Month: November 2021

In the lead up to Christmas and in particular the Black Friday sales promotion period An Garda Síochána are supporting Europol’s online fraud prevention campaign which encourages safe online shopping by customers and provides fraud prevention advice to online retailers / eCommerce businesses.

More and more businesses are using the internet as the primary channel to sell goods and services. Whilst convenient for both the consumer and retailer it also presents opportunities for fraudsters who can use the anonymous nature of the internet to rip off consumers or target retailers who do not have the necessary defences in place to protect themselves.

There was a total of €22 million in credit and debit cards fraud losses on Irish consumers in 2020, according to the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI).

Consumers and eCommerce merchants will be particularly active online over the next few weeks and An Garda Síochána and Europol advise consumers and online retailers to adhere to the following online shopping fraud prevention tips: 

https://www.europol.europa.eu/activities-services/public-awareness-and-prevention-guides/e-commerce-tips-and-advice-to-avoid-becoming-fraud-victim

For the online shopper:

The Golden Rules of Online Shopping

• Understand risks involved - do some research – use brands and shops that are familiar to you
• Check to ensure the website is genuine - type the address yourself and check the spelling
• Check the seller’s reviews and ratings
• Be careful how you pay – always use the websites recommended payment site – if none, use credit cards when purchasing as most cards have strong customer protection policy
• Save all documents related to online purchases
• If you don’t make a purchase, don’t leave identity or card details behind
• Never send card details by email, text or other messaging methods
• Don’t send money to someone you don’t know – check first

Additional note: Make arrangements for collection of deliveries. If you are not going to be there ask a neighbour to collect for you. Failing that use a reliable service which can store your parcels (An Post have Parcel Locker and Parcel Motel is another one) An remember to dispose of packaging carefully so as not to inform opportunist criminals of valuable items inside your home.

#BuySafePaySafe

For the Online Retailer / eCommerce Merchant: 

• Know your product –
  • Some products are riskier than others ie. easily resaleable small items may present a higher fraud risk
• Know your customer –
  • If you accept card payments for high value goods you would really want to know who you are selling to – wouldn’t you?
• Establish a safe means of payment –
  • Your card processor can advise when choosing a safe means of payment
• Use a reliable delivery service –
  • Use a delivery service which you can be assured will offer professional handling of your merchandise

There’s a Sustainable Christmas Market at The Imperial this Sunday!

Christmas doesn’t have to cost the earth this year!  To celebrate Sustainability Month and their recent Silver Eco-label Award from Green Hospitality, The Imperial Hotel in Cork City is hosting a Sustainable Christmas Market this Sunday 21^st November, in partnership with Fifty Shades Greener and Cork Zero Waste.

Their motto inspired by Princess Grace (actress Grace Kelly), who stayed at the hotel 60 years go, is ‘Don’t be like the rest of them Darling!’

Start your festive green experience on arrival as you enjoy a delicious hot chocolate at their sustainable Parklet benches on the South Mall.  Busy elves will then whisk you upstairs to the ballroom which will host the Sustainable Christmas Market from 12pm to 4pm.

Here you’ll enjoy live music as your browse more than 15 stalls of local craftspeople, artisan makers, toy makers, and foodies to find unique gifts for yourself and others, along with a range of delicious treats. There will also be sustainable Christmas decoration making for kids on the day.

Exhibitors include Jiminy Eco Toys, Pinocchio’s, This is Chariot (sustainable clothing brand), Ivys Attic Jewellery, Cork Crafts, Eco Straws, Hannas Bee Wraps, Banana Melon Kitchen, Future Orchard, Bella Bleu Bridal, Earthway Refill, A Chick with 2 Stix, Escape Spa, Wildflower Creative, Cork Zero Waste, an Imperial Hotel Vegan food staff and coffee waste fertilizer stall,

The best bit? The event is free to attend and exhibit at, as The Imperial is inviting donations to be made to Cork Simon.

It might be steeped in over 200 years of history and tradition, but the Imperial has a thoroughly modern outlook when it comes to the environment.  The Grande Dame of Cork, as the hotel is known, is hosting the Sustainable Christmas Market to celebrate their recent Silver Eco-label from Green Hospitality.  The team received the prestigious award for introducing an Environmental Action Plan focusing on Energy, Waste & Water Management in a building which is over 200 years old.  Their dedicated Imperial Green Team introduced numerous sustainability initiatives over the past year, including a #BecauseWeCare Programme, a sustainable restaurant ‘Thyme at Seventy-Six on the Mall’, a sustainable cocktail bar ‘Sketch’, which uses 99% Irish products, a sustainable parklet outside the front door, and policies such as green purchasing and environmental waste management.

