360 DEGREES Weblog

As the world decides to take the virtual route to shopping, brands can’t afford to stay offline for long. And so who’s the latest to join the bandwagon you ask? It’s the fashion heavy weights Gucci! After 18 months of development, Frida Giannini launched a revamped version of its e-commerce site which is as they call it “luxury digital flagship store.” And keeping with the event, some of the brick-and-mortar Gucci flagships will feature have hologram window displays and iPad stations to promote the new web portal. Users can also visit gucciconnect.com to view live-streaming of the Milan show, and avail an e-ticket to the Gucci Connect E-vent to virtually visit the various Gucci shows.

When to kinds of the most common savoir-vivre meet it happens to become an unique opportunity for those that always struggled with themselves to dare a try, and a sought-after chance to enjoy both worlds at once. That is what happened, the Swiss luxurious watchmaker Frederique Constant joined forces with the myth-enshrouded cigar brand Cohiba, not the once private supplier of Fidel Castro, to unveil a package that pairs a tourneau-shaped horological craft besides a premium selection of Cohiba’s finest in a gift box that doubles as a humidor. Cohiba included ten Toro sized cigars, a Toro is around an inch longer and notably bigger than the predominantly savored Corona shape, while Frederique Constant added a visually complementing timekeeper that features an ivory colored dial, hand-sewn tobacco toned crocodile calf strap and either a stainless steel or rose gold plated case.

Given the amount of time Paris Hilton spends in the spot light, it is no wonder that she is appointed as brand ambassador of a variety of products. However, the beauty doesn’t seem to be taking her role as brand ambassador or promoter seriously, at least when it comes to promoting a certain hair extensions company. This frivolous attitude of hers towards the said company has landed her in one messy (or should we say hairy?) soup. The hotel heiress is reportedly being sued for a whopping $35 million by a hair extensions company, Hairtech International Inc. that is claiming she wore the locks of a competitor in 2008 allegedly violating the contract. The staggering amount demanded by the company in damages is ten times more than what Paris was paid for promoting the brand.

One automatically thinks of printers when you hear the Epson name. Some Epson workers put the gobs of printers available at their company to the most awesome use of work time in history with the creation of a full size 1:1 replica of an Acura/Honda NSX Super GT race car from cardboard and paper.

The race car recreated is naturally an Epson sponsored car. The entire car was made from cardboard and paper with no metal anywhere. I can’t image the work and time that went into building this thing.
If Epson had to pay retail price for all the ink used in creating this project it would have nearly cost as much as a real race car. The car was first seen at the Tokyo Auto Salon in January, but the build photos have just recently surfaced.

Well, it’s about that time of the year. And, while Apple’s busy releasing all sorts of hit products like the iPad and iPhone 4, it’s about time to figure out how much they’ve actually made over the last few months. Today, Apple finally unveiled their official third quarter results, which equals one full quarter with the iPad out in the world. And, believe us when we say that the iPad’s made a big dent in the market (and a very good bulge in Apple’s wallet).

The fiscal 2010 third quarter ended on June 26th of this year, and with it, Apple is happy to announce that they’ve posted a record revenue of $15.7 billion, and a net quarterly profit of $3.25 billion. This is versus last year, where Apple amassed a revenue of $9.73 billion, and a net quarterly profit of $1.83 billion. So, enough of the money, let’s take a look at the actual products.

Apple managed to sell 3.47 million Macs in this quarter, which is a 33 percent increase versus last year. And that also means that it’s a new quarterly record for the Cupertino-based company, too. As for iPhones, they sold 8.4 million of those, which is a 61 percent increase over last year. 9.41 million iPods were sold in the quarter, and that marks an 8 percent decline from last year.

However, the heavy hitter is the new one on the stage. The iPad, which Apple began selling this quarter, managed to fly off the shelves, reaching 3.27 million customers since its debut. “It was a phenomenal quarter that exceeded our expectations all around, including the most successful product launch in Apple’s history with iPhone 4,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “iPad is off to a terrific start, more people are buying Macs than ever before, and we have amazing new products still to come this year.”

Italian luxury label Gucci has come out with a cool new collection of “heritage” aviator sunglasses harking back to the brand’s heyday of louche glamour in the ’60s and ’70s. The three new models – 1627/S, 1622/S, and 3108/S – all feature the vintage red and green Gucci stripe and “G” logo on both temples and complete the theme with a special edition leather case and carrying pouch. The case has a wide signature stripe while the pouch has a matching strap. Available in multiple classic color combinations, the best are the basic black versions which have the classic red and green stripe on them. The Gucci 1627/S is a well fitting unisex aviator, the 622/S is a slightly larger unisex cross between an aviator and a wrap, and the 3108/S is a more feminine style.

French crystal company Baccarat has earlier offered amazing pieces in collaboration with renowned designers, including Philippe Starck, Jaime Hayon and Marcel Wanders. Baccarat has lately collaborated with Parisian lighting artist Yann Kersalé for the Jallum lamp, which is meant to be used both indoors and outdoors. The Jallum lamp is in the form of a glow stick combining cut crystal, aluminum and LEDs. There are four cylinders arranged on a charger cradle and can be placed individually or in groups to light up your space. The cylinders have an upper cut crystal satin on top and an anodized aluminum bottom. A single charge gives the Jallum lamp eight hours of luminous life. The lamp comes in two models - the Jallum Diamond Bevels and Jallum Pontil effect bubbles. The Jallum Baccarat lamp will be available for sale in September for cool 2500 Euros (approx. US $3,250).

Although for us no champagne today the Veuve Clicquot’s traveler gift sets are designed to celebrate the luxury Veuve Clicquot experience. After revolutionizing the champagne consumption with its Clicquot Ice Box, the brand has trusted designer Denis Boudard to fascinate its consumers with another unique giftbox, The Veuve Clicquot Fridge. This box allows savoring one’s favorite vintage at the ideal temperature and can keep the bottle fresh for up to 2 hours.

Yesterday marked the opening of LEGO’s new NYC flagship store at Rockefeller Center. To celebrate, a team of LEGO Master Model Builders will be in-store constructing a giant, 15-foot LEGO apple during the day on June 29, June 30 and July 1, 2010. There are also bonuses each day for the first 500 customers. Stop by and indulge your inner child.

Prada is launching its e-store in the U.S. starting July 1. in the beginning luxury websites were merely to promote the brand but these days brands like Yves Saint Laurent and Gucci also offer online shopping directly off the main site rather than sending shoppers to department store websites. Unfortunately you can’t buy Prada clothing on the site but you can pick up purses, accessories and eyewear. The e-store is designed to capture a boutique experience and an e-gift feature lets you order presents online and that can be delivered to the home of the recipient with a personalized card. The Prada site is already very content rich featuring video of runway shows, short films, lookbooks and ad campaign images. Next up for Prada-style e-commerce, Japan.