AdAge reports that Australia has ruled in favor of plain packaging requirement across all tobacco brands. Regardless of how you feel about the product, is uniform packaging the end of big tobacco? If the product becomes stripped of brand equity and visual recognition, is there a need to compensate a

Brands Can Bust Through with Forward Facing Trends Let’s start with the good news. As a result of the economic downturn, we’re now working with consumers who are ready to work—on their homes that is. While massive remodeling projects are pretty much out the window, consumers are more engaged in smaller, more

It is often said that in a time of crisis that private labels increase their share of the market, and whilst this is indeed true, in fact, as we look back over the last 40 years, we see that private labels have continued to capture a growing market share, year after year, crisis or no crisis!

As the economy sputters along and the unemployment rate refuses to bend there is a lot of talk these days about the collective psyche of Americans these days and what makes people happy.

I spent the long 4th of July holiday weekend visiting colleges with my daughter. She’s a “rising Senior” in high school, so we are picking out the schools that she will apply to in the fall. It’s a stressful time for a young person, and as a parent I know the enormity of

Here is the basic fact: Once you’ve stumbled into the sportswear forest at a Macy’s, Nordstrom, Bloomingdales or Lord & Taylor you could pretty much forget if you’re in the

As the economy recovers, value means appealing to consumers’ lifestyles, not just their pocketbooks Undoubtedly, the economic challenges of recent times have changed the face of American consumerism. Shoppers are rethinking their concept of value in all of their

Retailer Announces Further Sustainability Goals Regardless of how you feel about Walmart, there’s no denying the overwhelming economic power of one of the world’s largest public corporations. The retailer from Bentonville’s relentless

It’s Not A Pink Slip, It’s a Blank Page The CPG Branding and Marketing Forum is not a job board. The forum typically doesn’t have pieces of career advice or listings of job hunting techniques. There are plenty of these career resources

A Brand Driven into the Ground While not a consumer packaged good, the historic automaker certainly represents a easily recognized, innovative Swedish automotive nameplate. With a future in question and dealer assets at risk, what will