California Company Donates Hygiene Products to Troops, Gives Discounts for Their Families

Irvine, Calf. (PRWEB) December 18, 2007 -- A Southern California company, EFE Company LLC, is making an unusual and valuable contribution to U.S. military soldiers who are overseas. In November, the company donated several hundred disposable mouthwash packs to U.S. troops deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan. The donations were sent via www.anysoldier.com and helped to meet a much-needed oral hygiene need, according to Ike Kavas, the founder of EFE Company.

Volunteer Rita Farmer, who handled the donations, was elated to receive the product for military members who are in harm's way. She said: "Our donations have really dropped off, and I think it's because the war goes on and on, and folks don't see an end to it. The problem is that our troops are still there, all in need of something. This makes your donation even more appreciated. Thank you so much."

EFE Company is also offering a buy-one-get-one-free special for all orders placed by U.S. soldiers, Kavas said. The discount offer also applies to the family members of military personnel serving overseas.

The oral hygiene products and discounts are available through the company's ecommerce site at gorinse.com. The portable mouthwash product is ideal for soldiers because it is sold in small handy packs, which is a major benefit for soldiers serving in combat zones or a field environment. Users simply tear open the package, pour the mouthwash in, rinse and spit.

"Our natural mouthwash is packed into small disposable packs, so they can be used any time, anywhere," Kavas said. "They are for single use; you carry only what you want to use. They can fit into the smallest pocket or purse, and they are airport-safe and private."

While goRinse is perfect for soldiers, it's also great for anyone who wants fresh breath without having to carry around a bottle of mouthwash. The product comes with its own dispenser that can be placed in bathrooms, employee breakrooms, on restaurant tables and on convenience store counters where it's easily accessible to people on the go.

In addition to being ultra convenient, goRinse is made from natural ingredients that are healthy and safe. The mouthwash contains natural mint oil, no alcohol and no sugar. So it's even suitable for small children to use.

Real Estate Designers offers totally innovative solutions for your software development, Internet programming, real estate web design and hosting needs. Our service includes domain name registration and real estate web design. Real Estate Designers provides the complete solution including design, application development and marketing.

source: prweb.com

Hydro Best Corporate Website in Norway

Stockholm, Sweden (PRWEB) December 18, 2007 -- Overall it is shown that Norwegian companies are improving their online communication. But to be a top contender in Europe, some challenges still remain.

his year's winner of the Norwegian H&H Webranking is the global aluminium supplier Hydro. They are advancing from last year's third place with a total score of 73.75 points. Second overall in the Norwegian ranking went to Orkla, an international provider of consumer goods, with a total score of 70. Third place overall went to the companies Telenor and Yara, both with 64.75 points. This year's biggest improver is the media group Schibsted, improving from 47 to 56.75 points, an impressive 9,75 points increase.

In general, the best Norwegian companies are very good at communicating online. Other companies, e.g. found in sectors such as shipping, oil and fishing, seem to have less ambition and thus follow fewer requirements in the H&H Webranking Protocol. They therefore miss out the possibility to acquire a broader interest from private and foreign investors where excellence in communication is part of creating a good liquidity for the share.

Real Estate Designers offers totally innovative solutions for your software development, Internet programming, real estate web design and hosting needs. Our service includes domain name registration and real estate web design. Real Estate Designers provides the complete solution including design, application development and marketing.

source: prweb.com

Axis Merchant Group Launches First-In-Class Value-Added Products and Services

Axis Merchant Group is pleased to announce the launch of new, first-in-class, value-added products and services that compliment its merchant's credit card processing requirements. Long-term profitability and success result when merchants provide high quality, competitively priced products and services while responding quickly to changing customer needs. Successful companies are those that continually improve all aspects of their business.

San Francisco, CA (PRWEB) December 18, 2007 -- Axis Merchant Group is pleased to announce the launch of new, first-in-class, value-added products and services that compliment its merchant's credit card processing requirements.

Long-term profitability and success result when merchants provide high quality, competitively priced products and services while responding quickly to changing customer needs. Successful companies are those that continually improve all aspects of their business.

"Because we understand the complexity of operating a business in a competitive economy, we have developed value-added services to help promote the business growth of our valued merchants resulting in increasing foot traffic to their establishment, building customer loyalty, reduce risk, while maximizing their bottom line.," says Anthony Manzilla, CEO, Axis Merchant Group.

Our goal is to enhance our merchants' competitive position and profitability through the integration of value-added products and services our merchant's can re-sell to their walk-in customers.

