News
« February 2008 | | April 2008 »
March 31, 2008
Intermix To Add Four New Doors, Expand Website
There appears to be no slowdown at Intermix. The fashion chain plans to open four new stores this spring and is making its Website international over the next three to four month.
The retailer already has 20 units and plans new stores for Charlotte, N.C.; East Hampton, NY; Orlando, Fla.; and Chicago.
Intermix has made a niche for itself in offering a variety of designer lines in one location. Intermix stores usually range from 2,500 square feet to 4,000 square feet and offer goods from some 300 vendors.
Posted by Blacks at 10:35 AM | Comments (0)
March 28, 2008
Tax Benefit Boosts Movado's Fouth Quarter
Movado Group Inc. reported a nearly 40% jump in earnings for its fourth quarter to $19.6 million. The Swiss watchmaker said that it got a boost from strong international sales and a one-time tax benefit of $15 million.
Sales for the quarter ended Jan. 31 dipped 2.6% to $139 million.
For the full year, Movado reported a 21.3% increase in income to $60.8 million. The company said that its strong international presence offset the weakness in the U.S. economy.
Posted by Blacks at 09:52 AM | Comments (0)
March 27, 2008
Washington, L.A. Top List Of Retail Growth Areas
Washington., Los Angeles and Dallas/Ft.Worth are among the top metropolitan areas poised for retail growth over the next five years, according to a new report by real estate advisory firm Grubb & Ellis.
The firm looked at factors such as job growth, competition and demographics to produce its rankings.
Atlanta, Houston and Philadelphia followed the top three, while Orange County and San Diego, Calif. took the seventh and eighth-place spots. The final two growth areas were Chicago and Portland, Ore.
Grubb & Ellis expects the areas to outperform other, more saturated markets and places where overall economic health is weak.
Posted by Blacks at 09:47 AM | Comments (0)
March 26, 2008
Adrienne Vittadini Launches Bridge, Better Lines
Adrienne Vittadini is rolling out better and bridge collections for fall. The company said it saw an opportunity after other bridge lines moved to more mass market positioning.
The bridge line will wholesale from $49 to $299 while the better line is in the $29 to $179 range. The bridge collection consists of more casual clothes; the better line focuses on career dressing.
The new collections are due to be carried in over 400 retail stores, including Macy’s and Lord & Taylor.
Posted by Blacks at 09:04 AM | Comments (0)
March 25, 2008
Tiffany's Sales Surge 10%, Beating Expectations
Tiffany & Co. reported better-than-expected results for last year, even though a one-time charge ate into its profits. Profits fell 16% to $118.3 million due to a discontinuation of some watch styles and a write-off of loans on Tahera Diamond.
The company’s total sales increased by 10% to $1.1 billion, however, which exceeded analysts’ expectations.
While sales in the U.S. were relatively sluggish, international sales rose 21%, leading the retailer to plan new store openings in international markets.
Posted by Blacks at 09:45 AM | Comments (0)
March 24, 2008
Corneliani Plans Retail Rollout In Emerging Markets
Italian luxury men’s wear brand Corneliani has opened a new store in London. The move is part of a larger plan to expand the brand’s retail business internationally and increase sales by 10%.
Corneliani is slated to open 10 more stores by the end of 2008 with a focus on emerging markets in Russia, India and China.
The company already has 23 stores and wholesale deals with around 700 retailers. It brought in $249 million for its fiscal year 2008.
Posted by Blacks at 09:44 AM | Comments (0)
March 21, 2008
Silk, Men's RTW Boosts Profits At Hermès
Net profits at Hermès rose 7.3% in 2007 to $395 million while overall sales increased by 7.3% to $2.38 billion.
The company said it got a boost from men’s ready-to-wear, silk, fashion accessories and jewelry. The French brand plans to add more stores and increase its production capacity in response to growing demand.
In the U.S., new locations are slated for San Diego and Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Posted by Blacks at 10:39 AM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2008
Guess Plans 245 New Stores As Earnings Climb
Shaking off the economic slowdown, Guess Inc. said that its fourth-quarter earnings climbed 20.3% while revenues soared 30.3% to $488 million.
Results for the quarter ended Feb. 2 capped a strong year for the retailer, leading to further expansion plans.
Guess said it wants to open 245 new stores this fiscal year: 185 abroad and 60 in the U.S. The company already opened 184 new doors last year.
Posted by Blacks at 09:47 AM | Comments (0)
March 19, 2008
Bloomindale's Opens New In-Store Concept Shops
Bloomingdale’s is opening a handful of in-store concept shops called First Edit, featuring specialty brands not usually found in department stores.
First Edit offers merchandise from designer Michael Angel and brands such as TeenFlo and Shin Choi.
The shops are launching in Bloomingdale’s Manhattan location, as well as Chicago; Orlando; Garden City, New York; and Newport Beach and Costa Mesa, Calif.
The units are an average of 250 square feet – except in Manhattan where the store is twice that size – and target women 35 and up.
Posted by Blacks at 10:00 AM | Comments (0)
March 18, 2008
Ferragamo's Profits Soar, Opening Door For IPO
Salvatore Ferragamo Italia’s net profits surged 34.2 percent in 2007 to $64.5 million. Meanwhile, sales at the luxe Italian brand rose 6.5% to $941 million.
The company attributed the growth to retail expansion and improved sales in Asia and Europe. Ferragamo opened 20 new stores and 25 franchised units last year.
The company is planning an initial public offering later this year and the strong 2007 results are expected to help draw investors.
