The founders of Electus, Pandora and Skull Candy talked about starting businesses in the current economy at the Fortune Brainstorm Tech conference.

The Food and Drug Administration's approval of Novartis' generic version of the blood thinner Lovenox signals that the agency may be more willing to approve complex generic products in the coming years, according to Jeffrey George, global head of Novartis's Sandoz generic drug unit. "It underscores that the FDA really does have the institutional courage to approve affordable high-quality alternatives to some of the more difficult-to-make products that are out there," George tells senior editor Robert Langreth in "The Science Business" blog. "There were a lot of interests lined up against this approval." Numerous biotech products …

Mary Jane Credeur and Mary Schlangenstein report that there's a new player in the contentious New York-Chicago shuttle game. Delta shifted operations to O'Hare airport from Midway in June, putting it in a head-to-head matchup with American and United for businesspeople flying the popular route. It is operating hourly flights between the cities and is offering three times the usual number of frequent-flier miles. Delta offered the triple-points promotion to "increase awareness" of the new Chicago service, says spokesman Kent Landers. Fliers can earn 4,400 miles for a New York-Chicago round trip through August. United matched the offer, …

Jack Neff reports that Procter & Gamble's Old Spice body wash has gained share since "The Man Your Man Could Smell Like," starring Isaiah Mustafa, broke in February -- but only enough to make up ground it lost to competitors earlier in the year. In the 52 weeks ended June 13, it was basically flat in a category that grew 8.6%, according to SymphonyIRI. And a lot of the share gain may have as much to do with aggressive coupon drops as it does with the demonstrably popular viral video, Neff points out. …

"If this thing ["Tron: Legacy"] isn't a hit," an attendee at the Comic-Con conference says, "somebody at Disney is going to have a lot of explaining to do." Indeed, Brooks Barnes reports, the studio and marketing juggernaut has been pushing its futuristic movie for more than three years, "redefining the Hollywood hard sell" in the process. Marketing for "tent-pole" movies -- big budget/big risk/big potential payoff -- used to start about a year before their release, but this is the third year that a trailer for the movie has made a debut at the comic book confab. "We're …

Seventh Generation co-founder Jeffrey Hollender used to say that "hell would freeze over" before his company would do business with Wal-Mart. Guess what? Hell's status presumably remains quo but Ellen Byron reports that, starting next month, a bunch of Seventh Generation goods will be sold in about 1,500 Wal-Mart stores. "We've shifted dramatically in the way we see the world," says Hollender, who now bears executive chairman and "chief inspired protagonist" titles at Seventh Generation. That shifting view, of course, has been prompted by big changes at the retailer and a personal relationship that dates back to …

Sandra M. Jones takes a stroll down Rush Street on Chicago's Gold Coast and pops into what she says is Gap Inc.'s future: a tiny store called 1969 that purposefully offers no indication that it is part of Gap. The 1969 line claims to offer a fit suitable for work or a date at a mass-market price. It hopes to take a piece of the premium denim market and the San Francisco-based company has opened three test stores -- in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York -- in the heart of luxury shopping neighborhoods. "We're trying …

Ylan Q. Mui reports that several major retailers are taking an advance on the Christmas spirit by holding Black Friday-style sales that they hope will stimulate consumer spending. Toys R Us has had daily mystery discounts during the week and will have bonus promotions today and tomorrow, for example. Target's sale, called "Back in Black Friday," features about 500 items on sale on its Web site for 24 hours at an average of 40% off. C. Britt Beemer, chairman of America's Research Group, says his surveys show only about 5% to 7% of consumers shop for Christmas gifts throughout …