Every element of the shopper’s journey through the store determines whether or not they have a great customer experience. As such, shop fittings need to be laid out with a very clear strategy in mind.

Wilsam Packaging supplies a more environmentally friendly paper for baking and food preparation with excellent non-stick and release properties that also delivers increased hygiene, more efficiency and lower costs.

LPG is very convenient and is used in both households and businesses. As useful as it is, if it is not used correctly it can be potentially hazardous. To ensure that LPGas is safe while in use, it is imperative that all appliances are verified as being compliant with the national safety standards governing their manufacture. If this is not adhered to, appliances could malfunction and lead to unnecessary and potentially hazardous incidents.

Spending on eating out is expected to continue growing over the next 10 years, as is consumers’ desire to enhance their shopping trip with social and leisure experiences. The tie-in between shopping and eating is stronger than ever and can be seen in the significant growth of F&B outlets in shopping centres in recent years.

There is latent demand for more non-mainstream international food hall market place concepts, which combine restaurants with food and beverage counters and bakeries, along with the sale of cooking-related products and even cookery schools to add ‘edutainment’.

Blockchain technology is fast emerging as one of the most transformative logistics trends – and one that can redefine and reshape many of the existing systems and processes within logistics.

“Although it is still a relatively new and somewhat vague concept among South African businesses, blockchain technology is developing fast and is undoubtedly poised to impact key functions within logistics,” says Kamogelo Mmutlana, Chief Executive Officer, Barloworld Logistics.

Flexible PVC strip curtains from door and loading dock specialist, Maxiflex, are economical, practical, efficient, versatile and cost-effective partition solutions. The strip curtains present a flexible barrier across internal and external apertures providing seamless traffic flow, protecting goods and personnel, reducing energy costs and creating a safe, comfortable and more productive work environment.

Strip curtains, also known as PVC strip doors, are installed to create doorways and partitions within commercial and industrial buildings providing fast, easy, unlimited access to personnel, vehicles, forklifts, carts, and machinery and are ideal for areas with low, medium or high traffic flow.

On a recent audit I got up close and personal with some health and safety hazards in a bakery.
Although these may be commonplace, the scourge of industrial blindness – you see something every day so eventually you don’t see it – can often cause these hazards to lose focus. They are worth a closer look and consistent control. A few tunes, like “Slip sliding away” and “Hot stuff ” can help you and your team beat the safety hazards you encounter in the bakery every day.

An innovative initiative utilising a Facebook chatbot is set to curb the growing incidence of stunting – a phenomenon that affects 27% of South African children. This initiative is the brainchild of one of the country’s top pharmaceutical firms, and was developed in partnership with the Heart and Stroke Foundation of SA (HSFSA).

The initiative aims to complement existing feeding scheme programmes, whilst targeting low to middle income households that are considered equally vulnerable to stunting, but are often forgotten about. The campaign will engage with SA mothers via Facebook around the dangers of malnutrition and assist primary caregivers in planning healthy meals on a shoestring budget. Meals will be based on the more than 100 recipes from the popular Cooking from the Heart cookbook series that carry the HSFSA’s stamp of approval.

Booklet labels offer business benefits

Many businesses in South Africa are not making optimal use of their packaging and labelling space. Not only is your product labelling a valuable brand platform that comes into direct contact with customers in the retail environment, but it is also a space – in certain industries – that needs to accommodate a large amount of mandatory text.
To ensure that you make the most of this valuable communication platform, as well as meet regulatory demands, you may need to rethink your labelling strategy. Instead of a standard label, have you ever considered a booklet label?

The consumer trend towards an ever-stronger preference to Low GI foods continues to grow apace, creating opportunities for bakers and bakeries to make available delicious Low GI alternatives. The human body copes better with slower absorbed carbohydrates (Low GI). Faster absorbed carbs (High GI), especially when taken in bigger quantities, tax the body’s pancreas and insulin secretion and can create serious health problems over the long term.

Sometimes this is quite easy to do – you just use lower GI carb sources to start off with. On other occasions it is more complicated, but the GI Foundation SA has assisted many a product developer to lower the GI of a product to the point that it can display a health claim. We have a great aid, the Smart Carb Guide, which should help you move forward. It is available as an e-book and in hard copy. Click here to get yours.

The GI Foundation SA is also available to conduct a day/morning workshop to your R&D Team and/or Marketing Team and offers an Endorsement Service as well as Health Audits on any range of products.