• Walmart Gives Cheesewright Larger Role
    Wal-Mart has named David Cheesewright EVP, president and CEO of a new regional management team that will oversee retail operations in Canada, the United Kingdom and Sub-Saharan Africa and business development in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Canada. Cheesewright has been president and chief executive officer of Walmart Canada since 2008. He joined the company in 1999, holding a variety of positions with Asda, Walmart's United Kingdom business, before moving to Canada. Succeeding Cheesewright as president and CEO of Walmart Canada will be Shelley Broader, who was SVP, Sam's Clubs, before joining Walmart Canada last December as chief …
  • Actress Jennie Garth New Face Of Porcelana
    Ultimark Products has tapped actress Jennie Garth to be the new face of its Porcelana line of skin care products, which is sold in such retailers as Walgreens, Rite Aid, Walmart and Kmart. Garth, from the television series "Beverly Hills 90210," will promote both new and existing Porcelana products and will appear in print advertisements, social media and online marketing. Ultimark Products purchased the Porcelana product line last April from Nicene Brands. Other brands in the Ultimark personal care product portfolio include Prell, Denorex and Zincon.
  • Brazil: Gisele Bundchen Ad Sexist
    Brazil's Ministry for Women wants to pull a television ad for Hope lingerie featuring model Gisele Bundchen. The ads have her apologizing to her boyfriend for things like wrecking his car, first in clothes, then in sexy lingerie. The Ministry says "Hope" reinforces the stereotype of women as sex objects and "ignores the progress made in ending sexist practices ... It also represents discrimination against women." In a statement, the lingerie company's director, Sandra Chayo, said the campaign is not intended to be sexist.
  • Consumer Internet, Mobile Drive Media Spend
    The latest forecast from Veronis Suhler Stevenson (VSS), issued Sept. 28, projects that targeted media will be the fastest-growing media sector in terms of total spending in 2011, due primarily to an uptick in consumer Internet, mobile services and branded entertainment. The VSS forecast takes into account four revenue streams: advertising, marketing services, consumer end-user and institutional end-user. The targeted media sector, which also encompasses direct marketing (including direct mail), outsourced custom publishing and b-to-b media, will grow 7.1% to $199.66 billion this year and 7.9% in the 2010-2015 period, according to the media-focused investment banking firm …
  • Diageo Launches International Campaign For Johnnie Walker
    Johnnie Walker is launching a new marketing campaign in Brazil, Bulgaria, Greece, Lebanon, Spain, Thailand and Vietnam. Creative includes an amazing 60-second spot, "Step Together" that Roald Dahl could have written, in which people live in an immense, grey crater in the Earth. One man finds a flower. Great spot. There is also activity on Facebook. Consumers in markets chosen for the campaign will be invited to vote for one of three installations, covering art, business and technology. The winning installation in each country will be put on public display. Greece can definitely use a few cases of …
  • New Ad Push For Chili's
    A new ad for QSR chain Chili's has a romantic tone as 20-something office worker asks his coworker out on a date to the restaurant. When she responds it's the voice of blues singer John Lee Hooker singing, "I love that talk, when you talk like that, you knocks me out, right off of my feet." The effort, by Hill Holliday, Boston touts Chili's $20 dinner for two. Chili's is revamping with new menu items, a new logo, and a restaurant redesign scheme in 61 of the 1,299 Chili's outlets in the Unites States. An additional 240 operate …
  • Walgreens Reorganizes Marketing
    Walgreens is reorganizing its merchandising and marketing leadership teams to better align the "strategic objectives" and to enhance the integration of those teams, according to a statement from the company. As part of the reorganization, the role of chief marketing officer will be eliminated, and as a result, Kim Feil will be leaving the company, effective Sept. 30. Under the new structure, Cindy Donohoe, VP pharmacy healthcare marketing, will continue to lead marketing efforts for pharmacy, health and wellness initiatives; Catherine Lindner, VP retail marketing, will provide marketing leadership to all retail operations; Deborah Sabo, VP marketing services, will …
  • Amgen To Supreme Court: Please Legalize Kickbacks
    Amgen is arguing to the Supreme Court that the federal False Claims Act is "draconian" because some courts say it doesn't allow doctors to take a kickback before applying to Medicaid or Medicare for reimbursement. The appeal comes in a case where Amgen is accused of giving doctors free supplies of an injectable anemia drug, Aranesp. The doctors can bill Medicaid and Medicare for the free drugs even though they haven't paid Amgen for them, so the free drugs amount to a cash incentive to prescribe Amgen's brand. Amgen's would like to make it easier for drug companies …
  • Startup Takes On P&G
    Willa, a line of personal care products and soaps for preteens launched by a wealthy Connecticut woman, is in Target, J. Crew and trendy Upper East Side boutiques like Blue Tree, owned by the actress Phoebe Cates. But the products, which are meant to be an alternative to more confectionary hair-care fare, sounds too much like Wella, per Procter & Gamble, and that has the Cincinnati-based CPG giant strapping on the legal chain mail. Willa brand, with lip balm, facial masks and lotions in purple and white bottles, versus Wella, heads to court next month.
  • Scion's In The Music Business
    Scion, which has focused on music over the years with its Scion A/V project, has backed indie bands to make recordings and videos since the Toyota division's inception. It has put on hundreds of concerts around the country. One recent show at L.A.'s Roxy cost about $10,000. It supports heavy metal and garage-rock bands, as well as obscure dance subgenres like dubstep and moombahton (a style loosely related to reggaetón). "My goal is for Scion to stand out as a corporation that gets behind the music community -- not the entire music community -- and for the brand …
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