Khuli Chana Institutes R2.3 million Claim Against Police

The South African police ministry has confirmed that Minister Nathi Nhleko is facing a lawsuit by hip hop musician Khuli Chana, real name Khulane Morule.

According to The Star newspaper Chana is seeking a total of R2.3 million in three claims related to his case against two police officers accused of shooting the 32 year old Chana at a petrol station.

The officers, Mduduzi Mfundisi Nzuza and Sam Baloyi, allegedly shot at the multi award winning musician’s car when he failed to stop at a roadblock they had set up at Midrand petrol station.

 

Police had been searching for a group of men accused of kidnapping a Bedfordview businessman at the time of the shooting. The random money was to have been left at the petrol station. It is alleged that the police officers mistook Chana’s car for that of the kidnappers and opened fire when he failed to stop his car. The shooting which took place in October last year resulted in Chana suffering injuries to his hand and back.

According to The Star, Chana’s R1.5 million first claim is for the unlawful shooting which the musician says left him with “permanent scarring and disfigurement”, emotional trauma, psychological stress and shock, future medical expenses, and future loss of earning capacity. The second claim of R516 638 is for “maliciously” claiming he “tried to kill them with his motor vehicle” and instituting an attempted murder case against him. The musician’s final claim of R250 000 is for statements made by a police spokesman accusing Chana of criminal conduct for attempting to kill police. Chana claims these statements both defamed him and caused damage to his reputation.

April 8, 2015 Articles, Entertainment, Leisure, Sport & Adventure 0

Job cuts looming at Cell C

Cell C, South Africa’s third mobile network operator, has informed some of its employees that they could be retrenched. This comes as it embarks on a restructuring process.

Trade union Solidarity said on Friday that this could affect as many as 190 of Cell C’s 1 458 employees.

According to the union, letters sent to Cell C employees state that the company plans to finalise the process by 31 January 2015.

Its says that the company mentions the possibility of severance pay amounting to one week’s remuneration for every year of service.

Solidarity organiser Linda Senekal says the union will do everything in their power to limit the impact of the retrenchment process on members.

“We are especially concerned about the emotional impact of the retrenchments on our members. We are still mourning the tragic loss of one of our members at Cell C, André Ankiewicz, who committed suicide in May 2012 after he received a retrenchment notice from Cell C.”

Cell C, meanwhile, has confirmed that it is in the “process of consultation in respect of possible retrenchments consequent to restructuring in certain areas of the company”.

Cell C confirms that this could affect up to 190 employees, but says some staff could be redeployed.

“We wish to confirm that the process followed is in line with the Labour Relations Act. Furthermore, the company is acting responsibly and will do everything in its power to support those affected by this process.”

 

Source: TechCentral

April 7, 2015 Articles, At Your Service 0

Jimmy Choo to list on London Stock Exchange

The group said in a statement that its owner JAB Luxury has agreed to float a 25% stake in a partial initial public offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange.

 

The firm did not state how much cash it was aiming to raise, but media reported the IPO could generate around £600 million (R10.9 billion).

 

“Jimmy Choo is an outstanding business operating in one of the fastest growing segments of the luxury market,” said Pierre Denis, chief executive of Jimmy Choo, in Tuesday’s statement.

 

He added: “Jimmy Choo is a clear success story with strong momentum and I am confident that our future as a public company can only extend our reputation and position in this attractive sector.”

 

The group, currently owned by investment company JAB Luxury, enjoyed sales of £282 million (R5.1 billion) in 2013.

 

Sales jumped 9.4% to £150.2 million (R2.7 billion) in the first half of this year, or six months to the end of June, compared with a year earlier.

 

The brand was founded by Malaysia-born Jimmy Choo in 1996 with British socialite Tamara Mellon.

 

It became a household name after repeatedly featuring on high profile TV shows including Sex and the City, and was worn by celebrities and royalty, including Britain’s Princess Diana.

 

Jimmy Choo has since developed into a luxury fashion brand encompassing shoes, handbags, leather goods, scarves, eye wear and fragrances.

