Since it was revealed the Ralph Lauren-designed opening ceremony uniforms for the US Olympic team were made in China, a member of Congress has openly suggested burning them, a move some outraged Americans immediately endorsed — it didn't take long for a "Burn the New USA Olympic Uniforms" Facebook page to pop up, naturally.

According to one estimate, USOC's outsourcing of Team USA's apparel manufacturing to China cost the U.S. about $1 billion. While others have come to the Team USA's defense of the U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC) and Team USA, the Christian Science Monitor argued against corporate panhandling altogether. "While China is harvesting farm girls from remote provinces to be canoeists, gymnasts, and weightlifters — training them in state-owned facilities and paying top dollar to lure top coaches — the USOC is panhandling on the doorstep of corporate America." 

Ralph Lauren, which prides itself on being an All-American brand, is smarting from the outcry. Its namesake founder has vowed that the brand will produce the 2014 Winter Olympics Team USA apparel in the U.S., according to a statement released Friday that was backed up by USOC:Continue reading...

Gone are the glory days when the world's superpowers would boycott the Olympic games in their entirety to send a message to a rival. Today, friction between the world's most powerful nations is economic, not nuke-based, and the Olympics is getting an age-appropriate controversy between America and China.

“[T]hey should take all the outfits, put them in a big pile and burn them and start all over.” From The Wall Street Journal, that was US Senate Majority Leader and Democrat Harry Reid's response when he learned that Team USA's Ralph Lauren-designed opening ceremony uniforms were "Made in China." Nike, Team China's uniformer, better hope the nation doesn't retaliate with some kind of good old Cold War mutually assured destruction theory.Continue reading...

Apple plans smaller iPad to compete with Google Nexus, as Nokia gets touchy too.

Getty Images bidding nears $4 billion.

Barclays ex-CEO Diamond faces UK MP grilling as Bank of England faces tough decision.

Asian tourists flock to Europe for luxury bargains.

Asus aims to help athletes "find their zen."

Branded content shown to have limited impact in US.

China bans shark fin consumption in luxury crackdown, as mainland slowdown affects Hong Kong luxury spending.Continue reading...

Film: Brave
Brands Spotted: 0 (if you don't count Scotland)
Standout Placement: N/A
Most Memorable Placement (positive): N/A
Most Memorable Placement (negative): N/A
Overall Product Placement Integration Grade (1-10): N/A
Comments: Some critics have called Brave, Disney/Pixar's new film, formulaic. It's an easy conclusion to reach. The idea behind Brave appears to be taking the popularity of young women archers (cue The Hunger Games, and already a Brave-themed attraction at Disney Parks), pinching some themes from other recent popular franchises (How to Train Your Dragon, Shrek), updating the Disney Princess juggernaut, and wrapping the whole thing in the aura of an earlier epic Scottish tale of bravery (Braveheart*). But Brave's guts aren't the only formulaic element of the film.Continue reading...

Big-name fashion designers are flocking to the Olympics this summer, with host country talent Stella McCartney leading the way, in partnership with Adidas, as the chief designer for the United Kingdom’s squad. There have been a few naysayers to McCartney’s designs, but fashion designers have got to be pretty used to that by the time they hit the big-time.

Now word comes, via the Telegraph, that Prada is getting into the Olympics gear, designing uniforms for Italy’s Olympic and Paralympic sailing teams.Continue reading...

When you’re a celeb athlete, being the best in the world at something isn’t good enough. You’ve got to build your brand. After all, those playing days are only going to last so long and the good life shouldn’t just end because you’re dealing with whatever stresses your body has taken on during your athletic career.

Venus Williams is getting back into the act. She had launched a clothing line for Steve & Barry’s years ago but that retailer went into liquidation in 2008. Now she’s back.

As Women’s Wear Daily notes, she has “partnered with brands including Ralph Lauren and Gilt Group” in the past, and is now relaunching her personally designed apparel collection EleVen, which is, no surprise, geared for on and off the court.Continue reading...

Luxury brands aren't the only segment targeting the "1 percent," the uber-rich slice of the population that has been taking a lot of heat from the so-called 99 percenters. It is these wealthiest consumers, occupying rarefied air, who vote with their checkbooks, so their preferences are closely considered and carry a lot of clout.

So what is the high net worth consumer looking for? First and foremost, superior quality, according to "Luxury Branding and Marketing: A Global Comparison of Wealthy Consumers in Top Markets," a study just released by Luxury Institute. The survey analyzed wealthy consumers with a minimum annual income of $150,000 or the local currency equivalent in China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States, and the United Kingdom.

A broad majority (73 percent) of wealthy consumers think superior quality is the most important attribute that defines a luxury brand, followed by craftsmanship (65 percent) and design (54 percent). But increasingly, customer service is becoming a key consideration (47 percent). Customer service is even more important to Chinese consumers, who say that service has improved (63 percent).Continue reading...

Apple knock-off stores in Queens, NY, forced to surrender goods, while Apple's HTC patent victory gets US review.

NHL restricts players from social media on game days under new policy.

Borders starts shutting down in California.

Carrefour plans drive-in stores in France.

eBay targets hip mobile shoppers with new campaign.

Esprit pays the price for 'neglecting' its brand.Continue reading...