Reporters: Notebook
San Ramon, Calif.-based Storus Corp. has unveiled its new Smart Money Clip Lite, a clear, nonmetallic version of its Smart Money Clip. The transparent material allows users to show their IDs without removing them from the clip, and the double-sided design features springs that hold cards and IDs on one side and money on the other.
The Smart Money Clip Lite weighs just 1 ounce and is small enough to slide into any pocket. “We’ve been completely overwhelmed by the response Smart Money Clip Lite has received,” said David Kaminski, vice president of sales at Storus. “Our initial production run was sold out within two weeks on our Storus.com Web site.”
An estimated 90 percent of Americans don’t eat the recommended daily allowance of vegetables each day, but Glad Products is hoping to help change that with its new Microwave Steaming Bags. The newest product in its SimplyCooking line specifically is designed to steam vegetables in a microwave in a safe and easy way.
Consumers just need to fill a bag with pre-washed vegetables, seal the zipper lock on top and follow the timetable on the bag that recommends cooking times for different vegetables. The bags arrived at stores in mid-July at a suggested retail price of $2.99
A survey from Glade Flameless Candles showed that 76 percent of women would be willing to sacrifice their favorite purses or even their cell phones in exchange for a quiet “Me Zone” where they can relax and unwind. The study, conducted in advance of the debut of Glade’s new clean linen and French vanilla flameless candles this summer, found that 30 percent of mothers surveyed identified the bathroom as the only place they can be by themselves, and named pleasant scents (56 percent) and the glow of candles (40 percent) as the things they want most to create ambiance in their “Me Zone.”
“A ‘Me Zone’ is something we fantasize about as we stare at the back end of a grocery cart,” said author Lisa Earle McLeod, author of the book “Finding Grace when you can’t Even Find Clean Underwear.” Glade’s new clean linen and French vanilla flameless candles retail for $9.99 and complement a lineup that already includes such scents as apple cinnamon, rain shower and suddenly spring.
Disney and Target have entered a deal that will give Target exclusive rights to a full line of new Little Einstein merchandise from Disney. The company did not say how long Target would retain the exclusive rights to the line, but said the staggered rollout would start in late summer with apparel and include toys, games, DVDs, books and other products in the Little Einstein lineup. “Little Einstein products have always sold exceptionally well at Target stores, so there seems to be a natural affinity,” said Simon Waters, vice president of global franchise management for infant, toddler and preschool for Disney Consumer Products.
Warner Home Video will release a slice of film history on Oct. 16 when the 80th anniversary edition of “The Jazz Singer” arrives on DVD. The first “talkie” feature film that officially ended the silent era was released in 1927, and is hailed as the one of the most groundbreaking films in history. The three-disc collector’s edition of “The Jazz Singer” will include the film, a full-length documentary called “The Dawn of Sound” and four hours of historic shorts and outtakes from the early days of films with sound in the 1930s. “The Jazz Singer” set will retail for a suggested price of $39.92.
Moonjar announced that its Classic Moonjar Money-box toy and Conversations to Go game have earned top honors from the 2007 Creative Child Awards. The Classic Moonjar Moneybox was honored as toy of the year and Conversations to Go earned the top award as game of the year. The awards are based on Creative Child magazine’s annual studies of new toys and games that rates them on their educational value and creative nurturing. The Moonjar Money-box is a piggy bank with individual compartments, while Conversations to Go is designed to stimulate discussions among family members about life, travel and money.