In order to travel for a meeting in Capitola (near Santa Cruz) I was forced to rent a car. For the first hour and a half, I was ensnared in a ‘we’ll pick you up’ runaround fiasco (before you loose the legal pit-bulls, Enterprise Rent-A-car, let me sure you it worked out for the best) […]

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The Sustainable Brands 2008 show was, like the industry it represents, sometimes a contradiction. Here, in no particular order, are my Top-10 observations on both ends of the green scale: 1. Coffee with all the right adjectives. It was nice to see a departure from the ubiquitous generic hotel swill. This selection by Thanksgiving Coffee […]

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Paul Polak, Founder, D-REV In 2005, The luxury goods market was worth $455 billion. $7 billion was spent on haircare products alone. Corporations spent $140 Billion on advertising in the US alone. Yet, median household net worth rose only 2% in 2 years. Ours is the very pinnacle of expenditure and wealth, yet this is […]

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Eric Ryan – Method This presenter reminded me of the dot-com junior CEO’s of the 90’s. Young, hip, dressed down with hair to match. And a company success story that makes one jealous. A lot. Method started with 2 guys in a flat somewhere around 2001. (Young eco-entrepreneurs take note: Their first meeting with Target […]

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New Belgium Brewery Greg Owsley, Chief Branding Officer. On my first night in Monterey, I stopped by a local liquor deli to stock my mini fridge. Not seeing anything ‘natural’, or ‘organic’, I settled on Fat Tire Ale, a character beer I had tried and liked once in Colorado. Little did I know I had […]

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Jeffrey Hollander, President 7th Generation For me, this presentation was one of this show’s most powerful, yet I will have a challenge communicating it to you, Dear Readers, second-hand. If you’re not familiar with the Seventh Generation line of cleaning and household products, it is a paragon of environmental business. Three years ago their growth […]

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Inside a marketing campaign that raised web traffic 58% and e-mail sign up 85% Bobbie Parisi, VP of Marketing The whole Keen Footwear line started withn one simple design question: Can a sandal protect toes? From there, they have exploded on to the scene, with a brand that is hip, enlightened, inclusive and inspiring. Bobbie began […]

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Annie Longsworth, Managing Director, Cohn & Wolfe Russ Meyer, Landor Associates Jay Leveton, Penn, Schoen & Berland This presentation was largely statistical, so here are the numbers. Research geeks, enjoy: The study was done in the US and U.K. with 3000 adults 2007: 3600+ new green products 45,000+ green/sustainable articles Economic concerns are growing again – […]

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Bill Morrissey VP Environmental Sustainability, Clorox Corporation The first surprise for me here is how many brands Clorox owns: STP, Armor All, BRITA, Glad bags, Hidden Valley Dressings, (on their brand heirarchy chart, Hidden Valley was sandwiched in between Kingsford Charcoal and Scoop Away Cat litter. Yum.), and one example of a recent brand absorption that […]

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Julie Fasone Holder, Senior VP, Chief Marketing, Sales and Reputation Officer The Dow Chemical Company Fasone Holder was here, primarily to introduce the Human Elements Campaign recently launched by DOW. This is an ad creative guy’s wet dream. A concept so clear and compelling, so extendable and logical, yet emotional that it’s a wonder nobody […]

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