As the May 15 deadline has come and gone to sign the IndustriALL-backed Bangladesh safety agreement, the abscence of a number of US brands has become even more apparent as more than 30 international retailers have agreed to the terms defined by international labor organizations to ensure the repair and future maintenance of Bangladesh's growing garment industry. Last month, Rana Plaza, an eight-story factory employing mostly young women collapsed, killing 1,127 people.  

While American clothing brands and retailers have been actively involved in the ensuing dialogue, the only two to sign the agreement by the deadline were PVH (which owns the Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger and Van Heusen brands) and Abercrombie & Fitch, while Walmart and Gap publicly declared their opposition to the plan. 

To date, the list of signatories includes: Abercrombie & Fitch, Aldi, Benetton, C&A, Carrefour, El Corte Ingles, Esprit, G-Star, H&M, Helly Hansen, Hess Natur, Inditex (Zara's owner), jbc, KiK New Look, Lidl, Loblaws on behalf of its Joe Fresh and Primark brands, Mango, Marks & Spencer, Mothercare, N Brown Group, Next, PVH, Rewe, Sainsbury's, Stockmann, Switcher, Tchibo, Tesco and WE Europe.Continue reading...

With the Year of the Snake dawning, Nike's zodiac cycle is complete: The approaching Chinese New Year will bring what Nike claims is a 12th version of its special edition zodiac animal-themed shoes.

In 2001, Nike had just one zodiac offering, the Air Force 1 Low 3M "Snake." In the ensuing years, some Nike zodiac shoes were better than others. (Air Max 1 Year of the Ox, anyone? Nike Dunk High pigs?).  This year, with a better creature to work with, and as it had with last year's Year of the Dragon, Nike —along with its Jordan brand — has introduced a collection of serpentine shoes.

Nike isn't alone: Shelves of shoe stores in China are about to be filled with scaly offerings that would make Indiana Jones shudder. Continue reading...

To run or not to run — that has been the burning question in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy in New York this week.

As New York continues the massive clean-up and restoration of a wounded, limping city, with millions still without power, food, water and transport, Mayor Michael Bloomberg was adamant the ING New York City marathon (rededicated as a "Race to Recover" with proceeds to relief efforts) would go on, even though the starting line is in hard-hit Staten Island. The refusal to reschedule the race has been widely protested, while observers are questioning the impact on title sponsor ING, and fellow sponsors including Timex and Asics.

“The city is a city where we have to go on,” stated Bloomberg in a press conference on Thursday, arguing that the race must go on for the cash and morale infusion. "There's an awful lot of small businesses that depend on these people. We have to have an economy,” Bloomberg said in a news conference Thursday. "It's a great event for New York, and I think for those who were lost, you know, you've got to believe they would want us to have an economy and have a city go on for those that they left behind."

Update: At 5:21 pm Friday, the mayor's office confirmed media rumors that the race will not go ahead on Sunday. Bloomberg told the press, "We would not want a cloud to hang over the race or its participants, and so we have decided to cancel it." And while this means there will be no 2012 NYC marathon, New York Road Runners president Mary Wittenberg said canceling was the right move, telling AP, "This is what we need to do and the right thing at this time." ING also supported the cancellation, commenting, "ING U.S. understands that many people, businesses, as well as its own New York-based employees have been impacted by Hurricane Sandy this week. The company encourages everyone to consider making a donation or to volunteer with a nonprofit that is helping with disaster-relief effort if they are able to do so."Continue reading...

For marketers these days, it's all about digital and taking advantage of all it has to offer. Adidas, though, is pulling its wares off two of the web's major e-commerce hubs — Amazon and eBay — because it's convinced such sites are cheapening its image and damaging its brand value. According to the UK's Marketing Week, the ban goes into effect in January and will extend to its Reebok brand.

Adidas, on a high coming out of Euro 2012 and heading into the Olympics, isn't the only major brand that's pulling back on e-commerce sites — Nike and Asics are also restricting Internet sales, a move that has drawn the attention of German competition authorities. "Adidas isn't the first, and they're definitely not going to be the last to do what they did," said Wes Sheperd, CEO of Channel IQ, an online services provider catering to manufacturers, distributors and retailers, according to AuctionBytes.com. "There's a storm brewing here."Continue reading...

With 32 days before the London 2012 Summer Olympic Games kick off in London....

Official sponsor McDonald's UK offers sneak peek at designer Wayne Hemingway's sustainable, Mad Men-inspired uniforms that will debut at its biggest restaurant (if for only six weeks), which is now under construction at the London Olympics Park:Continue reading...

Tough guy Mickey Rourke laughing at himself in Snickers ad is great, though it's no Steven Seagal for Mountain Dew commercial. (via)

Get the "real story" behind Apple's "Think Different" ad campaign.

Google is being lobbied to quit a lobbying group: the US Chamber of Commerce. To find out more, Google: "Google + quit + US Chamber of Commerce."

Parental SEO alert, from "12 Harsh Truths About the Internet": "If you want your kid to be Googleable, you'll have to give them a weird-ass name."Continue reading...

Our most-read blog posts of the week include Steve Jobs' iYacht, HP's TouchPad and more:

#1 i, iCaptain: Steve Jobs’ Unrealized Dream was the iYacht

#2 HP's TouchPad: The Discontinued Tablet That Won't Go Away

#3 Angry Birds Hits Half A Billion Downloads

#4 Burger King's New Kids Meals Highlight Play and Philanthropy

#5 ASICS Cheers on New York City Marathon with Transit Experience

#6 J&J, Under Fire, Commits to Formaldehyde-Free Johnson's Baby Products

#7 Mercedes Don't Run Over 99%ers, 1%ers Run Over 99%ers

#8 Google+ Opens Doors to Brands, Starting With +Pepsi, +Toyota + more

#9 Sale of New Marlins Gear Awaits New Logo Announcement

#10 UNTHINK, the Facebook Alternative

There are 45,000 dreamers who will hit the New York City streets on Sunday morning, determined to cross the finish line of a 26.2 mile jog through the five boroughs on one of the city’s most celebratory days: The ING New York City Marathon day.

While you know where you’ll find all of them on Sunday, it is also likely that you’ll find most of them in the Columbus Circle subway stop at some point this week. It's the closest MTA stop to where runners need to pick up their numbers and free T-shirts and it’s not that far from where the race finishes up in Central Park as well. In 2008, the stop had 20 million people pass through it, according to Second Avenue Sagas.

Sensing an opportunity, sneaker manufacturer ASICS has taken over the subway stop this week, giving both runners and casual observers plenty to look at.Continue reading...