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Marino Caliterna asked:


Did you know that you can have your own brand of handbags made in Italy by the same manufacturers of the biggest brands but at a fraction of the cost?

Quality made in Italy handbags are a very profitable trend. In fact handbags are an immediately recognizable sign of distinction, taste, wealth. A beautiful handbag is a fashion and a personality statement which is a must for each contemporary, successful woman.

Selling handbags is quite profitable also as, as opposed to apparel, there are no sizes to stock and therefore very little inventory is left unsold while very few items are returned. However getting the big name handbags to resell is difficult, expensive and the price competition cutthroat, leaving uninteresting profit margins.

Luckily a new trend is emerging with vast profit opportunities associated with it. The trend is for unbranded or private branded handbags. In fact, in the more advanced markets worldwide, conspicuous brand names are quickly becoming “out”. Showing a famous brand name is more and more considered ostentatious, obvious, not in good taste and associated with “new money”.

The trend for the unbranded is so strong that even the biggest names are quickly producing some of their new collections with discretely placed brand names and logoes or without them alltogether.

A corresponing fast-growing trend is thus that of private brand, private label, OEM handbags. In this case the handbags are sold with the logo of a trendy boutique or of a small but high quality importer (yourself).

Private branding is used also to quickly add a line of accessories to a brand which concerns itself mostly with apparel or something else and who does not want to invest in designing and manufacturing handbags but nonetheless desires a product of matching quality.

How can one profit from this fast-growing trend? It is quite simple and quick, provided that you know where to source your handbags.

Italy is home to the best manufacturers of handbags and to the best leather tanneries in the world. Quite often the biggest brand names spread their manufacture among many smaller handbags makers within Italy. These manufacturers are chosen for their ability, attention to detail, reliability.

Besides producing for the top brands, typically each of these Italian manufacturers design and manufacture several lines of their own, with the same quality, materials and skill employed for the top names but they sell these at a fraction of the price.

In fact you can purchase for $70 the same handbag quality that retails for $900 when branded by the top names. This is because there are no middlemen and no monster organizations on payroll nor expensive advertising campaigns to finance. You just pay materials, workmanship and an honest profit to the manufacturer.

Of course when selling under your own brand, or unbranded, you are unlikely to be able to charge as much as the top names; however the profit margin is still 3-4-5 fold! And your lower prices, being more affordable, attract more customers and translate into a higher volume of sales.

Let’s be clear about one thing: when we talk about private label/private brand handbags made by the top Italian manufacturers who work for the big names, we are talking about original designs of the manufacturers and NOT of copies or so called “replicas” (which are also illegal copies).

These original designs however are always very successful because they follow each season’s trend in terms of style, materials and accessories.

In fact they are often even MORE successful than the big names because the often “hostile” or difficult to wear “cutting edge” of the big names is “smoothed out” in the private brand designs which are thus more wearable, comfortable, saleable.

Many Italian manufacturers will of course produce your own designs, this however requires considerable skill in preparing the designs, investments for setup costs, large minimum orders, travels to the premises to define details etc. Manufacturing your own designs, therefore, while a very profitable option, is a medium term project and worth it if you have already established good revenues in the field of handbag retail.

Instead, choosing existing designs and have them branded with your own logo is very quick and minimum quantities are as low as one dozen! This is also a safe choice unless you are an experienced designer and marketer.

In fact the Italian manufacturers, being very experienced with worldwide trends and sales, know exactly which designs are hot in each country, which colours sell best in each country, which features are necessary to succeed in each country; from the lenght of handles to zippers to inside pockets. This type of knowledge is worth thousands of dollars in marketing consultancy otherwise!

If you can, it is best to travel to Italy, (to Tuscany in particular, which has an excellent handbag manufacturing district) and go visit the factories and warehouses yourself. Here you can select styles, materials and colours and get valuable imput from the manufacturers about the best choices for your own particular target market.

After having chosen styles and colours, you provide the artwork for your logo to the manufacturer which will be used to produce custom items to brand your handbags.

