How are you, and how did your business journey start?

I am doing great! Currently working remotely from Portugal and appreciating the opportunity to be here.. 10 years ago I purchased my first website on flippa.com which I sold 5 years later for six figures. Been building and selling websites ever since.

You created a home loan application ROSHI; how did its idea come about?

I was considering buying a property during the pandemic but got extremely frustrated with existing solutions. During my home buying journey I experienced a complete lack of personalisation (published rates which I enquired for were no longer available or I simple didn’t qualify) finding suitable mortgage options took me weeks if not month of research.

You have 20 seconds to sell ROSHI to a potential customer. What’s your pitch?

Imagine a platform that provides you with access to all mortgage solutions available to you considering your very own financial circumstances (basically all the ones you will get approved for) directly in one dashboard, accessible from your phone or desktop. Absolutely no more running from bank to bank or getting harassed on the phone.

What is your advice to young buyers in Singapore looking to get their first home?

Doing your own research and sourcing offers from multiple providers is still the best way to not miss out on the best available rates. A platform like ROSHI can help borrowers do the leg work, they can even chat with loan managers directly on the platform to fast track the application process.

Finally, what piece of advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs that you wished you had when you were younger?

Embrace business failures because with the right attitude and a willingness to learn from them, success will usually follow.

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Twitter has denied these accounts verification status without explanation, even though most of their counterparts are verified. It’s unknown if Twitter will rectify this or make a new form for publications themselves that will let them prove their standards. In some ways, this may be a way to control which publications get attention or which Twitter feels do not have the funding to be verified, even though their journalistic standards are higher. The reason is simply unclear. Clash and Our Culture, both have coverage on the internet, and both have stated that they submitted valid documentation that gives zero reasons for Twitter not to verify.

Will Twitter verify these profiles?

The post Twitter Is Refusing To Verify These Publications appeared first on Financial Mark.

What do customer reviews say about Aviva Insurance?

Aviva currently holds over 10,000 reviews on their Trustpilot profile with a rating of 4.6, a very respectful rating for an insurance company. However, 17% of those reviews are bad, whilst 71% are excellent.

One of the positive reviews by a customer (verified) said: “Very pleased with the ease of insuring with Aviva. If in the unfortunate event I have to claim on the insurance, I hope that I will be able to provide a 5-star rating at that time.” 

On the other hand, a negative review by a customer named Oliver said: “We came home to find a leak from our bathroom to our kitchen today, which has resulted in damage to the ceiling and electrical lights. I contacted Aviva to be told that they will only cover damage to the ceiling and not the callout fee or work needed by a plumber. Excess for the ceiling is £450, which we were never notified of. I had tried to make a claim a few years ago for damage in bedroom by water issue from the roof, to be told this was not covered, even though it’s water damage. It seems like they will try to avoid paying out at any cost, please check before you buy. Should be called avoida not Aviva”

What type of insurance does Aviva offer?

Aviva has a vast range of insurance products. These include but are not limited to:

• Car insurance
• Van insurance
• Learner car insurance
• Home insurance
• Heating and boiler cover
• Landlords insurance
• Life insurance
• Travel insurance
• Pet insurance
• Business insurance

What investment products does Aviva offer?

Luckily for those looking to save some money for their retirement Aviva offers a few solid choices that are pretty appealing. Aviva does offer a pension plan which allows you to pay one single lump into your pension — at any time. Whilst also allowing you to put your hard-earned money into investments of your choice.

Aviva also offers Aviva stocks & shares ISA. To use this product, you must pay £50 a month. You can start with a sum of £500 or simply pay in as little as £50. Aviva allows you to track your ISA with their splendid online investment service. You can also take money from your ISA whenever you need to.

Is Aviva Car Insurance any good?

Like most car insurance plans, everything differs depending on the options you choose. However, here are some things that Aviva offer for you:

1. They promise to refund any excess you’ve paid if you’ve been involved in an accident by an uninsured motorist.
2. If your car is in bad condition and cannot run, they will take you home or take you and your car to get it repaired.
3. They offer a three year guarantee on repairs carried out by their approved repairers.

Does Aviva car insurance cover tyres?

Aviva car insurance does not cover any punctures, cuts or bursts — including those caused by severe or limited braking.

What is covered by Aviva’s car insurance?

