After a lifetime of inefficient cheese placement thanks to a 3 year internet crusade, Subway could be re-designing their cheese distribution technique…
Three years ago, a Left-Handed Toons comic (seen after the jump) illustrated the insanity of Subway’s cheese distribution policy. The triangular cheese slices were lined up in a row with overlapping corners, and even worse, some parts of the sandwich were rendered cheeseless.
The comic kickstarted a small movement encouraging the sandwich chain to start alternating the orientation of their cheese slices, as seen in the image above, which would provide for a more equitable cheese distribution.
Retail Refugees loves innovation in packaging and food concepts, but this just looks nasty… Meet Sushi Popper
“We’re trying to change the norm of boxed foods,” said Furst, who serves as the company’s president. “We’re trying to open people’s eyes and say, ‘This isn’t just another frozen product — this is a frozen product that happens to be extremely good.’ “
Each Sushi Popper includes eight pieces of precut sushi and a bit of wasabi wrapped inside an airtight tube. After opening the top of the tube, diners can add soy sauce from a small stick affixed to the packaging, and grab their first piece of fish. They reach the next piece by pushing up on the bottom of the tube.
“It took thousands of hours to develop something to hold the sushi, to make sure it pushes up correctly and make sure the soy sauce doesn’t leak,” Furst said. “It took us a lot of engineering time.”
According to Furst, the tubed snack is the perfect food for a nation on the go.
(via AOL)
A shiny red dispenser that looks like a soft drinks machine has been installed in the Moscow mayor’s office with more to follow in the country’s parliament. The firm behind the luxury dispenser says 33 such machines have been installed across the Russian capital in government ministries and upscale office blocks.
The machine dispenses tins and glass jars full of red salmon caviar or roe, in varying portion sizes, costing from the equivalent of about £3.50 up to £15. The more sought-after sturgeon caviar – varieties of which have been hunted to the brink of extinction and command a much higher price tag – is not for sale in the machines. But at a time when Russia is still emerging from a deep economic crisis, publicity about the dispensers is likely to anger many.
Russians traditionally love caviar, sieved and slightly salted fish eggs, and spread the cheaper red variety on buttered bread, washing it down with sparkling Soviet ‘champagne’ on special occasions. But the more expensive black variety is too expensive for most Russians and annual sales of wild black caviar are limited to about nine tons each year.
Via Telegraph
Regardless how much you think you know about shopping, it can be pretty much guaranteed that the people that actually work in shops know more. A former salesclerk and AOL contributor shares a few secrets of the biz…
“The salesperson knows what size you really wear.
Most customers shuffle through the racks, pick out what they want, pay and leave. However, we do have the needy clients, too. She usually asks for a dress in a size 4; the salesperson suggests an 8. No, she wants a 4. The salesperson finds the 4 and brings it to the changing room. She also discreetly places a 6 and 8 on a chair nearby. Ten minutes later she hears a whisper: “Hello? Sales lady? Could I try the size 6?” She grabs the 6 and passes it along, while also hanging the size 8 on the outside of the door. In the end, the client leaves the store with a size 8 dress tucked into her shopping bag.
Number one pet peeve: return-and-exchange abusers
Colleen Hollis, who owns a children’s clothing store, notes, “We know what brands our store carries. A lady brought back a dress that looked similar to one we carry and it did have our sales tag on it.” But on close inspection, Hollis noticed that while the dress was similar to one she sold, it wasn’t from a manufacturer that she’d ever dealt with. “The customer had bought a cheap knock-off brand and our dress. She kept our dress, took the tag off and applied our tag to the knock-off brand dress to get a refund for the more expensive dress!” She laments, “The extent some people will go through to abuse the system amazes me every day.”
If it’s not on sale, you’re paying too much
In most cases, even when an item is 50% off, a brick-and-mortar store is still making 100% profit on it. This is why Lezlie, a sales associate who didn’t want her last name used, states, “My motto is never pay full price. I always wait for the items to go on sale.” Of course, retailers hide the marked down items in the way back so that you have to pass all the newest pieces, with their 400% mark-up, to get to them. But hunting those items down will give your wallet a break without hurting the store one bit-though I must admit that splurging on the occasional hot-new-thing will make your commission-earning sales associate very happy.”
Saw this great “perfume sprayer” vending machine on the Arkitip Intel blog this morning. Maybe this concept should be revitalized?
In a former life, I was a fan of Hooters, but as the promise of skin and cheap flirting became more readily available outside of a buffalo wing restaurant, the attraction wained. Now we see how some restauranteurs have reacted- by making the girls wear even less…
A Texas-based sports bar is launching a full-frontal assault on Hooters‘ dominance in the scantily-clad server category, announcing plans to take its “bikini babe” concept nationwide. “Our competition has been getting stale,” says Doug Guller, who opened his first Bikinis Sports Bar and Grill in North Austin in 2006. “If they’re Microsoft, we’re Apple.”
