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12.06.2012
The US Postal Service made a $61m profit in October, and even achieved 5.6% growth in its mail and services revenues compared to the same month last year.
And for the full year, the world’s largest postal service is now projecting that it will cut its losses in half, to $7.6bn for the fiscal year 2013.
The struggling Postal Service has been teetering on the edge of liquidity over the past year, defaulting on $11bn worth of payments to the federal government in August and September. Planning on a $14bn loss for fiscal year 2012, USPS actually recorded a $15.9bn loss for the 12 months up to the end of September, including the payments it refused to make.
Latest results show that the festive season peak is now beginning to feed in much-needed funds to help USPS through the winter, with hopes that the US Congress will make critical reforms to its out-of-kilter pension and healthcare payment arrangements.
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12.06.2012
With West Coast port workers back on the job Wednesday, U.S. retailers and trade groups were turning focus back to negotiations to stop a potentially more damaging port strike in the East.
Retailers ranging from Target and American Eagle to Home Depot told Reuters they have their holiday merchandise in place and the eight-day long strike at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach would not upset plans.
However, a second, wide-reaching strike on the U.S. East and Gulf coasts could change that for the upcoming spring/summer season, for which merchandise will start to ship soon.
"Potentially, the strike on the East Coast is going to be a much bigger strike. This potential strike (would span) Maine to Texas, so the effects could be bigger," said Jonathan Gold, vice president of supply chain and customs policy for the National Retail Federation.
The collective bargaining agreement between the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) and the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX) was originally set to expire on Sept. 30. That agreement was extended to December 29, averting a potential strike that would stop deliveries to ports along the U.S. Atlantic and Gulf coasts during the holiday retail season.
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12.05.2012
American Eagle Paper Mills of Tyrone, Pennsylvania introduces their new product, Eagle Armour Copy. New to the market, this recycled, multipurpose copy paper is treated with Biomaster silver ion technology to provide antimicrobial protection to the paper itself against unwanted microorganisms such as mold, mildew, fungus and non-pathogenic bacteria.
“American Eagle Paper Mills is proud to have successfully manufactured this paper to incorporate an antimicrobial agent within the paper without sacrificing its performance or appearance,” said John Ferner, President of American Eagle Paper Mills. “The Rochester Institute of Technology performed laboratory tests on the print quality and found no noticeable difference on the treated paper versus the untreated control paper,” Ferner continued.
According to BiomasterUSA LLC, supplier of the EPA registered antimicrobial silver technology used in the Eagle Armour Copy paper, silver is an element found naturally in the environment and has long been regarded as a versatile antimicrobial agent. The silver ions interact with a wide range of molecular processes within microorganisms resulting in a range of effects from inhibition of growth, loss of energy production, and prevention of DNA replication and new cell formation, thereby accounting for the high efficacy of Biomaster as an antimicrobial agent.
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12.05.2012
Gawker Media, the online publishing network that's home to popular blogs like Gawker, Gizmodo, and Jezebel, has purchased Guanabee, an English-language site focused on Latino news and culture, for an undisclosed amount. The purchase comes as Gawker founder and CEO Nick Denton seeks to expand Gawker's international influence and, as Business Insider reports, "to accelerate growth in Latin America."
In addition to acquiring Guanabee, Gawker Media is launching a site in Hungary (where much of the company's tech staff is based) and working on a deal to expand its reach in India.
Guanabee's founder, Daniel Mauser, will run Gizmodo en Español, a Spanish-language version of the company's technology-focused site. Gawker and Guanabee have worked together as advertising partners in the past, and Guanabee Media once shared office space at Gawker's New York City HQ.
Guanabee is best known for its humorous, often irreverent take on media and pop culture and for its incredibly loyal readership. On his reasoning for selling the site, Mauser explains that he was intrigued by Gawker's development of its new platform, which came up during discussions with its founder, Nick Denton. "So when he proposed that I help him launch Gizmodo en Español, (Gizmodo is my favorite tech site) and bring Guanabee with me, I could not say no."
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12.05.2012
Neenah Paper now offers the new ENVIRONMENT® Retail Card, a 100-percent, paper-based stored value card that gives retailers a green alternative to plastic or other less eco-friendly card options. The new retail card is also the brightest paper-based card available.
A stored-value card has monetary value or data physically stored on the card and is commonly used by retailers in the form of gift cards, loyalty cards and bounceback cards. These are often made with materials that are not recyclable and have a greater negative impact on the environment.
“As the retail card industry continues to grow at a rapid pace, retailers are demanding more options and specifically greener alternatives,” said Elizabeth Corbett, director of packaging sales for Neenah Paper. “Consumers today expect retailers to embrace green products and practices and now retailers have a more sustainable choice.”
Neenah’s ENVIRONMENT Retail Card, made from 40-percent recycled fiber, is FSC® certified, manufactured with Green Energy and recyclable. The new card is available in both gloss and silk finishes in 97 bright white, making it the brightest paper-based gift card available. It offers excellent printability on both finishes and can accept embossing, foil stamping and laminates as well as magnetic stripes and bar codes. With a lifespan of one to two years based on moderate use, other uses for the ENVIRONMENT Retail Card include loyalty membership cards and hotel room keys.
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12.05.2012
A strike has crippled two California shipping ports and could leave some retailers with sparse shelves toward the end of the holiday shopping season if it continues.
About 450 clerical workers represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union went on strike a week ago at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. But the work stoppage quickly became more serious as an additional 10,000 port workers refused to cross the striking workers' picket lines.
Despite agreeing to federal mediation Tuesday, the Local 63 Office Clerical Unit says it plans to continue its strike. It has accused the ports' managing group, the Harbor Employers Association, of outsourcing jobs.
The strike has essentially shut down 10 of 14 terminals at the two ports, backing up cargo and delaying shipments.
"The majority of our members have been impacted," says Jon Gold, vice president of supply chain and customs policy for the National Retail Federation. "Cargo that's already arrived is just sitting at the port. Right now there isn't a whole lot they can do."
Gold says the NRF, which has more than 9,000 members, is still working to assess the economic impact. The NRF notes in one of its letters to President Obama calling for an intervention that a 10-day West Coast ports lockout in 2002 cost the economy an estimated $1 billion a day.
