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Goodway Group Launches Passport One™, A New People-Based Identity Solution

Goodway Group

Goodway Group, a leading data-driven and technology-enabled digital media and marketing services firm, has launched its new people-based identity solution: Passport One™. The new solution provides marketers with a privacy-forward proprietary database to reach customers, enhance existing first-party data, and create new opportunities for closed-loop measurement. Passport One™ is among a suite of products that comprise Goodway Group's Modern Marketing Toolkit, which is strengthened by Goodway Group's teams of analysts, data scientists, and strategists. Passport One™ is the newest addition to Goodway Group's award-winning tech stack, which is designed to meet the needs of sophisticated marketers' biggest challenges, including consumer resolution, reach and engagement, insights-led measurement and strategic media investment. Amid increasing privacy legislation and platform-based restrictions on consumer data, establishing a clear first-party data strategy is critical to brands' success in the cookieless future. This requires access to tools and data that is out of reach for most brands, with digital marketers ranking cost as the second-largest challenge to using first-party data. With the launch of Passport One™, Goodway Group is now democratizing these resources to make it possible for advertisers of any size to build and strengthen their digital marketing strategies and engage them as a driver of revenue and business growth. "At Goodway Group, we recognize that addressing identity in today's privacy-centric digital advertising space is a huge undertaking for most brands who aren't already deep into their first-party data journey," said Jay Friedman, President of Goodway Group. "Through Passport One™, we're tackling this problem with an invaluable marketing tool capable of creating and enhancing first-party data for any brand and by extension providing them with the insights necessary to position their brands for success." Goodway Group's Modern Marketing Toolkit is a collection of seven strategies and approaches tested and approved by the agency to address brands' current identity needs, including common IDs, cleanroom environments, publisher cohorts, contextual targeting, and panel-based and decentralized authenticated solutions. Using Passport One™, marketers gain access to hundreds of attributes across the vast majority of U.S. consumers, which can be used to build their initial audience foundation or supplement their view and understanding of their available first-party data to gather new audience insights. Passport One™ also delivers to marketers access to best-in-class data, including: 300 million consumer profiles 126 million U.S. households Coverage of 95% of the U.S. population Linkage to 500 million anonymized email addresses, utilizing ID solutions 1,500 individual HH level attributions Goodway Group's Modern Marketing Toolkit can be applied individually or cohesively to address every marketer's unique business needs at scale, from targeting and personalization to measurement and analytics. For more information on Passport One™ and Goodway Group’s Modern Marketing Toolkit please visit: https://www.goodwaygroup.com/passportone About Goodway Group Goodway Group is a leading data-driven and technology-enabled digital media and marketing services firm with teams in the U.S. and the UK. Our diverse team of digital strategists, media practitioners, technologists, and data scientists have won the most prestigious awards for innovative marketing technology, impactful work, and inclusive remote-first places to work including being honored as a multi-year Ad Age Best Places to Work, AdExchanger’s Best Use of Technology by an Agency Award, and two MarTech Breakthrough Awards. The firm deploys deep expertise across both consumer and B2B marketing, including brand-performance advertising, retail media and commerce, and advanced analytics using proprietary digital programmatic technologies, data, analytics methodologies, and consultation. Goodway Group is an independent and remote-first media and marketing services firm with a 90+ year history. Find Goodway Group online at goodwaygroup.com or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn. Goodway Group. Honestly Smart Digital. Contact Details Kite Hill PR for Goodway Group Patrice Gamble goodway@kitehillpr.com Company Website https://www.goodwaygroup.com/