 

Source: Destiny Connect

April 2, 2015 Articles, Financial, Legal & Business Services 0

Jay Z buys luxury champagne brand

Hip-hop mogul Jay Z has always been synonymous with the luxury French champagne Armand de Brignac, also known as Ace of Spades for years. And just yesterday he proved his loyalty to the brand by purchasing it for an undisclosed amount.

 

Sovereign Brands, the New York-based wine and spirits company that owned the label would not be drawn into commenting on the value of the deal.

 

Armand de Brignac is produced by a staff of eight people at the Cattier family home in the French town of Chigny-les-Roses, with the golden bottles bearing an ace-of-spades insignia. A bottle currently retails at $225 (R2 506).

 

While the winemaking house was established in 1763, the Armand de Brignac line was only launched in 2006 – the same year it was discovered by Jay Z who featured the it in his video for the hit Show Me What You Got.

 

Yvonne Lardner, a spokeswoman for Sovereign Brands said the company has had a “wonderful relationship” with Jay Z. “He became interested in owning the brand and made us an offer we simply couldn’t refuse,” she said. “To establish an iconic, credible high-end champagne in such a short period of time is something trulyremarkable,” she added.

 

In one high-profile incident, Jay Z showed off a display of 350 bottles of Armand de Brignac in 2012 when he and his wife Beyoncé threw a fund-raising party for President Barack Obama at a New York nightclub.

 

The giant presentation was quickly covered up however, with Obama’s re-election campaign team presumably concerned about him appearing surrounded by $300-a-bottle champagne.

This acquisition is the latest business venture for Jay Z, whose original name is Shawn Carter. His past transactions have included a stake in the Barclays Center arena in Brooklyn that he later sold .

Forbes magazine has estimated his net worth at $520 million (R5,8 billion). The magazine said this week that Beyoncé was the highest-earning woman in music last year, raking in $115 million (R1,2 billion).

Jay Z and other rappers have frequently extolled the joys of champagne. His song Young Forever envisioned a time in which “you never get old and the champagne’s always cold.”

But hip-hop’s relationship with champagne has not been without its difficulties. Louis Roederer’s Cristal brand was always a favorite among hip-hop artists until in 2006 Jay Z  called for a boycott of the brand because of comments by an executive that he deemed to be racist.

The executive, who was commenting on hip-hop’s association with champagne, denied the allegations.

Source

April 8, 2015 Articles, Entertainment, Leisure, Sport & Adventure, Financial, Legal & Business Services 0

Instagram success, what business can learn from Khaya Dlanga

It’s visual, emotive, social, and addictive. It also lives up to the adage, “A picture tells a thousand words!”
 

Instagram is currently one of the fastest growing social media sites worldwide, increasing its active user base by 23% in the last few months according to GlobalWebIndex.

The increasing growth of Instagram doesn’t surprise active user, Khaya Dlanga, Senior Communications Manager of Creative Excellence and Digital at Coca Cola. Khaya says he does not recall precisely how he joined Instagram, but remembers reading an article about it being more social than Flickr. He joined Instagram and has not looked back.

“I’m on Instagram now and I post what I like. Eat your heart out Steve Biko. (This is how spontaneously I post; I will go and post a “I post what I like” picture just now. Hold on a second while I do it.‘)” He did, check his Instagram.

Overall though, Instagram is behind by numbers when compared to the likes of Facebook, YouTube, Google+, Twitter and even LinkedIn.

The meteoric rise of Instagram in South Africa is right now.

Investing in Instagram

The SA Social Media Landscape 2014 research study concluded by World Wide Worx reveals that just over half of marketers surveyed will increase their Social Network spend next year. 67% of these marketers intend to invest on Instagram in 2015. This is an increase by a staggering 32% from the previous year.

The same Marketers, with optimistic expansion plans on Instagram admit that management buy-in, skills shortage, and budget are the biggest deterrent to moving swiftly into the Social Network space, and of course, Instagram.

There is a huge gap in skills and readily available success case studies to benchmark against. Many admit that they have already set up Instagram accounts. After all, barrier to entry is low. But these accounts are not yielding any results.

Instagram is “extremely foreign” says one such marketer, “We are on Instagram, contributing to the daily conversation but no one cares to hear what we have to say.”