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12.05.2012
UPM Raflatac has recently achieved ISO 9001:2008 certification for the manufacture, slitting and sales of pressure sensitive labelstock produced at its factory in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. To achieve this certification, the Rio operation implemented a quality management system conforming to the ISO 9001:2008 standard that demonstrated strong customer focus, consistent and reliable production processes, and a commitment to continuous improvement.
The certification of the Rio de Janeiro factory is an extension of UPM Raflatac’s global ISO 9001:2008 certificate. The company’s factories in Australia, China, Finland, France, Malaysia, Poland, South Africa, Spain,Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the USA have also developed quality management systems that conform to the ISO 9001:2008 standard.
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12.05.2012
Hearst Magazines has 800,000 paying app customers, and 80 percent of them are new to Hearst brands, making mobile devices, including tablets and smartphones, a major new business for the company—and for the magazine industry, Hearst president David Carey said last week at the Mashable Media Summit.
And yet, at the same time, mobile remains both a friend and a foe, and print magazines remain the state of the art for certain kinds of media consumption—including young consumers, Carey said.
In a fast-paced but wide-ranging interview before 200 or so attendees at the conference, held at the Times Center in Midtown Manhattan, Carey pointed to the launches of the Food Network Magazine in 2009 and HGTV Magazine this year as proof of the enduring demand for new print product. In fact, Carey said, Hearst is likely to test another new print magazine next year. He did not indicate which market might be tested or the prospective brand, and Todd Wasserman, business editor of Mashable, who interviewed Carey, did not follow up.
“For glossy, high-design, tactile magazines, we are in an aspirational business and magazines will always be the preferred medium for inspiring those dreams,” Carey said. “These glossy aspirational things—they work great in print. Magazines transport you to a different place.”
Still, Carey said, Hearst is devoting a lot of effort to the tablet business especially. Cosmopolitan is the number-one magazine in the world on tablets, with 180,000 subscriptions, he said. What’s more, Hearst has an in-house app lab dedicated to understanding what consumers want in an app. “Do people want a whole new product, or do they want just a mobile version of a magazine?” Carey asked. “We’ve found that most people just want a mobile version of the magazine itself, with some enhancements.”
Another conclusion Hearst has made is that while tablets are a consumer-revenue model, and the Web is an ad-revenue model, mobile phones are also primarily consumer-revenue, but much tougher to crack.
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12.05.2012
Direct mail is a trusted channel, in every sense of the word. Indeed, four in 10 consumers say they prefer to receive sensitive health information in sealed envelopes from their mailboxes, according to Epsilon's 2012 Channel Preference Study, released today. The reason: Privacy issues with email.
“Consumers don't trust the new media as much as they do regular mail when it comes to personal information, says Epsilon SVP of product marketing and insights Warren Storey. “They feel more secure with direct mail because they can touch it, open it in private, and store it more easily.”
It's also harder for important envelopes to get lost in the shuffle. Seventy percent of the nearly 2,000 U.S. consumers responding to the survey said they received more emails in the past year than they did the year before. More than a third of consumers also singled out insurance and financial services as industries from which they preferred postal mail. Email is favored, Storey says, for hobbies and interests that people are more directly engaged in and which present fewer privacy concerns.
“What we tell our clients is that there is a level of trust you need to gain with consumers through traditional media,” Storey says “Though social media is gaining in importance, traditional media still leads in numbers and in trust. So it's important to build a strong presence with radio, TV, or print and then using new channels to connect further with consumer segments based on their behaviors.”
Storey adds that Epsilon's study detected little variance in the trust issue across different age groups or regional locations. Gender did produce slight different attitudes toward social media, however. “Women are more trusting of recommendations from family and friends,” he notes. “Men trust emails more.”
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12.05.2012
The Discover U.S. Spending Monitor declined 2.7 points to 95.4 in November from 98.1 in October, reflecting lower consumer confidence in personal finances. However, consumers indicated that they intend to spend more in December during the holiday season. The Monitor is a 5-year-old daily poll tracking economic confidence and spending intentions of nearly 8,200 consumers throughout the month.
The percentage of consumers rating the U.S. economy as good or excellent remained the same as October at 18 percent, up 10 percentage points from November 2011.
In November 2012, 51 percent of consumers viewed the economy as poor, an 11-point decrease from November 2011.
Female respondents who rated the economy as good or excellent in November increased 2 percentage points to 18 percent compared to October. However, male respondents who rated the economy as good or excellent declined 3 percentage points from October, also to 18 percent.
Remaining at a Monitor high, 35 percent of respondents expect the economy to improve, a 16-point year over year improvement from November 2011.
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12.04.2012
Brent crude oil slipped towards $110 a barrel on Tuesday as weak manufacturing data and protracted U.S. budget negotiations fanned concerns about the health of the global economy and the prospects for energy demand.
But simmering tensions in the Middle East including a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Gaza and worsening unrest in Syria helped support prices.
Brent futures slipped 20 cents by 0855 GMT to $110.72 per barrel. On Monday Brent broke through a key resistance level to close below its 200-day moving average of above $111.
U.S. crude slipped 15 cents to $88.94 per barrel.
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12.04.2012
As organizations like the Federal Trade Commission issue revised guides to help ensure marketers make accurate claims about their products' environmental benefits, the American Consumer Institute (ACI) Center for Citizen Research today issued a new report that compares competing forest certification systems. The report examines the actual implementation of forest management practices compared to management plan claims, particularly by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). The discrepancies between the implementation and the perception of these certification programs could significantly impact timberland economics in the United States.
ACI President Steve Pociask stated, "ACI's earlier research on flawed FSC standards exposed that well-intentioned consumers could be paying as much as 20 percent more for sustainable forest products that fall far short of environmental expectations. This study details just how varied and inconsistent FSC's forest management practices are and underscores how FSC's allies have misinformed consumers of forest products across the country." Its findings also support the idea that policies supporting all credible forest certification programs lead to responsible land management rather than one that promotes FSC exclusively.
The report, "Comparing Forest Certification Standards in the U.S., Part I: How Are They Being Implemented Today?" was authored by Brooks Mendell, Ph.D. and Amanda Lang, forestry experts with Forisk Consulting. It analyzed the implementation of three prominent forest certification programs in the U.S.; FSC, American Tree Farm System (ATFS), and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI).
The report found that in the United States, forest management programs "were ambiguous, particularly FSC, with respect to certain certification criteria." The authors encourage customers of forest certification to question how these programs are actually implemented on the ground compared to specific program claims related to forest management.