Luckily for Aviva users, you will be covered if your vehicle is lost, stolen or damaged and if you injure someone or damage their vehicle or property in an accident. Additionally, if you have an accident and your vehicle is not roadworthy, Aviva will take it to one of their approved garages.

Conclusion

Aviva has a good range of insurance covers, and most customers seem satisfied by their service. However, it’s worth knowing that they might not be the best option for you depending on if you require specific coverage such as electrical breakdown cover for your car or a more sophisticated platform to find out about your pension.

The post Deep Review: Aviva Insurance appeared first on Financial Mark.

Earlier this year, the second phase of the Community Cookery School was launched to help train community cooks to deliver relevant and practical cooking skills to local families. Easy recipes like veggie chilli, tinned salmon fishcakes with veggie slaw, and veggie soup with eggy muffins prompted more vegetables into everyday scratch meals.
Because of pandemic restrictions, the virtual lessons were streamed online from February to May, with the lectures developed and delivered by Jamie Oliver-trained community cooks and nutritionists.

The courses included knife skills and fundamental nutrition and offered recipes adapted to complement a wide variety of foods typically donated to food banks.
Oonagh Turnbull, Tesco Head of Health Campaigns, said: “We’re so proud to have provided food education, inspiration and support to vulnerable families across the UK over the last few months. The past year has highlighted the need to focus on nutrition, and it’s great to have played a part in supporting healthier communities.”

The cookery school initiative began in 2019 to equip 1,000 community cooks to make meals with food typically donated by Tesco while avoiding food waste – an objective completed by January 2020.

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In order to encourage customers to participate in the refill process, the supermarket intends to test new refill configurations in stores, partner with more household brands, and engage with consumers across the country.

The initiatives announced today includes:

• Four additional refill stores all featuring an increased range of new core products and partnerships with some of the UKs most popular household brands including Yorkshire Tea, an increased range of Kellogg’s cereals, new own-label and Nestle cereals, Napolina pasta, and Tilda rice alongside new ‘prefilled’ trials of Radox and Persil.
• The largest refill store to date will open at York in October with 18 standalone bays featuring over 70 branded and own-label products in refillable format with brand new product types including dried Mars pet food such as Whiskas and Pedigree and additional ranges of snacking, desserts and baking products.
• A nine bay standalone refill fixture in the Milton Keynes store launching in December, featuring branded and own-label cereals, pasta, rice, tea, coffee, snacking, desserts and baking products. The store will also sell refillable pet food, laundry and toiletry products within specific aisles.
• Asda’s first refill offer in Scotland at the Glasgow Toryglen store in August, featuring cereals, rice, pasta, tea, coffee, toiletry and laundry products sold in specific aisles.
• Branded and own-label tea, coffee, cereals, rice, pasta, laundry and toiletries launching in specific aisles at the Rugby store in August.
• All four stores will feature Persil, Radox, Simple and Alberto Balsam products from Unilever in stainless steel reusable bottles. These will be tested in two refill formats; refill on the go where shoppers can refill their bottle using a machine in-store and, in a global first for Unilever and Asda, return on the go where shoppers can pick up pre-filled bottles off the shelf and return them in-store once used.

Susan Thomas, Director of Commercial Sustainability at Asda said: “We know that reducing packaging waste matters to our customers and they have embraced the refill options available at the Middleton store, with many of the products available already exceeding expectations.

“Our ultimate goal is to make refill and reuse a part of every Asda shopping trip and to achieve this we have to make it easy, accessible and affordable for all our customers to shop this way. Middleton was a great introduction to how customers engage with refill products and we are now looking to accelerate these learnings by trialling different refill options in more stores to understand which aspects can potentially developed further.”

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The platform will launch after the success Our Culture had with its sustainable fashion series which reached over 100,000 readers in the U.K alone.

Talking about the platform, Mankus stated: “The platform will be free for everyone and will encourage people to shop for more sustainable and ethical fashion. Its core purpose will be to educate people. With this platform, we will partner with like-minded charities and companies that share the same goal.”

The post Modestas Mankus to Launch a Sustainable Fashion Education Platform appeared first on Financial Mark.

These commitments are part of a new package of support for Partners (employees), who jointly co-own the business, as well as the launch of a pilot programme to provide career assistance for young people leaving the care system.

