Merriam Associates on Business Radio Talking about Brands and Licensing

We were on the Brand Money show on Atlanta’s Business Radio talking about how licensing can build brands and how brands can profit from licensing.

Chinese Brands Going Global, But Not Necessarily American

Milton Kotler, the preeminent marketing pioneer in China, updated me on Chinese brands. They may not be taking over the American market, but they are most definitely growing outside of China.  Here are Milton’s observations:

“Consumer brand management is making headway in the domestic China market and developing countries,even in Europe, with apparel, appliances, computers, white [...]

Most Valuable Chinese Brands

The Hurun Report covers new ground with its release of the Most Valuable Chinese Home-grown Brands List 2011. As we posted earlier this year, creating brands is official Chinese government policy. Chinese leaders recognize that the big profits are in selling brands, not making products. Since opening their markets in 1990, the Chinese have made [...]

Counterfeit Brands from China and in China

If copying is the highest form of flattery, businesses in China truly loves American brands and American advertising.

Sometimes the copying is funny, like this Chinese take on KFC:

Sometimes it is unsettling, like the thousands of boxes of fake Tide detergent seized by customs officials in Seattle in September of 2010:

Counterfeit [...]

Official Chinese Communist Party Policy: Create Global Brands

Brand creation has been the official policy of the Communist Party Central Committee of China since 2004. The Ministry of Commerce launched the Brands Promotion Committee in a ceremony in Beijing on June 11 of that year. The goal of the committee was to help companies build internationally valued brands.

China has become the world’s factory. [...]

China Censors 60K Websites; 350 Million Pages Including This One

ZD Net is reporting today that China has censored some 60 thousand Websites (really thought it would be more) and over 350 million pages and is “proud of it”. MerriamAssociates.com is honored to be one of them.

The head of the State Council Information Office, Wang Chen says there is no stopping its campaign against offensive [...]

Toy Recalls--Brand Impact Three Years Later

Three years ago, Christmas shoppers were rocked by recalls of some of kids’ most beloved toys from most trusted brands. We talked to consumers back then, but wondered, What is the long-term impact of those recalls on consumer opinion, brands, and “made in China?” Merriam Associates went out Christmas Eve to put that question to [...]

Made in China: Hazardous to Your Brand

Antifreeze in toothpaste, poisoned pet food, lead in millions of Fisher-Price toys, and now melamine in babys’ milk–the list of potentially harmful products from China is growing. And that means certain harm to some of America’s leading brands.

The Fisher-Price recall is expected to cost many millions in administration alone. That is only the tip of [...]

Recall: Toys Made in China China Toy Recall Mattel

With toy recalls filling the news, what do shoppers think? How is lead in popular brands affecting the decisions shoppers are making? We interview toy buyers at the Times Square Toys R Us on 12/1/07.