Day: 25 January 2018

Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene turned 40 on Thursday, January 25. The Princess spent the special day privately with family and friends (perhaps at her brother’s eatery, MC Buns).

Born Charlene Wittstock in Bulawayo, in what is today Zimbabwe, on January 25, 1978, the future princess moved to South Africa with her parents, Michael and Lynette, at the age of 11. The eldest of three children, Charlene became a competitive swimmer who represented South Africa in a number of international tournaments and won three gold medals in the All-Africa Games.

Having married His Serene Highness Prince Albert on July 1, 2011, the couple welcomed twins, Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella, on December 10, 2014 at the Princess Grace Hospital in Monaco.

Through her own Foundation, which marked its fifth anniversary in December, the Princess works tirelessly to prevent deaths by drowning across the world, mainly by focussing on teaching children how to swim. Over the last five years, the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation has developed a total of 149 projects in 33 countries.

The Foundation has just announced the second edition of the Riviera Water Bike Challenge this summer.

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A huge discount on the price of 950 gramme jars of Nutella caused near-riots in a number of Intermarche supermarkets on Thursday. The “70 percent off’ promotion brought the price down to €1.41 from €4.50, and huge queues formed in front of shops yesterday morning before they opened.

“People have rushed in, they shoved everything, they broke it. It was an orgy,” an employee of an Intermarché in Forbach (Moselle), told the AFP news agency. “We were on the verge of calling the police,” she added.

One shopper questioned how Nutella could slash the price by 70 percent and still justify the high price of the hazelnut spread loved by generations of children, for the rest of the year. The cut-price offer was valid throughout France, but in some shops their entire supplies were sold within 15 minutes.

Ferraro has been in the news in recent days for its takeover of Nestle’s US business in a deal costing €2.26 million ($2.8 billion).

The Italian Ferrero family has long-standing connections with Monaco. Michele Ferrero, the son of the founder, lived for many years in the Principality and is reputed to have commuted by helicopter almost daily to his business in Italy. He died at his home in Monte-Carlo in February 2015, at the age of 89.

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Monaco’s Commercial Trade Union, affiliated to the Union of Trade Unions of Monaco, has reacted with indignation to the announcement of a plan for voluntary redundancy at Carrefour outlets, local French-language daily Monaco-Matin reports.

The CEO of Carrefour, Alexandre Bompard, has said that thousands of jobs will go across France as the company strives to cut operating costs. No specific cuts have been announced for the Monaco store in Fontvieille, but the Union said that the workforce is declining steadily, even though the Monaco branch of the French chain is the most profitable store per square metre of the entire Carrefour France group.

The Union blames the nationwide job cuts on the recent reform of the French labour laws, and expressed its support for Carrefour employees across France.

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The New National Museum of Monaco (NMNM) presents LAB #2, Outside Categories, until March 18, at Villa Sauber with Berger & Berger, Patrick Corillon, Félix Dol Maillot and Damien MacDonald.

Initiated at the Villa Sauber two years ago, the LAB will make the museum a laboratory and crystallise its experiments. The idea is to encourage the public to watch the museum as they browse and not be mere visitors, and to transform their visit into a sharing experience.

This second edition will continue the redefinition of the museum; to get off the beaten track with out-of-class creators who jostle the meaning of the word “artist” through protean practices and for guests to question the place they are visiting.

In this exhibition five artists imagine the museum of the future. Their proposals are added to the exhibition of the works of Michel Blazy, born in Monaco and recognised internationally for his work devoted to perishable materials. Unsurprisingly, admission is free.

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Sky is going to resort to the internet in order to reduce the flow of customers to other TV services. From 2019, subscribers will no longer need a satellite dish to receive Sky channels, and customers will be able to use a broadband service.

Jeremy Darroch, Sky’s Chief Executive, said the move was a “big moment” for the business.  All 270 channels will be available through broadband.

Sky’s total operating profits in the last six months of 2016 fell by €74 million (£65 million) on a year earlier. Sky’s half-year earnings slipped nine percent after it paid millions of pounds for broadcast rights to Premier League football matches.

Meanwhile, Sky customers will not be able to view 12 TV channels, including TLC, Eurosport and Animal Planet after January 31, amid a fierce row with Discovery over a new deal. Sky claims it has been overpaying Discovery for several years and is not renewing its contract.

More than 11 percent of Sky’s customers moved to another provider in the last 12 months, up from 10.2 per cent a year earlier. However, Sky’s results announced on Wednesday, January 24, showed the group saw a 4.8 percent rise in revenues for the UK and Ireland, with overall revenues 6.2 percent higher than a year ago.

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His Serene Highness Prince Albert took the opportunity of his New Year message to call on local leaders to approach the elections to the National Council, due to take place on February 11, with respect for others and in a spirit of harmony and union.

He reminded his countrymen and women that he is strictly neutral and no one can claim his support.

The Prince offered his thoughts to those who are sick and in mourning and wished success to the Principality’s young people. He also expressed the hope that political and business leaders will commit themselves to building a more liveable and fairer world through sustainable development and a “green” economy.

Finally, on his own part and that of Princess Charlene, Prince Albert wished Monegasques, residents and friends a serene and fruitful 2018.

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