Rexel set sail for America. The French group announced Wednesday the acquisition of Platt Electric Supply, family owned distributor of electrical products based in Beaverton, Oregon.

When most companies focus on international emerging markets, Rexel, which is one of the first groups of distribution of electrical products in the world with a turnover of 12.7 billion euros in 2011, a presence in 37 countries and 28,000 employees, is growing into a mature country. Mature, but growing: last year, the activity of the distributor posted 8.3% growth for the North American region, which is above the group average of 5.3%. As emphasized by analysts at CM-CIC Securities, "in the portfolio of Rexel, North America is the geographical area the more focused, both in terms of sales growth as improved profitability."

Now the distributor has lost market share in recent years. Last April, Oddo Securities and stressed that "the group, by the closure of many branches in non-profitable, went for about two years of a market share of 8% to 6% today." Analysts felt that even Rexel now occupied the second rank in the U.S., behind Sonepar. They called again to an acquisition.

This is now done. Platt Electric Supply is present in seven states of the American West. The company reported last year $ 409 million in revenue (about 310 million euros) savings account payday advance. "With this transaction, Rexel will exceed 10% market share in the western U.S., where growth is greatest," said a spokesman for Rexel.

To gain this market share, the French group paid a heavy price, "about 300 million euros," said a statement from the company. "The multiple of turnover in 2011 seems a priori quite high, at nearly 1 times, but the price is probably justified by the financial performance of the company and its growth prospects," note analysts at CM-CIC Securities.

690 million of additional sales

External growth is part of Rexel's strategy. The movement seems to have accelerated in recent months. "The group has now made nine acquisitions since the beginning of the year for a total amount that we estimate close to 500 million euros and an additional turnover of 690 million euros," says Oddo Securities. Last year, Rexel had bought 10 companies for an additional revenue of "only" 209 million euros.

Three quarters of this comes from emerging countries, proof that the distributor is not as mature areas. With a successful trial for the time being insufficient for the observers. "Rexel is not an optimal profile as its exposure to emerging markets remain close to 7% of turnover," says Oddo Securities.

Research in Motion (RIM) launched Operation Last Chance. The Canadian group yesterday presented a prototype of the interface it wants to develop its next smartphone called BlackBerry 10, scheduled for the end of the year. Great break with previous phones brand, there will be more keyboard, the main element that differentiated the BlackBerry of its major rivals.

RIM programmers gathered in Orlando, Florida for its annual meeting and gave them the prototype of its operating system so that they begin to develop compatible applications. A specific series of video games is also being prepared by the publisher Gameloft.

The group, which saw sales of its BlackBerry decline from 25% last quarter, hopes its new interface will help him return to the market to compete with the leaders, Apple – former direct rival of RIM today ahead – and Samsung phones side, and operating systems, Apple and Google holding 80% market share.

The new RIM will also be used by the tablet group, Playbook, whose sales have failed to take off since its launch. Models include the keyboard will continue, also, to be produced.

The announcement of the Canadian group has in any case, not to enthusiastic markets. The action of RIM fell 5% on Tuesday afternoon in Toronto.

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"Te koop," panels "for sale" are hung at the windows of apartments in Rotterdam as those of great houses in Het Gooi, privileged region of local stars. "On average, a rest house for sale 159 days, 80 days against five years ago: the number of properties for sale has doubled, while prices continue to fall," said Roeland Kimman, spokesman for the NVM.

The first quarter of 2012 was the worst since 2008. The number of transactions fell by 15.6% over the last quarter of 2011. During the same period, the average price of a property fell 2.8%. In April, the fall was even 4.7% over one month. "Buyers are desperately short of confidence," says Eduard Vaandrager, agent in Keizerskroon Makelaars in Amsterdam.

Lower prices undermines consumer confidence, which weighs on consumption. The government attempted to revive the market by lowering the tax on property sales from 6% to 2%. In vain. "To stabilize the market, we should reform the estate tax credit," said Peter Boelhouwer, housing expert at the University of Delft. Arrested in France, Great Britain, Sweden and Norway this grant does not exist in Germany. "In the Netherlands, this has driven prices in the 1990s and early 2000. This is an expensive item – € 9 billion per year – but nobody dares to touch it, because 58% of Dutch owners are, "says the specialist.

Risk loans

Apparently favorable first-time buyers, this grant supports the richest: "Consider a person who borrows at 5% for a house of 600,000 euros. If it is in the tax bracket higher, it may deduct 52% of his monthly payments of taxes and pay only 15,000 euros per year, "says Eduard Vaandrager.

