COMPANY NEWS IN BRIEF

KFC apologises for Kristallnacht chicken promotion

KFC has been forced to apologise after sending a notification to German customers encouraging them to commemorate the Kristallnacht anti-Jewish pogrom with fried chicken and cheese.

The fast food chain sent a notification on Wednesday suggesting customers "treat themselves" on the anniversary of the 1938 Kristallnacht, or Night of Broken Glass, the Bild daily reported.

On November 9, 1938, Nazi mobs torched and ransacked synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses across Germany in what is widely seen as the start of the Third Reich's drive to wipe out Jews.

"Commemoration of Kristallnacht - Treat yourself to more soft cheese and crispy chicken. Now at KFCheese!," the message reportedly read.

KFC sent another message around an hour later blaming the blunder on "an error in our system", Bild said.

"We are very sorry, we will check our internal processes immediately so that this does not happen again. Please excuse this error," the message said.-Fin24

Builders flags shortage of inverters

Builders, one of the largest DIY chains in South Africa, has flagged a shortage of inverters at its stores and suppliers following the scramble by consumers to secure back-up power in response to the country’s unprecedented load shedding in July and October.

In response to questions from News24, Builders, which is owned by JSE-listed Massmart, confirmed that due to the "unexpected Stage 6 load shedding in July and October" there had been an increase in inverter purchases "which cleared most stock on retailers’ shelves and supplier warehouses". It confirmed the shortage was experienced nationwide.

Mpeyake Khosa, Builders SA electric and alternate power buyer, said that while the industry had made efforts to "play catch-up, most retailers and vendors were "still sold out and currently waiting for stock as we speak".

He said logistics supply chains had also been a big challenge for suppliers due to the "increasing unit costs, shipment by shipment", as well as the Transnet strike in October, which "added to the impact on movement of stock".

"As a result, vendors have had to opt for air freight to catch up with demand and brands have resorted to assembling their inverter trolley units locally to meet demand."-Fin24

Twitter ownership descends into more chaos

Elon Musk's ownership of Twitter descended ever deeper into chaos as key security executives resigned from the platform, drawing a sharp warning from US regulators.

The walkouts came a day after the turbulent launch of new features introduced by Tesla and SpaceX owner Musk following his US$44 billion buyout of the influential messaging app.

Musk on Thursday warned employees that the site was burning dangerously through cash, raising the specter of bankruptcy if the situation was not turned around.

"I've made the hard decision to leave Twitter," tweeted chief security officer Lea Kissner, who reportedly stepped down with other key privacy or security executives.

In the most extraordinary exit, US media reported that Yoel Roth, the site's head of trust and safety stepped down just a day after staunchly defending Musk's content moderation policy to advertisers.

The convulsions followed the unveiling of the site's long-awaited Twitter Blue subscription service, which allows users to pay US$7.99 per month for a coveted blue tick, as well as a separate gray "official" badge for some high-profile accounts.-Fin24