclassified as a Target Country (previously known as 'Industrialised Country') from the current category of Net Contributor Country for the purpose of terminal dues settlement. The change will take effect from Jan 1, 2010.

Terminal dues refer to settlements for the processing and delivery of international mail between countries. Singapore will have to apply the relevant terminal dues system from 2010 to 2013 and contribute to the UPU Quality of Service Fund. The group foresees an increase in its net terminal dues payments for international mailing as the dues payable by target countries are generally higher.

I guess small business who has been delivered packages through post will be badly affected. Luckily there is still 2 years time to make adjustment.

2m Britons want to turn hobby to business

(LONDON) More than two million Britons who are in permanent employment are at the same time trying to turn their favourite hobby into a business, according to a new survey released yesterday.

Commissioned by Direct Line for Business, the poll also found that for 23 per cent of Britons it would be a dream come true to start up their own business based on an outside interest. Of those who have already made the jump to self-employment, 32 per cent described it as a successful venture, and more than 25 per cent said they were making good money from the business.

The survey listed the most successful hobby-based businesses as fashion design, eBay selling, buy-to-let property development and web design. -- Reuters
Copyright © 2007
Singapore Press Holdings Ltd. All rights reserved.

Oh yeah, I too would like to turn my interest into business. But the problem is I can't identify one that will make money.

I wonder what is the number be like for Singapore....

Want to BBQ Fish anytime anywhere??

Do you ever have crave for food, especially BBQ fish in the middle of the day and not knowing how to have them, see the below. You can have your bbq fish anytime and anywhere.

Wonder when they will add the prawns or crabs, as they are my favourite.

Bedroom Furniture in a box???

Does moving new house and getting new furnitures worries you and create much anxiety? But with the following furnitures, moving house can be easy, as you can pack all furnitures for a bedroom into a box.

Any takers???

Business Ideas (Financial Services)

Private Banking by Shoebox
Website: www.insinger.com/shoebox

Saw this on a weekly free newsletter online publication and find this a very innovative ideas. You can check out http://www.springwise.com/ for more.

Realizing that many of its wealthy clients lack the time or patience to deal with their personal finances, Amsterdam-based private bank Insinger de Beaufort launched a new service that takes finances back to the basics: a shoebox.

After sitting down with their private banker to discuss financial planning, Insinger's clients are sent a big shoebox by courier every month. They drop anything admin-related into the box: bills to be paid, bank statements, receipts, tax returns, speeding tickets, insurance documents, etc. At the end of the month, Insinger sends a courier to pick up the box, and then processes its contents.

Clients are sent a complete overview of actions and transactions within three business days, after which the bank takes care of the entire follow-up process, including paying bills, filing tax returns and processing business expenses.

Every quarter, clients are sent a financial report, detailing spending categories, asset growth, etc, and once a year, they meet with their private banker to evaluate new developments and adjust their financial planning as needed. Sensing a gap in the market, Insinger de Beaufort offers its shoebox service to clients at other banks, too. The concept is of course entirely focused on convenience, saving (valuable) clients the time and hassle of dealing with the minutiae of their personal finances. While other banks provide their high-end clients with similar add-on services, the shoebox approach is undeniably elegant in its no-tech simplicity.

Article "Property subsales - who wins and who loses"

'The fact is that longer holding periods allow for larger gains, shorter holding
periods for smaller gains. This is consistent with the fact that real estate is
a long-term investment. Investors with short exit time frames should look for
alternative instruments,' said......

I have to disagree with what this director of marketing says about real estate that longer holding periods is equivalent to larger gains. I believe the more possible answer for those who is making large gains in subsales are those who purchased at the timing when property is just picking. Like what the seasoned property consultant said at the end of the article, it all comes to the entry price.

(Article is published on The Business Times on 26 August 2008.)

Business Ideas (Merchandise)

I have seen it on on-flight magazine about 4 years ago and till now I have not seen anything similar items being sold in Singapore.

Wonder if any kind soul would like to take this up and bring the products to Singapore.

Business Ideas (FnB)

Saw this on Taiwan variety show before and find that this is a very innovative ideas. It is interesting how great imagination can transform something which is so common to something interestingly new and attractive.

Hope that this can come to Singapore someday.

High Staff Turnover Rate = Bad Management Team?

I wonder if any top management team ever wonders why they have high turnover rates? Or they just dun want to admit that there is a problem?

Anyway I just find out it's really abnormal for so many staff to leave at a short period of time. Can it be that all these staff all have problems, then something must be wrong with their hiring procedure. Either way, it does not look good on the management team.

Maybe staff turnover rate can be a measurement guide on the management team?

Companies should disclose non-financial information: PwC

This article is published on The Business Times, 22 August 2008.

For the benefits of investors in public listed companies, i agree with Ms Kok that these companies should not only reports on past financial performance but also valuable information on current projects to allow investors to evaluate the prospects of the company.

Past financial performance is not able to give investors the clear indication how well the company is going to perform in the future, instead what is important is the current activities or projects that they are engaging in that gives a clear indication of the direction of the company.

However even with non-financial reporting, it can not also prove that that company has better corporate governance as there may be selective information being released, or their budget projection and balance sheet may not have been done professionally that does not truly reflect the viability of the project. Moreover company will justify this as trade secrets and not disclosable.