Despite the crisis, the government decided to maintain the subsidy, so as not to accelerate the fall in prices. But it now requires borrowers to repay their loan in 30 years maximum. This concludes a series of mortgages, that only allow full reimbursement of the loan and the sale of the property.

Comfortable in times of rising prices, borrowing against the value of the property become very dangerous when prices fall. "If the owner can not sell his property at the agreed price with the bank, he finds himself with a very large debt," says Ivo Arnold, a professor at the Erasmus School of Economics. As a result, owners waive sale. "Thank goodness that there has been no speculation, as in Spain!" Says Peter Boelhouwer.

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No miracle. Greece's gross domestic product will fall by "around 5%" this year, suffering a fifth year of recession, acknowledged Tuesday the Bank of Greece. The plunge "will be less pronounced than in 2011", where GDP fell 6.9%, concedes the national bank, but 0.5 points higher than it expected in March. And it is also necessary that the restructuring measures promised by Athens to be "implemented without delay."

Unemployment, says the Bank of Greece, will exceed 12% of the workforce this year, against 17.7% last year, while inflation will be around 1.2%. And the future of the country, which aims for this year a deficit of 7% of GDP and a reduction of its debt to 145.5%, against 9.1% and 165.3% in 2011, rests entirely on the recapitalization of its banks, thanks to 50 billion euros in aid provided by its creditors. They were accused last year a record loss of 27.9 billion euros.

For Panagiotis Tampoureas, director of development pole of the ATE bank in Athens, the estimate of the central bank "is still very optimistic." In his view, the continued decline in wages and consumption can only increase at half the recession yet.

If the Governor of the Bank of Greece, George Provopoulos, underscores, once again warned his country against the risk of leaving the euro area, it must consider the uncertainties posed by parliamentary elections on May 6 Although 36 parties have submitted bids, Greece will probably have to seek a coalition government between the conservative New Democracy and PASOK socialist.

Pension fraud

Will it have the means to stay the course of rigor? This is not won. The government has discovered 200,000 cases of fraud in pensions and social benefits over two years – enough to save over 800 million euros a year.

The Ministry of Labour has also identified 4,000 businesses that reported the imputed social contributions. And Greece, which combines a shortfall of 60 billion euros in unpaid taxes, is preparing to create an electronic record capable of correlating all transactions of taxpayers with the banks, credit insurance, hospitals and all public services. He could emerge from this year and significantly reduce tax evasion.

But the Greek authorities also face another reality of the crisis. In the first half of this year, calculates the European Commission, a thousand individual companies will put the key under the door every week in the country. This is the same economic base of Greece disappears. In 2010, there were indeed very small companies with 742,600 total 2.51 million employees, over 85% of total employment in the country.

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From our correspondent in Moscow The Russian oligarchs are slightly fewer in 2012 and earn a little less money than last year. But this year is the emergence, in the first place in the ranking of the 200 richest, a virtual unknown in France, Alisher Usmanov, who caused a sensation.

With its $ 18.1 billion of personal wealth (13.7 billion euros), the man closest to the provincial notary that the flamboyant raider jumped five places in the ranking compiled by Forbes newspaper, and dethrones the other metal tycoon Vladimir Lissine, relegated to second place overall (about 12.1 billion euros). The steelmaker Alexei Mordashov (Severstal) completed the podium of the largest fortunes of the country (11.6 billion euros).

For its part, the very Francophile Mikhail Prokhorov, who just getting into politics and was third in the presidential election, going from third to seventh place, losing a year to the next 4.8 billion dollars (10 billion euros of total assets).

World record for the number of billionaires per capita

Best known for his West London home of Beechwod, acquired for $ 96 million, and its 25% stake in Arsenal football club, Alisher Usmanov has become one of the most discreet but also the most influential Russia, where wealth is acquired always at the intersection of business and politics. He has assisted the Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov, and his wife to make a fortune.

Alisher Usmanov, who spent six years in prison for fraud in his country, now runs the company Metalloinvest. But the businessman has also been careful to diversify its business, particularly in the media and new technologies. In 2009, he has invested nearly a billion dollars in Facebook, took a stake in the site Groupon online sales. Alisher Usmanov has also media group Kommersant.

The Vedomosti reminded Friday that Russia holds the world record number of billionaires per capita (96 143 million), before the United States and Singapore. The journal regrets that contrary to Western mentality, money has become the ultimate horizon of Russian society, including the acquisition to be held by "any means", including "violating the law" .

