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My husband is a doctor, and together we set the business up, which I run 100%. We used a Virgin Startup loan to give us that kickstart we needed just over a year ago. |
3. What do you love most about running your own business? |
I love the flexible working arrangement and that I am my own boss. Finally I have the final say and can bring my concept to life, my way. No more beauracracy and one of the lengthy approval processes that are common in the corporate working environment. |
4. Tell us about a challenging experience you’ve faced in the process of starting up your business and how you overcame it. |
One of the biggest challenges were our packaging components. We wanted to ensure that our packaging was 100% recyclable and small enough to house the smaller portions that were needed for children’s food. I realized that just because this didn’t exist anywhere in the world, didn’t mean that it shouldn’t exist. So we de... |
5. What advice could you give to other startups about starting up in your industry? |
It’s incredibly tough to break into a noisy crowded space like the food Industry. The only way to make your mark is to innovate and differentiate your product and brand. From the beginning not only did I want to bring to market a healthy and tasty product, I intended to do so by building a brand. A brand that engenders... |
6. Can you share an experience that really helped you take your business forward? |
With the extensive taste testing and consumer testing we did, we received validation that our meals will be loved by children and parents. What about buyers? If buyers didn’t stock us, then there would be no product to get to our little consumers. We decided to exhibit at the LUNCH exhibition in London September 2014, ... |
7. Many people start their businesses at home, where do you work? What do you love about it? |
Mini Nom Noms all started from the home kitchen in London. I work from home in Toronto and travel to London frequently. We have appointed a fantastic Sales Manager – Danielle Roe for Mini Nom Noms who is also based from home in London. We both enjoy and encourage flexible working, especially with the bonus of being abl... |
8. What are three things you know now, that you wish someone had told you when you first started? |
- That it doesn’t get easier - so try building an appetite for the continuous rollercoaster journey! |
- Most people genuinely care about the success of your business, but some don't. Learn to differentiate between those seeking short- term financial gains and those you can sincerely build long term partnerships with. |
- Battle though the constant "No's", and make it happen! Persistence will pay. If you don’t take a risk you'll just never know, so don’t give up! |
9. Is there anything specific you’d like to ask or share with the Virgin Media Pioneers community? |
Being part of the Virgin Media Pioneers community has been absolutely brilliant. We certainly don’t feel all alone out there. The strength of the support and network is the fuel boosting the brand behind the scenes. |
...You need passion, belief and determination to make it happen! |
To find out more about Mini Nom Noms check out their website. |
Mixed use retail and residential for lease in historic downtown Saluda, NC. Space being renovated and available late spring 2019. Retail space on main floor with approx. 900 SF or 600 SF separate spaces available. Great for a retail business or office. Two apartments being built on second floor; one with 2BR/1.5BA and ... |
Oct. 18 (UPI) -- An Oregon man set his house on fire and shot at responding firefighters before turning his gun on himself and ending his life. |
Lance Taylor Jacobs, 60, did not injure any firefighters or neighbors during the standoff Wednesday morning in Springfield, Ore., police said. Four homes were damaged from the fire. |
"Miraculously, honestly, no one was hit," Springfield police Lt. Scott McKee told NBC News. |
Before he set his house on fire and took his own life, Jacobs wrote a lengthy post on Facebook, where he described having various health problems, including chronic sleep apnea, MRSA and severe aches and pains throughout his body. |
Jacobs also described a bitter divorce 28 years ago that he says he never got over. |
"The trauma of not being allowed to see my kids anymore totally devastated me," he wrote, adding: "Night after night, I would relive the trauma and pain of losing my kids. It was like an echo that just would not stop. I've never really fully recovered emotionally. My life has been broken and meaningless ever since." |
A member of the RSO will need to keep personal information on file. This personal information can be changed at the RSO’s convenience. |
1. Visit the IRS webpage to Apply for an Employer Identification Number (EIN) Online. |
2. Read through the EIN information. |
3. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on “APPLY ONLINE NOW” link. |
4. Read through this box of information that pops up and then click “OK“. |
11. The next 4 steps will ask for your personal information. Fill out the requested information and complete your application. A confirmation page should appear after you finish the application. |
* Reissued for technical reasons on 11 October 2012. |
On 29 May, the Council received a briefing at an open meeting from the Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and Personal Representative of the Secretary-General, Robert Serry, followed by closed consultations. |
The Special Coordinator reported that the past month had been characterized by several challenging events but that each had been overcome for now and we were possibly moving in a more positive direction. He said the parties had exchanged letters in which they outlined their respective requirements for direct talks to c... |
It's business as usual with Romania. Before United States Secretary of State George Shultz visited Bucharest last December, US officials had predicted ``a watershed meeting.'' They said the secretary of state would warn Romanian leader Nicolae Ceausescu that he must improve his country's human rights record, generally ... |
