Ireland’s Visa card holders will spend €10m in florists on Valentine’s Day
Visa Europe is predicting that Ireland’s Visa card users will spend around €10m in florist shops this St Valentine’s Day. Based on card data from previous years, the company said around 40pc of Irish people will buy flowers for their loved ones, most will leave their purchases until the last minute, and those who purchase from florists will spend an average of €30 or more. In 2012, over the three days between 12 and 14 February, €22.5m was spent on Visa cards – debit, credit and prepaid – in florists, with almost half of the total amount being spent on Valentine’s Day itself. The average spend in florists on Visa…
Read MoreIreland to play important role in advancing data protection regulation during EU presidency
To coincide with Global Data Protection Day today, law firm Matheson hosted a seminar in Dublin with Irish Data Protection Commissioner Billy Hawkes. Ireland is set to play an important role in advancing the new data protection regulation throughout the EU presidency, according to Hawkes. The regulation, which is particularly relevant to foreign multinationals operating in and through Ireland, will come to a crucial point during the presidency and the Irish Government is preparing to play a significant part in its progression. The proposed new data protection regulation aims to strengthen and harmonise existing data protection law across the EU in order to ensure more transparency on information being collected,…
Read MoreInsomnia awards €150,000 cloud and connectivity contract to IT Force and Strencom
IT Force, in partnership with Strencom, has won a contract worth more than €150,000 to provide a private cloud and connectivity system to the Insomnia chain of coffee shops. “We had encountered a number of difficulties in relation to our IT infrastructure and connectivity network, resulting in persistent issues in store,” said Insomnia chairman, Bobby Kerr. “Ultimately our IT resources were being devoured by small and repeat issues, which was both frustrating and expensive in terms of downtime and staff resources. “The IT Force and Strencom solution made perfect business sense for us, enabling us to eliminate the IT issues, while providing a smart network that was scalable and robust…
Read More“Thousands of jobs” to be on offer at Jobs Expo 2013
Sky, Acorn Life and the Department of Health in Western Australia are among the organisations that will be recruiting and providing advice at next month’s Jobs Expo, where thousands of Irish and overseas jobs will be on offer, according to the event organisers. Learning Ireland, which runs the event, says Jobs Expo 2013 will provide job seekers with real opportunities to find a new job. Taking place from 11am to 5pm on Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 February in the Hogan Suite in Croke Park, the event is free of charge and will include a diverse range of companies with “a large number of job offers”. Confirmed organisations that will be there include…
Read MoreSalesPulse launches ‘Rollcall’ app for primary schools
Irish software firm SalesPulse has launched an app called ‘Rollcall’, which allows teachers to record absenteeism on their smartphones. Developing dedicated software for primary schools since it was founded in Kilkenny 10 years ago, SalesPulse’s Primary Schools Administration System is now in place in over 300 schools across Ireland. This system tracks school attendance, returns to the Department of Education, bulk mails and texts to parents, parents’ contact details, school accounts and payments from students among other services. SalesPulse recently upgraded this software to a secure cloud based system allowing school principals, teachers and school secretaries to access the system from the classroom, the office or remotely. The new ‘Rollcall’…
Read MoreLadbrokes buys Betdaq for £30m
Betting and gaming company Ladbrokes said today it has agreed to buy Global Betting Exchange Alderney Ltd (GBEA), the operator of the Betdaq exchange business, for an initial consideration of €30m on a cash free/debt free basis from TBH Ltd. Ladbrokes said it has also agreed to buy from TBH a 10pc stake in TBH Guernsey Ltd, the technology provider to GBEA, for €4m, with a call option to acquire the remaining shares in TBHG after four years. The transaction is subject to certain conditions and is expected to complete in late February 2013. “The Betdaq exchange is a well-regarded and well invested business and a close strategic fit for…
Read MoreDavos 2013 opens with Crystal Awards presentation to three cultural leaders
The World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting – Davos 2013 – opened last night with the presentation of Crystal Awards to artist Vik Muniz, documentary filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy and the actress Charlize Theron. The meeting was opened by WEF founder and executive chairman, Klaus Schwab, who welcomed more than 2,500 participants from over 100 countries, including nearly 50 heads of state or government, 1,500 business leaders, and representatives from civil society, media, academia and the arts, and called for “soul, heart, brains and good nerves”. “It is my hope that you come out of this meeting with a vision that goes beyond crisis management,” he said. At the opening,…
Read MoreHilton Worldwide Announces White Paper on Youth Development
Hilton Worldwide is championing youth development having commissioned a white paper from the International Youth Foundation (IYF) and launched its own strategy for the area called Bright Blue Futures. The white paper, ‘Creating Opportunities for Youth in Hospitality,’ looks at the economic and social struggles facing the world’s youth and the key issues that need to be addressed to solve those challenges. Hilton Worldwide announced its publication at the World Economic Forum. Leveraging insights gained through its partnership with the hotel group, IYF also presents the hospitality industry with a roadmap for action that focuses on creating career pathways while also meeting critical industry-wide hiring needs. “We have a tremendous…
Read MoreAdditional €1.5m available through Innova programme
InterTradeIreland is making a further €1.5m in funding available for businesses in 2013 through the Innova programme for North/South collaborative innovation partnerships to develop new products, process or service development. To date, InterTradeIreland has released over €8m directly to companies North and South to commercialise existing partnerships. Significant outputs to date include development of treatments for cancer, the development of a heart monitoring device and the development of a compost raw material. The Innova programme in particular is looking for collaborative partnership projects in the following sectors: life and health sciences, polymers and plastics, agri-food, advanced engineering and advanced materials, telecoms, ICT and environmental. Partners can work in the same sector or come from different…
Read MorePrimark reports 25pc sales growth over the past three months
Better than expected year on year sales growth of 25pc over the past three months by Primark has boosted profits for parent company Associated British Foods (ABF). Primark sales were driven by an increase in selling space of 14pc and superior sales densities in the larger new stores. Fourteen new stores opened in the past three months, ten of which were on continental Europe, bringing the total number of Primark stores worldwide up to 256. The company refurbished its flagship Dublin store, and relocated its Sunderland store to a bigger site. ABF, which also owns the Twinings, Ovaltine, Ryvita and Jordans brands, said overall revenue rose 10pc, despite problems in…
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