Guller isn’t the only entrepreneur who suspects Hooters’ sovereignty is waning: Heart Attack Grill, with its sexy “nurse-waitresses” and the Tilted Kilt chain, where servers wear tartan bras and short skirts, are among the more notable recent attempts at improving upon the concept pioneered back in 1983 by Hooters, a chain that’s lately been getting attention for its struggles in Vegas and less-than-flattering cameo appearance on Undercover Boss.
“The market is growing,” Guller confirms. At Bikinis, the standard server costume is cowboy boots, a short denim skirt and a bikini top. Each diner is guaranteed visits from at least three servers. While the Bikinis’ uniform isn’t much racier than what’s on view at most American beaches, Guller said even he was surprised when he opened his first restaurant outside Texas last year and nobody complained.
I wonder why?…
Photo: Bikinis Sports Bar and Grill
Retail Refugees has a new sister site, Resort Refugees. The same philosophy of innovation, originality, quality, and value will be adapted to the dynamic travel and tourism industry through this look at some of the world´s exciting destinations and experiences.
Follow Resort Refugees on Twitter and Facebook as well!
Paris nightspot supreme, La Baron, has just released its first compilation with the signature of approval from club owner, Andre (Saraiva). “The famous private club in the eighth arrondissement of Paris, the hub of the artistic Parisian elite since 2004, celebrates its first 5 years of existence. Founded by Andre, who naturally signs the artwork of this splendid double CD, and Lionel, a night-prowler of the Capital’s streets, Le Baron has become the lounge where the Parisian initiates can rediscover a way of partying that is both intimate and intense. The CD contains a poster by Andre, available now through colette.”
(via hypebeast)
If you have any interest in design, shopping, retail, fashion or otherwise, the new edition of Powershop is for you. It has finally arrived courtesy of Berlin-based publisher Gestalten and Frame Magazine. Powershop 2 is an extensive collection and study of some of the top interior designs in retail environments from around the world including projects by Marcel Wanders, Wonderwall, 20|20 Limited, Coop Himmelb(l)au, Karim Rashid, Mattheo Thun, Tokujin Yoshioka and Ippolito Fleitz, to name a few.
The book itself is BIG, PINK, and HEAVY! There are actually two books inside the case and are divided between “Fashion” and “Anything (but Fashion)” and include images, descriptions of the interior, descriptions of the brands, stats, floorplans, and in some examples budget details. The stores include some of the biggest names in retail naturally.
One aspect of the book which is really great is the fact that the stores are not limited to ultra-exclusive ones. That is, the book goes a long way to show how great design can be found in a variety of segments, and that it is not only something which can be appreciated by wealthy.
As we typically focus on hotel concept and design, looking at retail interiors is very interesting for me personally. I find that retail offers many of the same opportunities as a hotel environment does in terms of experience, interface, interaction, customer flow, etc. In some way, the retail industry acts as an incubator for developments in the hotel design world as it is less cost-intensive and generally faster. For this, some could say that looking into the pages of Powershop 2 is like looking into the future of the hotel industry.
For anybody interested in design, in the planning stage of building a store, or somebody purely interested in impressing guests with a beautiful book, we highly recommend Powershop 2.
Saw this in Fast Company this morning…
Last week, Wal-Mart cut the price of some popular new books to just $10, a slice of over 60%. Not willing to be out-done on home turf, Amazon matched them. Wal-Mart went down to $9. Amazon went to $8.99. Target jumped in tardily at $8.99. Then Sears jaunted into the battle and dropped some serious knowledge: books for free.
How? Buy any one of those deep-discounted books at Target, Wal-Mart, or Amazon, and send Sears the receipt at [readamerica@customerservice.sears.com], and they’ll give you a credit of $9 towards anything you buy from Sears online.
Sears says this is part of some campaign called “Keep America Reading,” which would be more appropriately called “Keep America Buying Books.” And buy books they’ll do, if the $10 price point sticks past the holiday rush.
So what does this do to indie bookshops, struggling as they already are? Well, it might actually help them, according to PubLunch, which reports:
“Boulder Bookstore buyer Arsen Kashkashian has suggested via Twitter that fellow indies cancel their publisher pre-orders on these deep-discounted forthcoming titles and take advantage of their competitors’ loss leaders. Bookstores will save money, he reasons, while helping Amazon and Walmart.com lose more.”
