ShoutingInDigital
Retail, E-Commerce, E-tail and Digital News
28th
MAY
Nazi Knickers no longer the Next big thing
Posted by James | Filed under branding
Following a customer complaint, retailers Next are withdrawing a line of underwear that features a cartoon closely resembling Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler.
The cartoon, as shown in the image, shows a soldier (who looks oddly similar to Hitler) saluting planes flying overhead (using what appear to be a Hitler salute).
The questionable garments were called into question by shopper Ben Radomski, who commenting on Next’s decision to remove the remaining 5,200 pairs said he was happy the product had been withdrawn.
According to the Sun’s report on the ‘Swastnickers’ – once the complaint was put in – the complete line of underwear was withdrawn on the same day.
Upset by comments that Next might be promoting Fascist garments, bosses at Next have taken the stance that the underwear features Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin instead. No comments have been made as to whether Mussolini briefs or Stalin boxers are in the pipeline.
14th
MAY
2009: The year of the smartphone shopper
Posted by James | Filed under tech
According to a survey by PriceGrabber, 58% of US online consumers now own a web-enabled mobile phone. While statistics regarding the adoption of smartphones are nothing new, PriceGrabber’s investigation into the usage of web-enabled phones could have a major impact on the world of retail.
Of the 58% of US consumers who own a web-enabled mobile phone, 21% own a smartphone, 8% an iPhone and 29% connect via another web-enabled mobile phone.
Of all those who are able to connect to the internet via their mobile phone, one in ten have made at least one purchase. For what is a relatively new technology, this is an extremely fast pickup rate.
Fifty six per cent of consumers purchased digital content for their mobile phone, 51% bought consumer electronics, 37% computers, 36% books and 31% purchased clothing.
While retailers will be looking for ways to reach the one in ten who purchase via their mobile phone, there are several other groups of users to pay close attention to.
Sixteen per cent of those with a web-enabled mobile phone use it to compare prices online. A further 16% research product details before making a purchase offline or via their computer. Tapping into these two groups of mobile phone users (particularly the latter who are almost ready to buy) could produce significant sales for internet retailers.
There is a growing market in the area of web-based mobile phone shopping that could be extremely beneficial for online (and offline) retailers in the months to come.
18th
MAR
High tech headwear
Posted by James | Filed under tech
It’s been a good week for those who like their headwear to be scientifically advanced as the American football helmet complete with sensors and the thought controlled wheelchair were shown off in prototype stage.
A coin-sized sensor in the helmet monitors the body heat of the player and sends information to the sidelines meaning if he gets too hot, and in danger of heatstroke, it won’t go unnoticed.
The wheelchair, controlled by the thoughts of the driver, is an exciting product development that may be on the market within ten years – at just 10% more than the standard wheelchair price. At the moment drivers are not given full control but have access to pre-programmed destinations – such as rooms in a house. The driver is shown a list of options and the skull cap he wears reads the signals created by the brain and within a few seconds the wheelchair heads off to the chosen destination.
The chair has an inbuilt map of the house in its memory and also has sensors to detect and avoid any obstacles along the way.
While headwear seems to be developing to become more advanced and useful, it’s nice to see websites offering old-fashioned and traditional hats. Golden Hook, for example, lets you create and design your own woolly hat that will then be knitted by a grandma of your choice. You can leave personal instructions to make sure the hat is to your liking and then request that the gran writes a message on the name tag for you.
If a granny knitted hat isn’t your thing, how about a hat with a beard already attached?
Tags: fashion
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James and the team who run Shouting in Digital work for a digital marketing agency.
Sometimes we'll end up blogging about clients. When that happens it's because the client has done something worthy of a e-tail blog's attention. All the posts here are our opinion, insight and stuff we'd like to share for you please don't consider this meaningful advice.