
Reynwood Communications Launches TextAware, Powered by Clerk Chat, to Modernize Business Messaging
'With TextAware, powered by Clerk Chat, our clients can now turn their existing phone lines into modern messaging engines - without compromising quality, security, or compliance.' Share
TextAware integrates seamlessly into Reynwood's hosted voice platform, empowering businesses to text-enable their current numbers for fast, reliable communication with customers over SMS. The service enhances responsiveness across sales, support, and operations, while preserving brand professionalism and message control.
'This is a natural evolution of Reynwood's mission to make business communication more intelligent, responsive, and accessible,' said Rich Kelly, Founder and CEO of Reynwood Communications. 'With TextAware, powered by Clerk Chat, our clients can now turn their existing phone lines into modern messaging engines – without compromising quality, security, or compliance.'
TextAware operates independently of voice services to ensure uninterrupted call flow while enabling real-time customer engagement via SMS. Built with business compliance in mind, it supports 10DLC registration, opt-in/out controls, keyword blacklists, and enterprise-grade encryption. Advanced features also include automated replies, bulk messaging, CRM syncs, and AI-enhanced customer interaction.
'Partnering with Reynwood allows Clerk Chat to reach innovative businesses that prioritize meaningful customer connections,' added Alexander Haque, CEO and co-founder of Clerk Chat. 'Together, we're making it easier for companies to engage with their audiences through the messaging channels they already know and trust.'
About Reynwood Communications
Founded in 2002, Reynwood Communications provides reliable, scalable hosted phone systems, VoIP solutions, and business communication tools tailored for SMBs, growing enterprises, and multi-location organizations. Reynwood helps its clients simplify communication infrastructure and elevate customer engagement by integrating advanced voice, SMS, and now AI-powered solutions across industries. To learn more, visit https://reynwood.com.
About Clerk Chat
Clerk Chat is a secure, carrier-grade, conversational messaging platform built specifically for business communication. Designed to meet compliance standards like 10DLC, Clerk Chat enables companies to send and receive text messages using their existing phone numbers, while offering powerful features like integrations with popular CRM and eDiscovery systems, automation via AI agents, and campaign messaging. Trusted by forward-thinking enterprises and service providers, Clerk Chat bridges the gap between legacy communication systems and the modern messaging expectations of today's customers. For more information visit clerk.chat.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
9 minutes ago
- Yahoo
NC-based app uses AI to fight denied health insurance claims
A new app developed in North Carolina is using artificial intelligence to fight denied health insurance claims. The app, from Counterforce, lets residents upload their insurance coverage documents along with their denial letter. ALSO READ: The cost of AI: Who pays to power the future? It then combines them to create a medically based analysis that residents can print and send back to their insurance company. Counterforce is free for anyone to use online. VIDEO: The cost of AI: Who pays to power the future?


Business Wire
11 minutes ago
- Business Wire
Birks Group Inc. Reports Fiscal 2025 Results
MONTREAL--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Birks Group Inc. (the 'Company' or 'Birks Group') (NYSE American: BGI), today reported its financial results for the fiscal year ended March 29, 2025. All figures presented herein are in Canadian dollars. For the fiscal year ended March 29, 2025 ('fiscal 2025'), the Company reported net sales of $177.8 million, a decrease of $7.5 million or 4.0%, from the comparable fiscal year ended March 30, 2024 ('fiscal 2024'). Comparable store sales for fiscal 2025 decreased by 3.4% compared to the corresponding period in fiscal 2024. The decrease in net sales and comparable store sales is mainly due to lower sales of branded jewelry due to the exit of a jewelry brand from two stores. When excluding the third-party jewelry brand movement, the comparable store sales increased by 6.9%, mainly driven by timepiece sales. The Company reported gross profit of $66.3 million, or 37.3% of net sales, compared to $73.6 million, or 39.7% of net sales in fiscal 2024, due to lower sales volume resulting from the exit of a jewelry brand from two stores. Gross profit as a percentage of sales for fiscal 2025 was 37.3%, a decrease of 240 basis points from the gross profit as a percentage of sales of 39.7% for fiscal 2024 as a result of the sales mix with decreased sales from third-party branded jewelry, as well as a foreign exchange loss. Mr. Jean-Christophe Bédos, President and Chief Executive Officer of Birks Group, commented: 'Although our net sales and comparable store sales for fiscal 2025 are lower than fiscal 2024, when excluding the effect of third-party jewelry brand movement, comparable store sales are positive