Industry Leaders Magazine Q1 2017 by The Fastest Media

Latest news and trends from around the globe in the fields of F&B, Energy, Manufacturing, Construction & Supply Chain

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March 2017

Green Revolution Young Guns Big Events, Bigger Gains Power Players

Iconic C.e.o.S

Most Unsung

March 2017 CLICK AN ICON TO VIEW OR FOLLOW OUR SOCIAL NETWORKS

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editor’s NOTE

by Anna Domanska

This is a challenging time to a business leader. Around the globe, the economic roller coaster is far from over. The political uncertainty has taken a toll on long-term business planning. Back in the United States, shareholder activists have become powerful critics of business leaders. It’s a tough time to be a C.E.O in particular, which explains the 2015 turnover among global C.E.O.s, which reached a record high of nearly 17 percent. Against this backdrop, it’s heartening to see a group of high-performing C.E.O.s. This year, we have ‘Most Unsung Iconic C.E.O.s of All Times,’ a great illustration of the many ‘unsung’ business leaders who have successfully steered the company through adverse times. These best-in-class C.E.O.s have two traits in common: an ability to embrace risks and a bias towards capitalizing on opportunities. These characteristics of business leaders benefit almost every business, as they are clear markers for the ability to be open-minded and connect thoughtfully across a variety of channels to take advantage of market disruption. The list offers a stark reminder that a spectacular performance doesn’t go unnoticed. Plunge In! Like always, we welcome your comments (Facebook.com/ IndustryLeaders, @IndLeaders on Twitter). You may reach us at editor@indleaders.com or Editor – Industry Leaders Magazine, The Fastest Media, 3651 Lindell Road, Suite 320D, Las Vegas, NV 89103.

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The Team EDITORIAL Anna Domanska, Editor-in-Chief Christy Gren, Sub-Editor Riana Petanjek, Sub-Editor Priyansha Mistry, Sub-Editor Aubrey Chang, Associate Editor

TECHNOLOGY John Hancock, Head-Web Department Le Manh Coung, Sr Sofrware Coordinator Julia Hunt, Magazine Production

Priyanka Ramani, Content Writer

PROJECT MANAGEMENT Tony Raval, Project Director Jay Raol, Project Director

DESIGN Kevin Paul, Sr. Graphic Designer Reepal Savaniya, Graphic Designer

MARKETING Jason Miller, Sr. Project Director

FINANCE CONTROL R R Baratiya

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ADVERTISING Richard Dean, Advertising Manager

Content Features 12

48 Power Players

Discovering Ben Weiss’ Personal Side

Latest in Business

Luxembourg, At the Helm of Asteroid Mining

Young Guns

The Twentysomething Silicon Valley Moneymakers

72 Green Revolution

Better Design for Waste

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Cover Story

Most ‘Unsung’ Iconic C.E.O.s of All Times

104

132

Crowdfunded, Inc.

The Evolution of Crowdfunding Could Change Everything

Big Ticket

140

Best Luxury Travel Accommodations

122

Big Events, Bigger Gains The ‘Apple’ Moneyball

Imminent Trends

The Artificial Boom in China

Events & Tradeshows

152

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E-waste in Asia to be a Growing Concern in the Coming Years With the development of technology comes the increasing impact of its benefits as well as drawbacks. As gadgets are not an asset anymore, they are easily available to a majority of the people across the world. Earlier owning a gadget was considered a novelty but now itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the other way round, the person who doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t own a gadget is the black sheep of society. For this and a few other reasons, not only is the purchase of gadgets high but also its disposal. The dumping of such electronic gadgets is known as e-waste. According to recent Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 012

Chinese countries lack the sufficient infrastr e-waste generated end up in backyards, trash harms the environment.

reports, the e-waste in Asia has risen considerably in the past five years. The term e-waste stands for discarded or disposed of electronic devices. Due to affordability and short life span of the gadgets, people tend to update their gadgets at regular time intervals. This results in e-waste generation. In case

ructure to carry out e-recycling and so most of the h fires, or informal recycling systems which ultimately

these devices are not recyclable, one usually burns or washes them in acid. By doing so, copper and other such metals can be extracted. This process is one of the factors causing air and water pollution. The workers involved in this process might suffer from cancer or infertility. If certain gadgets are not eligible for this process, they are simply dumped on land. In addition to this, it

causes land pollution as well. Therefore e-waste has become a growing concern due to its widespread nature. For the new report, researchers at the United Nations University closely studied e-waste generation in 12 countries specifically in East and SouthEast Asia. This report stated that the e-waste generated in these Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 013

countries rose by 63 percent between 2010 and 2015. The report has also put down several reasons which led to this increase. China was one of these 12 countries which produced more than double of its usual output which was 22 pounds of waste per person per year. But the region producing the highest amount of e-waste in Asia is Hong Kong. By 2015 approached, Hong Kong was producing nearly 48 pounds of waste per person per year. On the other hand, the Cambodians hardly produced 3 pounds of waste per person per year.

There is no particular solution to avoid the pollution caused by such e-waste. In general, the Asian countries lack sufficient infrastructure to carry out e-recycling. Because of this, most of the e-waste generated end up in backyards, trash fires, or informal recycling systems which ultimately harms the environment. Hence in order to cut down on the harmful effects of e-waste in Asia, one needs to develop e-recycling systems like the ones present in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan or try to reduce regular disposal of gadgets.

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There is no particular solution to avoid the pollution caused by e-waste.

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Designer Babies of a New Generation

Over the past decade, the number of embryo selection has skyrocketed nearly 62% from 70,000 in 2005 to over 113,400 today. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 016

Jamie Whiteley always knew that committing to a relationship was out of the question. “I am a single mother by choice,” she explains. “I don’t see why you shouldn’t have a child if you really want one. Besides, I don’t see myself compromising for anyone now, or in the future”. Whiteley belongs to the class of solo moms who are in their 30s and 40s, living a busy life. These women decided to focus on their career rather than finding someone to settle down with. At 38, she decided to spend her life with someone. After four unsuccessful months of trying for a family, the marketing executive at PepsiCo., had Vivian, a beautiful girl with dark hair, who was born 12 months ago. When Whiteley decided it was time to start a family, she didn’t join a dating site. Rather, she made an appointment at a fertility clinic to have a designer baby via IVF with anonymous sperm donors. At such clinics, the embryos produced are genetically screened, so the parents are

able to choose which embryos to implant in the hopes of the ‘perfect’ baby. The embryo menu at such fertility clinics contain a description, which goes something like this: Embryo 23 – male • No serious early onset diseases • Lower than average risk of autism • Lower risk of autoimmune disorders • Blue eyes, light brown hair, terrible eye sight • 72% chance of coming in the top half in SAT tests Over the past decade, the number of embryo selection has skyrocketed nearly 62% from 70,000 in 2005 to over 113,400 today. The process allows couples to tinker the genetics of their baby. Since we discovered Crispr-Cas9 genome editing, the process of embryo selection for rearing designer babies (free of specific genes involved in inherited disease) has become a trend. GenePeeks, information

Inc., a genetic company uses

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the DNA of eggs and sperm to create “virtual babies”. The hypothetical child is then screened for more than 500 recessive genetic diseases that cannot be seen with existing pre-pregnancy screening tools. The team hopes to make the GenePeeks’ technology available to any couple trying to conceive. Recently, the company launched Matchright, a service to help parents protect their future children from severe pediatric diseases. Genetics startup, 23andMe, was recently granted a patent for ‘family inheritance trait calculator,’ a technology which allows couples to see what kind of traits

their child might inherit. It’s also used by customers as a fun way to look at things such as eye color, height, hair texture, muscle development, expected life span, or recessive traits like whether their child will be lactose intolerant. The prospects of bottled embryos, genetic screening, and genetic manipulation look promising for improving the health of children through prenatal diagnosis. However, each of these possibilities coupled with potential social repercussions could have detrimental consequences in the future. The ethical concerns facing genetic selection and designer babies still remain unaddressed.

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The prospects of bottled embryos, genetic screening, and genetic manipulation look promising for improving the health of children through prenatal diagnosis.

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China is now the biggest producer of solar e despite low energy output ratio

Even though China is now the biggest producer of solar energy, it doesn’t compare well to less populated nations in terms of energy-output ratio.

Recently, the National Energy Administration (NEA) noted that China has more than doubled its solar production in 2016 – making it the biggest Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 020

producer of solar energy in terms of capacity. Transitioning to renewable energy will require continued focus and effort, given that the total renewable energy

energy

output is only one percent of the country’s total energy output. Even though China is now the biggest producer of solar energy, it doesn’t compare well to less populated nations in terms of energy-output ratio. By the end of 2016, China hit 77.42 gigawatts, which generated 66.2 billion kilowatt-hours of renewable power. While the raw numbers may look a lot impressive, it’s relatively trivial if you consider the country’s massive population. China’s total renewable energy output only accounts for 1% of the total generated power. Taking into account its gargantuan population, China’s renewable energy efforts pale in comparison to developed economies like the United States. China has almost 17 times as many citizens as Germany and produces less solar power per citizen than the European nation. “Germany

produces

around 500 watts per citizen, while China produces about 65. Other developed nations, including Japan, Belgium, Italy, and the United States remain far ahead of China in percapita solar production.” Its capital city, Beijing is hoping to effectively cut its reliance on coal and switch to natural gas. Last week, the city’s major Cai Qi promised to make extra abatement measures to reduce its coal consumption by another 30 percent. Air quality in Beijing is off the charts, exceeding maximum 500 mark on the index. More than a dozen cities in the neighboring Hebei and Shadong provinces remain smog-shrouded. Cities in the past have closed schools and halted construction work as the air quality passed a threshold set by the World Health Organization (WHO) for human safety. In a conference in Beijing last year, Nur Bekri, head of the National Energy Administration, said China aims to more than trip the

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solar power capacity by 2020. The country plans to add a total of 110 gigawatts of capacity from green sources in the next five years. According to a Reuters report, China will be investing 2.5 trillion yuan ($364 billion) into renewable power generation by 2020. The dedication to renewable energy sources could put pressure on other nations to do the same. India announced yesterday that their PV (solar photovoltaic) capacity had reached 9 gigawatts, outpacing Japan. Saudi Arabia, in response to the plummeting oil prices, is

investing close to $50 billion in solar and wind power. In January, Ireland passed a bill that would make it the first country to completely divest from fossil fuels. Meanwhile, other countries are finding creative ways of harnessing green energy for power. Iceland, for example, is digging a hole into a giant volcano to bore the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s deepest geothermal hole.

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China plans to add a total of 110 gigawatts of capacity from green sources in the next five years.

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IKEA Is Making Old New Again

Stockholm studio Form Us With Love, has previously created a pair of moulded plastic chairs in its repertoire for the Swedish furniture brand.

Not so long ago, IKEA collaborated with Swedish design studio Form Us With Love to create kitchen units made entirely from recycled plastic bottles and reclaimed industrial wood. With the Kungsbacka units, the Swedish furniture giant aims to make sustainability available for everyone. The company expects it to last for 25 years. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 024

According to some National Geographic reports, Americans bottled water consumption has reached 36 gallons, up from a gallon-and-a-half during the mid-1970s, during the course of a year. A very small number of the plastic bottles are recycled, while an unclaimed number of deposits clog up landfills and the oceans. The Swedish furniture giant wants to keep

some of these plastic bottles out of landfills and the oceans. ‘Today, applying waste materials in production is unfortunately still costly and the Kungsbacka kitchen fronts could have easily ended up too expensive. Overcoming the price was a milestone in the development. Sustainability should be for everyone, not only for those who can afford it,’ says Anna Granath, product developer at Ikea. Each piece of 15.75-by-31.5inch cabinet is made from twenty-five plastic bottles. As with most IKEA furniture, the cabinets are modular, so they can be arranged to fit into any space. “A plastic bottle is not waste, it is a resource. And most importantly, this kitchen proves that these materials can be used for household goods in large scale production,” says Jonas Pettersson, CEO at Form Us With Love. “We have to challenge the excuses for not using waste as a resource by showing how to best put these materials back into production, making affordable democratic products that will

last.” IKEA Kitchen’s main unit is made out of reclaimed wood, while the coating is made from recycled plastic bottles. The Stockholm design studio chose a simple silhouette in a matt anthracite gray to create an elegant look. While the shiny black Hackås handles contrast with the matt surface. Stockholm studio Form Us With Love, has previously created a pair of moulded plastic chairs in its repertoire for the Swedish furniture brand. Recycled furniture is one of the fastest growing design trends of 2017. A growing number of design companies are switching focus to recycled materials, as discarded waste becomes a growing concern. Some of the plastic is swallowed by sea birds, whales, dolphins and other marine creatures to the point where it is estimated to be in the guts of all marine mammals. The toxic materials are consumed by plankton, which is then eaten by fish, ending up in the food chain, posing a threat to humans.

