Latest news with #onlinebusiness
Globe and Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Should You Forget Amazon? Why These Unstoppable Stocks Are Better Buys
There's no denying it. Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) has been one of the market's most rewarding stocks for nearly the past three decades, rallying more than 270,000% since its 1997 initial public offering. This thrilling performance is a big reason so many investors are betting on the company now -- they're hoping for more of the same magic. And maybe they'll get it. As the old cliché reminds investors, though, nothing lasts forever. Yesterday's winners aren't necessarily tomorrow's. With that as the backdrop, here's a closer look at three unstoppable names other than Amazon that you might want to consider adding to your portfolio. 1. Shopify It's not exactly a coincidence that one of the stocks worth considering besides Amazon is the un-Amazon, or anti-Amazon. That's Shopify (NASDAQ: SHOP). Simply put, Shopify helps brands establish and manage their own e-commerce presence. When the worldwide web was still relatively young and online shopping was still new, companies were content to use Amazon's high-traffic website as a sales platform. Things changed, though. As time marched on and its business matured, became crowded and competitive (including with Amazon itself). Sellers eventually figured out they'd be better served by their own online store. That's what Shopify facilitates. And it's doing more and more of it. Although the company doesn't disclose its customer count any longer, somewhere on the order of 5 million stores sold a confirmed $292.3 billion worth of goods and services last year, translating to $8.9 billion worth of revenue and $1.1 billion in net income for Shopify itself. Those figures are up 24%, 26%, and a swing from a loss of $1.4 billion (respectively) year over year, extending a long-standing growth streak. Analysts expect a similar growth rate for at least the next several years, too. There's actually an even longer growth runway ahead of Shopify, however. See, for as big as the e-commerce industry has become, the U.S. Census Bureau reports that only about 16% of domestic retail spending is done online. The rest is still done in-store. While there's some consumer spending that will only ever be made in person, that's a lot of potential business to win. The shift away from third-party platforms to home-grown e-commerce stores only bolsters Shopify's potential upside. 2. Rocket Lab The world's been sending satellites into orbit since the late 1950s, and even putting people on the moon as of the 1960s. Space flight has become so commonplace, in fact, that many people no longer think much of it. The next era of rocketry is likely to rekindle this lost excitement, though, not so much because it will look different, but because it will happen so much more often and will serve so much more purpose. It will also be more cost-effective, largely because the development of the newer rocketry technology has been privatized. Rocket Lab USA (NASDAQ: RKLB) is one of these for-profit rocket companies. As of the latest count, Rocket Lab made 64 successful launches of its reusable Electron rocket, deploying a total of 225 fairly small satellites. This proven solution is going to remain in demand indefinitely, as small orbital satellites become more and more important to telecommunications service providers. Indeed, there are more than 40 satellites in Rocket Lab's current launch backlog. But the company isn't stopping there. It's thinking bigger. Literally. Its Neutron rocket is a medium-lift launch vehicle capable of putting up to 1,500 kilograms worth of payload en route to Mars or Venus, making it at least a partial competitor to SpaceX's Falcon. Using Rocket Lab's rocket to get equipment and personnel headed to the moon, of course, will be easy by comparison. Rocket Lab USA isn't profitable yet, and probably won't be at any point in the immediate future. Be patient, though. Goldman Sachs expects the global satellite market to grow sevenfold between now and 2035, jibing with Global Market Insights' forecast for average annualized growth of 14.6% through 2034 for worldwide commercial space launch business. 3. Carvana Finally, add used car dealer chain Carvana (NYSE: CVNA) to your list of unstoppable stocks that have become better bets than Amazon. You know the company. Although it's not the first or only chain of used car dealerships, it certainly seems like the biggest and best known. And by some measures it is. For the record, however, Carvana itself estimates it only controls about 1% of the United States' highly fragmented used car business. That's not an indictment of its marketability, though. That tiny number mostly underscores the potential growth awaiting an enterprising outfit with the wherewithal to consolidate some of this industry with clever marketing and the smart use of technology. That's Carvana, of course -- not that the company needs any serious help in the growth department. Yes, higher import tariffs on new cars and automobile parts ultimately works in favor of the used car market. Carvana doesn't exactly need the newly raised tariffs to remain in place to thrive, however. Raw inflation was doing plenty to help this company prior to President Donald Trump taking office. The company's 2024 top line of $13.7 billion was up 27% from 2023's lull, bouncing back from the swoon following its post-pandemic sales surge. Analysts are calling for similar growth at least through 2027. And, with Standard & Poor's Global Mobility reporting the age of the average car on U.S. roads now at 12.8 years, the outlook makes sense -- a swell of car owners are soon going to be forced into making these purchases, before repairs and maintenance of their current cars become costlier than they're worth. It's arguably the riskiest of the three stocks in question here just because its big run-up from March's low has pushed it beyond analysts' consensus target of just over $300. It wouldn't be crazy to wait for at least a small pullback. Just don't get stingy. The bigger-picture backstory here is a firmly bullish one. Should you invest $1,000 in Shopify right now? Before you buy stock in Shopify, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Shopify wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $651,049!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $828,224!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor 's total average return is979% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to171%for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. James Brumley has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon, Goldman Sachs Group, Rocket Lab USA, and Shopify. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
