Son of West Wing president Martin Sheen and brother to Hollywood heartthrob and bad boy Charlie Sheen, the rise of Emilio Estevez felt inevitable from an early point in his career. Emilio Estevez became a household name in the 80’s, playing young, oddball characters in classic films like The Outsiders and Repo Man. He was famously a member of the “Brat Pack,” a group of youthful rising A-Listers, appearing alongside other Brat Pack members such as Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwald, and Rob Lowe in the films The Breakfast Club and St. Elmo’s Fire. In the Breakfast Club, Estevez took on his most well-known role, Andy the jock, who couldn’t think for himself, and who was driven to crush all opposition in a misguided attempt to live up to his father’s legacy of athletic domination.

Emilio Estevez continued his run of good-hearted tough guy roles by battling killer trucks as an ex-con in the Stephen King adaptation, Maximum Overdrive. In 1988 and 1990, he “reaped the whirlwind” of violence as the notoriously hot-headed crack shot, Billy the Kid, in the westerns Young Guns and Young Guns II. Estevez then had his first turn of success as a director with the black comedy Men at Work, in which Estevez co-starred with his brother, Charlie Sheen. Estevez and Sheen played slacker-hero garbage men solving a brutal murder and stopping the illegal dumping of toxic waste in their beloved coastal town. Although the film was panned by critics for the lowbrow humor and wacky sight gags, it was a major financial success and has since become a cult classic. Estevez appeared in several other action comedies like Stakeout, Stakeout II, and National Lampoon’s Loaded Weapon, but he struggled to recreate the popularity of his earlier 80’s hits with the Brat Pack.

Estevez attempted to turn his career around by re-inventing himself as the gruff, cynical coach with a heart of gold in 1992’s The Mighty Ducks and its sequels. The Disney family films were major successes for the studio, and they kicked off a wave of family-friendly sports movies like Cool Runnings, Angels in the Outfield, Heavyweights, The Big Green, and Air Bud. Critics were not kind to Coach Gordon Bombay however, and it was the beginning of the end for Estevez’s big screen career.

After a string of duds, cameos, and made for TV movies like Late Last Night and Rated X, Emilio Estevez fell off the map for many years. The struggling actor was divorced by the 80’s superstar, Paula Abdul. He found work doing voice acting for several cartoon films, but mostly disappeared from public view, at one point claiming “shyness” as the reason for his rare public appearances. In 2006, Emilio wrote and directed the ensemble historical drama, Bobby, about the assassination of the late Robert Kennedy, and received mixed praise from the world. Since then, Estevez has had a TV cameo or two, including one on his brother Charlie’s show, Two and a Half Men. The once lauded teen star also had a minor triumph directing his father in the thoughtful pilgrimage, The Way, in 2010, a movie about family, death, and acceptance.

Emilio Estevez In 2026 – What is He Doing Now?

Emilio Estevez has been busy working on the third installment of the ‘Young Guns’ film franchise, Guns III: Alias Billy the Kid. Directed and written by Estevez himself, the movie will star Christian Slater as Arkansas Dave Rudabaugh and Lou Diamond Phillips as Chavez; he will also be reprising his role as Billy the Kid. While the plot hasn’t been revealed, fans won’t have to wait much longer as the film is scheduled to be released on August 3, 2022.

Last year, he also appeared in the Disney series, The Mighty Duck: Game Changers, which centers around a young boy and the Mighty Ducks junior hockey team. In the series, Estevez plays the role of Gordon Bombay, the team’s original coach. Other cast members include Lauren Graham, Brady Noon, Maxwell Simkins, Taegen Burns, Julee Cerda, and Swayam Bhatia.

In 2018, he also worked on the drama film, The Public, which he directed, wrote, produced, and starred in. Released in theaters on April 5, 2019, the movie revolved around a group of homeless library patrons who refuse to leave after learning that all emergency shelters are full.

Outside of acting, he has also appeared on the talk shows The Kelly Clarkson Show, SportsNation, and Entertainment Tonight.

As far as his personal life goes, it was revealed in November 2021 that he had tested positive for COVID-19 back in March 2020, when the pandemic first started, and that he had suffered from Long COVID while filming the Mighty Ducks: Game Changers film in the fall of 2020.

For those who’d like to keep up with the actor, you can check out his Instagram page at @akawilliamhbonney. As of 2026, he has more than 8.4K followers. He also has a Twitter account, though it hasn’t been updated since 2011.

The post What Happened to Emilio Estevez – What Is He Doing Now In 2026? appeared first on Gazette Review.

Dan Gershon, Dave Levich and Eric Liberman appeared on Season 6 of the hit ABC television show, Shark Tank to pitch their “fun spin on a classic accessory.”  They started the company back in 2011 and described themselves as an up and coming facewear company that helps liven up any event or party. They started their pitch by wearing the traditional Groucho glasses, but quickly tossed the glasses off to the side and presented a variety of the current facewear glasses the company had to offer. The trio asked the sharks for $300,000 and a 5% equity stake in the company, a 6 million dollar evaluation.

They quickly dispersed several other designs to each of the sharks. The most befitting pair, was a devil design that was presented to Mr. Wonderful. Mark Cuban refused to wear his leprechaun pair, while Robert and Lori both sported their cowboy and cat designs. Robert Herjavec was the first to inquire further about the state of the company, asking if they had currently sold any glasses. The men responded that they currently had 5.7 million dollars in sales, with 2.8 million being solely from Sun-Staches. The rest of the sales came from their generic private label goods, which are traditional, mainstream sunglasses. Lori Grenier then asked about what retailers the company was currently working through. They responded that at the moment they mostly work with specialty retail, but also can be found in Party City and Toys R’ Us. Robert Herjavec went on to ask about each of the goods different price points at both the retail and cost level. The sharks were impressed to hear that the cost of manufacturing is between $0.75 to $1.50 and sold at retail for $7.99 to $12.99. The owners’ clarified that the price range is due to the complexity of the design. The trio tried to back their 6 million dollar evaluation by stating that they are on track for 6.4 million in sales and a $750,000 profit.