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Luxembourg, At the Helm of Asteroid Mining

Luxembourg announced it would develop the bedrock needed for the future commercial use of space resources. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 026

In the late 1800s, the discovery of iron ore gave rise to the powerful steel industry. Following the oil crisis in 1973, the iron and steel industry was no longer the driving force. Since the oil crisis, Luxembourg has looked to diversity, to ensure that any other crisis won’t encumber the wealth of the nation, which holds the highest GDP per capita in the world. Come 2017, the second richest nation in the world is eyeing outer space. In fact, Luxembourg now a world leader in asteroid mining industry. Nine months ago, Luxembourg pledged $223 million to develop and effectuate the first asteroidt mining expedition. In November, it passed a law allowing private companies in that country to keep any resources they obtain from space. If you think about it, space has everything we hold of value – metals, minerals, energy and real estate, in infinite quantities. Every year, thousands of meteors and asteroids worth trillions of dollars of minerals and metals whizz past the

Earth. Scientists believe mining of asteroids and minerals which contain valuable metals like gold, nickel, platinum and iron is extremely feasible. As a matter of fact, several international organizations are even looking into developing plans for going up to get these deep space resources. Luxembourg has more than 30 years of experience in space and geo-communication industries. In 1985, SES - now one of world’s leading satellite operators, was founded there. A year later, they built their headquarters in Château de Betzdorf, a former residence of the country’s Grand Duke. More than 23 years later, the company operates over 50 satellites in the orbit that can reach 99 percent of the world’s population. Albeit, it’s not just SES alone, plenty of other companies now work in the space industry. In February 2016, Luxembourg announced it would develop the bedrock needed for the future commercial use of space resources. The government has opened a fund of more than Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 027

$200 million USD to invest in asteroid mining companies. Luxembourgâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new law which goes into effect in early 2017 will allow private companies from the deep space industry to extract and keep materials. Moreover, Planetary Resources and Deep Space Resources also plan to space test their asteroidmining technologies. Albeit, the long-term viability of asteroid mining is a trillion dollar question. It is estimated that a 30m-wide asteroid could be loaded with up to $50 million worth of platinum. The challenges, however, are derisive, especially when you question the business viability. For example, how will companies refine minerals in low gravity, how expensive will be the whole ordeal be, will asteroid minerals provide a price advantage over planetary sources?

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It is estimated that a 30m-wide asteroid could be loaded with up to $50 million worth of platinum.

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Bill Gates & Other Tech Industry Leaders launch $1 Billion Clean Energy Fund

Microsoft co-founder and Chairman Bill Gates has spent much of the last year financing clean energy technologies. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 030

Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most successful industry leaders, entrepreneurs, and venture capitalists will invest up to $1 billion in an energy fund led by Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates. The energy fund will finance companies developing cutting-edge energy technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to almost zero. Breakthrough Energy Ventures, the 20-year fund, is backed by tech luminaries and heavyweights from the energy industry. Illustrious investors include Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com Inc., Jack Ma, the executive chairman of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., Richard Branson, the founder of Virgin Group Ltd., Silicon Valley venture capitalists John Doerr and Vinod Khosla, Prince Alwaleed Bin Tala, the founder of Kingdom Holding, and John Arnold, a billionaire natural gas trader, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and others. The goal of Breakthrough Energy Ventures is to bet on risky, long-term energy technologies that could dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions to almost nothing. According to a

document released on the official website, the investment will go into areas such as agriculture and transportation, electricity generation and storage, energy system efficiency, and industrial system use. Breakthrough Energy Ventures Fund is a part of the Breakthrough Energy Coalition, which Bill Gates launched in December 2015. The BEC was launched alongside Mission Innovation, a clean energy research and development initiative on the opening day of the U.N. climate change summit in Paris. The countries participating in the initiative pledged to double their clean energy technology research and development budgets by 2020. Bill Gates has spent much of the last year financing clean energy technologies. He maintains that the only way to curtail global warming in the relatively nearterm is by finding an energy source that produces zero greenhouse emissions.

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Mark Zuckerberg’s Ambitious Plan To Future-Proof Facebook

Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg argues that in the future the social network will be able to use artificial intelligence to detect cases of bullying and harassment.

Five years ago, in a pre-IPO letter to Facebook investors, Mark Zuckerberg wrote, “There is a huge need and a huge Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 032

opportunity to get everyone in the world connected, to give everyone a voice and to help transform society for the future.”

In the letter, the Facebook cofounder and CEO highlighted how he believes his platform is changing the relationship between citizens and government. Facebook was not originally created to be a company, he wrote. It was built make the world more open and connected – to build a global community. Going forward, there were a lot of questions around the world reflecting on how the largest social network could be so progressive. While the postIPO Facebook dominated the financial press in the last five years, it also slowly set the stage for a peculiar trend. In February, Zuckerberg posted a 6,000-word opus for Facebook Inc., addressing artificial intelligence, online safety, fake news and polarization of society. “Progress now requires humanity coming together not just as cities or nations, but also as a global community,” wrote Zuckerberg. Throughout the entire letter, the CEO of Facebook fill out on five goals: to help users built communities that are supportive, safe,

informed, civically-engaged, and inclusive. Mark Zuckerberg has clearly done a lot of thinking in the last twelve months. In his letter, he points out how businesses and individuals can do more to combat ‘fake news.’ Facebook has played a pivotal role in the emergence of hoaxes and misinformation spread virally. He argues that in the future Facebook will be able to use artificial intelligence to detect cases of bullying and harassment. AI will detect such content to flag to moderators before a user reports the content. Currently, Facebook is exploring ways to tell the difference between news stories about terrorism and actual terrorist propaganda. The tool will be particularly helpful in removing anyone trying to use the platform to recruit for a terrorist organization. He wrote a lengthy diatribe in the letter, expressing concern on the so-called polarization, which exists in all realms of life, physical or digital. “Research shows that some of the most obvious ideas, like showing people an article from the opposite perspective, Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 033

actually deepen polarization by framing other perspectives as foreign,” he wrote. “A more effective approach is to show a range of perspectives, let people see where their views are on a spectrum and come to a conclusion on what they think is right.” Over the last five years, the social network has been cataclysmically in the middle of historical events on the planet. It has become a tool to remind people to register to vote and connect with local representatives. It has also become a tool cultural nuances like the censorship of the iconic Vietnam War photo. With the letter, Mark Zuckerberg is determined to let topics like AI, polarization, online safety and fake news gain prominence in our daily lives. It’s a herculean task, considering there are over 1.80 billion Facebook users on the planet.

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Mark Zuckerberg at F8 2016

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U.S Doubles up its Solar Energy Installation in 2016

In 2016, the U.S. produced around 14,626 megawatts of capacity in its new solar energy installations.

The U.S. is the second largest consumer of energy in the world after China. In 2015, the total primary energy consumption of the country was around 97.7 quadrillion Btu. The U.S. derives a majority of its energy resources from fossil fuels. These fossil fuels are exhaustible in nature, expensive, and harmful to the environment in the long run. In accordance with this, the establishment of alternative sources of energy has become a growing concern to the U.S. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 036

Due to many such factors, environmentalists along with investors are focusing on setting up solar and wind energy plants across the nation. Such efforts seem to have paid off as according to reports, the solar energy installation has almost doubled up in the year of 2016. This progress has made solar energy the top energy source in the country. In 2016, the U.S. produced around 14,626 megawatts of

capacity in its new solar energy installations. This is almost double of the quantity produced in the previous year. The given statistical data has been released by the GTM Research and Solar Energy Industries Association. Among all the other alternative sources of energy, solar energy led the way by contributing 39 percent of new power generated in comparison to natural gas, coal, and the wind. Almost 7,493 megawatts of capacity of new energy was generated in 2015. Consequently, these latest figures state a 95 percent increase than the previous year. For the past few years, solar energy has been responsible for the growth in low-carbon energy production. It does not come as a surprise that California leads all the other states in the increase in the solar energy installation. Californiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s contribution was more than one-third in the total new production. It produced about three gigawatts of largescale solar energy, mainly in its central and south regions. This does not mean that there was growth only in certain regions of the country. It has been recorded that 22 states have added more

than 100 megawatts of energy on an individual basis. A number of southeastern states are also concentrating on building more solar projects despite the meager regulatory incentives. Alabama contributed to this growth by adding its first solar farm producing 75 megawatts of energy. Also, similar projects came up in Georgia and Florida. From the industrial point of view, the strongest growth factor was the large-scale production units. Such solar farms are efficient enough to produce at least one megawatt of energy on a regular basis. One megawatt of energy is sufficient to provide electricity to 160 homes. Henceforth such utility-scale productions have a 70 percent share in the added establishment of solar power. Analysts working with similar projects believe that impressive growth is a result of regulatory forces which work for the development of solar energy along with the fall in the cost of solar panels. As solar panels have become cheaper, they are more in competition with the fossil fuels. Investors, as well as private banks, are relying on solar energy installation as a profitable investment which has led to its growth in the U.S. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 037

Better Design for Waste The concept of recycling waste products has been gaining momentum in all parts of the world. Right from households to big companies, recycling is adapted by almost everyone with the idea of making the most of the waste. The disposal of trash has become a major problem because when the quantity of trash is on the rise, more land is occupied in dumping it. Such dumping grounds are usually the root cause of some of the most fatal diseases. Keeping in mind many such factors, innovators are coming up with unique ways to utilize this waste. This helps in using the trash for something productive and also cuts down the material cost during production. Therefore using recycled products is a win-win situation from various perspectives.

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Matt Simpson is turning Banana Fiber into Vegan Wallet

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Pal Hardwood by Kacie Meyers Recycling waste products for a particular project is implemented on a common basis but Kacie Meyers decided to make recycling her source of income. At the young age of 22, Meyers is focused to set up her business empire by recycling discarded wooden pallets into welldesigned products. This company aims to provide employment opportunities to people with special needs. Therefore it is an amalgamation of a noble thought along with being kind to the environment at an affordable cost. Meyer

Pal

recently stated in her interview that as a social entrepreneur, it is her duty to do well for the people in need and also contribute for the well-being of the environment. A graduate from Johnson and Wales University in Charlotte, North Carolina, Meyers says that she got the inspiration for her business idea from her fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s flooring store. Right from

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objects are shipped inside a box made of such wood pallets.

Hardwood is reducing waste by repurposing pallets into lifetime hardwood floors.

a young age, she started indulging in meager jobs at the store where she learned about the wastage caused. This is when she realized that the wood pallets disposed off are of good quality and can be reused as durable products. After a few household experiments with these pallets, Meyer decided that she could use the pallets as a flowing material. Also the pallets are easy to find as all kinds of big

But it is constantly assumed that the quality of recycled wood might not be as efficient as fresh wood material. This is not the case with the hardwood pallets. Floors made from such hardwood can be termed as “lifetime floors” as this kind of wood has the lifespan of more than 80 years. Adding to this, hardwood has a hand-scraped finish due to which any scrapes or scratched formed on the flooring only adds to the character of the wood. On the other hand with the traditional hardwood, one needs to sand and refinish it at regular intervals of time depending on the usage. This makes the recycled hardwood low maintenance and durable for a very long time. But to attain this end product, the wood pallets go through a number of treatments to give it some finish so that it doesn’t look like a recycled product when used.

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Protiro by Studio NOWA Who would have thought that the plastic crates used to hold beverage bottles will be used to create a permanent architectural structure. Studio NOWA in Italy has come up with the concept of using such plastic crates to create a building which will serve as a rehabilitation and treatment center for the people will disabilities. The use of such crates gives a unique pixilated texture which makes the building stand out among other such constructions in the surrounding area. The striking external appearance of this place gives a pleasant vibe to the people with special needs to make them feel comfortable at such a place.

The Protiro project has been specially designed for the Concetta dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Alessandro Foundation. This is a nonprofit organization which looks after the treatment and rehabilitation of people with disabilities. For this project, the architects have designed a multi-functional space by transforming two former artisan sheds with the help of basic materials to give a distinctive look to the exterior of the building. In this building, ground floor is converted into a proper guesthouse. The first floor has a great vaulted roof to be used a giant area for group activities. The service area will take up the two low volumes at the entrance vestibule of the main hall. This space will have a new lift along with a staircase. The patterned exterior made up of plastic crates covers this entire building for enhanced visual identity.

