Carol Spieckerman's Brain On ...Verizon's Hook Up with Redbox

In her latest contribution as a Retail Wire panelist, Carol homes in on home entertainment as streaming content's sweet spot.

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Here's what she had to say ... 

Verizon knows that content, especially entertainment, is what makes mobile devices desirable, and on-demand content makes them downright sexy. Verizon's partnership with Redbox isn't limited to mobile entertainment delivery (phone or tablet) -- harnessing the integration of mobile devices into the overall home or personal entertainment environment will be the real sweet spot. It's currently possible to stream iTunes movies and music from your iPad to your HDTV and (AirPlay-enabled) home entertainment systems but similar tech from other companies is proliferating quickly. On-demand content is the key to staying competitive.

Mobile Carriers Not Getting the Signal

Check out Carol Spieckerman's comments in Forbes magazine on why platforms and networks aren't really the key to differentiation for mobile phone carries.

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Article by: Pete Healy for Forbes, 01/05/2012

Copyright 2012 Forbes All rights reserved.

Heading to CES? Carol will be participating in the conference panel, Electronic Retailing in the 21st Century on January 11th at 1:30 (North Hall, room N260) and conducting private corporate presentations throughout the week.

To schedule a meeting with Carol at CES to discuss your 2012 retail and brand strategy, contact her directly at carol@newmarketbuilders.com 

Earth-shattering Events that Escaped (Almost) Everyone in 2011

In Carol's latest article for the International Licensing Merchandiser's Association (LIMA), Carol calls out a couple of retail developments that barely made a ripple and gives her take on how they will transform retail in 2012 and beyond.

Global Power Launches State-of-the-art Satellite

Grabble, Kosmix, OneRiot…What may sound like adult parlor games are actually a series of acquisitions made by Walmart under its newly-formed @WalmartLabs division. Headed up by the braniacs that came as a part of the bargain when Walmart acquired Kosmix back in April, @WalmartLabs has already more than made up for any of the virtual time that Walmart lost futzing with its physical assets during the much-maligned Project Impact era. A Facebook-mining gifting app and all manner of personalized shopping and couponing capabilities have already been conjured up.

Make no mistake though, the steady stream of incubation and innovation coming out of this lab isn’t just transforming Walmart’s “social web” trajectory, but raising the social, mobile, and big data bar for everyone in the retail orbit.

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Carol Spieckerman Talks Private Branding, Digital Marketing and More with Iconix COO, Yehuda Shmidman

In September, I had the pleasure of sharing the podium with Yehuda Shmidman, Chief Operating Officer of Iconix Brand Group, at LIMA’s inaugural Retail and Branding Conference in New York. Iconix is the second largest licensor in the world and, in the aggregate, the company generates over $12 billion in annual retail sales by managing and marketing a diverse portfolio of more than 25 consumer brands including PEANUTS/Snoopy, London Fog, Royal Velvet, Mossimo, and Joe Boxer. Mr. Shmidman also heads up global business development for Iconix and this year he was included in the “40 Under 40” list by Crain’s New York.

In this second of two parts, Shmidman discusses the role of private branding, digital and event marketing, and how Iconix is breathing new life into its more mature Iconic brands.

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Spieckerman: One of the licensing community’s big concerns is direct-to-retail or DTR deals. Of course, you guys have set the standard there, but the other big concern is private branding. Do you see private brands as a threat to your model or as a complement? And where in general do you see the brand mix going forward?

Shmidman: A big part of our model is trying to displace private labels. When you have private label brands that retailers create, oftentimes they offer a great product, and definitely at the right price, but when they stick a name on it that has no meaning, it’s really not a private brand, it’s just a private label. So in many cases, our positioning is to use our brands to replace that. For us, it’s about marrying our great brands with retailers who have great execution. In a way, when retailers use our brands to the fullest, we are their private brand and they get the best of both worlds: exclusivity, control through their sourcing, and at the same time, the value of the brand. In that way, I see private brands and our model as complementary concepts.

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