Unfortunately for them, Mr. Wonderful was not having any of it. He instead gave them a 2.5 million dollar evaluation and basically stated that they were delusional if they believed the company was worth any more than that at this point. He allowed them to try and defend their evaluation. The facewear company stated they felt the evaluation was fair because they had been recently in contact with Target department stores as well as working on other various licensing agreements. Robert Herjavec was quick to ask, “Then why do you need the money?” The three men went on to state they were having trouble getting the various licensing agreements and didn’t want to lose money going through a third-party company that may already have many of the licensing agreements they are aiming for.

Lori Grenier revealed that she just didn’t feel excited or passionate about the product and for that reason she was out. Mr. Wonderful quickly followed stating that because he felt they weren’t going to reevaluate their company to a price point he agreed with, he too was out. Robert Herjavec second Mr. Wonderful’s comments and felt that without a more reasonable evaluation he would not be able to move forward with Sun-Staches.

After three sharks dropped out, the facewear company quickly stated they were on Shark Tank to make a deal and gain a shark. They decided to decrease their evaluation down to 3 million dollars, asking for $300,000 and a 10% equity stake. Which left Damon and Mark still unimpressed.

Damon decided to offer them a deal on his own terms, 25% equity stake for $300,000. He reasoned that he was the best shark for the job due to his licensing connections which allow him to get licensing agreements at a reduced cost. Instead of taking the offer, the facewear company decided to counter $300,000 for 12.5% stake split between both Damon and Mark. Almost immediately Mark Cuban says that he is out due to their inability to reason and he is unwilling to take a 12.5% equity stake. The owners of Sun-Staches then counter Damon with an offer of  $300,000 for a 15% equity stake, an offer that he denies. He does however,  bring his original offer down from 25% to a 20% equity stake. The trio can’t help but to try and counter a 17% equity stake, one that Damon again turns down. After a few minutes of debating, the sunglass company states they came to make a deal and accept Damon’s offer.

In the end, Sun-Staches accepted Damon’s offer of $300,000 for a 20% equity stake in the company.

Recap on Update during Shark Tank Episode

Later on in Season 6, Shark Tank presents an update on the status and success of the deal Damon made with the novelty sunglass company. Less than 5 months into the partnership, Sun-Staches made 4.1 million dollars. Damon was also able to make a licensing deal with Marvel. Marvel is a company owned by the Walt
Disney Company that has over 8,000 different characters. Damon explains that Sun-Staches will pay a royalty to Marvel for each of the different products Sun-Satches sells. The sunglass company reveals that they had tried to strike a deal before appearing on Shark Tank and were unable to get a meeting, let alone a deal with them. All three of the entrepreneurs expressed how grateful they are for the opportunity of being on Shark Tank, as well as all of the guidance they have gotten from Damon since they were able to strike a deal.

SunStaches Now in 2018 – Shark Tank Update

Many of the recent Sun-Staches updates can be found on every one of the company’s major social media sites: Facebook, Instagram and twitter. They constantly seem to be innovating and creating new lines based on the time of year, current trends and demographic they are trying to reach. They also appear to run several different promotions throughout the year, that appear on each of the company’s social media pages. The company’s web page currently displays three main categories: superheroes, holidays and sports. They also offer “party packs” which are sets of three pairs of Sun-Satches at a discounted price. They can also be purchased online at Amazon.

The post Sun-Staches Shark Tank Update – The Company Now in 2018 appeared first on Gazette Review.

Nikki Pope appeared on the Shark Tank in season 2, with a money-saving idea to help parents entertain their children. Nikki Pope lives in Los Angeles, California and her company is called Toygaroo. Nikki Popo states that she has a large family, thirteen nieces and nephews in total, and that they absolutely love playing with toys, just like any other kid.

She calls her nieces and nephews “playtime professionals”, however, the problem is that the children really quickly get bored of the toys that they own. Nikki Pope states that this was the inspiration for her and her husband to create Toygaroo. According to Nikki Pope, Toygaroo offers a cost-effective way to not only for parents to declutter their homes, but also to keep their children entertained by always having new toys at their disposal.

Nikki Pope states that her husband and she do not have any children yet, but they definitely would like to have some. If the Sharks would like the idea behind Toygaroo, Nikki Pope and her husband would have the financial stability to be able to start their own family. Her dream for her company is that every family who have children that like to play with toys, will use Toygaroo. She really hopes that the Sharks will make her dream come true.

Toygaroo on Shark Tank

“Nikki Pope walks confidently and stands in front of the Sharks”

Nikki Pope starts her presentation by introducing herself to the Sharks, stating that her company is called Toygaroo, and that she is looking for an investment of one hundred thousand dollars, in exchange for a ten percent stake in her company.

Nikki Pope continues her presentation by stating that Toygaroo solves the problem that millions of families face every single day. She continues by stating that she has eleven brothers and sisters, and she is lucky enough to have thirteen outstanding nieces and nephews, who are all under the age of eight years.

