Latest news with #NathanGarnett
BBC News
7 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Guinness to speed up verification of record Rayleigh artichoke
Judges from Guinness World Records (GWR) have fast-tracked the process to get an artichoke measured after concerns the towering plant might not last the Garnett, 49, says his 3.22 metre-tall (10.56 ft) sensation has turned the heads of many who pass his home in Rayleigh, Essex, but he had initially joined a three-month queue for an official adjudicator editor-in-chief at GWR, Craig Glenday, pressed the button to "fast track" his application live on BBC Essex, reducing the waiting time to two weeks."He'll get an email now that will say 'here's what you need to provide to us'. He needs a qualified person to say that it's actually an artichoke," Mr Glenday said. Mr Glenday said he knew the vegetable-growing community well."I understand all the little tricks they can play and it's very competitive and people sabotaging their vegetables."It's a really interesting, slightly cut-throat world and so we have to be very careful." 'A thousand a week' He said the process was essential because of scandals like "Dug" in New Zealand, which was touted to be the world's largest potato, until DNA testing found it to be a gourd."There's a few scandals with that topic (like) people filling crevices with mud to make the plants heavier."He added that it was common for a claim like Mr Garnett's to get lost in the "huge tsunami" of applications every year."We get about a thousand a week coming through the system," he if verified, he said this particular plant was "definitely" a record, with the current record being 2.5 metres (8.2 ft). Artichokes are part of the thistle family, and according to the Royal Horticultural Society, can typically grow to between 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) to 2.5 metres (8.2 ft). Nathan Garnett said his neighbours were very impressed."A few people have seen me measuring it, they've raised eyebrows and you get the odd glance. The postman loves it, he's commented on it," he said."We also have had people who are less of a fan. We had a councillor last year who called it a monstrosity."He didn't know who he was talking to, he happened to be talking to my mother-in-law."(They) didn't win my vote in the election." Mr Garnett said he planted the artichoke in Billericay more than five years ago, but "it didn't do much"."Last year it took off and it got to maybe eight, nine feet and then this year's just gone another level."I've been looking into it a little bit it might be to do with the fact we've had two mild winters."I don't even water it... it's a self-sustaining artichoke, it needs very little TLC."I put a bit of horse manure on it, that's it."(Although) I've had to tie it up a little bit in the past, because it leans." Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Americans Eye Secondhand Goods to Get Around Tariff-Driven Price Hikes
Operators of secondhand marketplaces for items ranging from footwear to toys and home necessities have said they expect tariff-triggered price anxiety to boost interest in resold goods. The U.S. secondhand market generated about $53 billion in 2023 revenue, according to Capital One. OfferUp, which has more than 40 million users in the U.S., said searches for smartphones, appliances, tech gadgets and electric bikes surged in wary of the effect tariffs could have on their wallets are shifting their gaze toward secondhand goods. Operators of secondhand marketplaces for items ranging from footwear to toys and home necessities have said they expect tariff-triggered price anxiety to boost interest in resold goods. Secondhand marketplace OfferUp has lately seen searches for some products—including Apple (AAPL) AirPods, washer/dryers, and couches—rise to 10 times their typical levels, executives told Investopedia. The data 'makes it clear that something is happening,' said OfferUp Chief Business Officer Nathan Garnett. 'We're probably at the very leading edge of seeing actual impact on the resale marketplace from these tariffs and consumers starting to search for alternative ways of finding things that they want.' The U.S. secondhand market generated about $53 billion in 2023 revenue, according to Capital One; approximately one-third of the clothing purchased in the U.S. over the past year was secondhand. A majority of those polled earlier this year by online thrift and consignment platform ThredUp were concerned that trade policies would make apparel more expensive, with most saying they would seek out options—such as secondhand goods—to mitigate rising clothing prices. 'More consumers are turning to secondhand as a way of hedging against price rises and potential product shortages,' said Neil Saunders, retail analyst and managing director at GlobalData Retail. 'As we move into key retail occasions like back to school and the holiday celebrations beyond, secondhand will likely surge in popularity.' OfferUp, which has more than 40 million users in the U.S., said searches for smartphones, appliances, tech gadgets and electric bikes surged in May. The most heavily searched recent product category on the platform is strollers; Baby products are especially vulnerable to tariffs, as a majority of infant merchandise sold in the U.S. is imported, primarily from China. Awareness of shortages or rising prices–or even just the possibility of them–tends to juice interest in some product categories, according to Garnett. That may explain a rise in searches for iPhones on OfferUp, with President Donald Trump recently raising the specter of tariffs on smartphones made outside the U.S. More than 40% of the goods sold on eBay (EBAY) are now used or refurbished, which CFO Steve Priest on an April conference call, a transcript of which was made available by AlphaSense, called a 'competitive advantage and a strength.' 'Consumers are continuing to look for value in this environment,' said Priest. Read the original article on Investopedia Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
