Western U.S. Pulp Mills Now Seeing Lower Costs

http://www.paperage.com/2013news/09_03_2013wood_costs_western_usa_wri.html
Wood costs account for between 50-55 percent of the production costs for pulp mills in the US. Historically these costs have often been substantially lower in the Southern states than in the Northwest — the two major pulp-producing regions of the country. However, this has been changing with the most dramatic regional price movements in North America happening in the US Northwest, where prices for softwood chips, the major fiber source for the region’s pulp mills, have fallen for five consecutive quarters, says Hakan Ekstrom of Wood Resources International (WRI).

During much of the past seven years, wood costs have been substantially higher for pulp mills in Western US than they have for pulp mills in the Southern states. However, sharply falling wood chip prices in the West during 2012 and 2013 have improved the competitiveness of the region’s pulp mills.

Domtar Nearing Start of Biomass Power Plant

http://www.paperage.com/2013news/09_03_2013domtar_rothschild_mill_biomass.html

At the newest power plant in Wisconsin, fuel will come from close to home.
Unlike coal, which is brought in by train from Wyoming and Appalachia, biomass will be culled from the sawmills and forests of northern Wisconsin.
Most of the waste wood that will supply the $268 million We Energies and Domtar power plant will come from within 75 miles of Rothschild, said Jim Freiberg of Domtar.
The plant, which will provide electricity for We Energies and steam for Domtar's paper mill, will burn wood waste from sawmills and pulp mills as well as leftover wood removed from the forest floor after logging operations.

Stora Begins Job Cuts at Kvarnsveden Mill

http://www.storaenso.com/

Stora Enso is starting negotiations with employee representatives this week regarding plans to take out 75 positions at its Kvarnsveden mill in central Sweden. Of these, 25 would be blue-collar jobs.

The plan will see the factory's headcount go down to some 500 employees. How this might affect production will be discussed during the negotiations, mill manager Mikko Jokio said.

This is part of Stora Enso's plans to streamline operations and cut costs by some Euro 200 million ($264 million), announced in June. As a result, the company may slash up to 2,500 jobs in total. Negotiations have started at several of its mills in Finland and Sweden, and also in Belgium and Germany.

Stora Enso halted production on the 270,000 tonne/yr newsprint machine PM 11 at the Kvarnsveden mill in May for market related-reasons. It was later decided the machine would remain down for good. In connection tot his, the company made 27 people redundant, while an undisclosed number of workers left the plant through early retirement and other arrangements, Jokio said.

India Paper Producers Raising Prices 5-8%

http://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/paper-producers-raise-prices-on-raw-material-cost-push-113083000853_1.html

Paper producers have decided to raise their products' prices by 5-8% due to rising input cost.

While industry leaders Ballarpur Industries Ltd (BILT) and Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers Ltd have decided make the price rise effective September 1, J K paper has already raised prices of a majority of its products early this week.

This increase in paper prices is set to make books and note books expensive in coming days.

Uruguay Will Not Authorize UPM Pulp Expansion

http://en.mercopress.com/2013/08/31/uruguay-fearing-the-wrath-of-cristina-fernandez-denies-authorization-to-expand-pulp-mill-capacity

Uruguay will not authorize UPM pulp expansion at Fray Bentos as talks with Argentina underway; mill maintenance outage may be extended [From the web]

The Uruguayan government fearful of Argentine President Cristina Fernandez's reaction will not authorize the local UPM pulp mill to expand its production capacity from 1 million to 1.3 million tons annually, in the short term, according to company and government sources.

On Friday UPM with its pulp mill next to Fray Bentos on the shared river Uruguay, across from the Argentine town of Gualeguaychú reported that beginning 14 September it will start its annual maintenance stoppage.

New Union Goes on Offensive

http://www.citynews.ca/2013/08/31/new-unifor-leader-taking-labour-movement-on-the-offensive/
Jerry Dias hopes to use his new position as president of Canada’s newest — and largest — private sector union to turn the tide for Canada’s labour movement.
The Canadian Auto Workers union and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of Canada have merged to form a new group called Unifor.
Dias was elected with about 87 per cent support at the new union’s founding convention in Toronto on Saturday.
“Unifor is here because it’s time to stop playing defence and it’s time we started to play offence,” said Dias in his fiery inaugural address. “It’s time to stop reacting and it’s time to start setting the agenda.”
Dias seemed to be especially focused on labour’s relations with the federal government.
The new union represents 300,000 Canadian workers.

Gap's Marketing Focus Fuels Major Rebound

http://adage.com/article/special-report-marketer-alist-2013/gap-s-global-marketing-focus-fuels-major-retail-rebound/243763/
Gap Inc. spent several years as a punching bag for Wall Street, thanks to slipping sales, marketing missteps and an indistinct positioning among some of its core brands. But the company is swinging back.
Its stock hit a 52-week high last month. Net sales for the second quarter rose 8%, while sales for July were up 5%. Global expansion and the rapid creation of strong global marketing teams is fueling growth. Gap Inc. rounded out its trio of global chief marketing officer positions this year, with appointments at Old Navy and Banana Republic. Marketing across its brands is benefiting from increased investment and fresh ideas.

Jarden to Buy Yankee Candle

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/03/us-jarden-yankeecandle-idUSBRE98205C20130903

Jarden Corp (JAH.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), known for its Mr. Coffee products, agreed to buy candle maker Yankee Candle Co Inc for $1.75 billion after private equity owner Madison Dearborn Partners LLC failed to sell for a higher price earlier this year.
Jarden, which sells Crock-Pot slow cookers and Sunbeam electric blankets, said on Tuesday it would fund the transaction with cash, common equity and a mix of bank debt and bonds.
The acquisition of Yankee Candle, the largest scented candle company in the United States, will bolster Jarden's branded consumables division, and adjusted cash flow on a pro-forma basis would have been about 25 percent higher in the 12 months to the end of June 2013, Jarden said.
The deal is expected to be accretive to Jarden's adjusted earnings per share by approximately 10 percent before synergies, Jarden added.

