…a good product at a fair price? Instead these days we seem satisfied with short life span crap that not surprisingly comes at a cheap price. But what of the costs? Anna is the daughter of a local family business and a Journalism Student at UQ. In her article below she looks at the situation. It was a project that she was doing for Uni, so please let here know your thoughts in the comments section or by emailing her. The article follows:
“Oh What a Bargain!” By Anna Cochrane
University of Queensland, Bachelor of Journalism Student
“Oh what a bargain!” seems to be a statement of the 20th century that is today considered socially taboo. Retailers now have such large mark-downs on stock that a ‘bargain’ is a thing of the past. The time of small retailers getting quick cash injections from a $50 sale of old stock that has been lurking in the corners for the past year are over. The bargains of the 21st century have been developed by large conglomerates such as Myer and David Jones. These bargains consist of new and next season stock discounted by 20, 30 and sometimes even 50 percent off. These big retailers are developing unsustainable marketing techniques that are driving small retailers out of the industry and even tarnishing their own reputations with all consumers now waiting around for “Massive Clearance” sales.
Continue reading ‘What ever happened to…’
This is great. I like this kind of thing. Straight to the point without being offensive, in fact often being amusing. It is a quick read that nicely covers some very cool things that would normally require about 4 or 5 books. I think from the authors our comment you can see that it is interesting.
I don’t like the word manifesto. It reeks of dogma and rules—two things I instinctually reject. I do love the way it puts things on the line, but I don’t like lines, or groups. So a manifesto probably isn’t for me. The other thing about manifestos is that they appear (or are written so as to appear) self-evident. This kind of a priori writing is easy, since you simply lay out what seems obviously—even tautologically—true. Of course, this is the danger of manifestos, but also what makes them fun to read. And fun to write. So I’ll write this manifesto. I just might not sign it.
Anyway, here they are. Exactly 1000 words: A Manifesto for Sustainability in Design
I think I have posted this before. It is making the rounds again and just incase you have not seen it.
It is awesome. Simply awesome. Show the kids, ask them what they think. Click on the wombat to watch the video.
Another short video you might like is the one by those guys with the blue heads. Check it out on YouTube.
So a few weeks ago I told you about one of our great customers that is starting a car sharing business because she is passionate about climate change and wants to provide us with a service the could contribute to helping with the situation. They were hoping that Council might be one of their first customers/supporters. You see, there are many in Council who think it is a great idea.
Environmentally it has many benefits but, financially a service like this could dramatically reduce travel costs for Council. Council would not have to purchase as many cars, as their G-Whiz ones would be shared and therefore have less idle time. The other thing is that many departments in Council do not have cars, and do not allow their employees to use their own. Instead they give them push bikes which are free, etc (joking!). No, what they actually do is make them catch Taxi’s which is very costly. To give you an idea (from G-Whiz):
A client meeting 25km from the CBD will cost $82 return by taxi. Using a G-Whiz car the trip will cost approximately $36, assuming 1 hour of travel time and a 2 hour meeting.
I wonder how many water tanks the council could subsidise with all those savings? Or innovative business ideas they could give grants to?
One of the biggest issues is the lack of support from the key decision makers in Council. Car sharing businesses in the southern states do well because of local government and business support through the donation of kerbside and off street parking as ‘carshare only’ car parks. Is it a big ask of Council to donate car parks to a private business? Not if days after they reject G-Whiz’s proposal, they announce $37 billion to improve Brisbane’s transport issues.
The Council’s decision has been a minor setback for G-Whiz, and you could help in one of 2 ways. Use the link on G-Whiz’s homepage to send our Lord Mayor a letter expressing your views about this issue, or if you have some interest in sponsoring a G-Whiz car or donating a car space, contact G-whiz. There are lots of people ready to sign up - all they need is a parking space for a car to call home!