April 12, 2022 10:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

DICK’S Sporting Goods Named Official Sporting Goods Store of Ripken Baseball

Ripken Baseball

Ripken Baseball, the leader in youth sports events, announced they have entered a multi-year partnership with DICK’S Sporting Goods to be the official sporting goods store of The Ripken Experience™ in Aberdeen, Md., Myrtle Beach, S.C., and Pigeon Forge, Tenn. As the official sporting goods store of Ripken Baseball, DICK’S Sporting Goods will receive an integrated media plan and the opportunity to bring experiential elements from their stores to life at The Ripken Experience™ facilities. This program is designed to increase the awareness of their game-changing equipment, provide expert advice, and offer players, coaches, and families special offers on an assortment of merchandise and gear. “This partnership aligns two incredible brands in the youth sports industry,” said Amanda Shank, Vice President of Business Development for Ripken Baseball. “With an equal passion to grow America’s favorite pastime, this is more than a sponsorship relationship. Through DICK'S, our teams and families across the country will access the best selection and value on equipment so they're ready to take the field." In addition, Ripken Baseball event participants will continue to benefit from the partnership as DICK’S Sporting Goods will be the first brand incorporated in the inaugural multi-city Ripken Select tour. Ripken Select Tournaments will occur in Illinois, Florida, and Texas. Four Ripken Select Tournaments replicate the Ripken Experience™ that over 5,000 teams and 250,000 guests enjoy at Ripken Baseball’s permanent facilities in Maryland, South Carolina, and Tennessee. “We’re excited to partner with Ripken Baseball and bring together two great brands to support youth athletes,” said Aimee Watters, Senior Director Sports Matter and Community Marketing for DICK’S Sporting Goods. “At DICK’S we understand that the right equipment can make all the difference to an athlete and are proud to offer the best selection to keep kids in the game.” About DICK’S Sporting Goods DICK’S Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS) creates confidence and excitement by personally equipping all athletes to achieve their dreams. Founded in 1948 and headquartered in Pittsburgh, the leading omnichannel retailer serves athletes and outdoor enthusiasts in more than 850 DICK’S Sporting Goods, Golf Galaxy, Field & Stream, Public Lands, Going Going Gone! and Warehouse Sale stores, online, and through the DICK’S mobile app. DICK’S also owns and operates DICK’S House of Sport and Golf Galaxy Performance Center, as well as GameChanger, a youth sports mobile app for scheduling, communications, live scorekeeping and video streaming. Driven by its belief that sports make people better, DICK’S has been a longtime champion for youth sports and, together with its Foundation, has donated millions of dollars to support under-resourced teams and athletes through the Sports Matter program and other community-based initiatives. Additional information about DICK’S business, corporate giving, sustainability efforts and employment opportunities can be found on dicks.com, investors.dicks.com, sportsmatter.org, dickssportinggoods.jobs and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. About Ripken Baseball Ripken Baseball brings teammates, coaches, and families together through its Big-League Experiences, while teaching the values of the game, and how to play it the right way – the Ripken Way. Recently expanding the best experience in youth sports to satellite locations through Ripken Select Tournaments, Ripken Baseball continues to innovate the game through tournaments, camps, clinics, and spring training at their state-of-the-art baseball and softball facilities – The Ripken Experience™ Aberdeen (Maryland), The Ripken Experience™ Myrtle Beach (South Carolina), and The Ripken Experience™ Pigeon Forge (Tennessee). Contact Details Eric PR & Marketing, LLC Eric Nemeth +1 602-502-2793 nemeth@ericpr.com Company Website https://www.ripkenbaseball.com/

April 12, 2022 09:13 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Justin Williams and Xzeria Denson Named Winners of Jersey Mike’s Naismith High School Basketball Courage Award

