And beyond the necessities, buy high-tech toys, high-end gifts, gourmet treats, and brand name shampoos and attire.

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But despite its strengths and its reputation with its customers, Jennifer Pigg, an analyst with the Yankee Group, a high-tech consultancy, reckons that the lack of a recognised brand could hold Equant back.

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At Nike, the brand's third collaboration with Japanese designer Jun Takahashi has yielded a high-tech running jacket in which the super-ventilated hood and arms can be zipped out of the slim-fitting body.

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