Technical wizardry will support 2012’s Paralympic Games May 20, 2012 Wheelchair Rugby: Defence Invented in 1977, this intense Paralympic sport is a mixture of aspects from basketball, handball and ice hockey. Fast-paced and full-contact, it is a sport that demands robust chairs to stand up to the crash of action. Ottobock’s Wolturnus wheelchairs, suitable for wheelchair rugby and basketball, use the latest alloys to create [...]
Why Sainsbury’s is backing the Paralympics: Jat Sahota May 20, 2012 Q Sainsbury’s is the first-ever Paralympic Games only sponsor. Is this a breakthrough year for the Paralympics as an event? A Being the first standalone partner of the Paralympic Games is something we are extremely proud of. We have the ambition to make it the best Paralympic Games ever through driving awareness and engagement. We’re [...]
A modest shirt-maker with an inspiring outfit May 20, 2012 IT’S not uncommon for successful entrepreneurs to be modest, but it rarely comes across as entirely genuine. The self-effacing Nicholas Charles Tyrwhitt Wheeler is the real deal. For Wheeler, the customer is king. He says: “One of the defining moments in my whole life was when I worked at Harrods and they put me in [...]
Your idea to make millions is worth much less than you think May 20, 2012 PLEASE ensure you’re sitting down because I want to shock you. Despite the popular wisdom, most “amazing” and “brilliant” business start-up ideas and inventions are worthless. Yours, mine, and just about everyone else’s. They have no value. Scream and shout all you like, but after backing over 80 start-ups and reading more than 10,000 business [...]
Venture capital can come at a high cost May 20, 2012 DRAGON’S Den might make entertaining television, but it delivers a warped view of venture capitalism. A new paper from Coutts, The Price of Growth, suggests entrepreneurs have a much more distant relationship with venture capital than the one portrayed by the media. The standout findings are: ■ 72 per cent of entrepreneurs do not believe [...]
How to get on the housing ladder May 20, 2012 THERE is no doubt about it. It’s tough out there for first time buyers. But stricter lending criteria don’t necessarily mean it’s impossible to get on the housing ladder. However, you must know the basics so you can build your decision on strong foundations. DO THE MATHS Incentives matter. It was recently confirmed by the [...]
House prices in the capital are detached by location May 20, 2012 London’s property market is outperforming but some boroughs are well off the pace LONDON Neither London, nor England and Wales, have returned to their 2008 peaks – but London is close. From March 2009, prices have grown 16 per cent in London compared to 6 per cent in England and Wales as a whole. However, [...]
Transport and schools are key to valuations May 20, 2012 TRYING to predict where London’s house prices will go as a whole is a fools errand. The house price earnings ratio suggests property remains overvalued, but the influx of foreign cash combined with inflexible planning restrictions could see prices continue to rise. It’s easier – and more fruitful – to weigh up different areas. THE [...]
Fourth straight dip for the FTSE May 17, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index closed below 5,400 for the first time this year yesterday, extending its falls to a fourth straight session as jitters over turmoil in the Eurozone dominated the market backdrop. Weaker banks were the biggest drag on sentiment, reflecting exposure to Eurozone debt as worries about Spanish banks and the country’s increasing [...]
Data disappoints as stocks drop May 17, 2012 US stocks hit a four-month low yesterday as rising Spanish bond yields increased investor anxiety over that country’s banks and another round of weak data undermined hopes for US economic recovery. Growing worries over developments in the Eurozone and lackluster economic data pushed the S&P’s losing streak to five consecutive days. The index, which closed [...]