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Smart, sensitive policies can help small businesses avoid a #MeToo moment

Harvey Weinstein. Bill Cosby. Kevin Spacey.

No, there apparently is no shortage of accused sexual predators roaming Hollywood. And, while there are have been stories galore over the years about the creeps and their casting couches, it wasn’t until the #MeToo movement that women really were able to get the word out about the seriousness of the issue and, if not put an end to it, at least shine a light on it.

And that begs the question: Will there be a #MeToo moment for small business?

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Amazon Report Cites More Than 1 Million Small Business Sellers On Platform

Amazon is often blamed for the demise of the Mom and Pop store and other local and cultural icons of Main Street USA. There may be some truth to this, but it is also just as important to say that the company has helped many small and midsize businesses to grow and thrive.

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9 Reasons CEOs Should Hire Introverts, Not Extroverts

Well, it turns out that, according to decades of academic research, introverts are more likely than extroverts to have those characteristics:

1. Introverts are generally more creative.
Introverts are famously more creative than extroverts. According to the journal Perceptual and Motor Skills, Creativity is a problem-solving response by intelligent, very active, highly emotional, and extremely introverted persons.

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4 Reasons To Support Small Companies On Small Business Saturday® And Beyond

Whether you are a small business owner, a consumer, or the CEO of a big corporation, you likely know that small companies are a pretty big part of the economy. This year, show your support for small enterprises by participating in Small Business Saturday® (SBS).

My accounting and payroll software company, Patriot Software, is an advocate of Small Business Saturday. And personally, I am a major supporter of small businesses. I know how much time, dedication, money, and hard work entrepreneurs pour into their small companies.

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5 Ways Small Business Owners Can Start Preparing For Retirement

Small business owners are often so involved with the day-to-day operations of their business, many feel they don’t have the time to look down the road and plan for retirement.

And as a result, some entrepreneurs may never be ready to retire. According to a survey by Manta, one-third of business owners don’t have any retirement plan, and 75% of respondents to a BMO Wealth survey said they had “$100,000 or less” saved for retirement.

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7 Reasons To Start Your Own Company in Your 20s

Now, I do not want to burst any happy bubbles for those of you who are already treading the traditional pathway, but that traditional narrative no longer makes much sense, because over the past two decades, big corporations, big academia, and big corporatist government have rigged the business world so that the longer you wait to start your own company, the less likely you are to be successful.

Because of this, young entrepreneurs (Mil

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9 Tips for Starting a Business in a Crowded Digital Marketplace

Many successful entrepreneurs were inspired to start their businesses after noticing a hole in the marketplace that needed to be filled, whether it was Bill Gates creating an operating system for home computers, Pierre Omidyar starting an online auction site, or Elon Musk building a reliable electric car.

But what happens when you want to jump feet first into a marketplace thats already crowded? We spoke to the entrepreneurs behind a wide-ranging group of successful companies in some of the most competitive digital spaces -- from butchers to home brands to eco-friendly cleaning products -- to get their insights into what makes a business that lasts.

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25 Payment Tools for Small Businesses, Freelancers and Startups

Billing your customers is, of course, vital -- but even more critical is getting paid for those bills. Thanks to the ongoing evolution in the payments industry, there are more payment tools and platforms to choose from to help find the perfect option for your business based on how many payments you receive, the type of business you have and your budget.

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50 Best Places to Start a Business

Whether you are an entrepreneur plotting to launch a startup or a CEO strategizing where to put another office, knowing where the next hot city is would be a game changer. Should you expand to Raleigh? Would you attract better talent in Austin or Atlanta? With the new Surge Cities Index, Inc. and innovation policy company Startup Genome crunched the data to score and rank the top 50 metro areas in the U.S. on seven key indicators--from early-stage funding metrics to job creation. Finally, here’s the smartest way to answer the age-old question: Where should you go next?