As an influencer, I invited followers into my life. Then a disturbing incident made me stop
When I started 'Meet You at the Barre', my online barre and strength platform, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I didn't have a microphone or a tripod. It was lockdown and I was home-schooling four children with a husband working full time. What I did have, however, was a gut feeling that midlife women deserved something better than the typical, punishment-heavy fitness content we're constantly bombarded with. I was 42 years old, I'd just completed a course that qualified me to teach barre, a form of exercise using the ballet barre, and I kept thinking: what if I could build something that actually works for women like me? What I didn't realise, though, when my classes were picked up in an article about the best lockdown workouts and I started to get hundreds of people joining my workouts, is that an online business is a double-edged sword. Success is rooted in you – your voice, your home, your energy – and when you're growing an account, particularly in the early days, you feel pressure to share more and more of your life. Instagram is a beast that constantly needs feeding. At first, I tried to meet that pressure. There's something uniquely complicated about being a woman on social media – especially when you're trying to be 'relatable'. People start to feel like they know you. And in many ways, that's the point. I built my platform on honesty, warmth and realness – I didn't want some perfectly curated, robot-fitness influencer vibe. But sometimes, people confuse access with intimacy. And that's when things get uncomfortable. I've had people message to let me know they think I've gained weight. How generous. Others have told me they don't like my outfit or that I'm looking tired. Shrugging off these kinds of remarks gets easier with time. But then there are the comments that make you pause. Such as the woman who messaged to say she'd spotted a logo on my child's school jumper and now knew where they go to school. Or the woman who recognised the hotel I was staying in from a photo and messaged, 'I live nearby – want to meet for a drink?' It was meant kindly, I'm sure. But it made me realise that by simply living my life online, I'd inadvertently given away more than I had intended. I feel for Alexandra Saper, the Instagram blogger who was followed to Bali by a British man with a rope in his suitcase. He'd been harassing her for almost a year with emails and video messages: 'You're never getting rid of me,' he told her. I've never experienced anything serious, thank goodness, but I've had to block people – especially men. When I was doing live workouts during lockdown, there was one guy, Charles, who showed up to every class with ridiculous comments. Thankfully, my followers had a great time taking the mickey out of him, but still – it was draining. And some men are persistent. They'll make a second or third account to keep watching you. That said, I think the majority of them steer clear – probably because what I do is clearly not aimed at them. The only time I've ever pulled down a reel was a few years ago. It was a funny, chaotic snapshot of surviving the summer holidays with four young kids. I showed more of my personal life in that video than usual – my house, my children, the reality of daily life. Most people laughed and related, but a few came at me hard with judgments about my parenting, my privilege, even the layout of my kitchen. People are, of course, entitled to their opinions – but if you don't like what you're seeing, there's an unfollow button. I wish they wouldn't use their keyboards like a weapon. That said, the community I've built gives me a great amount of joy. Today, I have more than 1,000 monthly members worldwide, almost 30,000 Instagram followers and a brilliant, loyal community of midlife women who want to move for joy, not my dog ran away, one woman – a follower with a tracker dog – drove three counties to help me find him. I still can't believe that happened. And the number of DMs I get from people checking in when I've gone quiet for a few days – it's astonishing and humbling. Over time, I've made conscious changes, though. I don't share where I am until I've left. My teenagers want nothing to do with my feed – which is fair. And I'm a lot more careful now about what I show and whom I show. This isn't out of fear – I'm not hiding behind the sofa – but it's awareness. You start noticing where the line is once someone's crossed it. I'm lucky I haven't experienced the full trolling storm that some of my peers deal with. But I've seen how comfortable people feel commenting on your face, your body, your choices – especially as a woman over 40. I haven't had any work done, but I've had messages comparing my face from old videos to now. Others slide in saying things such as, 'Your eyes look really puffy – are you OK?' It's framed as concern, but it's invasive. There's this weird notion that once you've put yourself online, you've made yourself public property – and this idea seems to grow with your follower count. I have friends with much bigger accounts than mine who get relentlessly targeted. It's usually jealousy disguised as 'constructive feedback'. These are women doing creative, brave work – and getting penalised for daring to take up space. Still, there's no part of me that wants to walk away. I've built something I'm deeply proud of – not just a business but a space where women feel seen, supported and reminded that they matter in midlife. We move together. We laugh. We cheer each other on. It's not just about the workouts – it's about being allowed to take up space and to do it unapologetically. As told to Anna Tyzack Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
