Twenty months ago, a small start-up run by an Irish rock star and a Californian conscience capitalist set itself an ambitious task: creating a brand that would save thousands of Africans dying from Aids.

As the annual World Aids Day comes round, Product Red, the creation of Bono and Bobby Shriver, is taking stock of progress. The verdict seems to be: so far, so reasonably good. Growth has been steady rather than explosively spectacular.