French outdoor equipment company Millet, owned by Lafuma, has signed an unusual endorsement deal. South Korean pop group JYJ have been chosen as the endorsement models for Millet’s “M-Limited” outdoor gear line. The move aims to capture the 25 to 35 year old demographic, which is the target demographic of the line. JYJ recently sold out 150,000 seats at the Tokyo Dome in their long awaited return concert in Japan.

Londonderry, New Hampshire – To commemorate 50 years of shoemaking, Danish footwear brand Ecco is throwing a month-long celebration with special in-store displays, a Facebook sweepstakes and storytelling through the brand’s blog. The brand has grown to become the world’s second largest shoe manufacturer and yet is one of the only vertically integrated footwear brands in the world, owning and managing each step of the shoemaking process down to the stores.

Seattle, WA – In its second year, Tubbs Snowshoes’ Ambassador Program seeks eight snowshoe enthusiasts to document their winter snowshoeing experiences in words and photos. The essay contest asks ambassador entrants to choose from among four categories—trail walking, day hiking, backcountry and kids/family. Two ambassadors will be chosen to represent each category, and will be awarded a prize kit containing snowshoes, snowshoe poles, gaiters and more.

Lakewood, CO – Keith Korchok was selected as the winner of the “Why I Love to Ski and Ride” video contest put on with the Learn to Ski and Snowboard Month/Bring a Friend initiative. His entry, titled “Something From Nothing” is a personal story of how he and his twin brother created a neighborhood terrain park in Saltsburg, Pennsylvania. The video also earned him the Warren Miller Entertainment (WME) Video Award of Excellence.

Reims Management School (RMS) has conducted a study revealing that promises of lowest prices coupled with high refund guarantees often put consumers off. Strategies such as low price guarantees, promises of reimbursement of price differences and other increasingly common tactics may actually cause consumers to become suspicious of the offer and avoid the purchase altogether.

Charlotte, NC – Members of The Hosiery Association (THA) can now add an official member verification badge to their websites, social media platforms or printed promotional materials. The badge can be accessed through a members-only section on the THA website.

Boulder, CO – Beginning in December, Five-time Ironman and Ironman 70.3 world champion Craig “Crowie” Alexander is kicking off a tour of ten U.S. cities to promote his new book, As the Crow Flies: My Journey to Ironman World Champion. Tour dates and locations follow:

In a poll of 8,743 Americans aged 18 and up, Penn Schoen Berland (PSB) and Landor Associates’ annual Green Brands consumer survey ranked the largest 215 U.S. consumer-facing brands and 36 major foreign consumer brands according to a consumer reputation score.

In a partnership with Newsweek magazine, the results were then compared to Newsweek’s own green score to examine the disparities between consumer perception and actual measured environmental performance.