Argos and eBay team up
In what has been labeled as further signs that the lines between e-commerce and traditional retail are being blurred, the Guardian reported this week that eBay and Argos are set to launch a collaborative “click-and-collect” service in the UK.
While the service is currently only scheduled for a six month trial, the premise appears promising. In principal, it would combine the convenience and the seemingly infinite availability of internet shopping with the gratification of buying and taking your purchase home in the same day.
The trial is set to begin this year, and enables shoppers to order from a minimum of 50 eBay merchants, and then pick up the purchase from a choice of 150 stores out of Argos’s network of over 700 locations.
The scheme would also appear to compete with Amazon, which utilizes similar services such as same-day delivery and locker pickup services, both operating in the US and UK.
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HTC Corp facing supply chain issues
Although once “quietly brilliant”, the smartphone manufacturer is at present keeping silent about rumored supply chain difficulties regarding the HTC One Mini.
Sources wishing to remain anonymous have said that the supply chain issues stem from a casing shortage due to difficulties in design. They have also reported that consumer demand for the phone is not being met. The news and poor sales mean HTC could likely be facing a first net loss this financial quarter.
When asked about the speculation and rumors, HTC declined to respond to the press.
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More bad news for the clothing industry
A BBC investigation has revealed that clothes makers in Bangladesh for Lidl, H&M and Gap are being forced to work up to 15 hours per day.
A secretly filmed segment by BBC’s Panorama, showed factory workers producing clothes for the supermarket Lidl, beginning work at 7am. The workers were locked in at night and not released until 2.30am the following day.
In a related matter, it has been alleged that not all overtime hours are being recorded in employees’ pay slips. One example being a factory that produces garments for Gap and H&M, where workers toiled from 7am to 10.30pm.
When asked to comment, both Lidl and H&M have responded with concern over the allegations. The factory in question has denied the allegations of forced labor and consider the claims of doctored timesheets “false and baseless”.
To read more, click here.
Have a great weekend!