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Gyro Table by Brodie Neill The disposal of plastic waste at random places is causing major health issues not only to the humans but also other living creatures. One can notice plastic waste all across the beaches as people tend to come here to laze around due to which they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t take the trouble to walk up to a dustbin to throw such waste. But an industrial designer has come up with a way through which this ocean waste can be useful for the manufacture of a piece of furniture. Brodie Neill has come up with a design in which he uses the plastic waste of the ocean as a raw material to produce tables. He recycles such ocean plastic

to create a terrazzo-effect on the Gyro table designed by him. Neill came up with the concept of using ocean plastic to create a terrazzo-effect on tabletops when he observed that the serene beaches of Bruny Island in Tasmania were being polluted by plastic. This is when he decided that he will use such ocean plastic to create practical furniture units. He worked in collaboration with an international community of environmentalists who helped him collect plastic waste from local seashores for this project. Later on, he turned the ocean waste into usable material for the tables with the guidance of scientists and other fellow designers. The terrazzo effect is inspired by the terrazzo flooring; this visual effect is usually

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Gyro Table by Brodie Niell

created by using granite or marble raw materials. The Gyro table attains the terrazzo-effect with the help of plastic collected from various beaches of the world. Such plastic is disintegrated into tiny pieces for a speckled look on the tabletop. In order to display the natural colors of the ocean, chips of black, brown, white, blue, and green plastic are used. The concentration of white plastic is more in the center of the tabletop top which gradually reduces as black dominates the corners of the table. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 045

Green Banana Paper Wallet There has been a lot of hue and cry about the slaughter of animals to obtain leather as the process of doing so is brutal. A startup based in Micronesia has come up with an alternative to leather as well as plastic and is successfully producing wallets from that material. Green Banana Paper is using banana fiber as vegan leather to produce wallets which feel like leather but are made from waste of banana trees. The startup claims that they produce the most unique wallets as they are neither made from leather or plastic. The startup recycles the banana tree waste out of which it derives banana fiber which is used in the production of these vegan leather wallets. These

wallets are water resistant unlike the usual leather wallets and remain sturdy over a long period of time which is not the case with the plastic wallets. The startup applies an extra layer of wax on the wallets to make sure the water simply rolls off instead of harming the belongings inside the wallet. The wallets are designed using a really thick paper which is double-folded using the origami art and focuses on places which undergo maximum

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a part of the global market through its Kickstarter campaign where it has already overtaken its goal at a speedy rate. The production of these wallets also gives an alternative source of income to the local farmers which will help them develop as entrepreneurs in the near future.

Vegan Banana Wallet

wear and tear. These wallets have been tested under extreme conditions such as sun, snow, rain, road trips, tight pants, airplanes, boats, washing machine, saltwater, and has proved to be durable in all such conditions. But in case the customer is still not satisfied with the product, there is a 60-day return policy as well. There is an essence of the islands of Micronesia on this wallet as it contains an illustration of the beach life on it. The Green Banana Paper Wallet is now

Recycling is not only beneficial to retain the purity of the environment through the ages but is also profitable from the business point of view. In the long run, one will be able to witness many more innovations based on the theory of recycling. Presently, numerous designers are inculcating this concept in their designs as the product obtained is cost effective and also curbs the shortage of disposal ground. All one needs is an eye to look at various prospects of a waste material and how can one use it in a productive manner.

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Discovering Ben Weissâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Personal Side Do you have a passion for something special in life? Ben Weiss has got one. Bai beverage founder, Ben Weiss is holding high for pouring his soul to infuse a rare combination of flavor and natural goodness in one. He is an impassioned explorer who always wanted to recreate a generous cup of joe; leaving no stone unturned concerning diet and health.

Bai Antioxidant Supertea Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 049

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The Secret of ‘Five’ Being truly obsessed for repurposing the aromatic coffee flavor and decocting its base to infuse in some finehealthy beverage, Ben chiefly started Bai5. The company began its journey with five employees to give a start. ‘Five’ defines the essence of Bai’s principles and their distinct way of functioning. The concrete, glass headquarters has five flags hanging from their ceiling featuring the five best employees. Audacious, Authentic, Tenacious, Obsessive and Great are the five qualities these featured faces possess that led them at the company’s pennon. This super cool way of functioning gives the enthusiast employees’ a worthy treat. Also, the company’s current available beverages are known to comprise only 5 calories. A rare thing, isn’t it?

Bai’s purchasing and use of the coffeefruit supports long-term economic opportunities for coffee producers in remote, relatively poor regions. Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 051

SUPER PURIFIED WATER INFUSED WITH ANTIOXIDANTS Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 052

Bai Beverages The stealth Superfruit

Ben Weiss, the coffee aficionado, discovered a superingredient with anti-oxidants. The very familiar dark coffee bean is known for its strong and aromatic flavor. Naturally, the coffee bean is enclosed into a red pulp. Ben found out that the pulp contains radical fighting anti-oxidants. He came up with the idea of infusing this antioxidant pulp, containing the same rich-coffee flavor that can lift up your mind and body into a groundbreaking beverage. Thus began, Ben’s expedition for the establishment of Bai brands LLC.

The ‘WOW’ factor

The coffee-fruit serves as a base refreshing flavor in Bai beverages. The anti-oxidants in the super-ingredient protect the body against the naturally damaging oxidant chaining processes. And so, the once discarded coffee bean by-product became the chief reason of Bai’s development. Bai beverages contain natural sweeteners in its health-freaky products. Stevia, a sweetener made from the plant species Stevia Rebaudiana and Erythritol a low calorie sweetener are the two organic add-ups in the Bai beverages. This unveils the secret of a 5 calorie drink tempting your tastebuds, acting as a sweetener as well as a natural refresher. Bai product bottles up 5 calories, 1 gram of sugar and no artificial sweeteners. They are a treat to your body, providing uncompromised taste, refreshing natural flavors and diet concerning add-ons; boosting up your day.

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SPARKLING ANTIOXIDANT INFUSIONS Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 054

After completing the graduation in finance from Boston University, Ben took up a banking job to be on the same lanes. But eventually, he realized that the job isn’t giving him a kick and decided to quit right then. He then worked for Godiva and came up there with an idea of coagulating the coffee. They developed a product Chocolixir, a frozen coffee beverage that attracted a good sale of chocolate for the company even during the summer season. Ben played a major role in Godiva and beguiled full-fledge sale. Grown up in Staten Island, Weiss was for so long interested in repurposing coffee to its best version. The success of Starbucks and other known-for-coffee brands added a bit of fuel to his dauntless spirit of pursuing ahead with his idea. After discovering the super-fruit from the lush green fields of Indonesia, Ben had got a strong intuition to develop a health blooming beverage with the red-pulp of the coffee fruit bearing high anti-oxidant content. Ben’s wife, Danna got the same positive vibes with the Ben’s idea of developing some distinct beverage. So both they persisted with the Ben’s idea and established the Bai5 beverages in 2009 at Princeton. Danna is the co-founder of the Bai beverages; involved in marketing and social-media departments. Danna also heads the wearable’s section that Bai Inc. has lately launched. She contributes a lot in the forging creative and artistic Bai cans design and also help with the marketing strategies. An exclusively sophisticated office arena in Bai is Danna’s innovation. To live with their parents, Ben and Danna laid the foundation of the Bai beverages Inc. at Princeton. Pat and Ray Schlaefer, Ben’s parents, remained an active part of the company. They have now taken their retirement from their New Jersey based beverage start-up. But still it is getting difficult to keep the hands off from the company, Ben’s mother stated once. Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 055

Each serving of Bai offers fresh fruit flavor infused with coffeefruit, our “secret superfruit”, which has antioxidants. Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 056

The Company culture The Bai5 Headquarter is located in Hamilton, New Jersey. The inside of the sanctum is elegantly designed having black concrete floors and black matte leather sofas. There is a cafeteria inside and they call it a ‘Coffee house’. The office of Ben is encased with glass walls, centered with large stone-topped table accompanied by a decorative tree and large monitors clinging at all the corners. There are five flags hanging down the ceiling featuring their best employees. They conduct such polls every year sorting the five enthusiasts. The company’s culture is very easy-breezy with no dress code. Ben also comes dressed up in casuals. Everyone has full freedom to be in their comfort zones. The company is focused to give a healthy and delightful treat to our taste buds. They compliant workforce targets perfection with their every batch of production. The company says that the employees are too dedicated to the output that they are on their feet even at the closing time. This mutual understanding maintains sound environment in the company.

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Bai Cocofusions have 5 calories per serving and are infused with antioxidant goodness. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 058

The hands on Bai beverages Justin Timberlake, the well-known popstar has invested in Bai Beverages. The singer was already a great fan of the Bai products. According to Ben, Justin has a great opinion for the Bai flavors and it is productive to have him on board. Justin shares the same desire as Bai to help people put better ingredients in their bodies without compromising the taste. Bai is already attracting pretty feed and Justinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s presence is an addition to the big-hit. Bai strives to target older millennial. Timberlake, aged 35, is the core demographic for the company and the marketing support helps Bai extend their brand-name. Other stakeholders of the Bai include Dr Pepper Snapple, actor Ashton Kutcher and a private equity firm Strand Equity Partners. Currently, Bai Incâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rapid growth has led its valuation to $2 billion including debt. In 2016, Bai was poised to generate $300 million revenue. Bai spent $60 million on marketing and company said that they are expecting more than double of the revenue in 2017.

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The Bai Bevolution The Founder and Chief Executive Officer call the leverage attainment of Bai as ‘Bevolution’. Bai has achieved the platforms of fame by tackling all the hurdles on its way. In the initial stages, Bai made a start with manufacturing three 70 calorie drink. Ben and his father started going door-todoor for the sale. They targeted local merchants for bulk retailing. The start-up team spent lots of time on the Costco streets initially. Their product got a lot of appreciation, but 70 calorie was not enough to rule the crowd. Later, Bai Inc. introduced 5 calorie Bai5 beverages and it stood out in the whole beverage industry. Currently, Bai has expanded its products and despite of anti-oxidant infused flavored drink it includes a lot of unique refreshments. They have coconut flavored waters, Anti-water drinks, Bai bubbles i.e., carbonated drinks and some variant teas. Bai has over 373 employees and is counting. They have many pioneers on board to head their specific departments. Assembling best experts on board is the major reason behind Bai’s outstanding development. The expert team includes

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CFO Ari Soroken, COO Barak Bar-cohen, CCO Chad Portas, CMO Michael Simon who is the former Panera Bread Executive, CSO Mike Pengue and President Ken Kurtz. According to Ben Weiss, Bai is not just about their products, but a phenomenal brand that bears a meaning beyond their beverages. Bai Inc. is first of its kind; manifesting customer demands, that has achieved stunning advancement, developing healthy customer relations and customer satisfaction. We are keen to witness where the ‘Bai Bevolution’ takes the beverage brand; practicing innovation and creativity to its best. It has been 20 years that Ben Weiss is innovating the beverages with the coffee-fruit as core ingredient and the company has now achieved flagship in the category of healthy beverages. They have made up to us the rare combination of amazing flavors and Nature’s goodness. The meaning of Bai is ‘pure’ in Mandarin and the company stand truly by inculcating perfect blend of refreshing flavors and purity in their drinks.

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Young and daring entrepreneurs from humble beginnings who are building brands, making millions and changing the world.

