Hey Wal-Mart...It's Miley!

Holy Hannah Montana! “Pop-Ka-Ching.” That is the sound of a pop star running off with a boatload of cash from a Wal-Mart merchandising deal. (Why can’t I get a “deal?”)  Ideally, customers will believe that Ms. Cyrus has designed and presumably wears the clothing line that will don her name. You realize, of course, this is a teenager who can’t walk the red carpet in heels and chew gum at the same time. Oh my achy-breaky heart.

Wal-Mart has teamed up with teen pop sensation Miley Cyrus and BIB designer, Max Azria (no comment necessary) for a new back-to-school fashion line, with most of the collection of knit tops, pants and graphic T-shirts selling for under $12. It’s unlikely that Cyrus will be wearing a $12 tee to the Grammy awards. By the way, Cyrus was home-schooled, I doubt she ever needed to worry about what to wear going “back–to-school.”

The Miley Cyrus and Max Azria clothing will be sold along with a CD Cyrus made exclusively for the retailer. Big Surprise! Wal-Mart is also the sole sponsor of the teen pop princess's upcoming U.S. and European tour. Big Surprise too! Cyrus promoted her new line with a performance at a Wal-Mart shareholders meeting at the Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Ark., on June 5. The collection will debut in stores in August.

I’m disgusted with celebrities that promote themselves as designers. Can you imagine Donna Karan doing Cabaret? Karl Lagerfeld on Broadway? Ralph Lauren releasing a “Best Of” album? Or Tommy Hilfiger mixing it up with Ludicrous? …Okay that I could imagine.

--Ron Knoth, Guest Blogger

And a Chicken In Every Pothole

During the Great Depression, President Herbert Hoover is mis-credited, but attributed to have campaigned on the promise: “That there would be a car in every garage, and a chicken in every pot!” Now some 80 years later there may not be a chicken in every pot, but there may be one in every pothole. In an effort to find new (and practically free) venues for advertising, those finger lickin’ good folks at KFC have launched a brilliant campaign.

In and around the greater Louisville, Ky., area (headquarters of KFC) Kentucky Fried Chicken is filling in potholes faster than you can order a 12-piece bucket with a side of cole slaw and biscuits. As part of the cause-marketing campaign, the fast-food giant receives the right to brand the pothole with their stencil that reads “Re-freshed by KFC.”

KFC you are a savior! This gets KFC’s message out to weary drivers racing home from work. It helps to build good will. For most of us consumers, big business has become synonymous with greed and scandal. So, corporations are looking for ways to improve their reputations and build brand equity. The cash-strapped city is a winner too; this reduces their Road Works Department budget, and reduces calls from irate drivers who just had a blow out on the interstate.

KFC if you’re listening, Amsterdam Avenue on the Upper West Side needs you!

--Ron Knoth, Guest Blogger

The Chicken and the Egg

I will not debate which came first, but it is clear that imitation is not always the sincerest form of flattery--whether you are running a beverage campaign or political campaign. Sources like the Associated Press, Conde Nast Portfolio, Advertising Age, The New York Times, and AM NY have debated who’s copying who, but the consensus is universal: there is a striking similarity between President Obama’s “O” and Pepsi’s new logo.

If pundits are correct, Pepsi wants you to associate all the warm and fuzzy feelings you have about Barack Obama with its super sweet, bubbly soft drinks. But just do not accuse Pepsi of copying the Obama “O” logo.

At a press conference held recently to introduce the new marketing campaigns for a number of Pepsi brands, Frank Cooper, the beverage giant's vice president of Portfolio Brands, tried to dispel all the media chatter that Pepsi's new logo, introduced last October, was intentionally intended to evoke the Obama campaign's now-iconic rising sun/open road/American flag motif.

"There's been a lot of discourse about the logo," acknowledged Cooper. "It makes a good news story, but I don't know if it's rooted in reality. Pepsi is a 110-year-old brand. Red, white and blue has been part of the brand for a long time" (so has the American flag).