In troubling hotel news, the almighty Shore Club- home to such infamous events as Suge Knight´s getting shot (among others), has gone delinquent on its nearly 112million USD mortgage.
“A renovation of the hotel is in progress and a spokesperson for Philip and Michael Pilevsky said there is a disagreement between the owner and the loan servicer about what the servicer is responsible for funding. The hotel went through a renovation in 2001 and was appraised for $176 million in 2005, when the owners mortgaged it at the peak of South Florida prices. That number might be a bit lower now. The Shore Club has 322 rooms and a spa but is more famous for its Nobu sushi restaurant, several night clubs and its enviable beachfront pool area. Tourism has been down in Florida overall and the hotel has seen occupancy fall this year. The hotel remains open and is currently offering a deal that includes overnight accommodations, priority seating at Skybar and a bottle of either Perrier Jouet Grand Brut or SKYY Vodka on arrival for $325.”
That is not a bad deal…
via Luxist
Retail, food, hospitality… all mesh into one idea at times. Ideas about authenticity and originality and localness seem so importantant these days, that when a country or region has traditions like this, it is impossible to ignore…
From The Moment
Arici Graziano/Grazia Neri A sagra venerating roasted chestnuts.Few countries take their autumn harvests as seriously as Italy. Visit any hilltop town or small city on a weekend in October and you’re likely to find a sagra, a gastronomic spectacle venerating pumpkins or chestnuts or just about any vegetable, nut or meat that’s grown and produced regionally in fresh abundance. Sagre sometimes last all weekend and often culminate on Sunday with a celebratory feast. I recently visited Anguillara, a town built into the Sabatini hills around Lake Bracciano, near Rome, and the Sagra del Fungo was in full tilt. By 1 p.m. the parking lot hosting the festival was in a state of mushroom mania, with hundreds of people queuing up to try porcini sauces and spreads. There were other funghi — trucks pulled up to the event laden with golden chanterelles and purple and bronze flat-capped meadow mushrooms for sale — but porcini ruled the day, featuring prominently in most of the dishes served in mess-hall fashion beneath a giant white tent. If you’re in Italy this fall, it’s worth attending a sagra, if only to witness the unique customs of Italian food culture. You can find a complete listing of all the harvest festivals in Italy at this site (unfortunately only in Italian) or check out a few highlights of October and November sagre on the map below.
Oct. 17, 2009
Festa dell’uva (grapes)
Merano (Bolzano)
Oct. 18, 2009
Festa della Castagna (chestnuts)
Sirolo (Ancona)
Oct. 17, 18, 2009
Sagra del Tartufo Bianco e del Fungo Porcino (white truffles and porcini)
Balconevisi (Pisa)
Oct. 24, 25, 2009
Festa della Zucca (pumpkin)
Venzone (Udine)
Oct. 25, 2009
Sagra della salsiccia (sausage)
Camerata Nuova (Roma)
Nov. 6-15
Sagra della Polenta
XII Morelli (Ferarra)
Nov. 7, 8
Festa del Baccalà (stockfish)
Villa Lagarina (Trentino)
In the bizarre brand extension of the week segment, we profile Marc by Marc Jacobs new skate decks. Each of the 100 pc limited edition decks feature 7-ply Canadian magle and are availalbe at the Marc flagship stores for $89.
Love Hotels?… Love Movies?…
Something big coming soon!
Check here for more details about the coming collaboration between Design Hotels and The Auteurs
For those of you familiar with the “food expert” and author, Padma Lakshmi you are already well aware of her charm and sensuality around food… With all of that grace, she is now schilling hamburgers… specifically Carl´s Jr. Western Bacon Cheeseburgers…
A new era in advertising (an an improvement on the older Paris Hilton version)…
London concept shop Dover Street Market and Comme des Garcons (they have the same director, Rei Kawakubo) have teamed up to release a new perfume availalbe beginning October at DSM.
It is interesting to see how “cool” brands and stores have started using mini-videos distributed through youtube and vimeo to release their new products… Below is the latest from Adidas (and another older film because I can not embed the new one)…
Nabil Elderkin has directed a web video to promote Jeremy Scott’s collection for Adidas. The video serves as an animated lookbook for Scott’s upcoming collection and plays on the dual themes of Africa and the early 90’s that inspired the apparel. The backing track by Esau Mwamwaya (featuring MIA & Santigold) reinforces the playful mood of the video and the collection. (via Hypebeast)
JEREMY SCOTT web video thingy… Dir. NABIL from nabil elderkin on Vimeo.
Just a friendly reminder that the countdown to “901″ will be complete in about 2 days!… Check HERE to find out what the special surprise from 901 Silver Tequila is on 9/01 (September 1).
