Pop royalty, fashion icons, princes and tech billionaires came together in London to promote Chime For Change, a equal rights movement for women and girls worldwide that utilizes an innovative crowdfunding platform dedicated to a demographic in need. 

The benefit concent, performed in London, was streamed to 150 countries and televised in the US, reaching over 1 billion people who donated more than $4.3 million to the cause, which was founded by Gucci and creative director Frida Giannini, Beyonce and Salma Hayek Pinault. The non-profit is supported by the Kering Foundation and Francois-Henri Pinault, the CEO of luxury conglomerate PPR (rebranded as Kering).

The lavish performances were interspersed with mini-documentaries about the plight of women and girls worldwide in developing countries. Those attending the concert were able to donate the value of their ticket to a non-profit of their choice, thanks to Giannini, who underwrote the event.Continue reading...

PPR, the multinational holding company that is home to brands including Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent, Stella McCartney, Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta, Brioni and Sergio Rossi, is rebranding as Kering, indicative of a transformation from French conglomerate to internationally focused sportswear (encompassing its brands including Puma, Tretorn and Volcom) and luxury-goods group. 

The new name, accompanied by an owl logo and tagline, "Empowering Imagination," is pronounced "caring." CEO Francois-Henri Pinault explains, "We are there to care for the brand and take care of the brand," the Wall Street Journal reports.

Pinault carries on his father’s legacy as founder with the new name, which a press release explains was inspired by family roots in France's Brittany region as "Ker" meaning home in Breton, with the action-associated "ing" implying "doing" and "going."

Manfredi Ricca, the managing director at Interbrand in Milan, commented to the International Herald Tribune that the new identity reflects an awareness that companies need “a strong angle on what they stand for,” both for consumers and for employees, to demonstrate their “overarching vision” and values.Continue reading...

BlackBerry launches new Z10 smartphone in US today, as CEO says Apple's iPhone is outdated.

Pepsi introduces first new package design since 1997.

PPR, French owner of Gucci and Saint Laurent, announces rebrand to "caring" Kering with new owl logo.

Nike surges on China rebound, North American results in latest quarterly earnings report.

Asda pulls private-label corned beef from UK shelves over horsemeat discovery as new report finds consumer concern fading. 

Chrysler looks to Nike and Starbucks for inspiration.

Coca-Cola tops British grocery brands ranking as Walkers rises to #2.

Facebook tests yet another timeline design.Continue reading...

Angry Birds first Christmas song ("Fly Me Home Tonight") released by Rovio.

Apple downgraded by Citi on China suppliers, while first weekend iPhone 5 sales in China top two million.

NRA goes silent in wake of Newtown, CT, school massacre as President Obama vows to get tougher on guns.

Diet Pepsi quietly changes sweetener in advance of new logo, tagline and can design.

Barclays protests US energy fine.

Best Buy extends deadline for founder's buyout bid.

Chrysler undecided on minivan plan.

Cisco reportedly plans to sell Linksys brand.

Coca-Cola resurrects Mello Yello in Australia, plans pop-up beach at Sydney Cricket Stadium.

Facebook's monetization efforts may ride on Walmart campaign lessons.

Li Ning projects substantial loss.

Microsoft urged to ditch Windows brand by Dell.

PPR goes shopping for young brands.

Starbucks defended by London mayor Boris Johnson.

Toyota set to seize global auto sales crown as GM vies for 2nd place.

Apple joins Google in $500M+ bid for Kodak patents; smacked by USPTO as 'Steve Jobs Patent' for iPhones and iPads deemed invalid and Siri secrets revealed.

Diageo seen as unlikely to bid for Beam following UK report that drinks giant talked to Suntory about joint bid.

Barnes & Noble cuts Nook price from $99 to $79.

Michael Bloomberg weighs making bid for The Financial Times, which includes the paper and a half-interest in The Economist. 

Caribou Coffee celebrates 20th anniversary.

Carlos Slim brings Telcel brand to U.S. for Mexico calls.

CVS Caremark reportedly aims to acquire drug-store chain in Brazil.

Chili's begins soft rollout of new menu items.

Darden Restaurants looks to retool value proposition for its Olive Garden and Red Lobster restaurants.Continue reading...

As Pinterest starts to overtake Twitter and other websites for referral traffic, it's a tough act to follow. But The Fancy is ready to give it a try.

Geared at fans of great design who already love to suggest new brands and products to their social networks, Mark Zuckerberg and Kanye West are fans of The Fancy, and backers include Ashton Kutcher and PPR head François-Henri Pinault.

But unlike Pinterest, it's not so much about visual scrapbooking as is about generating sales of recommended products, turning users into affiliates. And unlike Klout, no credit is received for influence, only for actual purchase, rewarding users for their taste and influence. It's powering more than $10,000 in sales per day. Modest, but it's a start for a brand that describes itself as “part store, blog, magazine, and wishlist.”Continue reading...

Hedi Slimane, newly installed creative director of the Yves Saint Laurent fashion empire, is reportedly spurring the iconic brand name and signature logo created in 1961 at the inception of the house to Saint Laurent Paris. “For Slimane to make the decision to change YSL to SLP before his first collection for the label has been shown is a strong statement about regime change. Clearly, Slimane intends to do things his way," commented the Guardian.

“WWD assures us that the classic YSL logo 'will not disappear,'" reports Racked. In fact, Slimane's rebranding looks to the past as well as the future: He's hoping to tap into the sense of youth and modernity that Yves himself captured with his Saint Laurent Rive Gauche ready-to-wear line in 1966.”

Update: Yves Saint Laurent provided the following statement to brandchannel clarifying the evolution of its branding:

The YSL logo, created by Cassandre in 1961, will remain intact and the name Yves Saint Laurent will continue to be used and represent the fashion house. The Ready-To-Wear line, originally called "Saint Laurent Rive Gauche" in 1966, will now be called "Saint Laurent Paris." Therefore the principal change will be the RTW’s name, "Saint Laurent Paris" and the fashion house will continue to go by the name Yves Saint Laurent. Continue reading...

New York's Parsons The New School for Design, PPR Group’s Luxury and Sport & Lifestyle premium brands, and The Fancy website have partnered so that Parsons students can vie for an internship with one of PPR's stable of 16 luxury brands. Lucky (meaning talented) Parsons students will be able to intern at PPR-repped brands including Gucci, Bottega Veneta, Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Brioni, Stella McCartney, Sergio Rossi, Boucheron, Girard-Perregaux, JeanRichard, PUMA, Volcom, Cobra Electric and Tretorn.

Open to 2012 seniors of Parsons BFA Fashion Design program, the theme of the competitions is “Empowering Imagination” and students’ designs will be featured on TheFancy.com with winners showcased at Barney’s New York Madison Avenue store. The internship will run for 1 or 2 months in Paris, London, New York, Boston, Rome or Milan and an expense-paid internship of up to $10,000 with the PPR brand of their choice.

“Partnering with PPR and The Fancy will provide our students with an international perspective, thus positioning them as design thinkers poised to lead fashion globally,” said Simon Collins, Dean of the School of Fashion at Parsons, above.Continue reading...