Social marketing: Brilliant response by North Face to a social media video that went viral
A young woman hiking in the rain in NZ had an issue with her North Face jacket. North Face responded in viral fashion - well done!
Climate economics: Net Zero might not increase employment or reduce costs
Politicians say Net Zero will create jobs, grow the economy, but maybe not - for obvious reasons.
Business: Work-from-home trend has fallen off, and flat-lined
The "days worked from home" has fallen sharply from the peak and is now in a slow decline.
Demographics, Education: Half of companies eliminating 4-year degree requirement
55% of companies eliminated a 4-year degree requirement in 2023 for some jobs, and 45% will eliminate it in 2024.
Business: “Pay tip first” culture has turned tips into bribes
With tipping out of control, tips have turned into bribes: Pay up front or then get crappy service.
Retail: Walmart to have “quiet hours” 8-10 am
Starting Nov 10, Walmart will move to "quiet hours" in stores from 8am to 10 am. This is great for those who have sensory overload issues.
Automation: Starbucks to increase use of automation
Starbucks will improve efficiency by adding more automation.
Business: Beyond Meat to lay off 1 in 5 workers
The business model never made any sense: Beyond lays off 19% of non-production workforce; reevaluates SKUs, China | Alt Meat (alt-meat.net) “Fake meat” sold at 2x to 3x the price…
Business: Oregon UFCW wants to prohibit self serve gas stations
UFCW wants to prohibit self serve gas station in Oregon. Oregon is a nutty state.
Automation: Cost of running fast food restaurants
The cost of running fast food restaurants is becoming very expensive, for many reasons. The result will be increased use of automation and customer “DIY” systems like app and kiosk…