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15 Expert Tips for Scaling Your Small Business

SBDC Centers offer free consulting and free or low-cost training. (Find yours here.) Their results speak for themselves: SBDC clients grow sales by an average 18.1%, which is 4.3 times the national average. March 20th is SBDC Day, and to celebrate, we assembled some tips from their experts.

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10 Tips to Help You Create a Smart Business

Smart companies are not just those that have intelligent leaders. They also have systems, tools and proper planning in place that allow every department or function to run together seamlessly. To become a smart company, you need to integrate smart ideas into every facet of your business. Here are some tips from members of the online small business community.

Manage Your Website Effectively
Your website is one of the most important tools your small business has. To manage it effectively, you need access to the right tools. In this WP Buffs post, Brenda Barron provides a full explanation and walk-through of GoDaddy Pro, so you can see if it may be helpful for your business.

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59% of Small Businesses Use Video for Advertising, Survey Finds

A new report finds that a good number of small businesses (29%) are spending somewhere in the sweet spot of  ($750-$2499) monthly to get the data needed for good online advertising results.

WordStreams Online Advertising Landscape in 2019 report also found that only 10% of the respondents had a monthly advertising budget less than the low end plateau for effectiveness of $750 monthly.

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6 Things to Know Before You Start a Small Business

Many people dream of owning a small business. Owning a company is ideal for people who are naturally creative, are visionaries, and want freedom from the daily toil of a corporate job. However, launching a small business is not solely about having enough capital or a great idea. A would-be entrepreneur should also have the courage to take risks, a great imagination to be innovative, and the self-discipline to sustain the work needed to attain set goals. Here are some important considerations to think about before launching a small business.

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How To Start Your Small Business On The Right Financial Foot

Every year, more than 400,000 entrepreneurs launch small businesses in the United States, many driven by the desire for ownership and independence. Local mom-and-pop shops, online services, food trucks — the skys the limit.

But taking on a new business is a lot of work and risk. According to the Small Business Association, over 20% of new small businesses fail during the first year of operation.

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8 things you should know before starting a small business

There are dozens of small things to keep in mind before calling yourself an entrepreneur: Have you found a good accountant? What's your niche? Who are you bringing onto your project?

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A Study of 3,526 Companies Shows 1 Decision Makes Startups More Successful. Most Founders Do the Opposite

Surprising new research from NYU and the Wharton School shows that entrepreneurs who start a business on their own are likelier to succeed than those who do so with one or more partners.

That's pretty much the opposite of what most aspiring founders would guess. After all, you can't be good at everything. You might be a marketing expert but not know how to manage cash flow. Or you might good at building great products but bad at setting prices for them. So you team up with someone who's strong in the areas where you're weak, and you start the business together.

This reasoning seems logical, and it is how most people--even experts--see entrepreneurship. In fact, it is such an ingrained belief that VCs and other investors routinely choose to fund companies founded by teams rather than those with a solo founder.

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SBA raises revenue limits for small business certifications

Effective Aug. 19, the Small Business Administration (SBA) is raising its monetary-based small business size standards for inflation by an average of 8.4%, an adjustment that the administration expects will allow 90,000 additional companies to participate in its loan and contracting programs. The SBA said that this increase could result in $750 million more total contracts awarded to small businesses and as much as $65 million more in small business loans.

In order to be considered a small business under current SBA guidelines, most general, heavy and civil construction companies cannot have more than $36.5 million of average annual sales receipts.

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Tips for Starting a Small Business

As is common in many aspects of life, there are lessons we learn that we wish we’d known sooner. When it comes to being a small business owner there are insights you can only gain from gathering years of experience. That is why it’s important to surround yourself with people that know things you don’t.

Here are a few tips from successful small business owners.

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7 steps to starting a small business on a shoestring budget

One of the great things about being in business these days – whether it is having a side hustle or a retail store or an online business – is that there is just so much free help available.

