Eco Easy
“For the first time since July 1990, the environment is at the top of public issues 2007 will be the year for being green. But now technology allows consumers to have quality products and be green at the same time. Take cars. Being environmentally friendly no longer means you have to compromise performance.”
Gary Bennewies, president and country manager at Ipsos Canada
Naughty Positioning
“Both startup brands and trusted corporations are spicing up their branding with shock labels designed to invoke response. In Canada, we saw the release of Dirty Laundry Wines and Check Out My Breasts, a promotional website for Fashion Targets Breast Cancer. Expect more companies to push the envelope with shock labels.”
Jeremy Gutsche, editor-in-chief, www.trendhunter.com
Naked Vodka
“Vodka makes a great base for cocktails, but it's also a very nice spirit to drink on its own. You throw a bottle of Grey Goose, Belvedere or even Absolute in the freezer, pour some into cocktail glasses and have some fun.”
Michael Fagan, manager of knowledge resources at the LCBO
Extreme Latin
“The word is getting out you can have more than just a fly-and-flop-on-the-beach-type trip in Costa Rica. Tourism is set up for people to get out and actively discover the landscape. They'll literally get you up in the trees.”
Sean Shannon, managing director at Expedia.ca
iNeedMoreSpace
“People are consuming more online video and music, and storing that content on their iPods, laptops or other digital devices. We've seen huge leaps in the storage capacity of hard drives and flash memory, but it needs to increase another order of magnitude. In the interim, there's going to have to be some alternative storage solutions, whether they're massive Internet-based ones or portable storage devices like USB thumb drives.”
Josh Rubin, editor-in-chief, www.coolhunting.com