year-over-year, as a result of a strong retail performance and product offering particularly in our third-party branded timepieces. In fiscal 2025, we opened two new stores under the TimeVallée and Birks brands and continued to benefit from the fiscal 2024 renovations in our Chinook and Laval locations. These initiatives along with our recent announcement of the acquisition of the watch and jewelry business of European Boutique will continue to generate greater sales and contribute to improve our results.' Mr. Bédos further commented: 'I would like to thank our teams for their tireless efforts. The results achieved in fiscal 2025 are a testament to our commitment to our customers and I am grateful for the unwavering efforts of all our employees and the implementation of various initiatives during this past year to enhance our product offering and customer experience.' Financial overview for the fiscal year ended March 29, 2025: Total net sales for fiscal 2025 were $177.8 million compared to $185.3 million in fiscal 2024, a decrease of $7.5 million, or 4.0%. The decrease in net sales in fiscal 2025 was primarily driven by the results of the Company's retail channel. Net retail sales in fiscal 2025 were $7.3 million lower than fiscal 2024, primarily due to the decrease in third-party branded jewelry sales, following the exit of a jewelry brand from two stores, partially offset by an increase in branded timepiece sales throughout the retail network; Comparable store sales decreased by 3.4% in fiscal 2025 compared to fiscal 2024 mainly due to lower third-party branded jewelry sales following the exit of a jewelry brand from two stores, partially offset by an increase in third-party branded timepiece sales and an increase in average sales transaction value. When excluding the third-party jewelry brand movement, the comparable store sales increased by 6.9%, mainly driven by timepiece sales; Total gross profit for fiscal 2025 was $66.3 million, or 37.3% of net sales, compared to $73.6 million, or 39.7% of net sales, in fiscal 2024. This decrease in gross profit was primarily due to the decreased sales volume experienced during fiscal 2025, due to third-party branded jewelry sales following the exit of a jewelry brand from two stores, and a foreign exchange loss due to the strengthening of the U.S. dollar, partially offset by the increased sales of third-party branded timepieces. The decrease of 240 basis points in gross margin percentage resulted primarily from the sales mix with decreased sales from third-party branded jewelry, as well as a foreign exchange loss, partially offset by an increase in branded timepiece sales; SG&A expenses in fiscal 2025 were $59.5 million, or 33.5% of net sales, compared to $65.7 million, or 35.5% of net sales, in fiscal 2024, a decrease of $6.2 million. The main drivers of the decrease in SG&A expenses in fiscal 2025 include lower occupancy costs ($2.7 million) mainly due to store closures and store lease modifications, lower marketing costs ($2.3 million) mainly due to lower brand development initiatives, lower compensation costs ($0.5 million) mainly due to lower sales volume and head count reductions, lower general operating costs ($0.4 million) and lower non-cash based compensation expense ($0.3 million) mainly due to fluctuations in the Company's stock price during the fiscal year. As a percentage of sales, SG&A expenses in fiscal 2025 decreased by 200 basis points as compared to fiscal 2024, reflecting the Company's focus on cost management and containment; The Company's adjusted EBITDA (1) for fiscal 2025 was $9.2 million, a decrease of $0.8 million, compared to adjusted EBITDA (1) of $10.0 million for fiscal 2024; The Company's reported operating loss for fiscal 2025 was $5.5 million, a decrease of $6.7 million, compared to a reported operating income of $1.2 million for fiscal 2024. The operating loss in fiscal 2025 includes an impairment of long-lived assets of $4.6 million related to the write-down of capitalized software costs associated with the delay in completing the implementation of the Company's ERP system; The Company's recognized interest and other financing costs were $9.7 million in fiscal 2025, an increase of $1.7 million, compared to recognized interest and other financing costs of $8.0 million in fiscal 2024. This increase is mainly due to an increase in the average amount outstanding on the amended credit facility, additional borrowings, and a foreign exchange loss of $1.0 million in fiscal 2025 versus a foreign exchange gain of $0.2 million in fiscal 2024 on our U.S. dollar denominated debt; The Company recognized a net loss for fiscal 2025 of $12.8 million, or $0.66 per share, compared to a net loss for fiscal 2024 of $4.6 million, or $0.24 per share. (1) This is a non-GAAP financial measure defined below under 'Non-GAAP Measures' and accompanied by a reconciliation to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure. Expand About Birks Group Inc. Birks Group is a leading designer of fine jewelry and an operator of luxury jewelry, timepieces and gifts retail stores in Canada. The Company operates 17 stores under the Maison Birks brand in most major metropolitan markets in Canada, one retail