Entertainment Tie-ins / Licensing

As more members of the millennial generation reach the age where they start settling down and buying homes, Lowe’s wants to be sure it reaches them in a format they find relevant.

Grand Rapids, Michigan-based discount retailer Meijer is giving customers the chance to help create a TV commercial, and gaining some free social promotion in the process.

In a new contest, Meijer is asking shoppers to submit photos showing how the retailer supports their “home team,” which could range from a local Little League team to a Major League Baseball franchise, through an application on its Facebook page. Ten winners will receive $100 Meijer gift cards, and all photos have the chance to appear in the commercial.

Skechers retail stores could be in for a sales boost later this year as pro football Hall of Famer Howie Long becomes the newest member of the footwear brand’s endorsement roster.
 
Skechers, operator of 1,340 stores, inked Long for a multi-year deal that involves TV, print and digital components through 2018. Long is best known today as a game day commentator of Fox’s NFL broadcasts, but prior to that he was one of the league’s most dominating defensive linemen during a 12 year career with the Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders.
 

Simon Property Group is adding an unconventional experiential component to its Opry Mills mall in Nashville that should add even more traffic to the already popular shopping and entertainment destination.

A shakeup in the executive ranks is reportedly occurring at Kohl’s.

According to AdAge, Will Setliff, executive VP of marketing at the department store chain, is resigning his position the week of April 11. There has been no press release from Kohl’s or Setliff and surprisingly little coverage of his career shift outside of AdAge.

The world’s largest social network has updated its policies regarding branded content and, in so doing, given retailers a new marketing tool.

Facebook is now allowing retailers and other marketers to work with media companies, celebrities and other key “influencers” to place certain types of branded content on its platform.

The world’s largest social network has updated its policies regarding branded content and, in so doing, given retailers a new marketing tool.

Facebook is now allowing retailers and other marketers to work with media companies, celebrities and other key “influencers” to place certain types of branded content on its platform.

Hunter, the British brand best known for its signature boot, has landed in Japan with style, opening a 3,100-sq.-ft. flagship that targets fashion-focused customers.

Designed by Checkland Kindleysides in collaboration with Hunter creative director Alasdhair Willis, the two-level store features the distinctive DNA of the brand’s London flagship, which offers a modern spin on the British countryside, but in a less literal sense,