Lego Store Opening @ Rockefeller Center, NYC

03 Jul 2010, Posted by Joan in brands, current events / news, design, events, lifestyle, topics, 1 Comments

On June 29th, the new Lego store in Manhattan’s Rockefeller Center opened its doors to the public. In hopes of catching the tail end of the Grand Opening festivities (held over the course of the first three days), we took a trip over to Rockefeller Center on Thursday to explore the new Lego store and witness the exciting outdoor activities.

Here are some of the sights and sounds of what went on that morning:

Soccer Fever

02 Jul 2010, Posted by Neves in art, current events / news, design, 1 Comments

Here at CO-OP, when we work, we work hard; when we play, we play hard!

On the BP Oil Spill

01 Jul 2010, Posted by Joan in awareness, current events / news, 0 Comments

We’ve all heard of BP’s Deepwater Horizon by now. It’s the underwater oil rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, 2010, spewing up to 2.5 million gallons of crude oil into the gulf every day — leading to what may be one of the most dire environmental disasters in U.S. history.

Needless to say, the oil spill has not been a boon to BP’s public image. But how exactly has Deepwater Horizon affected their brand, and what measures have they taken to defend it? We took our cameras and notebooks to the streets of New York to get a sense of what people know about the spill, and how that knowledge has affected how they think of BP. In our interviews, we presented people with the following questions and images:

• What are your thoughts on the BP oil spill?
• What do you think about BP’s print ad? (Here is the ad that BP ran in the June 2nd issue of the NYTimes)
• Do you now trust other oil companies over BP?
• How do you think BP can rebuild their brand?

Not surprisingly, BP has not been very successful in their attempts to minimize the damage to their brand by the Deepwater Horizon spill. Here’s what one interviewee had to say: ”Why don’t they show this (points to images of oil soaked wildlife) and say we’re gonna fix this instead of showing pretty images (points to BP’s NYTimes ad) and saying it’s not that bad?”

A few clips of my interviews:









Has the Deepwater Horizon spill permanently damaged BP’s reputation? Exxon may have recovered their image following the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster, but that spill (previously the largest oil spill in U.S. history) has been utterly eclipsed by Deepwater Horizon. Exxon may have been able to help us forget about their 11 million gallons of spilled oil, but will BP be able to pull off the same feat with their 120 million (and counting)?

Perhaps at some point in the future — months, years or decades from now — BP will ultimately wipe this gigantic black stain off their record. But would that be a triumph of marketing, or a failure of human memory?

DIDDYBLOG

21 Jun 2010, Posted by Rupam in brands, current events / news, lifestyle, 0 Comments

HELLO GOOD MORNING, The Love Movement has begun.



Today marks the launch of DiddyBlog.com, a website that has been in the works for awhile at BadBoy Entertainment. Entertainment mogul P Diddy plans for the blog to be “an all 100% positive blog” combining inspiration and motivation on one platform. Diddy claims he won’t be promoting any of his projects on the blog, instead “it’s about inspiring you, motivating you, empowering your dreams, empowering you”

The site is a mixture of current events, stories and findings, a dedication of sincerity that not only inspires but rouses emotions in the reader.

With six different categories to choose from: Inspire, Believe, Feel, Create, Love, and Grow, DiddyBlog truly sets a positive tone quoting from the likes of Darwin, Plato, Emerson and more.

Adding DiddyBlog.com under his belt, this only goes to assure us of Diddy’s ability to increase his never-ending portfolio of business ventures. Having established himself as a rapper and producer he has gone out and conquered much more than music (BadBoy Entertainment). With his clothing line: Sean John, premium vodka brand: Ciroc, upscale restaurant: Justin’s, to name a few, he has proved himself legendary with an empire of brands making him one of the richest people in the hip hop entertainment business.

With each act accomplished, reveals the iconic vision of Diddy even more. He is definitely one of our favorites and an inspiration to us, we look forward to what Diddy has in store next.

In the meantime, check out the videos below:

The Evolution of the Jingle.

26 May 2010, Posted by Alyssa in brands, current events / news, technology, 0 Comments

Back when this blog first started, I intended to have my first post address the question, “where have all the jingles gone?” Feeling nostalgic in today’s world of viral marketing, I suppose I began to mourn the loss of advertising’s earlier “simplicity,” laden with corny lyrics and imagery that have come to shape my own personality and sense of humor (much to my chagrin of course).