Finding a social angle

Instagram sensation, author and former Head Mentor of Future Leaders Khaya Dlanga, insists that Social Networks, should be social and businesses must find a social angle when they are on Instagram

“I rarely use Instagram for work, but sometimes I do. When I do use it for business, it’s relaxed. It’s a combination of who I am. I can be funny and random. For example, I will take a line from famous South African songs and write a “funny” thesis about the line – it’s a new approach and it’s fun. My Instagram is definitely social. Sometimes I post Bible verses. Or I might tell a story, like when I fell asleep while I was sitting right next to Thabo Mbeki and he was speaking. Luckily, I never drooled on him.”

The South African solution for organisations struggling to gain traction on Instagram may be to look no further than what is available as a benchmark. And what we have available are private “home bred” Instagram accounts doing better than business “home bred” Instagram accounts.

Lessons can be borrowed from individuals like brand personality Craig Howes, who has the hearts of over 172,000 followers on Instagram without the benefit of large corporate budgets. Yet engaging!

The human side to brands

Khaya, believes that the only role to be played on Instagram is an authentic account of who you are, as an organisation or even as a person

“I can be serious, funny, quirky…. I can share travel pictures. There isn’t one thing you will find; I can be all these things. Don’t be cold and disconnected from who you are. People have to get your essence even when you are promoting yourself. You can promote yourself but don’t come across as an ass. Promote your business but be interesting about it.”

By mid-October Khaya Dlanga had 1229 posts on Instagram, with over 20,000 followers, and he followed 963 people. Of the 1229 posts, only about 24% had his face personally. Less than 30% of his personal Instagram photos were be about him directly. On evaluation, his Instagram account had excellent engagement.

“You have to go to where the people are; you must bring the human side of the brand to life. It’s really that simple. Social Networks are about people; make your brand human there” he concludes.

Source: Bizcommunity

April 8, 2015 Articles, Financial, Legal & Business Services 0

In sales today, knowledge really is power

Sales used to be simple: Make a cold call. Get an appointment. Meet and build rapport. Uncover needs with probing questions. Deliver your pitch or presentation. Overcome any objections. Close the deal. Sign on the line.
 

Sales is no longer simple. There is too much competition, too little time, too much distraction, too little money. Customers (existing and potential) don’t have much time to speak to sales people, they believe they have more important things to do.

In the past, to succeed in sales, among a few other things, you had to have in depth product knowledge so that you could answer all of your customers’ questions. In today’s world, product knowledge is still of utmost importance, but it is not the only necessity when you consider the bigger picture of ongoing sales success. To remain relevant in the sales game, you will need a much wider range of knowledge, an up-to-date set of sales tools to enable you to survive and thrive regardless of the ever-increasing changes and challenges.

An effective sales toolkit includes the following:

  • A solid grasp of the psychology of selling
  • A clearly defined, service-based sales approach
  • A well-designed, repeatable sales process
  • A street smart sales strategy, with an irresistible value proposition
  • A simple and functional admin or CRM system which works
  • Effective time management, planning and productivity skills
  • Increased business awareness and relevant industry expertise
  • Enhanced interpersonal communication skills
  • Acute questioning and listening skills
  • Advanced negotiation and closing skills
  • Emotional intelligence skills for self-motivation
  • A hunger to keep learning every day

It has always been said that sales is a numbers game. So here are the knowledge numbers that really count. If you want to still be relevant in the sales game five to ten years from now, I recommend that you commit to investing at least one hour per week, for 48 weeks per year, to growing your personal knowledge about this profession of selling. Read sales books, blogs, newsletters and magazines. Attend sales talks, courses, webinars and events. Subscribe to Facebook sales pages, Twitter feeds, YouTube channels and industry forums. Find a coach or mentor. Reach out and grab hold of every piece of sales knowledge you can lay your hands on – starting right now! Because in sales today, knowledge really is power.

Yours in sales success.

Source: Bizcommunity

April 7, 2015 Articles, At Your Service 0

Hungry Lion serves up Guinness World Record on Heritage Day

On Heritage Day, Hungry Lion set a new Guinness World Record for the largest serving of fried chicken, handing out over 1.6 tons free chicken to Mitchells Plain residents from a mega sized, 4-metre version of its Pride Bucket, which was specially produced for the attempt.
 

