Those passing by Berlin in the next three months will no doubt want to stop in to admire the city’s latest tourist destination: Barbie’s Dream House. The attraction is billed as the first-ever touring life-size Barbie house: a phrase that will strike fear into the hearts of a swathe of the world’s parents with girls under 8.

With no windows, but with a giant pink stiletto-shaped slide, touchscreens and no doubt a houseful of merchandising, it’s a celebration of all things pink, fluffy and stereotypically  ’girly’ – which is exactly what its detractors object to.

The attraction’s opening day on May 16 saw protests outside from the Occupy Dream House movement and from UK campaign group Pinkstinks. Founded in 2008 by sisters Abi and Emma Moore, Pinkstinks aims to confront what they call “the damaging messages that bombard girls though toys, clothes and media. Girls’ products overwhelmingly focus on being pretty, passive and obsessed with shopping, fashion and make up – this promotes a dangerously narrow definition of what it means to be a girl.”

Those who follow the kids’ marketing sector will know that recent years have seen growing concern and frustration among Western parents concerned about what they see as the toy industry’s myopic view of young girls. While Barbie has long been criticised by its critics for presenting unhelpful feminine stereotypes, traditionally more gender-neutral brands such as LEGO have also come under fire – witness the uproar on social media when the latter launched its LEGO Friends range in late 2011.

The issue won’t be easy to resolve. Brands targeting pre-school and tweenage girls know that pink, ‘feminised’ versions of toys, games and even technology are almost guaranteed to appeal to a large chunk of their demographic, and are understandably unwilling to wager their bottom line on ranges that may have greater parent pull but lower kid appeal. Meanwhile, though, social media has provided concerned consumers with historically unparalleled access to other parents, and pressure is mounting on leading brands to take a stand.

With both sides appearing to be settled in for the long haul, it’s likely to be a bloody and protracted battle.

A blog post by Shutterstock was recently brought to my attention, the content of which transformed one of my favourite TV shows in a way I never thought imaginable. The show in question is Game of Thrones (highly recommended HBO programming), which Shutterstock have combined with, of all things, brands. You can imagine the sense of synergy I felt when I saw this for the first time.

For those of you not aware of Game of Thrones, it is set in the mediaeval era and based around the constant battle for the Iron Throne by various families, all of which have their own regional base and personality. Shutterstock has cleverly brought each of these families to life as a corporate brand. Below you can see some examples of these, but given the risk of spoiling the plot for non-viewers, I haven’t included any of the explanations. For those unconcerned with spoilers, I’d urge you to take look at the rest of the imagery and the commentary which goes with them:

http://www.shutterstock.com/blog/2013/03/board-game-the-game-of-thrones-houses-as-modern-corporations/

The concept of families as brands is of course not a new one (family crests, tartan patterns) but the reason that this example works so well is due to the attention given to detail in the translation from mediaeval family values to corporate brand positioning. I do hope this isn’t the last we see of such thoughtful combinations of the fictional with the world of branding.

To find out how your brand can be lucky in love this year, take a look at our Valentine’s Quiz and make your way through the relationships maze. When you get to the bottom, you’ll discover our secrets to building a happier, more fulfilling relationship with your consumer…

On Sunday, The Value Engineers were delighted to be asked to contribute to two news programmes. Lou Ellerton joined Stephen Dixon and Gillian Joseph on Sky News Sunrise to discuss the multi-million dollar ad business that’s the Superbowl, building on the recent blog post from Richie Heron.

Ads in the Superbowl have become an event in themselves – not just for those in the advertising and marketing world, but also for the general American public. In fact, a survey last year found that more people in the US tuned in to watch the advertising than to watch the sport! It’s become an unofficial competition to see who’s got the new best ad, meaning that the viewing public are more engaged on the day and brands are keener to be there. The result is that prices are pushed ever further up, as we’ve seen with this year’s media costs.

Of course, the use of the Superbowl to showcase great advertising is nothing new. Coca-Cola began the trend in 1979 with its Mean Joe Green ad, to be followed by Apple’s 1984 triumph. Directed by Ridley Scott, the ad launched the Apple Mac with an anti-establishment tribute to George Orwell’s ’1984′. Despite being aired only twice, it remains acknowledged by the industry as one of the great executions of the past 30 years.

Following her appearance on Sunrise, Lou went on to talk with LBC Radio’s Emma Baxter and ex-Interbrand chairman Rita Clifton about the ‘demise’ of Britain’s high streets. Sparked by Sir Terry Leahy’s comment  that the closure of small shops is a “part of progress”, the debate covered the inevitability or otherwise of such closures, and what the independents can do to combat it.

While there’s no easy answer, here at The Value Engineers we believe that continuing success is as always dependent on offering something bigger, better or different. Given that the stores can’t compete by size, it’s up to traders to focus their efforts on offering better, different, and possibly more specialist products, services and shopping experiences.

Of course, the biggest factor in the decline of local high streets is consumers’ willingness to compromise their support in favour of convenience, ease and lower prices. There’s no point in complaining about the closure of small traders if you’re doing all of your shopping on Amazon – it’s a case of ‘use it or lose it’.

Last Wednesday, The Value Engineers were delighted to be asked to contribute to ITV1′s Daybreak show.

Lou Ellerton appeared on the show at the ungodly hour of 6:40am to talk about Tesco’s trials and tribulations with its Fresh ‘N’ Easy brand in the US, Philip Green’s decision to sell a 25% stake in Top Shop to a US investor, and the opportunities that a Royal baby might create for British brands. It’s an eclectic selection of topics, we agree!

If you’d like to see for yourself how Lou got on, the show is available here on ITV Player until Wednesday morning (12th December). Her comments start at 00:37, just after the ad break.