geek chic

In case you thought thought there was a statute of limitations on merchandising (I don't know why anyone would), think again. And then one more time.

I received a transmission from flavorwire not long ago, in a galaxy pretty close to this one that the merch for Star Wars' 30th anniversary is coming to a spaceport near you. Seriously though, check out these turbo-nerd hoodies from Marc Ecko:

Legit.

And it raises a few points about the power of brands and the effectiveness of brand pairing. Even those of you who aren't Star Wars aficionados should be able to appreciate the design of this line; and stardorks who don't care about Ecko's logo appeal (ie.: me) can get behind their amazing limited editions that pick up on marketed-to-men brands like Playboy, KISS, and Halo.

Associating one brand with another, seemingly unrelated brand, can strengthen both and produce some very sexy results - yes, I mean sexy. Star Wars isn't sexy, but Marc Ecko Cut & Sew is. By associating these two brands, Ecko gains credibility with a specific market segment and George Lucas gets the sexiest notch yet on his proverbial bedpost (next to the Princess Leia gold bikini of course). Both these brands were already doing just fine, but a little creative pairing expands their respective corporate image and undoubtedly increases revenue for both parties. And now we can dress like Imperial Stormtroopers without having to endure the derisive laughter of the girl I had a crush on in grade 11.

Absolut Balls

It's pretty brave (and awesome) when a company launches a 4 month campaign removing all labels from their product. Unfortunately, you won't see this in your local LBCO. The campaign is exlusive to retail store Nuance in Sweden, but I'm curious, if it was available in Canada, do you think  you would  have been able to recognize the brand? Of course you would. This company has such a strong, well established brand identity and bottle shape that they can easily do stunts like this. Props.

The Absolut Company global travel-retail director Anders Olsson says: In an Absolut world there are no labels. No one is judged on the basis of prejudice, and everybody is encouraged to be who they really are. Seeing beyond stereotypical labels makes the world more vibrant, diverse and respectful.