Like we said before… not sure what exactly it will be but we imagine it will have something to do with a certain singing, dancing, Jessica Biel-dating entertainer… 
With exciting reports coming in right and left about the exhibitionist style of the new NYC Standad hotel, we were remissed to see that actual city legislation is underway to end this. According to The New York Post NY City Council Speaker Christine Quinn has vowed to end the spectacle that overlooks the family-friendly newly opened High Line park; Men.style.com suggests to local pervs that Saturday night is the best time to scope out the proceedings until she succeeds.
Hipster/tween/suburban pop culture consumers rejoice. The re-vamped and updated Polaroid brand will be coming back to you courtesy of Urban Outfitters. “Urban Outfitters has gotten its hands on 700 hand-numbered deadstocks and is offering kits with one Polaroid One600 Classic camera and one pack of Type 779 instant film. You can thank the Impossible Project—a group of dedicated obsessives who’ve bought many of the former company’s facilities and hope to resurrect at least the film starting next year—but you’d better get there early: Polaroid people can be crazy.”
Check out Urban Outfitters here and PolaPremium here…
via men.style.com
While this is not an official collaboration, Hypebeast posted a cool juxtaposition of products yesterday- “quinessential luggage makers Globe-Trotter team-up with Happy Socks as the official provider for the sock-companies transportation and display cases for upcoming tradeshows. For Happy Socks, their colorful patterns and prints have quickly developed a strong following and will no doubt continue on.”
Just what we need, a sock suitcase!
While I applaud the use of Facebook by brands for information spreading, opinion gathering, and transparency, these brands need to be clever enough to leverage only the beneficial aspects of this tool. Case in point, the Bryant Park Hotel and a little Facebook application called Facebook Connect (FBC). FBC automatically feeds information from one website to your Facebook profile and subsequently newsfeed. In the fase of the hotel, they have chosen to feed their Tripadvisor ratings.
While the majority of the reviews on Tripadvisor are positive, the most recent one is unfortunately not. Now, not only are prospective travellers on Tripadvisor privvy to this feedback, but all of the “fans” and Facebook users checking out the hotel´s FB page.
Retail Refugees is an unbiased and currently un-aligned independent resource for breaking news and events in the retail industry, however a dear friend contacted us about a promotion that she is taking part in and we felt compelled to support her cause (karma).
901 Tequila which is a product of Justin Timberlake is hosting a countdown to “901″ (9/01, or September 1) on their site when something incredible will most likely happen when the counter strikes 3…2…1…0. We imagine a blowout party in some exotic nightclub, or some facetime with JT himself. However, we will have to log on to find out. Additionally, 901 has created an embeddable widget to host your very own private countdown.
I did some digging around and it turns out that 901 gets pretty positive reviews from serious mixologists as well as the casual drinkers although I have not had a chance to taste it yet myself!
If any readers have tasted 901, please let me know how it is.
For all of you die-hard Frinds fans in London who can´t seem to get enough of the full season DVDs or nerdy Friends merchandise, your ship has come in!
“A pop-up version of the sitcom’s popular coffee shop will be in Soho’s Broadwick Street for a fortnight to celebrate Friends’ 15th anniversary. Props from the show, including Rachel’s wedding dress from the first episode and Phoebe’s terrible paintings, will go on display. Fans can sign-up online to get a voucher for a free cup of Central Perk coffee – but whether Jennifer Aniston will be there to serve it is another matter.”
24 Sept-7 Oct, 67 Broadwick Street, W1F, sign up for free coffee
via The London Paper
Rei Kawakubo´s Dover Street Market has just unveiled its new shoe display. The design was done by interior designer Faye Toogood with plaster blocks, unfinished concrete walls, copper pipes, and the famous hanging rope lights by Christien Meindertsma. No word on any new brands the shop will be carrying, but with such a cool interior concept, will anybody really care about shoes?
Image via Dezeen
While this hardly constitutes “retail,” if Kanye West is the epitome of a “personal brand” perhaps his concert stage is his store…? That being said, these preview pics of the stage for his upcoming European tour were too good not to post. What do you think?
Local favorite Vietnamese restaurant, Chi Sing, created a stir this afternoon when putting together their pop-up outdoor eating. Complete with real grass, DJ, and tent to keep things cool, the restaurant was packed, and we predict will continue to be so until the weather no longer permits.
Please send any pictures of innovative outdoor eating spaces that you encounter around the world!
The cooler-than-thau Standard Hotel in NYC has been open for a little while now and the buzz just does not stop- from the voyeur sex guestrooms visisble from the High Line to the new just-opened Standard Grill.
