Brand Strategy articles from January 2002

Brand Strategy archives from January 2002

Little chef tries out a new recipe.(Compass Group introduces new dining condept)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Roadside restaurant chain Little Chef has repositioned its brand with the launch of new-style eateries. The Little Chef New Choices concept stretches the brand into "destination" evening dining, bars and takeaway facilities. The New...

Cancer merger brings different cells together.(The Cancer Research Campaign and the Imperial Cancer Research Fund become Cancer Research UK)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Two of Britain's most prominent cancer charities are merging to create a new brand. The Cancer Research Campaign and the Imperial Cancer Research Fund are joining forces under a new name: Cancer Research UK. The move is part of a drive to...

Elevating thoughts about ivory towers. (leader).(Reflections on the London Business School)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... "The longest I have ever been trapped in a railway tunnel is exactly one hour, and I remember the experience well. I was on a Docklands Light Railway train that broke down as it emerged from Bank tunnel. It was a hot summer's day so I was glad...

Matthew Hooper: entrepreneur or houdini? Peter Holdsworth meets the head of interfocus and discovers he has knack for spotting a gap. (Profile).
January 1, 2002... Most people who know Matthew Hooper of Interfocus would agree on one thing: he is a born entrepreneur. Urbane to the cuffs of his pastel-blue pullover, he recounts without evident hyperbole a swashbuckling career that has culminated in the...

Trade mark owners can block imports: the European Court of Justice gives a seminal ruling that strengthens the powers of brand owners. (Bird & Bird).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Davidoff doesn't want cut-price imports of its "Cool Water" perfume. Levi's doesn't want Tesco selling its jeans for less than the authorised price. Is the brand owner set against the consumer? The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has given...

Is it really ok in the UK? Nine months ago, Brand Strategy looked at the damage done to the British brand by the emerging foot-and-mouth crisis. At the beginning of 2002, Ruth Mortimer re-appraises the UK's identity and asks: have a things got worse? (news Analysis).
January 1, 2002... Remember Cool Britannia? A few years ago, the UK was the hottest destination in the world. It had everything going for it, with hip culture and tourists galore. But the scepter'd isle has suffered in 2001, plagued by outbreaks of foot-and-mouth...

A load of old (crystal) balls: Giles Lury sticks his head above the parapet and makes a few predictions about brands. (opinion).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... It is that time of New Year again; thoughts are turning to the future and predictions are at the fore. So I thought I might add my tuppence worth to the collection, and make a few predictions of my own about the future of branding. I...

You know what happened to dinosaurs: Simon Sholl finds Charles Darwin's theories strangely relevant to the marketing business today. (opinion).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... About 100 million years ago, life cannot have been easy for protomammals as they gazed up at the sauropods and tried to avoid the impact of their huge feet. And yet it was the mammals, with their speed, flexibility and intelligence, that were...

No sticking plaster here, doctor: Peter Mills talks to Peter Holdsworth about working with the NHS. (legal update).(National Health Service)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Peter Mills came to brand communications consultancy The Team from Still Waters Run Deep. He describes his former employer as a "funky little" organisation -- hardly words that could be applied to his main client these days. A year into...

Don't blame the logo. (case study).(techniques for managing corporate identity changes)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... A new corporate identity signals change, not so much for an organisation's clientele, as for its own staff. Or at least it should do. Telling your message to the outside world is all well and good but if no one understands it internally...

Is it curtains for the male DIY domain? Jeremy Haines says that some DIY chains are adapting better than others to recent changes. (feature).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... A female friend recently told me about her attempt to fulfil her daughter's desire for "one of those curtains where you pull the string": She chose a department store to buy the track, but was quickly beset by unexpected questions: was it to be...

How to get close to customers online: some dos and don'ts emerge from research into brand engagement by Carlson Digital. (digital).(surveys figures)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Top-scoring sites for brand engagement, in terms of loyalty, advocacy and closeness, are Buzz, First Direct and Streetsonline, according to online research from Carlson Digital. More than 4,000 people were interviewed to discover what makes...

Life sciences lab tests PR to the limit: Huntingdon Life Sciences uses PR as a weapon against animal-rights activists determined to shut it down. Mark Jarvis meets Andrew Gay, the embattled marketing director. (case study).(public relations)
January 1, 2002... Even the publication of an anti-brands bestseller such as Naomi Klein's No Logo cannot dent popular and corporate enthusiasm for brands. But fervour about this modern phenomenon can work both ways: some organisations whose identities are...