Stripe co-founder John Collison Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 064

The Twenty something Brothers Behind a $9 billion Silicon Valley Player STRIPE President John Collison doesn’t have an executive office or even a work area, so he often works at a shared table on the ground floor, when it’s available. His older sibling Patrick, who is CEO, goes by the more conventional route: a little work area packed between a wall and the desk used by the admin he shares with his sibling. The lack of an executive office stopped the Collisons, Irish migrants and twentysomething college dropouts, from building one of the most successful startups in the financial services industry. Seven years after its founding, Stripe is revolutionizing digital payments. Over the past few years, the startup has doubled its size to 400 employees and earned investments that value it at $5 billion. One a U.S.-only service, Stripe has now expanded to over 23 countries and is routinely striking partnerships with the likes of Apple Pay, Visa and Alibaba. In recent years, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter have chosen Stripe to power their e-commerce efforts, and traditional retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue and Best Buy picked Stripe for their foray into mobile. Stripe is private and won’t disclose income. While the majority of its countless paying clients are moderately small, a modest number of its best-known customers - Lyft, Shopify, Kickstarter, Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 065

Postmates and Wish, process tens of billions in installments combined, a lot of it through Stripe. According to industry sources, Stripe’s payment volume exceed $20 billion a year. For each transaction it processes, Stripe receives a 2.9% in swipe fee, plus 30 cents, roughly the same as other payment platforms such as Square. According to Stripe, 27% of Americans will have bought something through Stripe in 2016. The financial services startup has remained largely successful at making digital payments easy to process. Stripe’s technology powers subscription services like Slack, crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter, and marketplaces like Lyft. In 2016, it made a big push in what could be the next big trend in mobile commerce with the launch of the “buy” button that allows retailers to sell directly to consumers on platforms such as Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter. One of its rivals, Braintree, which is owned by PayPal, has processed $50 billion in 2015 - more than twofold Stripe’s volume- - and boasts of marquee clients, for example, Uber and Airbnb. Adyen, another fast-growing European startup, is additionally bigger and pushing forcefully into new markets. However with just around 2% of worldwide business happening on the web, by Stripe’s estimates, the Collisons- - and their investors, which include Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, believe there is immense opportunity enough for all. Stripe board member Mike Moritz of Sequoia Capital has called the Collisons some of the sharpest people he has ever back, high acclaim from the man who has bankrolled PayPal,

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Stripe co-founder Patrick Collison

Yahoo and Google. The Collisons split responsibility over products, although John, 25, handles partnerships and sales while Patrick, 27, focuses on designing and being the public face of the organization. The siblings learned programming at an early age and sold their first company, Auctomatic, for $5 million while still in their teens. Patrick, dropped out of MIT, is an insatiable reader who keeps a list of 600 or so books on his shelves, on topics

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ranging from programming, physics, literary criticism and economics. John, briefly attended Harvard, and is now the world’s youngest self-made millionaire. Stripe wasn’t born with the ambition of becoming one of the hottest startups of the decade. The Collisons simply wanted

Patrick and John Collison Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 068

to solve a problem that had encountered as app developer. While the ubiquity of Internet and smartphones has made it fairly easy to build services with a global reach, getting paid for them remains complicated. So, the siblings built a system that enables developers to accept payments in less than a minute. In the early days of Stripe, the Collisons did everything. They wrote the code and also handled customer service. Soon, they realized that in order for Stripe to grow, they had to steer their focus towards creating an organization. In the following months, they hired their first ten hires, all of whom have Stripe’s 10% equity reserved – an unusually large amount. Today, the founders will do whatever it takes to lure a top pick. To hire Clair Hughes Johnson, a veteran of several executive roles at Google, where she also ran the self-driving car project, they spent close to 50 hours courting her, before she agreed to join Stripe, where she is now the chief operating office. During the early years, Stripe has had its share of blow-ups and misfires. Talent is flocking in from all parts of the country to work with the Collisons. After all, the Collisons are seen are the next Page-Brin duo. Stripe has grown alongside some of its best clients by remaining dexterous. When Lyft chose in mid-2015 that it needed an option to pay its drivers more quickly, it swung to Stripe. In December Lyft launched Express Pay, an option that allows it to pay drivers instantly for their rides instead of making them hold up a few days. The feature required Stripe to bypass the typical electronic payment network, called ACH, and rather built a service that connected drivers’ bank accounts through their debit cards. Similarly, Twitter turned to Stripe for its first raid foray into e-commerce. Twitter wanted to make it simple for a large

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number of retailers, of all shapes and sizes, to offer merchandise through a buy button on its app. The challenge was massively complex, to a limited extent since vendors use many diverse platforms to power their stories. Stripe simplified the platform for developers and publishers, so Twitter won’t need to worry about it. The work with Twitter formed the basis for Relay, a Stripe product that has allowed thousands of other merchants to sell through third-party apps easily. Stripe’s ability to simple complexity has brought corporate powerhouses like Slack on board with it. Two years ago, Slack ditched Braintree in favor of Stripe because of its ability to deal with various currencies and payment types and to integrate with the company’s accounting software. Patrick and John Collison are now worth $1.1 billion each after Stripe raised $150 million from CapitalG, an investment division of Alphabet and General Catalyst Partners. The brothers together own about 29 percent of Stripe, although no official statement regarding the same has been released. According to The Wall Street Journal, the company is expected to exceed 40 percent in volume growth.

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Stripe Office

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stor y

Most ‘Unsung’ Iconic C.E.O.s of All Times Industry Leaders celebrates the Quintessence of Leadership

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Throughout history, business leaders have always emerged to inspire people and to shape the future. At the beginning of this century, men like Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, and Henry Ford restructured American industry and built the nation into a great economic power. Gifted and creative strategists, such business personalities are relentless and unstoppable in their pursuit of victory. But, leading a company and creating value requires more than a strategic vision, long-term planning and authenticity. In some cases, the business leaders are celebrated as a leader and visionary, as their faces adorn the covers of magazines like Economist, Time, and Fortune. Amongst them are business personalities, whoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re far more than drivers of investment performance. As I tend to see, these strategic leaders build the company on culture and skills, and shape their future above and beyond the competition. But, what is it about such leaders that eclipses the way they manage the company? Is it style? Is it the company? Or, is it the way they manage their operations?

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stor y Katharine Graham The Washington Post

Katharine Graham’s father, Eugene Meyer bought up the neardefunct The Washington Post at a public auction in 1933 for $825,000. She originally joined the publication working in the editorial and circulation departments, moving up to serve as publisher from 1969 and 1979 and became Chairman of the Board from 1973 to 1991. While she grew up in very fortunate circumstances, her upbringing and marriage prepared her to have a clocked life of the wife of an important publisher. But in 1963, the second chapter of her life began when her husband, Phil Graham’s depression-continuum accelerated to an apparent suicide. In order Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 074

to maintain the paper for her son Donny, the shy, young widow found herself the new president of The Washington Post Co. It was the beginning of a meteoric career for Katharine Graham that came to symbolize the two powerful trends of the century – advances in civil rights and the growing disillusionment of the government. Graham guided the Post through the most challenging times in the history of American journalism using the ‘get it right’ approach, where she asked her staff to be fair and even-kneeled. One was the publication in 1971 of the “Pentagon Papers,” a secret history of Washington’s

Katharine Graham, Chairman of the Board, the Washington Post Company, Washington DC. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 075

stor y duplicitous actions during the Vietnam War. The other was the Watergate scandal that broke in 1971, heralding President Richard Nixon’s involvement in the break-in and cover-up. In those days, exercising first-amendment rights under immense political pressure and adversity as a publisher was considered a virtuoso performance very few could accomplish. Rick Smith, chairman and editor in chief of Newsweek, says Katharine constantly asked: “Did they get it right? What could they do to make it better?” The approach earned The Washington Post a Pulitzer Prize and led to Nixon’s resignation from the presidency under the threat of impeachment. The Grande Dame of The Washington Post did not get any easy breaks in life and faced her adversity with admirable strength and a persistence. One of her strongest motivations was her commitment to her family and to the media and the business empire her father and husband had left behind. When she took control of The Washington Post in 1963, the company had revenues of $84 million; when she stepped down as chief executive in 1991 and handed over to her eldest son, it had revenues of $1.4 billion. Before Katharine Graham, few women had ever played such a pivotal role in the course of events in the United States and the world. All her life, she was a strong-minded, opinionated woman, who used her intelligence, her resilience and her courage to transform the landscape of American journalism.

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The Grande Dame of The Washington Post did not get any easy breaks in life and faced her adversity with admirable strength and a persistence. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 077

stor y James Sinegal Costco

There’s one overarching principle to James Sinegal’s success: “It doesn’t do COSTCO any good if nobody can afford to buy anything.” The financial crisis of 2007-2008, had some of the largest retailers in the nation worry about squeezing supplier to the bone and serving customers with the lowest common denominator, but not Costco. Pushing low-prices has been Costco’s shtick since James Sinegal cofounded with Jeff Brotman, its chairman and expanded it in the 1990s with the Price Club to create the nation’s largest warehouse club. The son of a steelworker, Sinegal was an 18-year-old San Diego Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 078

Community College student when he took a job as a grocery bagger at FedMart in 1954. Under the tutelage of FedMart co-founder Sol Price, Sinegal rose through the ranks, eventually holding the position of the vice president of the chain. With competitive prices on everyday goods, brand-name products and high-end items, Costco attracts customers paying the $50-$100 annual membership fees. The membersonly warehouse retailer virtually makes no money by selling brand name products. The capped margin on branded items and private-label brand item is no more than 14 – 15 percent. (In contrast, some of their competitors markup as

much as 50 percent for a brand name product.) Sinegal’s business strategy may look benevolent and altruistic, but it’s all good business. The warehouse mogul knows that employee turnover is a huge cost of business. Despite the economy, Costco pays its hourly workers an average $20.89 an hour, not including overtime, 40 percent higher than its fiercest rival Sam’s Club. More than eighty percent of Costco employees receive ample vacation, 401(K) and have company-sponsored health insurance. It’s clear that Costco’s customers stay loyal because the price-cutting service doesn’t come at the workers’ expense.

Costco co-founder and Chairman James Sinegal Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 079

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Unlike other C.E.O.s of big box retailers, James Sinegal was widely-admired for his servant leadership style. He answered his own phone “Sinegal!”, when a reporter would visit the HQ, which does not have any public relations staff, Sinegal would come out to the reception desk himself, he scanned 1,000 customer comments a day, and like all Costco employees, he wore a name tag during store visits. At the same time, Sinegal was hard-nosed when it came to adherence to company performance benchmarks. He was known for running tough budget meetings, rebuking buyers and managers who failed to meet profit-margin goal. His salary remained steady over the years, at $350,000, and his $198,400

bonus, reflecting his egalitarian business philosophy. Sinegal’s cardinal rule, “paying top-line wages,” a $20.89 an hour vs. $13.38 for WalMart, hasn’t won many praises from the Wall Street. Largely shunning Wall Street’s advice has become an important reason for the success of Costco’s business model and retention of great employees. Over 34 years, Sinegal turned Costco from one warehouse into a $119 billion global chain, selling everything from furniture to jewelry and electronics. In January 2012, the pioneer in the warehousing industry stepped down as CEO, promoting another company veteran Craig Jelinek to the position.

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stor y John Mackey Whole Food

In 1980, when the first Whole Foods opened in Austin, there were fewer than half-dozen supermarket-style natural foods store in the United States. Thirty seven years later it has become the world’s largest natural foods chain, with approximately 430 locations in the U.S., Canada and the U.K with sales of $16 billion in 2016. John Mackey’s zeal and persistence has seen Whole Foods through the inevitable ups and downs that come with reinventing an industry. During the 1990s, the high-end grocer enjoyed great success from America’s insatiable appetite for healthy, organic food; feeding off the economic boom Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 082

and larger disposable income. Whole Foods managed to hold its own, even during the tech bubble burst in the early 2000s, the housing and the financial crisis in 2008, and recovered to post stirring gains. When Whole Foods went public in 1992 with 10 stores, co-founder and co-CEO John Mackey thought the chain could open at 100 locations, and even that goal was “outlandishly optimistic”. Today, American’s healthiest grocery store has expanded its reach, from farmers and suppliers, to distributors and wholesalers, to other retailers. Over the last three decades, Mackey has emerged as the hero of

Whole Foods co-founder and CEO John Mackey Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 083

stor y

the organic movement and, is solely responsible for turning Whole Foods in the second-most valuable food retailer, next to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. Under his leadership, Whole Foods Market offered $10 million in low-interest loans to local farmers and food producers to help them expand their enterprises, launching the Whole Planet Foundation. Over the last thirty-seven years of his career, John Mackey has focused on building a more conscious way of doing business. In 2016, Mackey gathered a couple hundred of corporate leaders to join the 10th annual Conscious Capitalism CEO Summit. Mackey believes that any company has the power to address social and business challenges, if they align with their business and their customers. The right way of doing business is by being truly authentic, sticking to morals and ethics, and caring more about your customers and employees than your shareholders. The retailer honors a strict pay cap for all of its executives, to pay its workers a decent wage - $15 per hour on average. In 2006, Mackey joined the $1 salary club, forgoing stock options and bonuses. John Mackey continues to lead the great company with hope, mindfulness and compassion.