To wit: Last week, I held my most popular webinar ever (almost 4,000 people registered!) for SCORE, called 7 Steps to Starting on a Shoestring. SCORE is an amazing organization; more than 10,000 business volunteers who can help and mentor you (physically or virtually) on almost any aspect of your business – marketing, sales, taxes, whatever. And, like my webinar, many of SCOREs offerings are free.

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Small Business Grapples with Uncertainty

Small business challenges for 2020 will not be easy as more than eight of ten owners indicate attracting new customers is their biggest problem, and nearly six out of ten report hiring or trying to hire qualified applicants has become frustrating. Overall, small business optimism during 2019 was a roller coaster ride for many, as potential threats, such as the on-again off-again trade war with China, potential trade wars with India and Europe, has made it nearly impossible to set long-term plans. Compounding the frustration is the potential impact of the upcoming national elections.

While the Republicans have loosened regulations for small businesses, the consequences of the ill advised 2017 corporate and wealthy tax cuts are beginning to bite, thus producing a walk back in 2020.

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Why Trade Shows Are Important For Your Small Business

In our hyperconnected digital world, trade shows can be seen as a bit of a relic, an outmoded business building tool that entrepreneurs shouldn’t waste their time on. Nothing could be further from the truth.

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Starting a Business

One of the great things about being in business these days – whether it is having a side hustle or a retail store or an online business – is that there is just so much free help available.

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How Is Launching A Startup Different From Starting A Small Business

Facebook and Walmart had one thing in common, they both built a product people loved. But their journey was different. Understanding how and why building startups is different from small businesses will help you make wiser business decisions. Here are the most important differences you need to know.

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One Way to Start a Lucrative Career From Home That Could Pay $50,000 in a Day

We are in the midst of a difficult time in history. The COVID-19 pandemic is causing a health crisis, and both the economy and jobs are suffering as a result.

While many of us can work from home, others cannot. But if a silver lining exists, perhaps it’s this: Now is the perfect time to learn a skill or launch a new career. Affiliate marketing gives you that opportunity.

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75% of Consumers Plan to Support Small Businesses More Often

The survey shows that consumers have already been going out of their way to support small businesses. 86% of those surveyed say they have continued to support locally owned businesses during quarantine.

The research uncovers how consumers have been supporting local businesses during lockdown. For example, 77% said they have been participating in a virtual experience offered by a local business. 60% of consumers said they have been ordering more takeaways and deliveries from local restaurants.




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5 Smart Small-Business Moves to Make During COVID-19

1. Apply for a line of credit
2. Have cash on hand
3. Negotiate with your vendors
4. Be as adaptable as possible
5. Invest in safety




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6 tips for starting a business during coronavirus

The coronavirus pandemic has placed tremendous stress on the American economy. More than 55 million Americans have filed for unemployment, and more than 100,000 small businesses have been permanently shuttered, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Though the news seems dire, these changing times could present an opportunity if you are a hopeful entrepreneur.

Whether you have been planning to start a business for years, you have been laid off and are looking for new opportunities or you are moving your existing business in a new direction, now might be the time to figure out how to start a business.




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When School Goes Virtual, Startups Step Into the Breach

With a chaotic and largely unsuccessful spring semester behind it, the country is getting ready for a school year unlike any other--and teachers, staff, and parents will need all the help they can get.

Education technology companies are well positioned to capitalize on the shift to remote learning.




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15 Steps to start a business from scratch with (almost) no money

Coming up with a business idea and starting a business can seem overwhelming and complicated. There are so many things you have to consider from coming up with an excellent idea to registering a company, all the way to business planning, fundraising and much more.

That is why we have put together this in-depth guide to take you by step by step through how you can start a business.

More info - https://entrepreneurhandbook.co.uk/starting-a-business/




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3 Promising Industries for Starting a Business Right Now

Entrepreneurs have seized the opportunity to start new companies in a wide variety of industries during the Covid-19 pandemic. While not all of these ventures will be successful, businesses that help alleviate some of the new challenges created by the pandemic are poised for long-term growth. Here are three industries that hold promising opportunities for entrepreneurs looking to start new businesses.