Atlanta Tipoff Club

Justin Williams of Foundation Academy in Winter Garden, Fla., and Xzeria Denson of Ridgeland High School in Ridgeland, Miss., have been named the winners of the third annual Jersey Mike’s Naismith High School Basketball Courage Award, according to the Atlanta Tipoff Club. The Jersey Mike’s Naismith High School Basketball Courage Award recognizes one male and one female high school basketball player who has consistently gone above and beyond throughout the basketball season and has demonstrated courage in their approach to their team, school, and community. Hundreds of coaches and athletic directors nominated players from around the country. Born with Aperts syndrome, Williams has undergone 12 surgeries throughout his childhood. His condition results in his outer extremities being fused together and not separated in the womb. Five of his surgeries have been on his head. Despite his challenges, Williams is a leader on the basketball court and never makes excuses or complains about his struggles. His coach applauded Williams for his character as well as his basketball IQ. He is a mentor for the younger players and an inspiration to teammates. To view a tribute video for Williams, click HERE. Denson overcame significant lower-body injuries each of her four years during her high school basketball career while navigating obstacles in her personal life. After an ankle injury that jeopardized her senior year, Denson attended physical therapy before school in order to attend practices in the afternoon and return to game action before her team’s district competition. While navigating obstacles in early childhood, Denson learned how to work hard and be a leader inside the school and out. Denson's coach describes Denson as the hardest worker and an incredible leader on and off the court. To view a tribute video for Denson, click HERE. “Beyond the basketball court, Xzeria and Justin display courage every day of their lives, and we are honored to recognize them as the winners of the Jersey Mike’s Naismith High School Basketball Courage Award,” said Eric Oberman, executive director of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. “They are role models in their schools, communities, and for people across the country, as their remarkable stories spread through this award.” Ten finalists, and ultimately the two winners, were chosen by a Board of Selectors, including journalists, former Naismith winners, and Atlanta Tipoff Club board members. Jersey Mike’s will donate to the winners’ high school basketball programs in honor of Williams and Denson. “We want to thank all of the coaches and athletic directors who made nominations from all over the country on behalf of their incredibly courageous players,” said Rich Hope, chief marketing officer, Jersey Mike’s Franchise Systems, Inc. “Reading their stories of strength and resilience was inspiring. We want to congratulate Xzeria and Justin for winning this year’s Jersey Mike’s Naismith High School Basketball Courage Award and celebrate all the nominees across the country.” For more information about the winners, visit www.astudentabove.com. ABOUT THE ATLANTA TIPOFF CLUB Founded during the 1956-57 season, the Atlanta Tipoff Club is committed to promoting the game of basketball and recognizing the outstanding accomplishments of those who make the game so exciting. The Atlanta Tipoff Club administers the Naismith Awards, the most prestigious national honors in all of college and high school basketball. Named in honor of Dr. James Naismith, inventor of the game of basketball, the family of Naismith Awards annually recognizes the most outstanding men’s and women’s college and high school basketball players and coaches. Other Naismith Awards are presented to the men’s and women’s college basketball defensive players of the year, as well as lifetime achievement awards to basketball officials and outstanding contributors to the game. UCLA’s Lew Alcindor received the first Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy in 1969, while the late Anne Donovan (Old Dominion) was the inaugural women’s recipient in 1983. Corporate partners of the Naismith Awards include Jersey Mike’s and Werner Ladder. ABOUT JERSEY MIKE’S SUBS Jersey Mike’s Subs, with more than 2,000 locations nationwide, serves authentic fresh sliced/fresh grilled subs on in-store freshly baked bread — the same recipe it started with in 1956. Passion for giving in Jersey Mike’s local communities is reflected in its mission statement “Giving…making a difference in someone’s life.” For more information, please visit jerseymikes.com or follow us on Facebook (facebook.com/jerseymikes), Instagram (instagram.com/jerseymikes), and Twitter (twitter.com/jerseymikes.com). Contact Details Eric Nemeth +1 602-502-2793 nemeth@ericpr.com Company Website https://www.astudentabove.com

