Instagram says its two-month-old ad business is working. It helps that it let four brands that already were active on the Facebook-owned channel do campaigns. Not exactly objective data here as Instagram is reporting its success with the four brands that did campaigns, including Levi's and Ben & Jerry's. They said their campaigns reached lots of people with a very light ad load per user.

In their relentless quest to build the most tech-savvy, fan-friendly venue ever, owners of the San Francisco 49ers have added Intel to their list of founding partners in Levi's Stadium, which is scheduled to open for the 2014 season, joining the likes of SAP, Yahoo, Pepsi, Anheuser-Busch, Sony and naming rights holder Levi's, with Intel integrating tech products and solutions throughout the stadium, getting naming rights to a main pedestrian walkway and planning multi-media marketing to support the alliance.

After lots of auto executive departures, Chris Perry at Chevrolet the most recent, at least one auto marketing veteran is coming back. Jaguar Land Rover has hired Joachim "Joe" Eberhardt to head its U.S. operations effective immediately. Eberhardt has had a series of swings through the U.S. over the past two decades, both with mainstream and luxury brands. He held executive leadership posts in sales, marketing and service roles at Chrysler Group, DaimlerChrysler UK, Mercedes-Benz U.S.A. and Daimler-Benz AG.

Whole Foods Market, which has 365 stores worldwide, sees the potential to expand to 1,200 stores throughout the United States alone, nearly three times the number of locations it currently operates worldwide. In an interview on CNBC, Whole Foods co-CEOs John Mackey and Walter Robb said the company thinks that the store count goal, up from a previously stated goal of 1,000 new U.S. stores, is a realistic goal. The company just opened a store in Brooklyn this week.

A review of the year 2013 is filled with sports marketing and business pros and cons, were and wannabes, and highs, lows and plateaus. But when it comes to the top sports marketers of the year, it's all about building, teaming, overcoming adversity and moving forward. They didn't watch things happen - they made things happen. In alphabetical order: Boston Marathon, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dove Men+Care, EA Sports Madden NFL 25, Fox Sports 1, Floyd Mayweather, National Hockey League, Red Bull, Reebok, Stand Up To Cancer (with MLB and MasterCard). Voting is now on for the Grand Sports Marketer of …

Nearly 30% of Americans, or 94.5 million people, are expected to travel 50 miles or farther from home during the year-end holidays. That's a 0.6% increase from the 94 million who traveled that distance in 2012, according to AAA. This will mark the fifth consecutive year of increases and the highest travel volume recorded for the season.

Honda and its upscale Acura division will make at least two significant bits of news during the North American International Auto Show next month. Honda will introduce its completely redesigned Fit subcompact, while Acura will pull the wraps off an all-new sedan, the TLX. A senior Honda official all but confirmed that the maker is getting ready to announce plans to bring the Civic Type R to the U.S. market.

7-Eleven is tinkering with its gift selections in order to appeal to Millennial gift-givers. The company is lining shelves with elaborations on pop culture, professional sports, technology and toys, gadget-y stocking stuffers, video games, DVDs and gift cards. A study by investment bank Jefferies and business advisory firm AlixPartners says younger people are willing to shop a variety of retail outlets rather than rely on the traditional supermarkets.

Chipotle Mexican Grill on Wednesday announced a partnership to grow a fast-casual pizza concept called Pizzeria Locale. The Denver-based burrito chain has been working behind the scenes with Bobby Stuckey and Lachlan Mackinnon-Patterson of the The French Laundry restaurant in Yountville, Calif. They revealed the partnership this week, along with plans to grow the fast-casual pizza concept.

Wearable technology will be one of the leading brand trends in 2014, according to a forecast from Landor Associates The researcher says wearable tech will be tools for creating things and keep trim and healthy in the process. Brands to watch: Avery Dennison with its Metria wearable sensor, AiQ smart clothing and Zephyr Technology with the BioHarness BT.