Informed by feedback from Partners who shared what mattered most to them, these commitments support our vision to become the UK’s most inclusive business for our Partners and customers, reflecting and connecting with the diverse communities we serve.

Equality is a founding principle of the Partnership, which was formed almost 100 years ago and supported through our unique employee-owned business structure and written Constitution. These new commitments are a stride forward in redefining our responsibility to this principle and what it means to our Partners in today’s society.

Support announced today, which forms part of our Partnership Plan, includes:

• Equal parental pay and leave: From this autumn, all Partners and regardless of how they have become a parent, will receive 26 weeks paid leave (14 weeks at full contractual pay and 12 weeks at 50% contractual pay) once they have worked for the Partnership for one year. Studies show that sharing childcare can be good for gender equality and reducing the gender pay gap¹, yet being able to afford to take time off remains a barrier – particularly for low income families².
• Pregnancy loss support: Any Partner who experiences the loss of a pregnancy will be entitled to take two weeks’ paid leave. Like all Partners, they will also have access to emotional support through the Partnership’s free counselling and mental health services.
• Flexible First commitment: All job vacancies will be advertised with a flexible working option, unless there is an operational reason why this is not possible. A ‘blended’ working approach for office-based Partners also begins this month, providing Partners with choice and flexibility with where and how they work.
• Part-time working: Through our internal Part-Time Advisory Group, we’ve identified more ways to support part-time Partners to help them progress in our business. This includes changes to our flexible working policy and reviewing our recruitment processes.
• Supporting young people leaving the care system: This month we are starting a pilot programme with Essex County Council to help young people aged 18 to 24 leaving the care system into employment. We will help identify job opportunities via our current job vacancies and provide support including coaching and mentoring and interview practice in the run up. We will also continue with ongoing coaching and mentoring once a role has been secured.
• Supporting ethnic minorities: Inspired by work achieved by our internal Black Partner Advisory Group over the last 12 months, we will expand our reverse mentoring scheme, where ethnic minority Partners from across the Partnership mentor senior leaders. To cater for a broader range of customers, we will continue adding new products online and in our shops. Hosiery from Sheer Chemistry, clothing ranges with AAB and designer Kemi Telford, greeting cards by AfroTouch and new world foods have already launched across John Lewis and Waitrose.
• Inclusion Committee: We are creating an Inclusion Committee, which will launch in the summer and feature external advisers who have strong diversity and inclusion experience, as well as our own Partners. The committee will help accelerate and scrutinise the delivery of our plans to be a more inclusive business that welcomes and celebrates diversity.

Sharon White, Chairman of the John Lewis Partnership, said: “As an employee-owned business, equality matters to us. We want John Lewis and Waitrose to be a place for everyone and for people from all walks of life to feel valued so they can thrive in our business.

“We want to be there for our Partners to support them in important life moments, whether that’s stepping into the world of work for the first time, or becoming a parent.”

Rt Hon Caroline Nokes MP and Chair of the Women and Equalities Committee said: “The recent work of the Women and Equalities Committee has highlighted a number of areas in which employers can really help. This announcement from the John Lewis Partnership has shown them to be really leading the way in making sure their Partners are supported, with a commitment to flexible working, equal maternity and paternity paid leave and baby loss leave. All initiatives which will make a real difference.

“The pandemic has been particularly hard for families juggling all sorts of different demands and pressures and I am pleased but not surprised the John Lewis Partnership has risen to the challenge to help both existing and future employees.”

Felicia Willow, Chief Executive of the Fawcett Society said: “It’s great to see the John Lewis Partnership supporting working mothers and fathers to look after their children. We need more UK business to follow this example and enable both parents to take parental leave. The expectation that childcare falls to mothers helps the gender pay gap and many other workplace inequalities to thrive.

“It’s also encouraging to see the John Lewis Partnership making a clear commitment to advertise all vacancies with a flexible working option. This proves that despite the Employment Bill being delayed, there is no reason businesses can’t step up and put in place policies that will improve gender equality in the workplace.”

The post John Lewis Partnership Launches New Support For Working Families and Young People Leaving the Care System appeared first on Financial Mark.

