globalEDGE Blog Archive October 2009

Recently Interbrand, the world’s largest brand consultancy, released its 2009 rankings of the top global brands of 2009.

So what is a global brand, exactly? A global brand  is one that has transcended the linguistic and cultural challenges of entering foreign markets. Widely recognized global brands have successfully implemented the namesake and desirability of their products to consumers in many countries.

The Top Ten Global Brands of 2009:

It is well known that the auto industry has taken a hit across the globe. With sales and production down and several plant closures, it seems that things are looking grim. However, several Japanese automakers are thriving, not internationally, but in China.

China has just recently launched its brand new Growth Enterprise Market, a Nasdaq-style stock market that has been over 10 years in the making. Twenty eight small- and medium-sized companies will be debuting on the Gem as it is called, made to attract financing of new high growth industries. These industries include software companies, pharmaceutical firms and creative industries. But investing in these companies will be risky business, since there will less than 30 companies to begin with.

In a small village in Italy, one entrepreneur decided to start a business in an unusual location - a castle. With workers not having to clock in, the atmosphere is quite different than other typical factories. Brunello Cucinello's cashmere factory has been extremely successful. The full story can be found in a video from BBC NEWS.

It is surprising to many how well the business is doing because of the untraditional way it is run. Is it possible for other businesses to adopt similar working conditions and be this successful?

Congratulations on your new business! There are a lot of new and exciting opportunities to choose from. How do you know what will be best? By following these tips, your business can avoid frequent run-ins with the phrase, “There’s just one catch.”

Mark your calendars: United Nations Day is October 24th. The holiday is an annual celebration observed internationally by UN member nations, reaffirming the goals and the values of the organization. Of special interest to those in the international business field is the United Nations Global Compact, a sub-organization that acts as a policy group for companies that are “committed to aligning their operations and strategies with ten universally accepted principles in the areas of human rights, labour, environment and anti-corruption.”

We have all learned to ignore the pile of cables connecting the pieces of our home entertainment. But how great would it be if we could just get rid of them? This is something consumers and engineers have been dreaming of for years. Now, it is a reality.

Greenland is covered by ice on nearly 80% of its surface, making business activities in this area rather difficult. However, as we all know, the northern ice caps are beginning to melt due to rising global temperatures. In fact, it has been predicted that in the next few decades the Arctic Ocean will be almost all open water. While this is bad for the environment, it does open up new opportunities for business.

Since its establishment in 1981, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has made its primary priority to be the creation of a monetary union, and subsequently, a single currency across the region. The Gulf Cooperation Council is a trade bloc of six Arab nations residing in the Persian Gulf: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The GCC nations, excluding Oman and the UAE, have aimed for January 1, 2010 as a deadline for establishing a common currency. If the GCC is successful in establishing a single currency among their member nations, what implications could this have for them and the international business world?

There is no need to carry around all those books any longer! You can thank Amazon’s Kindle, an electronic device sold in the U.S. made for reading e-books and other digital media. Books and other content are downloaded through Amazon’s Whispernet, by using free internet access. Kindles have a 6 inch (diagonal) screen, it holds over 200 titles, and it only weighs 10.3 ounces. Let me know if you find a book like that!

The recent back-to-back typhoons in the Philippines have really crippled their small entrepreneurs. In this country consisting of thousands of beautiful islands, these small businesses are what make the economy thrive, so recovery has been and will be an uphill battle. A whopping 99.7 percent of all businesses in the Philippines are classified by the Department of Trade and Industry as micro, small, and medium enterprises. It got me thinking a bit about how other natural disasters affect the economies of other countries.

In October of 2008, Dubai's ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum formally established Al Nassma - a chocolate producing company. It is not just another chocolate brand however. What distinguishes it from other brands is the fact that Al Nassma chocolate is made with camels' milk and is the first of its kind.

Much of Europe is heavily-reliant on Russian pipeline gas to satisfy its energy needs-- However, this could change fairly soon. Oil companies and private investors are carefully weighing the initiatives which may be set forth following the 2009 Black Sea Energy and Economic Forum. The Black Sea is home to a wealth of unconventional oil and gas resources which could possibly rival Russia in the sheer volume of output and usage.

You have to pay to ship your products to another country, but you don’t want it to cost you an arm and a leg. So what can you do? To be successful internationally, you must know how to get your products to your customers all over the world in a timely manner and at the lowest cost.

Ethiopia is one of the poorest nations in the world. However, they have seen GDP growth in each of the past 7 years. One of their major businesses is livestock, but recently they have been suffering due to animal smuggling. Livestock is an essential part of Ethiopia’s economy. They exported about $53 million worth of animals last year, but unfortunately, criminal activity is cutting into the small country’s profits.

Now-a-days, Starbucks isn’t the only place you can go to grab a cup of joe. McDonald’s McCafés can now be found all over the globe offering a multitude of delicious, caffeinated beverages. This coffee chain was created in Melbourne, Australia in 1993. Ten years later, in 2003, it grew to be the largest coffee shop brand not only in Australia, but in New Zealand too!

Lastly, we have the city which won the bid to host the 2016 Olympics: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil! The historic selection of Rio makes it the first South American city to ever host the games, and the second ever to do so in Latin America. To better understand the effect the Olympics could have on Rio, it is important to examine the various facets of Rio and its diverse economy.

For the second consecutive time, the International Olympic Committee has rejected Madrid as the site of the Olympic Games. Despite this minor set back, Madrid has an enormous amount of positive factors that make it a great place to do business.

Chicago was one of the four locations being considered for the 2016 summer Olympic Games, unfortunately it was not chosen and was actually the first to be eliminated.

Tokyo was unsuccessful in becoming the host for the 2016 Summer Olympics but it is a city known for its success in many other areas, business in particular.

Congratulations to the city of Rio de Janeiro for being selected as the host city for the 2016 Summer Olympics Games! This will be the first time that the continent of South America will host any Olympic Games. With all the buzz surrounding this topic, we here at globalEDGE thought it would be great to do a series on each of the final four candidates that were chosen from. Each day next week we will dissect Rio de Janeiro, Tokyo, Madrid, and Chicago to show what makes them an international business hotspot. We hope you tune in next week for some amazing insights on four very diverse economies.

Many people across the globe wake up every morning and require coffee within minutes to function during the day. The caffeine gives a kick-start to the long day at the office, in class, or wherever you may be. However, imagine waking up to a tea that can give you more than half the caffeinated zap of coffee plus tons of antioxidants and fewer jitters. I’m not asking you to totally end things with your old love, but simply, see other… beverages?

Since 2002, The Economist has been measuring house-price data for 20 of the largest players in the world of global business. They recently compiled this information and incorporated it into an interactive graph which can compare various house price indicators between countries. It measures: house price index, prices in real terms, prices against average income, and the overall percent change. Check out the Global House Price Indicators Graph!