According to Nikki Pope, her siblings are purchasing toy after toy for their kids, which clutters their playrooms, living rooms and bedrooms with toys that were purchased, played with for a couple of weeks and are then left completely untouched. Nikki Pope claims that Toygaroo solves that problem and does much more.

Nikki Pope states that Toygaroo is basically the Netflix for toys. Consumers can go to the Toygaroo website, pick a plan that is right for them, and fill their wish lists with toys that they would like to receive, after which Nikki Pope sends those toys right to their door. Once children get tired of playing with those toys, the parents can throw them back into the box, use the Toygaroo return label that is provided to them, and send the box back to Toygaroo.

“Barbara Corcoran asks Nikki Pope if she can see what the quality of the toys are like”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying absolutely, takes several toys from the table and brings them over to Barbara Corcoran and the other Sharks.

“Mark Cuban asks Nikki Pope how many toys she has in her catalogue”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that she has over three hundred different types of toys in her catalogue.

“Daymond John asks Nikki Pope how the toys are being processed, especially because kids are not the cleanest, making the toys dirty with their drool or bedbugs”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that cleanliness is very important at Toygaroo, which is why the toys always get sanitized when they return. Once the toys are sanitized, they get shrink-wrapped, ready to be shipped out to the next family that wants that toy.

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope if they shrink-wrap the toys all the time”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that they shrink-wrap the toys every single time.

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope who else is doing what Toygaroo is doing”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that there is not another company that is doing what Toygaroo is doing, which means that there is currently no competition.

“Robert Herjavec asks Nikki Pope what happens when a toy gets damaged”

Nikki Pope answers the question that in six months of running Toygaroo, they haven’t replaced a single toy completely yet. If a child does damage a toy, they sell the toy to the family at a discounted price.

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope to walk him through her business model, and to tell him how she makes money by renting toys”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that families have to pay a monthly membership fee, with membership plans starting at thirty five dollars a month and go all the way up to eighty nine dollars a month, depending on how often a family wants to receive toys.

“Daymond John and Kevin O’Leary state that thirty five dollars a month is a lot of money”

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope how many families signed up for a Toygaroo membership”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that they did a soft-launch with five hundred participants, which basically was like a test to see how many families were interested. All of the participants were paying forty two dollars a month for a box of toys that is worth over two hundred dollars. This means that a membership to Toygaroo costs those families five hundred dollars a year, which is great, because the average family spends anywhere between twelve and fourteen hundred dollars a year on toys.

“Mark Cuban asks Nikki Pope how much it costs her to ship a single toy box”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that a toy box has toys in it worth two hundred dollars, and it costs her anywhere between fifty to ninety dollars. This means that she made enough money to break-even, only after two and a half months of being in business.

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope how she is going to scale up Toygaroo”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that all she needs is more marketing and more exposure, because in the small amount of time that she had her five hundred customers by word of mouth, she got a waiting list of over a thousand people, waiting to participate.

“Robert Herjavec asks Nikki Pope if the business is sucking up a lot of cash, after it starts to grow tremendously like she mentioned before”

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope for every million dollars in sales, how much money would have to invest to purchase that inventory”

Nikki Pope answers Kevin O’Leary’s question by saying sixty four thousand dollars, which is the cost for the toys. That is going to cover a whole year of toys.

Kevin O’Leary starts getting angry for some reason and states that he has heard enough. He continues by saying that there is a problem, which is that Nikki Pope doesn’t yet have a million dollar company, but she is asking him to pay her as if it is a million dollar company.

Kevin O’Leary states that he wants to be an investor in Toygaroo, because he believes the concept is interesting and the company has a lot of potential. He continues by stating that it is a leap of faith, because he has to believe that Nikki Pope is going to grow Toygaroo.

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope if she has any partners in Toygaroo”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that her husband is a partner, she has a web designer and two online marketers that are partnering up with her as well.

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope how much she owns of Toygaroo”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that she owns ten percent of Toygaroo.

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope who owns the rest of Toygaroo”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that every partner owns ten percent, except for her husband, who owns fifty percent of Toygaroo.

“Robert Herjavec asks Nikki Pope how come her husband owns a larger chunk”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that it is what they decided when they started up.

“Barbara Corcoran asks Nikki Pope how happily she is married”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that she is incredibly happily married.

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope why she gave away such a large portion of her company, even though she was the one who came up with the idea”

Nikki pope answers the question by saying that her husband has worked with her on Toygaroo every single day, and that he has put a lot of his time and effort into the company.

“Kevin O’Leary and Barbara Corcoran ask Nikki Pope why they didn’t just equally divide the percentages, instead of giving away parts of her own to the other partners”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that she doesn’t really know why.

Daymond John states that he has a bad history with partners that didn’t own a majority share in their own company. He continues by stating that it is very risky to invest in a company and a person that doesn’t hold the majority share, and for that reason, he is out.

Kevin O’Leary states that he wished that Nikki Pope owned more of Toygaroo, but nevertheless, he is going to make her an offer. Kevin O’Leary makes an offer of a hundred thousand dollars, in exchange for a thirty five percent stake in Toygaroo.

Kevin O’Leary tells Nikki Pope that it is very rare for him not to ask for the controlling share of the company, especially because he is a control freak. He doesn’t want the controlling share because he trusts Nikki Pope, and tells her that he will be able to make her rich.

“Barbara Corcoran asks Nikki Pope if she has the right to sell thirty five percent”

Nikki Pope answers the question by saying that she has the right to do whatever she wants with her company.

Nikki Pope states that she had her eye on Kevin O’Leary the moment she came in through the doors of the studio.

Kevin O’Leary responds by saying that he had her eye on Nikki Pope as well.

