WWD articles from June 2002

WWD archives from June 2002

SHINING MOMENT.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Sometimes, the future's so bright, you gotta wear shades. Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough, who recently graduated from Parsons School of Design, have grabbed industry attention with their chic Proenza Schouler collection....

CALMART NAMES LENTZ TO TOP POST.(Paul R. Lentz)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... LOS ANGELES -- A former Dallas Market Center executive is returning to familiar territory, taking the top management post at the California Market Center here. Real estate management veteran Paul R. Lentz has been tapped as general...

MOST LIKELY TO SUCCEED.(Jack McCollough, Lazaro Hernandez)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez could be poster children for the freshly graduated, eager young fashion student. Both 23, they're living and working out of the same shabby-chic loft at the frenetic center of Koreatown and the...

CLARIFICATION.(Brief Article)(Correction Notice)
June 3, 2002... Steven Madden Ltd. currently has a licensing agreement with SoHo Fashions for outerwear only. The company does not have a sportswear, activewear or denim license agreement at this point but is currently evaluating these opportunities. It was...

FINDINGS.(Kokopelli Gallery opens in SoHo)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NATIVE SCENE: Kokopelli Gallery, a store specializing in Native American jewelry, celebrated its new SoHo location with traditional performances from Native American tribal dancers. The 600-square-foot store-gallery moved from Thompson...

FORMERLY LEGER, NOW LEROUX, COMES TO U.S.(Herve L. Leroux)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... PARIS -- Herve L. Leroux, the former Herve Leger, is coming to America. For the first time since owner Max Azria ousted him from his namesake house in 1999, Leroux's collection will be sold in the U.S. It will retail exclusively in...

GOLDEN RULE.(products created for the UK's golden jubilee)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... LONDON -- Forget about the Queen's annus horribilus. It's officially the annus jubileeus and it's packed with enough parades, pageants, processions, concerts, gun salutes and Royal Air Force fly-pasts to last another 50 years. Today and...

POWER TRIP.(Donatella Versace)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... "For me," growled hostess Donatella Versace, clad in fuchsia leather pants and a fuchsia silk blouse, her white bangs fringing her black smudged eyes, "Hollywood is like coming home." The diva was on another brazen babe's home turf, that...

FANTASY ISLAND.(Francesca von Habsburg, Dodie Rosekrans infiltrate island)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... New Guinea is aflutter with birds of paradise, while the Galapagos swarm with flocks of blue-footed boobies. So what about those other rare birds -- of the jet-set variety? There's the Blue-Blooded Booby -- equally evolved to thrive in...

BLUEFLY RECEIVES SOROS INFUSION.(George Soros)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Online off-pricer Bluefly Inc. has gotten another boost from George Soros. A group led by the financier agreed on May 24 to purchase 1.2 million of the firm's common stock as well as warrants for $1.9 million. According...

INDIA-PAKISTAN CONCERNS MOUNT.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... WASHINGTON -- In the wake of escalating tensions between nuclear foes Pakistan and India, retailers and manufacturers held emergency meetings around the nation Friday amid growing concern over sourcing from the region. Most executives...

RATING THE RETAILERS: IF WAL-MART'S A SIX, WHAT RANK ARE YOU?(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Wal-Mart recently rated itself only a six out of 10 for performance, which can only lead one to wonder what other retailers would rank. Given Wal-Mart's impressive track record and its place as the benchmark of retail...

MIDO FAIR GIVES BRIGHT OUTLOOK FOR SUNGLASSES.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
June 3, 2002... MILAN -- The Italian eyewear industry continued to bask in strong sales and trends, despite the chill that hit much of the luxury goods markets in the last year or so. The industry's good health was evident in last year's double-digit...

OMAS' SIGNATURE STRATEGY.(pen maker's activity in the United States)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Omas is ready to ink the next chapter in its 77-year history. The Bologna, Italy-based luxury pen company is planning to increase its visibility in the U.S. market, with stepped-up distribution, a streamlined collection of...

WOLFORD'S NEXT STEP: INDIVIDUAL NATURE.(new product line)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- When Wolford ships its newest line, Individual Nature, to stores in August, the company's executives hope it will bring a breath of fresh air to stimulate the otherwise challenging sheers business. Individual Nature features...

INTIMATE NOTES.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... UJA HONOREES: More than 200 industry apparel executives turned out for the UJA Federation Apparel Division's award gala at the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan during market week for two executives from the innerwear manufacturing and retail...

JUNIORS BOOST ROSS SALES, NET.(increase over last year at Ross Stores Inc.)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Strength in junior apparel was among the factors generating double-digit increases on both the top and bottom line at off-pricer Ross Stores Inc. Net income swelled 37.5 percent to $47.7 million, or 59 cents a diluted share,...

