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ONMYWAY station service Photo Olivier Evard
Photo credit: Olivier Evard

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A new dry cleaning service has been launched in the Lake Geneva region, which aims to fit in with the hectic lifestyles of its clients.

Called “On My Way”, the new service allows clients to register their garments for cleaning online, and then drop them off at any of their 20 partner service stations, conveniently situated on motorway routes and in towns and cities in the Lake Geneva region.

The pioneering “On My Way" concept is the brainchild of long-standing friends, Cédric Rimella and Carlos Serrano, who recognized the need to simplify people’s lives by giving them access to an easy and efficient, high quality dry cleaning service on their daily commutes.  

harcourt photos

From 23 to 25 May, 2014, the luxurious five-star Hotel d’Angleterre in Geneva will host the renowned Paris-based photography studio, Harcourt. During this time, the public will have the opportunity to reserve an unforgettable one-hour photo shoot with makeup professionally applied beforehand, or simply come by and see an exposition of the studio's most famous portraits.

Best known for their famous black and white cinema portraits for the Cannes Film Festival, Harcourt is one of the most renowned photographic studios today. Their photos are particularly distinguished by an inimitable use of lighting, which brings out each person’s individual and natural glow. The Studio Harcourt's professionalism and unique know-how have sustained their world-wide reputation since 1934.

puzzleyoga1

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Current research indicates that introducing young children to puzzles at an early age can help them develop problem solving, mathematical, spatial and social skills.  An early start can apparently also help in keeping Alzheimer’s at bay as you get older.

It is for these reasons, that local mom, Chandana Sen, started buying puzzles for her own son when he was about 9 months old. She told knowitall.ch, “I used to source jigsaws as well as educational board games in English for my son from outside Switzerland as I could not find anything suitable or attractively priced here. Other parents also started showing interest in my son’s puzzles and, within a short period of time, I realized the potential for starting my own online business, www.puzzleyoga.com, selling puzzles in this country!”

Chandana sells puzzles for toddlers, kids, teenagers and adults. She defines puzzles as anything that intrigues the mind, so she stocks anything from walking penguins with flapping feet for a toddler, through to jigsaw puzzles for preschoolers and above, wooden 3D puzzles for the 7 year old, creativity kits and acrylic 3D jigsaw puzzles for preteens, and the tough Hanayama metal puzzles for teenagers and adults.

webstamp

In case some of you missed the news towards the end of last year, Swiss Post has launched a new SMS postage stamp service to allow customers to purchase stamps on their phone.  The new service will run initially as a one-year pilot project, during which Swiss Post will test its acceptance amongst customers.

Available for domestic A mail items up to B5 format (25cm x 17.6 cm), weighing up to 100g and measuring no more than 2cm thick, the service works simply by sending the keyword “STAMP” via SMS to the number “414”.  A code is then sent to the customer’s phone, which should then be written in the top right-hand corner of the envelope, before posting it in a letter box. The code is valid for ten days and may be used once only. It may also be requested via the Swiss Post smartphone apps for Android or iPhone.The fixed cost of franking, including the text message is set at CHF 1.20 including VAT, regardless of the subscription contract.

vtx specialpackage 2014

Swiss telecom operator, VTX Telecom, has just launched a new, all-in-one package, targeted at English-speaking residential clients who require Internet access, telephone and TV.

Called Madejust4u, the new package includes up to 30MB broadband access on the Swiss fiber network (or 20MB if fiber not available), free fixed-line calls to over 40 countires, 135 TV channels (with multi-screen access) including 35 in English, and 3000 videos on demand of which more than 600 are also in English.

Aware that many expats living in Switzlerland have difficulty liaising with local service providers in French, the service also includes a dedicated English-speaking contact, free set-up, and flexible cancellation terms adapted to their personal situation.  The total package, which also includes a wireless router and TV decoder, costs just Fr. 107.- /month.