Latest news with #WestminsterKennelClub
The Star
21-07-2025
- Business
- The Star
How do you brag in Silicon Valley? By declaring yourself 'best of breed'.
Companies use the term 'best of breed' to frame themselves as the slayers of big players, with a niche product that appeals to the savvy customer. — JACKSON GIBBS/The New York Times In February, a Giant Schnauzer known as Monty beat out more than 2,500 other dogs to win the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, the first Giant Schnauzer to win. Not only was he best in breed, he was also best in show. For a certain slice of tech startup, cultivating a reputation as the 'best of breed' – a term that's been around for at least a couple of decades – is the goal. Such companies, in their early days, focus on dominating a niche. Think: Zoom, Dropbox, Slack and other product leaders that created software meant to be used alongside other specialized applications. These companies exist in contrast to the Googles and Microsofts and Adobes of the world, which sell product bundles. Best-of-breed companies often make bold attempts to grab market share from a dominant incumbent in an established industry, according to Andy Wu, an associate professor at Harvard Business School who focuses on strategy. Positioning oneself as best of breed, he explained, is 'an entry strategy' that can serve startups. But because it can be tough for such focused companies to sustain long-term growth, the marker is almost by definition temporary. Eventually, if a company integrates with a larger platform, or matures into a sprawling software firm, it will lose its best-of-breed bragging rights. (That happened with Slack, for example, which was acquired by Salesforce in 2021.) Declaring oneself best of breed is a boast – a way for companies to frame themselves as the slayers of big players, with a niche product that appeals to a certain type of savvy customer. Such firms are often creative about how they attract and expand their business. While enterprise companies generally pitch their wares to chief technology officers and other executives with the power to buy expensive packages, best-of-breed companies employ savvy marketing techniques to get in with the workers, partly by making their tools easy to find and download. 'They are selling by first appealing to front-line employees, who then put pressure on an organization,' Wu said. If the people demand a cool new work app they've found, for example, the chief technology officer might give them that app – even if they could do fine with tools from an existing, perhaps less glamorous, enterprise vendor. Best-of-breed companies generally offer an excellent user experience, but sometimes at the expense of excellent security, Wu said. Brand-new startups may be more inclined to play fast and loose with things like password security and authentication as they try to make their products frictionless. The approach can delight users but worry executives. Chief technology officers, especially at more traditional companies, prioritize security, Wu said. Executives also embrace ease of buying. And negotiating one big contract with an enterprise software firm can be less taxing than arranging for a bespoke suite of apps from a slew of different firms. 'Any large enterprise,' Wu added, 'has a culture of avoiding getting in trouble.' Choosing established, unflashy vendors is one tried-and-true way to avoid trouble. Those crowned (or self-appointed) as best of breed, whether in the world of applications or dog shows, are 'very good at narrowly doing one thing,' Wu said, which can work well in a certain context. 'But if you need a general dog that can survive anything in the wild,' he added, a variety of different strengths can help. – ©2025 The New York Times Company This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
New York Times
19-07-2025
- Business
- New York Times
How Do You Brag in Silicon Valley? By Declaring Yourself ‘Best of Breed.'
In February, a Giant Schnauzer known as Monty beat out more than 2,500 other dogs to win the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, the first Giant Schnauzer to win. Not only was he best in breed, he was also best in show. For a certain slice of tech start-up, cultivating a reputation as the 'best of breed' — a term that's been around for at least a couple of decades — is the goal. Such companies, in their early days, focus on dominating a niche. Think: Zoom, Dropbox, Slack and other product leaders that created software meant to be used alongside other specialized applications. These companies exist in contrast to the Googles and Microsofts and Adobes of the world, which sell product bundles. How it's pronounced Best-of-breed companies often make bold attempts to grab market share from a dominant incumbent in an established industry, according to Andy Wu, an associate professor at Harvard Business School who focuses on strategy. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CTV News
08-07-2025
- General
- CTV News
PETA sues American Kennel Club over standards for French bulldogs, other breeds