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12.04.2012
While most newspapers have tried to protect their newsrooms from sweeping personnel cuts, once the business side is trimmed, the axe inevitably begins to fall among editorial staff.
In a memo to employees on Monday, New York Times executive editor Jill Abramson said she was hoping to find 30 newsroom managers (who don’t belong to a union) to accept buyout offers -- and warned that the company would resort to layoffs if it can’t find recruits.
In the memo, Abramson bluntly noted: “There is no getting around the hard news that the size of the newsroom staff must be reduced.” If all 30 buyout offers find takers, it will reduce the newsroom staff from around 1,150 people to 1,120, or 2.6%.
TheNYT’s newsroom staff is currently about the same size it was in 2003, according to a report in the newspaper, while the business side has reduced its workforce by over 60%.
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12.04.2012
News Corporation today announced that Dow Jones Editor-in-Chief and Managing Editor of The Wall Street Journal Robert Thomson will become the CEO of the new proposed publishing entity, following the Company's intended separation into two independent, publicly traded companies.
In keeping with the company's 60-year heritage of bringing news to the world, the publishing entity will retain the name News Corporation. The media and entertainment company, which began in earnest when Chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch acquired 20th Century Fox and launched the Fox Network more than 25 years ago, will be named Fox Group.
As previously announced, Rupert Murdoch will serve as Chairman of the new News Corporation and Chairman and CEO of Fox Group. Chase Carey will serve as President and Chief Operating Officer of Fox Group, with James Murdoch continuing in his capacity as Deputy Chief Operating Officer. Under their collective leadership, Fox Group will continue to strengthen its creative content businesses and distribution assets, including enhancing its sports portfolio through key investments in Asia, Europe and Latin America.
"This is an incredibly exciting time, for me personally, and for our companies' ambitious futures," said Rupert Murdoch. "The challenges we face in the publishing and media industries are great, but the opportunities are greater."
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12.04.2012
News Corporation is undergoing some structural changes and will be eliminating its daily iPad-only news app, The Daily, on December 15. The brand “will live on in other channels,” says the company in a statement.
“From its launch, The Daily was a bold experiment in digital publishing and an amazing vehicle for innovation,” says chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch in a press release. “Unfortunately, our experience was that we could not find a large enough audience quickly enough to convince us the business model was sustainable in the long-term. Therefore, we will take the very best of what we have learned at The Daily and apply it to all our properties.”
As initially reported by FOLIO:, News Corp. had spent more than $30 million on development of The Daily. In February 2011, it was reported that costs were less than $500,000 per week. "We'll be happy when we're selling millions," Murdoch said. "Our ambitions are high but the costs are low."
Greg Clayman, publisher of The Daily, will oversee the company’s digital strategy, new digital investments and distribution partnerships. Jesse Angelo, the founding editor-in-chief of The Daily and long-time executive editor of The New York Post, will assume the role of publisher of The New York Post. Technology and other assets from The Daily, including some staff, will be folded into The Post.
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12.04.2012
Flint Group North America has announced a 15% price increase on Varn® Anti-Set-off Spray Powder used in offset printing applications.
Like all graphic arts spray powders, Varn® Anti-Set-off Spray Powder is starch-based, made primarily from corn and other grain products.
The starch industry is experiencing a supply / demand imbalance due to years of sub-par crop yields, exacerbated by the 2012 drought. “Forecasts show that North American corn production in 2012 will be at its lowest since 2006,” notes Michael Kellen, Business Director, Pressroom Chemicals. “Conditions like these, paired with competing demand by industries such as ethanol, have caused costs of most food-grade starches to rise.”
As a result of these market conditions and rising raw material costs, Flint Group is implementing a 15% price increase on Varn® Anti-Set-off Spray Powder on all orders shipped within the US and Canada after January 1, 2013, subject to existing contracts.
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12.04.2012
Bemis Performance Packaging, a leading supplier of flexible packaging, pressure sensitive material and roll-fed labels announced it has received a special jury innovation design award from the 2012 Beverage World Global Packaging Design competition. The award honors the innovation of a special label produced by Bemis Performance Packaging. The Peel N’ Tear™ label is an extended roll-fed label providing a patented, perforated, removable coupon. The back of the coupon portion is printed to convey a variety of information including variable gaming, cross-merchandising, new product launches, or rebates and discounts. A full label remains on the bottle after the coupon is removed. As a result, the UPC and deposit copy remain, allowing the bottle to pass through the redemption and recycling processes.
The Peel N’ Tear™ label provides a unique solution for small bottle labels. The peel-able corner entices consumers to tear off the perforated coupon revealing the gaming code that drives consumers to the product’s website.
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12.04.2012
MeadWestvaco Corporation, a global leader in packaging and packaging solutions announced the completion of the purchase of Ruby Macons Limited (“Ruby Macons”). The India-based producer of high-quality corrugated packaging materials becomes a central component of MWV’s packaging platform in India and a key element of the company’s plans to grow in emerging markets. The transaction was completed on Nov. 30, 2012 and financial results for Ruby Macons will now be reported as part of MWV’s Industrial Packaging segment.
Ruby Macons is the market leader in corrugated packaging materials in India. The company currently produces over 150,000 tons of containerboard annually at two mills containing three paper machines in and around the city of Vapi, Gujarat. These assets, as well as a significant expansion project underway, will significantly increase capacity and accelerate MWV’s profitable growth in this fast growing region.
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12.04.2012
NewPage Corporation, a leading producer of high quality supercalendered rotogravure and offset printing papers, is pleased to announce today its Supercalendered Delivery Promise. Effective with confirmed orders with a requested delivery date on or after January 1, 2013, NewPage will assure that supercalendered paper will be provided to meet each and every press date. To demonstrate our confidence, customers will be entitled to a discount on their next order of similar size should NewPage not deliver on our Supercalendered Delivery Promise. “The Duluth, Minnesota, mill has been delivering on our commitments for 25 years,” said Dawn Polaski, Customer Service manager at the NewPage Duluth mill. “We are thrilled to continue this legacy by offering the Supercalendered Delivery Promise.”
The Supercalendered Delivery Promise is available to all customers requesting shipments of supercalendered paper in the United States (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) from the NewPage Duluth mill. “We are pleased to offer our customers the extra assurance that their paper will arrive when and where it is needed,” stated Ethan Haas, general manager, Supercalendered Papers. “Our Customer Service, Operations and Logistics teams have consistently proven that they have the focus, follow-through and longevity that are superior to many other supercalendered mills in North America. Our geographical location has always provided a logistical advantage to our customers. This program will allow us to further reduce the supply risk to our customers’ supercalendered papers purchasing programs.”