Typically your brand logo can be: a) embossed on a leather patch inside the handbag, b) etched in a metal plate to be also applied inside the handbag c) etched in a metal plate or pendant which is fastened to the handbag handles d) printed on the fabric dustbag which is used to protect and store the handbag. The dustbag is a much appreciated accessory by customers and associated with the idea of quality.

The extra expense to brand the handbags is negligible, $2-3 each plus one-time setup fees of around $100 to make the necessary metal stamps and moulds. Typically you are required to order a minimum of only ten handbags per style per colour. For a comparison, consider that when making your own designs the figure can be ten times as much.

Your order will be typically ready within three-four weeks, including all setups and private branding! The manufacturer will also arrange a freight and paperwork for the shipment to you. In order to source the best manufacturer for you and to have smooth and timely transactions, we recommend to use a local fashion broker for the purpose.

In fact, a good broker will save you lots of time and money by imediately pointing you in the right direction and by following all details and communication until the delivery of goods is completed. The broker’s fees are typically paid by the manufacturer on a yearly basis and therefore all the valuable services provided will be at no direct cost to you.

So to summarize: selling private branded handbags Made in Italy is an excellent opportunity to expand your business or create a new one. It is quick and inexpensive, you can start small and place larger orders as you grow, quality Made in Italy handbags are always in demand, profit margins are fat.



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Marcia Hoeck asked:


What is it that makes some brands connect so well with their audiences? We could learn something about building brands for organizations by also asking,

What is it that makes some people connect so well with other people?

In many ways, organizations are like individuals. Each has its own specific “fingerprint” — strengths, character, and personality — that makes it unique and recognizable. It’s how we get to know our friends and understand what it is about them that we like.

In a world where no one has time to carefully weigh all available brand options, this fingerprint acts as shorthand to help us sort through the maze, a very real point of value at a time when it is increasingly difficult to tell one product or service from another.

When an organization’s brand fingerprint is clearly defined and articulated so that customers, shareholders, distributors, employees, and partners consistently feel they “know” the organization and know what to expect from it, magic happens.

This is when high emotional engagement occurs. This is when “raving fans” and customer loyalty are created. This is when organizations gain sustainable competitive advantage.

Discovering and communicating this brand fingerprint helps organizations bring strategic focus to the power of their brand — giving brands a meaningful and recognizable shorthand that helps cut through the noise and clutter to connect with people.

Brand fingerprint process

Following a process to help uncover the organization’s brand fingerprint will ensure that the intangible attributes assigned to the brand — assets like integrity and innovation — are translated into a visual, tangible representation to which audiences can relate.

The process has two phases, strategy and visual translation. It works like this:

Phase I. Strategy

Step 1. Finding your brand values, character, and personality

Step 2. Understanding the competitive landscape

Step 3. Determining your position in the marketplace

Step 4. Developing your value proposition

Phase II. Visual Translation

Step 1. Developing the brand mood

Step 2. Determining the key brand elements

Step 3. Developing the brand roadmap

Phase I. Strategy

The strategy phase can be compared to traditional methods of brand development and is based on core values. The difference here is that the exercises used in the facilitated sessions with company decision makers are designed not only to uncover brand values and attributes, but to gather information in a way that it will be useful for development of the visual translation of the brand. Pairing the creative team with decision makers at the very beginning of brand strategy development is essential in gathering input that will be critical to visual translation. This is important since experts say that 80% of what we learn comes to us visually, and customers will most likely see brands long before they understand the strategy.

