Turns out you can sell just about anything in a vending machine, and entrepreneurs everywhere are cashing in on the craze. Live bait, art, socks, sushi, poetry and even pet roaches are all available at your convenience. The live crab vending machine in a subway station in Nanjing, China took a while to catch on [...]

Evolve Fitness owner and personal trainer Mathew Benvie is putting together a short office workout for Mingle readers. Every issue he will add another exercise to the routine. Get ready to turn your office into a personal gym. For this issue: Working those obliques! Lie on a mat on your right side. Support your bodyweight [...]

Competition is essential in every industry as it provides clients with more alternatives and encourages innovation. While many of us would rather not always be competing, it’s a reality that we must accept and work with in a way that is healthy and respectful. I was told early in my career by a salesperson that [...]

Now that the festivities are over and we are gearing for the start of a new business year, we get to put away our classy attire for another year. Or do we? In business today, I see people turning to what I think of as the “American politics” way of doing business- negative selling. Building [...]

There are many new cloud-based service providers popping up on the business horizon these days, be that for office phone, mobile or computer services. Given the advent of new technology and the maturity of the internet cloud, these providers are challenging old ways of doing business. Typically, new providers are more flexible and can offer [...]

It’s a new year, and with it comes new strategies, new technologies, and inevitably…new competitions. Gone are the days when you stay on your side of town and the competition stays on the other. The Internet has eliminated sides and created one giant sandbox in which everyone has to play together. Instead of seeing this [...]

Non-solicitation agreements Years ago I worked for the world’s leading manufacturer and marketer of tissue, packaging, paper, pulp, and building products. There were more than 40,000 employees. Each employee had a definitive job and rarely did anyone step outside their job descriptions. Small and medium-sized businesses, by contrast, are lean. Employees do many jobs, and [...]

Think about training. It is just before Christmas when I meet Randy Ansems, owner of Think Business Training, at the training facility in Burnside Industrial Park, Dartmouth. There are no creatures stirring as I walk in the front door; the place is- indeed- quiet as a mouse. But as we tour the classrooms and meeting [...]