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12.03.2012
R. R. Donnelley & Sons Company today announced the availability of its RRD ActiveDisclosureSM system, a cloud-based solution to draft, collaborate on, and finalize Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) disclosures and other filing requirements. It combines an award-winning solution with RR Donnelley's experienced team of service professionals to help enterprises create and manage disclosures, making the process faster and easier, and enabling C-level executives and financial reporting teams to focus on all aspects of governance, risk and compliance (GRC), as well as other business critical activities.
Since the SEC introduced XBRL filing regulations, companies have started adopting disclosure management software applications that improve the overall process. The RRD ActiveDisclosure system gives users greater control over the creation of their periodic disclosures, allowing teams to collaborate in real time and improve the efficiency of their end-to-end processes. The tool's integrated XBRL features help ensure the completeness of XBRL tagging and built-in validation provides assurance prior to filing. The software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution allows users to benefit from productivity tools that they are already familiar with as well as from the flexibility and scalability of the cloud.
"Our RRD ActiveDisclosure system arms organizations with the expertise and technology needed to improve internal and external collaboration, streamline the disclosure management process, and allow more time for business-critical activities," said Tom Juhase, President of RR Donnelley's Financial Services offering. "However, savvy executives know that improved disclosure management is only one benefit of making data more dynamic and therefore more useful. Our RRD ActiveDisclosure system continues to deliver enhancements to our vision of providing clients with the service and tools needed to gain better business insight, make better strategic decisions, and embrace active GRC practices."
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12.03.2012
More than 40 percent of magazines surveyed saw concurrent print and digital audience growth in the fall of 2012, according to the most recent study by GfK MRI.
Of the 118 titles reported to have experienced print growth from the spring of this year, 78 of them, or 43 percent, also saw digital audience gains. On the digital-only side, 119 publications had their audiences rise, including 25 with previous digital audiences of less than 1,000.
Overall, average total print audience rose by 1.3 percent, while average total digital audience increased by 47.5 percent.
Six magazines-Handy, Street Rodder, Outside, Four Wheeler, Conde Nast Traveler and Diabetes Self-Management-reached benchmarks of double-digit print growth and triple-digit digital growth.
The correlation between print and digital growth is substantially stronger than the 43-percent figure suggests however.
While 40 of those publications with growth on the print side saw digital audiences stay flat or decline in the fall, only 11 were due to actual decreases in audience. The remaining three-quarters had no digital presence in the spring and continued that trend into the fall-essentially, a null set.
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12.03.2012
Top forecasters said Monday they expect modest ad-spending growth over the next few years. Predictions were offered by ZenithOptimedia, GroupM and Magna Global at the UBS Global Media & Communications Conference in New York Monday. (See separate story on Magna forecast).
Global ad spending will pick up a little steam in the future, according to Publicis Groupe’s ZenithOptimedia. Spending will climb from 4.1% growth in 2013 for a total of $518 billion to 5.6% growth in 2015, reaching $574 billion.
GroupM is also calling for moderate growth next year -- 4.5%. It cited continuing economic woes in Europe and a lack of blockbuster events that drive advertising, such as Olympics and U.S. elections.
With just a month to go in the current year, ZO now believes global spending growth in 2012 will be 3.3% to about $497 billion. That’s a downgrade from the forecast the agency put out just two months ago, the final months of this year have turned softer than expected. GroupM’s global 2012 estimate is a little higher -- up 3.5% -- while Magna is estimating growth this year of 3.8%.
In the U.S. Zenith is forecasting 4.3% growth for 2012 for total major media spending of $161 billion. Next year, the shop sees growth decelerating in the U.S. to 3.5%, with spending reaching nearly $166.5 billion. Growth rates in the following two years will climb to 4.4% and 4.7% respectively, per the forecast.
GroupM is somewhat more pessimistic about the U.S., estimating 3.5% growth for this year, but 2.7% for 2013. “While we are well past the worst of the economic downturn, economic growth remains slow,” ZO stated in the U.S. portion of its forecast. “We continue to see TV dollars moving from network to cable, and this trend will likely continue as the cable networks add quality programming to their lineup.”
Print will continue to lose share to digital media, ZO said, while noting that mobile devices are breathing some new life into the magazine category. Digital media once again showed the largest spending growth gains in 2012, with mobile soaring nearly 50%, social media rising 37% and online video climbing 29%. Paid search was up 15%.
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12.03.2012
The all-you-can-eat digital magazine project Next Issue is adding even more value to its multi-title subscription service. The coalition of five magazine publishers announced this week the addition of eight new titles to its app-based newsstand. ESPN The Magazine, Fast Company, Food & Wine, Men's Fitness, Men's Journal, New York Magazine and Travel + Leisure are either currently in the Next issue library or are coming in the next month’s issue.
Next Issue launched earlier this year with an all-in-one app strategy that gives subscribers unlimited access to titles in the newsstand for either a $9.99 monthly fee for most of the titles or $14.99 for additional “premium” titles. The additions bring the library to 73 magazines in the Basic collection and 80 in the Premium tier. Prices remain the same after the new titles are added. Next Issue is including the new additions in its holiday gift promotions.
Next Issue is a joint venture created several years ago by five of the largest magazine publishers to explore new models and formats for digital magazines. The companies -- Conde Nast, Hearst, Meredith, News Corp and Time, Inc. -- all have robust digital magazine programs separate from Next Issue. Initially, the JV was looking into standardized formats and models for delivering digital magazines even before the Apple iPad formally launched. That mission evolved into creating a buffet-style magazine newsstand app that could bundle many titles for a single subscription price. Many of the titles in the Next issue app have some or all of the enhanced functionality of their respective iPad, Nook, Kindle or Android versions. But the newsstand app allows the subscriber to access multiple titles in one place, including recent back issues of each publication.
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12.03.2012
Bonnier Corporation’s Caribbean Travel + Life magazine will cease publication beginning next year. Additionally, its Discovery Channel television program will not be revived.
“As part of this initiative, Islands will increase its frequency to 10x, while Caribbean Travel + Life ceases publication after its Jan./Feb. 13 issue,” an internal announcement from the company says. “By blending content, staff, resources, audiences and business opportunities formerly split between Islands and Caribbean Travel + Life, the Islands brand will be better positioned to compete aggressively and earnestly within all travel segments worldwide.”