1. Contactless Tech
2. Telehealth
3. Education Tech




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Nine Resolutions To Start Your Small Business Year Off Strong

1. Be clear in your direction.
2. Know who your customer is.
3. Focus on the channels that matter.
4. Only talk about what matters.
5. Remember what makes you special.
6. Find your niche.
7. Learn something new.
8. Plan well to save time.
9. Engage with your customers more.




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A business owner who spent nearly $46 million on Facebook advertising says he has been booted from the platform without explanation

A business owner who spent nearly $46 million over the years on Facebook ads said he got booted from the platform without warning.

Jordan Nabigon, the CEO of the Ottawa, Ontario, content-curation site Shared, said Facebook deleted his companys main Facebook page without warning in October, and without providing an explanation. He shared a Medium post detailing his experience, which has received more than 400 claps from readers.

Nabigon spent $45,870,181 on Facebook advertising between 2006 and 2020 for Shared and his other company Freebies, according to expense reports reviewed by Business Insider. Shared employees three people full-time and 12 contract writers, Nabigon said.

Facebook increased its use of artificial intelligence to oversee advertising and other content during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Nabigon is among hundreds of business owners who said they suffered from Facebook's crackdown on ad policies.




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How Smart Phones Have Changed the World

With the ongoing move of smart phones towards near-ubiquity, much of society has come to take these do-all devices for granted. In overcoming the novelty of smart phones, many of us have lost our one-time sense of awe at this technology, and have ceased marveling at the effect it has had on the world around us. However, it is undeniable that smart phones have exerted a huge and multi-faceted impact on society, and continue to do so to this day.

How Smart Phones Have Changed the World




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Will COVID Stimulus Help or Hurt Small Business?

The data on business startups and closing show a mixed bag across the United States. Some states have seen an increase in new business applications over the past year (February to February) and some states have shown a decline. The Mid-Atlantic and Northeast are among the weakest regions, with Virginia showing a 3.5% decline in year-over-year applications.

Business closings are harder to track month to month because small business operators do not always file documents when they shutter their doors, and it is hard to distinguish between permanent and temporary closings. Closings do show up eventually in tax filings and articles of incorporation.




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artesunate

Title: artesunate
Category: Medications
Created: 8/9/2022 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 8/9/2022 12:00:00 AM




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Federal Court Orders EPA to Re-examine Whether Roundup Causes Cancer

Title: Federal Court Orders EPA to Re-examine Whether Roundup Causes Cancer
Category: Health News
Created: 6/20/2022 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 6/20/2022 12:00:00 AM




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Heart Failure

Title: Heart Failure
Category: Diseases and Conditions
Created: 1/31/2005 12:00:00 AM
Last Editorial Review: 6/29/2022 12:00:00 AM




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Strings for the Deaf, The String Quartet Tribute to Queens of the Stone Age

Compulsive purchases are so often wrong that I nearly put this one back on the shelf. I'm glad I didn't....




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CICL Chess Match: Board 6 vs Northwestern

I play in the Chicago Industrial Chess League (CICL) for my employer DRW. I generally play one of the lower boards, but I do pretty well. Two nights ago, I played possibly the best chess game of my life... and lost.

How? By touching the wrong piece. I had a choice of two recaptures - one that would win the game, and one that would lose. If I had simply moved quickly, that would've been bad enough, but I actually noted the problem with the first recapture, and then did some sanity checks for the other move. Content that all was good, I started my move by picking up the bishop to be captured, AND THEN PICKED UP THE WRONG CAPTURING PIECE. I realized it immediately, but by then it was too late. I resigned a few moves later.

The worst bit is I found a strong move on 18. (see below, I'm playing white) - and I saw that position 3 moves earlier. I don't always play this well when I'm rested - let alone after a 12 hour work day... which of course just makes the blunder that much more painful.

Moral of the story? When you're winning, when you're tired (or both!). STOP! Check it again. Check each bit, write it down and check it a third time. Then if your sure, make the move.

