Crazy Prices, Crazy Consumers, Just Plain Craziness

By now you've all heard that Missoni released a "Missoni for Target" line on Tuesday, Sept. 13th.  It caused madness on the Target website, crashing it numerous times throughout the day, as well as madness within and outside the stores (nearing the length of lines outside an Apple store that precede an iPhone release). 

All of this is because this is a high end designer who is "bringing the high end to the masses." They created a 400-piece line exclusively for Target.  So, they're making cheaper versions of the brand and selling the Target version of the $500 shirt for $100. 

Of course all of those consumers were not buying the products for themselves, but rather because they want to make a tidy profit when they turn around and sell it for five times as much as they paid.  By Thursday there were over 40,000 Missoni products available on eBay and a lot more available on Craigslist. 

Is this crazy consumer behavior?  Would you buy the Missoni stuff from ebay and Craigslist at such insanely marked up prices?  Or do you know friends who would do it?

Thoughts please!

Sharks May Now Keep Their Fins

Living in San Diego, you're probably familiar with news of sharks in the area.  Just two weeks ago there were at least two to three shark sightings just off the coast of Mission Beach.  There's something scary about seeing shark fins in the water, but after all, they *do* live out there. When we, humans, choose to swim, dive, paddleboard, surf, etc. in the ocean we're actually invading their home. That said, I prefer that they keep their distance from me and I promise to not bother them.

This week there is good news for all sharks on the west coast of the United States.  The California Senate passed a bill that enacts a ban "on the sale, trade, possession and distribution of shark fins."

"Washington was the first West Coast state to pass similar legislation in May followed by Oregon in early August. West Coast legislation comes on the heels of related bills passed in Hawaii, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam."

Have any of your eaten shark fin soup?  It is quite a delicacy in some parts of the world.  Read the above linked article and let me know what you think about the new (potential) legislation (Governor Brown must sign the bill by Oct. 8th in order for it to become law).

Pay to not Play?

This is old news by now (two weeks old), but it is still worth commenting on.  Often, celebrities are paid to wear certain clothes or to endorse certain brands. The reason this is done is in hopes of increasing the value of the brand through positive association.  Not nearly as often (I'm not aware of any other cases, but there could be one/some) is a "celebrity" paid to NOT wear a certain brand for fear that wearing it will decrease the value of the brand.  Such is the case with Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino from Jersey Shore. 

Abercrombie and Fitch would very much like all of the characters on Jersey Shore to find another brand to wear.  What are your thoughts on this?

The press release:



"We are deeply concerned that Mr. Sorrentino's association with our brand could cause significant damage to our image.  We understand that the show is for entertainment purposes, but believe this association is contrary to the aspirational nature of our brand, and may be distressing to many of our fans. We have therefore offered a substantial payment to Michael 'The Situation' Sorrentino and the producers of MTV's The Jersey Shore to have the character wear an alternate brand.  We have also extended this offer to other members of the cast, and are urgently waiting a response."

Can you Trademark a Color?

This question came before a NY judge a couple weeks ago.  Shapes can be trademarked - the Coca-Cola bottle shape, for example, is trademarked.  We also know that you can trademark certain color combinations - for example, the combination of yellow, red and black that Kodak uses is trademarked by Kodak.

What about a single color though?  Many of you (perhaps mostly the females and a few aware gentlemen) know that all Christian Louboutin shoes have a familiar red sole. I think that many of us would quickly yell "Louboutin!!" if we were shown a glimpse of a shoe and it had a red sole.  Is that trademarkable?  (Is that even a word?  It should be).

Read about the issue and weigh in. 

TED - Next Generation and Bionic Fight

I was recently sent two great pieces by a couple of your classmates.

Imelda sent me this article that talks about the pros and cons of GMOs (genetically modified organisms).  It features Joel Salatin, the farmer from Virginia that many of you liked and respected from the Food Inc. video.

Nick sent me this short video.  It is an eleven year old (future leader, I think!) who has a sure sense of self and a real idea of what he wants in his food and what he doesn't want. 

As the first article states, "The argument continues. Some say GMOs are the best hope for the world's food shortage, while others say they are our worst nightmare."

What is your take?

100 calorie limit breached

We should have known Americans wouldn't be happy with their 100 calorie snack-packs.  They did last quite a while though.

 
Snackwells has just up'd their snack-paks from 100 calories to 150 calories. 

Protection from...parents?

Megan sent me this great article.  It should provide a lot of conversation (in the comments section or in class).  You should read the article yourself, but the gist is that a Chicago school is now making rules stating that parents can not send lunches to school with their children.  In other words, the children "must" eat in the school cafeteria.  No more brown bag lunches.

This brings up a few issues - does the school provide as nutritious of a lunch as the parents would have?  Could the parents prepare a lunch for less money than the $2.25 they are required to pay for the cafeteria lunch? Might this force the schools to start to more closely examine their lunches and therefore provide more nutritious lunches?

There are also schools in other parts of the nation that are making similar rules.  For instance, a school in AZ allows home-packed lunches, but nothing that contains white flour, refined sugar or other processed foods.  Good-bye Lunchables!  A school in Alabama forbid any drinks in lunches since there was tap water available in the school.

Thoughts?