But the meeting changed little, say Romanian and Western diplomats interviewed here. The Romanians insist they will not alter their policies. The Westerners also foresee no dramatic shift. |
``No ultimatum was delivered,'' says one Western diplomat. Although the diplomats interviewed here said Mr. Shultz told Mr. Ceausescu that Congress might take action if he did not improve his human rights record, they added that the Reagan administration favors a continuation of most-favored nation (MFN) status to Roma... |
Indeed, from Richard Nixon to Ronald Reagan, US presidents have sent their secretaries of state to Bucharest to show support for the way Ceausescu has taken actions that displease the Soviet Union, such as maintaining relations with Israel and participating in the 1982 Los Angeles Olympics despite a Soviet-bloc boycott... |
Human rights figured in that decision. To obtain the preferred tariff treatment, Romania agreed to allow more emigration of Jews to Israel, Germans to West Germany, and others to the US. |
As US concerns about emigration have lessened, members of Congress have made religious freedom the key test for extending MFN. Observers say this shift is due to former US Ambassador David Funderburk, an evangelical Baptist. |
While in Bucharest, Mr. Funderburk worked closely with American evangelical Christians and human rights groups concerned about religious restrictions in Romania. The Ceausescu government permits religious activity only for 14 faiths. According to reports released by independent groups such as the Helsinki Watch Committ... |
Funderburk's public outburst revealed disillusionment among many US foreign policy analysts that, contrary to original hopes, Romania had not relaxed controls at home. And doubts began to surface about whether Romania differed with the Soviets on issues crucial to the Kremlin. |
Western diplomats disagree. With or without Western recognition, they argue, the continuance of a communist regime is inevitable in Romania. Rather than shrinking from this, they say, it is better to try to nudge Romania in a more acceptable direction. Publicly embarrassing the Romanians will only stiffen Romanian resi... |
Funderburk's focus on religion also is widely criticized. Some 70 percent of Romanians belong to the Romanian Orthodox Church. But because the church traditionally has been a creature of the state, Western and Romanian diplomats say religion cannot become a true force of opposition, as it is in Poland. Romanian officia... |
Too much pressure might hurt those it was supposed to help. ``By tying religion to politics, some Americans put us in a delicate position,'' says Vasili Talpos, general secretary of the Baptist Union here. |
What the US can do, Western diplomats say, is use its leverage to secure Romanian support among East-bloc nations on some foreign policy issues. It also can obtain limited victories in human rights. |
Without MFN, Western diplomats worry that no such improvements would occur. The Romanians feed this fear. |
Coventry Bees could be left with "no option" but to ground share - probably with Leicester - if plans to redevelop their current Brandon home go ahead, according to team owner Mick Horton. |
Planning consultants have outlined proposals to build 250 new homes on the Rugby Road site. |
"We've probably got about 18 months to find a new home," Horton said. |
"We need to protect the club and we may have no choice but to ground share - and Leicester's the ideal club." |
The Lions race at Beaumont Park, some 27 miles from the Bees' current home, and, although plans for an alternative multi-purpose venue that could host speedway in Rugby have been mooted, Horton says he cannot afford to wait around. |
Brandon Stadium, which also hosts greyhound racing and stock-car racing, has been the Bees' home since 1928. |
Since the Elite League was formed in 1997, the Bees have been champions three times - in 2005, 2007, and 2010. |
"Yes, Brandon is tired and it does need money spending on it, however it's still one of the best speedway facilities in the country," Horton told BBC Coventry and Warwickshire. |
"There have been meetings and there is a site they're looking at but, from a selfish point of view, I'm only really interested in speedway. |
"It would be great if they find a piece of land and build on it and we join them, but I've got to keep our options open. |
"We need to be in control of our own destiny - that's what we need to strive for." |
The Bees ended the 2015 Elite League season in second place in the table but lost to eventual champions Poole Pirates over two legs in the semi-final of the play-offs. |
BLOG: California, are you ready for a carbon sales tax? |
Coming soon to a store near you – a carbon sales tax? |
The Democratic supermajority up in Sacramento is back at it, finding creative ways to hike taxes on businesses and working families. |
SB 43 from Sen. Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica) is billed as a proposal for a “carbon tax,” which confused Sarah Boot, a policy advocate for the California Chamber of Commerce. Writing in the CalChamber Alert publication, Boot initially thought it would be a tax on fossil fuel emissions. |
SB 43, which fortunately is a study bill, would replace the state’s sales-and-use tax with a carbon tax that would be based on the “carbon intensity” of the product. Carbon intensity supposedly would measure the amount of carbon emitted during the manufacture and distribution of the product. |
– Who within the California Air Resources Board or the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration will determine the carbon intensity of every single product sold or used in California? |
– How would they convey the specific carbon sales tax on every product? Would they do it on broad categories of products? Would that be fair if two companies make the same product with significantly different carbon intensities? |
–How would such a tax impact lower-income Californians? Would it hurt their ability to buy meat and dairy products, including milk and formula? |