As an influencer, I invited followers into my life. Then a disturbing incident made me stop
When I started 'Meet You at the Barre', my online barre and strength platform, I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I didn't have a microphone or a tripod. It was lockdown and I was home-schooling four children with a husband working full time. What I did have, however, was a gut feeling that midlife women deserved something better than the typical, punishment-heavy fitness content we're constantly bombarded with. I was 42 years old, I'd just completed a course that qualified me to teach barre, a form of exercise using the ballet barre, and I kept thinking: what if I could build something that actually works for women like me? What I didn't realise, though, when my classes were picked up in an article about the best lockdown workouts and I started to get hundreds of people joining my workouts, is that an online business is a double-edged sword. Success is rooted in you – your voice, your home, your energy – and when you're growing an account, particularly in the early days, you feel pressure to share more and more of your life. Instagram is a beast that constantly needs feeding. At first, I tried to meet that pressure. There's something uniquely complicated about being a woman on social media – especially when you're trying to be 'relatable'. People start to feel like they know you. And in many ways, that's the point. I built my platform on honesty, warmth and realness – I didn't want some perfectly curated, robot-fitness influencer vibe. But sometimes, people confuse access with intimacy. And that's when things get uncomfortable. I've had people message to let me know they think I've gained weight. How generous. Others have told me they don't like my outfit or that I'm looking tired. Shrugging off these kinds of remarks gets easier with time. But then there are the comments that make you pause. Such as the woman who messaged to say she'd spotted a logo on my child's school jumper and now knew where they go to school. Or the woman who recognised the hotel I was staying in from a photo and messaged, 'I live nearby – want to meet for a drink?' It was meant kindly, I'm sure. But it made me realise that by simply living my life online, I'd inadvertently given away more than I had intended. I feel for Alexandra Saper, the Instagram blogger who was followed to Bali by a British man with a rope in his suitcase. He'd been harassing her for almost a year with emails and video messages: 'You're never getting rid of me,' he told her. I've never experienced anything serious, thank goodness, but I've had to block people – especially men. When I was doing live workouts during lockdown, there was one guy, Charles, who showed up to every class with ridiculous comments. Thankfully, my followers had a great time taking the mickey out of him, but still – it was draining. And some men are persistent. They'll make a second or third account to keep watching you. That said, I think the majority of them steer clear – probably because what I do is clearly not aimed at them. The only time I've ever pulled down a reel was a few years ago. It was a funny, chaotic snapshot of surviving the summer holidays with four young kids. I showed more of my personal life in that video than usual – my house, my children, the reality of daily life. Most people laughed and related, but a few came at me hard with judgments about my parenting, my privilege, even the layout of my kitchen. People are, of course, entitled to their opinions – but if you don't like what you're seeing, there's an unfollow button. I wish they wouldn't use their keyboards like a weapon. That said, the community I've built gives me a great amount of joy. Today, I have more than 1,000 monthly members worldwide, almost 30,000 Instagram followers and a brilliant, loyal community of midlife women who want to move for joy, not guilt. When my dog ran away, one woman – a follower with a tracker dog – drove three counties to help me find him. I still can't believe that happened. And the number of DMs I get from people checking in when I've gone quiet for a few days – it's astonishing and humbling. Over time, I've made conscious changes, though. I don't share where I am until I've left. My teenagers want nothing to do with my feed – which is fair. And I'm a lot more careful now about what I show and whom I show. This isn't out of fear – I'm not hiding behind the sofa – but it's awareness. You start noticing where the line is once someone's crossed it. I'm lucky I haven't experienced the full trolling storm that some of my peers deal with. But I've seen how comfortable people feel commenting on your face, your body, your choices – especially as a woman over 40. I haven't had any work done, but I've had messages comparing my face from old videos to now. Others slide in saying things such as, 'Your eyes look really puffy – are you OK?' It's framed as concern, but it's invasive. There's this weird notion that once you've put yourself online, you've made yourself public property – and this idea seems to grow with your follower count. I have friends with much bigger accounts than mine who get relentlessly targeted. It's usually jealousy disguised as 'constructive feedback'. These are women doing creative, brave work – and getting penalised for daring to take up space. Still, there's no part of me that wants to walk away. I've built something I'm deeply proud of – not just a business but a space where women feel seen, supported and reminded that they matter in midlife. We move together. We laugh. We cheer each other on. It's not just about the workouts – it's about being allowed to take up space and to do it unapologetically.