To ensure that the title remains relevant among its newly Caribbean-focused audience and advertising parents, Bonnier says, Islands will produce two Caribbean-themed issues in May and November, as well as dedicating consistent pages focused on that region within departments and feature wells of each issue.
“By merging Islands’ traditionally strong inspirational content with an infusion of service-based content both in print and digitally, the brand will better meet the needs of its engaged traveling audience in all media channels,” the company’s announcement says.
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12.03.2012
FedEx Corp. will increase shipping rates for FedEx Ground and FedEx Home Delivery by a net average of 4.9% effective January 7, 2013.
The FedEx Ground and FedEx Home Delivery full average rate increase of 5.9% will be partially offset by adjusting the fuel price threshold at which the fuel surcharge begins, reducing the fuel surcharge by one percentage point. FedEx SmartPost rates also will change.
Details of surcharge changes and new rates for FedEx Ground will be available at fedex.com/us/2013rates on Dec. 7, 2012.
FedEx previously announced on Sept. 18, 2012 that it will increase shipping rates for FedEx Express by a net average of 3.9% for U.S. domestic, U.S. export and U.S. import services also effective January 7, 2013. FedEx Freight implemented a 6.9% general rate increase on July 9, 2012.
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12.03.2012
The paper mill in Manistique has a soggy burnt mess to clean up after a fire broke out in a pile of paper bales Thursday night. No injuries were reported, according to Manistique Public Safety, which responded to the blaze.
Officers and volunteer firefighters were dispatched at 8:14 p.m. to the report of a fire at FutureMark Paper Mill at 453 S. Mackinac St. The business was formerly Manistique Papers.
"Mill employees reported that the fire was located in a large storage pile of paper bales located outside of the mill but adjacent to the southwest corner of the building, near the clippings shed," stated Public Safety Director Ken Golat in a news release this morning.
When firefighters arrived, mill employees were in the process of fighting the blaze - which involved about 900 large bales of paper, he said.
The bales had to be torn down to properly extinguish each one, slowing down firefighting efforts; the 21-degree temperature also hampered suppression efforts, according to the news release.
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11.30.2012
Magazines’ newsstand sales may be struggling, but there’s a bright spot when it comes to digital readership. Today, GfK MRI released its fall 2012 Survey of the American Consumer, which tracks print and digital magazine readership, and found that magazine readership had increased by 1.6 percent (or nearly 20 million people) to 1.2 billion people since last spring. That was helped by a significant bump in digital consumption: Readership of magazines' digital editions jumped 47 percent, or 4.4 million people, to more than 13.5 million.
Among the magazines with the biggest digital readerships were ESPN The Magazine, which had 967,000 digital-only readers (despite a drop in overall readership), WebMD the Magazine (767,000 digital readers), and Food Network Magazine (541,000).
Still in growth mode, Food Network Magazine also had the largest overall readership increase in raw numbers, adding nearly 1.3 million readers (or 14 percent) across print and digital. Other big readership gainers were big-circulation titles like AARP The Magazine and TV Guide (up 4 percent and 8.6 percent, respectively) as well as two more food titles, Bon Appétit and Cooking with Paula Deen. (Speaking of Paula Deen, Diabetic Cooking magazine had the third-highest readers increase of any magazine, while Diabetes Forecast and Diabetes Self-Management also saw big gains.)
Thought-leader titles such as The Atlantic, Time, Wired, New York and Texas Monthly all gained readers between the spring and fall surveys (during the same time that the heated 2012 election cycle was nearing its end). Special-interest magazines about gaming, cars and motorcycles, and the outdoors also increased their numbers. MRI compared its fall and spring surveys because a change in methodology made year-over-year comparisons invalid.
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11.30.2012
Next Issue Media, the company formed by a consortium of big magazine publishers to expand the market for digital magazines, is adding eight new titles to its catalog of iPad editions. The additions bring the total number of magazine titles available through its unlimited subscription plans to 80.
The new titles added to NIM’s iPad catalog include ESPN The Magazine, Fast Company, Food & Wine, Inc., Men’s Fitness, Men’s Journal, New York andTravel + Leisure. These titles are available through two unlimited subscription plans. The Unlimited Basic plans give access to all 73 monthly and biweekly titles for $9.99 per month, while the Unlimited Premium plan gives access to all these as well as seven weekly titles for $14.99 per month. Both plans also offer unlimited access to back issues.
NIM has also launched a gift campaign encouraging consumers to give subscriptions as gifts to friends and families this holiday season; buyers can choose from 3-, 6-, and 12-month gift subscriptions to the Unlimited Premium.
In October, NIM CEO Morgan Guenther shared some statistics about early NIM subscribers with attendees at the American Magazine Conference. According to Guenther, 82% of subscribers have an annual household income over $75,000, and the overall average household income is $148,000. They are heavily engaged with the content, with unlimited premium subscribers spending an average 90 minutes per week using the NIM app, and unlimited basic subscribers spending 70 minutes.
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11.30.2012
Total European shipments of graphic papers in October increased 2.4% vs. 2011 and are down 4.1% year-to-date. Total European shipments of Newsprint in October increased 3.3% vs. 2011 and are down 3.2% year-to-date. Total European shipments of SC-Magazine grades in October were down 0.9% vs. 2011 and are down 5% year-to-date. Total European shipments of Coated Mechanical Reels in October increased 0.1% vs. 2011 and are down 7.0% year-to-date. Total European shipments of Uncoated Mechanical (Improved & Others) in October were up 1.7% vs. 2011 and are down 3.5% year-to-date. Total European shipments of Coated Woodfree in October were up 6% vs 2011 and are down 2.9% year-to-date. Total European shipments of Uncoated Woodfree in October were up 2.6% vs. 2011 and are down 3.0% year-to-date.
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11.30.2012
AAA’s Fuel Gage Report as of 11/30/12
National Unleaded Regular:
Current Average - $3.402/gallon
Month Ago Average - $3.521/gallon
Year Ago Average - $3.295/gallon
Highest Recorded Average - $4.114/gallon on 7/17/08
Diesel:
Current Average - $4.017/gallon
Month Ago Average - $3.847/gallon
Year Ago Average - $3.957/gallon
Highest Recorded Average - $4.845/gallon on 7/17/08
Current Exchange Rates as of 11/30/12
American Dollar to Canadian Dollar = 1.007570
American Dollar to Chinese Yuan = 0.160518
American Dollar to Euro = 1.300614
American Dollar to Japanese Yen = 0.012095
American Dollar to Mexican Peso = 0.077437
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11.30.2012
Oil headed for its first monthly gain since August in New York amid signs of economic growth in the U.S. and China, the world’s biggest crude consumers.