This one burned. Hopefully it stung enough that I won't do it again.

Anyway, for your viewing pleasure, here is my wonder-blunder:

Event:
Site:
Round:
Date:

White:
Black:
Result:

Side to move:
Last move:   variations:
Next move:   variations:

Move comment:




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Excellent Portents

 I'm still in New Zealand, and life is weird but good. 

Amanda and I are raising our small boy, and I love being swept along in his enthusiasms. Zombies was mostly replaced by Star Wars while I was away. Since I've been back, Star Wars has mostly been replaced by Tintin and Dinosaurs and Sea Monsters, and Tintin and Dinosaurs and Sea Monsters appear to be slowly transmuting into Greek Mythology and Asterix and Obelix. This morning he ate breakfast in character as Obelix, complaining about the lack of Roast Boar, and then lecturing me on all the Greek Heroes who battled monsters (his list consisted of Theseus, Perseus and Herakles. He got very excited when I told him about Odysseus.)


Hair prior to recent haircut. I look like a bush.

Hair after haircut. I look less like a bush. Ash and I are poring over The Seven Crystal Balls. Photo by Amanda


I've done one public event since I've been here -- the Auckland Writers Festival. Here's the video of the first event, in which Lucy Lawless interviewed me and Amanda.


I did another talk -- just me -- and a six hour long signing the following day. It was wonderful to meet the people, but I'm definitely out of practice at doing marathon signings. I kept thinking about the nine months I spent on Skye, during which time I probably interacted with a dozen people who were there, and that includes trips to the little shop in Uig and socially distanced walks with archaeologists on the hills. New Zealand has definitely done right by its people, and that just makes the losses around the world even harder.

Amanda's already vaccinated. I'm due to get vaccinated in a couple of weeks.

The Netflix Sandman is taking up a lot of my time right now.  (Today I received a first cut of episode 9, and a finished-except for music and VFX cut of episode 4 to watch.)

Here's the Sandman First Look Behind the Scenes release from Netflix. 



(I saw an earlier version of this in which I could be seen marvelling at a copy of The Sun newspaper with the headline TUG OF LOVE BABY EATEN BY COWS, because the determination of the team to make it Sandman is astonishing -- to the point where I sent an email to Allan Heinberg, showrunning, last week, while I was watching the Dailies, and I told him of an error I'd spotted. He pointed out right back that the error was in the panel in Sandman 10 they'd used as their reference. I told them not to fix it. That kind of fidelity can only be applauded.)




And in the meantime, all of the writing time, and a lot of the meeting time (because the people I am meeting are in countries on the other side of the world it's either early in my morning or very late at night), has been taken up by two other projects I haven't talked about yet, although they've been 90% of what I've been doing for the last 18 months. But let's leave them for the next blog entry. It'll give me an incentive to write one.






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Art and Climate

I really ought to blog about making Good Omens (we're in week 4 of shooting) and making Anansi Boys (starts shooting next week), and about the astonishing Ocean at the End of the Lane play at the Duke of York's Theatre in London (and now that I've said this, I know I will) but yesterday I spoke (via Zoom, because of Covid Protocols) at COP26, the Conference of the Parties on Climate Action, and I thought I ought to just put what I said up here. So it doesn't get lost.






Art is how we communicate. Art began when we left marks to say we were here. 

The oldest art we have is the 200,000 year old handprints of Neanderthal or Denisovan children, on the Tibetan Plateau, making marks with their hands because it was fun, because they could, and because it told the world they had been there.

The human family tree has been around for millions of years, Homo Sapiens for a much shorter time. We are not a successful branch of the tree, because, unless we use our mighty brains to think our way out of this one, we don't have a very long time left.

We need to use everything at our disposal to change the world, and show that we can compete with the ones who were here before us. And by compete I mean, not make the world uninhabitable by humans. The world will be fine, in the long run. There have been extinction events before us, and there will be extinction events after we’ve gone.

