Tue, Dec. 30

Great story about how Jim Wier, the once CEO of Snapper Lawn Equipment, said “no” to Wal-Mart.

That’s the question that motivated Jim Wier to stop doing business with Wal-Mart. Wier is too judicious to describe it this way, but he looked into a future of supplying lawn mowers and snow blowers to Wal-Mart and saw a whirlpool of lower prices, collapsing profitability, offshore manufacturing, and the gradual but irresistible corrosion of the very qualities for which Snapper was known. Jim Wier looked into the future and saw a death spiral.

I love this story for a couple reasons. I (1) hate Wal-Mart and (2) am a big believer that price should never outweigh quality. [via Daring Fireball]

Mon, Dec. 29

Armin Vit on Pentagram’s design work for the latest sweetener Truvia:

Truvia actually (and literally) stands out from the competition. Truvia’s presence is remarkable. In a flood of swirls, gradients and glowing typography, the simplicity of Truvia is the sweetest of them all.

I’d have to agree, but I think the lack of blue and the choice of neon green is the main reason it stands out from the rest.

Tue, Dec. 23

Jeffrey Zeldman, the man, the myth, the web-designing legend, talks at AIGA Business and Design Conference in October.

Mon, Dec. 22

List of the best and worst new identities of the year. I wasn’t a fan of the new Pepsi logo at first, but I’ll admit that it’s growing on me.

Tue, Dec. 16

Sol Sender, the man behind the Obama logo, is interviewed here and gives insight to how the logo was developed. He also shows some of the logos that didn’t make the cut.

At the Movies

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• Doubt
• The Shining
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