US consumer inflation outlook, sentiment falls | Lipari grows international offerings with CDM acquisition | Non-traditional logistics providers pull in the reins
Long-term inflation expectations declined this month despite waning consumer sentiment, according to University of Michigan's final May consumer sentiment reading. Consumers anticipate inflation will continue climbing at a 3.1% annual rate in the coming five to 10 years, a drop from the 12-year high of 3.2% recorded earlier in May. Sentiment fell by roughly 7%, mostly attributed to the prolonged debt ceiling standoff.
Lipari Foods is expanding its international offerings with the purchase of Iowa-based Comercializadora Del Midwest, a distributor of Central and South American specialty items. "We are excited to integrate their expertise with our distribution footprint, leading to significant opportunities for all of our business partners," said Lipari President and Chief Operating Officer John Pawlowski.
Leading brands that expanded into fulfillment services during the pandemic-driven e-commerce boom and supply chain disruptions are shifting strategies based on internal need and bottom-line effects, such as Blue Apron, which is selling its logistics assets, while American Eagle is trimming their workforce among its Quiet fulfillment services subsidiary. Izba consultancy founder Aaron Alpeter says supply chain operations is a "very difficult business to be in" and "you have customers that effectively tolerate (only) perfection."
Smart contracts, a blockchain-based self-executing digital program that automates the fulfillment of contractual obligations, can help suppliers save money, time and energy while securely and quickly executing complex agreements, according to A.J. Zottola, co-chair of Venable's Intellectual Property Transactions Practice Group. Zottola highlights the upsides and downsides of the technology, including issues with creating, amending and terminating smart contracts.
California's drive to replace 30,000 internal-combustion heavy-duty trucks with electric alternatives by 2035 is leading companies to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in charging infrastructure. The state's ambitious electrification rules and federal green-energy grants are fueling the rush to provide the needed EV infrastructure.
Sales involves nuance, and the best way to improve sales skills over time is to analyze each week what worked and what didn't and make adjustments based on whether you asked different questions, found prospects differently, or changed your proposal or negotiation approach. Doing so will yield a set of "better practices, not best practices that are stagnant," and you can build on those strengths and adapt them to any customer situation, Colleen Francis of Engage Selling says in this video.
Business-to-business content marketing remains critical for companies, because buyers tend to look for content online before making purchases. Effective outreach involves developing a plan, communicating with customers, focusing on providing solutions and using social media to connect prospects with valuable content.
After having formed a deal to break the debt ceiling impasse over the weekend, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., must ensure there is enough support for the bill to make it through Congress before the June 5 deadline. The deal calls for suspending the debt limit for two years in exchange for certain concessions, including limiting discretionary spending increases, halting some of the funding for hiring IRS agents and imposing new work requirements for certain government benefits.
We often use sarcasm in the workplace as a source of humor, but it can also be detrimental to communication when it becomes passive-aggressive, cynical or defensive, however it can be effective when team members trust one another, writes John Millen. "A room full of writers for a TV sitcom can fire sarcastic missiles endlessly without an issue, but a business meeting where trust is lacking is a different story," Millen notes.