In 2012, the wealth of the 200 richest Russian, however, declined by $ 52.3 billion, with a total of nearly $ 446 billion (338.6 billion euros).

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Our Berlin correspondent Continuing uncertainties related to the euro crisis will not prevent the German economy to continue its momentum insolent. The five major economic research institutes across the Rhine released Thursday of predictions on the rise: they are forecasting growth of gross domestic product (GDP) by 0.9% this year, against 0.8% previously, and anticipate a accelerated growth of around 2% in 2013.

In their spring report, institutes, very famous in Germany and analyze which twice a year the country's economic health, expect a 3.1% rise in exports for 2012 and a further increase of 5.1% exports next year.

According to experts, the debt crisis, however, continue in the coming year to weigh heavily on several partners from Germany within the European Union. The measured optimism is thus based on export growth in Asia, the U.S. and in emerging countries.

Divisions on the role of the ECB

As in 2011, domestic consumption should also support strong growth. Institutes predict an increase in domestic consumption of 0.9% for the current year and 1.3% in 2013. It should rely heavily on investments in housing construction, up 2.3% in 2012 and 5% next year, according to these forecasts.

The Germans, who fear that their savings melt due to the risks of inflation in the euro area, are turning increasingly to the housing market, which has risen significantly in recent months.

Result: unemployment should continue to decline, but at a more measured pace. The number of unemployed is forecast at 2.6 million annual average for 2012. End of 2010, the number of unemployed had risen in the symbolic three million, for the first time since German reunification.

The five major German economic institutes have confessed their divisions on the role of the European Central Bank (ECB), in a report that contrasts with the usual image of a Germany grimly determined by monetary policy. They note in particular that the ECB faces a "dilemma" because governments have so far "rested on the assumption that the ECB will always take over in case of need." Some will see a rally in the implicit position of France, which advocates a more active role of the ECB.

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"We know what's wrong and we know how we will fix it." Philip Clarke, Tesco's boss for a year, has compiled a table Wednesday uncompromising problems that led the UK's leading retailers' bottom of the escalator. " As at Carrefour, what are the activities of the brand in its home market, the UK, who sin the most. For the first time in twenty years, profits in the country decreased (- 1%), offset by an increase of 18% of profits abroad. More worryingly, sales at comparable areas (excluding new stores) fell 1.6% in the last quarter, yielding market share to competition. "A year which can not be proud," the president lashes.

After thanking the boss of UK operations, Philip Clarke resumed them live. In shirtsleeves and red tie, like the logo of his sign, the native of Liverpool who has spent his entire career at Tesco, where he began putting teen-shelf, announced a plan to invest 1 billion pounds (1.2 billion) to revive the case.

Stores gray and poorly maintained, frequent breaks in radius, fresh products that are not always too high prices, inadequate staffing and unhelpful … Consumers have taken a dislike Tesco, which was regarded as, ten years ago, a model followed for all major retailers.

]]> http://chestnutchurch.org/tesco-put-big-to-revive-the-channel/feed/ 0 http://chestnutchurch.org/the-jackpot-of-the-founders-of-instagram/ http://chestnutchurch.org/the-jackpot-of-the-founders-of-instagram/#comments Tue, 10 Apr 2012 23:40:05 +0000 admin http://chestnutchurch.org/the-jackpot-of-the-founders-of-instagram/  

It should be added Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger to the list of millionaires under 30 years in Silicon Valley. Instagram, a company they founded in 2010, employs a dozen people. It does not make a profit. Its turnover is unknown. It is "worth" $ 1 billion, however. In any case the price paid by Facebook Monday to acquire the entity behind one of the most popular applications for smartphone users: Instagram can take pictures with his cell phone, color them and modify them to change the "look", and share them instantly with friends. A week ago, Sequoia Capital, a prestigious venture capital firm in Menlo Park (California), had invested $ 50 million in Instagram and valued the company at 500 million.

"Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger never doubted that they ran a company that would be billions," said Chris Sacca, an early investor in Instagram, also known for throwing Twitter. Kevin Systrom was released in 2006 from Stanford University, nursery designer of high-tech companies. With his double degree in engineering and management, he went at first to do an internship in a startup called Odeo. This company specializes in podcasting was moderated by the team which was subsequently launch Twitter. The native of Boston has always been passionate about photography. He always wanted to make sending pictures via email. He eventually joining Google, where for two years, he worked on the development of new products like Gmail and Google Reader. At night and during the weekends, Kevin Systrom develops its own project guaranteed personal loan approval. Burbn baptized (because he likes bourbon), it is a social network for the exchange of photos and comments.