location in Montreal under the Birks brand, one retail location in Montreal under the TimeVallée brand, one retail location in Calgary under the Brinkhaus brand, one retail location in Vancouver under the Graff brand, one retail location in Vancouver under the Patek Philippe brand, four retail locations in Laval, Ottawa and Toronto under the Breitling brand, four retail locations in Toronto under the European Boutique brand, one retail location in Toronto under the Omega brand and one retail location in Toronto under the Montblanc brand. Birks was founded in 1879 and has become Canada's premier designer and retailer of fine jewelry, timepieces and gifts. Additional information can be found on Birks' web site, NON-GAAP MEASURES The Company reports financial information in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ('U.S. GAAP'). The Company's performance is monitored and evaluated using various sales and earnings measures that are adjusted to include or exclude amounts from the most directly comparable GAAP measure ('non-GAAP measures'). The Company presents such non-GAAP measures in reporting its financial results to assist in business decision-making and to provide key performance information to senior management. The Company believes that this additional information provided to investors and other external stakeholders will allow them to evaluate the Company's operating results using the same financial measures and metrics used by the Company in evaluating performance. The Company does not, nor does it suggest that investors and other external stakeholders should, consider non-GAAP measures in isolation from, or as a substitute for, financial information prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. These non-GAAP measures may not be comparable to similarly titled measures presented by other companies. In addition to our results determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP, we use non-GAAP measures including 'EBITDA' and 'Adjusted EBITDA'. EBITDA 'EBITDA' is defined as net income (loss) before interest expense and other financing costs, income taxes expense (recovery) and depreciation and amortization. Forward Looking Statements This press release contains forward- looking statements which can be identified, for example, by their use of words such as 'plans,' 'expects,' 'believes,' 'will,' 'anticipates,' 'intends,' 'projects,' 'estimates,' 'could,' 'would,' 'may,' 'planned,' 'goal,' and other words of similar meaning. All statements that address expectations, possibilities or projections about the future, including without limitation, statements about anticipated economic conditions, generation of shareholder value, and our strategies for growth, performance drivers, expansion plans, sources or adequacy of capital, expenditures and financial results are forward-looking statements. Because such statements include various risks and uncertainties, actual results might differ materially from those projected in the forward- looking statements and no assurance can be given that the Company will meet the results projected in the forward-looking statements. Accordingly, the reader should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to the following: (i) a decline in consumer spending or deterioration in consumer financial position; (ii) economic, political and market conditions, including the economies of Canada and the U.S. and the influence of inflation on consumer spending, which could adversely affect the Company's business, operating results or financial condition, including its revenue and profitability, through the impact of changes in the real estate markets, changes in the equity markets and decreases in consumer confidence and the related changes in consumer spending patterns, the impact on store traffic, tourism and sales as well as the recently imposed tariffs (and retaliatory measures), possible changes therefrom and other trade restrictions; (iii) the impact of fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, increases in commodity prices and borrowing costs and their related impact on the Company's costs and expenses; (iv) the Company's ability to maintain and obtain sufficient sources of liquidity to fund its operations, to achieve planned sales, gross margin and net income, to keep costs low, to implement its business strategy, maintain relationships with its primary vendors, to source raw materials, to mitigate fluctuations in the availability and prices of the Company's merchandise, to compete with other jewelers, to succeed in its marketing initiatives (including with respect to Birks branded products), and to have a successful customer service program; (v) the Company's plan to evaluate the productivity of existing stores, close unproductive stores and open new stores in new prime retail locations, renovate existing stores and invest in its website and e-commerce platform; (vi) the Company's ability to execute its strategic vision; and (vii) the Company's ability to invest in and finance capital expenditures; (viii) the Company's ability to maintain its listing on the NYSE American exchange or to list its shares on another national securities exchange; and (ix) the Company's ability