Residents received 13,644 free pieces of king sized chicken with a free Coca-Cola. This broke the current record of 1,076 kg by the Qatar Food Company at the Karaage Festival in Japan.

While queuing at Liberty Promenade Mall, crowds were entertained by the popular Shoprite TopStars singers, a compilation of 12 top singers from the competitions’ eight year history. The group of singers recently released their All-stars CD and performed from the Coca-Cola mobile concert rig erected at the event.

Guinness Book of Records will officially verify the world record and, according to its requirements, two independent auditors were present to ensure the record was true to the submission requirements stipulated.

 

Source: Bizcommunity

April 7, 2015 Articles, Eating, Drinking & Going Out, Financial, Legal & Business Services, Retail & Wholesale 0

Home Improvement on a Budget

In the current economic climate, you can count yourself lucky if you have a roof over your head. However, for most of us a house is not only the place where we sleep at night. A house is a home, a sanctuary, a place to escape from the rest of the world, to relax and be with our loved ones.   No wonder we want our homes to be beautiful. A little bit of home improvement can go a long way towards making your house more than the sum of its parts and best of all, it doesn’t need to cost an arm and a leg.

  • Prettify the front door area.   A lick of paint or varnish, or even a new front door can dramatically change the appearance of your house. You can also decorate this area with a pot plant or install new outdoor lighting.
  • Play with lighting. A new kitchen light or fixture over the dining table is bound to change the whole ambience of a room. Home improvement could even just involve installing a dimmer switch to make current lighting more versatile.
  • As one of the most used rooms in the house, bathrooms can show wear very quickly. Replacing chipped tiles, putting in new towel racks and changing bathroom curtains or blinds can give your bathroom a newer, fresher look. If your budget allows, go the whole hog and install a new toilet, sink and bath.
  • One of the easiest ways to transform a room, is installing new handles or knobs on cabinet doors. Home improvement honestly doesn’t get much easier than this.
  • A few simple, inexpensive items, such as throws, pillows, rugs and pots of flowers will bring any room to life. Play around with the things you already have and try putting them in new locations. The change may surprise you.
  • Finally, have fun with home improvement. A few cosmetic changes here and there are hardly permanent and if you don’t like the end result, you could just change it back to the way it was. However, you are more likely to love your improved home!
May 11, 2015 Articles, Home Improvements, Building & DIY 0

Health and Beauty Treatments

It is important to develop the right Health and Beauty habits to add years to your life.

The days we used to know our house doctor and go to him for every cure and ailment is in the past. We live in modern days where we would rather ask Google about our Health and Beauty treatments than our house doctors.

Although it’s important to go and see your doctor to make sure that you are in good health. Here are also a few things you can do at home to ensure your Health and Beauty treatment is up to date.

Number 1: Floss regularly

Flossing is good for your teeth, because it doesn’t just remove food it also gets rid of plaque, the bacterial film that flows between teeth and along the gums. You can prevent gum disease and tooth loss by flossing once a day.

Number 2: Stick to what you know

It’s good to test a few products to see what works for your skin. After you found what works for you, try to stick to it. It’s important to be constant when it comes to your skin.

Number 3: Exercise regularly

You’ll burn extra calories and regulate your weight and will help you prevent diseases like high blood pressure, heart disease and it will boost your immune system.

Number 4: Scrub once a week

Underneath the rough outer layer of your facial skin lies the beautiful silky skin, but you will need to exfoliate it regularly to regenerate your skin and encourage new cells. Scrub for radiant smooth skin.

Number 4: Drink more water

To balance your body fluids you will need to drink at least eight glasses of water each day.

Number 5: Eat healthier

Eating healthier will provide nutrients to your body and this will help your heart beating strong, your brain staying active and your muscles functioning.

These are a few easy things you can change in your daily routine to ensure your Health and Beauty treatments are up to scratch!

To find out more about Health and Beauty click here

April 8, 2015 Articles, Beauty & Health 0