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Region’s Largest Office Interior Solutions Company Names New Leadership Team

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Industry veteran Marci Auston brings more than three decades of built environment experience to leadership of Slate, part of the Elements brand

DENVER, Feb. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Slate, the largest office interior solutions company in the region and a studio within the Elements brand family, today announced a new leadership structure with industry veteran Marci Auston at the helm. As head of Slate and part of the Elements ownership team, Auston is responsible for supporting the company’s mission of providing future-focused workplace solutions that engage people and empower organizations.

“Marci has built her entire career demonstrating the power of place, and I am confident that she and the leadership team at Slate will continue pushing us to elevate our client experience and deliver workplace experiences that inspire,” said Traci Lounsbury, CEO of Elements. “The expertise derived from each member of Slate’s leadership team allows us to offer unparalleled creative approaches to help our customers reimagine the future of work across a variety of industries.”

Slate is the result of the 2022 merger of Elements and OfficeScapes, two powerhouse furniture dealerships in the region. Auston, formerly the principal of OfficeScapes, assumed the role of president following the merger. In this capacity, she succeeded Bob Deibel and is now leading Slate into the future as an integral part of the newly merged entity. With over 30 years of experience in the commercial furnishings industry, Auston brings valuable expertise to her new position.

“Marci has been an invaluable partner and collaborator throughout her entire career at OfficeScapes,” said Bob Deibel, former president of OfficeScapes. “Her forward vision always helped us deliver industry-leading innovation and value to our clients.  She is exactly the right resource to lead Slate successfully into the future.”

Under the new leadership structure, Auston has been named president along with her team consisting of Pauline Bargell, vice president of sales, Jenna Brovsky, vice president of sales, Jennifer Richards, vice president of client services, Christina Lovato, vice president of project operations, Darin Corrie, vice president of warehouse operations and Lisa Blackman, vice president of design. As a holistic entity, the leadership team will continue helping customers navigate their needs within the built environment with multiple products and services, from furniture to design. The new Slate leadership team reinforces the company’s strength as one of the region’s largest woman-owned businesses.

Auston brings a wealth of experience creating high-performing workplaces that people want to come to every day. Over three decades with OfficeScapes (now Slate), Auston earned a reputation for empowering clients to create true connections to their workplace by creating commute-worthy workplaces with a focus on human-centric design. An active volunteer in both community service and business arenas of the Denver community, she is a graduate of the prestigious Leadership Denver program and is currently on the Downtown Denver Partnership’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Committee. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Metropolitan State University.

Under Auston’s leadership this year, Slate is expanding its commitment to the employee and client experience with exciting new business and service ventures that will be announced later this year.

For more information on leadership for Slate or the other studios under the Elements umbrella, visit: https://www.elementsofplace.com/about/teams/

About Slate

Slate is the region’s largest office interior solutions company, dedicated to providing future-focused workplace solutions that engage people and empower organizations. With unwavering dedication to creating inspiring spaces that go far beyond the office, spanning hospitality, healthcare, education, and biosciences. Slate is poised to redefine the way all businesses envision and create their environments. The comprehensive interior solutions company will be structured with Elements as the parent company and five studios under the umbrella.

About Elements

Elements is a recognized leader in next-generation commercial interiors, completing major projects for Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 clients, as well as small businesses. The studios of Elements, through a human-centered approach, bring storytelling to the built environment through thoughtful design, consulting, furnishings, and construction because people need inspirational places to be their best. This holistic approach to the built environment creates a seamless experience and exceptional results for customers. For more information about Elements and its services throughout Colorado and Wyoming, visit https://www.elementsofplace.com/.

Contact:
Sarah Cullen
sarah@sidecarpr.com
303-931-1910

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SOURCE Workplace Elements, LLC

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Caladium Systems Launches Happiffie, India’s First AI-powered Celebration Platform

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CHENNAI, India, July 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Caladium Systems today announced the launch of Happiffie, India’s first AI-powered Celebration Growth Platform, introducing a smarter way for customers to discover, compare, book, and manage celebrations while helping businesses connect with high-intent customers through intelligent technology.

Designed for weddings, birthdays, corporate events, social celebrations, parties, festivals, and more, Happiffie brings together over 400 celebration occasions and 1,000+ celebration experiences on a single AI-powered platform.

India’s celebrations industry continues to rely heavily on referrals, manual coordination, inconsistent pricing, and fragmented vendor discovery. Happiffie addresses these challenges by combining AI-powered recommendations, transparent price discovery, secure bookings, payments, and event management into one seamless platform.

A key innovation is Happiffie’s Reverse Auction, where customers simply submit their celebration requirements and verified vendors compete by offering customised proposals. Instead of spending hours searching and negotiating, customers can compare multiple qualified offers and choose the vendor that best matches their preferences and budget.