Prime members will be able to support small this Prime Day, with more than a million deals available worldwide from small and medium-sized businesses. Additionally, customers can get a £10 credit to spend on Prime Day when they spend £10 on small business products in Amazon’s store from 7^th – 20th June. This Prime Day and throughout the rest of 2021, Amazon will spend more than $100 million globally on new promotional activities that encourage customers to shop from small businesses selling on Amazon. Prime Day provides small businesses with an opportunity to market their products to millions of Prime members around the world who are excited to shop for great deals.

“This Prime Day, we’re offering Prime members millions of deals from great brands which we know our customers love. We’re also continuing our support for the small businesses selling on Amazon by running our ‘spend £10 get £10 offer’, which will help thousands of smaller companies in the run up to Prime Day,” said John Boumphrey, Amazon UK Country Manager. “As a Prime Day first, we’re also delighted to be increasing our donations to charity when customers shop through AmazonSmile, so there is plenty for everyone this year.”

Don’t Miss Out on Prime Day Savings

• 48-Hours to Save this Prime Day: Prime members have the chance to shop two days of incredible deals this Prime Day on 21^st and 22^nd Prime Day will offer exclusive access to limited time offers, new product launches, and top entertainment to help them spend less and smile more.
• Over 2 Million Deals Globally: Prime members in participating countries will enjoy over 2 million deals around the world, including on top fashion, home, and beauty products, as well as toys, sporting goods, pet supplies, electronics, Amazon brands, and Amazon Devices, throughout the two-day epic deals event.
• Plus, Deals Start Today! Starting today, Prime members can start shopping early exclusive offers and deals, including:
  • Amazon Devices: Save up to 50% off popular devices from 7^th June – 22^nd June, including Echo, Fire TV and Ring.
  • Amazon Music: Prime members who haven’t yet tried Amazon Music Unlimited can get our best deal ever – four months free with unlimited access to more than 70 million songs ad-free and millions of podcast episodes.
  • Prime Video: Prime members can get up to 50% off great movies and TV shows to rent or buy through Prime Video including Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Zombieland: Double Tap and Euphoria: Season 1. A broad selection of popular movies are also available to rent from as little as £1.99 including Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, The Empty Man and John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum.
  • Audible: Prime members get three months of Audible membership for just 99p this Prime Day. Membership includes an unbeatable selection of new releases, best sellers and Audible Original audiobooks and podcasts. Offer available from today through to 22^nd June.
  • Kindle Unlimited – Prime members can enjoy three months of Kindle Unlimited for no extra charge if they subscribe between today and 22nd of June 2021. Deal terms and conditions apply.
  • Kindle Book Deals: From 15^th – 30^th June, Amazon customers will be able to discover over 300 Kindle Books on sale from 99p. Kindle Book Deal terms and conditions apply.
  • Amazon First Reads: During June, Prime members can choose two Kindle Books available on Amazon First Reads for no additional charge.
  • Prime Gaming: From today until 21^st June, Prime members can claim Battlefield 4 standard edition (value £17.99), for free on amazon.co.uk.
  • Amazon Brands: Save up to 20% off on select styles from Amazon brands, including home, electronic and sports essentials from Amazon Basics and Umi and Eono, furniture products for every room from Alkove, Rivet and Movian, health and personal care products from Solimo and snacks from Happy Belly.
  • Deals from Small Businesses: Save up to 30% on selected products from small businesses selling on Amazon, including Amazon Launchpad and Amazon Handmade from brands such as: Niré, Soundbops, Sandy Leaf Farm and Offblak, across a wide range of categories; from electronics, beauty products, homeware and gifts.
  • Wondery+: Prime members can get four months free of Wondery+, the ultimate immersive podcast listening experience with ad free listening, early access to new shows and exclusive content from all your favorite Wondery originals, including “Dr. Death,” “Even the Rich” and “Business Wars.”
  • Amazon Fashion: Customers can shop product edits from their favourite influencers with 20% off and visit @amazonfashioneu on Instagram to discover the latest Prime Day deals from their favorite fashion brands.
  • Prime Wardrobe: Save £15 when you keep £100 worth of items from your first Prime Wardrobe order. Terms and conditions apply.