The Imperial Hotel and their partner hotels in the Flynn Hotel Collection also just announced a Green Friday sale, which runs until 29^th November.  The stay sustainable offers include a 20% saving on all rooms and breakfast, in addition to bespoke welcome gifts for guests on arrival, which have been thoughtfully selected to showcase a local suppliers and producers in keeping with the Green Friday ethos.  Guests at The Imperial will receive a Killahora Orchard Poiré Fine Perry, a sparkling tipple made from varieties of pears from the local Killahora Orchard, a family business dating back to 1750.  The farm supplies the Imperial with many of the ingredients used in their signature cocktails.

Free to attend, the indoor Sustainable Christmas Market will run this Sunday November 21 at the Imperial Hotel Cork.  There is no need to pre-book but the event will be run in line with government restrictions and Covid-certs are necessary.  For more see  imperialhotelcork.com/sustainablechristmasmarket.

Unlock the potential of your mind and body at 

Atlantia’s Open Day with celebrity mentalist Keith Barry

~ Public invited to Atlantia Clinical Trials 

for free mini health checks and fun brain hacks on Nov 12 ~

Atlantia Clinical Trials in Blackpool Retail Park is hosting an exciting Mind & Body Wellness Open Day with world-renowned TV hypnotist, mentalist, and scientist Keith Barry on November 12! 

It’s the perfect opportunity for a health NCT before the hectic Christmas season begins, and a great chance to hear about Atlantia’s nutritional studies where you can receive up to €1600 for your time! 

Keith Barry will entertain and help people unlock the potential of their minds through fun ‘brain hacking’!  During these sessions, he’ll access the power of the mind and prove ‘anything is possible when you put your mind to it. Then visitors can avail of a free mini health check at Atlantia’s clinic, where vitals like blood pressure and glucose levels will be assessed. 

Atlantia sign up thousands of participants each year in Cork for a range of exciting human health studies, which all focus on finding natural approaches to health and disease prevention.  Some of their recent clinical trials investigated the potential of concentrated broccoli to prevent diabetes and turmeric to improve memory loss. Those who are selected to take part in these innovative food studies can earn between €400-1600 per trial.

Atlantia Clinical Trials was established 10 years ago as a spin out of University College Cork and is the only food research centre of its kind in Ireland.  Atlantia primarily works with companies that want scientific backing to prove their food or food supplement has a health benefit; those undertaking health campaigns, those in the probiotic and prebiotic space, in sports performance, and those working with the elderly.  Clients include Nestle, PepsiCo, DSM and Danone and research findings have been published in leading scientific and medical journals.

Atlantia Clinical Trials and Keith Barry have come together to breakthrough barriers and unlock the potential in the body and mind, so this is the ultimate partnership and ultimate wellness day out.  You don’t need to book but it is recommended to come early as there are limited places for the brain hacking sessions.

The Atlantia Mind & Body Wellness Open Day will take place at Atlantia’s headquarters at Heron House in Blackpool Retail Park (next to Boots) from 11am-4pm on Friday 12th November and Keith Barry will be there from 11am-2pm.  Everyone attending the event must have a Covid-19 certificate and wear a mask. 

For more on this exciting event, see atlantiaclinicaltrials.com/cork

email: studies@atlantiafoodtrials.com or phone: +353 (0)21 430 7442.

How to Recruit and Retain Staff within the Current Work Safely Protocols

Building a team that works well together and takes your business to new heights takes time and quite a lot of planning. Of course, success doesn’t happen overnight, but when things begin to go well, you’ll want to keep your team together.

Attracting great employees and keeping hold of them requires you to think outside the box. That’s especially true at present, with many employees looking to work a flexible arrangement for good. And if they do return to the workplace, even on a phased basis, they may end up moving on unless they can see that your workplace adheres to the latest Work Safely Protocol measures.

To give you the tools to attract and retain employees, CBA and Peninsula are co-hosting a free seminar on November 19th between 7:45 – 9:30 a.m. in the Clayton Hotel, Lapps Quay, Co. Cork.

What you will learn:

• Expert recruitment tips
• Retention: How to retain great staff
• In-depth update on the latest Work Safely Protocol
• How to maintain a happy workplace

And much more…

Time will also be set aside at the end of this seminar for a Q&A session. This seminar is specifically designed for business owners, HR personnel, and senior management, so demand is going to be high.

We invite you to join us for this important seminar and to reconnect with fellow CBA members, executives and associates. Demand for this important seminar is expected to be high and places are limited, so reserve your seat today!

Due to the current phase of the Covid-19 pandemic, attendees will be required to produce a Covid-19 certificate to access the seminar. In addition, we request that attendees wear a face covering during the event and adhere to social distancing guidelines.