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Whole Trade Flowers Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 085

stor y Charles Coffin General Electric Co.

The American m u l t i n a t i o n a l c o n g l o m e r a t e corporation General Electric was founded in the year 1892 by the joint efforts of Thomas Alva Edison and Charles Coffin. Edison and Coffin were peers working in different locations, but had the same field of work. Both of them used to work for electric companies to acquire a number of key patents for them. With years of experience in this field, Edison and Coffin merged together and founded General Electric. Born in 1844 in Maine, Coffin was the first president of the company. Electrical manufacturing was not something he had planned to do, but was his alternative Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 086

career choice. He began his career at the age of 18 by working in his uncle’s shoe firm. But with ample of experience and his expertise in management, Coffin led GE with his impressive executive skills. After its establishment, the company was initially inclined more towards the computer manufacturing industry. But Coffin initiated GE’s production of various other electrical products apart from arc lights. He introduced products like railway motors, transformers, and alternating generators. Therefore, it will be justified to say that Coffin has helped develop GE in numerous fields of electrical manufacturing. During the late 1890s,

he successfully negotiated a patent agreement with a company which created a duopoly for a number of electrical manufacturing products, Westinghouse Electric. After this, in 1901 Coffin began a fully-equipped research laboratory in the name of GE. The research at this laboratory did not only focus on electrical development, but aimed to achieve the advancement of science as a whole. Coffin majorly contributed in increasing the capitalization of GE from its value of $35 million to $184 million under his leadership. Not only did he inculcate new technological advancements in the company, but he also efficiently managed the company during its cash shortage in 1893 which threatened its existence.

General Electric Co-founder Charles Coffin Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 087

stor y Angela Ahrendts Burberry

Before Angela Adhrents took the helm as Apple’s senior vice president in May 2014, she played a starring role in Burberry’s extraordinary turnaround. When Angela Ahrendts became Burberry’s CEO in July 2006, the brand was growing at a meager 2% a year. While luxury was one of the fastestgrowing sectors in the world, and yet the British company couldn’t compete against much larger rivals like Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy (LVMH) and PinaultPrintemps-Redoute, which earned 12 and 16 times Burberry’s revenue. The beloved old British company was struggling to get a share of the disposable income of the world’s most elite buyers. Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 088

Adhrents centralized design and focused on innovating core heritage products. As an American from the Midwest, critics questioned her ability to understand the 161-year-old label. Amidst the bid to unearth Burberry’s cache were leadership shakeups, factory closures and layoffs met with criticism, but Adhrents held her line. In 2011, Burberry was named the fourth fastest-growing brand globally by Interbrand and WPPP/BrandZ. Adhrents relentless focus on reviving the British company’s heritage in the millennial generation brought Burberry’s premier fashion shows back to London. She made digital technology a core component of

Angela Jean Ahrendts, is an American businesswoman and the senior vice president of retail at Apple Inc. She was the CEO of Burberry from 2006 to 2014. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 089

stor y how Burberry run its business to have a much bigger reach. In 2009, Burberry launched Art of the Trench, a microsite that runs user-generated content of people wearing Burberry’s signature trench coat. (To date, the site has received more than 24.8 million pageviews.) Today, Burberry is UK’s only premier fashion brand that stands against European houses of Prada, Gucci and Louis Vuitton. Burberry has figured out a way to bring the customers closer to the brand with YouTube, Snapchat, Periscope, Instagram’s video ads and Twitter’s buy buttons. At the end of 2014, Burberry upgraded its mobile site, which resulted into its

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mobile revenue tripling. As the authentic heritage brand diversified, it also continued to earn the majority of its revenue from its original core products. Angela’s strength to make a tough decision with sincerity and laser focus gave the company the most connected and creative cultures in the world. Before Angela Adhrents left for Apple Inc., she passed the baton to Christopher Bailey at Burberry in the newly created role of chief creative and chief executive office. Her background at the Cupertino company may not spell glamor, but she most certainly will turn revitalize Apple’s online and brick-and-mortar stores.

Angela Ahrendts made digital technology a core component of how Burberry run its business to have a much bigger reach.

stor y Carlos Brito Anheuser-Busch InBev

When it comes to shaping a successful company, the King of Beers knows what he’s doing. Back in 2008, when InBev took over AnhueserBusch, Brito and his team arrived in St. Louis within 24 hours to assess which executives would fit into the merged company’s culture. “In any company, there’s 20 percent that lead, 70 percent that follow and 10 percent that do nothing,” Brito once proclaimed in an interview. Carlos Brito, the CEO of the world’s largest beer company, isn’t like other executives. He is clearly a tough cookie, and is infamous for his hard-nosed management style. The 55-year-old Brazilian, Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 092

leads by example, and prefers when employees behave like an ownerentrepreneur. He has a reputation for not sugarcoating bad news or deficient performance. To facilitate communication across traditional barriers, he sits at a table with his direct reports close at hand. “People are the most important factor in a company,” says Brito. He evaluates his employees twice a year, and in the same one-on-one, 90-minute meetings they evaluate him. Since 2008, the InBev chief has achieved shareholder return that trump the broader food and beverage sector over the past decade. Brito’s

strategy

and

Carlos Alves de Brito is CEO of Anheuser-Busch InBev. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 093

stor y attention to detail have become a hallmark of his leadership of Anheuser-Busch InBev. Despite the size of the sprawling beer behemoth, he handpicks promising young employees and greets each new class of global management trainees. During his visits to diners and lunch counters all over the world, he walks behind the bar to personally inspect the boxes that beer arrived in. The functioning of the company shows that Brito has a knack for creative problem solving. In 2001, the government decided to impose fines on businesses that didn’t cut down on the energy consumption during the Brazil had an energy crisis. Brito hired consultants to gather data and do a proper analysis to show bar owners and other vendors how to save energy without unplugging their beer coolers. Brito is a truly global leader: A Brazilian native running a Belgian-headquartered company out of New York to bring a connected culture to the 150,000 employees in 24 countries. While some executives prefer corporate jets, and executive offices, Brito doesn’t. He shares his table with the vice president, to promote a no-holds barred atmosphere, so everyone can have a steady stream of impromptu meetings. The St. Louis-based Budweiser’s financial performance has earned Brito high marks from the Wall Street. He has continued to expand profit margins: in 2015, the world’s largest brewer produced $43.6 billion in revenue.

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Despite the size of the sprawling beer behemoth, Brito handpicks promising young employees and greets each new class of global management trainees. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 095

stor y John Chambers CISCO

During the dot.com boom, Cisco Systems’ CEO John Chambers witnessed a $460 billion of Cisco’s overall stock market value fizzle out in no time. At the moment, Chambers decided to switch directions. Instead of letting people work in silos, he introduced a five-step collaborative approach for everyone to follow. The transformation paid off, and since 2002, Cisco’s revenues are up by 90 percent. Often referred to as “execution machine,” Chambers was known for his get-things-done style. Under Chamber’s leadership, the company turned into a customeroriented, performancedriven market leader. He cultivated a cooperative Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 096

management style: a lot of managers also have leading roles in a function and on the company’s board. Chambers’ management style was immune to the ebb and flow of the macroeconomy. He ran a tight ship and was notorious for making decisions fast enough for the company to act on new opportunities. As a result, Cisco is now able to simultaneously run nearly a dozen large business initiatives, using his crossfunctional, collaborative model. From cloud computing to virtual healthcare, to routers in space to safety and security, Cisco Systems is sprawling across new market adjacencies and continues to add more.

Many on the Wall Street worried that the company was stretching so thinly, it could be ripped apart. Surprisingly, the expansion is a shining example of how one single entity could become the main supplier of all things essential in an increasingly connected world. When John Chambers left, his protégé Chuck Ribbons admitted, he was a tough act to follow. By the time Chambers stepped down as Cisco’s CEO, the company had fundamentally changed every aspect of the society in the information age. Once a dominant player in networking, today the maker of multiprotocol routers is now entering the market of alternative technologies. Using Chambers’ mantra to cope with the accelerating pace of change, the company will bring about exponential change.

John Thomas Chambers is the executive chairman and former CEO of Cisco Systems. Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 097

stor y Mark Parker NIKE

In “Swoosh” an unauthorized Nike published in 1991, Rob Strasser, former director of marketing, wrote “Mike Parker had the potential to run the company one day.” Fifteen years later, Parker was chosen as the successor to William Perez, becoming the company’s third CEO. The Nike veteran started off as a shoe designer in 1979 and worked his way through roles in marketing and design and way up to the top. An introverted CEO, he takes a meticulous approach to product development with “edit and amplify.” When Parker noted that Nike’s R&D department was exploring over 350 new ideas, he recognized this number was too Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 098

high. He personally got involved in the editing process, and helped the R&D team cut the ideas list down to 50. This sort of accountability and involvement is rare and shows a genuine passion for his job that inspires everyone it touches. Inquisitiveness is a key component of his leadership strategy and as a way to empower employees to find the answers themselves and act on them. Parker also has a soft spot for talent, creative people and so he commissions a lot of work with a new generation of artists. This dedication to make Nike the most successful athletic apparel and services company has set a precedent for innovative product

design and ambitious ventures to broaden the scope and reach of the company. Climbing up the corporate ladder has not diminished his appetite for creative pursuit. In fact, he still designs footwear at every chance he gets, finding inspiration by talking to street artists and contemporary design legends or walking through the company. The executive’s office is brimming with art collectibles, eclectic design objects, and personal mementos. The powerful, invested and knowledgeable leader has set the bar high for other leaders to match his level of dedication and passion for the company. In 2015, Nike offered Mark Parker $30 million to stay for another five years. The bonus was ten times his typical annual share bonus. Parker’s leadership in design, product development, and a suite of other areas has Nike steadily increasing its own market share and outpace arch-rival the Three Stripes.

Mark Parker is the Chief Executive Officer of Nike, Inc., he was named the third CEO of the company in 2006. Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 099

stor y Jen-Hsun Huang NVIDIA

Jen-Hsun Huang doesn’t kill products, he repurposes them. His management style is often overlooked in favor of more household names such as Steve Jobs (Apple Inc.) and Jeff Bezos (Amazon.com). Shortly after attaining his master’s degree at Stanford, Huang went on to co-found NVIDIA, with Chris Malachowsky and Curtis Priem in 1993. NVIDIA now is a 5 billion dollar company, was built on the near early failure. Huang and his partners had raised capital, hired the team, and developed the product. However, the entire lineup of NVIDIA-parts was a failure, such that no amount of investment in that direction could be Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 100

successful. Jen-Hsun Huang believes that in times of adversity, a company’s true culture and core values are created. “Failing forward,” as the American tech-industry phrases it, proves that failures come early and often, while successes take time. In the 1990s when NVIDIA almost went bankrupt, Huang’s perseverance helped save it. Not so long ago, the company went into a legal battle against Intel, ultimately forcing the giant to pay more than $1.5 billion in licensing fees. The invention of the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) in 1999 revolutionized parallel computing. Since its

inception in 1993, NVIDIA has grown as a market leader for PC graphics while simultaneously expanding into consumer electronics, self-driving cars, deep learning and cloud computing. Huang has little tolerance for screw-ups, and prefers when employees are upfront about needing help. But, he is equally amiable. He roams the halls of the company headquarters, chatting and laughing with employees, remembering the names of their spouses and asking after their children. Today, a majority of tech companies are using NVIDIA’s GPUs to build their own machine-learning computers. Huang’s leadership style is defined by one core principle: “the tolerance to take risks naturally encompasses the ability to learn from failure”.

Jen-Hsun Huang co-founded the graphics-processor company Nvidia and serves as its president and CEO. Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 101

stor y Laurence Douglas Fink Blackrock

Born in 1952 in California, USA, Laurence D. Fink grew up to become one of the most respected leaders of the world. Fondly known as Larry Fink, he was always inclined towards financial matters due to which he has an M.B.A. degree majoring in real estate gained from the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). He gained insight in the field of financial management during his tenure at the First Boston Corporation where he was the Managing Director. After this, at a relatively young age, Fink with his seven partners founded BlackRock in 1988. Apart from being the Founder, Fink is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the company. As a part of his multiple job roles, Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 102

he also leads the Global Executive Committee of the firm. Under the leadership of Fink, BlackRock has become the most trusted investment firm in terms of financial matters all over the world. Clients trust BlackRock with their money rather than any other such firms. The company is a global leader in investment management which also provides services such as risk management and related advisory services to its institutional as well as retail clients. In 2011, Fink was declared the “CEO of the Decade” by the Financial News. He has also been a part of the list of “World’s Best CEOs” by Barron’s for 10 years in a row. Fink is currently the world’s

biggest investor with the net value of $5.1 trillion. Apart from his commitment to BlackRock, Fink is a member of the Board of Trustees at the New York University and also the Co-Chairman of the Langone Medical Centre Board of Trustees. He shows interest in the economic development of the city of New York by being an Executive Committee member of The Partnership for New York City. Fink is also concerned with uplifting the poverty-stricken class of the society hence he is on the council of Robin Hood which is a poverty-fighting charitable organization. Are you the C.E.O that sees yourself in one of these iconic leaders? Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t stop working to be a great leader. Lead with all your resources, and leverage your leadership efforts through vision, goals, and technology.