More Ways than Ever to Support Small Businesses

• Spend £10, Get £10: Starting on Monday 7^th June through to Sunday 20^th June, Amazon will offer a £10 credit to use on Prime Day to members who spend £10 on items sold by UK small businesses, including products from Amazon Handmade and Amazon Launchpad. This $100 million global promotion is fully funded by Amazon to connect customers with local small businesses selling in its store.
• More Small Businesses Than Ever Before: This year, more than 300,000 sellers globally are eligible for the promotion – more than twice as many as last year – giving customers more opportunities to support small.
• Prime Day Deals: Once Prime Day begins, members can use their £10 credit to purchase almost any product in Amazon’s store, including from small businesses. More than half of the items sold in Amazon’s store in the UK are from third-party sellers – mostly small and medium-sized businesses.
• Curated Storefront: To make it easy for customers to support small businesses this Prime Day, Amazon has curated collections to connect customers with small businesses at co.uk/supportsmall
• Shop Small Businesses with Alexa: Echo device owners in the UK can say “Alexa, shop small business” to discover products eligible for the Spend £10, Get £10 promotion.

Tens of thousands of UK-based small and medium-sized businesses sell their products in Amazon’s stores across the world and Amazon provides practical support and services to help them grow. More than 60% of UK businesses selling on Amazon export to customers all over the world. Last year they achieved total export sales of more than £2.75bn and supported more than 85,000 job opportunities in the UK. Last year also saw the launch of the Amazon Small Business Accelerator with Enterprise Nation, the small business support network, to help 200,000 small businesses and startups across the UK respond to the impact of the pandemic and lockdown with online learning, bootcamp events, and access to free services, credits, training and support.

“We launched our business through Amazon a couple of years ago. It was so much easier doing it this way, as you have the equivalent of an in-house customer services team, marketing and fulfilment support all in one place. Without Amazon we would not have been able to grow and export to new markets along the way.” Said Andy Jefferies, co-founder Dock and Bay. “Prime Day is an important moment for us as it brings new customers to our business and has previously helped to increase sales tenfold. It’s not just the exposure you get during the event – it allows us to grow once Prime Day is over. This year the small business promotion in the run up to Prime Day also means we can deliver more products as the weather warms with more people then talking about Dock & Bay!”

Ways to Shop this Prime Day

• 10X AmazonSmile Donations for Customers Newly Activating AmazonSmile in the Amazon App:Customers activating AmazonSmile find the exact same Amazon experience—amazing deals, wide selection, fast and free delivery options—with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to the charity of the customer’s choice. As an added benefit for Prime Day 2021, AmazonSmile will donate 5% of the net purchase price – 10X the regular rate – on the first qualifying AmazonSmile purchase on Prime Day for every Prime member newly activating AmazonSmile in their Amazon Shopping App from today through the end of Prime Day. Just open the app, navigate to Settings in the main menu (☰), tap on “AmazonSmile,” select the charity of their choice, and turn on AmazonSmile. Regular AmazonSmile Prime customers will also have something to celebrate, with an extra special promotion running exclusively on Prime Day still to be announced.
• Amazon Platinum and Classic Mastercards: All eligible Prime members will get a £30 gift card when they apply and are approved for either the Amazon Platinum Mastercard or Amazon Classic Mastercard. With an Amazon Platinum Mastercard, customers can earn 3 points on every £2 spend on Amazon and 0.5 points for every £2 spend anywhere else.
• Amazon Gift Cards: Prime members will receive an additional £7 promotional credit, if they top up their Amazon account with £50 or more.
• Amazon Vouchers: Discover more ways to save with Amazon Vouchers. Find discounts on everyday essentials, electronics, clothing, and more. Simply collect the voucher and the discount will be applied at checkout. Explore the most popular vouchers on co.uk/vouchers.
• Treasure Truck: With Treasure Truck, customers can discover hand-selected product offers at amazing prices. They can opt-in at co.uk/treasuretruck or by opening the menu in the Amazon Shopping app and finding ‘Treasure Truck’ under ‘Programmes and Features’. They will receive SMS notifications whenever there’s something new to share. This Prime Day, those who act fast will find incredible limited-time deals on must-have items which could include anything from the latest electronics and trending kitchen gadgets to exclusive collectibles (often with a great discount).
• Amazon Hub: Free for Prime members, customers also have the alternative, convenient option to pick up and return their Amazon packages through Amazon Hub a contactless, click and collect service.

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