Posted by Blacks at 09:59 AM | Comments (0)
March 17, 2008
Women's Retail Apparel Prices Fall In Feb.
Women’s retail apparel prices fell for the first time in three months in February due to heavy markdowns by merchants wanting to clear out their old winter stock.
Prices in February dropped 1.8% after a series of small monthly rises, according to Labor Department figures. Prices for the period were down 3.8% compared to last year with the biggest declines recorded in suits and separates.
Outerwear was the only category that saw year-over-year gains. Although outerwear prices dropped 1% in February, they were up 4.1% from last year.
Posted by Blacks at 10:06 AM | Comments (0)
March 14, 2008
Tommy Bahama CEO, Co-Founder Retires
Tommy Bahama CEO and co-founder Tony Margolis has announced that he is retiring June 1st. He will be replaced by retail veteran Terry Pillows, who is moving from New York to Seattle to head the West Coast company.
Pillows has worked with companies such as Coach, Neiman Marcus and Polo Ralph Lauren over his 30-year career. He will be the first CEO to head the company other than Margolis.
Margolis will remain an advisor to the company after his retirement.
Posted by Blacks at 10:05 AM | Comments (0)
March 13, 2008
Balenciaga Opens New Melrose Ave. Store
U.S. Balenciaga fans no longer have to go to Manhattan to get their fix. The designer brand just opened a new 5,000-square-foot store in West Hollywood, offering a complete collection of apparel, gowns, handbags and accessories.
The two-storey Melrose Ave. space has a futuristic feel and is decorated in Balenciaga’s signature blue shades.
The new store is part of a larger expansion strategy, the company said.
Posted by Blacks at 10:37 AM | Comments (0)
March 12, 2008
Theory's Leavitt Tapped To Lead Kate Spade
Former Theory exec Craig Leavitt has been named the new co-president and chief operating officer of Kate Spade. Leavitt will share his president role with creative director Deborah Lloyd.
Kate Spade parent company Liz Claiborne hopes that the two executives will be able to triple sales at the brand by 2010. They will also be charged with drawing up a five-year plan to launch in new product categories.
Posted by Blacks at 10:01 AM | Comments (0)
March 11, 2008
Chloé Taps MacGibbon As Creative Director
Longtime Chloé collaborator Hannah MacGibbon is taking over as the company’s new creative director. MacGibbon, 38, worked for five years under previous Chloé creative director Phoebe Philo and has recently done consulting for the brand.
The new director will be doing her first collection for the Spring 2009 season, debuting in October.
MacGibbon replaces Paulo Melim Andersson. Melim Andersson is an edgier designer but his designs reportedly produced slower sales.
Posted by Blacks at 09:53 AM | Comments (0)
March 10, 2008
Banana Opens Higher-Priced Men's Concept Store
Banana Republic is temporarily turning its Greenwich Village store into a new men’s concept store called Monogram. The Monogram concept includes tailored and more fashion forward clothing at a higher price point. The store will be open for nine months to test customer reaction.
A Monogram women’s collection is also in the works and will debut this spring. Banana will try out the women’s collection in its own concept store when the merchandise is available.
Posted by Blacks at 10:18 AM | Comments (0)
March 07, 2008
Badgley Mischka Opens West Hollywood Store
Badgley Mischka officially launched its new 1,300-square-foot store in West Hollywood this week, offering its women’s collection, handbags and accessories.
The store is operating under a license given to a friend of the design duo, Jacqueline Sassoon. Sassoon also has first rights to operate all future Badgley Mischka stores in the U.S.
Posted by Blacks at 10:12 AM | Comments (0)
March 06, 2008
Specialty Apparel Sales Slow In February
Sales at specialty apparel stores slowed in February with growth of just 1.9%, according to data from MasterCard. This compares to a 5.4% increase in sales for January.
Consumers are cutting back on their spending amid rising prices for gasoline and other staples, the credit card company said.
Luxury apparel sales slid even further in February, dropping 2.2% to $3.5billion, according to MasterCard.
Posted by Blacks at 10:02 AM | Comments (0)
March 05, 2008
Lily Pulitzer To Open In Manhattan
Lily Pulitzer is opening a new door in Manhattan, featuring the brand’s women’s, men’s and children’s lines as well as accessories and exclusive products. The 3,700-square foot Madison Ave. store is slated to open in May. The store spans two floors and is located between 78th and 79th Street.
The company is also focused on expanding distribution into Europe and is already being sold at Harrods in London.
Posted by Blacks at 10:31 AM | Comments (0)
March 04, 2008
Kors Plans European Expansion; Names New VP
Michael Kors is planning significant European expansion and has named Cedric Wilmotte as its new senior vice president of European operations. Wilmotte was most recently European sales director for Marc Jacobs and has done a stint at Donna Karan.
Kors sees great potential in Europe and plans to open a headquarters there as well as a number of freestanding and concept stores.
Wilmotte will be in charge of all retail and wholesale in the region.
Posted by Blacks at 09:38 AM | Comments (0)
March 03, 2008
David Yurman Sees Luxe Growth Abroad
David Yurman is bullish about the international luxury jewelry market, despite U.S. economic worries. The fine jewelry purveyor is expanding into Asia, Europe and the Middle East.
Yurman is opening its first Asian location in Hong Kong this weekend and has another store slated to open in Tokyo. The New York company plans to crack Europe and the Middle East next year.
Yurman also plans to open a new 6,000-square-foot flagship on Madison Ave. to replace its old Manhattan store. The company already has 15 stores dotted across the U.S.
Posted by Blacks at 09:23 AM | Comments (0)