to continue as a going concern. Information concerning the above and other risk factors that could cause actual results to differ materially is set forth under the captions 'Risk Factors' and 'Operating and Financial Review and Prospects' and elsewhere in the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 25, 2025 and subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or release any revisions to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this statement or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law. BIRKS GROUP INC. CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (In thousands) As of March 29, 2025 March 30, 2024 Assets Current Assets Cash and cash equivalents $ 1,509 $ 1,783 Accounts receivable and other receivables 6,608 8,455 Inventories 116,277 99,067 Prepaids and other current assets 2,072 2,913 Total current assets 126,466 112,218 Long-term receivables 1,084 1,571 Equity investment in joint venture 5,169 4,122 Property and equipment 25,380 25,717 Operating lease right-of-use asset 34,964 51,753 Intangible assets and other assets 3,017 7,887 Total non-current assets 69,614 91,050 Total assets $ 196,080 $ 203,268 Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity (Deficiency) Current liabilities Bank indebtedness $ 73,630 $ 63,372 Accounts payable 58,114 43,011 Accrued liabilities 6,053 6,112 Current portion of long-term debt 4,860 4,352 Current portion of operating lease liabilities 6,929 6,430 Total current liabilities 149,586 123,277 Long-term debt 21,374 22,587 Long-term portion of operating lease liabilities 38,629 59,881 Other long-term liabilities 4,502 2,672 Total long-term liabilities 64,505 85,140 Stockholders' equity (deficiency): Class A common stock – no par value, unlimited shares authorized, issued and outstanding 11,876,717 (11,447,999 as of March 30, 2024) 42,854 40,725 Class B common stock – no par value, unlimited shares authorized, issued and outstanding 7,717,970 57,755 57,755 Preferred stock – no par value, unlimited shares authorized, none issued — — Additional paid-in capital 19,719 21,825 Accumulated deficit (138,295 ) (125,476 ) Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (44 ) 22 Total stockholders' equity (deficiency) (18,011 ) (5,149 ) Total liabilities and stockholders' equity (deficiency) $ 196,080 $ 203,268 Expand


CNET
11 minutes ago
- CNET
How Can You Turn Your Thoughts Into a Visible Ideas Board? I Spoke to an AI Company About it
After more than a year of researching, reviewing and writing about artificial intelligence, I've been wanting to learn more about AI as a thinking and planning platform. While it's a great tool for streamlining work, it's also being used in more creative ways, and I've been curious about my own thinking style. Why do I see connections and visualizations when someone speaks? Why do I often feel like I'm not just listening and digesting information, but instead, piecing through what's being said and translating it into a deeper connection point? "Problem solving, thinking… It's a journey you go through where you need to be able to have that freedom to explore," Stephen Chau, the co-founder of AI platform Cove, tells me. The story of Cove began with Chau and his co-founders Andy Szybalski and Michael Chu experimenting with AI, only to realize that something was missing. AI needed to work more like a human collaborator -- and that means thinking in flexible and responsive ways, while able to support complex, ongoing projects. So why do most AI tools still feel limited to linear, transactional chatbot interactions? Chau and his co-founders "we were having a lot of fun experimenting with AI," he tells me. "But the more we built, the more we saw fundamental limitations in chatbots." This insight sparked the creation of Cove: a flexible, visual workspace designed to match the natural ways humans think and work together, with AI as an active partner in the process. I was reminded of Flora, a creative operating system that contains a beautiful and fluid setup for ideation. It mimics a designer's sketchbook or filmmaker's storyboard. Cove, in contrast, is for thought clarity -- more architectural, but still beautiful and clean, and focused on sharpening what's been built and creating insight along the way. I dug into Cove's functionality and, more importantly, why it matters right now in a rapidly evolving age of AI. What is Cove, and how does it use AI? Cove's best feature, and one it has in common with many AI tools, is that it responds and adapts in real time. Chau shared that Cove pulls from a mix of top AI models -- OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, Perplexity -- without requiring you to choose or toggle between them. The goal is for it to feel less like software and more like inviting a collaborator into your thought process. The way Cove works is simple: You tell it what you're working on, and instead of a single thread or linear chat, Cove opens into a canvas, one that shapes itself around whatever you're trying to figure out. As Chau described it, Cove creates a flexible workspace for you, filled with cards that break your project into manageable pieces. Enlarge Image Cove / Screenshot by CNET "One card might show