Matthew Norman, food critic of The Sunday Telegraph, nodded politely to the waiting staff as he entered Shepherd's Restaurant. Aside from being co-owned by Michael Caine, Shepherd's other claim to fame was its reputation as one of London's finest restaurants. Norman was looking forward to his meal. ...

The news that Microsoft has hired a senior Wal-Mart executive to spearhead a move into retail will not come as much of a shock. These days retailers run the world, and companies like Microsoft, which have typically supplied big retail, are now increasingly drawn to the idea of opening up for themsel...

Open the big book of celebrity endorsement scandals, it's time to make another entry. Swimming star Michael Phelps was just having a bit of fun last November while visiting his girlfriend at the University of South Carolina when, along with all the shots and beer he consumed at a house party that we...

The chaotic situation in the financial sector is creating a branding headache for banks' marketers. My wife comes from Tasmania, a weird and wonderful island off the southern tip of Australia. It has some of the slackest planning provisions in the Southern Hemisphere. As a result, when her friends t...

What is the link between financially strapped companies and expensive sporting tie-ups? Back in 2004, in an earlier, more innocent age, Northern Rock was proud to spend £25m on sponsoring Newcastle United FC. Northern Rock chief executive Adam Applegarth looked ahead to five successful seasons toge...

When I teach the brand management elective to MBA students, we explore case studies of companies getting it right and wrong. One of the most common observations that keeps coming up has nothing to do with strategy and everything to do with gender. In a remarkable number of case studies, female marke...

Earlier this year I decided to ride the London Eye. It was busy - so busy that the line of people queueing to purchase tickets snaked out of the ticketing room and onto the street overlooking the Thames. In an attempt to manage the line, the Eye's management had constructed a queuing system using ba...

The marketer who is bored with the world's 4th largest retailer is bored with life. If you have been into a Tesco store recently, you will already have seen a new line gracing its aisles. The 'discount brands at Tesco' range has been hailed by chief executive Terry Leahy as the biggest change in the...

It has been a gloomy month for US retailers. Iconic brands such as Linens-n-Things and Mervyns are in liquidation, while former electrical retail powerhouse Circuit City filed for bankruptcy protection last week. Store sales are down at every major US retailer - except one. On Thursday Wal-Mart anno...

What a difference a decade plus four makes. Back in 1994 Naomi, Claudia, Kate and Elle were at the height of their supermodel powers, naked as the day they were born and united in preferring to be that way than wear fur. Sales of fur had been flat for years and many furriers had closed their doors i...