If you have not seen it yet, Pepsi unveiled a completely new logo, its 10th logo change ever. Pepsi executives have likened the new logo, a circle enclosing curved bands of red, white and blue, to a smile. Bloggers, on the other hand, say it is a rip-off of President Barack Obama's campaign logo. "We're not sure who followed whom," said Cooper, "We're about a smile, not a frontier." In fact, Cooper suggested that maybe it was the Obama campaign who copied the Pepsi logo in their quest to become, (clears throat), the voice of a new generation.

Indeed, the Obama/Pepsi parallels began well before Pepsi rolled out its new logo, and for a long time it seemed to some online bloggists that it was the Senator, not the soft drink, that was cultivating the comparisons. However, by the time of the inauguration, Pepsi was openly trying to capitalize on the Obama phenomenon, with billboards reading "Hope" and the like. Cooper sounded more than a little like Obama on the stump when discussing the Pepsi Optimism Project, and its ongoing consumer attitudes study. "We believe optimism is hope with a plan," he said. "You can’t embrace pessimism. People can go ahead and do that, but we've seen time and time again that that's a bridge leading nowhere." FYI: Cooper is not running for office.

Poor Pepsi, all of this comes a week after Pepsi's biggest rival, Atlanta-based Coca-Cola Co. (not the Democratic Party), announced its new global marketing campaign. The dueling ad campaigns use words like "happiness" and "optimism" to appeal to consumers besieged by financial trouble.

Either way, branding and marketing may have risen to a science, but I will stick to non-carbonated drinks.

--Ron Knoth, Guest Blogger

Have It Your Way

We are obsessed with speed. Despite annoying commercials late at night, we are urged to go to Finallyfast.com to speed up our laptops. You can download your favorite tune on your iPod faster than you can whistle Dixie. We e-mail and text colleagues, and wonder what’s taking them so long to get back to us--it’s been 30 seconds! It was only a matter of time before fast food met fast fashion.

Despite jubilation in the street post-election, the economy remains tight. While the world may have rejoiced, Wall Street did not see the bull market it was expecting. Retailers are trying to stay aloft. What will a holiday season in 2008 look like? Bricks-and-mortar retailers are already doing their earnest best to think outside the box. Equally hard hit are restaurants. Upscale- and moderate-food establishments report decreases in sales, where the fast-food chains appear to be solvent, and in fact picking up business, the way that transfats pick up calories.

Monolithic McDonald's rival Burger King announced, in an effort to further increase its brand awareness, various licensees of Burger King will soon launch a line of Burger King-branded T-shirts, an exclusive collection of men's sleepwear and loungewear, and government-operated and -authorized instant lottery tickets and (TBD) merchandise. So now you can buy your husband a cute set of Burger King flannels and a side of fries. Granted buying pajamas may not seem like a typical merchandise association for a fast-food chain, but they laughed at Starbucks when they started their own record label. Artists like Paul McCartney and Joni Mitchell had no issues debuting their albums alongside a grande pike roast with soy. Pajamas might do very well for Burger King, it may appeal to the couch potato set who want to order in, and snuggle up on the couch in their crown-encrusted twosies and watch “Dancing with the Stars” (I miss Cloris!). Additionally, the typical cash-strapped, fast-food consumer might be glad to drop a buck or two on the state lottery in the hopes of becoming a millionaire. Rest assured, the fantasy that you might win, that your ship will come in, that there’s always a silver lining, is worth a dollar in these tough times.

Russ Klein, (insert frightening job title) president of global marketing, strategy and innovation (how innovative can a Whopper be?) at Burger King, said: "Through our licensing relationships, Burger King has the opportunity to reach our audience through new channels. Through our licensees, Burger King-branded apparel and snack products provide our customers with new ways to interact and connect with the brand." Burger King has announced a series of licensing arrangements brokered by Broad Street Licensing Group. Unless Burger King is offering T-shirts in cashmere, there better not be one in my stocking on Dec. 24th.

--Ron Knoth, Guest Blogger

Gap Takes A Hit in the Retail World

Gap may have ruled the retail world with SJP and Lenny Kravitz, but there's one thing it no longer rules--the title as world's largest clothing retailer. Spanish fashion boutique Zara recently took the top spot, dramatically swiping it out of The Gap's once impenetrable grip.