There are many benefits of considering how the brand will be communicated visually at the strategy stage. Some of these benefits include:

> translation of intangible company assets and attributes into tangible representations that truly reflect the company’s core values

> avoidance of possible disconnects when logos, websites, and print materials are developed

> development of marketing materials that really communicate key messages

> deeper understanding and long-term recall of brand messages by customer audiences

> consistency of brand messages over time

Phase II: Visual Translation

The visual translation phase takes all of the information gathered in the strategy phase and translates it into a visual form that people can see and relate to — the visible brand fingerprint. A clear and accurate brand fingerprint can communicate assets like integrity, zero defects, and innovation and make them palpable. Visible. Understandable. Audiences will know at a glance “who” the organization is, what it is saying to them, and why they should buy, react, or be moved. And it will be real, it will be authentic, and it will stand the test of time — because what people see represents the synthesis of the brand strategy.

The benefits of developing the visual components of the brand directly from strategy exercises include:

> a brand mood that will communicate to customers on an emotional level, because the design is based on authentic aspects of the brand’s character and personality

> because the mood is a direct translation of strategy jointly developed by company decision makers and creative team, there are no unpleasant surprises at the design stage

> the main visual components of the brand will look and feel “real” and will become the pillars upon which other marketing materials will be built

> there will be no need for new themes, visual approaches, or deviations from the established visual translation. Brand equity builds with consistency. This is a cost-effective benefit.

Brand communication

Being true to the organization’s authentic brand is how trust, loyalty, and sustainable relationships are developed between the organization and its audiences. Great graphics and cool animation aren’t effective if they don’t accurately communicate the company’s character or brand. Something’s amiss if the organization is not clear and consistent about how it is presenting itself in front of its publics. If the organization’s brand and its image are not aligned, “brand schizophrenia” occurs, which significantly affects the quality of the relationship and level of trust with valued audiences, including customers and employees. Both lose trust in companies when they don’t know what to expect.

With brand strategy and visuals clearly articulated in a unique brand “fingerprint,” organizations can make a real connection with their audiences. Once established, this connection enables them to communicate compelling value, promote long-term recall of brand messages, and foster the trust, loyalty, and emotional attachment that sustain relationships.



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Alden Jerry asked:


A MP3 is a device which uses digital technology for playing music. Hence it is also known as a digital audio player and performs three basic tasks of storing, playing and organising audio files. There are many types of MP3 which can be found in the market today. Thus the user can store up to 32 GB in a flash player like the Apple iPod Nano. He can also use a digital jukebox or a hard drive based player and thus create a personalised collection of songs by using the storing capacity up to 250 GB’s. The listener can also play his own CD’s in a MP3 CD player as well as receive audio files over a network using Wi-Fi in a network player.

There are many types of brands which can be bought by users in the MP3 market today. MP3 players are now made by many companies and come with a host of other features besides listening to music. Hence the user can enjoy his music with the help of a Shuffle MP3 player which have a storage capacity of up to 128MB and provides great quality in terms of music quality and overall device performance. There is also another brand which serves the dual purpose of playing songs and displaying their lyrics on an orange PLED screen. This is the Creative Muvo S200 player which can store up to 1 GB of music files. This model has up to 17 hours of playback time and has additional features such as a voice recorder and a FM Radio. This player is available in three colours of purple, silver and blue. It is also a light device to carry around as it weighs only 38 grams. The Suvo is thus another marvellous choice for a music lover.

With the success of the Apple iPod Nano, the MP3 market has been increasing in leaps and bounds. This success has led to increase in the interest of users in using MP3′s and now more people are buying MP3′s. The success of the digital audio player has hence led to the shift in the focus of format of listening music and hence the MP3 is here to stay.

Hence digital audio players or MP3 players are now beginning to dominate the minds of the people all over the world and there are many brands which are becoming popular with each passing day.

However these mediums are also available at cheap prices in many websites. The growing trend of online shopping has led to one positive effect when it comes to prices. Users can now browse numerous shopping websites in order to find the best deal available on MP3 players and thus save a lot of money. Cheap MP3 Players are now readily available and there are many brands which can be found at very low prices. The only thing that a person has to do is to invest some amount of time in browsing websites in the endeavour to discover cheap MP3 players. They are thus no longer luxury items and now anybody can buy these music players.

