Page 10 - Business Facts

Karhu Sports sold Adidas the three stripe trademark for 1,600 Euros and two bottles of whiskey!

Karhu Sports originates back to 1916 and they’ve got an authentic heritage of manufacturing running shoes. In the 1940s, their trademark was three stripes across their gear. Several Olympic medals received in the 1952 Olympics were won by Karhu shoes. In the mid 1950s, they decided to sell their trademark three stripes for 1,600 Euros and two bottles of whiskey to a not-so-well-known company at the time, Adidas. Karhu is also the original inventor of the Air Cushioned shoe.

In the 1970s the company decided a shoe was needed that would absorb the impact of and pressure of the knees carrying the weight of the runner. They thought about installing a spring in their shoes, but alas, they made air cushioned soles and called the shoe, Karhu Champions. The company is a big name and originates in Finland. They’ve had major success and are a big brand within Europe, though not widely known in the U.S.

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The word LEGO had a secret meaning that the makers didn't know about!

In 1932, Ole Kirk Kristiansen was a master carpenter and joiner in Denmark and established his business in the village of Billund. He manufactured stepladders, ironing boards, stools, and wooden toys. His son, Godtfred began working for the business at age 12. In 1934, the company adopted the name LEGO, which was formed from the words “LEg GOdt” meaning “play well.”

It wasn’t until later that it was realized LEGO means “to put together” in Latin. The firm only had six or seven people at that time. Godtfred cut Ole Kirk’s motto “Only the best is good enough” and hung it up in the workshop in 1936. In 1937, Godtfred was 17 and he began making his own models. The business grew to a whopping ten employees in 1939, but it continued to grow with time.

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Why did Google cost the economy $120,000,000 in two days?

The launch of Google's animated Pac-Man doodle led to almost five million wasted hours and cost the economy around $120 million dollars. A tool that enables businesses to measure how time and attention is being spent was used to figure the amount. It’s estimated that Google had around 505 million unique users on the day the Pac-Man Google Doodle went live, and that the game consumed 4,819,352 hours of employee time, costing the economy an estimated $120,483,800. Internet users were excited to discover the animated Pac-Man doodle on Google's home page.

The doodle, which marked the 30th anniversary of Pac-Man's release, was Google's first interactive logo. Web users could play the game by clicking "Insert coin". Clicking the "Insert coin" button twice allowed players to participate in a two-player game, with one of the Pac-Men controlled using the arrow keys on the keyboard, and the other, by clicking W, S, A and D. The game remained online for 48 hours before the Google doodle reverted to the usual logo. It was pretty cool.

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Prawn caught in Britain is sent to China for processing then re-imported back to Britain!

Fishing companies in Britain will head out to the coast and catch shrimp, as well as prawns. After the fishermen catch them, they are sent to the other side of the world to China in which they can be processed. After China has processed the shrimp and prawns, Britain buys back what they just sold to China! This process is a little redundant, but hey, it’s cheaper than processing the prawns in Britain.

Don’t be alarmed, countries all around the world are doing this. Welsh cookies are sent to Holland to be placed in jars before being shipped back to Britain! Canadian prawns are processed in Iceland! What other countries are doing things like this? Check the source.

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There's an all diamond ring that's worth $68 million!

Swiss jeweler Shawish are touting what they're calling the world's first diamond ring. It's not just that it's got a big rock on top, the whole thing is made of a cut and finished diamond. If you're curious check out the 10 most expensive celebrity engagement rings.

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