As Gap struggles to pull off increased sales, Zara does so and opens new locations. So, just what makes Zara so fabulous and Gap so "blah" these days?

In a recent article in the U.K's Guardian, it reports that Inditex (Zara's parent company) takes a unique approach to developing its brands: all logistics and design are handled in-house. Why? According to Inditex, it's to ensure that they get exactly what customers want out in the shortest time possible.

In the Guardian article, an Inditex spokesman said, "The ­success of the model lies in being able to adapt what you're ­offering in the shortest time possible to what ­clients want. For Inditex, time is the principal ­factor to take into account, more so than the costs of production."

Zara also doesn't spend much money on advertising. Instead, it relies on the success of its physical stores, with its boutique-style look. Store design and appeal tends to be the primary focus on building the brand, as opposed to flashy or celeb-filled advertisements.

Gap, on the other hand, has quite a bit to juggle these days. It's enmeshed in two major retail conundrums--first, its primary customer base has gotten older (hey, I resent that!), meaning it no longer offers the same appeal it once did. Secondly, the U.S. economy hasn't exactly been doing back flips lately, while the Euro--where the majority of Zara's stores are located--has been off the hook (to use a term from a younger generation--see I'm not old!).

These two factors alone have affected the once world-leader in retail tremendously. And not for the better. Gap appointed a new CEO in hopes of turning things around, but so far, that plan has failed to lead to total world domination.

So what could Gap do to get their top dog status back? Well, if their recent Web site homepage is any indication, they might be leaning in the direction of copying their competition, all with a European flair. Yes, it's true; Gap is going all European on us. Recently, Gap's homepage showcased an advertisement for its "Limited Edition European Collection." Well, hey--it's working for Zara--it might be just what Gap needs!

What do you think could put Gap back on top? Leave your comments here!

--Heather Strang

Brands=Behavior

We are exposed to as many advertisements each day as we are viruses. Luckily most of us have immune systems that fight off the viruses, not so with the barrage of advertisements; alas, there is no commercial vaccine.

Gavan Fitzsimons of Duke University in North Carolina just completed a study on the effects of advertising, and how brands affect our behavior. "Sure, not me," you’re saying. "I’m above it all." Wrong! Fitzsimons conjectures that “every brand comes with associations; when we are exposed to logos, those associations fire automatically, leading us to behave in ways that are consistent with the brand image.” If Fitzsimons’ research is correct, brand images can affect everything we do from being creative to being honest. Still not sold, here’s how those smarty pants PHDs at Duke figured it out. Subjects saw the Apple or IBM logo, subtly displayed. Then they were asked to think of and name as many uses for a brick as they could. Subjects who were exposed to the Apple logo were more creative, and came up with more uses. Still skeptical, subjects exposed to either a Disney or E! Entertainment Network logo, were given a little test...those that saw the Disney logo were more apt to tell the truth (I’m not sure what that says about E!). Is it possible that corporate America is so ingrained in our psyche?

This may not be groundbreaking research, after all Media Theorist Marshall McLuhan achieved instant notoriety for his 1964 quote “The medium is the message,” from “Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man,” meaning that the form of a medium imbeds itself in the message, creating a symbiotic relationship, by which the medium influences how the message is perceived, creating subtle changes over time.

If all that is true, what do my favorite commercials/advertisements say about me, and what associations do they have that hold sway over my behavior? I stop whatever I’m doing when Nicole Kidman’s ultra-romantic Chanel ad “I want to dance!” plays. I also adore IKEA’s tongue-in-cheek homage to Bonnie & Clyde’s getaway sequence, “Get in the car!” And Baskin Robbins' over-involved soccer mom yelling at a 9-year-old, “In your face!”

What ads do you find yourself fascinated with? What do you think their associations are?

--Ron Knoth, Guest Blogger

Sears & MTV Sitting In a Tree...

