"Bait" and Niche

When I heard that an acquaintance was negotiating with a famous fashion designer to build "branded" homes, in the same way a car company sells L.L. Bean SUVs, I was not surprised. Now three companies better known for tractors, fish and fashion are getting into the act publicly. John Deere, Orvis and Armani (not the designer I'd heard about) are putting their names on real-estate projects, according to the Wall Street Journal.