April 12, 2022 09:03 AM Eastern Daylight Time

Minuteman Press Franchise in Welshpool, Perth, Western Australia Celebrates 17 Years, Shares Growth Strategies

Minuteman Press International Inc

Rod Hambley has owned his Minuteman Press printing franchise in Welshpool since March of 2005. In May of 2021, Rod purchased 15-year independent print shop Images on Paper. Following the acquisition, Rod merged staff from both businesses and has been producing more in-house orders with the equipment that was added. The result has been doubling and even tripling monthly sales in the months following the acquisition. This includes a record sales month for his 17-year business, Rod says, “We’ve clearly had sustained business growth since the acquisition. Sales for both new and existing clients are in line with past turnover for both.” Welcome to Minuteman Press in Welshpool Prior to buying Minuteman Press in Welshpool, Rod worked in the banking industry. He shares, “I was in banking for 25 years and worked as Branch Manager for several banks. I found Minuteman Press at a franchise show and in gaining a rapport with the Regional Vice President, I saw this as a viable option I could venture to when finished at the bank.” Under Rod’s leadership and following the acquisition of Images on Paper, Minuteman Press in Welshpool has continued to grow its core business. Rod says, “Our core business is always in high demand. We offer our clients high quality printing from our wide format machine which produces posters, signage, and stickers of all shapes and sizes. Our digital machine prints booklets, flyers, business cards, and much more. We also still run an offset machine for NCR Books, envelopes, and spot colour work that are all still in demand.” “It is important for local businesses to market and promote themselves. We are able to design and produce the items they need for those purposes and they also need printing of workbooks, forms, and plenty of other items for their operations as well.” -Rod Hambley, owner, Minuteman Press, Welshpool Acquiring Images on Paper As for how the acquisition of Images on Paper came about, it was a combination of Rod being proactive in looking at local acquisition targets in his area as well as the local Minuteman Press outreach campaign initiated by Regional Vice President Glenn Coyle. Rod says, “We have had our eye on this business in the area for a number of years among others. I have done smaller acquisitions over the years that were successful as I still have some clients from those. I saw Images on Paper as a good prospect where the owner might be looking to retire, and Glenn Coyle also identified them through an acquisition campaign.” Glenn Coyle says, “I reached out to Images on Paper and set up a confidential meeting with the owner Harry and his wife Robyn. We chatted for a while and after we got to know each other and I learned about their business, we all moved forward with a plan for Rod to acquire the business if all went well so Harry and Robyn could sell the business and retire.” Glenn adds, “Once I looked over the paperwork they provided, I met with Harry and Robyn again and told them my plan to introduce their business to Rod. They were happy for me to do this. After Rod met with Harry and Robyn, things went well, and they ultimately came to an agreement on price, terms, equipment, staff, and changeover date.” Rod shares, “The benefit to the seller was to save on brokerage costs, and the benefit to me was the increased sales as well as merging staff and added equipment for in-house jobs.” Advice for Others When asked what advice he would give to others looking to own a business, Rod answers, “Be prepared to work hard and find good staff. Also, you should ensure that you have steady cash flow and enough for a rainy day or two.” Minuteman Press in Welshpool is located at U2 119 Welshpool Rd., Welshpool, WA 6106. For more information, visit their website: https://www.welshpool.minutemanpress.com.au. Learn more about Minuteman Press franchise opportunities in Australia at https://minutemanpressfranchise.com.au. Contact Details Minuteman Press International Chris Biscuiti +1 631-249-1370 cbiscuiti@mpihq.com Company Website https://minutemanpressfranchise.com