When I was young I wrote a short comics story about the use of the planet Earth as a decorative ornament. It was about our tendency to destroy ourselves. Back then, I worried about nuclear war: one huge event that would end everything. Now I'm worried that we are messing things up a little at a time, until everything tips.

We who explore futures need to build fictional futures that inspire and make us carry on. When I was a kid, it was going to the stars that was the dream. Now it has to be fixing the mess that we've left behind, and not just walking away, leaving the Earth a midden.

We need to change the world back again. And that will take science, but it will also take art. To convince to inspire and to build a future.

We need to reach people's hearts, not just their minds. Reach the part of their hearts that believes it's good to plant trees for our grandchildren to sit beneath. Reach hearts to make people want to change, and to react to people and organisations despoiling the planet and the climate in the same way you would react to someone trying to burn down your house, while you are living in it.

So that 200,000 years from now, children can leave handprints in clay, to show us that they were here, and because making handprints and footprints is fun.





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Physical Security Market worth $136.9 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 4.4%

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 25, 2024 ) The global physical security market size is projected to grow from USD 110.2 billion in 2023 to USD 136.9 billion by 2028 at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 4.4% during the forecast period. The growth in the use of IP-based cameras for video surveillance...




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Plastic Compounds Market worth $97.3 billion by 2029

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 25, 2024 ) The report "Plastic Compounds Market by Product (PVC, PP, PE, PS, PA, PC, PET, PU, ABS), Source, End-use Industry (Automotive, Packaging, Electrical & Electronics, Building & Construction, Consumer Goods, Medical), and Region - Global Forecast to 2029 " The global...




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Dietary Supplements Market: Opportunities for Manufacturers and Investors

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 25, 2024 ) The global dietary supplements market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.4%, increasing from $167.5 billion in 2023 to $239.4 billion by 2028. Key factors driving this growth include the rising elderly population, a shift from traditional...




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Wheat Protein Market Growth: Key Trends and Opportunities for Industry Leaders

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 25, 2024 ) The global wheat protein market is expected to expand from $2.5 billion in 2023 to $3.2 billion by 2028, achieving a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.9%. This growth is driven by the rising popularity of meat-free diets, increasing obesity rates leading to...




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Clinical Microbiology Market worth $6.9 billion by 2029

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 25, 2024 ) The global Clinical Microbiology Market growth in terms of revenue was estimated to be worth $5.0 billion in 2024 and is poised to reach $6.9 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 6.5% from 2024 to 2029. The clinical microbiology market is driven by several key...




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The Red Rice Market witnesses growing demand from North America, as per Maximize Market Research.

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 26, 2024 ) The increased demand for healthy foods, followed by the properties in red rice such as, anthocyanins, which offer potential benefits like blood pressure control, diabetes prevention, and anti-inflammatory properties are important driving factors in the red rice...




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Photoacoustic Imaging Industry Worth $105 million by 2029, with a CAGR of 5.5%

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 26, 2024 ) The global Photoacoustic Imaging Market, projecting growth from USD 80 million in 2024 to USD 105 million by 2029, with a CAGR of 5.5%. Key drivers include rising investments in imaging systems and strategic partnerships. Challenges include high system costs and...




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The Orthodontic Market is dominated by Braces, as per Maximize Market Research.

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 27, 2024 ) Orthodontic Market drivers Increased emphasis on aesthetics and maintaining healthy teeth is causing a rise in demand for orthodontic treatments. A large number of people worldwide are afflicted with crooked teeth and misaligned jaws, requiring orthodontic treatment....




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Ammonium Sulfate Market worth $6.19 billion by 2029

(EMAILWIRE.COM, October 28, 2024 ) The report "Ammonium Sulfate Market by Type (Solid, Liquid), Application (Fertilizers, Food & Feed Additives, Pharmaceuticals, Textile Dyeing, Water Treatment), & Region - Global Forecast to 2029 " The global Ammonium Sulfate Market size is projected to reach a...