globalEDGE Blog - Page 75

The world is always looking for the next technological advancement that will bring in money and make everyday life easier. Right now, the fastest startup in the world to reach one billion dollars is Bird rentable scooters. Bird, along with its competitors, Lyme, and Skip, have taken advantage of people's newfound love for easy and fast modes of transportation in crowded cities and around college campuses. This is especially popular with younger people as most of the users are college students or young adults that live and work in cities and have little use for cars. Bird has combined the incredible ability of smartphones with the need for more public transportation and has created apps that allow people to locate scooters everywhere and give them a cheap and easy way to get places quick. This works because of its ubiquitous accessibility. Whenever someone needs one, it is a click away, and when they did, they simply put the kickstand up and continue with their day.

In today's fast-paced society, people are constantly on-the-go. As a result, more people are choosing the alternative form of dining, food delivered straight to their doorsteps. It dramatically lessens meal-prepping time without sacrificing food quality. Imagine having the option of anything within your city delivered to you within thirty minutes, who would turn that down?  More apps are surfacing in order to meet the demand for better and faster food delivery services.

Halloween, or All Hallows’ Eve, wouldn’t be complete without one of its most distinguishing symbols—the pumpkin.  Each year, people from countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Ireland purchase, pick, carve, and/or display these bright orange gourds in celebration of Halloween.  Pumpkins also mark an essential decoration, food staple, and representation of the fall season, and consequently have a significant place in the global economy.

Since 1912, hostels have been a centerpiece for teenagers and young adults traveling. They are overwhelmingly popular throughout the European continent, but also have a presence in most tourist-friendly countries around the world. They are a low-cost option for housing, eating, and provide an opportunity for social interaction. In an age where freelance work is becoming more common, hostels are playing an increasingly important role in travel and work abroad.

In the 2000’s it was the internet, in the 2010’s it was social tech companies, the next big market disruptor of our generation is Agri-Tech. With the world population expected to reach 8.5 billion people by the mid-2030’s, and the continued degradation of the environment due to pollution, the need for more and better food is increasing.

Autonomous transportation is the next big leap for the auto industry. It is universal knowledge that autonomous driving will change transportation drastically, and when enforced, will not only lead to an improvement in transportation, but it will also improve the economy and the environment. The only problem that remains is, who will be the company to perfect autonomous driving.

Last week the World Economic Forum released their annual publication titled The Global Competitiveness Report. The comprehensive report assesses the competitiveness of 140 countries using 98 distinct indicators that are organized into twelve pillars of competitiveness. The twelve pillars are as follows: institutions, infrastructure, ICT adoption, macroeconomic stability, health, skills, product market, labor market, financial system, market size, business dynamism, and innovation capability.

E-commerce sales have been growing over the past decade at a rapid rate and the online retail economy is booming. According to the US Census Bureau, 9.6% of all retail sales were from e-commerce sales during the second quarter of 2018. This percentage was only 4.4% in the second quarter of 2010. This post will discuss the reasons behind the shift from brick-and-mortar businesses to online retail stores.

Regardless of the country's size or geographical location, tourism has always contributed to its economic growth and GDP. Governments tend to invest heavily because it brings in profit while increasing the country's reputation. Especially for developing and island countries, tourism dependency is common because other industries, such as manufacturing, may be less developed due to area, resource, or population limitations.

At the heels of the United Nation’s groundbreaking report detailing the necessity for “unprecedented changes in the next decade” to avoid permanent damage to the Earth’s environment, sustainability and waste management in the business world, and beyond, have become essential factors of commerce across the globe.  The concept of creating products and services that are sustainable in the long-run is integrating itself as a key driver of companies’ operations and value chains, and innovation is necessary to achieve substantial results.  While efforts to keep our planet living intensify, so too will the call for businesses to operate environmentally safe processes.