Brexit

On Thursday last week the UK voted to leave the European Union, shocking the world and revealing a divided country. 51.9% of the votes believed that Britain would be better without the European Union. The high Brexit votes in the North of England were the first sign of things to come in the EU referendum - and 58 per cent of the North East backed leaving the EU. Statistics also revealed that 73% of 18-24 year old voters wanted to remain but following the defeat for the remain campaign the current Prime Minister David Cameron resigned. A new PM will be appointed in the coming months to lead the UK through their EU exit over the next couple of years but markets and currency tumbled over the uncertainty of what lies ahead for businesses & individuals.

Brexit

M&M's Get Ready for Rio

M&M's have released a new colour mix in preparation for the Rio Olympics. The paccks will be available in peanut and chocolate and feature green, blue & yellow sweets. However you may not be able to find these in Sweden. This is because a Swedish court has ruled that the confectionery firm Mars can no longer advertise its M&M's brand with the lower case lettering "m&m". The court ruled that the logo is too similar to the single lower case "m" used by the Swedish chocolate covered peanut brand Marabou. If Mars doesn't appeal it will have to use the capital M&M logo in Sweden starting in July.

M&M Go Rio

ProperCorn

The British brand has emerged as one of the fastest-growing snacks in the UK. Though Propercorn has yet to make a profit, it now employs around 40 staff, had takings of £10m last year, and forecasts sales of between £15m to £17m this year. In 2009, aged 26, Cassandra Stavrou quit her job and moved back in with her mum in London, helped by a deep-rooted entrepreneurial spirit. By working in pubs in the evenings and at weekends, as well as undertaking painting commissions, she managed to scrape together a £10,000 start-up fund. Their success has come in tandem with an explosion in popcorn's popularity, with UK sales increasing from £50m in 2010 to £129m in 2015, according to Mintel.

ProperCorn

EU Referendum Explained

The European Union - often known as the EU - is an economic and political partnership involving 28 European countries. On 23 June Britain will decide by a referendum whether it will remain in the European Union or if it will leave – the so-called Brexit option. So are Britain better being in or out? It depends which way you look at it - or what you believe is important. Leaving the EU would be a big step - arguably far more important than who wins a general election - but would it set the nation free or condemn it to economic ruin? Big business - with a few exceptions - tends to be in favour of Britain staying in the EU because it makes it easier for them to move money, people and products around the world. 

Referendum Explained

Disneyland Shanghai Opens

Ten of thousands of people are expected to visit the Disneyland resort in Shanghai on Thursday as the $5.5 billion park opens its doors after five years of construction. The park, which is the largest investment from Disney overseas, opened its doors with fireworks, dancing Disney characters and support from two of the most powerful leaders of the world. Disney sees the resort as an opportunity to capitalise on China’s middle class and to capture a slice of the country’s $610 billion tourism industry. Disney estimates that 300 million people are living within a three hour commute to the park. That includes visitors who can afford the park’s entrance fee as ticket prices vary from $56 during off peak times to $76 at weekend. If Disneyland Shanghai manages to attract 18 million annual visitors, it should produce $150 million in earnings before interest, taxes and other items by 2018. The resort is Disney sixth park and fourth one oversees. The other foreign locations include Paris, Tokyo and Hong Kong.

Disneyland Shanghai

Poppits Toothpaste

Many people are becoming more conscious of how much waste they produce, and that awareness leads to a secondary issue: we realize how many things in life lack a less-wasteful alternative, and toothpaste is one such thing. Sure, you could concoct homemade (and therefore packaging-free) toothpaste at home out of baking soda and some other ingredients, but it's going to taste vile. The alternative? Possibly, if its crowdfunding campaign is successful, it'll be the Poppits toothpaste pods. The company behind Poppits is seeking funding on Kickstarter, where they’ve so far raised about $39,000 of their $50k goal. A pledge of $12 will get backers a pack of whitening pods, which are anticipated to ship to backers in October of this year. There is also a kids version available that appears to come in three colors with three fruit flavors.

Poppits

Avocado Thieves

High prices and surging demand have sparked a spate of avocado thefts in New Zealand. Hundreds have been stolen in bulk from orchards, with thieves using rakes to drag fruit straight from the tree before selling them on. The fruits themselves are immature this time of year so consumers buying them will have a "very bad eating experience", an industry body said.  In New Zealand avocado sell for between NZ$4-6 (US$2.8-$4.2; £2-£3) each.

Avocado