The Habit Burger Grill delivering much more than great burgers during pandemic| Food Truck Operator

April 20, 2021April 18, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

When COVID-19 hit the U.S. in the spring of 2020, many a food truck and restaurant collapsed from the onslaught of challenges, which range from mandated municipal shutdown orders, to limited seating rules, to stay-at home orders and the pandemic’s impact on the global supply chain.

But that wasn’t, and isn’t, the situation at The Habit Burger Grill, a fast casual brand founded in Santa Barbara, California in 1969, which operates 306 restaurants as well as 10 catering food trucks in Southern California. It launched its first catering food truck in 2011 and has four more trucks in development by builders Wyss Bros Trucks & Trailers Inc.

In 2020 it became part of parent company Yum! Brands Inc., a restaurant conglomerate with more than 50,000 locations across more than 150 countries and territories. The Habit Burger Grill, which has locations in China and Cambodia, aims to open 50 more locations in 2021.

At its start, The Habit Burger Grill had a simple philosophy — high-quality food and great service at reasonable prices. But it also believes just as strongly in giving back and supporting the community.

Family Trusts for Entrepreneurs and Business Succession Planning | The Startup Magazine

April 20, 2021April 18, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A family trust is an important element of any estate plan and is important for entrepreneurs and business succession planning. A family trust is built upon a trust document. This document, created by you, the “settlor” of the trust, nominates a trustee who will manage your trust’s assets on behalf of your beneficiaries, according to terms which you outline in that document. There are many types of trust structures, each with its own pros and cons, so it’s important for entrepreneurs to seek counsel before deciding on what type to choose.

Trusts are associated with the very rich, but anybody can use them, so long as you have assets. Broadly, there are two main kinds of trusts: revocable trusts, whose terms can be changed and which can be dissolved at your discretion; and irrevocable trusts, whose terms cannot be changed and which cannot be dissolved.

Smaller and better smartphone cameras are on the way | BBC News

April 19, 2021April 18, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

“Today’s smartphone cameras can make a better image than cameras I paid NZ$10,000 ($7,110; £5,165) for only 20 years ago,” says Tom Ang, an Auckland-based professional photographer and author of more than 30 books on digital photography.

The cameras embedded in our smartphones have become so good, many of those too young to remember anything different would scoff at the idea of carting around a separate camera.

While Mr Ang is still fond of his high-end DSLR cameras, most of us rely on smartphone photos and videos to capture our memorable events and duckface selfies.

Pandemic-Era Shipping Delays and Product Scarcity to Last Through Summer | Inc.com

April 19, 2021April 18, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

When the Covid-19 crisis first hit, demand plummeted for Romy Taormina’s flagship product, a band travelers wear on their wrists to ease nausea. Now that travel is coming back, her business is being whipsawed by the same supply issues that marked the start of the global pandemic.

“We are doing our best to weather this Covid storm and catch the wave to the other side. But it’s been a ride,” says Taormina, the CEO and founder of Psi Health Solutions, the Pacific Grove, California-based maker of Psi Bands.

Her exasperation is felt by small-business owners across a range of industries in the U.S. Besides the global microchip shortage, which President Biden recently called a “national security issue,” electricians can’t source the little plastic boxes they need to rewire light fixtures. Contractors are reporting a 200 percent surge in the price of lumber. Even the supply of Taiwanese tapioca is drying up.

Daily Crunch: Google Earth gets an update | TechCrunch

April 16, 2021April 15, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Google Earth gives users a new look at a changing planet, Facebook tests new business discovery features and Autodesk acquires Upchain. This is your Daily Crunch for April 15, 2021.

The big story: Google Earth gets an update

Google is describing this as Google Earth’s biggest update since 2017, though there’s really just one major addition: A time-lapse mode bringing together satellite photos from the past 37 years, in 3D.

Pausing the J&J Vaccine Was Easy. Unpausing Will Be Hard | WIRED

April 16, 2021April 15, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

DESPITE THE HASTILY called press conference on Tuesday, the late-night meetings, and the growing worry over a potentially fatal side effect, the decision to pause the use of one of the three Covid-19 vaccines available in the United States was a relatively easy one.

Figuring out how to unpause, though—that’s going to be a lot trickier.

The public health community had some hope that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention might find a fast path through the data fog. But that vanished late Wednesday, when an emergency meeting of the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices ended without a recommendation. Amid a global pandemic and a race for mass vaccinations, the pause continues pausing.

Nike seeks to recycle your tennis shoes and resell them at a more affordable price | Entrepreneur

April 15, 2021April 13, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The shoe and sportswear company, Nike, announced on Monday an initiative that seeks to recycle footwear and thus avoid waste. What does it consist of? Sneakers that are short-lived or have a manufacturing defect will be accepted at select US stores. Afterwards, they are in charge of cleaning, disinfecting and restoring them to later be put up for sale at a lower price.

Currently, this service is offered in eight Nike stores in the United States, with plans to expand it to 15 more by the end of April and a few more by the end of the year in other parts of the world. However, they have not yet specified where it will be.

Will The Online Travel Industry Recover? | Getentrepreneurial.com

April 15, 2021April 13, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Technology has made our life easier and more comfortable, and it has revolutionized the travel industry. Nowadays, travelers like to plan and book their trips online via a mobile app or website without human interaction.

It is known that travelers are keen to use social media platforms, mobile application and websites to explore their destinations and technology is an important factor in every sector.

It is estimated the online travel industry reached nearly $755 billion in 2019 at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.9 percent since 2015. Overall, the online travel booking accounted for 63 percent of the approximately $1.2 trillion the travel industry generates every year. Around 82 percent of travelers book online using a website or mobile app, and an appropriate 0.27 percent of the world’s online spending comes from the travel industry.

Drop The Zoom Video? | CoolBusinessIdeas.com

April 14, 2021April 13, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

A new study led by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University is challenging the common assumption that video conferencing is better than audio-only communication for collaborative group activities. The findings suggest video cues may in fact lower a group’s collective intelligence by disrupting interpersonal synchrony.

Early in 2020, when the pandemic hit and many suddenly shifted to working remotely, the ability to easily communicate with colleagues via video was a godsend. No one really questioned how effective communicating over video was, as for years it had been generally assumed video cues amplify effective group collaboration when compared to audio-only interactions.

Apple and Google block UK COVID app update for breaking data-sharing rules | Mashable

April 14, 2021April 13, 2021 ~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Google and Apple have blocked an update to the UK government’s COVID-19 contact tracing app for breaching privacy terms, the BBC reports.

The update, which was expected to roll out in time with the lifting of national lockdown on Monday, would have requested users who tested positive for COVID-19 to upload their history of venue check-ins. The app, used in England and Wales, has long operated with a feature that allows users to check in to a shop, pub, restaurant, or other venue using a QR code — some are required by law to display official NHS QR code posters and collect contact details, while others are encouraged.