Some of the cheap mp3 players that are in the market today are made by famous corporate entities like Sony, Samsung and Philips. There are many websites where the user will find these brands being listed at unbelievably low prices. Other than these websites there are also auction websites where MP3 players are bidded at the lowest possible prices. These are those websites where the user can find astonishing players at very low prices.

Music has been a cherished act of human beings since the stone ages to the guitar crunching ballads of Metallica. The medium started with record players, then came the audio cassette and today the raging medium is the MP3. Hence these players are a wonderful source of enjoyment and serve the tradition of being the carriers of the ultimate peace giver in the world-music.



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Henriette Martel asked:


As prices have never been so low, you may consider buying multiple domain names as a cost-effective option to drive more traffic to your website.

When it comes to choosing a domain name, there are two schools of thought. You can either elect to register a domain name based on

1- a new or existing brand name e.g. business name, trademark, product brand name or

2- one or more keywords that you perceive will help your target market to find you.

Both methods have their pro’s and con’s.

(For this article, to avoid filter penalties, my domain name examples will start with a Capital letter and end with /.)

Domain name based on BRAND

The web is populated with unusual and recognised domain names e.g. Google/, Amazon/ and Yahoo/. Naming your domain using a new or existing brand name can be a powerful and rewarding long-term strategy. Developing a brand name from anonymity to stardom is any marketer’s goal.

Pro’s

A branded domain name may

- Attract attention for its originality and for being catchy e.g. Yahoo/ or Dogpile/.

- Stand out from competition e.g. compare Google/ with Searchengine/, Searchengines/ and Bestsearchengine/. Which one stands out? Sorry, no price for this easy answer.

- Facilitate direct search. Repeat visitors can guess your name and type it in the address bar or location field and find you directly, bypassing competitors.

- Encourage brand recognition. Each time people are exposed to your domain name, it reinforces your brand.

- Increase credibility and loyalty. In general, people prefer to be associated with a brand name rather than a generic name. If price is not a consideration, wouldn’t you prefer buying Chanel branded sunglasses from Chanel/, Eyesave/ or Sunglassesportal/?

- Promote viral marketing. It is easier to refer someone to a domain name that you can remember and spell without difficulty.

- Provide flexibility. Your domain name can be used on business cards and offline promotions.

- Protect your intellectual property. Get in first before someone names their domain with your product brand, business name or title of your book.

Con’s (for new brands only)

A domain name using an established brand name may not encounter the problems below. A domain name based on a new brand may:

- Be difficult to choose. Selecting a name to convey instantly business core values and benefits of website is a very difficult task.

- Need time, money and effort to break through the online noise and be recognised.

- Necessitate a strong unique selling proposition.

- Require an arsenal of internet marketing tactics e.g. linkage strategies and search engine optimisation to improve the search engine ranking.

Domain name based on KEYWORDS

Keywords are the words that web users enter in the search box of the search engine to retrieve information on a specific subject.

The current trend is for web searchers to enter a string of keywords or keyword phrase rather than single keywords e.g. a person may look for ‘free family tree’, ‘decision tree software’, ‘artificial Christmas tree’ instead of ‘tree. This practice provides less search engine results but of better quality. Similarly, website owners are creating generic domain names made of a string of keywords to reach their target audience e.g. Paylesscarrental/, Collectorcartraderonline/ and Carbuyingtips/.

Pro’s

On one hand, generic keywords domain names may:

- Generate instant results with drive-in traffic from search engines.

- Attract qualified prospects looking for your keywords.

- Communicate and position instantly your site’s benefits and core values e.g. Justfreestuff/, Best-home-mortagage-loan/, Indoorgardensupplies/.

- Improve search engine ranking. (The use of keywords in the domain name is a strategy which you cannot rely on to increase your search engine ranking: it is only a very small part of search engine optimisation.)

Con’s

On the other hand, generic keywords domain names may:

- Be perceived as boring, lacking in imagination and sometimes dubious.

