Detroit Bureau
Who cares if it's not electric, it has gull-wing doors, stainless steel skin, and was fueled by coke (deals). Thirty-four years after John Z. DeLorean's car company built its last vehicle, the controversial DMC-12 is about to go back into production. A small company based in Humble, Texas - which recently settled a long-running lawsuit filed by DeLorean's heirs, is reviving the name, DeLorean Motor Co., it hopes to have the first of its stainless steel replicas on the road next year - albeit without a flux capacitor.
Forbes
Is the new Equinox campaign great or obnoxious? Christian Hughes, president and principal of San Francisco-based ad agency Cutwater writes that the campaign, "Commit to Something" thinks polarizing, in this case, is good. "To me, that's the point. In my opinion, the campaign is a perfect example of advertising as a hyperbole." He argues that their clear point of view on breaking out of societal conventions is compelling.
NYSportsJournalism.com
Russell Wilson, Tom Brady, Cam Newton, Peyton Manning and Aaron Rodgers are among the best quarterbacks in the NFL, and they also sell the most NFL-related merchandise. The NFL Players Assn. lists Wilson as the No. 1 overall, Rodgers the leader in bobbleheads, Manning tied for first in kids' toys and apparel and Brady as No. 1 in such licensed categories as T-shirts, figurines and college-branded products. Newton, now headed to Super Bowl 50 to face Manning, as the fastest-rising player among fans and consumers.
The Atlantic
"GIF the Feeling" is an accessory for Coke's newly launched "Taste the Feeling" global ad campaign. It lets people fashion Coke ads by combining a stock clip with a user-provided tagline. The result can be posted to social media or downloaded as a GIF. But don't try to be provocative: the app subjects its user-generated submissions to a filter that tries to remove contentious themes. What you get, instead, is a deletion and "something went wrong." See some workarounds at the jump.
The New York Times
Xerox, whose name has long been synonymous with office copiers, has agreed to spin off its services business to its shareholders by the end of the year, separating it from the legacy hardware side, according to a person briefed on the decision. A large part of the spinoff will incorporate Affiliated Computer Services, the business outsourcing company that Xerox bought for $6.4 billion in 2010.
NPR
More than 800,000 people in Texas have a license to carry a gun, and thanks to the state's open-carry laws, women are making a kind of fashion statement with it. There is also a growing accessory industry to meet the fashion needs of women who keep their guns concealed. A 2015 report from the National Sporting Goods Association found that 5.4 million women said they went target shooting, up 60% since 2001. Just because.
CNBC
Bank of America is going plastic-free for its ATMs. The company is developing automated teller machines that let customers use smartphones instead of plastic cards, per a source. "We're going to spend a lot of money on the ATM network this year," the person said. It includes enabling ATMs to accept payments from the bank's credit card customers and cashing checks from the machines. It also wants to allow customers to get varying denominations of cash from its ATMs.
Automotive News
Last week's monster snowstorm will hit January's U.S. new-vehicle sales, but analysts and dealers said they expect demand to rebound in February and March, keeping the industry on track for a second consecutive record year. TrueCar and Kelley Blue Book show sales coming in slightly lower than a year ago, but still see annualized selling rate remaining above 17 million for a ninth consecutive month.
TWICE
New York players Ronny Shmoel and Albert Liniado are pulling Circuit City up for another gasp of air after the retailer had gone under twice. The two, who acquired the brand, domain and trademarks from IT supplier Systemax, plan a multi-tiered game plan that calls for retail outlets, web sales, branded and private-label products, licensed kiosks, mobile shops and franchise opportunities, all under the red-and-white banner.
Digiday
And good riddance. PowerPoint is becoming a lumbering mastodon at ad agencies, which are trying to shake free of the presentation addiction. It hearkens back to a time when clients had to be spoon-fed mass-market advertising and execution. Clients are smarter and more aware of what the agency they pay is doing. The change to work-space environments at agencies is also driving change. The Martin Agency, for instance, has moved to an open collaborative atmosphere with fewer team meetings. Poor Don Draper.