West Texas Intermediate futures were little changed after climbing 1.8 percent yesterday, the most since Nov. 19. Prices will probably be stable next week amid talks in Washington aimed at avoiding more than $600 billion in spending cuts and tax increases known as the fiscal cliff that are due to kick in next year, according to a Bloomberg survey. The U.S. economy expanded more than previously estimated last quarter, the Commerce Department said in Washington.
“What could initiate a rally is a resolution to the fiscal cliff,” said Torbjoern Kjus, a senior oil analyst at DNB ASA (DNB) in Oslo. “There will be a compromise reached and that could unleash a rally. I expect there’ll be a strong start to the year in the oil market.”
Crude for January delivery was at $88.12 a barrel, up 5 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 12:02 p.m. London time. The contract gained $1.58 yesterday to $88.07. Prices are up 2.2 percent this month. WTI has lost 11 percent this year, the worst annual performance since 2008.
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11.30.2012
At the New Generation Plantation Project (NGPP) conference organised this week in the capital of Uruguay in Montevideo, UPM showcased how it manages sustainable forestry plantations. The international conference was attended by forestry, plantation and sustainability experts from all over the world as well as global companies and representatives of the Uruguayan government.
Opening the conference Tabare Aguerre, the Uruguayan Minister for Agriculture, highlighted the fact that Uruguay is the only country in South America that had actually increased its area of native forest in the last twenty years.
Minister Aguerre said: “Plantation forestry has helped develop and diversify the Uruguayan economy and continues to attract investments”.
“Well-managed plantations can have a positive role to play in economic, social and environmental development when they are managed in accordance with the concepts of the New Generation Plantation Project”, said Luis Neves Silva of WWF, Manager of the NGPP.
“Our approach to plantation management is aligned with the New Generation Plantation Principles. Wherever we operate, we respect the rights of local communities and protect ecosystems and natural forests. All of our eucalyptus plantations in Uruguay are FSC and PEFC certified,” says Javier Solari, Vice President of UPM’s Plantation Operations.
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11.30.2012
Pacific Sunwear of California, Inc., announced today that net sales for the third quarter of fiscal 2012 ended October 27, 2012, were $228.4 million versus net sales of $226.8 million for the third quarter of fiscal 2011 ended October 29, 2011. Total Company same-store sales increased 1% during the period.
On a GAAP basis, the Company reported income from continuing operations of $0.9 million, or $0.01 per diluted share, for the third quarter of fiscal 2012, compared to a loss from continuing operations of $14.0 million, or $(0.21) per diluted share, for the third quarter of fiscal 2011. Income from continuing operations for the Company's third quarter of fiscal 2012 included a non-cash gain of $5.6 million, or $0.08 per diluted share, related to a derivative liability that resulted from the issuance of the Convertible Series B Preferred Stock (the "Series B Preferred") in connection with the term loan financing the Company completed in December 2011.
On a non-GAAP basis, excluding store closure related charges of $1.7 million and the non-cash gain on derivative liability of $5.6 million, and using a normalized annual income tax rate of approximately 37%, the Company would have incurred a loss from continuing operations for the third quarter of fiscal 2012 of $1.8 million, or $(0.03) per share, as compared to a loss from continuing operations of $7.1 million, or $(0.11) per share, for the same period a year ago.
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11.30.2012
Barnes & Noble, Inc. today reported sales and earnings for its fiscal 2013 second quarter ended October 27, 2012.
Second quarter consolidated revenues were $1.9 billion, a decrease of 0.4% as compared to the prior year. Second quarter consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) increased 16% as compared to a year ago to $65 million. Consolidated second quarter net earnings attributable to Barnes & Noble were $2 million, as compared to a loss of $7 million in the prior year. Second quarter net losses attributable to Barnes & Noble were $0.04 per share, which includes the impact of the dividend on redeemable preferred shares, as compared to a loss of $0.17 per share a year ago.
“In addition to growing our EBITDA 16% during the quarter, the company also completed the formation of our promising NOOK Media subsidiary and closed our investment from Microsoft,” said William Lynch, Chief Executive Officer of Barnes & Noble. “We expect our two highly acclaimed new NOOK products, and our Microsoft partnership on Windows 8 to further fuel the growth of our digital business, and are encouraged by the promising start to the holidays in our retail and digital businesses.
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11.30.2012
Gap Inc. today reported that November 2012 net sales increased 3 percent compared with last year.
Net sales for the four-week period ended November 24, 2012 were $1.52 billion compared with net sales of $1.47 billion for the four-week period ended November 26, 2011. The company’s comparable sales for November 2012 were up 3 percent compared with a 5 percent decrease for November 2011.
Comparable sales for November 2012 were as follows:
•Gap North America: positive 5 percent versus negative 2 percent last year
•Banana Republic North America: positive 3 percent versus flat last year
•Old Navy North America: positive 1 percent versus negative 7 percent last year
•International: positive 3 percent versus negative 9 percent last year
Year-to-date net sales were $12.44 billion for the 43 weeks ended November 24, 2012, an increase of 6 percent compared with net sales of $11.73 billion for the 43 weeks ended November 26, 2011. The company’s year-to-date comparable sales increased 4 percent compared with a 3 percent decrease last year.
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11.30.2012
Nordstrom, Inc. today reported a 1.1 percent decrease in same-store sales for the four-week period ended November 24, 2012 compared with the four-week period ended November 26, 2011. Preliminary total retail sales of $926 million for November 2012 increased 1.8 percent compared with total retail sales of $910 million for the same period in fiscal 2011.
Sales were weaker in the first half of the month, largely attributable to a lower than planned Half-Yearly Sale for Women and Kids. Customers continue to demonstrate a strong preference for fashion and newness, which has made clearance events less compelling. Sales also were unfavorably impacted by store closures in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions due to Hurricane Sandy. Sales trends in the second half of the month rebounded to their recent historical level.