National Post
24-05-2025
- Business
- National Post
Carney's plan for digital government could find savings, but just as many headaches
OTTAWA — The federal government says its new online system for collecting import duties is a step forward for business because it streamlines the entire process. Article content Article content But for Marsha Sikma, a flower farmer in southwestern Ontario who imports thousands of dollars' worth of peony bulbs every year, the Canada Border Services Agency's new system has so far mostly just streamlined her frustration. Article content Sikma, owner of MGS Florals Inc., about 25 kilometres south of Woodstock, Ont., says the government's old, mostly paper-based system seemed to work fine, with her import broker taking care of most of the red tape. The new online system, CBSA's Assessment and Revenue Management (CARM) has left her trying to sort through a 10-page memo in her new portal and an import tax bill of $2,494.27. Article content Article content These are headaches you don't need when you're trying to run a 17-acre farm and managing a seasonal staff of up to 16. The most frustrating part, she says, was trying to get through to somebody on the phone without the system hanging up. Article content 'It just seems very difficult to get through to the right person,' said Sikma. 'As a small business, we don't have time to deal with that type of thing.' Article content Despite those apparent frustrations, that type of online thing is exactly what all levels of government should be doing more of, technology industry officials and digital government advocates say. Investments in electronic government, artificial intelligence (AI) and other digital services can improve the efficiency and accessibility of everything from disaster response and fraud detection to voting and obtaining licences, permits and benefits, they say. Article content Article content But better services are only part of it. More digital should also mean savings for taxpayers at all levels of government, as Prime Minister Mark Carney argued during the election. Article content Article content On Wednesday, Carney released a single mandate letter for all his ministers and specifically mentioned using AI 'at scale' to help make the government more efficient. Article content 'Government itself must become much more productive by deploying AI at scale, by focusing on results over spending, and by using scarce tax dollars to catalyze multiples of private investment,' the letter reads. Article content Viet Vu, the manager of economic research at the Dais, a Toronto-based think tank within Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU), said investments in digital services could save Ottawa between 10 and 15 per cent — or between about $50 billion and $75 billion a year — on all federal government's expenses. Provincial and municipal governments could also reap a windfall if the digital investments are savvy.
The Guardian
21-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
M&S shoppers: what impact has the cyber-attack had on you?
The UK's biggest clothing retailer, Marks & Spencer, said it expects disruption to its online business to continue into July. Orders via its website have been stopped and some deliveries to its online food partner, Ocado, have also been affected. The company has admitted that some personal information relating to thousands of customers including names, addresses, dates of birth and order histories – was taken in the cyber-attack. The retailer has been trying to recover for a month since its IT systems were hit over the Easter weekend. We'd like to hear what impact the cyber-attack has had on you. Has it affected your shopping habits? We're also interested in hearing from those whose personal information was taken in the attack and whether they have been targeted by hackers themselves. You can tell us how the cyber-attack has affected you and your personal information by filling in the form below, or messaging us. Please include as much detail as possible Please include as much detail as possible Please include as much detail as possible Please note, the maximum file size is 5.7 MB. Your contact details are helpful so we can contact you for more information. They will only be seen by the Guardian. Your contact details are helpful so we can contact you for more information. They will only be seen by the Guardian. If you include other people's names please ask them first. Contact us on WhatsApp or Signal at +447766780300. For more information, please see our guidance on contacting us via WhatsApp, For true anonymity please use our SecureDrop service instead. If you're having trouble using the form click here. Read terms of service here and privacy policy here.
