All Posts By

Sarah Prince

On The Radar: Starbucks

Love struck with a Starbucks barista? You’re in luck! Soon you can show your appreciation (or affection) with a smartphone. Starbucks is rolling out a new digital tipping function for its mobile payment app next summer, as well as through Square for U.S. customers. (Source: CBC)

Starbucks has begun testing 500 sq. ft. drive-thru and walk-up shops run by only a few employees that offer the full Starbucks menu. In an effort to go green, the new LEED-certified coffee shops in the pilot program are hyper local, whereby the design materials are sourced from within a 500-mile radius. The McDonald’s at Richmond and Dundas in London has a walk-up window, but I haven’t seen anyone use it. That said, I’m sure Starbucks’ sophisticated design will make these new venues a nice addition to modern cities. (Source: Fast Company)

Eager to please their most well-known clientele, Starbucks crafted a personalized cup for Demi Lovato by writing her name inside a star resembling her new place on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Fans pleaded to Starbucks via Twitter, with the hashtag #putdemisnameonastarbuckscup and Starbucks responded, as seen below. Hopefully other patrons didn’t wait longer in line while baristas designed it. (Source: Twitter)

October 9, 2012 by

Jian Ghomeshi Visits London

When someone famous visits London, take note because from what I can tell, it doesn’t happen often. However, CBC host Jian Ghomeshi visited the Forest City today to promote his new memoir 1982. Rather than telling his life story “from womb to tomb,” Jian chose to share coming of age stories about fitting in as a young immigrant to Canada, focusing on the awkward year that was grade nine. His fan base immediately bought the book  – enough to ensure it debuted as the nation’s #1 bestselling non-fiction book, which is a huge accomplishment.

Taking a break from Western Homecoming festivities, I went to Chapters South London for Jian’s book signing. Delighted by the chance to have a seat without waiting hours beforehand, I eagerly waited for him to come out of the green room. Once on stage, Jian talked about 1982 and his memories of London, such as performing with Moxy Fruvous at Western Fair and drinking at the Spoke. Then he read aloud 2 stories about men watching sprinklers in Thornhill and his parents’ disapproval of his fashion sense inspired by David Bowie.

The Q&A that followed covered Q interviews such as Billy Bob Thornton and Harrison Ford, his transition from musician to broadcaster and tips for preparing for interviews. Jian emphasized the importance of doing in-depth research about guests, adding that he insists on knowing his guests’ work well before doing a ‘dance’ with them, as that’s how he metaphorically described the routine between interviewer-interviewee. I found it interesting when he talked about how his show disproves that listeners and viewers suffering from attention defecits are uninterested in longer content. People don’t tend to turn off Q 3 minutes in to the show!

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September 29, 2012 by

Rewind and Re-watch: Legally Blonde

To kick off a new category and series of HOTS blog posts, I’ve revisited one of my favourite chick flicks: Legally Blonde.

I first saw Legally Blonde at a theatre at The Eaton Centre, which isn’t there anymore. It was 2001. Little did I know at the time that the film about a blonde sorority girl disproving others’ perception of her by going to Harvard Law School would spawn sequels and propel Reese Witherspoon’s career much further than Election could accomplish alone.

As I re-watched it for the umpteenth time on DVD, I was more attuned to the product placement. Not just the Red Bull that Elle’s sorority sister drinks while exercising or the stack of Cosmopolitan magazines on Elle’s dresser, but especially the OPI nail polish bottles scattered across her colourful room. Even when Elle has the revelation at a nail salon to enroll in law school to win Warner back, the back cover ad on the magazine she’s reading is for OPI. I also thought about the contrast between Elle’s nerdy classmates on black PCs and her brand new orange Apple iBook.

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September 23, 2012 by

Katy Perry, LinkedIn’s Thinking of You

Music icon Katy Perry, one of my favourite pop sensations, continues receiving credit for inspiring how everyone uses social media. First, she kicked off the summer with a lyric video for Top 40 hit ‘Wide Awake’ by embracing Facebook Timeline’s features to showcase her milestones, such as concerts, magazine covers and awards.

More recently, Wired shared that Katy Perry inspired LinkedIn’s global redesign. According to Wired, “One of the main goals in Project Katy is to create a cohesive experience across all platforms, no matter the device or operating system.” LinkedIn’s team began focusing on their Katy-inspired  redesign project following an update to its iPhone app. Modelling the site after Katy’s success seemed natural to Steve Johnson, LinkedIn’s director of design and web development, who loves following pop culture. Wired succinctly explains that Katy’s “irresistible pop hooks” make her a great go-to when designers need a muse.

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September 21, 2012 by

Western Fair at Heart of Forest City

With O-Week festivities over, I eagerly wanted to find something fun to do with my long weekend (thanks to Fridays off all school year long). The Arkells’  free show on Thursday night at Western Fair inspired me to take the roommate and leave the bubble bordered by Masonville to the north and the VIA Rail station to the south.

I have yet to try Elephant Ears or a Colossal Onion, but exploring the fair grounds and midway made for a great evening, especially because I didn’t make it to The Ex this summer. Ferris wheel: awesome. Mini roller coaster: awesome. Fun at Western Fair: priceless.

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September 14, 2012 by