IPhone and Android

It is through this network that meets Kevin Systrom Mike Krieger, graduated from Stanford in 2008, he had never before attended. In early 2010, they team up and launch Instagram, a simplified version of Burbn. Of Brazilian origin and even younger than Kevin Systrom, Mike Krieger is described as a brilliant mind. "It is more technical than Kevin Systrom," said Rob Abbott, a former adviser to both partners.

Corporate venture capital Andreessen Horowitz and Baseline Ventures initially gave them $ 500,000 to develop their product. Seven months later, the "app" was available. 200,000 people have installed on their iPhone the first week. Last December, 15 million iPhone users played with Instagram.

Today there are over 30 million. And the number will continue to explode because the application is also available for several days on phones using the Android platform. By noon, a million people have already installed the program. This hearing is considered promising according to the model of social networks which first want to seduce millions of subscribers before then to develop a revenue stream based on the advertisements they may present to their users. Facebook wanted to buy this application to better integrate its supply and enhance exchanges between subscribers.

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The company's ready-to-wear founded in 1973, purchased by Edmond Cohen in 1990, and renamed to Fursac, is hosting a new shareholder. The Building Fund and Business Development (EDCF), funded by the ISPs, major banks and insurers French, takes 28% stake by bringing Fursac of 11 million euros. Five million are on loan from LCL and OSEO.

Objective: To help the company with 100 employees, attached to a European clothing and fabrics 100% Italian, find a new impetus. The company, which has nine stores in France, wants to open 25 within five years, in Hexagon, but also in Brussels, Luxembourg, Geneva and London. She hopes to double its turnover, which reached 23 million euros last year, up 20% compared to 2010.

Of Fursac, which had its heyday in the 1980s comeback. In 2006, the company was placed under administration, having invested heavily to rejuvenate its image and move upmarket. She then lost in the Galeries Lafayette locations of province, and its sales had fallen below 15 million euros. A dark period forgotten.

"This long-term strategy has been slow to develop, but has proven successful," said Benoit Sellam, the EDCF. Worn by Harry Roselmack, Tony Parker, Thierry Henry and Gad Elmaleh, costumes Fursac, sold 600 euros on average, younger. They represent 60% of sales, accessories and casual wear have grown. Above all, the company returned to profitability and has virtually no debt.

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For the first time since 1995, the protection of personal data of European citizens is being reformed. This is normal. In seventeen years, the Internet and social networks have radically changed behaviors and risks: identity theft, fraud, misuse of information posted, collecting information without the consent of the internet, etc … January 25, Viviane Reding, Vice President of the European Commission presented its draft European regulation, in a document of 134 pages. The text should come into force in two years in each member country of the Union.

While the CNIL (Commission Nationale Informatique and freedoms) recognizes "substantial progress", particularly by establishing a "right to oblivion" for digital users and creating "a power of sanctions," up until to 2% of worldwide turnover and € 1 million fines on companies, several points are criticized. Reportedly, the CNIL's remarks will be taken over by all supervisory authorities in Europe, gathered in the "Group of 29" European CNIL. Or Friday, no later than Monday, April 2, this group will be concerned about the "bureaucratic risk" introduced by the draft EU regulation. Indeed, a private company may, according to the draft regulations, elect one principal in Europe, and conform to all its European subsidiaries to the rules of this country's data protection. In case of dispute, the issue will be examined by the CNIL's chosen country payday advance. The risk is high that the French CNIL, for example, becomes a single mailbox. And it's "particularly concerned about the risk of estrangement between citizens and their national authorities."

"The notion of principal is criticized, including by U.S. companies. General Electric, for example, does not have the same commitment to a European country as Facebook or Google, "says one expert. In fact, the same day as the release of the draft EU regulation, Google announced it had chosen "as the principal place of Ireland" and announced a new rule for "confidentiality", in force since March 1. But these provisions were strongly criticized by the CNIL, on behalf of all European CNIL, and March 19, a detailed questionnaire was sent to Google.

Meanwhile, cooperation between the supervisory authorities of all member countries of the European Union is considered, failing to create a single European CNIL. CNIL tricolor is already strong in his criticism by the French government and parliament.

In June the European Council of Ministers should review the draft EU regulation, which would be amended in the direction of greater cooperation between the supervisory authorities of each European country.

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