Author: Ryley Bane

Sports News: Singapore Gets Bid to Host 1st Youth Olympic Games; President of Quiksilver Bernard Mariette Resigns as Bob McKnight, CEO, Takes on Additional Role

In our on-going reportage of the Youth Olympic Games, the latest update is that Singaporehas won the bid to host the 1st Games in 2010, beating out Moscowin the final bid.

“This is a key moment for the Olympic Movement,” said Rogge to journalists present in Lausanne. “Singaporehas put together a very exciting project. Hosting the Youth Olympic Games for the first time is a great responsibility, and I have every confidence in the team in Singapore. I have no doubt that their professionalism and enthusiasm will be instrumental in the staging of successful Youth Olympic Games in 2010.”

Red Wing Continues to Push It’s Revival as a Must-Have Look for Premium Street Fashion by Introducing a Collab with Neighborhood in Japan; Label Networks Uncovers the Growing Importance of the Utilitarian Fashion Movement

Red Wing boots with their traditional red leather and white soles continues its resurgence as a must-have fashion footwear item, particularly among leading-edge fashion players in Japan who tend to seek authentic Americana in choosing their styles.

Music Fashion and the Power of Grassroots Marketing: So Why Aren’t More Brands Using It?

Perhaps it’s a rhetorical question, but each year as we move into summer music tour season, we often ask ourselves given the importance of music in connecting with youth culture, why more brands don’t use it? Music is at the vortex of youth culture lifestyle and is the most essential culture to track in terms of reaching 13-25-year-olds globally. More than sports, fashion, TV entertainment, or technology, music is the thread that links the youth culture marketplace across all economic levels, regions, ethnicities, age groups, and genders.

Sneaker Kingpins Nike and Adidas Go Head-to-Head Creating New Footwear Designs for the Olympics Sure to Impact Sneak-Freak Culture; Plus Latest IOC Moves to Attract”Teens” in Another Ill-fated (and Named) Campaign

Things are heating up for the Beijing Olympics next month, including the launch of some 53 different sneaker designs from the titans of footwear, plus an update on how the IOC missed the youth culture boat again.

Hot Topic to Launch ShockHound -MP3's and Tunes to Raise Profile of Selling Band Merch

Band merch continues to be the hot product for Hot Topic and starting next month with ShockHound, could grow exponentially.

Need an Idea for Fun? Vending Machine Delivers for 50 Cents (and a Quarter Refund) Creating Pop-up Vending Street Art in New York City

Culture jamming and economic solutions were never so fun: new idea machine combines pop-up street vending art and a quarter refund.

New Technical Outerwear Legislation Would Mean No More Import Duties on High-Tech Apparel

SIA and OIA have joined forces calling for new legislation, which if passed will mean outerwear such as jackets, pants, and other high-tech pieces will have duty-free importation giving a boost to sports apparel with possible implications for street fashion deemed “technical.”

Olympic X Games Gold Medalist Shaun White Moves on to Target Deal as Volcom Contract Expires; Trend Continues as Mass Retailers Gobble-up Action Sports' Label Networks Reveals Data on Where Volcom Ranks in Youth Culture Fashion Preferences What This Means for Target

It's not all that surprising that Target Corp. would want an icon like Shaun White. As an Olympic gold medalist in 2006 in Snowboarding SuperPipe, X Games Gold medalist in Vert Skateboarding and Snowboarding SuperPipe, video game character, and 10-year-contract holder with snowboarding's largest brand Burton, to get the Flying Tomato on a contract may mean big business towards reaching youth culture. Or clearly Target thinks so. And they may be right.

H&M X Rei Kawakubo from Comme des Garcon-New Collection to be Released in November in Connection with Opening of H&M Store in Japan

On April 3, the fast-fashion retailer H&M announced it had officially chosen Rei Kawakubo from Comme des Garcons to create the next designer collection coming out November, 2008. H&M, which has become known for producing “masstige” collaborations by bringing top-end designers and celebs to create limited-edition collections (i.e. Stella McCartney, Isaac Mizrahi, Madonna) at lower price points for the “masses” said in the statement that they have always wanted to have Rei Kawakubo on board as a guest designer.

How Email is Getting”Old” -Fresh Data Trends from Label Networks' Upcoming Spring Report Indicate Changes in Communication Patterns of American Youth Culture

In our upcoming Spring Youth Culture Study 2008, we have an entire section dedicated to communication patterns, new media, and the digital lifestyle of youth culture. In this story, we take a look at the results to the question, “In the past 6 months, how have things changes for you in terms of emailing?”