April 11, 2022 10:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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ChainPort Integrates World’s Fastest EVM, Telos

Telos Foundation

With the ongoing growth and adoption of blockchain, cross-chain bridges are in demand more now than ever before. Chainport provides a painless way to move assets from one network to another. Access to multiple blockchains from a single bridge is a significant improvement over the multiple limitations associated with chain specific bridges. It provides an incredible improvement in user experience, especially because it eliminates the need to familiarize oneself with multiple bridge UIs. Plus, the simple ingress that Chainport provides to the tEVM’s growing ecosystem is particularly useful for DeFi and NFT enthusiasts. These enthusiasts can now easily move assets to the credibly decentralized tEVM and utilize its Ecosystem. Powered by the tEVM, dApps deliver the world’s fastest, most inexpensive NFT / DeFi transactions, and without the worry of congestion or the added cost of front running. ChainPort does an incredible job delivering on users' bridging needs and because of this the Telos community is super excited to add this new layer of cross-chain mobility. Chainport is currently live on Ethereum, Polygon, Binance Smart Chain, Avalanche, Fuse, Fantom, Moon River, and is soon to go live on Heco, Okex Chain, Aurora, Arbitrum, Cardano and Solana. Being able to move assets in and out of this vast list of ecosystems is a huge benefit for all users. “Chainport’s rapid adoption is due to its super easy-to-use UI and prominent level of security. It makes porting from one chain to another as simple as connecting your wallet and performing a single transaction. With Chainport in place, we can now make our ludicrously fast and inexpensive tEVM powered DeFi and NFT marketplaces available to multiple well-established ecosystems. This is most definitely something to get excited about!” Justin Giudici, Acting CEO at Telos Foundation With the Telos team already keen on the future implementation of multi-chain NFT transfers it is overly exciting to know that NFT bridging is already on the Q2 road map for Chainport. This will be especially useful because Telos is currently laser focused on building a robust NFT marketplace. The chain had just recently announced its new partnership with one of the most successful NFT marketplaces in crypto, Byt.io. Telos and Byt are set to build a next level NFT marketplace and multi-chain NFT bridging is most definitely the next evolutionary step of this trajectory. Byt powered by the tEVM will offer minting and trading at prices and speeds not yet seen before and NFT enthusiasts from all ecosystems will naturally gravitate towards these user-oriented benefits. Another interesting Chainport product which is on their Q1 roadmap is their insurance program. Insurance on digital assets is a service that absolutely makes perfect sense. Especially for high value assets. Services like this will help change the landscape and help build confidence in the marketplace. About ChainPort Chainport is a next-gen blockchain bridge that provides custodian-level security with real interoperability, allowing instant hops across chains at a click. With a current 30% monthly growth, Chainport has positioned itself as one of the top five largest bridges in the space. Chainport offers permissionless ports between chains with a simple UI and seven wallets already supported. About Telos Live since 2018, Telos Blockchain (ticker: Tlos) is a third-generation smart contract platform that offers compatibility with Solidity, Vyper and Native C++ smart contracts. Telos provides full EVM/Solidity support with fixed low-cost gas fees and no front running. Uniquely, Telos also offers a path to fee-less transactions via its robust native C++ smart contract support. Utilizing less than 0.000002 kWh per transaction, the chain can sustainably support hundreds of millions of transactions per day, produce blocks in 0.5 second intervals on a first-in-first-out basis (eliminating front running on the network) and securely validate transactions via an equitably sized and globally decentralized block producer network. The Telos Blockchain has the throughput needed to facilitate and scale the thriving Metaverse / Web 3.0 better than any other blockchain. Its performance is unrivaled in the industry and was purpose-built to offer speed, scalability, cost-effectiveness, credible decentralization, and end-user fairness. Telos harnesses its power from utilizing tight C++ on the frontend and a custom WASM runtime environment on the backend. About The Foundation The Telos Foundation is a Decentralized Autonomous Organization established as a promotional and funding body to advance the Telos Blockchain Network and provide support to network applications. Contact Details The Team hello@telosfoundation.io Company Website https://www.telos.net/