- Require more effort to remember. This could lead to domain names being misspelled e.g. Barnesandnoble/ or Barneandnobles/ or placed in the wrong sequence e.g. Homefinancialservices/ or Financialhomeservices/. These common mistakes have prompted shrewd business people to piggy back on popular websites e.g. Ezinearticle/ benefits from spelling mistakes of customers from Ezinearticles/.

- Restrict the usage of the domain name. A long string of keywords does not look good on offline promotional material.

- Be wasted if you don’t choose your keywords carefully. It is important to research the words used by your customers and not rely on your assumptions. Jeff, a Printer, had optimised his site for ‘self-publishing’ only to find that self-publishers were searching for printers using keyword ‘printing’.

The best of both worlds: consider complementary domain name strategies:

1. Create a short, easy to remember brand name using keywords e.g. Diabeticgourmet/, Netdoctor/ or Houseweb/.

2. Purchase a few domain names made up of keywords and have them pointing to a main branded domain name. This strategy requires you to buy an URL forwarding option when you purchase your domain name. A word of caution: if you overuse this tactic, Google may respond negatively to these ‘sneaky redirects’.



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Ayokunle Bankole asked:


ESSENCE OF A WELL-POSITIONED BRAND: LESSONS FOR CORPORATE NIGERIA

The word branding is not a relatively new business concept. More than three decades ago, marketing expert Michael J Baker wrote an introductory text on the importance of brands and branding. What is new is the degree of attention and sophistication it has gotten the world over in recent years.

        Maybe this has to do with the increased mental clutter in our lives and in the marketplace, which makes it difficult for companies to get across their messages.

        “Brands are quickly becoming the basis for most critical business decisions,” an observer noted. Branding is the sum total of whatever a company or an idea represents. For most part of it, branding is as simple as doing the right thing, consistently and clearly.

        Today as expected, Nigeria parades herself with her most celebrated brands of all time – her super brands! Indeed, for a few of them, branding is not about getting your target market to choose you over the competition, but it is about getting your prospects to see you as the only one that provides a solution to their problems.

        While a brand is the uniqueness a customer perceives of an organization or idea; there’s a connection between a brand name [identity], brand image [perception] and brand reputation [respect].

        All strong brands depend on, more than anything else, its reputation. In as much as corporate executives try to build a good brand, they ought to be mindful of corporate reputation also. In essence, a good reputation accounts for a good brand.

        However, for obvious reasons, Nigerian entrepreneurs are quick at building strong brands to their advantage only to allow them crumble in no distant time, for lack of brand management skill.

        I have to admit I used to buy UAC’s Gala Sausage, until Leventis Meaty came along. The experience was always positive and I always had the feeling of that tasty snack with pure beef filling. But where did Gala go wrong? Gala lost its unique positioning in the heat of competition. Apart from the sudden change of wrap [which I think I don’t like so much], the sausage in it has become so lean.

        UAC failed to realize that branding is more than just putting on new clothes.

        The problem with many of these great brands is that they don’t usually realize the repercussion of their actions and inactions until well after the time and money have been invested or after it is too late.

        How many times have you pulled into a company’s parking spot and saw a sign that read, “Parking reserved for xxxx customers only. All others will be tolled,” or “Cars are parked at owners’ risk”? Have you ever met a lousy school proprietor raining indecent words on parents? Or how many times have you had to queue for long hours somewhere, only to be disappointed at the way a customer service officer treated you?

        These are all negative branding and reputation at work. We experience it everyday. It affects the way customers perceive us.

        Corporate bodies should pay great attention to their messages – spoken or written.

        Words do the talking for our business, so it’s worth investing in the best copy we can afford. Unprofessionally written communications and marketing materials can actively work against us, telling potential customers things we didn’t mean to say.

        Instead of the stereotyped “Cars are parked at owners’ risk,” why not try something like “While we ensure your vehicles are safe, we don’t accept any risk”? Long but it’s full of great impact.

        Our dear economy has suffered from a breakdown resulting from her choice of words. They cost money, but words efficiently applied produce great wealth.