Barbara Corcoran states that Nikki Pope is the first woman to come through those doors and be attracted to Kevin O’Leary.

“Several of the Sharks start laughing out loud”

“Kevin O’Leary asks Nikki Pope if she accepts his offer”

Robert Herjavec cuts in and states that he wants to make an offer as well.

“Robert Herjavec asks Mark Cuban if he would be interested in working together, offer more money and make a deal with Nikki Pope”

Mark Cuban answers the question by saying that he is absolutely interested.

Robert Herjavec states that the toy business could sell well over the internet, which is his expertise, but he needs the help of Mark Cuban in this.

Robert Herjavec and Mark Cuban offer a joint deal of two hundred thousand dollars, in exchange for a forty percent stake in Toygaroo.

Barbara Corcoran states that she was going to offer a lot less, which means that she doesn’t feel like joining in the bid war. Barbara Corcoran states that she is out.

Kevin O’Leary tells Nikki Pope that she should know that he is “Mr. Toy” because he has sold his company to a large toy store. He states that he also lived in Fisher Price for a year.

Robert Herjavec states that he believes that Nikki Pope needs more capital, and that she needs to be able to go faster, which is why she needs to market more on the internet.

Mark Cuban states that he has expertise in hyper growth, especially when it is online.

“Nikki Pope asks Kevin O’Leary what his relationship is like with Fisher Price and Mattel, because she knows that Kevin O’Leary worked with/for them in the past”

Kevin O’Leary answers the question by saying that Fisher Price and Mattel are never going to forget who he is, simply because he has done a great job for them.

“Nikki Pope asks Kevin O’Leary if he is willing to increase his number”

Kevin O’Leary answers the question by asking Nikki Pope if she would accept his offer, if he increases his offer to two hundred thousand dollars.

Nikki Pope answers the question by nodding her head up and down.

Kevin O’Leary states that he likes what Mark Cuban brings to the table, which is why he would like to split the offer with him.

Mark Cuban states that he has no problem with that, leaving Robert Herjavec behind.

Nikki Pope accepts Kevin O’Leary’s and Mark Cuban’s deal.

At the end interview, Nikki Pope states that it means so much to be in business with Mark Cuban and Kevin O’Leary. She cannot wait to see what is going to happen with Toygaroo.

Toygaroo Now in 2018 – After Shark Tank Update

Nikki Pope appeared on the Shark Tank, hoping to get an investment from one of the Sharks in order to be able to grow her “toy-renting service”. Before she appeared on the Shark Tank, she already did a soft launch, testing out if people actually were looking for a service like this. The test came out positive, which is why she wanted to scale up her company. She was especially eying Kevin O’Leary, because of his expertise in the toy industry.

After a small bidding war between Kevin O’Leary and Robert Herjavec/Mark Cuban, Kevin O’Leary decided to increase his offer and work together with Mark Cuban, which he accepted, leaving Robert Herjavec behind. Nikki Pope accepted the joint offer of two hundred thousand dollars, in exchange for a thirty five percent stake in Toygaroo.

Even though Nikki Pope received an investment from Mark Cuban and Kevin O’Leary, it doesn’t seem like the company is around anymore. A couple of years ago, there were signs of Toygaroo going bankrupt, especially after they posted a banner on their website, claiming they couldn’t take on any new members because of an “explosive growth”. After doing some research, I also found out that the Toygaroo website domain name and the brand name has been sold off, meaning that the company is no longer operating. It is a shame to see that companies still do not work out, even if they manage to get funded by the Sharks.

The post Toygaroo Update – How They’re Doing Now After Shark Tank appeared first on Gazette Review.

So we’ve put together a comparison on the two most popular eCommerce solutions in 2017, Shopify and WooCommerce. When it comes to building an online store these are far and away the two most popular options due to ease of use, expandability, and overall value. So the question really comes down to which option is better for YOU and YOUR online store in 2017.

To help you make that decision we’ve had the eCommerce, online marketing, and web dev pros from Optim Media Group give their feedback on both Shopify and Woocommerce. Based off these expert opinions we’ve put together a detailed comparison of these two online store solutions. So check out the breakdown below and hopefully determine which is the right eCommerce software for you in 2017.

Important Update: You can currently get started with Shopify for free in 2017 by Clicking HERE.

Appearance, Professionalism, & Overall Look

Both Woocommerce and Shopify allow users to build beautiful and professional looking websites & online stores.  You really don’t have to worry about being stuck with an ugly, unprofessional, or dated design with either platform. So lets take a closer look at both options:

Woocommerce: 

First things first, woocommerce is not a stand alone system but rather a Plugin that adds functionality to the blogging platform WordPress. So when it comes to the design of your online store it’s really a matter of finding a woocommerce compatible wordpress theme that fits your needs. The good news is there are a ton of great options available with a variety of free and paid themes to fit anyone’s design taste.When it comes to choosing between a free or premium theme, going the free route can be a decent option if you’re trying to cut costs and you’re handy with HTML & CSS.  That said time is money and a professional design will likely pay for itself many times over in increased branding, customer trust, and conversion rates.

So if you are serious about your online store and don’t want to spend hours customizing a free template to suit your needs you are probably going to want to stick to Premium themes. A great place to get premium woocommerce compatible themes is at ThemeForest.  You can click here to check out all the woocommerce themes currently available to get a better idea of how a woocommerce website can look.

Shopify:

Similar to woocommerce, shopify has both free and premium themes.  The difference is there is a huge selection of great looking free themes from Shopify.  Seriously unless you find a paid design you really fall in love with, you really don’t need to spring any extra money on a “premium” theme.

