Utah Company Sues L.L. Bean Over Trademark Dispute

KUHL, a Salt Lake City-based apparel company, filed a suit against L.L. Bean on Oct. 2, claiming that L.L. Bean’s new slogan “Be An Outsider,” infringes on KUHL’s trademark on “The Outsider.” KUHL, filing under the name Alfwear, specializes in outdoor and rugged apparel, and said L.L. Bean’s new slogan infringes on its trademark due…

PPAI Announces New Board of Directors Members

Promotional Products Association International (PPAI), has announced the election of its newest members. Lori Kates, president of IMAGEN Brands, and Todd Pottebaum, MAS+, president of Quality Resource Group, Inc., have been elected to the PPAI Board of Directors. They will begin their four-year terms immediately following The PPAI Expo 2018 in January. “Lori and Todd’s…

Asphalt? Lithium-Ion Battery Discovery Could Lead to Faster and Safer Charging

Lithium Ion batteries have become a crucial component in modern technology. Items like smartphones, chargers and toys use the batteries. But, given their volatility, they’ve received a hefty amount of criticism. Some scientists have developed new ways to make them safer. Now, in the case of a scientific team at Rice University, they’re working on…

SCOTUS Denies Louis Vuitton’s Appeal Over Parody Bags

Louis Vuitton seemingly does not know when to give up. Ready for some backstory? Here’s some backstory: February, 2016: LVMH, the umbrella company that owns Louis Vuitton, lost a case against parody bag company My Other Bag. December, 2016: Louis Vuitton took the case to appeals court, and the Court of Appeals for the Second…

The Great Journey

Building your promotional products business is a journey. How is your journey going? Are you running into unpleasant surprises and unexpected potholes? Great journeys start with a vision. You must know where you are going. This is your dream. So dream big. What do you hope to find, to create, to feel, to experience and accomplish on your journey?…

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S’Well Partners With Swarovski for $1,500 Water Bottle for Charity

S’Well water bottles are all the rage right now. If you find yourself in a gym or yoga studio, chances are you’ve seen some fitness-focused people toting around one of the stylish drinkware items. S’Well is upping its style game in a big way, thanks to a partnership with Swarovski and the Breast Cancer Research…

What Happens When 150 People Try to Draw Famous Logos From Memory?

Ever since the 1956 publication of cognitive psychologist George A. Miller’s “The Magic Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on Our Capacity for Processing Information,” short-term memory has proven a prominent topic in many areas. In advertising and marketing, where the powers that be often depend on quick connections to attract customers and…

Sweda Company LLC Adds Regional Sales Executive

Sweda Company LLC, City of Industry, Calif., announced the addition of Shelley Bednarksi as its new regional sales executive for the Southeast region. “Shelley’s industry experience, enthusiasm and professionalism could not be a better fit for Sweda,” said Ryan Scott, director of outside sales for Sweda Company LLC. “We are excited for Shelley to join…

Google Considering Third-Party Smartphone Accessory Certification Similar to Apple

Apple has put a lot of stock into its proprietary Lightning port. It’s not only the primary charging port for its iPhone and iPad products, it’s also the new headphone jack. Apple has chosen this proprietary piece of hardware over the arguably faster, and more universal, USB-C technology, and has made it difficult for third-party…

McDonald’s Responds to Strange Demand for ‘Mulan’ Promotional Sauce

The time is 1998. The hit Disney film “Mulan” has just been released, and McDonald’s, looking to cash in on the film’s connection to Chinese culture, is releasing a limited edition Szechuan sauce for Chicken McNuggets. It’s almost as awesome as Eddie Murphy voicing a cute little dragon. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGRDCRuPklc As most time-sensitive promos go, the…