The Standard Grill is “officially” open now and word on the street is that it definitely lives up to the hype. Hotel Chatter is on the scene and reports, “As of right now, the restaurant is open to the public but only for “preview dinner and late night.” To start the salivating, Yelp already has some very detailed reviews from diners, including price and entree tidbits. Elusive reservations can be had by calling 212-645-4100, just remember to stay flexible and drop in even if they deny you over the phone; walk-ins are always welcome.”
When looking into the magic crystal ball, once can see visions of flying cars, world peace, and… tomorrow’s consumer! Penn’s Wharton school published a report making predictions about the future shopper. Several valid and intelligent observations are made about how post-societal-trauma, the current recessionary period for example, spending habits and particularly those associated with conspicuous consumption slow down. People adjust accordingly regardless of their income level (Paco Underhill, author of Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping, claims that “income stability level” and not “income level” is actually the key determinant during this period). Traditionally consumption levels simply rise over time back to their normal levels. However, what the report claims is that this current slump will have longer lasting effects than others due to the generational values and the severity of the situation.
Personally, I believe that the HNWI (high net work individuals) who are unaffected by the crisis, will remain unaffected and continue to consume as in the past. The difference for the rest of us however, will be less of a change in consumerism, but more a response to changes in products and what is being sold in the marketplace. We have already seen a number of “luxury” brands close shop in addition to some simply starting to offer alternative lower priced products as a reaction to dwindling credit lines. I think that the focus will be with brands providing purchasing propositions that make sense in the period, and consumers will continue to consume what they are offered. This may be a chicken or the egg scenario, as in “who is really driving the changes in the marketplace,” but in my opinion it is the manufacturer and producer and retailer.
A very insightful interview was featured in the Sunday CEO section of the Palm Springs newpaper earlier this month with Alexander Calderwood, the founder of Ace Hotels. We have covered Ace Hotels in the past due to their collaborations with Pendleton blankets, among other brands. The following is an excerpt:
“The future lobby of the Ace Hotel & Swim Club was filled with the sweet smell of sawdust, the squeal of power tools and a stuffed fox wearing pearls waiting to be placed in the diorama over the front desk.
The Good Humor ice cream truck out back will be sent away soon for some work. The engine will be replaced with an ice chest for beer; the sing-song music will be kept.
Construction workers tacked down a few more nails in what will become the star-gazing deck. It’s right next to an empty pit that eventually will be filled with aqua blue water and swimmers with oversized sunglasses.
With little more than two weeks until the new hotel opens, general manager Jonathan Heath can practically hear the bells of the tamale cart ding-ding-dinging in the distance.”
One of my favorite moments of the interview is when Calderwood describes his clients as, “cultural enthusiasts”… This is a refreshing way to look at the emerging creative/young generation.
Additionally, it is nice to see a legitimately both “American” and original hotel concept.
Berliner Joerg Koch had a mention in The Moment blog today. Since opening his O32C Museum Shop, based on the O32C magazine he publishes, Koch has been hosting suarees from time to time featuring drinks and dim sum. According to The Moment, “A collaboration between Berlin’s “It” publication and the French designer-artist Item Idem, the space was inaugurated during Berlin Fashion Week with a small reception for the sound stylist Michel Gaubert, and for the following three weekends played high-concept host to a series of get-togethers complete with custom vodka cocktails and fresh dim sum.
According to the 032c editor Joerg Koch, profit is not the motive. “We spent so much money on the decoration of the bar — the chairs, tables and the LV bags (part of Item Idem’s installation) that we knew we’d never regenerate that money from the drinks and the dim sum,” he said. “Normally you do a bar to make money, and we’re useless at that. Our emphasis was on fun, to get people together, to create a social energy not dominated by talk of the crisis, and if that meant spending money, so be it.”
Nevertheless, the bar was enough of a hit that Koch is extending its run through the end of February; after that it will become a monthly event, renamed the Societé de 032C.”
As if seeking to defy any hint of a retail slump, Giorgio Armani opened his latest retail outlet in NYC on Tuesday. The following is an excerpt from Armani’s stint as a guest-blogger on the NYT The Moment blog… It is great to see the social initiative and impressive that his organization is making despite the cutbacks in philanthropic spending…
“Mission accomplished! Last night I cut the ribbon to my new store alongside Mayor Bloomberg and Caroline Kennedy using a giant pair of scissors. The store was literally finished just minutes before we held the press conference at 5 p.m.: As the journalists came up the big staircase, all of the workers were going down and out with their ladders and buckets. I told you we’d make it in time! Though I’ve spent the last three days meeting with many American journalists, I wanted to organize a separate press conference prior to the store party to announce my $1 million donation to the Fund for Public Schools. I told the press, and I’ll tell you, how much New York means to me. The city has been a great support to me and my business throughout my career, so I thought, What better time than now to give something back?