Laurence Douglas Fink is the chairman and chief executive officer of BlackRock, an American multinational investment management corporation. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 103

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Most Expensive Holiday Destinations in the World

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Travel plays an integral role in shaping the personality of an individual and hence itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an experience worth cherishing. The medium of travelling varies on the basis of the person as well as the holiday destination. For a spontaneous and adventurous vacation, one has to simply put on the hiking boots, pack basic necessities in a rucksack and set off to explore the location. On the other hand, there is a contradictory style of travelling which mainly focuses on indulging in pure luxury by pampering oneself and splurging money. Catering to this kind of travelers, there are numerous fancy resorts which cater to such needs but at a cost. For someone looking forward to such an extravagant holiday, here is a list of the most expensive holiday destinations in the world.

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Grand Penthouse, Mark Hotel New York City, USA

Which was originally an apartment worth $60 million, this space was later rebranded as the largest as well as most expensive hotel suite in the city of New York in the USA. Not only in New York, but this penthouse suite is also the most expensive hotel accommodation in the entire world. Spread out on the area of 12,000 square feet, this duplex penthouse consists of five lavish bedrooms with a huge living room, a 2500 square foot rooftop terrace, a grand piano, a library lounge, two wet bars, all-day round access to the tailoring services, in-suite hairstyling from the salon along with the chef’s exclusive pantry services depending on the guest’s food preferences. It also has six bathrooms with heated floors and a dining room which is made to accommodate 24 people. The rooftop terrace offers a view of Central Park and the skyline of New York. This suite provides the facility of converting the living room into a grand ballroom with a 26 feet high ceiling if the need arises. A night of enjoying such lavish services might cost you $86,000 that was designed by the French interior designer Jacques Grange. All these sections of the penthouse cover two floors of the Mark Hotel. This hotel is situated in the Upper East Side of Manhattan in the city.

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Grand Penthouse, Mark Hotel New York City, USA Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 107

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Necker Island, British Virgin Islands Caribbean Sea, United Kingdom

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Necker Island, British Virgin Islands Caribbean Sea, United Kingdom

Sir Richard Branson purchased the British Virgin Island in the year of 1978 when it acquires its name as it became a part of the Virgin Limited Edition, which is Branson’s collection of such unique treats. The resort established here by Branson has been named Necker Island. This 74 acre private island is considered to be the most beautiful spot prevalent in the Caribbean Sea. At the price of $62,000 per night, one can host a party of up to 30 guests and approximately 70 staff members will be present at their service at all times. It is equivalent to owning the entire castle on a temporary basis. The Necker Island is also home to more than 200 flamingoes hence you won’t feel lonely there. One can enjoy the panoramic view of the Atlantic, the Caribbean, and other such neighboring islands. The turquoise waters soothe the traveler and give an enriching experience. Simply lying on the white sand beaches might be the best activity one could do here. The Great House at this island holds eight bedrooms; every bedroom contains a balcony, a king-sized bed with an in-suite bathroom. The open-air terrace has a fully stocked bar for the convenience of the guest furnished with a hammock, a large dining table, and sofas.

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Royal Penthouse, Hotel President Wilson Geneva, Switzerland

This exquisite suite has received high-end guests like Bill Gates, Michael Jackson, Richard Branson, Rihanna, and Michael Douglas, which simply adds to the exquisite feel of the place. The guest residing here can pick one of the 12 bedrooms available; each of these rooms comes with an attached bathroom. The $68,000 worth suite takes up the entire eighth floor at 18,000 square feet of the Hotel President Wilson. It provides a panoramic overview of the Lake Geneva and the Swiss Alps. One can enjoy this view from the built-in gym as well as the Jacuzzi. The wardrobes available in these bedrooms have a soft perfume emanating from them. The entire suite is decorated with handpicked art collection which adds to the class of the place. There is a private elevator for the privacy of the guest with a helipad for direct arrivals. There are provisions for the security of the guest as well. The suite is equipped with armored doors, bulletproof glass, and trained personal security. A private butler and chef are available at the beck and call of the guest. The gigantic dining room is for those lavish dinner parties. Millionaire business tycoons can use the spacious boardroom for their conferences. Therefore one can enjoy almost all the amenities available at the White House at this Royal Penthouse.

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Royal Penthouse, Hotel President Wilson Geneva, Switzerland

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Delana Hilltop Estate, Laucala Island Fiji Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 112

Delana Hilltop Estate, Laucala Island Fiji

For someone looking for a tropical hideaway with the best of amenities, the Delana Hilltop Estate at Laucala Island is the ideal holiday destination. The Laucala Island is privately owned by the owner of Red Bull, Dietrick Mateschitz. But this accommodation isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t available for the layman. If one wants to book this $55,000 villa, the guest has to fill an application addressed to the owner of the island. After this, one has to wait to receive a personal invitation from the owner, only then can he visit the island. The Laucala Island contains 25 lavish villas and the Hilltop Estate is one of them. The island welcomes its guests with a relaxing massage at the spa. It offers activities like horseback riding at the beach and gourmet dining. Someone who wants to enjoy the sea in its unique form, then Laucala Island is worth visiting. It has dramatic rainforest landscapes on one hand and white sandy beaches on the other. The villas are surrounded by coconut plantations and also have volcanic mountains at a far. The fertile coral reefs overlook this island with endless jungles wherever one goes.

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Ty Warner Penthouse, Four Seasons Hotel New York City, USA

All great monuments took years to complete. Same is the case with the Ty Warner Penthouse at the Four Seasons Hotel. With an investment of $50 million and seven years, this grandeur accommodation was finally completed. At the cost of $50,000 per night, this room has to offer the most peaceful sleep of one’s life as the guest can put down his head on the authentic 18th century Japanese silk pillows. For the bibliophiles, the room comes with a library which contains more than 100 books on art and culture. This penthouse suite is the highest room in the entire city which offers a 360 degree view from the floor to the ceiling of the city. Unlike other such expensive suites, this suite can only house three individuals with the facility of special accommodations for a child. The 4,300 square foot place is full of ornate furnishings such as Venetian velvet, Japanese silk, calfskin leather, afrormosia, Chinese onyx, and a lot more. The glass balconies of this suite are specially constructed so that the guest can enjoy the city’s view contently. The dressing room of this room has walls, ceiling, as well as the sink made from the semi-precious tiger’s eye stone.

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Ty Warner Penthouse, Four Seasons Hotel New York City, USA

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Shahi Mahal Presidential Suite, Raj Palace Hotel Jaipur, India Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 116

Shahi Mahal Presidential Suite, Raj Palace Hotel Jaipur, India

The state of Rajasthan in India is renowned all over the world for its unending royalty and majestic feel. To feel like a Maharaja, the Raj Palace Hotel in Jaipur has the Shahi Mahal Presidential Suite to cater to such needs. This hotel is constructed in a restored ancient royal castle which adds to its authenticity. The amenities provided here resemble the way rulers were pampered in India during the ancient times. This 16,000 square foot suite comes at the cost of $50,000 per night. The suite is regally decorated with ornate mirrors and furniture, Italian marble floors, ivory, stucco, silver, and also gold leaf. The Shahi Mahal Presidential Suite is spread out on four floors which have six bedrooms, a dining room, a library, a theater, and kitchen staff. The hotel in general has 40 suites belonging to various price ranges. For the people residing in the Presidential Suite, the hotel might also provide the service of a limousine.

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Isla De Sa Ferradura Ibiza, Spain

Over the years, Ibiza has developed to be a typical tourist spot with urbanized facilities. Despite this, travelers can indulge in the balmy sunshine of the beaches with easy access to the sea whenever one wants. But certain people like enjoying the sea sans the crowd usually present at a tourist spot. This is when the Isla De Sa Ferradura proves to be a blessing. This is a private island just off Ibiza. Both these places are connected through a road in case the guests of this private island wish to catch a glimpse of Ibiza. This tropical destination offers the best of luxury accommodations one can wish for with the essence of the beach life. The private island is a humongous 130,000 square foot area which is designed to make the stay the most memorable time of the guestâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s life. With attractive lounges all around, there is a home cinema on this island for the entertainment of the guests which has the capacity of up to 14 guests. The architecture of the villa is specifically done in such a manner that it is camouflaged with the natural feel of the island. Other luxury services include a full spa, a vitamin bar, a solarium, a whirlpool, etc.

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Isla De Sa Ferradura Ibiza, Spain

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Sky Villa, Palms Resort, Los Angeles, USA. Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 120

Sky Villa, Palms Resort Los Angeles, USA.

Almost all the expensive hotel accommodations listed here cash upon the natural beauty of the place or have an authentic touch to them. But the Sky Villa at the Palms Resort in Las Vegas stands out among all these places. The Sky Villa will cost $40,000 per night but it assures that the feel of the Sin City is at the peak over here. Connected to the rest of the city with a private glass elevator, the suite is on the 30th floor of the hotel but covers an area equivalent to two floors. This extravagant suite has four bedrooms with a huge dining room keeping in mind the parties that will take place here. Guests need not work about butlers disturbing them as there is a separate entrance to the private kitchen keeping in mind the privacy of the guests. There is a glass spa over the two-story balcony accompanied with a dry sauna and a heated pool. The most lavish Sky Villa is known as the Hugh Hefner Sky Villa. This villa is said to be the best location in the entire city of Las Vegas to host a party. The pool and the terrace can be transformed into a party venue by the butlers whenever the guests demands. The bathroom in the bedroom has a Jacuzzi so that the guest can unwind after an ecstatic party.

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imminent trends

The Artificial Intelligence Boom in China Whenever the term “artificial intelligence” is mentioned, the first thought that comes to any layman’s mind is that it is the technology which helps develop robots. Major Hollywood movies have given a superficial impression about the technological subject. But artificial intelligence is a much broader concept that the regular notion of it. If we talk about it in the literal sense, the term artificial intelligence stands for the simulation of human intelligence Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 122

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imminent trends processed by machines, mainly computer systems. The major processes under this simulation are reasoning, learning, and self-correction. These processes are later elaborated with reference to the needs of technology. The term â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;artificial intelligenceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; was first coined by an American computer scientist John McCarthy in 1956 during the Dartmouth Conference. With the passage of time, this term covers a huge number of fields of technology and not only robotics. Artificial intelligence attained its prominence as it helps in increasing the size, speed, and variety of the big data collected and can also perform various functions related to it. This is because managing statistical data on a large scale can be an extremely time consuming process for the humans.

But with the help of artificial intelligence, it can perform complicated tasks like the identification of patterns in the data in a quicker and more efficient manner than humans, which helps the businesses in gaining better insight into their data which made it the preferable choice. The learning of artificial intelligence is made for exploring intelligence and how does it connect to technology and engineering. With the use of human intelligence in terms of technology, engineers come up with different theories which come under the broad concept of artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence can be said to be at the root of a majority of the technological developments taking place currently. It plays an integral part in almost all fields of life.

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imminent trends

Chinese government promoting AI development

China has rightly recognized the significance of artificial intelligence and hence is concentrating on maintaining rapidity in its advancement. The Chinese development has contributed a share of its overall investment in the scientific research which takes place at universities. Not only this, but in the past decade on an average in every year, the government has doubled up its expenditure on the field of research in technology. According to the FiveYear Plan declared by the government, the funding of science and technology research will continue to be a major priority. This initiative is termed as the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;China Brain Planâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; under which researchers try to enhance the similarities in the understanding of the human and artificial intelligence.