“Customers can now book the experience of their choice with the vendor of their choice, in the budget of their choice. At the same time, vendors receive qualified business opportunities matched to their category, location and capabilities, creating value for both sides of the marketplace,” said Pradhyumna T Venkat, Founder & CEO, Happiffie.

“Every major industry eventually reaches a point where technology fundamentally changes how it operates. Travel did. Hospitality did. Mobility did. We believe celebrations are next,” added Pradhyumna.

The platform is powered by Experience Intelligence™, a proprietary framework that combines over 15 years of celebration industry expertise with Artificial Intelligence to deliver smarter recommendations based on customer intent, preferences, and celebration needs.

Whether planning a wedding, birthday, corporate event, baby shower, anniversary, or festival celebration, customers can manage the entire journey—from vendor discovery and quotations to payments and execution—through a single platform.

Alongside its launch, Happiffie has opened registrations for vendor partners across Chennai and Tamil Nadu, with a phased expansion planned across India. The platform aims to build one of the country’s largest AI-powered celebration ecosystems, helping businesses generate qualified leads and grow more efficiently.

“Our vision is not simply to build another marketplace but to create the technology infrastructure that powers celebrations. Reverse Auction is the first step towards building a smarter, more transparent, and AI-driven celebration economy that benefits both customers and businesses alike,” added Pradhyumna.

Built on the experience of planning and executing over 5,000 weddings and celebrations, Happiffie combines deep industry expertise with AI to simplify celebration planning and transform how India celebrates.

For more information, visit www.happiffie.com. Vendor registrations are now open at www.happiffie.com/vendor-registration.

About Happiffie

Happiffie is India’s first AI-powered Celebration Platform, connecting customers, venues, event professionals, and celebration businesses through one intelligent ecosystem. Built on over 15 years of industry expertise, the platform combines Artificial Intelligence with Experience Intelligence™ to deliver smarter celebration planning across more than 1,000 celebration experiences spanning weddings, corporate events, birthdays, social celebrations, parties, and festivals.

Contact

Pradhyumna T Venkat
Founder & CEO
pradhyumna@happiffie.com
+91-7299002990

Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/3007635/Happiffie_Logo.jpg

 

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Beko Publishes 2025 Integrated Report, Charting Years of Progress Toward Net Zero

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As Beko releases its 2025 Integrated Report, the company’s third consecutive inclusion on TIME’s global sustainability ranking — retaining the #1 position in its industry — underscores the progress documented within it.

ISTANBUL, July 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Beko published its 2025 Integrated Report, offering a comprehensive account of the company’s financial, environmental and social performance over the past year. In parallel, Beko has been named one of TIME Magazine’s World’s Most Sustainable Companies for the third year running, retaining the #1 position in its industry. The recognition, awarded in partnership with Statista, independently corroborates years of deliberate, measurable progress.

The report documents concrete results across Beko’s global manufacturing footprint. In 2025:

Energy efficiency projects across production sites saved 69,562 GJ of energy, avoiding 5,297 tonnes of CO₂e emissions.Waste recycling across all manufacturing facilities reached 98.6%, against a target of 99%.Renewable energy installed capacity reached 96 MWp, up from 90.2 MWp the prior year. Beko also reached 63.5% green electricity on the path to 100% across all manufacturing by 2030.Water efficiency and rainwater harvesting projects across locations delivered total water savings of 219,114 m3.

Behind these figures is a broader manufacturing transformation. Three of Beko’s manufacturing facilities have been recognised within the World Economic Forum’s Global Lighthouse Network, with the Ulmi plant earning the additional, and rarer, designation of Sustainability Lighthouse. The principles behind Ulmi’s approach are being extended across Beko’s broader manufacturing ecosystem, as the company scales low-impact production. Beko currently operates 13 smart factories globally — equipped with artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics capabilities — with a target of 17 by the end of 2026.

On the circular economy side, Beko’s refurbishment centres across multiple locations reintroduced more than 148,000 appliances into the market in 2025 alone. The company recycled 1.98 million WEEE units through its own recycling facilities since 2014, and used 31,665 tonnes of recycled plastics in its products in 2025.

Across its product portfolio, 72.6% of Beko’s turnover in 2025 came from low-carbon products — a figure that reflects both the scale of the company’s energy-efficient product range and growing consumer demand for appliances that address environmental concerns.

“Being recognised by TIME three years in a row matters because it reflects that sustainability is a foundational part of Beko’s business,” said Can Dinçer, CEO of Beko. “Our factories undergo a twin transformation where we encounter both decarbonization and digitalization. That progress is deliberate and measurable, and our Integrated Report sets out exactly how. As the world prepares for COP31, the most credible thing a company can do is demonstrate its work rather than declare it. That is what we are doing.”

TIME’s annual list evaluates more than 5,000 companies worldwide across environmental and social performance, transparency and ESG reporting. Beko’s continued inclusion under increasingly rigorous standards points to a business model where sustainability is structurally embedded across operations, supply chains and product portfolios.