Another nice benefit is all the Shopify themes are fully mobile compatible so you don’t have to worry about any issues with users on mobile devices. Keep in mind every year more and more people are surfing the web on their iphones or android devices, so making sure you have a mobile compatible online store is crucial to maximizing your sales.

Design Winner: TIE – Both Platforms Have High End Designs Available

Features & Integrations

Probably the most important thing to look at when comparing Shopify and Woocommerce is their different sets of available features & how quick they are to launch new features when there’s a demand.  IE you don’t want to be waiting 10 months for pinterest integration for your online store while your competitors had it from day one.

Woocommerce: 

Woocommerce has a nice set of standard features like inventory management, user accounts and reporting features.

While woocommerce is “free” the features are where the costs can really start adding up. For most things outside of the core functionality there are extensions you need to add to your install for specific features and these extensions generally range from $49 to $249 each. These extensions include things like payment gateways (the ability to accept credit cards), social media integration, email lists, shipping provider integration, advanced coupons, and more.

Sure you can launch a basic online store without these extensions but you’ll really be missing a lot of the core features that make an online store successful.  Another thing to keep in mind is that all these different extensions can cause conflicts with one another and result in bugs. These usually get fixed relatively quickly but no one wants to update a plugin extension and lose some other core functionality until the developer gets around to patching it.

All that said woocommerce is an impressive, expandable system and can really handle most everything you would want.

Shopify:

Shopify on the other hand is an all in one solution. Right out of the box you can have unlimited products, advanced analytics and order reports, automatic tax calculations, gift cards and coupon codes, built in SEO functionality (everyone wants to rank high in google right?) and a variety of other cutting edge features.

Shopify is also one of the only ecommerce platforms that integrates automatically with just about every popular social media platform you can imagine.  Would you like the ability to sell to your facebook fans directly from your facebook page or maybe on Pinterest with “buyable” pins? Well Shopify makes this a piece of cake.

The big difference between Shopify and WooCommerce is how features are developed.  While wordpress has a variety of random developers who all build plugins independently (some better than others), Shopify has a full time staff of developers who add features to the core product.

Another unique benefit of Shopify is the “offline” point of sale system. If you’re in the type of industry where you want (or already have) a physical location having a full checkout solution is a necessity. Also having a fully integrated system like this can take a lot of headaches out of managing your business. If you’ve ever sold out of a product in store and then had an online order come through for the same product you know what I’m talking about. Having a fully integrated system makes these types of issues a moot point.

Additionally for small startup businesses the ability to take credit cards in person allows a ton of flexibility for small popup shops at festivals or others events.

Features & Functionality Winner: Shopify 

Flexibility, Ease of Use, & Scalability

Let’s get this out there right away, you can customize both solutions to meet most any needs. That said woocommerce is just going to take a little more work.  If you have a strong background in programming (ideally php, mysql, javascript, html, and css) Woocommerce can be great option as you can essentially customize it completely to suit your needs.

Woocommerce: 

The startup is a bit more involved with woocommerce as you will need to setup a hosting server with a hosting provider, install the wordpress CMS on said server, upload/configure all the necessary plugins, upload/configure your chosen theme, and then start setting up your products and pages.

As your website traffic grows you may need to look into setting up things like a content delivery network for serving your image files, automatic backups so a server crash doesn’t cause you to completely lose your website, ect.

Shopify:

Shopify on the other hand makes it a lot easier for non-programmers. You don’t have to worry about your hosting plan, server configuration, manual updates to your software (and future compatibility issues), ect. Everything is just handled for you in the background. One of our developers put it this way: “Shopify is similar to Apple in the way that it just works, where as Woocommerce requires a little more technical know how to get everything running smoothly similar to a linux install.”

Shopify also makes it easy to grow and scale as a business.  With a woocommerce install you are probably going to need to change your servers and hosting plans as you grow where as again with Shopify everything will just be handled for you in the background.

That said both options provide a platform that can grow right along with you. For example shopify is used for huge festivals like Lollapalooza while also being the choice of the global fashion brands owned by Daymond John (of Shark Tank & FUBU fame.)

Flexibility, Ease of Use, & Scalability Winner: Shopify 

Cost & Value

Woocommerce is a free plugin which you can install on a WordPress based website. Shopify on the other hand is an all in one solution with the cheapest plan running $29 a month. At face value woocommerce looks like a cheaper option than Shopify, that said when you start adding up the different associated costs they are a lot closer than you would think.

Costs of a Woocommerce Installation:

Hosting Plan – First thing you are going to need is a hosting plan and you aren’t going to want a discount shared hosting account for your online store. With an ecommerce based business time is money, the longer customers need to wait for pages to load the higher your dropoff rates are going to be.  Risking your businesses livelihood to a $10 a month host is asking for trouble. So you are probably going to want to go with a trusted wordpress hosting provider who can scale with you, like WP Engine.  The cheapest plan for a single website at WP Engine is… Yep $29 a month. That said WP Engine is a great host, just check it out here.

SSL Certificate – To process payments on your website you need an SSL Certificate.  Shopify provides SSL certificates at no cost to users.  WP Engine charges $49.99 a year for an SSL Certificate.

Woocommerce Extensions – If you want the ability to accept credit cards, print shipping labels, have custom invoices, social media integration, ect you are going to need to add extensions to your woocommerce installation.  Most premium extensions range from $49 to $249 each.

Theme Design – This depends on if you go with a free theme or a premium theme. If you go the premium route you are probably going to spend around $50-100.

