I love David and Goliath stories, and they’re even better when the little guy comes out on top. Trek Bicycles filed a trademark infringement suit against a tiny California winery in the U.S. District Court in Madison, Wisconsin. The suit alleged that Trek Wines willfully infringed Trek Bicycle’s trademark. They of course demanded that (little)
Where were you at the end of 2008, when Mexican food giant Grupo Bimbo sealed a $2.4 billion deal with Weston Foods, acquiring Weston’s entire lineup of American brands and making Grupo Bimbo the largest bakery in the U.S.? Operating in the U.S. as Bimbo U.S.A., these stealthy Mexican blondes now sell almost every carbohydrate
By Jeffery Racheff If there’s one place you don’t want to confuse names, it’s probably in the world of medicine and drugs. Take Maalox Total Relief for instance. Folks looking for deliverance from diarrhea flocked to the over-the-counter medicine, assuming it would alleviate their belly pains. Instead they found themselves much worse off. What they
by Jeffery Racheff Is there really no such thing as bad publicity? The old saying holds that any chance to get your name in the paper (or on people’s blogs) is worth the flack you might take for scandal or distastefulness. In the long run, so it goes, the potential for brand awareness outweighs temporary
I was elated to hear that tobacco now comes in candy form because I was a big fan of candy cigarettes when I was a kid. Wintergreen-flavored Ariva is already available in some drug and convenience stores, but you may not want to try it just yet. It turns out that along with the nicotine,
by Jeffery Racheff Video killed the radio star, and now MTV has killed the video. After an increasing amount of programming dedicated to all things reality, the cable giant has officially struck the tag “music television” from its logo. It will now make its mark with an expanded, transparent “M” (presumably one in which the
by Danny Altman Some things you don’t mess with. Don’t take the growth hormone out of my milk. I’m short enough as it is. Don’t stick an electric outlet on my car. I like the smell of fresh gasoline. Don’t give me cheese on a knife. I like it straight out of the can. And
by Barry Silverstein The Super Bowl got us thinking about sports team names. Some professional sports team names really work – like the New Orleans Saints. After all, with the city’s connection to jazz and the immortal tune, “When the Saints Go Marching In,” the name is a great fit. The New England Patriots –
by Danny Altman I will give you a four hour window to consider Comcast’s new name for its triple play service. In the first hour, after you wash the dishes and clean out the cat litter, you can ponder why big companies waste their money doing superficial rebrands while their real problems lie untouched. In
by Jeffery Racheff Desperate times call for desperate measures. At least that may be the case in Buffalo, New York, where the city’s Department of Transportation is looking for a way to come up with the necessary funds required to fix a bridge. A state audit has concluded the Peace Bridge, which connects Buffalo with