In addition to its Integrated Report, the Company has also published its second TSRS-compliant sustainability report, prepared in accordance with the Türkiye Sustainability Reporting Standards (TSRS), Türkiye’s adoption of the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards issued by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). The report is publicly available and provides detailed disclosures on the company’s climate-related risks, opportunities, governance, strategy and performance.

About Beko

Beko is an international home appliance company with a strong global presence, operating through subsidiaries in more than 55 countries with a workforce of around 45,000 employees and production facilities spanning multiple regions—including Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Beko has 22 brands owned or used with a limited license (Arçelik, Beko, Whirlpool*, Grundig, Hotpoint, Arctic, Ariston*, Leisure, Indesit, Blomberg, Defy, Dawlance, Hitachi*, Voltas Beko, Singer*, ElektraBregenz, Flavel, Bauknecht, Privileg, Altus, Ignis, Polar). Beko is the largest white goods company in Europe with its market share (based on volumes) and reached a consolidated turnover of 10.7 billion Euros in 2025. Beko’s 28 R&D and Design Centers & Offices across the globe are home to over 2,000 R&D employees and hold more than 4,500 international registered patent applications to date. The company has achieved the highest score in the S&P Global Corporate Sustainability Assessment (CSA) in the DHP Household Durables industry for the seventh consecutive year (based on the results dated 16 October 2025).** The company has been recognized as the 89th most sustainable company on TIME Magazine and Statista’s 2026 list of the World’s Most Sustainable Companies and has been the sector leader for three consecutive years. Beko’s vision is ‘Respecting the World, Respected Worldwide.’ 

www.bekocorporate.com

*Licensee limited to certain jurisdictions.
**The data presented belongs to Arçelik A.Ş., a parent company of Beko.

 

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SOURCE Beko

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JustMarkets Releases Market Analysis on How Foreign Exchange Markets React to CPI Surprises

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HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam, July 24, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — JustMarkets today released a new market analysis examining how foreign exchange markets react to Consumer Price Index (CPI) surprises and outlining key considerations for traders preparing for inflation data releases. The analysis explains why the gap between actual CPI data and market expectations, rather than the headline inflation figure itself, is often the primary driver of currency market movements.

What people often miss on CPI day is that the number itself isn’t what moves the market. The common reaction is to check whether the headline number is high or low, but it’s all priced in advance. According to JustMarkets, the real driver of EUR/USD is the gap between the actual number and what the market was positioned for.

Even an unchanged reading can cause dollar weakness if traders expect higher inflation, while weaker numbers that beat consensus expectations may drive dollar strength. Citing Federal Reserve research, the price driver is a surprise component rather than the headline.

Why the Expectation Gap Is More Important Than the Level

Forex is driven by expectations for interest rate decisions, with inflation impacting central bank policy. Key factors influencing this reaction include:

Main factors:

Monthly CPI and core CPICore services inflationRevisions to the previous period dataCentral banks policy pricing

Year-over-year data is less important in terms of price impact than monthly and core data.

How to Calculate Surprise

Start with the simplest metric: Surprise = Actual CPI − Consensus CPI. 

Consensus comes from the economic calendar’s forecast and reflects the market positioning. And then you need to check the market reaction through rates. The sequence typically runs: CPI surprise → change in front-end yields → USD movement → the sentiment adjustment.

Traders frequently employ this methodology in combination with the JustMarkets Economic Calendar to track high-impact releases in real time.

What the Intraday Move Actually Looks Like

CPI reactions usually happen in three stages. The first one is a headline shock with the potential algorithm’s reaction within a few seconds. Then comes the interpretation stage, with a time frame of 15-60 minutes and analysis of core numbers and yield confirmation. And then either continuation or reversal happens.

Approaches to Trading CPI Day

There are two common approaches to CPI.

The momentum approach requires the consistency of headlines and core surprises with yields’ confirmation. Most traders wait until the first minute’s candle is closed to avoid false signals.The fade approach requires dislocations like the absence of yield confirmation to FX movement or dislocations between headlines and core numbers. In this case, traders wait 10−20 minutes for exhaustion of the initial move and reversal setup search.

Risk management is crucial. Most traders limit their position size to 0.25%-0.50% of their equity because of widening spreads and slippage. Sometimes the decision to trade off is more optimal during extreme volatility than forced entry.

One Way to Prepare for the Next CPI Day Release

A simple way to get ready is to monitor EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY pairs and an economic calendar with events’ importance. The workflow is simple: Economic calendar → release → Trading platform.

The final step brings traders to the execution platform. Many turn to JustMarkets, which offers CFDs on these currency pairs, with execution stability and fast market access that make it well suited for high-volatility macro events.

Disclaimer: For informational purposes only. Trading financial instruments involves significant risk and may not be suitable for all investors. Ensure you understand the risks involved and trade responsibly.

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SOURCE Just Global Markets Ltd

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