On Aug. 1, 1981, MTV brought the world music videos. Somewhere around the year 2000, music videos became extinct and instead reality shows and MTV mini-movies stole the screen. It's 2008 and MTV is still looking for something other than music videos to put on the air. But, a movie with Sears? Back-to-school shopping, tube-sock toting, grandma-aisle-wandering Sears? I can hardly believe it.

In a joint venture that can only make Sears look cooler and MTV appear like they're running out of creative ideas, the two have come together to bring the universe, "The American Mall." The 87-minute film will air on MTV Aug. 11, 2008, and is geared towards the rapidly growing tween market.

Apparently the movie is a "musical romantic comedy set at a mall and focused on the relationship between two young musicians and their respective personal and professional struggles." Aww...now doesn't that sound cute?

The movie was filmed in a Utah Sears store, and if you look closely you'll notice that all the actors are wearing Sears clothes, and also appear in Sears advertisements. In addition, Sears will sell the DVD and soundtrack (talk about milking the cross-promotion!) all the while getting plenty of promotion time on MTV when the film hits the air.

According to an article in the Seattle Times, the two companies have been working on the movie since November 2007.

John Shea, the executive vice president of integrated marketing and brand partnerships at MTV Networks Music & Logo Group had this to say about the project, "If the movie works, it will benefit Sears certainly, as their exposure will benefit us."

Okay, but wait a second--isn't MTV already incredibly successful? While I certainly see the benefit for Sears (MTV = cool), I'm not sure I see the same benefits for MTV.

Perhaps it's just a matter of two conglomerates trying out something new. In any event, I'm excited to see what this "move" could do for Sears' image. I don't ever remember seeing a Sears commercial on MTV (and let's be clear, I watch a lot of MTV), so this partnership will no doubt put Sears in front of an audience they don't regularly get quality time with.

So, do you think "The American Mall" venture will take Sears to new tween heights? Or is it the most awkward retail pairing you've ever heard of? Leave your comments here.

--Heather Strang

 

Does Your Store Have a Soul?

I know, you're thinking that it's a dumb question relating to a whole bunch of mumbo jumbo, new age stuff, but let me explain.  On the Friday after Christmas, Sarah DaVanzo and I spent the day walking through all of the shops along Madison Avenue, starting at about 59th Street.  We visited all of the high-end, luxury stores for about 20 blocks and what we found were stores without a soul.  Stores that had no energy, no life to them and, in many cases, didn't have many people in them either. 

They were what we'd call "Web stores"--physical stores with merchandise,  staff and everything you'd expect at a store, but operating as if they were little more then a Web site--and sometimes a snooty one at that!  Point at something to get more information and maybe touch it.  Otherwise, it's a store that does little more then a Web site does.  In fact, at some stores, we got less info.  We stopped in at one cool looking shop from a perfume brand from the 1700s, but the sales person there seemed pretty uninterested in sharing their heritage and story with us.

In contrast, stores that we would say had a soul, were crowded and had a definite life to them.  There were expected lines to the Apple store & FAO Schwatz stores on Fifth Avenue, but the Abercrombie store on Fifth had a line as well.  Crate & Barrel was humming with activity and people touching and enjoying the merchandise.

And some of our new favorite stores along Madison:

The DKNY store that was letting guests take pictures of themselves and adding their pictures to the photo montage playing on all of the digital monitors around the store.  Plus they had a cafe for shoppers to either take a break or to entertain the non-shoppers so those shopping could actually enjoy themselves.

The Juicy Couture store continued its brand experience throughout the store, including the dressing rooms.  And it was about the only store we saw with teenagers once we left FAO and Apple.

We LOVED the two Ralph Lauren stores!  They were so alive in every way.  Merchandise, store design and staff.  And you know what all of that energy generated?  Judging by the transactions we saw going on, sales. 

We're putting together a more detailed review and some trends now, which you can expect to be released during the Retail Advertising Conference next month. If you're investing in physical space and paying all of those costs just to create a "Web store," you're wasting a lot of good money and some great business opportunities.