Credit Card Processing Fees – Both options are going to be pretty similar on this cost.  Shopify charges 2.9% + 30¢ for online transactions and 2.7% + 30¢ for offline credit card processing.  The most economical credit card processing solution for woocommerce would be to integrate it with the Stripe API which comes in at exactly the same rate of 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction.

Based off these figures a comparable woocommerce setup is probably going to start around $35 a month with probably a couple hundred dollars in upfront costs to get everything setup and configured. Sure you could cut costs by using overloaded shared hosting accounts and free unsupported plugins but that’s going to end up costing you way more in the long run in downtime and man hours.

When it really comes down to it the $29 a month plan at Shopify is a huge bargain. For less than a dollar a day your business will have access to an ecommerce platform and full featured website that rivals that of multi-million dollar corporations.  Let that sink in for a minute, it costs more money to grab a latte at starbucks twice a week then it does to run a global business online.

You really need to ask yourself, if you aren’t willing to invest at least that much money into your business how would you ever realistically expect it to be successful.

Cost & Value: Shopify 

Recap & Review

Shopify Pros:

• All in one solution
• Professional looking designs
• New features constantly being added
• The ability to sell products both online and offline
• Fully scalable & grows along with you
• 24/7 Support from dedicated customer advisers
• Fast setup – Be up and selling in a few hours
• Great value for what you get

Shopify Cons:

• Shopify Liquid – If you want to hack around in the code (for most users there really isn’t a need) it’s going to be a bit confusing vs a standard language like php
• Blogging – Shopify has a built in blogging system but it isn’t as expansive as something like wordpress

WooCommerce Pros:

• Built on Top of WordPress – If you want to blog or build out a lot of content this is very nice to have
• Open Source Code – If you like to really get down and dirty with your code wordpress and woocommerce are a programmers dream
• Low Cost – For the most part WooCommerce is a great value as the core functionality is free
• Large network of Theme and Plugin Developers – If you think of something for the website someone else has probably already built it

WooCommerce Cons: 

• Hidden Costs – Sure you can keep the costs down a bit but they do add up from hosting, ssl certificates, domains, themes, plugins and extensions ect
• Steep Learning Curve – It’s a fair bit harder to get acclimated with the system than something like Shopify
• Lots of moving parts – You not only need to run you business but also manage your hosting server, handle updates, install and configure plugins/themes, troubleshoot issues that arise ect
• No Real Support – Since woocommerce is open source and managed by volunteers you won’t have access to support for a lot of issues that may arise. That said there are a fair amount of forums and the community tends to help each other out.

In the end the battle of the two fastest rising ecommerce giants isn’t really much of a battle at all. That’s not to say woocommerce isn’t a great piece of software, quite the contrary it’s an excellent product. However shopify just sets the bar so high for less than a dollar a day that it’s really in a league of it’s own in 2017. It’s pretty wild to think that only a few years ago launching an online store required a professional web design firm and tens of thousands of dollars upfront. Now you can get a platform head and shoulders above the competition for a fraction of your cell phone bill.

Best Ecommerce Platform of 2017 Winner: Shopify

If you want to take advantage of a no obligation, free trial of Shopify you can click here to automatically apply a free 14 day trial to your account. 

If you would like to download woocommerce you can click here.

The post Shopify vs WooCommerce in 2018 – Which is Better For Your Online Store? appeared first on Gazette Review.

List of the Best Green Tea Health Benefits

1. Heart Health

In many studies, regular consumption of green tea was linked to an overall decrease in cholesterol and blood pressure. It also was shown to prevent various heart diseases brought about by cholesterol and blood pressure, such as congestive heart failure and atherosclerosis (the progressive hardening and blocking of the arteries). Also observed was a tendency of green tea to ease blood flow just thirty minutes after consumption. High cholesterol and other forms of heart disease are almost always the products of many years of buildup, so adopting green tea into your lifestyle (combined with generally healthy practices) would lower your chances of future heart problems. Even drinking a cup a day can be a great investment for later life!

2. Mental Health

The cardiovascular benefits of green tea are also linked to improved brain function, because better blood flow results in the brain receiving more blood. This enhanced brain function generally includes better short-term cognitive and perceptual processing—essentially an increase in brainpower. Of course, this claim is backed by solid research, a Swiss study demonstrated, through MRIs, that regular drinkers of green tea had higher activity in the working-memory areas of their brains (the area of the brain concerned with perceptual and linguistic processing).
Further studies also hinted at green tea delaying or preventing Alzheimer’s disease by stopping the formation of harmful plaques. While green tea shouldn’t be mistaken for some sort of magical nootropic, incorporating it into your lifestyle should certainly help improve your mental capabilities by a degree.

3. Prevents and Helps Manage Diabetes

Diabetes (the type II variant) is a very common disease that results from the body not being able to properly process sugar. Green tea has been shown to manage blood sugar levels in people with diabetes; this is because it induces a biochemical interaction that helps cells metabolize sugar (mainly glucose) better. This has done wonders for people with diabetes who regularly consume green tea.
Regular consumption of green tea also seems to prevent diabetes. A Japanese study found that people who drank 6 cups of green tea a day were 33% less likely to develop type II diabetes. A series of similar studies also found that while most types of tea help with the prevention and management of diabetes, green tea is ideal for this purpose.

4. Helps Lessen Weight Gain

While green tea isn’t a drug that will make you shed pounds like fur, drinking it regularly will reduce gains in body fat over time. It’s wonderful for preventing weight problems later on in life and mitigating the effects of a fatty diet (which is to be avoided nonetheless). Research has observed that people who drank green tea regularly for over a decade possessed markedly smaller waist sizes and body fat percentages.