        So let’s begin to take a good look at everything we do: our message; our corporate identity; our approach to communicating with clients; our demeanour; our products; our packaging; our advertising and our staff.



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Burt Alper asked:


Using European languages to create product names and company names for American brands can be a powerful strategy or a serious misstep. Here’s when it works, and why.

What do Häagen-Dazs, Saint Benoît and Clinique have in common? Answer: they’re all successful European brand names for stuff manufactured right here in the good old U.S. of A.  They’re also living proof that one of the most effective ways to telegraph luxury or premium quality is to use a product name or company name that’s derived from a European language. And even though many American consumers are hip to this trick by now, most don’t mind being seduced with a European come-on if the product lives up to its promise.

The vaguely Scandinavian brand name Häagen-Dazs was coined in 1959—by two Polish immigrants living in the Bronx—to lend Old World flair to their line of ice creams. The strategic naming worked, and the super-premium ice cream soared to success with its incorrectly placed umlaut. Similarly, the product name Clinique adds French cachet to a skincare and makeup line from Estée Lauder (itself a “Frenchified” version of Josephine Esther Lauder, one of the company’s founders).  And on a smaller, local scale, Saint Benoît has created a nice little stir—and is commanding premium prices—with its small-batch, French-style yogurt, even though it’s ”crafted” in Sonoma County, California.

Bottom line: when branding products for American audiences, foreign-sounding names can play off stereotypes of other nations and trigger associations we retain on a preconscious level.  For instance, French product names can suggest luxury and premium quality; Italian product names, sexiness and high fashion (or at least great espresso); Scandinavian names, superior milk products and icy pure water and vodka; and German names, impeccable automotive engineering.

There’s only one catch with foreign branding: you have to make sure your products are in synch with, and can live up to, their European mystique. An ultra-rich ice cream like Häagen-Dazs can easily make good on the promise its name makes. (As can Saint Benoît’s creamy yogurt, developed by brothers who grew up in France, where simple local foods like hand-crafted yogurt are more of a tradition.) On the other hand, a mediocre ice cream with a fancy European product name will only come across as pretentious and silly.

Of course if you’re really, really clever, there’s even a place for ironic foreign branding that plays off the implicit pretension of certain foreign-sounding names. Witness the success of LeSportsac, the iconic American bag company whose bags are “proudly manufactured in the US.” Its tongue-in-cheek coined name blends Old World panache with New World street smarts, to suggest a brand that’s both chic and practical—and sophisticated in a hip kind of way. Which is, perhaps, the best of all worlds.

So could a European-sounding name be right for your brand? Before you proceed down this road ask yourself:

• Do the associations invoked by a European name fit your brand and its personality?

• Are the associations central to your brand’s positioning?

• Which language/s are most appropriate? (Italian, for example, tends to be livelier and more masculine in tone than French, which has a softer feel.)

• Are you overlooking another, more direct route to the same message? (If your maple syrup is made in picturesque Vermont, for example, do you really need to go trekking to France for an evocative name?)

• And finally: can your brand deliver on the inherent promise of superior quality or luxury certain European languages evoke?



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Rocky James asked:


Best treadmill seekers: here’s news. The best treadmill to have is the home treadmill because research shows you burn more calories.

Did you know? A weight loss study reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association revealed that people who had a treadmill at home lost an average of four to eight pounds more than those who didn’t have treadmills. Get that machine!

Never mind the specific brand as long as it’s one of the recognized ones. There is a fair level of parity between brands these days. What you want instead is the treadmill that helps you burn more calories … and that according to research is the one at home.

Firstly, there’s the motivation of owning a treadmill that makes you walk more. In fact, nothing seems to light up a walker’s eyes more than the thought of buying a treadmill. What is it about having our own treadmills at home that makes us feel like we have arrived in the world of fitness and sport?

Secondly, your walking program will also be easier for you to follow — and do — if you get on a home treadmill … because it’s easier to keep track of all four parameters of time, speed, distance and calorie burn, and you can do it any time of day, in any clothing.