the pros and cons of living in Palo Alto versus Vancouver," Chau explains. "Another might list moving considerations, immigration info or other related topics." These cards let you explore multiple ideas at once, compare options side by side and dive deeper through suggested actions on each card. This visual, interactive approach helps you think through complex problems in a way traditional chatbots don't. When you drag in content like PDFs, spreadsheets, links and images, those files become part of the workspace. Cove ingests and learns from your uploads, using them to inform its suggestions and build a board that evolves as your project does. Similar to a chatbot, this deepens the workspace's intelligence over time, making future insights more relevant and specific to your needs. But it's more like continuing a dialogue with a tool that remembers what matters to you. I see it as an integrated workspace. It doesn't require me to search for old threads, desperately trying to find what I was working through days prior (which is something I've repeatedly wished I could do with ChatGPT). Who should use Cove? What genuinely excited me about Cove is how it feels like it was made for "snowball thinkers" like myself -- rapid brainstorming with a need for visualization as my ideas evolve. Given how deeply personal and ongoing these projects can be, data privacy is fundamental. Since privacy is a common concern around AI tools, I asked Chau how Cove handles it. "A lot of what we're doing is leaning on these large LLM model providers and their fundamental policies," he tells me. "But we also want to make sure that from a user data privacy standpoint, we have the right policies as well." These policies include maintaining control over your data when you're using the app, such as a toggle to opt out of having your content used for AI training. As for who uses Cove, Chau suggested the "chief household officer" juggling one project after another. Education has also emerged as a significant use case, with students adopting Cove for collaborative research and iterative drafting. Entrepreneurs use it, too -- as a virtual co-founder and thought partner or a place to lay out brain dumps for team clarity. How to use Cove to brainstorm and share ideas Enlarge Image A Cove workspace I made about a Yosemite camping trip, featuring an AI-generated image, a map, a website and AI-generated text with itineraries and tips on stargazing. Cove/Screenshot by CNET Ready to try it for yourself? Here's how to go from idea to execution inside Cove, which exists on desktop and as a Google Chrome extension. Head to and click Get Started to sign up with Google or by creating an account. Cove uses an "infinite" canvas. Each idea is represented by a card, which can contain things like text, attachments, images and tables. These cards can be added endlessly to your canvas. There's also an option to paste URLs, and Cove will create cards with fetched content from the web, as well as things you upload, including PDFs, pitch decks and working docs -- or use empty text cards and generate content from there. Cove will generate images you describe in a new card, too. Using these cards, you can create a mind map of different ideas, where you're dragging cards around, zooming in and out and reorganizing them. It also has the capability to predict what you're going to need next, working in real time to create something that serves your initial prompt or purpose. Open the chatbot at the bottom right of the screen, where you can interact with the AI tool and use it to highlight cards that have been created, or select multiple and ask Cove's AI to connect them together and find patterns or ways of thinking. Now, use your cards to create AI-powered tools right in your canvas. Describe what you want and Cove will auto-generate an app based on your context or needs. You can customize it as much as you need and then deploy a new app within your workspace. Since Cove was made for collaboration, you can invite teammates into your workspace for real-time ideation and process feedback. (You have agency over who accesses your workspace -- think of it like a virtual desk.) There's also the option to share your app cards or choose to Publish to Gallery, which is how you can make your workflow public or to share a tool that others can duplicate. Lastly, revision history allows you to keep ideas evolving without losing work. Since everything is divided by your app cards, there's the possibility for focused edits or individual-turned-collaborative experimentation. For more information on how to use Cove, head to the support page on its website, and check out this demo video, which visually walks you through the process above. Chau sums up the vision simply: People using Cove are "working through a long-term problem." "Over time, we hope to use that information as frameworks for tackling those problems, so more users can benefit," he tells me. Ultimately, Cove creates space for non-linear output -- think of it less as a tool and more of a partner in thoughtful growth and discovery -- one that you can share with others who are equally interested in understanding the brain's layered, intricate process. Happy thinking.