Realizing the limits of my expertise in the history of advertising and the research necessary to do justice to the topic, I put the post on the back burner and blogged about something else. Well I still haven’t read Steve Karmen’s Who Killed the Jingle? – How a Unique American Art Form Disappeared, but I think it’s time to at least voice some thoughts and open up a discussion on the subject.

At first I thought a virus killed the jingle: our postmodern culture required we move away from the corny to the cool, get rid of those kiddy tunes and hit today’s tuned-out consumer with clever videos and special effects, or else with the ironic distance that is so hip nowadays, then get them to disperse the ad via social media. In essence: viral marketing. I couldn’t get out of my head the inherent differences between even the words ‘jingle’ and ‘viral’. One, friendly and singsong, frank in its nature. The other, harmful and corrupting, its true workings veiled. I saw it as a hostile takeover rather than the slow socio-cultural evolution it most likely was. Then something strange happened: McCann Erickson made this spot for Verizon:

Here, my two worlds collided. In fact, so many worlds collided with this spot. First of all, we have the return of not just the jingle as a motif and a format, but of a jingle – a classic jingle for Big Red that we all know (and love?). Second, this classic jingle is being parodied, though also mined for its nostalgic gold, ushering it into today’s postmodern advertising realm. Then you factor in that Big Red’s jingle is being re-appropriated by Verizon and things get really wacky. Just when I thought the jingle was back, I realized it’s just a kitschy take on the jingle, which, of course, has gone viral. But I suppose this is the only way for the jingle to survive in today’s world.

It makes me wonder what Verizon’s commercial is doing for Big Red’s sales. And if we shall soon witness an onslaught of advertising that plays on our nostalgia while simultaneously poking fun at it. I think we’ve always had a love-hate relationship with jingles. We, to some extent, love when they come on TV, perhaps because we can sing along, but we curse them when we’re still singing on the train, and in the bathroom, and at work, and while cooking dinner, etc. So maybe the jingle wasn’t killed by the viral. Maybe the jingle was the original virus. (Think about the catch-on effect of singing something like KitKat’s “Gimme a break,” or any one of the millions of jingles that were made to get stuck in your head and then become a shared experience). It makes sense: we, as viewers, built up an immunity to the jingle, thus the mutation into the viral ad campaign. I guess Verizon/McCann Erickson has managed to tap into the ideal niche then: a viral jingle. But since remakes or revivals of classic jingles probably have a very limited lifespan, maybe it’s a matter of simply updating our idea of what a jingle is. Perhaps Toyota has the answer:

CO-OP’s visit to ICFF

24 May 2010, Posted by Rupam in art, current events / news, design, do not use this category, 0 Comments

May has been a busy month for the New York Design community. There was BKLYN Designs, ICFF and Cite for America to name some of the happenings of this month.

We attended ICFF (the International Contemporary Furniture Fair) on Tuesday and want to share with you CO-OP’s most innovative pics from the show:

CO-OP believes that there is beauty in simplicity and perhaps thats why Ufuk Keskin’s SheetSeat design stood out as a winner to us. Made from one sheet of laminate, its sleek design looks just as great hanging on the wall as is it does opened up for practical use.

We chatted a little with designer Efecem Kutuk about his inspiration:

You may not recognize this anglo-swiss design duo, but you will certainly recognize their products that are sold at the MOMA store and at the Design Museum. Their Philosophy is all about creating functional products that charm and entertain.

Mr. and Mrs. Hang up:

This French firm have made a very creative business out of making 10mm x 10 mm glass mosaic tiles. The inspiration behind these tiny tiles was looking at digital pixels close-up and seeing the mosaic like patterns. The result is clever beautiful tactile design inspired by technology.

Christian Woo, a Canadian woodwork genius, displayed a collection of handmade cabinets. Of all the work we saw at ICFF, Christians work had a sincerity and purity like no other. The craftsmanship and deign was exquisite.

Unfortunately we did not get the name of the designer of this bed. However, we love this elliptical shaped rocking frame and had to feature it.

Photos: Sheet Seat – www.sheetseat.com, Black + Blum – www.black-blum.com, Asarota –

Shepard Fairey — May Day

06 May 2010, Posted by Neves in art, brands, current events / news, design, lifestyle, 0 Comments

This Sunday was almost spectacular for me. Just an unplanned last minute decision was all that was needed. Shepard Fairey solo exhibit opened in Deitch Projects on Wooster Street. It was complete spectacle, not only on the inside but also on the outside. Everything was happening there, from May day parades, to celebrity sightings, making the 2 hrs in the line worthwhile. But at the end of it all I was left with just one thought. OBEY


…and you’ll see why.