--David Polinchock

A New League

Remember those classic high-top Reeboks that you just had to have back in the '80s? The sports apparel/footwear/equipment retailer (a subsidiary of the Adidas Group) has come a long way since those iconic high-tops. Everything from the product to the logo has changed. In fact, the retailer could be called the comeback kid in terms of branding.

After the high-top craze of the '80s came and went, so did the Reebok brand. The company would pop up every now and then with a new athletic shoe, but they always seemed to be on sale at a discount store--never in high demand or with a large presence at department stores or sporting goods retailers. And then Reebok came out with a new logo (Rbk) no one recognized (which was probably a good thing in retrospect.) Now, all of a sudden it seems the brand is everywhere. Its alliances with the National Hockey League (the new NHL Powered by Reebok store in New York City on 6th Avenue) and National Football League (Reebok has a contract to outfit the NFL) make the brand a major player in the industry.

And not only has Reebok teamed up with sports' major leagues, it has also befriended the female consumer in several ways. One that first comes to mind is the commercial currently on air, in which several women show up for a football game/house party in fashionable jerseys that represent their favorite team (In this case it was the Giants, and then one woman has the audacity to walk in decked in Jets garb.) The athletic jerseys, customized for women, don't make it look like you're wearing your boyfriend's or brother's clothes. Who thought that women were actually interested in professional sports? It's about time.  Also, for the second year in a row, Reebok has been the official footwear and apparel sponsor of the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer, a series of weekend-long walking events that take place from May through October in eight cities across the country, attracting tens of thousands of participants who generate funds and awareness to help find a cure for breast cancer.

Well, I have to say cheers to Reebok! It appears the brand has come full circle. It all started out with that classic high-top--that women loved. And now that Reebok is back on top, it's nice to know it didn't leave its female customer in the dust.

--Rachel Brown

Talk to Your Daughter

I have been eagerly anticipating today, October 1st; I have a big red circle on my calendar. If your thinking, hey Ron, isn’t that Nigerian Independence Day, or isn’t that the Peoples Republic National Day in China, you’d be absolutely right--but it’s not why it’s circled. Those of you who know me better might dig deeper, and ask, isn’t that the beginning of the harvest moon, or the day that Barbra Streisand signed her first recording contract with Columbia? Again you would be right, but it doesn’t account for the red circle on my calendar.

It’s not my birthday, but it may be more anticipated, and I’m turning 50 this year! Oct. 1 marks the launch for the newest ad campaign for Dove (aka Unilever) Soap products. The commercial will begin to air on www.youtube.com. There were no glimpses yet, but the industry is all abuzz. Not since “The Da Vinci’s Code’s” trailers has there been so much hype and anticipation. Dove’s latest commercial promises to be this year's most talked about ad campaign, which speaks volumes given Dove's phenomenally successful “Real Beauty" and “Evolution” campaigns. The Evolution campaign won top honors at the Academy Award version of TV commercials, the Cannes Grand Prix. Both commercials are available on Youtube.com, each with so many millions of hits as not to be imagined. If you aren’t familiar, then you must have been raised in outer space.

The commercial titled “Onslaught” is the brainchild of advertising monolith Ogilvy & Mather Worldwide, in which, out of the darkness we hear a voice warning “Here it comes”... cue Hitchcockian staccato-like music, then in a concise 60 seconds a seemingly Rockwellian 7-year-old girl is bombarded with all the body image advertising she, (let me say it again for emphasis, a S-E-V-E-N-year-old) will see in a year, followed by the tag line “Talk to your daughter before the beauty industry does." It sounds more ominous than the opening credits for Jodie Foster’s latest vigilante film. It sounds frightening, alarming, and so insightful, that I hope every mother and daughter will discuss it. If I could get a daughter by October 1st I would.

The Dove advertising is unique among controversially based ads, as it actually sells product, enhances the corporate identity and helps to contribute the cultural debate about self-images. Kudos for Dove for knowing who their customers are; for not being afraid to take a stand; for having confidence in their product and the American public. Dove is authentic, honest and relevant. Doves’ advertising is so cleverly covert, in as much as it makes you feel like you're doing something good for the world by washing your face. I’m switching brands.

--Ron Knoth, Guest Blogger