No matter where I turned in New York in shops closest to what a newsagency is, brands were in full shop, used as traffic drivers. In toy shops, stationery shops, card shops and gift shops, they were featuring brands front of store and rear of store (as shown in the photo from FAo Schwartz where the Barbie wall is at the rear) to engage shoppers.
Regulars here would know that I think brands are vital and that we newsagents ignore them at our peril. This latest trip has reinforced this view.
The other aspects of well-known consumer brands is that they usually support us with marketing and collateral.