market-research

—>For April Fools' Day 2009, ThinkGeek launched a tauntaun sleeping bag as a fake-yet-awesome product. As everyone knows, pranks make the best market research, and now LA Weekly reports that they are going ahead with the product. Yes!  More »

—>Of all companies, ThinkGeek should know that you never taunt a sci-fi nerd with something movie related unless it really exists. Yesterday the company revealed its annual page of fake products to trick customers, including squeezable bacon spread and a "Unicorn Chaser" soft drink. The best product of all, however, was this Tauntaun sleeping bag (check out the tiny lightsaber on the zipper pull!), which sparked so much demand that the company is looking into selling it for real.  More »

—>Second Curve Capital is a hedge fund, managing hogsheads of cash in long-term investments on the stocks of banks and financial services. Most of the year is spent over ponderous goblets of brandies, smoking fine cigars at financiers' gentlemen's clubs, absorbing the exuberance and doldrums of bank CEOs and presidents.   More »