Katy Perry is the newest face of Popchips and will appear in the brand's advertising campaign this fall. "I was hooked after my first bite!" Perry said in a press release. "When I discover something good, I want to share it with everyone I know, so I tweeted about it." The singer will also be investing in the company and will become a creative partner. Other celebrity investors are Ashton Kutcher, David Ortiz and Diddy. Perry also has two fragrances, a partnership with video game company Ubisoft and even a credit on her recent 3-D documentary/concert film, "Katy Perry: Part …

Apple's out with its third quarter financials with figures for all of its hardware categories. Topping things off are record sales of the iPad, which jumped 84% year-over-year and 44% from the previous quarter to 17 million units. iPhone sales were also up year-over-year to 26 million units, up 28% versus the quarter last year but down from 30 million units in the second quarter, as consumers await the next version. And in spite of new MacBooks, year-over-year growth was only 2% for desktops. And iPods are continuing the decline, as phones and tablets take over. The non-phone is down …

Research seen by Marketing Week reveals that London 2012 sponsors must use social media in a more sophisticated way if their messages are to reach the global Olympic audience. The London Games will be the most digitally connected Olympics ever, but most of the Olympic sponsor brands haven't gotten on their Twitter game. When Marketing Week analysed data from YouGov covering the worldwide sponsors and the top two tiers of London 2012 sponsors, it discovered that the Olympics hasn't been among the top five topics mentioned in relation to most of them since the torch relay began. The only brands …

General Motors Co. and its Chevrolet brand widened their involvement in soccer with the announcement Tuesday that they are entering a four-year agreement with Liverpool Football Club as the team's official automotive partner. The agreement runs through the 2015-16 Barclays Premier League and European seasons. The deal will give visibility for Chevrolet at Anfield, Liverpool's home ground; presence in team publications and websites; and the opportunity for player appearances.

Chuy's Holdings Inc., the casual-dining Mexican restaurant operator, debuted on the public market Tuesday, closing up 15.9%. The 36-unit Austin, Texas-based company offered 5.8 million shares at $13 each, the top end of its forecasted price offering between $11 and $13 per share. Chuy's initial performance bodes well for Southlake, Texas-based Del Frisco's Restaurant Group, which is scheduled to debut on the market Friday. In comparison to Chuy's first-day spike Tuesday, the Dow fell 0.8% and Nasdaq fell 0.9%. Wall Street darlings like Chipotle and McDonald's were also hit hard by investors as the companies reported depressed sales and earnings …

Bank of America is pulling the plug on ATMs at gas stations owned by Valero Energy Corp. The reduction of its automated teller network is part of the bank's efforts to reach $8 billion in expense cuts. Bank of America's total number of ATMs fell by 1,536 in the first half of this year, leaving it with 16,220 as of June 30. The company also will not renew its lease deals at Simon Property Group Inc. sites. Simon Property is one of the largest shopping mall owners in the United States.

Football and Buffalo wings go together like, well, football and wings. Following the lead of other restaurant chains (Chick-fil-A, Outback Steakhouse and Little Ceasars), Buffalo Wild Wings is putting its name on the game formerly known as the Insight Bowl. The game, which pits the third team in the Big 12 and the fourth team in the Big Ten against each other, will take place in Tempe, Ariz., on Dec. 29.

AOL's chief marketing and communications offer says the brand needs to do more to distinguish itself in the minds of consumers. After trimming the company's brand roster and realigning departments, Jolie Hunt says it's time to figure out how to sustain the brand, perhaps by focusing more on some of the key assets like Huffington Post and TechCrunch.

J.C. Penney's heavily marketed "fair and square" pricing (which eliminated coupons, discounts and sales in favor of everyday low pricing) is driving consumers to look elsewhere for deals, according to the St. Louis Post Dispatch. Gilk's and Macy's are reporting upticks in their stores that happen to be close to J.C. Penney stores. While executives with J.C. are staying the course, others are questioning the strategy. "Every retailer in the country would have to get rid of sales at the same time to make that strategy work," said C. Britt Beemer, chairman of the America's Research Group.

So, it seems business and leisure travelers aren't enough. USA Today reports that several hotel brands (including Omni, Hyatt, Ritz Carlton and Marriott) have begun offering "new activities, programs and menus to appeal to teen-age and pre-teen guests - and their paying parents." Through their use of social media, the younger generation can set social trends much faster while building loyalty early.