April 11, 2022 11:55 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Kivvit Earns Top 5 Spot In Multiple Specialty Categories In O’Dwyer’s 2022 Rankings

Kivvit

Kivvit previously announced it once again ranked among the top 20 largest firms overall, driven by revenue growth of 12.9% to $39.8 million last year. The latest specialty rankings from O’Dwyer’s showcase Kivvit’s leadership in a diverse array of categories, demonstrating our depth across critical industries and issue areas, as well as our ability to apply innovative approaches and achieve outcomes in any context. Kivvit landed in the top 5 for the following specialty categories: #1 Real Estate Finance & Development #2 Energy #2 Non-Profit #3 Education #4 Purpose/Corporate Social Responsibility “From wind and solar to transmission or utilities, Kivvit teams worked with clients in every area of clean energy in 2021. We also supported a number of innovative companies in the greentech space that are helping support the transition to a clean energy economy,” said Maura Farrell, Managing Director and co-leader of Kivvit’s energy working group, which convenes subject matter experts from across the firm to address the industry’s most pressing issues. “We are so proud to work in this industry during this most dynamic time.” “2021 was the year for colleges and universities to get their students back on campus after the turmoil of 2020. Higher education took the largest hit to their revenue model since the financial crisis. Through Kivvit’s crisis communications capabilities, reputation management insights, and an “audience first” approach to student enrollment, we worked with elite universities and access oriented colleges and universities to boost enrollment with innovative advertising and creative content to help them stand out from their peer institutions.” said Managing Director Kent Holland, who co-leads Kivvit’s higher education working group. Kivvit also achieved top rankings in several other categories, including Environment, Sustainability, and Greentech (#6); Sports (#6); Automotive and Transportation (#7); Industrial (#10); and Healthcare (#18). About Kivvit Kivvit is one of the largest and fastest-growing independent strategic communications and public affairs firms in the United States, with over 130 professionals across six offices in Boston, Chicago, Miami, New York, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C. Kivvit has earned over 60 awards and recognitions in the past 5 years, including Public Affairs of the Year (Reed Awards), Digital Agency of the Year (PRovoke SABRE North America), Most Innovative Agency (Bulldog Stars of PR Awards), and a Best Agency to Work For (PRovoke). Kivvit also leads O'Dwyer's national rankings of independent communications firms across multiple categories, including #1 for Non Profits, #2 for Energy, #3 for Corporate Social Responsibility, #3 for Real Estate, and #4 for Education. To learn more and see what we do, visit www.Kivvit.com and follow us @TeamKivvit. Contact Details Zach Silber +1 212-929-0669 zsilber@kivvit.com Company Website https://www.kivvit.com/

April 07, 2022 03:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time

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Decentralized MuskMelon Tokens to Embrace Meme Creators Community

