| NEWS 04.15.09 2:49 PM |
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In the News: Bloomberg and Vanity Fair to Cohost, the Masters Suffers From Lack of Sponsors
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Vanity Fair and Bloomberg Team Up: The economy may have Vanity Fair and Bloomberg News down, but they’re not out. Instead of canceling their respective White House Correspondents’ Association dinner after-parties, the media brands will join forces for a cohosted party at the residence of French Ambassador Pierre Vimont. In the past several years, Bloomberg had hosted the most prominent after-party, while Vanity Fair was a more recent entry. The duo will now divvy up 300 invites, making it one of the more exclusive events after the May 9 dinner. [Politico]
Auto Show Attendees Get Nasty: Attendees at the New York International Auto Show are venting their frustrations with the economy, and they’re taking it out on some unexpected parties. Presenters, who aren’t even full-time employees of the carmakers, have been heckled on the show floor since it opened to the public last week. Largely contract representatives for bail-out recipients General Motors and Chrysler, the put-upon presenters have been accused of putting out bad product, waiting until the 11th hour to be eco-conscious, and in one case, even responsibility for the war in Iraq. [NYT]
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Vanity Fair, Bloomberg News, White House Correspondents' Association Dinner, White House Easter Egg Roll, Desirée Rogers, Barack Obama, Fergie, New York International Auto Show, General Motors, Chrysler, The Masters, Citigroup |
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| NEWS 04.09.09 1:16 PM |
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Carmakers of All Sizes Reaffirm Commitment to Auto Shows
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 | The 2009 New York International Auto Show
Photo: Roger Dong for BizBash |
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FROM NEW YORK
The spectacle of pyrotechnic-fueled product launches and million-dollar concept cars might look a bit out of place while consumer spending is down and the U.S. auto industry's fate remains unclear. So at this year's New York International Auto Show, press presentations and show floor displays are—for the most part—predictably subdued. Opening to the public this Saturday at the Javits Center, the gathering marks an end to the four-month auto show season, and as automakers look back on their first collective marketing push of the recession, most remain committed to maintaining a presence at the shows.
It’s easy to forget that most car companies haven’t actually been making headlines. While Detroit's big three get attention for flagging sales and Japanese giants such as Toyota usurp the American market, countless smaller brands like Suzuki have flown under the radar. “The people who come to auto shows aren’t usually brand loyalists,” said Suzuki vice president of marketing Gene Brown. “They’ll consider trying something new, so we take the shows as an opportunity to offer an experience and introduce the brand as a whole. Arguably, the more established brands really don’t need to use the auto shows for that.”
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New York International Auto Show, North American International Auto Show, Chicago Auto Show, Los Angeles Auto Show, General Motors, Bentley, Suzuki |
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| NEWS 04.08.09 11:19 AM |
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In the News: Geographers Map Hotbeds of Cultural Events, Upfronts Happening Earlier
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Geography Lessons for Cultural Events: A recent study of which neighborhoods receive the most buzz breaks down where film, television, music, art, and fashion events are happening in Los Angeles and New York. Professors at Columbia University and the University of Southern California conducted the research by mining pictures from events caught by Getty Images. The results show that even so-called hip neighborhoods like Los Angeles’ Silver Lake or New York’s Lower East Side can’t get out of the shadow of iconic locations such as the Sunset Strip or Times Square. [NYT]
Upfronts Well Under Way: Cable networks are holding upfront presentations further in advance. Telemundo, Discovery Networks, Nickelodeon, and ABC Family have already met with media buyers about the upcoming television year, and many think the channels are following the lead of NBC. The peacock network got a lot of attention last year for downsizing its presentation into a series of meetings and holding them more than a month ahead of the long established Upfront Week for the big four. This year’s upfront will be similarly structured but won’t take place as far in advance, bowing in New York May 4. [Adweek]
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General Motors, Segway, Upfronts, Upfront Week, NBC, 20th Century Fox, Wolverine |
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| ASK BIZBASH 04.21.08 2:57 PM |
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What Should You Know When Hiring a Speechwriter?
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 | Some speechwriters can give performance tips.
Photo: Jon Feingersh/Getty Images |
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Know Your Audience
Whether you want to pump up a stale speech or improve your speaker’s presentation skills, there are two things to consider before hiring a writer: the topic of the speech and the audience. While some speechwriters sell themselves based on their expertise in specific fields, having a particular background isn’t always essential, depending on your needs. “[When] working with a speechwriter, it really does help to have someone familiar with your industry, someone who knows the buzzwords and the issues. But if it’s a more general speech, any competent professional can do it,” says Illinois-based Alan M. Perlman, author of Writing Great Speeches and a speechwriter with more than 20 years’ experience writing for such corporations as General Motors and Kraft.