The secret to getting the right home treadmill is to try it at the store before you buy. If you have access to a good fitness instructor, you may like to get advice on the best brand names to look out for.

Should you get a motorized one or a non-motorized one? The jury is in … always the best treadmill is the motorized one. Non-motorized ones are really not quite right for the body, because you have to move the belt along yourself with every forward stride (with an added backward push of the belt) — not quite how you walk.

What else would you need to look for in a “best treadmill” for the home? You would need to check if its motor is heavy duty. Especially if you will keep up walking for long durations regularly every day. Listen to the hum of the motor and see if it’s unduly noisy and will disturb the household.

You will also need to see the controls it offers on the digital display. Can you adjust speed, see the distance walked, the time taken? Is this data credible?

In general it has been found that treadmill data is more reliable and accurate than that on some other gym equipment because cardiologists use these to research their patients’ heart conditions.

But be aware of the fact that many exercise equipment manufacturers tend to inflate their data a bit, because it has been found that if the data were too conservative, the demand for that “best treadmill” model falls.

People seem to want to see “high burn numbers” on their displays!

You also need to check the warranty. If it fails, you’ll need 24X7 service, or the regularity of your walking program will be held to ransom. And lastly will it fit in the room space you have?

Frankly, between the top ten comparable brands, I have seen very little “real” differentiation to decide if one brand’s better than the other. That’s why I’d advice you not to worry about buying “the best”. As we have said earlier, the one in your home is going be your best ally — and your best treadmill!



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James Philips asked:


Talk about beauty and cosmetics and for sure, experts would raise the name of the world’s biggest beauty and cosmetics firm, L’Oreal Group. From the world’s beauty and fashion capital, Paris in France, comes the company that focuses on bringing to consumers the best brands for skin and hair care. When it comes to perfumes, the company surely would not be left behind. Its Lancome Paris unit manufactures Lancome perfumes that are truly among the most patronized and loved all around the world.

Imitation, as they say, is the greatest form of compliment. One proof that Lancome perfumes are well received and are loved the world over is the rampant selling of counterfeit and imitated forms of the items.

Anti-counterfeit regulators and experts from all around the planet identify Lancome perfumes as one of the top perfume brands that are imitated, counterfeited and sold to the mass market in important cities in Asia and Europe. Though the illegal transactions are harming the business, Lancome says the imitations affirm the brand’s reliability and popularity.

The initial Lancome perfumes were introduced to the market in 1935. It was in Brussels where the first five of the fragrances were launched. Those fragrances were Tropiques, Bocages, Kypre, Tendre Nuit and Conquete. L’Oreal acknowledges the fact that the perfumes were what made Lancome what it is today—a famous brand not just of perfumes but also of skincare and cosmetics products. Thus, Lancome perfumes are important products and have always been considered assets of Lancome Paris.

Through the years, Lancome perfumes were able to withstand the tests of time. After being known as a premium brand of fragrances, Lancome have been among the top choices for scents by celebrities and the opulent. Numerous fragrance lines and names have been launched and introduced by Lancome.

Among them is Magie Noire, which is considered one of the most celebrated and popular women’s perfumes of all times. Unfortunately, because selling the fragrances through conventional means became challenging to the margins, Lancome decided to start selling them through online shopping sites. The initiative only made the line among the most sought-after and most priced catches.

Back to the problem of imitated and fake Lancome perfumes, the company is taking measures to crack down on those businesses that propagate and distribute such items. What is more interesting is the fact that fake Lancome perfumes are among the most purchased. To Lancome, that means people from all across the globe love the brand.

Because of high costs of buying the items, some consumers resort to buying the imitation Lancome perfumes because doing so brings them the opportunity to enjoy and wear the premium fragrance.

Lancome is indeed one of the most patronized perfumes that are out in the market. As fashionistas keep on buying and using Lancome cosmetics and skincare items, they surely are also out to put on their Lancome perfumes. Truly, Lancome perfumes can be classified as among the top prides of Paris. There is no doubt about it.