MuskMelon

MuskMelon, the disruptive new addition to the world of NFTs (Non-Fungible Tokens) and Gaming, is launched with a promising solution for the meme creator’s community. MuskMelon allows the meme creators to spread their word, build a strong community and earn. The entire process of MuskMelon is decentralized and will help aspiring meme creators showcase their talent to the world. melonmusk is an already popular social media feed. To give the melonmusk social media and digital creators community avenues to earn, MuskMelon is launched. MuskMelon will redefine the world of melonmusk, bring out the truth, the good, the bad and the ugly, and modify the meme creation process for the meme creators by procuring them with monetary assets in real-time. MuskMelon ecosystem will also launch a series of melon based lazy games and provide play-to-earn opportunities. “The platform allows people to create their Melon avatars and even host them on the NFT marketplace for auction, bid, or sale. Melon is the native currency used to purchase NFTs, In-Game assets, and even contribute to the Ukraine Relief Fund,” said Neal Mathews, Project Advisor of MuskMelon. The MuskMelon project is planning a comprehensive penetrative strategy with a public sale of 10 billion Melons, of which 5 billion will be released initially at a launch price of $0.05 apiece. The sale is designed to start on Bitmart and XT shortly, and it is widely being considered one of the most exciting projects of its kind to watch out for this year. Binance Gaming NFT has a total of 16 listed projects with a total of $884 million in volume. The project lures the gaming community with an exciting storyline. MuskMelon, who is a Multibillionaire and Influencer, is currently on a rampage on the financial and emerging technology landscape. MuskMelon has made many people angry with his wavery mind, fickle attitude, and unrealistic plans. People from around are now seeking revenge on MuskMelon. MuskMelon has created mini melons and distributed himself amongst various universes. People have now picked up the Baton and are hunting MuskMelon across these universes (MiniGames). For more information, kindly visit the website https://muskmelon.org/ Contact Details MuskMelon hello@muskmelon.org

April 06, 2022 07:19 PM Eastern Daylight Time

Minuteman Press Franchise in Bath, England Moves to New Location, Lands Bath City FC Sponsorship

Minuteman Press International Inc

After 23 years in business and now entering their 24 th year, the long-time Minuteman Press franchise in Bath England has moved to a beautiful new location located on Pines Way Industrial Estate in central Bath. Since the move, Minuteman Press in Bath has nearly doubled production capacity and produced quicker turnaround times for their clients. In what has been a busy year for Minuteman Press in Bath, they have also landed a back of shirt sponsorship for Bath City FC. Throughout the 2021/2022 season, Minuteman Press in Bath has had their logo on player uniforms to increase their brand awareness and visibility. Managing Director David Ghent and Marketing Director Dave Dixon talk about the history of the business as well as what the future holds for Minuteman Press in Bath. What is the history of the business? Dave Dixon: “It all started in 1998 when our MD David Ghent had a vision to provide the best printing services in Bath. He saw a gap in the market for a city-centre location to offer on-site print and copying services. We’ve since outgrown our Walcot Street site and have developed into a commercial, print and signage service in our new facility at Pines Way.” How has the business grown and what are the keys to your success? David Ghent: “For us it’s always been about putting our customers first. We like to help them stretch their marketing budgets as far as possible. Sometimes it’s not about finding the cheapest option, it’s about the maximum return on investment. The success of our customer base is our success. We still have customers today that placed their first orders back in 1998!” What would you say have been the major changes to the printing industry over the past decade? Dave Dixon: “Speed and print enhancements! Sure, if you want a simple brochure to go through the door or get picked up with a load of other flyers that’s great, we can produce thousands of those and you’ll get a small percentage return rate. However, we find that once we add a spot of gloss, gold ink or foil it stands out from the crowd. We’ve also invested heavily over the years in the most up to date technology and most reliable kit to ensure that we can produce great results on time and quickly. After all you’ve seen it on your screen and you are keen to have it in your hand.” How do you set yourself apart from the competition especially online suppliers? David Ghent: “Online print is great if you want cheap bulk printing and you’re 100 percent sure that your artwork is designed well, you’re not too concerned about the final colours and you don’t need any advice or are not expecting a long term relationship with a local supplier. Most of our clients value business relationships and like to discuss their print job and how they might make it look as good as possible. Alongside that excellent level of customer service, we are also able to meet almost any deadline; most of our work is produced the same day on site here at Pines Way, with real people checking your artwork, colours and print quality. We are also a one stop shop. We will deal with your business forms, flyers and brochures, and we can also produce shop signage, vehicle graphics and exhibition displays. You really don’t need to go to many sources for your marketing materials. That’s how we differentiate ourselves.” How did you adapt over the past two years and diversify your offerings? Dave Dixon: “We very soon discovered the joy of floor and wall graphics! We did a little but of that pre-pandemic, but then we had to take it to another level. Our Large Format Studio Manager was in fact working hard during the first lockdown producing a catalogue with a full range of social distancing signage. We also had to test the materials to ensure that they were safe enough for installation on the ground – we really didn’t want people slipping on our floor graphics! We produced thousands of linear metres of floor and wall graphics. We continue to do so now, but for marketing purposes rather than safety.” Why did you decide to move to your new location and what does it mean for your clients and your future? David Ghent: “In reality, we outgrew Walcot Street and we really could not reach our full potential there. The new location represents a €1 million investment in the business. We have two of Xerox’s top end presses and we have added the full range of specialty colours to those, this includes white, fluorescent, gold, silver and clear toners, the range of colours we can really achieve is impressive. We’ve added short run foiling in house and of course our huge vehicle bay means that we can now do signwriting on cars and vans. Our signage team is expanding our offerings further. Interiors will be a big growth area for us including printed graphics on walls, floors, and windows. Window blinds are very popular at the moment and a really cost-effective way to keep your branding visible.” What makes you most proud as you reflect on the past 24 years? Dave Dixon: “We are proud of our level of customer retention. We work closely with our client base to ensure that they are always happy. We are also always happy to give back to our local community through supporting charities and clubs with free or heavy discounted pricing, as well as being proud to be a local business taking part in the civic life of our city.” What’s next for Minuteman Press in Bath? David Ghent: “We are in the right premises at last, so we now need to consolidate and plan for expansion. We need to continue strengthening our print and signage offerings and ensure that we are seen locally as Bath’s number one printer, as well as growing our online sales.” For more information on Minuteman Press in Bath, England, visit https://minutemanbath.co.uk. Learn more about Minuteman Press UK franchise opportunities at https://minutemanpressfranchise.co.uk. Contact Details Minuteman Press International Chris Biscuiti +1 631-249-1370 cbiscuiti@mpihq.com Company Website https://minutemanpressfranchise.com