Year-to-date same-store sales increased 6.7 percent compared with the same period in fiscal 2011. Preliminary year-to-date total retail sales of $9.09 billion increased 10.4 percent compared with total retail sales of $8.24 billion for the same period in fiscal 2011.
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11.30.2012
Kohl’s Corporation reported today that for the four-week month ended November 24, 2012 total sales decreased 4.9 percent and comparable store sales decreased 5.6 percent from the four-week month ended November 26, 2011. Year to date, total sales increased 0.4 percent and comparable store sales decreased 1.1 percent.
Kevin Mansell, Kohl’s chairman, president and chief executive officer, commented, “Though November sales were lower than expectations, we are encouraged by improved sales over the Thanksgiving week. There was a significant shift in Black Friday-related sales into our E-Commerce channel. For the week, both transactions and sales in E-Commerce increased over 50 percent with most of these sales being recognized in December. The combination of these E-Commerce sales and our store sales resulted in higher sales for the last week of the month.”
All regions reported negative sales for the month. The Mid-Atlantic and Northeast were the most challenging regions due to weak sales early in the month following Superstorm Sandy. Children’s was the strongest line of business.
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11.29.2012
The Bon-Ton Stores, Inc. today announced comparable store sales in the four weeks ended November 24, 2012 decreased 0.1%. Total sales decreased 0.8% to $301.3 million in the current year compared with $303.6 million in the prior year period.
Year-to-date comparable store sales increased 0.2%. Year-to-date total sales were slightly above last year at $2,205.7 million, compared with $2,205.1 million in the same period last year.
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11.29.2012
Stein Mart, Inc. today reported comparable store sales for the four-week period ended November 24, 2012 increased 7.1 percent. Total sales for the period were $109.8 million, an increase of 7.5 percent from $102.1 million in the same period in 2011.
All merchandise categories posted positive comps for the month with linens, men's furnishings and ladies' career sportswear performing the best and ladies' casual sportswear, ladies' accessories and dresses performing lower than the chain. Geographically, sales increased in every state except New Jersey, with the Gulf States and the Southeast performing better than the chain and the West slightly lower.
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11.29.2012
Sun Chemical today announces a price increase for its European customers across all Sun Chemical product lines, effective from January 1st 2013.The percentage increase will be in the high single digits and will vary dependent on the product composition and product line.
Sun Chemical will communicate specific increases directly with customers.
Despite average raw material prices stabilising in 2012, costs have risen on an annual basis and further increases are expected for 2013. These are mainly due to production and environmental restrictions on key materials, weaker value of the Euro and high demand levels.
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11.29.2012
Sappi Fine Paper North America has learned that, in a vote yesterday, the Cloquet Mill employees represented by the United Steelworkers (USW) have authorized their leadership to call a strike if it chooses to do so. "Even though such a vote is not uncommon, and does not mean a strike will occur, we are very disappointed in the membership's action, given our fair and competitive contract package," said Rick Dwyer, Managing Director, Cloquet, Sappi Fine Paper North America.
In addition to offering a very competitive package, Sappi is making a major commitment to the Cloquet site and its employees. The $170 million capital project to convert the pulp mill to specialized cellulose will help provide attractive jobs for years to come. At a time of so much industry uncertainty, including bankruptcies, mill closures and layoffs, we are disappointed that our employees would risk a potential strike over the highly competitive, total compensation and benefits package offered by Sappi.
We are hopeful that our Cloquet employees represented by the USW, on reflection, will ratify the contract. However, in the event the Steelworkers strike, we will fully pursue our legally protected right to operate the mill, and supply our customers and are prepared to do so.
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11.29.2012
For years we have been talking about how magazines are bringing their content to the iPad. And now Apple has reversed that polarity a bit and brought the digital magazine back onto the pages of some of the highest profile weekly books. In a highly creative back page execution that readers have detected at Time and New Yorker, Apple takes the current week’s cover for the respective magazine and “Mini-aturizes” it on the back cover. That is, an ad for the iPad Mini shows the new 7.9-inch tablet at scale in the lower right corner and containing the digital edition cover of the same magazine. Apple has also done this with the monthlies Marie Claire and Women's Health. Apple agency TBWA/Media Arts Lab tells Mashable that it is looking ofrward to doing more.
The ad campaign makes the point that the newsstand reader or subscriber to the magazine can get the exact content also on their iPad Mini. Both Time and New Yorker are available in the iOS Newsstand. The image to the right was prodcued at the Apple news blog 9to5Mac.
The ad campaign speaks to a new aggressiveness by Apple in promoting their device. The company tends to emphasize TV spots and some online rich media display creative in its product roll-outs. That the company is using a more highly targeted approach by customizing the creative to the individual magazines speaks to Apple’s increasing friendliness towards the media companies that provide its devices content. Lest we forget, it was only in the last year that Apple accommodated magazines’ need for greater flexibility in the business models in the App Store and launched the “Newsstand” and marketed magazines as a discrete category in the App Store. Now it is buying ad space in the very print media many feel its tablets are supplanting, and delivering a message about that very migration from print to digital. Will the ironies ever cease?
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11.29.2012
Catalyst Paper announced that it has accepted a qualified stalking horse bid from MLR Ventures, LLC (the Stalking Horse) as part of the sales process for disposition of the Snowflake facility and Apache Railway.
“We have received a $12.0 million Stalking Horse bid for the assets and land associated with the Snowflake facility and the equity of Apache Railway,” said President and Chief Executive Officer Kevin J. Clarke. “We look forward to beginning the next phase of the sale process and to identifying a qualified buyer in the near term.”
The bid by the Stalking Horse is subject to higher and better offers obtained through the US Court-approved sale and investor solicitation procedures. Catalyst Paper expects to receive binding bids for the assets from qualified bidders on December 7, 2012 and expects to hold an auction among qualified bidders on December 17, 2012 in New York City. A hearing in the US Court is scheduled for December 19, 2012 to consider approval of the sale.
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11.29.2012
Brown Printing has signed a multi-year agreement to print and distribute The Weekly Standard.
Under the agreement, starting in December 2012, Brown will produce The Standard at its East Greenville facility and distribute the magazine using local and regional entry into the USPS system as well as airfreight to western states, thus enabling faster delivery. The Weekly Standard has subscribers in every state and a paid circulation of approximately 95,000.
“We are pleased to be working with Brown Printing,” said Terry Eastland, publisher of The Weekly Standard, “and we look forward to a partnership that will ensure excellent production each time we go to press and also the best distribution once the magazine is printed and bound.”