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KatieJones asked:


The world of sports cars is one that is packed with aesthetically pleasing vehicles with heart pounding performance on the streets or on the track. Choosing one over the other is pretty much a hard choice. The performance and looks of sports car in the market are so bold that one would rather choose all of them than single one out as the best of the best.

Recently though, MSN website visitors voted the BMW 3 Series Coupe as the Car of the Year 2007. The BMW 3 Series Coupe beat its competitors which came in various forms including the Ferrari 599 GTB and the Lamborghini Murcielago LP460.

The BMW coupe received 23 percent of all the votes in the online poll. The amount of votes garnered by the 3 Series is almost doubled compared to its nearest competition. The coupe took the pole position from the Ferrari 599 GTB the reason behind this being is its looks, drivability, and unbeatable brand image according to the voters of the poll.

It can be remembered that for the past two years, respondents on MSN Cars’ poll voted on the spot those very expensive cars. The Aston Martin DB9 and the Bugatti Veyron are the winners for the past two years.

The manager of MSN Cars, Tom Evans, stated that this year’s poll had a great outcome since the after the two very expensive winners for the past couple of years, this year’s winner is “a car that many may end up driving sooner or later”. He added that the BMW 3 Series is a “cracking looking car, and great to drive too, making it a worthy winner.”

One of the members of the 3 Series is the 335 coupe. The BMW 335 is equipped with an inline six-cylinder engine, with twin turbochargers, a high precision fuel injection, and an all-aluminum crankcase. The engine can produce as much as 300 horsepower adequate enough to give anyone a thrilling ride onboard the 355. The torque produced by the engine can power the car to 60 miles per hour from a stationary position in just 5.3 seconds.

The BMW 355 does not only have the power and performance looked for by sports car enthusiasts – it also posses the looks of a true BMW. The design of the car gives it a rounded front fascia but also gives it an aggressive look. Every design concept is truly unique and spells “coolness”. The exterior of the car including a fender that looks nothing like a Toyota fender to the twin tailpipe, the 355 is designed to please the eyes. The car though does not only please the eyes but also the other senses as it offers a very high level of performance that one would only get from a BMW.



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Harvey World Travel, the Midlands based travel business, scooped a prestigious award at the recent Tourism Australia OzCars 2007 Awards Ceremony. The company was announced as the winner of the ‘Best Australia Campaign by an Aussie Specialist’ which recognised the company’s promotion of Australia Holidays to the UK travel market.

The awards evening was held at the Hurlingham Club in West London and acknowledged the initiatives implemented and dedication shown by the UK’s travel industry and, in particular, the industry’s commitment and support to Australian tourism and holidays in Australia.

John Donnelly, managing director of Harvey World Travel, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have won this award, particularly in light of the tough competition we faced. As Australian specialists, we are committed to promoting the delights of ‘down under’ to the UK market and we have worked extremely hard this year to get positive messages out through consistent and strong marketing campaigns.

“To be honoured with this award is testament to our hard work and commitment and, most importantly, the continual support from the branches and head office teams at Harvey World Travel.”

About Harvey World Travel

The OzCARS are designed to recognise and celebrate excellence and achievement in the sales and marketing of Australia and are open to any company from the United Kingdom or Ireland.

Harvey World Travel is owned by MFS, the Australian investment and funds company which specialises in travel and leisure. Australian based companies in the MFS portfolio include the Stella, Bale and Peppers holiday resorts, the Mantra, Breakfree and Ambia villas and apartments, plus the flagship Sheraton Mirage Hotel in Port Douglas, Queensland.

MFS is the largest single brand travel franchise group in the Southern Hemisphere operating more than 500 successful retail outlets in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. As well as specialising in long haul holidays to these destinations, Harvey World Travel customers are able to benefit from flexible holiday packages throughout the world, using the company’s extensive buying networks.

For further information of holiday details call 08717 820 830



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