Business Idea of the Day

TrendCentral: Of the multiple pairs of jeans hanging in your closet, how many do you actually wear? Now you can give the ones that are past their prime a second, better life by just packing them for your next trip to the Windy City. There, in downtown Chicago, the Burnham Hotel has launched its Casual Blue Campaign - an effort initiated by the hotel’s employees - to give those jeans you never wear to someone who will. For every pair of jeans donated (limit two), guests receive a $10 room credit, which should be enough to cover a few minibar snacks or drinks when room service can’t get there fast enough. Check In, Do Good [TrendCentral]

Spending to much time at the airport? Boarding helps you find other stranded travelers by simply tweeting #boarding along with your airport code (LAX, JFK, CDG, …). Therefore, Boarding will send you a reply with a link to the other Twitter users who you can message directly to meet up with

Zigo from My Zigo on Vimeo . The Zigo Leader combines the functionality of a carrier bicycle, bicycle trailer, jogging stroller, conventional stroller, and bicycle in one brilliant system. Using patent-pending technology, the ChildPod is easily coupled or uncoupled from the Zigo Leader in a matter of seconds, creating a fully functional stroller (or jogger with optional Zigo Jogger Kit). Turn it into a practical multi-speed city bike, perfect for around town errands or recreational riding, with or without the ChildPod

The YikeBike electric bike is designed for city journeys of up to 9km, reaching a top speed of 20km/h with zero emission. It weighs only 9.8 kilograms and comfortably folds to 67×56×12 cm to fit into your backpack. A small powerful 1.2 kW electric motor replaces all the traditional mechanics. The YikeBike currently costs $4860. The hype around all electric urban transportation clearly suggests that if found safe and affordable - we will see many of those around

CNN.com: London’s newest hotelier Mark Fuller is showing commendable bravado for someone about to open a luxury hotel during a global recession. “F*** the recession, let’s get on with it,” he says, while sitting on the roof terrace of the Sanctum Soho, a 30-room establishment dubbed the rock’n'roll hotel, as much for its “anything goes” service philosophy as the pedigree of its owners, which include the co-managers of heavy metal band Iron Maiden. “We do not recognize there is a credit crunch because we believe you should battle through it,” Fuller says, adding “If you get panicky and scary about things like this you’re no man at all.” The former band manager turned entrepreneur, is looking quite the rock star tonight, decked head-to-toe in black while a shiny silver skull stares ominously from his belt buckle. Downstairs, staff are frantically preparing for a launch party that promises to be heavy on champagne, cocktails and celebrities

Springwise: Urban bike-sharing is coming to North America in the form of Bixi, the new high-tech public bike system developed for the city of Montreal. Bixi follows the standard bike sharing principles: users take a bike from a stand, ride it to where they want to go, and drop it at another stand when they’re done. To make the concept even more attractive to users, bikes will be equipped with RFID tags so that users can track availability online; real-time information is beamed to the web from the system’s solar-powered bike stands. Bixi brings urban bike-sharing to North America [Springwise]

TrendWatching.com: Pedal-powered taxis have been around for years, but Dublin-based Ecocabs has come up with a FREE LOVE twist: free eco-taxi rides throughout the city. Ecocabs are pedal-powered (but battery-assisted, when necessary) tricycles that can accommodate three people for emissions-free transit through congested urban areas. The brand-sponsored vehicles are customized with brand-specific colors and imagery, and drivers can also hand out leaflets, wear branded clothing or target particular areas of the city. Generation G [TrendWatching.com]

The Cool Hunter: Thanks to the jet-set generation, demand for boutique hotels is increasing around the world. The first boutique “chain,” W, started the trend for a network of branded urbane-style properties and has just launched its latest edition - W Hong Kong.