I definitely scaled things down for this store opening, as compared with other store celebrations where we have done extravagant events and fashion shows in tandem with the opening. It just felt right to do something a bit more pared down and to funnel the extra money to charity.”
To read more, go to The Moment
Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, beat expectations after its US discount stores accounted for about 50 per cent of all US retail growth during 2008 – while its full-year global sales passed $400bn for the first time, and profits hit $13.4bn.
Despite the recession and tumbling economy, Wal Mart (like McDonalds) is beating the odds…
From the IHT, Mike Duke, who took over as chief executive three weeks ago, said the fourth quarter and full-year results showed that Wal-Mart had gained “momentum” during the year in all of its markets, despite the tough economic environment.
“We are doing all the right things to continue our momentum and to widen the gap between the competition and us. We finished January strong, and February is off to a good start.”
The results again underlined the retailer’s ability to generate cash in a recession, and to use the money to invest in its business at a time when most of its rivals are cutting back. Reduced capital spending on new stores in the US last year, operational improvements and inventory management left the retailer with free cash flow of $11.6bn at the end of January, more than double the $5.7bn of a year ago.
Apparently, the USA is not the only region with flailing retail numbers… Luxist reports, “The AP reports that the economic crisis and low oil prices are starting to make Moscow’s popular GUM shopping center on Red Square look a bit like a ghost town. Some boutiques are closing while others are doing the same thing that their U.S counterparts are doing, offering deep discounts to lure anyone who might still be shopping. Russia has been a tremendous growth area for many international brands over the past few years as Russians became accustomed to increased spending power. Now it seems that they’ve followed the rest of the world into shopping retreat. “
In October, Alla Verber, the MD of Mercury, the country’s biggest luxury goods group said that sales have fallen at the popular TsUM shopping center. Mercury’s stores sell many of the world’s top luxury brands, everything from Gucci to Maserati cars and Chopard jewelry through the TsUM department store and other luxury shops.
American billionaire Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc. received quite a Valentine’s present this week. Buffet bought $250 million of Tiffany & Co. debt to help the ailing jewel. Tiffany & Co. is still the world’s second-largest retailer of luxury jewelry but like many retailers, especially those in the jewelry business, it took a deep hit recently. With a stock share price falling and low sales numbers, the Berkshire Hathaway purchase will provide much-needed safety during these times.
As a resource for retail as well as restaurant concepts, I was surprised and interested to see this post in men.style.com today. It is currently Fashion Week in NYC and Duckie Brown and McDonald’s have teamed up on a show together. According to the cards left on chairs at today’s show, Steven Cox spent many of his teenage hours toiling at the fast-food place in his native London. (Evidently, he still craves the cheeseburgers—click picture to read.)
New York streetwear brand and retailer will soon find a new temporary home in star-tailer, Dover Street Market. According to Hypebeast, “The incoming appearance of Supreme features yet another important team-up as just recently we saw the Nigo and Jun Takahashi-created NOWHERE brand also feature as a special retail space within the COMME des GARCONS-centric retailer. Stay tuned for more details this partnership as well as potential collaboration items.”
Last night, Louis Vuitton famed Japanese artist and pop art hero, Takashi Murakami, unveiled some new work at the Gagosian Gallery in London. The Gagosians are a prolific art collecting family with 8 high profile galleries around the world.
This is in preparation for his upcoming show at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. According to Hypebeast, “the show featured three larger scale paintings including work from Murakami’s Time Bokan series and his trademark KaiKai and Kiki characters. Takashi even managed to showcased some live unofficial body painting segments.”
Any hotel designs on the horizon, Takashi?
As one of the most prolific living artists in the world, Damien Hirst has made a name for himself by producing extraordinarily expensive works of art. Not only is he the highest paid art figure in the world, but he has just defied all odds, in this 21st century ressesion, and gone and opened himself a new retail store in London, at 14 Hinde Street in the Marylebone district. Other Criteria, the U.K. artist’s publishing and merchandising company has opened up shop to sell works including some by Hirst himself ranging from his keyrings at 3.50 pounds to prints showing pills on mirror glass shelves, from an edition of 125, at 4,000 pounds each.
And now that the collapse has come, he has opened two stores selling Hirst-created knick knacks, from $5 key rings to prints at a cool $6,500. (Not cheap, but not as steep as usual: The original works pictured in the prints—shelves lined with handmade replicas of pills—have gone for as much as $19 million. In selling the $150 million skull, Hirst broke his own record, for most expensive piece made by a living artist.)