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General Motors, Kraft |
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| EVENT REPORT 02.18.08 10:03 AM |
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Futuristic Designs and Interactive Exhibits Fuel Autoshow Booths
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 | The Lexus booth
Photo: BizBash |
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With the theme "The Turning Point," the 2008 Canadian International Autoshow—which opened at three venues within the Metro Toronto Convention Centre and Rogers Centre on Friday and runs through February 24—highlights new technologies, from satellite radios to fuel cell updates. With more than 1,000 new cars and trucks on display, several booths also showcase forward-thinking style in an effort to attract visitors amid the more than 850,000 square feet of show space.
Displays range from sprawling, dealership-like booths to more intimate, boutique hotel-influenced settings. Lounges, a common thread among booths, feature the look of hotel bars and lobbies, with items like cream-suede chairs and contemporary coffee tables.
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Canadian International Autoshow, Audi, General Motors, Hyundai, Infiniti, Jeep, Kia, Lexus, Mercedes, Mitsubishi, Volkswagen |
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| EVENT REPORT 01.15.08 5:25 PM |
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G.M. Parades Cars, Musicians at Detroit Fashion Show
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 | Mary J. Blige kicked off the event.
Photo: Courtesy of G.M. |
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General Motors continued its effort to delve into the glitzy worlds of fashion, music, and celebrity this past Saturday with G.M. Style, the company's second annual fashion auto show. Held the night before Detroit's North American International Auto Show, G.M. Style entertained some 1,800 guests (1,000 seated, 800 standing) with a 40-minute show that combined performances by Mary J. Blige, Maroon 5, Kid Rock, and Rev Run, with 19 cars and 138 outfits by seven labels (Justin Timberlake's William Rast line and Russell Simmons's Argyle Couture among them).
G.M. Style's first incarnation was celebrity-skewed, with names such as Jay-Z, Jennifer Hudson, and Carmen Electra walking the runway alongside a lineup of American-made cars. This year, however, G.M. recast the event because the Golden Globes were originally scheduled to take place the same weekend. Knowing it would be difficult to lure celebrities away from the Los Angeles swag-suite hoopla, Bryan Nesbitt, G.M.'s vice president of design for North America and second-in-command in planning the event, decided to focus on music instead.
"We were excited about looking at music as a way to communicate artistic expression, along with clothing designers," Nesbitt told us last week. "We certainly wanted to do something different from last year. We wanted to keep it changing and a little unexpected."
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General Motors, North American International Auto Show |
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| Q & A 01.10.08 5:25 PM |
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G.M.'s Bryan Nesbitt Gears Up for Detroit Fashion (and Car) Show
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 | G.M.'s Bryan Nesbitt
Photo: Courtesy of G.M. |
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In an ongoing play to associate its cars with fashion, music, and tabloid favorites, General Motors is hosting its second annual G.M. Style event in Detroit this Saturday, unofficially kicking off the North American International Auto Show, which opens to the press on Sunday. Bryan Nesbitt, vice president of design for North America and second-in-command for planning the event, chatted with us this week about G.M.’s evolution into the world of style.
Expected to draw some 1,000 attendees (a number Nesbitt, 38, jokingly asked us not to share with the Detroit fire marshal), G.M. Style is a three-tiered fashion show held in a tented atmosphere on G.M. property. Last year the event garnered lots of media attention, thanks to the dozens of celebrity models who showed up—Jay-Z, Jennifer Hudson, and Carmen Electra among them—but with this year’s G.M. Style scheduled for the same weekend as the Golden Globes, the company was forced to recast the event’s vision, focusing more on top musical acts. When asked if he is scrambling to get celebrities on board now that the Globes have been canceled, Nesbitt was mum but hinted that some “surprises” are in store.
G.M. Style is a few days away. What are you working on now?
Well, it’s definitely taken a bit of planning. This event is based around expressing personal style, and most people typically express themselves in the clothes they wear, the music they listen to, and the cars they drive. Celebrating those in one event, one occasion, is the intent.
One of the challenges we’ve faced is aligning the genre of music and the artist with the style of the cars, as well as the style of the fashion designers. There are a lot of different types of vehicles out there, from aggressive to sleek, with a whole lot in between. When you see an old hot rod, there is a type of music that goes along with it—we see this a lot in movies. And it’s the same kind of thing for us with this event. When Kid Rock is performing, for example, it's not going to be a sweet little car on the runway. And for Maroon 5, we’re coming out with the Saturn Astra, which is targeted to young but very relevant buyers who are up to speed with what’s going on in the latest trends—buyers who are similar to Maroon 5’s fan base and the band themselves.
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General Motors |
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