These services and products include:

* Credit, Debit, ATM, EBT Card Processing
* Check Verification and Guarantee
* Electronic Check Conversion
* Automated Payment and Recurring Billing
* Customized Gift and Loyalty Card Programs
* Bill Payment Services
* Pre-Paid Wireless Products and Cell Phones
* Pre-Paid Visa and MasterCard Debit Cards
* Employer Payroll Solutions
* Axis ID Cards
* PayDay Loans
* SBA Loan Services
* Merchant Working Capital
* E-Commerce Processing and Web Hosting
* Free Shopping Cart Software for Ecommerce Merchants


Our team offers professional advice aimed at helping identify business needs and map out the most effective means of realizing them with respect to our merchant's unique requirements, expectations and budget.

Axis Merchant Group value-added services enable its merchants to reach new markets, improve customer services, strengthen employee morale and retention, increase productivity, improve internal communication, customers, and vendors, improve consumer loyalty, increase sales, generate new traffic to the merchant's establishment.

About Axis Merchant Group

Axis Merchant Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of Axis Invest, is a full-service credit card processing organization. With its headquarters located in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area, Axis is rapidly expanding its operations with branch offices opening throughout the United States.

Axis Merchant Group provides payment processing services for Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, Diners Club, JCB, ATM, debit cards, EBT state and government cards, electronic gift and loyalty cards, as well as a variety of private label and smart card technologies. Axis is proud of their experienced and well trained sales force on a nationwide level who all work with retail stores, restaurants, mail order & telephone order, e-commerce, internet, home-based, petroleum, supermarket, and lodging merchants. Axis' sales force caters to all avenues of commerce.

In addition to payment processing, Axis Merchant Group enables it's customers to earn additional monthly revenues with a suite of money making products and services that increase customer loyalty and foot traffic. This includes check guarantee services, electronic check conversion services, bill payment services, money transfer services, payroll guarantee, secondary ID card products, merchant working capital, loan services, pre-paid Visa and Mastercard cards, and pre-paid wireless cards and cellular phones. Axis is a reseller for over 70 wireless providers.

Axis Merchant Group provides it's customers with the best-in-class electronic payment processing and other money making services that facilitate growth opportunities for small to medium sized businesses nationwide. Axis management has a combined 35+ years experience offering a wide range of innovative services and products. We strive to be a true partner in business by providing the tools needed for our customer's to succeed. As an innovator, Axis' goal is to always be on the cutting-edge and provide the information and tools so our customer's experience is as valuable and efficient as possible.

Axis Merchant Group was created by an impassioned group of industry veterans and leaders, who recognize the need of bringing together diverse advances in the field of electronic payment processing. Our service philosophy not only shapes our customer relationships, but it also guides our product and service development. Using our state-of-the-art technology, our electronic payment solutions can help your business grow. If one word could describe what makes Axis stand head and shoulders above the competition, it is the word "care". We care for our customers passionately, for we are forging the bonds of long and lasting relationships.

Real Estate Designers offers totally innovative solutions for your software development, Internet programming, real estate web design and hosting needs. Our service includes domain name registration and real estate web design. Real Estate Designers provides the complete solution including design, application development and marketing.

source: prweb.com

Avvenu Appoints SRS as Stockholder Representative in Nokia Acquisition

Denver, Colo. (PRWEB) December 18, 2007 -- Shareholder Representative Services, LLC (SRS) today announced that it has been appointed as the representative of the former stockholders of Avvenu, Inc. following the company's recent acquisition by Nokia Inc. Avvenu's selling stockholders include Charles River Ventures and Worldview Technology Partners.

"When we learned about SRS, we were intrigued by their value proposition," said Jim Strawbridge, General Partner & Chief Operating Officer, Worldview Technology Partners. "They were brought in late in the process shortly before signing of the agreements, and we were impressed by SRS' responsiveness and their ability to meet our tight deadline."

"Outsourcing the shareholder rep function to SRS post closing was a no-brainer", adds Bill Tai, General Partner, Charles River Ventures. "SRS has the team with the proper expertise to professionally manage all post-closing matters related to the escrow, and any claims or disputes which may arise, which allows us to focus on our core business of making new investments and building value in our ongoing portfolio."

SRS serves as a professional representative of the stockholders following the closing of merger or acquisition transactions in connection with managing claims by buyers for damages related to breaches of representations or warranties, communicating with the escrow agent and other parties to the transaction, and any other matters that may arise following closing.