April 06, 2022 10:10 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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Learn to Earn community, Qureos secures $3M funding round to accelerate 100M careers

Qureos

UAE-based EdTech and Future of Work marketplace Qureos has raised $3M million in its pre-seed round led by Dubai-based early-stage VC COTU Ventures and New York-based early-stage VC Colle Capital as it seeks to fast track growth and democratize “Learn to Earn” opportunities for talent globally. The round also saw participation from global and regional investors, including Globivest, Plutus21 Capital, Dubai Angel Investors, and AlZayani Venture Capital. Several angel investors including current and former leaders of Swvl, Boston Consulting Group, Moelis & Company, Careem, Cisco Systems, Koinz, Message Bird, Bain & Company, Hiperpool, ADNOC, QIA, and other notable individuals. Founded in August 2021 by Alexander Epure, Mehrad Yaghmai and Usama Nini, Queros began life as a passion project for the founders to accelerate careers by making mentorship more accessible. This passion project was validated when selected by the Dubai Future Accelerators to solve the skill gap in the transition from campus to the workplace and in between jobs. Qureos is building an experiential learning community to change how people connect, learn and work. Qureos is helping people from over 127 countries learn in-demand skills through cohort-based learning paths led by world-class industry experts that match the hiring demands from Qureos’ business partners. Qureos is solving the skill gap in the transition from campus to the workplace and those changing careers. Globally, there are 254 million Gen Z who have graduated and are still unemployed due to the skill gap, most notably in emerging markets where youth unemployment is above 36%. The job market is changing faster than school curriculums and emerging talent are not getting traditional job placements. Qureos is tapping into the $470B e-learning and future of work markets that are currently separated. “We believe that new learning models like Qureos, which combine cohort-based, synchronous education with community, are going to become more mainstream and disrupt traditional players. From our perspective, the energy and passion that the team exhibited from our initial conversations, to the traction demonstrated so early on, and the deep product vision, were all ingredients to driving our conviction in the business. We’re excited to be a part of this journey and seeing the team’s vision of upskilling talent become a reality. “ said Amir Farha - Founder and Managing Partner at COTU Ventures With instant applications on many job platforms today, hiring fatigue is becoming a burden on HR teams with 47% of candidates failing job interviews due to a lack of alignment to the company. By 2025, Millennials and Gen Z will make up 75% of the global workforce according to Deloitte. As a result, businesses are facing an increasing average cost of hiring of $4,129 per hire and an average time-to-hire of 42 days. By creating a learning community, Qureos allows growing businesses to tap into an on-demand workforce of talent who have been mentored to deliver a high quality of work. With Qureos, businesses are able to reduce their cost-to-hire by up to 79% and their time-to-hire by 36% through Qureos’ proprietary performance-based hiring framework. “Learning and hiring are disconnected and Qureos aims to leverage its unique position at the nexus of these two markets through an experiential learning community where emerging talent can learn from industry experts and gain experience through mentor-led hiring cohorts from businesses,” said Alexander Epure, Co-Founder and CEO at Qureos. “Qureos is going after a massive opportunity with the ultimate aim of creating an ecosystem that unlocks the potential of the human capital. There is a huge untapped potential amongst emerging talent which is not harnessed and it’s about time we create an inspirational story that brings together people who align with our mission” said the founders. With native network effects of the platform, Qureos has been able to achieve phenomenal organic growth of 25,000+ users, as well as attracting mentors from leading organizations including Google, Paypal, Amazon, Cisco, and more than 100 business partners globally. “Creators and industry experts can seamlessly monetize their knowledge, build an online presence and personal brand while giving back to the local and global community.“ said Tomas Panek - Digital Marketing at Qatar Airways. Victoria Grace, Founder and Managing Partner at Colle Capital said: “We see tremendous opportunity in Qureos’ mission to bridge knowledge gaps and upskill professionals through leveraging the extraordinary pathway with direct mentorship. Simultaneously this platform provides a fantastic opportunity for highly skilled individuals to directly monetize their knowledge base, compounded by distinct network effects, and for companies to access high quality and motivated pool of talent. It is also extremely gratifying to see the proliferation of entrepreneurial talent in the region directly stemming from the success of Swvl. It is clear to us at Colle Capital that the rising Swvl Mafia will be at the forefront of ushering in a new and exciting wave of innovation in the MENA region and beyond.“ In November 2021, Qureos announced its partnership with DP World, a Dubai-based multinational logistics provider, to digitize the Tumoohi program, an initiative to support the Emirati society and contribute to the UAE government’s efforts to enable Emirati youth. “I am excited to see Alex and Usama, Swvl alumni, and the rest of the founding team raise a highly successful and oversubscribed round and launch in multiple markets. From Swvl’s reliable and affordable transport to Qureos’ Learn to Earn model, the common mission is enhancing access to work and education opportunities and empowering livelihoods. I am also encouraged to see Victoria, the CEO of Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital, the SPAC Swvl is combing with, continue to invest in global players emerging out of the Middle East to scale internationally and access global pools of capital” said Youssef Salem, CFO of Swvl and Member of Board of Advisors of Qureos. Qureos plans to use this investment to build product-led operations and expand its remote-first team with a focus on hiring talent for their offices in the UAE, Pakistan and India. Its diverse team comes from 11 cities and 10 nationalities with experiences at Swvl, Cisco, Careem, EY, Daraz, HSBC and Aleph. About Qureos Qureos is a ‘learn to earn’ marketplace that makes it easy for emerging talent to learn in-demand skills from world-class industry experts through cohort-based learning paths led by world-class industry experts that match the hiring demand from Qureos’ business partners. About Investors COTU Ventures is a Dubai-based leading seed stage venture firm in the Middle East who partners with incredible founders at the beginning of their journey and accelerating their path to product-market fit and ensuring that they get access to the right capital and expertise. Colle Capital Partners is a global, opportunistic, early stage technology venture fund, based out of New York and founded by Victoria Grace who is also the founder of Queen’s Gambit Growth Capital which is leading the SPAC IPO of Swvl. Dubai Angel Investors is member-led Micro-VC made up of more than 100 like-minded angel investors and are passionate about entrepreneurs that have taken their ideas from concept to customer traction to scale with drive, energy, determination and ambition. Globivest, is a Beirut-based private investment firm with a primary focus on innovative and scalable early stage start-ups. Investments range across a spectrum of sectors and asset classes mainly in Europe and the USA. Plutus21 Capital, is a US-based multi-strategy investment firm focused on blockchain infrastructure investments. AlZayani Venture Capital, a portfolio company of AlZayani Investments and is focused on investing in innovative start-ups and disruptive technologies. Currently, it has investments in various companies in sectors such as Fintech, Retail, Food & Beverages, Tourism and EdTech. Contact Details Qureos Bilal Mahmood +44 7714 007257 b.mahmood@stockwoodtrategy.com Company Website https://www.qureos.com/

April 06, 2022 09:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time

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