As Hirst told Bloomberg News: “Other Criteria makes objects and books created by artists to an exceptional standard,” said Hirst in an e-mailed statement. “I don’t think art has ever been as popular as it is today and Other Criteria aims to sell affordable art of the highest quality to everyone who wants it.”
Other Criteria
14 Hinde Street
London
W1U 3BG
Tel: 0207 935 5550
(courtesy slamxhype)
Fast Company highlighted 15 Japanese products that they predict could make it big in the near future. For all of you shopowners, here is your chance to be adventurous.
Some of my favorites are the Satsuma Kiroko Glass, the Kawaguchi Pots, the Paulownia Dressar.
Click here to watch the whole slideshow.
Business Week had a timely article about businesses that can prosper during the recession. Among them are pawn and thrift stores…
The current economic picture is certainly a gloomy one, with massive layoffs, bankruptcies, the collapse of financial institutions, and a severe credit crunch. But the recession has also injected life into a slew of small businesses that are thriving either in spite of or because of the economic downturn, giving new relevance to the old adage that one man’s misfortune is another’s opportunity.
Among those businesses that are thriving are pawn shops and thrift stores, which have traditionally catered to those in tight financial straits and which have historically seen an uptick during economic slumps. They’re reporting higher volumes of business and even a broadening of their customer bases among those who have recently found themselves with greatly diminished stock portfolios or among the unemployed. “More people are trying resale than may have done before,” says Adele Meyer, executive director of the National Association for Resale & Thrift Shops, a trade association based in St. Clair Shores, Mich. “And once people shop resale they realize what value and quality they’re getting for the price. They become hooked, and this becomes their way of shopping.” Now, many thrift stores are finding that their inventories are running especially low: Business is booming, and goods for resale aren’t being replenished as fast or as easily.
It seems that the streets of Paris are no longer paved with paté and fromage. The latest craze according to the Economist is sandwiches!
French people ate 1.3 billion sandwiches last year, a rise of 50 million from 2007. The trend represents the changing tastes of the nation, which have drifted away from the traditional plat du jour at a brasserie to embrace more convenient and affordable alternatives.The proof? Bankruptcies of restaurants and cafes in France are up by a quarter, while new low-priced sandwich chains such as Dailymonop’ – which offers boutique sandwiches with fancy fillings like foie gras – and Goütu, with sandwiches for as little as one euro, have flourished. Sample one-euro sandwich: Pâté de foie with cornichons. Perfect for backpackers.
Underscoring the nation’s newest predilection in food, Paris will host the European Sandwich & Snack Show next month, where the 2009 Sandwich World Cup will draw sandwich chefs from around the world. It’s a rather haughty venue for a humble meal, but leave it to France to elevate the quotidian to an art form.
For all of the wine and liquor distributors and retailers, take note of the fantastic new (2006) Mouton Rotschild label by Lucien Freud (courtesy of the Luxist).
The latest artist to grace the famous label of Château Mouton-Rothschild will be Lucian Freud. Freud, who is the grandson of Sigmund Freud, is one of the most famous and most collectible of the modern artists (his picture Benefits Supervisor Sleeping sold for over $33 million last year). Freud’s label for the 2006 vintage of Château Mouton-Rothschilld shows a playful image of a red-striped zebra and a potted palm tree that recalls one of his earliest works, The Painter’s Room from 1944. It is a far cry from the controversy-causing portraits which often show his famous and non-famous subjects with their lumps and bumps exposed. As is tradition, Freud will be compensated for his work with cases of the Mouton bearing his label. Picasso, Dali, Andy Warhol and even Prince Charles are among the artists who have designed for the label before. Check out the gallery below for some of the most famous labels.
Hypebeast reported about a great new collaboration between superstar retailer Opening Ceremony and Japanese stationary brand Postalco. Reportedly they are teaming up on a series of wallets and notebooks. Together the two look towards Japanese geometry as the basis for the collection’s design, something seen between the Edo period of 1603-1867. Traditionally the patterns were drawn on a “Sangaku” (wooden tablet) and hung underneath temple and shrine roofs as a tribute to gods and pertaining to mathematics. The collection will be available for sale at Opening Ceremony stores in Los Angeles and New York as well as the Postalco Kobayashi Shope in Japan.
Though it is nice to see a new retail channel and an attempt to innovate in these gloomy days, but not sure if Ritz Carlton has the right idea with this new program…
From Hotel Chatter…
In this economy, we know your need to swaddle yourself in a $125.00 robe and to sleep atop a $115.00 fitted sheet is stronger than ever (not). Lucky for you, Ritz-Carlton Hotels has launched an online shop that will allow you to buy ultra-expensive goods and Ritz-Carlton-branded accessories to recreate the Ritz experience in your very own comfy digs…for lots and lots of cash.