Active Interest Media Buys 3 Titles

http://www.foliomag.com/2013/active-interest-media-buys-3-titles-robert-kennedy-publishing#.UiZE_7yYyKw

Enthusiast publisher Active Interest Media has acquired three titles from Robert Kennedy Publishing, based in Ontario, Canada. Included in the cash deal are women's health and fitness title Oxygen, recipe and nutrition magazine Clean Eating and MuscleMag International.
Robert Kennedy Publishing parent Canusa declared bankruptcy in June 2013 and AIM bought the three brands in cash through an auction process that kicked off in July.
Andrew Clurman, AIM's president and chief operating officer, says the company has been quietly building up its health and fitness division, anchored by its Yoga Journal and Vegetarian Times brands. 

Smart Retailer Acquired by Jones Publishing

http://www.foliomag.com/2013/smart-retailer-acquired-jones-publishing#.UiZFhryYyKw

Jones Publishing Inc. bought Smart Retailer, formerly Country Business, from Country Sampler, a publishing division of Annie’s, to expand its craft and collectibles portfolio. Smart Retailer, published by Country Sampler since 1993, is a b-to-b retailing magazine that features gifts, crafts and collectibles. Jones Publishing, founded in 1986, maintains a big presence in the market, already publishing four special-interest magazines.

Condé Nast Bringing Back Domino Full-Time

http://www.foliomag.com/2013/cond-nast-bringing-back-domino-full-time#.UiZF3ryYyKw

After shuttering interior design magazine Domino in January 2009, Condé Nast has quietly held tight to the popular brand. Starting with bi-annual special editions in 2012, the publisher heightened public interest that it will now look to capitalize on with a full re-launch in the fall.
The Domino brand is reportedly being revived as an e-commerce site and quarterly print magazine as early as September, according to several sources who spoke to Women’s Wear Daily. Launched in April 2005, the shelter titled carried a ratebase of 850,000 and maintained a total paid and verified circulation average of 1.12 million during the first-half of 2008, according to ABC.

Newsweek's Print Editions Abroad Hopeful

http://adage.com/article/media/newsweek-print-editions-abroad-hopeful-owner/243837/?utm_source=Global%20News&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+AdvertisingAge/Global%20News

Newsweek's print edition in the United States may have met its end last year, but staff at the magazine's ongoing print editions abroad hope that the brand's new, global-minded owner will mean better times ahead for them.
IBT Media, the digital publisher that agreed earlier this month to buy Newsweek, publishes websites in seven languages in pursuit of readers around the world. It now calls Newsweek's international presence key to growing the new acquisition. "We plan on deepening the current relationships and potentially adding more global partners," IBT Media founder and CEO Etienne Uzak said in an email.
The North American version of Newsweek published its final print issue last December, reverting to an online-only publication whose website was revamped in May and put up for sale with a greatly reduced staff. But Mr. Ahmed's office in Lahore still produces English-language editions not only for Pakistan but, since a deal with another publisher early this year, one for Latin America and another for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. When Newsweek U.S. went all-digital, Mr. Ahmed told the press in Pakistan that he planned to actually add headcount to the local edition. Some countries also have local-language editions of Newsweek still publishing in print.

Amazon Picks Supreme Court Tax Fight

http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2013/08/31/amazon-picks-supreme-court-tax-fight-over-new-york-but-collects-in-virginia-georgia-10-others/

 Amazon famously started life in the “no-taxes ever” column. More recently, the Bezos-driven behemoth emerged from its chrysalis with a pair of sales tax wings. Starting September 1st, Amazon adds two states, Virginia and Georgia, to its growing stable of states in which it collects sales tax and remits it to the state.
Amazon already collects sales tax in Arizona, California, Kansas, Kentucky, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Washington. See About Sales Tax on Items Sold by Amazon.com. Plus, Amazon taxes are coming soon to Connecticut, Massachusetts, Nevada and Indiana. See Amazon Will Begin Collecting Sales Tax in Georgia.

I’m Done with the ‘Death of Print’ Thing

http://ipdahome.org/newsstand/?cat=296
Blogger Peter Houston makes fun of the latest “death of print” headline. Suggests that a better story would be: Publishers have more opportunities to connect with their audiences than ever before. By capitalizing on the credibility and community embedded in long established print brands they are perfectly positioned, with unrivaled reach and influence, to create expansive and engaging brand experiences. In which case, suggested headlines would include: “Multiplatform publishing includes profitable print element”; “Publisher leverages print brand into online success”; and “Shock, horror, print is still not dead.” 

FlippingPagesBlog

Forbes Media Expands

http://ipdahome.org/newsstand/?cat=296
Forbes Media is working with a Philippine real estate firm to build its first Forbes Media Tower–a high-end commercial office building–in Makati, Metro Manila, Philippines. Forbes expects to build a network of branded towers around the world over time.

Release

Vanity Fair Celebrates 100 Years

http://ipdahome.org/newsstand/?cat=296
The original VF launched in 1913, folded 20 years later, and wasn’t revived by Condé Nast until 1983. But VF is still celebrating its 100th anniversary. Centennial print issue (October), on newsstands this week, is stuffed with commissioned essays written by celebrities like Bill Maher and Lorne Michaels. The Web site is blinged-out with all sorts of bells and whistles; there’s a series of slick short films by, among others, Judd Apatow; and a coffee-table book, “Vanity Fair: 100 Years,” will be released in October.