"Responsiveness is one of the most essential services a shareholder rep can perform", said Paul Koenig, Managing Director, SRS. "Our attention to responsiveness commences at inception of the engagement -- SRS can quickly integrate itself into the merger process at the eleventh hour -- and continues until the expiration of all obligations under the merger agreement."

For more information about Shareholder Representative Services, visit our website at www.shareholderrep.com.

About Shareholder Representative Services
Headquartered in Denver and with offices in Silicon Valley, SRS provides professional shareholder representation services following the closing of an M&A transaction. As shareholder representative, SRS manages the entire post-closing process including the management of escrows, earn-out negotiations, the handling of claims, disputes and litigation, communications with the acquirer, and, ultimately, distribution of escrow funds. By engaging SRS, investors are able to focus on their core competencies - identifying the next deal and managing the rest of their portfolio - rather than being distracted by the administrative burdens and legal and financial risks that may inure to the shareholder representative. The professionals at SRS have the expertise to simplify the post-closing process for the investors and to maximize return of sale proceeds to shareholders.

Real Estate Designers offers totally innovative solutions for your software development, Internet programming, real estate web design and hosting needs. Our service includes domain name registration and real estate web design. Real Estate Designers provides the complete solution including design, application development and marketing.

source: prweb.com

onsumers Struggle to Refinance While Buyers Bail on Condos

Home builders down, have more to fall

Stocks for the largest U.S. home builders have dropped 65% since the beginning of this year, but home builders may have more to fall before they hit bottom, says Business Week. The magazine's Web site includes a slideshow of "America's Most Battered Home Builders," with Technical Olympic USA of Hollywood, Fla., showing the worst hit and posting a yearly return of -84.2%. Across the U.S., builders have been offering drastic price cuts of as much as $100,000 on a new home, Business Week says. Builders are likely to feel more pain next year when adjustable-rate mortgages are due to reset, which could push the number of U.S. foreclosures higher and hurt sales of newly built homes, the publication says.

Sub-prime standards haven't changed

The sub-prime loans backing mortgage bonds created early this year are going bad even faster than those issued in early 2006, a year that set a record for delinquencies on such loans, according to two new studies reported in the L.A. Times.

"It really is astonishing," says the author of one of the studies. "It's as if the lessons of the past two years were ignored in early 2007."

Lender may lose from failed condo deals

A few years ago, when the housing market was still hot, Corus Bankshares began financing condo projects in several locations across the U.S. Today, as many buyers of units in those projects aim to avoid closing on their purchases (many were speculators who had hoped to flip their properties), the lender may be forced take a big hit on its loans -- developers owe Corus $4 billion, 92% ($3.7 billion) of which are for condominiums, says the New York Times. Of the condo projects Corus financed, approximately 25% are in the Miami area and 9% are in Las Vegas, the Times says. This year, with the number of condos completed expected to rise 45% and with condo sales down (sales fell 12% through August of this year), other banks may find themselves in a similar predicament, the Times says. About 15% of all banks' loans are to construction, the publication says.

Bubble bloggers burst on scene

A few years ago, “bubble bloggers” who were predicting doom and gloom in the housing market, like Patrick Killelea, of Reality Parser, were largely overlooked and not taken seriously, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. But now that the housing market has taken a turn for the worse, these blogs are getting more attention, the article says.

There are scores of such blogs out there, including thehousingbubbleblog.com, housingdoom.com and bubblemeter.blogspot.com. Such bloggers are often distrustful of most anyone in the real-estate industry or related sectors and aren’t afraid to say it.

For instance, in his blog, Mr. Killelea writes: “Who disagrees that house prices will continue to fall? Real-estate related businesses disagree, because they don’t make money if buyers do not buy. These businesses have a large financial interest in misleading the public about the foolishness of buying a house now.”

Refinancing Gets ‘Freakish’ in Bay Area

Homeowners are struggling to refinance their homes in the East Bay Area, according to this article in the Contra Costa Times, which reports on that region of Northern California. The story says that many of these homeowners have incomes of $150,000 and more.

“Getting a loan is no longer a go-ahead no-brainer,” says one agent. “It’s a freakish set of circumstances.”

Bay Area home prices have finally ground to a halt, the piece says. From 2000 to 2005 median home prices rose an average of 11.5%. But last year they rose just 0.5%.

Real Estate Designers offers totally innovative solutions for your software development, Internet programming, real estate web design and hosting needs. Our service includes domain name registration and real estate web design. Real Estate Designers provides the complete solution including design, application development and marketing.

source: realestatejournal.com