Chevrolet has just released a video extolling the most recognizable name in baseball’s craftsmanship: Louisville Slugger, which refreshed its branding in time for Major League Baseball's opening day this season. 

Interbrand Cincinnati, based in the same city the first professional baseball team called home, was honored to be selected to celebrate that craftsmanship by redesigning the iconic logo, marking its first update in 33 years. Find out more here.

Havaianas, best known to the world's consumers as the brand that represents the ubiquitous flip-flop, turned 50 in 2012. It was a year in which the Brazilian company made enough flip-flops to circle the world 50 times.

Carla Schmitzberger, who oversees the brand in her role as head of the sandals business unit at Havaianas' parent company, Alpargatas, said that until the 1990s, "mostly poor people wore" Havaianas. "However, there was a small group of wealthier people that were wearing the product, but they were wearing them at home, and they were embarrassed to be seen with them because they were considered a poor person's footwear," she shared in an interview in the latest edition of Interbrand IQ.

Indeed, the brand was launched in 1962 with the goal of outfitting Brazil's peasants — not by a Brazilian but by a Scotsman, Robert Fraser, who was inspired by traditional Japanese shoe design.Continue reading...

In a bid to redefine the financial journey, ING U.S. has announced that it will be rebranding as Voya Financial. 

While the announcement was made Thursday, ING U.S. does not plan on incorporating the new name or logo until 2014, as it awaits the completion of its IPO. 

ING Group, the company's Dutch parent, announced last year that it was planning to spin off its US arm through an initial public offering—where Voya will register as the company's stock ticker. The divestiture of the US part of the business along with a ING Direct and a Dutch mortgage lender had to take place in order to get approval for a 2008 bailout.Continue reading...

Coca-Cola appoints SVP of integrated marketing Wendy Clark (right) to new role as SVP of its newly created a Global Sparkling Brand Center, combining its global brand and integrated marketing teams under her leadership.

AccuWeather named Jim Candor as chief strategy officer, Steven Smith as chief digital officer, and John Dokes as chief marketing officer.

Conde Nast promoted CMO Louis Cona to president and chief revenue officer of the media group. 

Crocs hired Andy Sackmann as CMO.

Dockers hired Adrienne Lofton Shaw as vice president and CMO.Continue reading...

The Major League Baseball season kicked off Sunday night with a surprising win for the American League’s newest team, the Houston Astros. For the past few years, the Astros have been the National League’s worst team, but they moved into the American in the offseason and, for one night at least, the team is tops in the sport. That is likely to change soon, of course, but, for now, those players that are so used to losing are making their dreams of childhood into reality.

Kids who dream of playing in the Major Leagues someday (or the parents who dream of their kids making it someday) now have access to one of the tools that pro ballplayers have been using for eons: the Louisville Slugger.

Sure, the Slugger can be found on the retail market for any old consumer, but, until now, everyday schmoes weren’t sold Sluggers made from the same wood that the bats made for the pros were made from. Now Louisville Slugger has introduced a new bat, the Louisville Slugger Prime, that is made of the same material whether you’re a 6-year-old in Little League, a minor-league ballplayer, a Major Leaguer or an aging retiree grasping at your youth.Continue reading...

The Major League Baseball season kicked off Sunday night with a surprising win for the American League’s newest team, the Houston Astros. For the past few years, the Astros have been the National League’s worst team, but they moved into the American in the offseason and, for one night at least, the team is tops in the sport. That is likely to change soon, of course, but, for now, those players that are so used to losing are making their dreams of childhood into reality.

Kids who dream of playing in the Major Leagues someday (or the parents who dream of their kids making it someday) now have access to one of the tools that pro ballplayers have been using for eons: the Louisville Slugger.

Sure, the Slugger can be found on the retail market for any old consumer, but, until now, everyday schmoes weren’t sold Sluggers made from the same wood that the bats made for the pros were made from. Now Louisville Slugger has introduced a new bat, the Louisville Slugger Prime, that is made of the same material whether you’re a 6-year-old in Little League, a minor-league ballplayer, a Major Leaguer or an aging retiree grasping at your youth.Continue reading...

In many respects, the future of retail is a moving target that continues to shift in response to consumer demand. Retailers are now using mobile payments to help them succeed in a market that is increasingly mobile even as they scramble to reinvent and preserve the in-store experience. 

When you bring these two trends together, they represent a not-so-subtle blending of distinctly different worlds: the physical store and the online store. It is here that battle lines are being drawn to determine who really owns the future of retail. That war is most evident when you examine some of the recent strategic moves by the top players.Continue reading...

Consider retailing a two-pronged challenge: On the one hand, retailers must accommodate the increasingly mobile consumer. On the other hand, the traditional retailer can't ignore the need to drive that consumer to a physical store. 

As highlighted in our previous post on the future of retail, there is a flurry of activity surrounding online retail initiatives right now, with particular emphasis on mobile. Mobile payments in particular are getting a lot of attention as retailers figure out ways to transfer the shopping experience to every sort of handheld device.

But there is an equally intense effort to reinvent the traditional store. In fact, many retailers are beginning to realize that rather than close stores, they can sustain them by giving them a much-needed facelift. More than a surface makeover, however, reinventing the store involves a thorough rework that often includes a growing trend: creating a "brand story" to engage and involve a consumer in the shopping experience.Continue reading...