It was projected back in December that Wendy's would dethrone Burger King to become the second most popular burger chain in America after McDonald's.

According to the Associated Press, the 2011 tallies are in and BK has indeed been bumped to third spot, because "Wendy’s had sales of $8.5 billion in 2011, compared with $8.4 billion for Burger King." McDonald’s, with $34.2 billion in sales, was bigger than both combined.

Wendy's was recently honored with two industry awards for new product innovation for Dave’s Hot ‘N Juicy Cheeseburgers and The W.

Anheuser-Bush InBev visited the New York Stock Exchange today to find out: "Who is the biggest fan?" The leading global brewer hosted a Bud Light Fan Camp Tailgate outside the NYSE in Experience Square to celebrate Super Bowl XLVI and promotes the launch of its new premium brand-Bud Light Platinum.

In honor of the occasion, Felipe Dutra, CFO of Anheuser-Busch InBev, rang The Closing Bell, kicking off the first ever Bud Light Platinum "Flash Pop" Happy Hour which took place on the floor of the exchange from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. And yes, there was tailgating.Continue reading...

Bergdorf Goodman goes to the dogs for its annual holiday video. BG Films presents "Unleashed," starring some of New York's most charismatic characters who invade the store in search of perfect gifts for their owners. Guest star, Salty, steals the show with a very sweet-natured performance. You can shop the video in a version that will be released on November 29 on BG.com.

Tommy Hilfiger has released its 2011 holiday television campaign, "Holiday Par-tay," which debuted internationally on Nov. 23. In this sequel to its Holiday 2010 campaign, the Hilfigers are celebrating the season at home and it’s time to “par-tay” like only they know how.

Heineken has been having fun with its package design, rolling out a special edition aluminum bottle (dubbed the STR, above) which reveals a nightclub-ready hidden design by black light.

On a more serious note, however, the Dutch beer brand unveiled a major bottle redesign on Dec. 1st. No disco trickery, no hype — and no Brad Pitt. Just a unified visual identity across the brand's bottles and cans. With one major exception, that is.Continue reading...

Arkadi Kuhlmann, CEO of ING Direct, explains the philosophy behind the online banking brand's seven cafes in the US: making the virtual real, with employees on hand to answer questions and help customers. Check out the NYC cafe after the jump, and hear more from Kuhlmann on the ING brand's social media and mobile touchpoints with consumers.Continue reading...

Going green means eating local, and this brand of cereal has its eye on the future. Branchannel Cereal, a family-owned brand known for its health benefits and rectangular shape that helps it float in milk, is produced by WeetSoy Farms, in Mukwonago, “Where You Wanna Go,” Wisconsin. WeetSoy is a “micro-farm” that consists of 1-1/2 acres of land, and is owned by Harris MacMillan and his wife Tallulah Bell MacMillan.

Currently, WeetSoy Farms produces 12 to 13 boxes of Branchannel a year, “about one a month” according to Harris MacMillan, and retails at the local GitnZip supermarket for $19. The MacMillans and WeetSoy Farms hope that Branchannel Cereal, which contains 188 percent more fiber than leading brands, will gain traction with the foodie movement where ordinary people are educating themselves about food and making purchasing decisions based not only on price points, but also on how their food is grown or raised, and brought to market. “If our brand strategy works,” says Harris MacMillan, “we’ll be able to expand to three or even four acres by 2014.”

However, this organic brand cultivated in the bucolic backdrop just off of Route 43 – the town’s lifeline to Milwaukee – finds itself in a contentious trademark dispute with an entity readers of this publication know quite well: brandchannel.Continue reading...