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11.29.2012
Oil rose for the first time in four days in New York after U.S. stockpiles declined unexpectedly and political leaders in the world’s biggest crude consumer expressed optimism about agreeing on a federal budget.
Futures advanced as much as 1.2 percent after sliding 0.8 percent yesterday to a two-week low. Republican House Speaker John Boehner believes talks on tax increases and spending cuts known collectively as the fiscal cliff can “avert this crisis sooner rather than later,” he told reporters. President Barack Obama said he hopes to reach a deal before Christmas. U.S. crude supplies slid 347,000 barrels last week, an Energy Department report showed. They were forecast to climb 350,000 barrels, according to a Bloomberg News survey of analysts.
“The oil market is still reasonably tight,” said Tobias Merath, head of commodity research at Credit Suisse AG in Zurich, who predicts crude will rise about $5 a barrel over the next three months. “There could be a year-end rally for crude as global supply growth seems to be peaking, and economic growth has surprised a bit to the upside.”
West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery climbed as much as $1.01 to $87.50 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $87.49 at 10:48 a.m. London time.
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11.29.2012
Aeropostale, Inc., a mall-based specialty retailer of casual apparel for young women and men, today reported results for the third quarter of fiscal 2012, and provided guidance for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2012.
Third Quarter Performance
Diluted net earnings for the third quarter of 2012 were $0.31 per share, compared to $0.30 per diluted share in the same period last year. Net income for the third quarter of 2012 was $24.9 million, compared to net income of $24.1 million last year.
For the third quarter of fiscal 2012, net sales increased 2% to $605.9 million, from $596.5 million in the year ago period. Comparable sales, including the e-commerce channel, for the third quarter decreased 1% compared to a 7% decrease last year. Comparable store sales, excluding the e-commerce channel, for the third quarter decreased 2%, compared to a 9% decrease last year.
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11.29.2012
American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. today announced that income from continuing operations increased 37% to $0.41 per diluted share for the third quarter ended October 27, 2012, compared to $0.30 per diluted share for the comparable quarter last year. Due to the exit of the 77kids business, its results are presented as discontinued operations for all periods and are further discussed below. Net income for the third quarter, which includes a loss from discontinued operations, was $0.39 per diluted share, compared to $0.27 per diluted share last year.
Third Quarter Results - Continuing Operations (Excluding 77kids)
• Net sales increased 11% to a record $910 million, compared to $819 million last year.
• Comparable store sales, including AE Direct, increased 10%, compared to a 7% increase last year.
• Gross profit increased 21% to $379 million and increased 350 basis points to 41.6% as a rate to sales. Within gross margin, the merchandise margin improved 290 basis points primarily as a result of improved product costs and lower markdowns. Buying, occupancy and warehousing costs leveraged 60 basis points due to strong sales.
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11.29.2012
Limited Brands, Inc. reported a comparable store sales increase of 5 percent for the four weeks ended Nov. 24, 2012, compared to the four weeks ended Nov. 26, 2011. The company reported net sales of $922.0 million for the four weeks ended Nov. 24, 2012, compared to net sales of $872.6 million last year.
The company reported a comparable store sales increase of 7 percent for the 43 weeks ended Nov. 24, 2012, compared to the 43 weeks ended Nov. 26, 2011. The company reported net sales of $7.525 billion for the 43 weeks ended Nov. 24, 2012, compared to net sales of $7.721 billion last year.
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11.29.2012
J.Crew Group, Inc. today announced financial results for the three months and the nine months ended October 27, 2012.
On March 7, 2011, J.Crew was acquired by investment funds affiliated with TPG Capital, L.P. and Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. Although the Company continued as the same legal entity after the acquisition, last year's financial statements were prepared for the following periods: (i) March 8, 2011 to October 29, 2011 (Successor) and (ii) January 30, 2011 to March 7, 2011 (Predecessor). To facilitate a meaningful comparison of our results, we have presented a pro forma statement of operations for the first nine months of fiscal 2011, which reflects the combination of the Successor and Predecessor periods, giving effect to the acquisition and related transactions as if they occurred on the first day of the fiscal year. The results of the third quarter of fiscal 2011 have not been prepared on a pro forma basis, as the transaction was effective prior to the first day of the quarter.
Third Quarter highlights:
•Revenues increased 16% to $555.8 million, with comparable company sales increasing 10%. Comparable company sales increased 5% in the third quarter last year. Store sales increased 17% to $391.7 million. Store sales increased 10% in the third quarter last year. Direct sales increased 13% to $156.8 million following an increase of 18% in the third quarter last year.
•Gross margin increased to 47.3% from 42.1% in the third quarter last year. Last year included amortization of inventory step-up from purchase accounting of $5.8 million.
•Selling, general and administrative expenses increased to $188.6 million, or 33.9% of revenues, from $143.9 million, or 30.0% of revenues, in the third quarter last year. This year reflects additional share-based and incentive compensation of $8.3 million. Last year included transaction-related net insurance recoveries of $3.6 million.
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11.29.2012
Graphic Packaging Holding Company, a leading provider of packaging solutions to food, beverage and other consumer products companies, today announced an agreement for one of its subsidiaries to acquire A&R Carton's Beer and Beverage packaging business in Europe.
"The acquisition of A&R Carton's Beer and Beverage packaging business enhances our position in the European beverage packaging market and enables us to extend our customer reach in the region," said David Scheible, Graphic Packaging's President and Chief Executive Officer. "A&R has a solid reputation as an innovative beverage packaging supplier and the combination allows us to better serve our global beverage customers with a broader base of new products and services. Similar to our strategy in the U.S., we are committed to growing our European business around food and beverage end markets and optimizing our supply chain footprint around our customers' needs. The A&R acquisition, combined with last week's announced acquisition of Contego Cartons, gives Graphic Packaging a significant position in the European folding carton market and widens the Company's global footprint."
Under the terms of the transaction, Graphic Packaging will pay approximately €19 million in cash and assume approximately €7 million in other net liabilities. The transaction will be funded with existing cash and borrowings from the Company's current revolving line of credit. The A&R Beer and Beverage packaging business includes two manufacturing facilities that convert approximately 30,000 tons of paperboard annually. The folding carton facilities are located in the Netherlands and Germany. The acquisition is subject to standard closing requirements and is expected to close in late December.
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