Green tea also ups the metabolic rate, which means you will burn fat more easily. Combine green tea with a good exercise routine, and you’ll soon be quite fit!

5. Loaded with Antioxidants

Green tea is rich in antioxidants, specifically substances called catechins. Antioxidants protect cells from damage by reducing the buildup of molecular substances called free radicals. This, over time, lessens health problems and even lengthens your lifespan! The ability of green tea to promote heart and brain health stems directly from the large amount of catechins it contains. Antioxidants are known to be extremely beneficial to the body, and green tea contains lots of them.

6. May Help Prevent Cancer

Another remarkable benefit of antioxidants is their observed tendency to prevent cancer. People who consume larger amounts of antioxidants are significantly less likely to develop a form of cancer. Studies have focused on the cancer-preventing effects of green tea itself; some studies show a correlation with reduced cancer rates, while others show no conclusive data. More research must be done to determine green tea’s effectiveness in preventing cancer, but it is likely that cancer prevention is another one of green tea’s amazing qualities.

7. Promotes Calmness/Relaxes Mind and Body

Tea is known to be a calming, relaxing drink. What most don’t know is that there’s a scientific explanation behind this, green tea contains a natural substance called L-theanine, which has calming effects on the human body. L-Theanine suppresses anxiety while encouraging the production of dopamine, a neurotransmitter associated with happiness.

8. Kills Bacteria and Prevents Infection

The catechins in green tea have been seen to possess antibacterial and antiviral properties. Regularly drinking green tea will inhibit the growth and spread of harmful microorganisms in your body, drastically lowering your chance of infection. These antibacterial properties promote oral health as well, because the bacteria in the mouth that cause tooth decay and bad breath are killed or prevented from spreading. (You should still brush your teeth!)

9. Acts as a Stimulant, Doesn’t Make You Jittery

Green tea, like coffee, acts as a stimulant due to its caffeine content. However, green tea has less caffeine than coffee, but just enough to stimulate you without making you jittery like coffee does. Additionally, the caffeine and L-theanine in green tea work together to improve and enhance brain function. Of course, this makes green tea the perfect drink for the workplace (or when you’re trying to get something done last-minute). With all the gifts of green tea, why even go back to coffee?

10. It’s Better than Most Other Drinks

Let’s face it, sodas are unhealthy and contain lots of sugar, which turns to fat easily. Coffee makes you jittery, and comes with a host of its own problems. If you regularly drink these, you might want to make a healthy life choice and drink more green tea instead. You’ll start to see changes in your life, from your fitness to your mental well-being.

You now know all the benefits of drinking green tea, short term and long term. A lifestyle that includes green tea is bound to be a healthy one; even a single cup will produce immediate results. Go ahead, try a cup of green tea, or try drinking a cup a day for a week or two—and see these amazing things for yourself!

The post Top 10 Health Benefits of Green Tea appeared first on Gazette Review.

On March of 2011, the notorious Donald Trump was roasted on Comedy Central. Among the cast of roasters were Whitney Cummings, Lisa Lampinelli, Jeff Ross, and, to the dismay of the audience, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentine. When it was time for him to take the stage and make the audience laugh, the reality TV star couldn’t have flopped any harder. After starting off his skit with a few mediocre raunchy jokes that earn a few chuckles from the crowd, Mike proceeds to make the crowd and cast uncomfortable by attempting to apply terminology from The Jersey Shore to his punchlines. Ultimately, Mike was set up for failure as soon as he was recruited for the roast, because unlike the rest of his co-stars, he is not known for his comedic excellence. Clearly this was evident enough after the crowd practically booed him off stage and Jeff Ross rushed to the podium in attempt to keep things from falling too flat and uncomfortable.

4) Hank Johnson Fears That Guam Will Tip Over

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNZczIgVXjg

During a meeting in 2010, Hank Johnson, a member of the Senate, made everyone chuckle as he voiced his fears concerning the deployment of the military to Guam. Easing his way into the discussion, Johnson got into excessive detail about the small size of the island to put emphasis on his idea that adding too much stress to the small island would likely be fatal. Johnson stated that “My fear is that the whole island will become so overly populated that it will tip over and capsize”, voicing his concern that he believed that Guam would go belly up if too many people were to take up residency upon it. Now, it’s completely understandable to not want to ship off soldiers, but to not do it out of fear of the island flipping over? That’s extremely absurd and definitely ridiculous. Obviously Mr. Johnson missed out on a few middle school science classes.

3) The Boy in the Balloon Found Hiding in Attic

In 2009, pandemonium struck in Colorado when the Heene family lost their son. It was the family’s belief that their 6-year-old son had somehow gotten into a helium balloon that began to drift across Colorado. According to many onlookers, they claimed that something fell from the balloon as it traveled for 50 miles, but whatever it was that fell, it wasn’t the boy. The Heene’s found their son hiding in a box in the attic of their home. Apparently he had been frightened about getting in trouble and so hid away while his parents feared the worst.But that’s not the most awful part of the story. Later, during an interview, Falcon Heene confessed that “we did this for the show”. Followed by the boy’s truth was stunned silence and awkward murmurings from his parents. Later that year, Richard Heene was charged for attempting to influence a public servant and pleaded guilty. He was then sentenced to 90 days in jail and charged $36,000 in restitution. Looks like their balloons were busted.