May 01, 2010 — May 29, 2010

Deitch Projects
18 Wooster Street, New York City
















































































































































and by the way, its free.

Brand Innovation—Yotel

09 Apr 2010, Posted by Paul in brands, current events / news, design, lifestyle, 0 Comments

An interview with global hotel brand, Yotel, and its London-based marketing director, Jo Berrington, by Paul Newman, Creative Partner of CO-OP.

“There is beauty in simplicity” reads a fortune stuck to my monitor at work. I’ve always believed that some of the best ideas are driven by common sense things or occurrences that are often overlooked. Now more than ever in this multi-tasking, on-the-go, mobile fast paced world we live in, one needs to shut off for a bit and really take in what’s going on around them.

A lot of the best opportunities are staring us in the face. It just takes an innovative mind to notice them and create something special.

We chatted with Jo Berrington, the Marketing Director of one such company – Yotel.

Yotel is a different kind of hotel brand – and the brainchild of Simon Woodroffe. It all started when Simon got upgraded to a 1st class cabin on British Airways. This fortuitous experience sparked a common sense simple innovation in two of the busiest airports of the world – Heathrow and Gatwick.

Jo Berrington: Simon Woodroffe started the YO! company and the first brand that came out of it was  YO! Sushi – a restaurant that transformed the perception of sushi being a high end dining experience to a more accessible one.

YO! was destined to be a retail brand. Simon realized that the holy grail of retail is to innovate in order to deliver high luxury without the high cost.

YO! Sushi and Yotel are completely different but they are both rooted in the ethos of YO! – it’s about giving a range of choices, it’s about getting what you want and getting it at a relatively low cost. It’s about innovating in order to deliver high luxury at affordable costs.

Jo Berrington: Yes, turn it on it’s head really. We know that people want hotel rooms. Simon’s approach has been to look at what people really want and how can we offer it in a funky, fresh, appealing way, in a way it has not been done before.

Our business model is about efficeincy – how to utilizes a hotel room in a 24 hour period and which results in a much higher occupancy rate. Yotel has an 180% occupancy rate.

Jo Berrington: Yes. Today’s consumer wants more value, convenience and quality than before and that is why we design taking into consideration the sensory experience.

We think of the traveller in the airport who is waiting between flights in the airport and the stress and anxiety they experience. We think of how to make it a more comfortable journey for them – from lighting, to the materials, to the amenities in each room, they are put in place to make experience of the traveller relaxing.

Our concept is straightforward – we have a democratic point of view as we deal with a wide target audience range.

Jo Berrington:
Innovation – it’s about looking at what people want, looking at what’s out there and turning it upside down to fulfill a need. It’s about connecting with people.

Location: You will not find a Yotel in suburbia. You will find us in places where real estate is prime. Yotel is an urban brand for people who appreciate good design that fit there transient needs.

Value: Today’s consumer is looking for value, for efficiency and responsibility – and we give that to them.

Quality: Our core is to provide luxury services and experiences and make them accessible to everyone in more affordable ways.

Jo Berrington: Mini – they re-invented themselves but kept their authenticity.

360 view, click and rotate

http://www.yotel.com/

Photos: Yotel, PRI’s The World/Flickr, missmaria/Flickr, andynash/Flickr, jaceguay/Flickr, NoirinP/Flickr

The building blocks of post-modern art.

24 Mar 2010, Posted by Jason in art, current events / news, 0 Comments

Nathan Sawaya creates an exhibit made entirely of the stuff of childhood dreams – LEGOs. Somehow, I don’t think he followed the provided instructions to make these.

On exhibit in New York now through April 13th at the Agora Gallery.

Honoring Margaret Moth.

23 Mar 2010, Posted by Kylie in art, current events / news, 0 Comments

Yesterday evening I learned of the passing of CNN camerawoman and photo journalist Margaret Moth. She was a fierce woman of passion and extreme dedication— a fiery beauty who filmed without waver in the line of fire, slept in her combat boots and black eyeliner, and survived a sniper attack in Sarajevo only to return to work the following year.

Jessica Ravitz of CNN tells her story beautifully in Fearless to the End: Remembering Margaret Moth. I only wish I could have known Margaret. I honor her and derive immense inspiration from her fearless dedication to the art of truth.

[The following is a documentary about Moth shot by CNN in 2009]