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The country also installed a three-year implementation plan for artificial intelligence called the Internet Plus and Artificial Intelligence program from 2016 to 2018. This program mainly emphasizes the development and expansive application of artificial intelligence. This technology will later be contextualized as a national strategy which might turn up to be useful in the civilmilitary integration. This signifies that the everyday civil technologies will eventually inculcated in the military context as well. With this type of a strategy, the boundaries between military and civilian research in terms of technology might get blur. Apart from this, even the prominent tech companies of China are making sure that they develop themselves in the field of

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imminent trends artificial intelligence. This is as the companies believe that progress in artificial intelligence holds a lot of scope for them from the business perspective. It has the potential to come up with a number of transformative technologies in the decades to come. Scientists and researchers are already busy exploring this potential in the form of innovative gadgets like autonomous cars and facial recognition software. Andrew Ng who is the chief scientist at Baidu, Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading search engine says that it is almost impossible that a certain field cannot transform with the help of artificial intelligence. It has the ability to help various fields of life develop in the way needed. Not only this, but well-established Chinese tech companies are promoting research

in AI by sponsoring scholarships for students working in reputed technological labs.

Will China overpower the U.S. in terms of AI? There was a time when the U.S. claimed to have strategic monopoly in the artificial intelligence technology due to which other countries steered clear of it because of the threat of hi-tech warfare. But recent reports suggest that the rapid growth of AI in China might lead to helping the country overpower U.S. in terms of AI. This has become a major challenge for the U.S. as it had assumed its continued superiority in the technologies like robotics and artificial intelligence but due to the advent of China in

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imminent trends the given fields, the U.S. will have to update its military strategies. Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s advancement in AI is considered to be a hidden military threat for the U.S. Keeping aside the military uses of artificial intelligence, even in general it seems that China will soon overtake the development of AI in the U.S. According to a study by the National Institute of Science and Technology Policy in Japan, China is very closely second to the U.S. in the number of AI studies which were presented at top academic global conferences in the year of 2015. The number of papers which were published by Chinese researchers in regard to deep learning of the subject exceed the number of papers published by the U.S. researchers, according to a U.S. government report. Despite all this, a significant

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difference between the developments of both the countries in the field of AI is that U.S. excels in quality whereas China provides more quantity. As reports suggest, the quantity of AI research carried out in China has grown dramatically over the years but even today the U.S. researchers are responsible for most of the fundamental theories of AI based on which other researches are carried out. But when it comes to putting these theories to practice, the Chinese companies adapt these scientific ideologies very quickly and implement them in their work. This is why in China the velocity of work is way faster than the velocity in most of the Silicon Valley.

Why does China lead in AI? There are a number of factors behind the growth spurt of China in the field of artificial intelligence. The researchers here are already well-read in the respective field and focus their research on the same. This is why 43 percent of the best academic papers have been written by a Chinese, irrespective of where the research was carried out. The people here excel in mathematics, science training, and engineering which comes in handy for the study of artificial intelligence. It is a known fact that the business industry of China is mainly dominated by traditional industries. Even though these industries are not as technologically advanced as the industries of the west, they have the

finance and the data to inculcate technology in their industry and also show the inclination towards it. On the contrary, China has one of the largest internet markets in the entire world with more than 800 million users and several online companies. These companies can be further developed with the help of AI. China is known to excel in whatever it strives to do. Same is the case with artificial intelligence. As the country is more open to experimentation and research-based solutions, it accepts as well as promotes all kinds of innovative ideas which serve as a driving factor for the intelligent minds to work harder in the given field.

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Crowd funded inc.

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The Evolution of Crowdfunding Could Change Everything Disruption is a term closely associated with crowdfunding, and itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not necessarily a bad thing. The advent of crowdfunding has definitely changed the face of investing in more than one

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Crowd funded inc.

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industry. For example, real estate crowdfunding has brought increased transparency into investing that wasn’t there before. In terms of monitoring investment progress, the updates available on online platforms have become frequent at best. Investors now have the ability to view their holdings online and see how well they’re doing in the market. Apart from transparency, different forms of crowdfunding has also infused a whole new level of accessibility into the market. No longer do entrepreneurs and small business owners have to wait to market their products to a wide segment of the public. As the industry continues to progress, it also brings to light the considerable evolution of crowdfunding. The term ‘crowdfunding’ has been exclusively associated with putative payments to fund tangible

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Crowd funded inc.

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products. In the recent months, equity crowdfunding is proving especially attractive to small business owners and startups. According to the annual Massolution Crowdfunding Industry Report, the total equity crowdfunding volume worldwide in 2015 peaked $2.56 billion. The number is expected to triple in 2017 and will be roughly in the neighborhood of $4-5 billion. While venture capital investment holds a steady $30 billion per year, equity crowdfunding is expected to surpass angel capital by 2020. According to the World Bank, the crowdfunding market as a whole will hit $90 billion in volume by 2020. In the past, equity crowdfunding was reserved for accredited investors with over $200,000 a year income or those who are worth over $1 million. This changed when former President Obama signed the JOBS Act four years ago, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission take the limit off equity crowdfunding. As per the rules, startups can sell up to $50 million worth of stock online in a 12-month period to anyone

who is willing to investment, opening the door for small businesses like family-owned shops and restaurants to raise funding. The SEC’s latest ruling allows startups to raise money quickly. But, at the same time, equity crowdfunding raises a lot of alarms. There is a greater need for equity crowdfunding campaigns to disclose information, including financial statements, tax returns, and how businesses determine the price of the securities sold. The launch of Crowdemand, Inc., has got crowdfunded fashion shopping up and running. Generally, retail manufacturers and fashion designers must secure private funding or foot the bill to bring a design to the market. If the design flops, they’re left on their own to recoup the cost. Crowdemand offers exclusive designs from fashion designers and manufacturers for preorder at a 50 percent deposit up front. The customers pay the remainder once the designs are completed. With retail crowdfunding, designs can test the popularity some designs,

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Crowd funded inc.

and secure funding without having to recoup the cost. Its inaugural designer, Cynthia Rowley kicked off the partnership, followed by Whit and Meskita. Currently, the offerings are limited from $250 to $2,000, and are smaller in variety than what you may find on major shopping sites. Crowdemand cofounders Marat Stary and Liat Cohen started the fashion-powered platform out of their shared love for fashion. Designers can post their creations on the platform during a two-week campaign, allowing customers to pre-order the items they want. With the launch of crowdfunded insurance by American

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International Group, we saw the first of kind in the crowdfunding industry. Currently, AIG only sells coverage on the platforms, however, it is soon poised to offer insurance protection to all investors using the platform. AIGâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s success has brought more crowdfunding insurance players into the market, starting with large scale equity fundraising projects. Crowdfunding has exponentially changed real estate market, too. In the past, the commercial real estate industry was reserved for investors with millions of dollars to develop apartment complex, storage unit facility or a strip mall. With real estate crowdfunding on sites like RealtyMogul.com, anybody can raise more than $200 million to crowdfund a

real estate property. A lot of investors are using such platforms to browse for debt or equity investments, invest online and track their performance. While corporate crowdfunding is still an unexplored concept, in the last several years, it has seen entrepreneurs fund their prototypes to bring their products to the market. Pebble E-Paper Watch Kickstarter campaign originally started out as a corporate crowdfunding initiative, raising $10,266,845. Today, corporations are leveraging the unique platform to raise funding for creating prototype as well as research and development. Not so long ago, Indiegogo announced plans to market its own crowdfunding platforms to major companies. It aims to help companies crowdfund their

research ideas through public validation before the products hit the mainstream. Currently, the new crowdfund platform is only open to Fortune 1000 and Global 500 companies. Similarly, IBM has developed its own crowdfunding platform called iFundIT, through which employees in the IT department can develop and pitch potential projects on the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s internal social network. Employees are given up to $2,000 of IBM money, which they can use to promote their products. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s unclear how quickly entrepreneurs and microbusinesses will adopt these models. Existing platforms will face fierce competition from newcomers as they respond to the demand. These models are not just a viable alternative but will also disrupt the funding process in years to come.

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events

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The ‘Apple’ Moneyball If you’ve watched more than one Apple Worldwide Developers Conference keynote, you must know that it’s the only event that fuels much speculation, anticipation, and discussion in the technology circles. The biggest takeaway is, perhaps, the launch of future products. This year’s major event will begin on 5 June and run for four days. The first day is when Apple holds its major keynote, introducing the future of its software, with the rest of the days taken up with session for developers to learn how to use it. There are many product we don’t know of yet. The 2017 WWDC and the years to come hold big things in store for Apple.

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Record-breaking Revenue In the first quarter of 2017, Apple reported revenue of $78.351 billion, up 3.3 percent on the $75.872 revenue recorded in the same quarter a year ago. On the other hand, its net income profit was $17.891 billion, down by 2.6 percent on $18.361 during the same quarter a year ago. International sales accounted for 64 percent of Apple’s Q1 revenue. Since 2015, Apple’s iPhone, Mac, and Apple Watch sales have hit new quarterly records, while its Services business, which includes iTunes and Apple Music, continue

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to gain some revenue. While, Apple plans to double its service industry revenues by 2020, its target market is worth only $800 billion. Let’s assume that the Apple Car turns out of be a huge money maker, adding up to $1.6 trillion of value to the company by 2020. Then we could say that Apple could doubletriple its revenue. While Apple scoops up over $3 trillion from the smartphone industry’s profit, it could be worth much more if it keeps adding new products in some of these categories – Apple Watch, Apple TV, and Apple Car.

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Acquisition of a Major Media Company During Apple’s earning call, Apple CEO Tim Cook announced plans to acquire a major media company. Last year, these acquisition rumors gained traction when Apple considered acquiring Time Warner and Netflix. Of course, the rumors have died down, and AT&T announced the purchase of Time Warner. A major media acquisition is on the cards – Apple plans to double the $24 billion of 2016 annual revenue in its service units, which includes

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all media sales. Tim Cook would need to show at least 20% growth rate by 2020, to cover up the year over year deceleration. Wall Street analysts are expecting at least 14% average growth per year over the next four years. To accomplish, Apple would need to reverse the slow down via a merger or a deal with a media company. Don’t be surprised if rumors emerge suggesting Apple is in talks with Walt Disney or CBS for a possible megamerger.

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Smart Home Products During Apple’s Q1 2017 earnings call, Tim Cook also discussed a place in Apple’s ecosystem in which customers are immersed in its products wherever they do. Apple wants to be user’s companion – from iPhone to Mac to Apple Watch to Apple’s in-vehicle infotainment system. Apple is expanding its presence in the smart devices market with help from HomeKit, a service that lets hardware makers integrate control of their products into iOS 10. The expansion in to the market will put Apple into the left, right and center of the everincreasing smarthome craze. “Now when I say good

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morning to Siri, my house lights come on and my coffee starts brewing,” Cook said in his remarks. “When I go to the living room to relax in the evening, I use Siri to adjust the lighting and turn on the fireplace. And when I leave the house, a simple tap on my iPhone turns the lights off, adjusts the thermostat down, and locks the doors. When I return to my house in the evening, as I near my home, the house prepares itself for my arrival automatically by using a simple geofence.” The company will play an omnipresent role in the consumer’s life by creating an Apple-dominated ecosystem of Apple hardware, Apple software and third-party products.

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The Launch of the Spaceship Late Apple cofounder Steve Jobs was one of the chief proponents for building Apple’s main building – dubbed “Spaceship”. According to Matthew Roberts, a documentarian who has been flying a drone over Apple Campus 2 to watch its progress, the new campus is nearly ready to accommodate workers. The Spaceship is nearly finished, complete with 70% of solar panels

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atop, along with rounded glass along the walls. The campus is dominated with rows of trees, so employees can take a stroll on the walking paths. The Spaceship will span 2.8 million square feet of space and will house 12,000 employees. It will be one of the largest office buildings in the world. Additionally, it will be powered by renewable energy.

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Promising Development for Apple Starting in April, the Cupertino company will assemble iPhones in India. Apple executives met with Priyank Kharge, information technology minister for the Indian state of Karnataka, to cement the timeline. With Apple moving into one of the fastest-emerging smartphone markets in the world, it could expand distribution channels to attract a significant portion of first-time buyers. According to Counterpoint research, Apple shipped 2.5 million units of the iPhone in India. A third of which came to India in Q4 2016, following the launch of the iPhone 7. The company managed to capture the number 10 position in

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the Indian market as of Q4 2016, gaining a 62 market share in the premium segment. Apple still continues to struggle to gain a meaningful share of Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s smartphone market. It is widely assumed that by assembling its phones in India, the company will be able to cut down on high import taxes, thus reducing the price of iPhones in India. No more than 400,000 units will be assembled in India, and Apple has no plans to abruptly drop prices. The savings will obviously go towards expanding its retail and marketing footprint. Next, the Cupertino-Calif. company is in the midst

of remodeling flagship stores all across the globe based on a new concept design proposed by vice president Angela Adhrents and design guru Jony Ive. The remodeled stores are promised to feature more places for customers to gather along with expanded areas for business customers. Expanding of flagship stores will start with the one

in Midtown Manhattan, where Apple will expand to 77,000 square feet, up from 32,000 square feet. “We are reinventing the role our stores and employees play in the community,” Ahrendts told Fortune last year. “We want to be more like a town square, where the best of Apple comes together and everyone is welcome.”