French bulldogs compete in breed group judging during the 148th Westminster Kennel Club Dog show, May 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson) NEW YORK — The animal rights group PETA sued Tuesday to try to force the American Kennel Club to abandon the standards it backs for hyper-popular French bulldogs and some other breeds, contending that the influential club is promoting unhealthy physical features. The lawsuit turns up the heat around one of the biggest flashpoints in dogdom: the attributes that have been honed to define some breeds, including the Frenchie, which the AKC ranks as the United States' most popular breed. 'The AKC's official breed standards for the bulldog, French bulldog, pug, dachshund and Chinese shar-pei provide blueprints for the breeding of deformed, unhealthy dogs,' PETA says in the suit. The AKC said it's committed to protecting 'the health, heritage and well-being of purebred dogs' and that responsibly bred dogs that conform to the standards are healthy. 'We categorically reject PETA's mischaracterizations of specific breed standards and their assertion that these standards create unhealthy dogs,' the club said in a statement, adding that dog health and welfare is 'paramount and at the core of our mission.' Founded in 1884, the New York-based AKC is a nonprofit that acts like a league for many canine competitions and runs the United States' oldest dog registry, where owners may choose to document their dogs' existence and accomplishments. Mixed-breed dogs and rescues can be registered as 'canine partners' and compete in some sports, but the club's history is closely tied to fanciers who cultivate and show purebreds. Each breed has its own club that sets the 'standard,' or ideal characteristics, for the dogs. The AKC reviews, approves and promulgates them. PETA, also called People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, describes itself as an animal liberation organization. Its advocacy includes boycotts and litigation. Its supporters are known for staging sometimes disruptive protests in settings including a papal audience, a Starbucks and sporting events such as the Westminster Kennel Club dog show. The Norfolk, Virginia-based nonprofit opposes dog breeding in general and has clashed for years with the AKC. Peppered with photos and diagrams, PETA's new lawsuit runs through health problems that can beset short-legged, long-backed dachshunds ('the animal equivalent of a poorly designed bridge,' in PETA's view) and shar-peis, which can have spates of fever and inflammation known as 'shar-pei autoinflammatory disease.' The complaint points to pugs' risk of injuries to their marbly eyes and susceptibility to breathing problems and overheating because of their flat faces. The suit zeros in on those and other parts of bulldogs and Frenchies, including the big heads that often prompt caesarian births. The various problems that PETA cites don't afflict all dogs of these breeds, and some do agility, dock diving and other sports. But the conditions can be serious for those that have them. In the U.K. — where research involving about 24,600 dogs suggested that Frenchies have 'very different, and largely much poorer' health than do other canines — the British Veterinary Association campaigns against advertisements that feature flat-faced breeds. The Netherlands has prohibited breeding very short-snouted dogs. Norway's Supreme Court, however, declined to block the breeding of English bulldogs — but upheld a lower court's prohibition on breeding cavalier King Charles spaniels, citing a different set of health concerns. The AKC says the breed standards it approves reflect 'decades of collaboration with veterinary experts and breeders.' Some breed clubs donate to and participate in dog health research, and the AKC says it has given over US$40 million since 1995 to its canine health research charity. Jennifer Peltz, The Associated Press
San Francisco Chronicle
20-05-2025
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
Westminster Kennel Club sets plans for its 150th dog show next year
NEW YORK (AP) — It's still just 21 in dog years. But the Westminster Kennel Club is gearing up for its 150th annual dog show next year and announced plans Tuesday for the milestone event, expected to draw about 3,000 champion dogs. It's slated to start Jan. 31 with agility and other canine sports, including the relay-race-style flyball tournament introduced last year, at the Javits Center convention venue in Manhattan. The traditional breed-by-breed judging happens Feb. 2 and 3, with first-round competition during the days at the Javits Center. The show moves in the evenings to nearby Madison Square Garden. U.S. dogdom's most storied best in show trophy will be awarded late on Feb. 3 by David Fitzpatrick, who handled two of his Pekingese to Westminster wins in 2012 and 2021. The Westminster show began in 1877 and has been held every year since. In 2020, it happened about a month before COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. New York shutdowns began soon after. The show regularly draws protests from animal welfare activists who consider dog breeding wrongheaded and insensitive to shelter animals that need homes. Westminster says it celebrates all dogs while promoting the preservation of 'purpose-bred' canines, with their varying traits, capabilities and histories.
Hamilton Spectator
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
Westminster Kennel Club sets plans for its 150th dog show next year
NEW YORK (AP) — It's still just 21 in dog years. But the Westminster Kennel Club is gearing up for its 150th annual dog show next year and announced plans Tuesday for the milestone event, expected to draw about 3,000 champion dogs. It's slated to start Jan. 31 with agility and other canine sports, including the relay-race-style flyball tournament introduced last year, at the Javits Center convention venue in Manhattan. The traditional breed-by-breed judging happens Feb. 2 and 3, with first-round competition during the days at the Javits Center. The show moves in the evenings to nearby Madison Square Garden. U.S. dogdom's most storied best in show trophy will be awarded late on Feb. 3 by David Fitzpatrick, who handled two of his Pekingese to Westminster wins in 2012 and 2021 . The Westminster show began in 1877 and has been held every year since. In 2020, it happened about a month before COVID-19 was declared a pandemic . New York shutdowns began soon after. The show regularly draws protests from animal welfare activists who consider dog breeding wrongheaded and insensitive to shelter animals that need homes. Westminster says it celebrates all dogs while promoting the preservation of 'purpose-bred' canines, with their varying traits, capabilities and histories.
