Category: Commerce

Wacky World

~ mehopper

It’s a weird and wacky world out there, and Guinness World Records (GWR) loves to remind us of that fact from time to time.

Just last week they released their 66th Edition of extreme factoids and an accompanying media blitz to rain outrageous strangeness down upon the media landscape.

It all started with a silly little one minute video. Here’s a link to it.

Guinness World Records 2020 – Out Now (Guinness World Records, YouTube)

Then Guinness World Records followed that up with a two minute video highlighting their hand-picked stars.

Meet The Stars of GWR 2020 (Guinness World Records, YouTube)

Then there was this article on their website with more detail about the “Stars” in the video.

Power your Curiosity: Introducing the Stars of Guinness World Records 2020 (Connie Suggitt, Guinness World Records)

They also have a YouTube Channel where they post separate videos about the Stars.

Finally, they distribute their press release, and voilà, there’s a media frenzy.

The next thing you know, news organizations starved for something to cover besides politics, the weather, the state of the roads and whatnot, latch on to it and print articles like this one.

Pinky Pull Ups, Mayo Eating and Other Weird Feats in the New Guinness World Records book (Scottie Andrew, CNN)

There is a finer point to be made here, though. Guinness World Records is a business, so they tend to delve into a “records for hire” approach sometimes.

That is why I was able to find a 360° video with this description.

Watch the All-New F-PACE defy gravity in a Guinness World Record-breaking 360° loop. As we celebrate our 80th anniversary, our new performance SUV was driven with daring precision by Legendary Stunt Driver Terry Grant, showcasing its lightweight design, agility, sports car speed and performance.

Here is a link to the video.

Jaguar F-PACE 360° Experience of Gravity-Defying World Record Loop (Jaguar, YouTube)

Yes, indeed, for better or worse, profit motive or not, they do a great job of catering to all sorts of interests — they even had a cool 360° video for me to post about here!

Lest you think you’re safe from their hijinks, I highly recommend that you check out their Showcase organized by interests. Better yet, you may wish you’d stuck to cat videos, because the website has a category for animal lovers!

Oh nooo… there you gooo…

Happy Weekend!

Find out more about competitions and the rest of the World in general …

Palessi Shoes

~ mehopper

Payless pulled off quite a stunt!

They set up a fake “luxury” store dubbed “Palessi” and filled it with their $20-$40 footwear. Then they invited so called “influencers” to a clever party, and the invitees actually ended up paying up to $600 for the Palessi shoes.

Here’s a link to an ABC News YouTube video and news story about the “prank.”

Payless Opens Fake Luxury Shoe Store as Prank (ABC News)
How Payless Tricked Influencers Into Paying $600+ for Their $20 Shoes (Holly Rhue, Elle)

Here’s a link to a Payless commercial that explains the prank.

The Payless Experiment (Payless YouTube)

Of course, it’s shoe haute couture that was being lampooned in the ad. Yes, some people really do pay many hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars for shoes.

Here’s a video tutorial and article for those of you that are unfamiliar with brands like Christian Louboutin and Manolo Blahnik that are featured at places like Neiman Marcus and shows like Sex and the City.

AllTop Ten (YouTube Channel)

Top 25 Most Expensive Shoes in the World (Beautiful Life)

Lest you think it’s just those of the feminine persuasion who fall prey to expensive shoe fetishes, here’s an article that covers the masculine side of the isle as well.

Top 10 Most Expensive Shoe Brands of 2024: From Gucci to Stuart Weitzman (Finances Online)

So, you may wonder, why are such shoes so outrageously expensive?

Here is a link to a short featurette thta covers some reasons why Christian Louboutins start at more than $600 and can cost more than five grand.

Why Louboutin Shoes Are So Expensive (Business Insider, YouTube)

Here’s a link to 360° video by the British Fashion Council with Manolo Blahnik explaining his artistic design process.

Join Master Shoemaker Manolo Blahnik in Virtual Reality

Finally, here’s a link to a fun video of Consumer Reports slaughtering a Manolo Blahnik.

Cutting up Manolo Blahnik Shoes (Consumer Reports)

Here’s a link to their research and results.

Are Manolo Blahniks Worth the Money? (Consumer Reports)

Short story, yes , they are better constructed, and perhaps more fashionable, but not necessarily more comfortable.

No shocker there 🙂

Find out more about fashion and commerce …

Bookstore’s Re-Emergence!

~ mehopper

Over the last few weeks I’ve come across two stories about how the rumors of the death of independent bookstores have been greatly exaggerated.

Bookstores Escape from Jaws of Irrelevance (James Sullivan, Boston Globe)
How Independent Bookstores Thrived in Spite of Amazon (Carmen Nobel, Quartz)

Upon further investigation, it turns out that some of the story behind the new wave of publicity is local. Here’s a video about Porter Square Books, one of my local bookstores, and it includes an interview with Harvard Business School faculty Ryan Raffaelli. He is responsible for some well publicized research about the recent resurgence of independent bookstores, and he explains how they are examples of how industries facing shifting business models can adapt by focusing on the “3 C’s” of community, curation, and convening.

Harvard Business School (YouTube Channel)
Harvard Business School (Official Website)

Here’s a link to an older article about Raffaelli’s research on independent bookstores and how they serve as excellent examples of “Technology Re-Emergence.”

Technology Re-Emergence: Creating New Value for Old Innovations (Carmen Nobel, Harvard Business School)

There are also many stories on YouTube about how other specific independent bookstores are doing well. For example, here’s one about The Last Bookstore in LA.

CGTN America (YouTube Channel)
CGTN America (Official Website)

During my (de)tour into independent bookstores, I tripped over this 360° video of Livaria Lello in Portugal. It was frequented by J.K. Rowling when she taught English in Porto and is rumored to be the inspiration for the Flourish and Blotts bookstore in Harry Potter.

Room for Books (and Magic) (The New York Times, YouTube)

So hooray for independent bookstores, and don’t forget to support your local bookstore!

Find out more about books and business in general…