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ETRADESHOWS V &E N T FT Cyber Security Summit

Date: 15 March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17

This is the third edition of the FT Cyber Security Summit. The oneday event will be hosted at the National Press Club in Washington DC, USA on 15th March, 2017. It mainly digs into the cyber threats faced by the country of USA and tries to find adequate solutions to them. Experts in the field will address a range of issues and state measures which need to be taken by the new presidential administration. It also explores the responsibilities of corporate boards and other such senior management. It showcases technological innovation in the field of cyber security and suggests ways of data protection. The event also enlightens its visitors about the pressures which chief information security officers in the banking sector face and how cyber threat can be a major issue in other such critical infrastructure industries. Some of the highlights of this event will be cyber terrorism, national security concerns, and how the Internet of Things may pose to be an emerging threat to the nation.

Venue: Washington DC, USA Industry Summit

Date: 02-05 April â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17

The 3-day event of Industry Summit will take place at the Flamingo Las Vegas in Las Vegas, USA from 2nd April to 5th April, 2017. This event mainly focuses on catering to the needs to people related to the sales, finance, and insurance industries. It helps the managers, dealers, and front-end staff to produce compliant and technologically sound processes for the industry. It also provides an opportunity to them to raise their position in these industries despite the constantly rapid change in the market. It consists of partners who are all set to deliver technology, products, and processes to those interested. These products can help one streamline his operation and also increase his finance, Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 152

sales, and service revenue.

Venue: Las Vegas, USA EuroCucina Italy

Date: 04-09 April ‘17

EuroCucina was created in the year 1974 as the International Kitchen Furniture Exhibition. This exhibition brings together the top Italian and foreign manufacturers of the industry under the same roof. It offers an indefinite range of solutions as well as ideas related to the kitchen which has now become much more than a functional domestic space. The exhibition concentrates on blending the needs of a kitchen with the modern-day technologies. It provides the customers matchless quality along with maximum durability. This exhibition is the only major trade show in Europe in this respective field. Despite this, the success of this show keeps increasing with each passing year. Last year it had 292,370 visitors, out of which 60% belonged to foreign nations. The exhibition will be held at the Fairgrounds in Rho, Italy from 4th April to 9th April, 2017.

Venue: Rho, Italy Aero Friedrichshafen

Date: 05-08 April ‘17

The Aero Friedrichshafen 2017 is the 25th edition of this fair which is the world’s leading fair in the general aviation industry. This fair was initially launched with just a few gliders and motor gliders. It was held at a small air sports exhibition but is now the most important aero meeting in the entire world. A number of exhibitors have been regular at this fair right from the beginning, whereas many others have been added each year and have given significant contribution for its success. This 4-day event will take place at the Friedrichshafen Messegelande in Friedrichshafen, Germany from 5th April to 8th April, 2017. The event will have Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 153

ETRADESHOWS V &E N T products that will intrigue the professionals belonging to the aviation sector. The exhibitors will also showcase modern ultra lights, powered aircrafts, engines, avionics, and other products and services related to them. These products will mainly concern the Railway, Automotive, Shipping, and Aviation Products Industries.

Venue: Friedrichshafen, Germany Atlanta Apparel

Date: 05-09 April ‘17

Atlanta Apparel is the best place where one can attain access to the top lines in the fashion industry. This event portrays apparel collections keeping in mind the needs of a retail buyer. In the 5-day event to be hosted at the AmericasMart in Atlanta, USA from 5th April to 9th April, 2017, a visitor can witness the latest spring trends which will be out in the regular market by the month of October. In one location, an individual can explore numerous kinds of contemporary as well as ready-to-wear clothing collections. Not only this, it also caters to special categories like children and plus sizes. One can spot the most unique designs for bridal wear and clothes for social occasions.

Venue: Atlanta, USA International Apparel & Textile Fair

Date: 08-10 April ‘17

The International Apparel & Textile Fair puts forward products related to lifestyle & fashion, Apparel & clothing, fabrics & yarn industries, as well as textile. Exhibitors participating in this fair mainly belong to places like China, Europe, India, Indonesia, Korea, Japan, Turkey, and noteworthy manufacturers from other parts of the world as well. It gives these exhibitors an opportunity Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 154

to display their products in front of the most influential designers and buyers of the fashion industry of UAE. The sixth edition of this fair will be a 3-day event will take place at the Dubai World Trade Center in Dubai, UAE from 8th April to 10th April, 2017.

Venue: Dubai, UAE Roof India

Date: 20-22 April ‘17

Roof India is said to be the most important event of the Indian roofing and allied systems industry. It is the largest Roofing and Allied Products event in the continent of Asia. It features a number of products such as roofing systems, pre-engineered buildings, architectural cladding, metal building systems, tensile architecture, tensile membranes, green roofs, roof insulation, waterproofing, roof fastening systems, roofing machinery and much more. This event enables marketers, builders, and stake holders to keep up with the rapid growth of the real estate industry. The event will take place at the Bombay Convention Center in Mumbai, India from 20th April to 22nd April, 2017. The event serves as a platform for the infrastructure industry and the building construction to strike business partnerships and launch joint ventures.

Venue: Mumbai, India Kenya Homes Expo

Date: 27-30 April ‘17

The Kenya Homes Expo is the biggest homes show of that particular region which has been showcasing great expertise of its field for more than 13 years. This 4-day event will be hosted at the Kenyatta International Conference Center in Nairobi, Kenya from 27th April to 30th April, 2017. The event targets the entire African region focusing on the eastern and central Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 155

ETRADESHOWS V &E N T parts. This is a platform for real estate experts to converge with other people of the industry. It proves to be a convenient market for financial advice, homes, land, and other such general real estate information. The Homes Kenya Magazine organizes this event, which is a brand of Homes Kenya Limited. The magazine is a reputed one which talks about the interior décor industry and real estate in East Africa.

Venue: Nairobi, Kenya Indonesia International Motor Show

Date: 27 April-7 May ‘17

For the second time, there is collaboration between this event and the Grand Prix International as the Steering Organizer of Bangkok International Motor Show. This has made it one of the top five auto events in the world. The collaboration has transformed IIMS and has raised its level considerably. Some of the new products to be showcased at the event this year are motorcycle shows, auto parts, and also the accessories industry. It will be an 11-day long impressive event from 27th April to 7th May, 2017 to be held at the Jakarta International Expo in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Venue: Jakarta, Indonesia Automechanika Dubai

Date: 07-09 May ‘17

Automechanika Dubai is an event for the automotive industry which is divided into six sections depending on the trends of the industry. These sections are; Electronics & Systems, Parts & Components, Tyres & Batteries, Repair & Maintenance, Accessories & Tuning, and Service Station & Car Wash. The sections concern various fields such as fabrication, auto, automotive, Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 156

manufacturing, repair as well as maintenance industries. It is said to be the leading international trade fair which targets trade visitors of the automotive service industry belonging to the wider Middle East region. This is the 15th edition of the Automechanika Dubai which will be hosted at the Dubai World Trade Center in Dubai, UAE from 7th to 9th May, 2017. The year 2016 had a participation of 2,017 exhibitors belonging to 58 countries. Around 30,018 visitors from 138 countries interacted with these exhibitors in relation to latest products and services. These products and services are put forward by the leading local as well as international automotive aftermarket companies which assure good quality and technicality of the products.

Venue: Dubai, UAE National Hardware Show

Date: 09-11 May â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17

The National Hardware Show is going to be a 3 day event at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, USA from 9th May to 11th May, 2017. This event provides sources which can help one to take the business forward. It showcases products such as hardware tools and technologies, home ware, display of building products, farm and ranch, inventors spotlight, international sourcing, pet products, paint products, paint accessories, energy efficient products and services, plumbing and electrical products, outdoor living products, storage devices etc. The event is popular for its display of innovative products as 83% of visitors stated that the primary reason for their attendance is the launch of new products. Here one can explore new products displayed by its vendors and have a personal interaction with them which helps in clarifying all queries related to it. The event has thousands of exhibitors who represent products belonging to the 15 major Industry Leaders Magazine - March â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17 | 157

ETRADESHOWS V &E N T product categories of the National Hardware Show.

Venue: Las Vegas, USA LED Expo

Date: 11-13 May ‘17

The LED Expo is known for its portrayal of futuristic technology which can help evolve the lighting industry. Be it public, commercial, or private spaces, the LED technology is illuminating all such places. Not only does LED offer better electrical efficiency, but it is also a solution for power conservation. This event recognizes the growing potential of the industry and aims at taking it a step further. It is an ideal platform for exhibitors as well as visitors as they can explore the latest trends in products related to such technology from all over the world. The event will be a 3 day affair from 11th May to 13th May, 2017 held at the Bombay Convention Centre in Mumbai, India.

Venue: Mumbai, India Solar Show Philippines

Date: 24-25 May ‘17

The sole purpose behind the Solar Show Philippines is to unite people belonging to the solar industry from across the globe to share their ideas as well as experiences. This event helps in cementing business relationships among such people and increases the scope for their businesses by providing various opportunities. This two-day conference to be held at the SMX Convention Center in Manila, Philippines on 24th and 25th May, 2017 will cover market developments of the solar energy industry. This event gives its visitors an insight about the project development, market design, and applications of solar in various industries.

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Aquatech China

Date: 07-09 June â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17

Water is one of the most essential constituents for the survival of all forms of life. Earlier for the attainment of water, all one had to do was pull it out of a well or simply fill a pitcher from the river. But with the evolution of mankind, the availability of water has also become a major concern. This is when technological advancements and water management come in handy. Aquatech China brings together the experts of water technology and management who can share unique novelties and the latest technological findings with the Environment & Waste Management Industry. This 2 day event will be hosted at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai, China from 7th June to 9th June, 2017. This event is considered to be the leading water trade show in Asia which covers the processes of drinking and waste water. To enlighten the visitors on such similar subjects, water professionals from more than 90 different countries gather here.

Shanghai, China Manila Food & Beverage Expo

Date: 07-11 June â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;17

The Manila Food & Beverage Expo showcases a huge variety of products related to food and beverages. One can find a complete range of such products which are on display by the leading F&B companies of the world. Such companies publicize their products suing this platform and promote their brand to the visitors of the event. This event will take place at the World Trade Center Metro Manila in Pasay, Philippines from 7th June to 11th June 2017.

Pasay, Philippines

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ETRADESHOWS V &E N T Wire & Cable Guangzhou

Date: 09-11 June ‘17

Wire & Cable Guangzhou is claimed to be the second largest event of its industry in the entire company of China. Catering to electronic needs of manufacturers, the event covers a number of industries which is one of the reasons behind its popularity. It offers professional services to its visitors related to cable, wire, as well as the optical fiber cable industrial chain. In the previous year, Wire & Cable Guangzhou had 350 exhibitors who showcased their innovations of cable, wire, machinery, equipment, materials, and also accessories. This exhibition was stretch out across two halls providing 22,000 sq.m. of space. The exhibition had 18,869 visitors right from manufacturers to distributors to product suppliers and also direct customers. People from more than 25 countries fly down for this exhibition every year. This year, it’ll be held at the China Import and Export Fair Complex in Haizhu district of Guangzhou, China.

Venue: Guangzhou, China MD&M East

Date: 13-15 June ‘17

MD&M East has created a niche for itself in the field of medicine for the past 34 years. This event has enabled medical devices develop from their basic concepts and reach the market. This is done with the help of cutting-edge technology demonstrated by some of the smartest minds of the industry. Development of technology moves very fast in medicine and MD&M makes sure that the people of this industry are kept updated with it. Thousands of visitors gather at this event to attain a better understanding and critical knowledge of such latest as well as emerging innovations. The event is a great opportunity for a hands-on experience with the top products launched with the help of updated technology. This 3-day event will take place at Industry Leaders Magazine - March ‘17 | 160

the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York, USA from 13th June to 15th June, 2017.

New York, USA

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