Millions of boomer small business owners will soon retire. Will their companies just disappear? | Gene Marks

Want to buy my business? It’s been very profitable. I’ve run it for more than 25 years. But no, you don’t want to buy it. Like most small businesses in this country, there’s really nothing of value here.According to the Small Business Administration, there are approximately 33m small businesses in the US

One in five UK hospitality businesses fear collapse as costs surge

One in five hospitality businesses fear collapse in the next 12 months, according to an industry-wide survey that comes days before rises in tax and employment costs kick in.From Wednesday, many pub, restaurant and hotel companies face the prospect of a higher bill for business rates paid to their local authority, while an increase in minimum wage thresholds takes effect on the same day.The impending cost crunch has left the sector facing a crisis in confidence and warning of multiple business failures unless the burden is “dramatically reduced”.One in five of the survey respondents, who between them operate more than 20,000 venues, said their businesses were at risk of failing in the next 12 months.Almost half (44%) were pessimistic, while 17% were operating at a loss and 2% believed their businesses were already unviable, according to data shared with the Guardian by sector analysts CGA by NIQ

How Meta’s victim-blaming failed to sway jurors in landmark social media addiction trial

When Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, sought to defend itself in the landmark social media addiction lawsuit alleging its products caused personal injury to a young user, it went on the offensive. The mental health problems that the 20-year-old known as KGM suffered since she was a child were not the result of exposure to harm on Instagram, Meta’s lawyers and public relations team argued, but instead linked to her mother’s parenting and her offline social problems.In a bench memo filed before the trial began, lawyers for Meta quoted excerpts from KGM’s teenage text messages, personal writings and social media posts complaining about her mother. They combed through therapy notes and called on doctors to testify to examples of personal conflict. Throughout the proceedings, Meta’s communications team sent reporters repeated updates from the trial and quotes from testimony that highlighted her familial issues

‘Soon publishers won’t stand a chance’: literary world in struggle to detect AI-written books

Recently, the literary agent Kate Nash started noticing that the submission letters she was receiving from authors were becoming more thorough – albeit also more formulaic.“I took it as a rise in diligence,” she said. “I thought it was a good thing.”But then she had what she described as her eureka moment: the letter with the AI prompt right at the top. “It read: ‘Rewrite my query letter for Kate Nash including a comp to a writer she represents,’” she said

Andrew Bogut accused of body-shaming 36ers owner during NBL championship series

The Adelaide 36ers have lodged a formal complaint with the NBL over body-shaming comments allegedly made by Sydney Kings co-owner and assistant coach Andrew Bogut.In another twist to the bitter ongoing championship series, the Sixers on Monday accused former NBA player Bogut of making “persistent and repeated personal attacks” towards 36ers owner Grant Kelley.Reports emerged over the weekend that Bogut and Kelley had a heated exchange after Adelaide’s defeat of the Kings in game two of the championship series. Kelley claimed Bogut made comments about his weight in the tunnel, which Bogut later disputed.“Let’s just say I’m the size of Akebono the sumo wrestler, that’s my journey, that’s my issue,” Kelley told Code Sports on Sunday

Sinner sees off Lehecka to complete Sunshine Double without dropping a set

Jiri Lehecka entered his first Masters 1000 final at the Miami Open in the best serving form of his life. He had won every service game in the tournament, a feat achieved by just eight men at this level before him. The ease with which he brushed aside all nine break points against him reflected his confidence.It took two return games for Jannik Sinner to viciously drag the Czech back down to earth. Ten minutes in, Sinner had already broken Lehecka’s unbreakable serve