2) Kanye West Interrupts Taylor Swift

Perhaps one of the most memorable moments from television history, in 2009 Kayne West really outdid himself at the MTV VMAs. Taylor Swift, a rising country star at the time, was the face of pure surprise when he name was called for best female music video. Our hearts soared with joy as the singing sweetheart stood on stage to begin her thank you speech. Swift got no more than a few words out before the hip hop artist took to the stage and practically grabbed the microphone right out of her hands. During his interruption, Kanye claimed that Beyonce had “one of the best videos of all time” and left Swift stunned and practically in tears. Even Beyonce looked disgusted with her fellow musician’s uncalled for outburst. As the saying goes, if you don’t have anything nice to say, then don’t say anything at all.

1) Janet Jackson’s Superbowl Wardrobe Malfunction

Finally, at the top of our list of Most Awkward Moments from TV History is Janet Jackson and her infamous nip-slip. During the 2004 Superbowl, Miss Jackson and Justin Timberlake were performing Rock Your Body together on stage during the half time show. The performance itself was altogether very steamy and sexual, but during the end of the show, Timberlake reached across Jackson’s chest and tore off a bit of her clothing that ended up exposing her breast. Though she was only exposed for a moment, that was enough to give this particular Superbowl the nickname “Nipplegate”. Jackson later apologized for what happened during the show, but that wasn’t enough to change what happened. Her wardrobe malfunction is still one of the most recognized today.

The post 5 Of The Most Awkward TV Moments of All Time appeared first on Gazette Review.

But when was the last time you heard his name? How could someone whose career was only beginning, had just started to blossom and had a ceiling so high, go from teenage star to unknown? His story, his rise and fall, is an astonishingly bizarre, almost cautious tale.

The Rise of Haley Joel Osment

Born in 1988, Haley Joel Osment lived his early life in Los Angeles, California. His father was an actor himself, and his lone sibling, Emily Osment, became an actor herself. Because of his family’s ties with the industry of film, Haley began his acting career at the age of four. He had gone to a furniture store with his mother, Theresa Osment, only to bump into a talent scout. Haley had his information written down, and got a reply soon after. At the audition, he was asked to describe the biggest thing he had ever seen. Haley described an IMAX theater screen, and ending up winning a part in a Pizza Hut commercial. Osment had won the part not only with his delightful enthusiasm, but with his rare acting skills. This small commercial jump-started his career, and his fame started to increase at a rapid, exponential rate.

He soon landed the role that would give him worldwide fame: the young boy Cole Sear, a psychic child in the film, The Sixth Sense. He was only 11 years old, yet during the audition he was able to perform at a much higher level than any other young actor his age. While filming the movie, he was so determined to get the part perfect; he would do tricks unheard of to make sure his mind was in sync with his character. He was known to slam his head into the wall of the filming area in order to conjure the sense of dread and pain that the scene required, and he would continuously perform this action until he felt he was hurt enough to play the part with the proper emotions. During another difficult scene where he got slapped by his in-film mother, Osment asked her to forgo the staged slap and literally strike him with force so that he could, “feel the shock”. This type of acting behavior was unheard of; the fact that it was coming from an 11 year old showed how special Haley really was.

After receiving international attention for his part in The Sixth Sense, Haley landed another starring role in a movie from arguably the most influential director of all time: Steven Spielberg. The movie, Artificial Intelligence, was revolutionary in its own right. It offered a warning of the potential harms of a technologically advanced society, similar to the novels 1984 by George Orwell and Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. While the movie itself was a big hit, Osment’s fame rose dramatically, to an unseen level for such a young actor. And he wasn’t your average Shirley Temple, using his voice and looks to gain the audiences’ heart; he was a bona fide actor who used his incredibly advanced skills to portray a character’s emotions better than many adult actors. He had arguably the brightest future of any actor his age.

Haley Joel Osment – What Happened?

Now to the real question, what happened to Haley Joel Osment? In 2006, after appearing in numerous other films, Haley Osment’s career took a sharp turn. As we’ve seen today with many celebrities who experience fame at a young age – Lindsey Lohan, Miley Cyrus, and Justin Beiber, to name a few – most kids have trouble dealing with all the pressure.

However, on October 19th, 2006, when Osment pleaded no contest for drunk driving and drug possession after a car crash, it couldn’t have been more surprising. Not only did he receive numerous injuries including a broken rib and a fractured shoulder, he was sentenced to three years of probation, numerous hours in alcohol education programs, and multiple fines. His acting career was suddenly put on hold.

It was discovered that he had a drug and alcohol problem after this event, and he was no longer getting the usual invites to audition for blockbuster movies. He eventually came back into the realm of acting with his role in David Mamet’s American Buffalo reboot, however the movie was released to mixed reviews from critics and a statement was soon released saying the film would close after the first week.

What is Haley Joel Osment Doing Now in 2018?

Haley Osment was last heard of earning a starring role in the movie Wake the Dead, with production beginning in late 2011. However, to this day no publishing status has been released. Aside from small appearances in Alpha House and The Spoils of Babylon, Osment’s career has hit a standstill. His story is another cautious tale of a young star with unlimited potential who became his own enemy. His demons took over him and ruined what he had left. Ironically, his character in his most famous movie was haunted, and he now was in real life.

The saddest part of Haley’s story is how he isn’t alone. Almost every child celebrity in this generation starts to go down the wrong path. For every success story like Hillary Duff – or even Haley’s sister Emily Osment – there are even more stories like Lindsay Lohan or Molly Ringwald. The truth is, no one is a sure thing. Haley Osment is the ideal example of this unfortunately common predicament and an example of how quickly celebrities can fall off the map.

The post What Happened To Haley Joel Osment – 2018 News & Updates appeared first on Gazette Review.