Jewelry Public Relations

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill., Nov. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Millions of Americans remember the Sears Wish Book catalog with excitement -- and the hours they spent poring over each page, circling the gifts they wanted both to give and to receive during the holidays. Now, this year's return of the historic catalog has inspired Sears' new holiday marketing campaign, which launched November 4.

Led by the tagline "Don't just give a gift, grant a wish," the integrated marketing campaign features an expanded, more diversified, multicultural media mix, including national television and radio spots, magazine insertions for jewelry and tools, and increased online media, plus new sears.com functionality, Wishing Hours sales promotions and sweepstakes, direct mail, circular, public relations and, of course, catalogs.

De Beers Cuts Marketing Budget, Concentrating on male Consumer

De Beers is cutting its U.S. marketing budget, forcing the layoff of 11 employees working on the Diamond Trading Co. (DTC) account at advertising firm JWT, National Jeweler reports. Sally Morrison of the Diamond Information Center confirmed to National Jeweler that the cutbacks are related to the perception that the United States is headed into a recession, and that 2008 is expected to be a tough year for everyone. As a result, De Beers is refocusing its efforts to concentrate on the male consumer; the company's "beacon" products, such as Journey diamond jewelry and three-stone rings, won't include anymore female-targeted advertising. Morrison confirmed that the loss of advertising would be counteracted by more public relations, and that those employees impacted were not senior level. The news is the latest in a string of bad news for the jewelry industry as a whole, as De Beers always has been known for its robust advertising campaigns.

Un-fussy and free to be, it's the fashion that fits us

Loulia Howard and husband Don believe a night at Seattle Opera is a special occasion and "people should dress up for it." At a performance of "Macbeth," Ioulia stands out in an eclectic crowd that includes jeans and fleece. It's the perfect snapshot of Seattle's ambivalent relationship with fashion. Still, Don Howard muses, "It's better they come in jeans than not come at all."

PR man's efforts boost Saks' charitable giving

Dave Dodge came from Boston in 2004 to work for Saks Fifth Avenue. Since then, his impact on the community has gone beyond the high-end fashion store. Dodge, 49, has worked tirelessly to connect Saks to the Valley community.

When he first arrived, the Phoenix store was involved with only three charitable events. The name Saks now is associated with more than 20 events, including the high-profile Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Event.

"One of the most impressive things about Dave is that he is willing to give of his own time when he is not directly working with Saks to help several non-profit organizations raise valuable funds," said Larry Buchanan, general manager for Saks Fifth Avenue. "Nothing gives him more pleasure than to break a record for a non-profit in terms of fundraising." .

Dare to Do Mighty E-mail Things

Over the past six years, I've written over 70 columns imparting my views, wisdom, and, at times, frustration around the issues that have affected the growth of e-mail as a viable channel in the ever-changing communications world. Like you, I've read numerous columns written by my ClickZ colleagues addressing issues of the day and providing a range of tips, tricks, and insight to better leverage this channel.

You'll find no rants or raves in this column, nor threats of dire consequence.

Cisco unveils the Nexus 7000, its biggest switch ever

January 28, 2008 (Computerworld) Cisco Systems Inc. today announced the biggest switch by far in its history, the Nexus 7000, which is designed for mission-critical data center use. Starting at $75,000, the Nexus 7000 will ship in the second quarter with a new advanced operating system, the Nexus Operating System (NX-OS), said Jayshree Ullal, senior vice president of Cisco`s data center, switching and services unit. Cisco also announced a new Trusted Security architecture and an expansion to the Catalyst family of switches, which have helped the company corral 70% of the global switching market. More than 1,500 patents were used in creating the Nexus platform, which cost Cisco more than $1 billion in research and development, Ullal said in an interview. The Nexus 7000 will deliver up to 15Tbit/sec.

Politics and Business, Songs and Dances

Only Krasnodar Territory Governor Alexander Tkachev took it upon himself to present the situation from the regions' point of view, as he saw it.

I heard you. We'll talk about it later, the president concluded that conversation. Their talk later will probably not be very pleasant for Tkachev.

In conclusion, the president spoke about a topic that has taken a lot of his attention recently, that is, rising food prices. We've begun investing hundreds of billions of rubles in the agricultural complex! he fumed. There have been historical high harvests in some regions. And prices are going up! Then he added mildly that he wasn't sure everything necessary is being done in the ministries and agencies.

Then the president told the governors about an old lady who came up to him at the fair (obviously one of the ladies who sang and danced for him) and asked him to raise her pension.

Heath Ledger, Brad Renfro Deaths Raise The Question: Why Are Paparazzi ...

But even the biggest male stars, like Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise, barely make it to the 10 percent mark. Smith estimates that Pitt is "5 to 7 percent" of the market, Cruise, "another 5 to 10 percent," with added value if they're with their significant others and children.

"Heath wasn't a great shot unless he was with Naomi Watts or Heather Graham or Michelle Williams, or if there was a baby in the picture," Smith said. "It's not about Orlando Bloom walking to get coffee, but that he was last seen with Kirsten Dunst, or whoever the flavor of the week is for him.