–California’s sales-and-use tax is one of the most stable forms of revenue. If the carbon sales tax goal is to get Californians to purchase goods with the least carbon intensity, would that create budget volatility? |
Boot correctly surmises that a carbon sales tax would create a seismic shift in our tax system. Hopefully this “study bill” will get the proper study it would require. |
Robert Kaplan heads the Dallas Fed. |
Government regulators should be vigilant about the level, growth and credit quality of corporate debt because those factors could dampen the ability of companies to invest and spend and amplify the severity of any slowdown in economic growth, Dallas Fed President Robert Kaplan said Tuesday. |
“An elevated level of corporate debt, along with the high level of U.S. government debt, is likely to mean that the U.S. economy is much more interest-rate sensitive than it has been historically,” Kaplan said in one of his regular essays on the economic outlook. |
U.S. nonfinancial corporate debt consists mostly of bonds and loans. This category of debt, as a percentage of gross domestic product, is now higher than in the prior peak reached at the end of 2008, Kaplan said. |
A number of studies have concluded this level of credit could “potentially amplify the severity of a recession,” he noted. |
The lowest level of investment-grade debt, BBB bonds, has grown from $800 million to $2.7 trillion by year-end 2018. High-yield debt has grown from $700 million to $1.1 trillion over the same period. This trend has been accompanied by more relaxed bond and loan covenants, he added. |
Kaplan said monitoring these higher-risk securities was a critical part of his job as a regional Fed president. |
“In the event of a downturn, highly indebted companies may be more vulnerable to seeing their credit quality deteriorate, which could negatively impact their capital spending and hiring plans,” Kaplan said. |
If it gets bad enough, credit spreads would likely widen, and be a sign of an overall tightening of financial conditions that could lead to a more significant slowing of the economy, he said. |
Kaplan also indicated that regulators, even in the wake of the financial crisis a decade ago, still don’t have a complete understanding of the market for nonfinancial debt. A direct lending market for leveraged loans has grown, Kaplan noted, involving many nonbank firms including hedge funds, insurance companies and pe... |
“It is difficult to obtain precise information about the size of this market,” although there are estimates that it now exceeds several hundred billion dollars, he said. |
The Dallas Fed president also noted the market for syndicated leveraged loans — leveraged loans made to highly indebted companies and typically originated by banks and then syndicated to nonbanks including special-purpose vehicles such as collateralized loan obligations, or CLOs, has doubled in size from $600 million i... |
International Boxing Association (AIBA) executive director Tom Virgets has claimed athletes in the sport are "suffering" from the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) failure to confirm the next steps in its probe into the embattled governing body. |
In a statement sent to insidethegames, Virgets said AIBA hoped they could "move on without further delays" as the organisation continues to fight for its right to run the Olympic boxing tournament at Tokyo 2020. |
Planning for the boxing event at the Games in the Japanese capital remains on hold, including the qualification system, while a Committee set up to oversee the inquiry into AIBA has not yet held its first meeting. |
The Inquiry Committee, chaired by IOC Executive Board member Nenad Lalovic, was established in December amid ongoing concerns with AIBA's governance, financial management and the integrity of its competitions. |
Gafur Rakhimov, whose election as head AIBA organisation in November is at the heart of the IOC's issues with governance at the organisation, had requested a meeting with the Inquiry Committee this month as the countdown to Tokyo 2020 continues. |
The Committee will assess AIBA's progress in addressing the concerns outlined by the IOC and will make a recommendation to the Executive Board, which is not due to hold its next meeting until the end of March. |
IOC President Thomas Bach reassured athletes that a boxing event will be held in some form at the Games in two years' time but its exact nature continues to remain unclear, which Virgets believes is unfair on the competitors. |
"We continue to be available to work cooperatively with the IOC in answering all their concerns," Virgets told insidethegames. |
"We take this matter very seriously and we look forward to being able to address and solve any outstanding points from the IOC. |
"As we have mentioned to the IOC Ad-Hoc chair, we expect all meetings and hearings to be open to the public. |
"We hope that we can move on without further delays, especially so that our athletes can move forward with their preparations and Olympic qualifications. |
"Today our boxers are suffering from the delays, as it is not clear how, when and where they will qualify for the Tokyo Olympic Games. |
The IOC has still not confirmed whether the request from Rakhimov, who remains on a United States Treasury Department sanctions list as one of Uzbekistan's leading criminals, has been accepted. |
Rakhimov had called for a "kick-off" meeting between AIBA and the Inquiry Committee to get the process underway. |
No dates or further information has been forthcoming from the IOC regarding the progress of the inquiry since it was set up. |
AIBA has repeated its insistence that it has made a number of improvements in areas such as refereeing, judging and its finances. |
As first reported by insidethegames, AIBA are also unable to maintain or open a bank account in Switzerland, however, which remains one of the key issues for the IOC. |
Windows 10 will come with a new web browser, voice-activated digital assistant and include Xbox gaming, and be a free upgrade, Microsoft announced Wednesday. |
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