We all know Lady Gaga as a singer, dancer and performer.   But in the last two years, she’s climbed from just an entertainer to a monster endorser and creative visionary.

According to CCG’s very own CEO Rana Florida,

She [Lady Gaga] has changed the way endorsement deals work. She’s putting more of her influence, thought and creative energy into a line rather than just endorsing them. She has been able to successfully marry music, fashion and culture, making her a truly visual maven. She is her own movement.

Read more about Lady Gaga’s influence  at CNN International.

Is Lady Gaga the first artist to truly exemplify the qualities of the creative class?  How has she leveraged the 3-T’s: technology, talent and tolerance to build her brand  and influence?

I’m already lamenting the end of the shopping bag – the gorgeous kind, you know, with maybe satin or grosgrain handles, like from Hermes or Donghia or Laduree in Paris. The kind you may hold onto for years, can’t bear to toss.

And the whole ritual of having your purchase lavishly swathed in tissue paper, held in place with a beautiful sticker, and then gracefully placed in its coordinating carrier suddenly feels sinful.

That graphic/branding indulgence is coming to an end – I know it and ruefully admit I will really miss it. Carrying bags will always be with us but will reusables ever be as glamorous as their wasteful and glorious predecessors?

Sure, we are all declining shopping bags and bringing in our own, recycling the plastic ones, etc. In my store we keep reusing them (except for gift purchases of course), without the shame we might have felt a couple of years ago. All these new practices are good and necessary and I wholeheartedly support them but I can’t imagine what, if anything, will recreate that little note of luxury when our packaging becomes truly minimal?