Marketing Tactics

PORTLAND, Ore. — Columbia Sportswear Company will sponsor three freestyle ski teams during the 2012-13 World Cup season and the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

Russia completes the trifecta, having signed on with Columbia this year. It joins Canada, which signed up in 2008 and the United States, which signed on last year.

The March of Dimes trustees elected Deidra Merriwether and Will Smith as the charitable group’s newest board members.

Merriwether serves as SVP and COO of Kmart and Sears format at Sears Holdings and Smith is SVP of marketing for Brown Shoe Company. Merriwether and Smith join a group of more than 30 trustees as the organization prepares to celebrate its 75th anniversary next year. March of Dimes trustees, who serve as volunteers, represent the public in governing the organization and advancing its mission. They serve five-year terms.

LA CANADA, Calif. — Santa Claus is coming to Sport Chalet, a sporting goods retailer, to take photos with everyone, young and old, under water.

No experience is necessary for fans to pose with Santa, who will be at the store from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, December 15. Sport Chalet dive experts will be on hand to assist Santa fans, who must be at least 10 years old to dive. Younger children need not despair, however, as they will be able to snorkel alongside St. Nick for their photo.

LAKELAND, Fla. — Retired Publix president and director emeritus Mark C. Hollis has passed away at that age of 78.

Nashville – Retail's top industry analysts will join forces with C-level retail executives and technology vendors at the Retail Orphan Initiative's SuperSaturday event in New York on Jan. 12, one day before the opening of the National Retail Federation’s annual convention. Admission to retailers is free, and all proceeds from the vendor sponsorships go to help the Retail Orphan Initiative, Retailroi.org.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. and ATLANTA — The Coca-Cola Company is joining forces with HSN, a multichannel retailer, which will allow both parties to tap into each other’s customer base and expand their online reach.

Starbucks blends tradition with innovation, transforming the vault of the historic Amsterdamsche Bank, a landmark building in Rembrandt Square, into its largest store in Europe. The chain’s first “concept” store in Europe, it spans 4,500 sq. ft. and was conceived as a theatre space with a 57-foot coffee bar as its stage, with multi-level areas that provide stages for local bands, poetry readings and other cultural activities. The store will function as a test space for rare and exclusive coffees, diverse coffee brewing methods, and new food concepts.

More than 500 suppliers and service companies were on hand recently to hear what Walmart chief marketing officer Stephen Quinn had to say at an event organized by the Bentonville Bella Vista Chamber of Commerce.