Izzy wizzy, let's get Sooty: Sooty, the perky bear puppet, has been around for more than 50 years. But along the way he has changed ownership, gained a girlfriend and starred as a disco DJ. Ruth Mortimer gets her hands on the irrepressible character.
January 1, 2002... Talented teddy-bear In 1948, electrical engineer Harry Corbett and his wife Marjorie took their family for a holiday in Blackpool. The weather was dismal and the Corbett's small son David was soon restless. So Harry bought a teddy-bear...

Banks scramble over private wealth: David Rankin worries that the marketplace for private-client banking is getting overheated. (feature).
January 1, 2002... The pursuit of the "mass affluent" customer (often defined as individuals with more than 50,000 [pounds sterling]-$75,000 in liquid assets or households with more than $100,000) has given rise to some of the most talked about ventures in...

The Rise and Fall of Marks & Spencer. (book review: Ho ho ho! green giant).(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Judi Bevan's The Rise and Fall of Marks & Spencer tells the fascinating tale of one of Britain's retailing brands. Bevan plots the development of M&S from its earliest incarnation as a pedlar's tray to its loss of popularity at the end of the...

Ageing stressed-out insomniacs pop pills: trends such as the ageing of populations, are driving strong growth in the OTC healthcare sector. (euromonitor).(over-the-counter preparations market)
January 1, 2002... A new report from Euromonitor on the global market for over-the-counter (OTC) healthcare analyses the latest trends, and gives an overview of six product sectors, the major national markets and 19 companies. The sales period under review is...

DIY moves a step down the retail ladder: verdict research reveals that the DIY sector has a robust future, but the glory days may have passed. (research).(market forecast for home center stores, UK)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... The word from retail-research specialist Verdict is that DIY will no longer be the fastest growing sector of consumer spend during the next five years. For the past five it was frontruner. According to the report Verdict forecasts DIY to...

Convergence closes generation gap: Paul Seligman examines the way in which adults and kids make joint purchasing decisions. (Kids).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... We all know that children's influence on household expenditure extends beyond those products bought solely for their consumption. We also know that kids are getting older younger and adults are staying younger for longer. However, our latest...

Eatertainment puts brands on the plate: no more `eat your greens', Richard Rees and Chris Gower urge brands to appeal on many levels. (feature).(marketing food)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... As any parent knows, getting kids to eat nutritional food can be an uphill struggle -- especially when understanding what makes a child eat one meal and not another is often something of a lottery. One solution, for parents (and brand owners),...

Aspirations reflect changing times: RDSi research reveals the sophisticated taste of the 5-7-year-old group -- with a humanitarian edge. (research).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... Over the last six months of RDSi's `five-16 years ongoing research programme', it has been noted that there is a growing importance of 5-7-year-olds as marketing targets. In turn, this age group is emulating its older peers and becoming...

Teens worry about social issues: latest research from youth TGI shows kids have a strong appreciation of worldwide problems. (research).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 1, 2002... At a time when families are about to spend unusually long periods of time with one another, the latest Youth TGI survey shows that -- perhaps, contrary to popular belief -- the majority of teenagers (11-17-year-olds) get on very well with their...

Events & appointments.(executive appointments)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... Brand Strategy's round-up of coming events 23 JANUARY 2002 Securing Your Brand: Mitigating the Threat to Brand Value event, London. Contact FT Conferences on +44(0) 20 7873 3375 23-24 JANUARY 2002 Brands 2002 Summit,...

Database.(corporate product and service information)
January 1, 2002... NEW BRANDS/BRAND EXTENSIONS BERNARD MATTHEWS Wafer Thin meats sliced cooked meats Bernard Matthews has introduced three new varieties of sliced cooked meats. The three new products are: Wafer Thin Smoked Turkey Ham, Wafer...

Make love, not marketing: It's time for brand owners to engage customers and let them take control, says Alan Mitchell. (Mitchell).(marketing techniques)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2002... For the last hundred years, business has been driven by the quest for efficiency. Companies have striven internally for efficient production, always searching for new ways to get their workers to produce more, cheaper. Externally, they have...