The Online Shops at the Ritz-Carlton feature an array of items that go beyond Ritz-Carlton-branded goodies: Lily Pulitzer, Malo Cashmere and Prada are also among the brands for sale in the online boutique. May we interest you in your very own Ritz-Carlton striped polo shirt for $95? Or perhaps a logo shotglass?
Seriously, we’re not sure who is throwing down the Benjamins to buy this stuff right now, but we’d like to make it clear that we would consider dating him or her.
New experiential branding from Lufthansa… (from the moment blog)
Most American airport lounges are about as welcoming as the lobby of a La Quinta Inn. Which is why Lufthansa’s new $10 million lounge at Kennedy Airport’s Terminal 1 is pretty interesting news. Bringing a taste of its specTACular Frankfurt lounge stateside, the triple-decker glass-walled space has three buffets, showers, a bar with actual bartenders and wi-fi everywhere. And it’s just one in a huge rollout of lounges happening over the next several months from Washington Dulles to Bombay. At a time when most carriers are cutting back, this is also a bit of encouraging news for the dismal business of aviation. (Of course, airlines never mind spending on the premium classes — they know which side their bread is buttered on.) And sure, not a lot of people are flying first right now, but before anyone starts hating on the forward cabins, keep in mind that you can get into the new lounge if you’re a Frequent Traveler (35,000 miles a year) on any Star Alliance carrier.
Brand extensions are becoming more and more popular in the context of the increasing “edu-tainment” trend. Brands are doing their best to combine a fun and informative experience and they are doing this on their home territory more often than not. Take the Heineken Experience recently covered by men.style.com. “Giggly spring-breaking aside, there are umpteen good reasons to visit Amsterdam: The rolling canals, the endless Van Goghs, and, our favorite (sorry, Vinnie), the Heineken Brewery. (The space, a former active brewery, no longer produces the beer commercially.) The Cool Hunter pays a visit to the revamped (and renamed) location, dubbed the New Heineken Experience, a multilevel fun house best thought of as the Universal Studios Tour of boozing. There, you’ll get a special-effects-driven journey through the entire beer-making process, including stops at bottle-green lounges and gleaming-brass brewing tanks. But for those whose next expedition to the Netherlands is not forthcoming, click over to see what you’re missing.”
See also: Porsche Museum, BMW Welt
In September I mentioned and posted some images of the BMW Welt in Munich. More recently, Porsche has opened a musuem of their own…
Buying a Porsche might be especially out of reach these days, so it’s a stroke of luck that the company is opening its first museum this weekend. Designed by the Viennese firm Delugan Meissl, the structure has the badass look of a killer grille, and houses a suitable collection of the brand’s finest cars—everything from the first 356 to a Porsche-powered McLaren. (There’s room for play, too: Most museums these days can boast a café and restaurant, but how many also offer a cigar lounge?) Only thing is, if now’s hardly the time to buy one of these beauties, it’s probably not the time for a quick weekend in Stuttgart, either. Fortunately, a large selection of photos and renderings are available online for a virtual tour—exhaust fumes (not to mention cigar smoke) not included. Check Autoblog for a full slideshow.
(story via men.style.com)
Blurring the lines between business and pleasure (the ubiquitous “bleasure”) and the increasingly overused “culturetainment” (integrating a culturally significant element into traditionally mindless activity) have been among the primary goals of brands in recent times in attempts to differentiate themselves from the self-serving money machines of industry; it is their way to appear to have consumers´ best interests at heart. That being said, examples of culturetainment like both the BMW Welt and the Porsche Museum really do excellent jobs at offering added value to a retail experience. Seeing the history, technology, and passion behind these products goes a long way, and can actually teach devotees a thing or two.
This year’s Michelin Guide for the UK was just released, or really leaked, highlighting four new 2-star restaurants, twenty-six new 1-star restaurants, and a list of four ‘Rising Stars’. The coveted 3-stars were only bestowed upon past recipients including Gordon Ramsay, Heston Blumenthal’s ‘The Fat Duck‘, and Michel Roux’s ‘The Waterside Inn‘.
Two-Michelin Stars were newly awarded to:
Newly promoted Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester was tipped for third star status on the 2009 list of ‘Rising Stars’ which also includes three restaurants tipped for their second star status: Tom Aikens, The Ledbury, and Nathan Outlaw. Pubs, family-run establishments, country hotels and trendy London restaurants awarded Michelin stars denotes the exceptional variety and quality of UK cuisine among the culinary world.
[via Luxist]
