Mad Ave's Latest Fetish: Intellectual Property

Danielle Sacks — Mon, 12 May 2008 16:36:45 -0400

"Gentleman Callers" candles. "Fat Pig" chocolates. "Dogmatic" gourmet
hot dogs. It's no surprise this slew of new tongue-in-cheek brands come
straight from the front lines of manufactured hipness: ad agencies. In
today's Advertising Age, Rupal Parekh
writes about a trend I highlighted in Fast Company's Annual Fast 50

Grand Theft Auto IV Rage

Danielle Sacks — Mon, 12 May 2008 16:04:07 -0400

It's been a historic week for gamers: Marvel Comics' "Iron Man" had stellar box office performance, clocking in an estimated $100.8 million in tickets in North America, while Take-Two Interactive's Grand Theft Auto IV sold six million copies during its first week of sales, raking in an astounding $500 million.

Project Parse It Up: Bravo vs. Lifetime

Danielle Sacks — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:58:31 -0400

Tim Gunn, our favorite sartorial critic, is in the eye of the storm--again. As I chronicled in Fast Company's April issue profile "Project Rehab," the former head of Parsons' Fashion program has had a dizzying career trajectory since turning 50 (take note AARP!): landing his own TV show on Bravo, recruited to rewire Liz Claiborne Inc's $5 billion design culture, and of course, breakout stardom on Bravo's Project Runway.

Brand America: Europe Hearts Obama

Danielle Sacks — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:52:01 -0400

A friend of mine who happens to be a political journalist just returned from a 10 day holiday jaunt through Europe last week. His most startling discovering, he told me: Europeans are gaga over Obama.

Clorox & The Sierra Club Take On Method

Danielle Sacks — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:50:38 -0400

Today's The New York Times' "Business of Green" special
section has a fascinating article about the latest eco-marriage: Clorox
and The Sierra Club. The "green trench warfare" Method's Adam Lowry
refers to in our Fast 50 issue (#16) has officially gone full throttle.
With Method and Seventh Generation head to head in sales clocking in at
around $100 million, respectively, Clorox's newest posterboy is none
other than Sierra Club heavy hitter Carl Pope.

Land Rover & Jaguar: All Eyes on Tata

Danielle Sacks — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 13:58:35 -0400

The deal's been sealed. As of today, Tata Group's bid for Ford's
Jaguar and Land Rover brands graduated to a completed purchase for $2.3
billion. Note, that's nearly half the number Ford originally paid for
the brands only a few years ago.

My Brand-Sponsored Playlist

Danielle Sacks — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 15:13:23 -0500

Last night, while chopping veggies with the TV buzzing in the
background, I suddenly felt the hypnotic pull of that song with the
drunken-piano-indie-chick-voice oozing, "Hoping I could learn bit bout
how to give and take...la la la la." It's a hip, lovely, and surprising
tune that's sound instantly grips a 30-year-old Brooklynite like
myself. And of course, is the backdrop for Apple's new MacBook Air commercial.