The 2007 Lights Festival is History

The 2007 Magnificent Mile Lights Festival presented by Harris is history and there are so many terrific stories related to its strong success.

I can’t say enough about the great things that Nichole Jachimiak, Jennifer Woolford, and their team of over 700 volunteers did to ensure the success of the event. Thanks also to John Curran and other key volunteers for a truly amazing day. Of course Ellen Farrar and the GNMAA staff came through once again with flying colors!

Sponsors of the event made it all possible. Led by Harris, top partners included Southwest Airlines, Walt Disney World Resort, Wm. J. Wrigley Company, American Girl Place, Eli’s Cheesecake, Museum of Science and Industry, The Signature Room at the 95th, and others.

Thanks to WLS 890 AM we broke the record for the World’s Largest Holiday Carol! For me, the highlights included significantly better media production and national distribution thanks to Emily Barr, Chris Reller, and the rest of the team at ABC7-Chicago. Also, the daytime celebrity entertainment presented by Radio Disney and 101.9 THE MIX attracted huge crowds. Finally, upgraded content in the Procession by sponsors such as American Girl, Southwest Airlines, the Shedd Aquarium, the University of Illinois, and others went a long way toward improving the quality of the “in person” and broadcast experiences.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the entire day is the way people come together to produce a truly word class event. “Old hand pros” in the Police Department, Streets and San Department, OEMC, and other City agencies come together with the pros in the television and radio businesses to work along side people from the various sponsoring organizations and over 700 volunteers with a broad range of backgrounds to produce an event that is enjoyed by millions of people around the country. Quite an achievement!

Talbott Hotel Wins Mayor Daley Admiration

In addition to the spectacular Magnifcient Mile Lights Festival this past weekend, I enjoyed participating in a ceremony at the Talbott Hotel with Mayor Daley. Sarah Fleming (both left) GNMAA's Planning Manager, and I joined Basil Kromelow, owner of the Talbott Hotel and a past GNMAA chairman of the board, at a program to recognize the Talbott as the first hotel in Chicago to purchase electricity exclusively from a "green utility." Electric power consumed by the hotel is produced by wind energy, which reduces toxic, particulate, and carbon dioxide emissions from power plants, conserves fossil fuels, protects land from being strip mined, and a host of other environmental benefits. The Mayor was very generous in heaping praise on the Talbott for this unique initiative and other energy efficiency initiatives that he said made the Talbott a model for the hospitality industry. Not only is being energy efficient the right thing to do, but in today's very competitive hotel market, the Talbott can use this distinction as a differentiator. Many consumers are willing to pay significantly more if they have confidence that their purchase will result in reducing global climate change, decreasing oil purchases from hostile countries, and cleaning up the air and water.

Macy's is on the Move

I am impressed with how hard Macy's is working to build their business in Chicago and on Michigan Avenue. The company clearly has stores in the City targeted for enhancements. As a prelude to the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at the State Street Store, Terry Lundgren (see right) CEO of Federated Department Stores and a speaker at a GNMAA Quarterly Membership Luncheon earlier this year, hosted a dinner in the store with Martha Stewart, who was in town to light the tree. Both were excellent hosts and met informally with our small group prior to dinner. It wasn't a "hard sell," but it is clear that Macy's is proceeding with their plan to achieve the economies of scale through large advertising and promotions purchases, large branded merchandise purchases, and the other benefits of changing multiple time –honored department store from locally branded names like Marshall Field's to Macy's. I agree with them that Marshall Field's was not what it used to be, the realities of present day marketing dictating a major change. I grew up in the Washington, DC, area and can remember shopping at Woodward & Lothrop many times. This brand was held in as high esteem in Washington as Field's was in Chicago. But "Woodie's," like Field's, was all things to all people and had market share stripped off by The Gap, Land's End, Old Navy, Eddie Bauer, and hundreds of other specialty brands. People in Washington thought the world was coming to an end when Woodward & Lothrop went out of business, shuttering their big iconic store downtown and the many suburban stores. The same would have happened to Field's had Federated not stepped in and made the major changes that it did, saving jobs, real estate values, and what's left of the store's great merchandise and services. Incidentally, yes, Martha is the same in real life as she is on the show. Looks the same! Acts the same! It was an enjoyable evening.

Is Ramsey Lewis from New Jersey?

Still wowed by attending the really excellent GNMAA Cultural Event chaired by Sue Chernoff on Friday evening, I am extra aware of all things "Jersey Boys." I mentioned this to Jan Lewis, who I met with Ramsey Lewis at the Macy's dinner. She compared the plot of "Jersey Boys" to the life cycle of most music groups, including the Ramsey Lewis Trio. There was an initial excitement about the early days. When "The In Crowd" went to the top of the national charts, the group went on a national tour, and "fame and fortune" came their way, the dynamics changed and everyone eventually went their separate ways. I remember seeing the Ramsey Lewis Trio when they came to my college in 1966 and still rank the concert as one of the best I have seen.