ALLOY TURNS CORNER WITH $2.5M IN PROFIT.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Major revenue gains propelled Alloy Inc. to profit from loss in the first quarter of fiscal 2002. For the three months ended May 30, the New York-based Generation Y direct merchant reported a swing to net income of $2.5...

BON-TON NET LOSS DECLINES.(first quarter)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Tighter inventories helped Bon-Ton Stores Inc. reduce its first-quarter red ink. Net losses narrowed 12 percent to $4.4 million, or 29 cents a share, from $5 million, or 33 cents a year ago. Revenues for the period ended...

RETAILER, DAVID COHEN, 80.(Brief Article)(Obituary)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- David Cohen, 80, the force behind John's Bargain Stores, a major retailer in the Sixties, died Thursday of lung cancer at his home in Medford, New York. Cohen left school in the sixth grade to work full-time for his father's...

THE RETURN OF DE LA RENTA INTIMATES.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- The relaunch of the licensed Oscar de la Renta foundations will be rolled out nationwide to 220 doors of Federated Department Stores. The reintroduction of the brand in intimates is an exclusive deal in the U.S. with...

FASHION SCOOPS.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... BELLES OF THE BALL: Is Presidential niece Lauren Bush now a designer? She plans to accompany Tommy Hilfiger to the CFDA Awards tonight, but she won't be wearing one of his designs. Bush, who appears exclusively in Hilfiger's ad campaigns, came...

YAMAMOTO TO SHOW RTW AT PARIS COUTURE.(Yohji Yamamoto; spring ready-to-wear)
June 3, 2002... NEW YORK -- Booked your flight to Paris for the couture yet? You might just want to change your departure date. Because Yohji Yamamoto has decided to show his spring ready-to-wear collection on July 7, the eve of haute couture. The show,...

HOLY$*#@! AN OSBOURNE LICENSE.
June 3, 2002... LOS ANGELES -- Had enough of the Osbournes yet? If not, soon MTV's favorite nuclear family will be on everything from loungewear to shoelaces to air fresheners to action figures. It was confirmed Friday that the Osbournes have signed a...

WITH TOURISM DOWN LUXURY LOOKS LOCAL.
June 3, 2002... PARIS -- The luxury goods business may be global, but lately its major players have been living the local life. Faced with a dramatic drop in tourism in the wake of Sept. 11 that has yet to fully recover, an industry that depends on...

IN BRIEF.
June 3, 2002... NEW TITLES AT JONES: Jones Apparel Group has promoted three of its key executives. Anita Britt, who had been senior vice president of finance and investor relations, has been named executive vice president of finance. Efthimios P. Sotos, who...

FLIRT ON BY.(Karl Lagerfeld's Chanel cruise show)(International Pages)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... PARIS -- While waiters served scrambled eggs, Karl Lagerfeld offered his own tasty treats during his Chanel cruise show at Cafe Marly. There was lots of black and white -- sleeveless tops, long skirts and classic suits -- but he also...

LAVIGNE SENTENCE: 37 MOS.(Elliot M. Lavigne convicted in stock fraud scheme)(Legal Beat)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Apparel executive Elliot M. Lavigne on Monday was sentenced to 37 months jail time for his role in a stock fraud scheme, but his future earnings potential garnered much of the debate during the hearing at Brooklyn Federal Court....

SPIEGEL LOSES NASDAQ LISTING.(Spiegel Group Inc.'s filing delinquency)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Spiegel Group Inc. reported Monday its shares have been delisted by the Nasdaq as a result of its delinquency in filing its fiscal 2001 Form 10-K and first quarter 2002 Form 10-Q with the Securities and Exchange Commission, among...

DRESS BARN SPLITS STOCK 2-FOR-1.(Specialty retailer has market capitalization of $277.7 mn)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Dress Barn is hoping its 2-for-1 stock split brings more investors into the fold. On Monday, the first day of trading after Friday's split, shares of the firm fell 52 cents, or 3.3 percent, to close at $15.30 in Nasdaq action...

THE TRAVEL CHANNEL.(Chanel's Karl Lagerfeld cruise collection)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Every girl knows that the perfect vacation requires the right wardrobe. And there are plenty of choices this cruise season. At Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld worked in black and white with a few splashes of color, showing cropped tuxedo...

IN BRIEF.(VF Corp.'s debt rating reduced to negative from stable)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... VF CREDIT CUT: Moody's Investors Service reduced the rating outlook on VF Corp.'s debt to negative from stable due to reduced operating profits and tepid domestic jeans sales. The apparel vendor's senior unsecured debt rating was confirmed at...

MAY COMP FORECAST NOT STELLAR.(Retail sales in May to rise 2.2%)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Coolness, both in the temperature and consumer reactions to spring assortments, led to lackluster May sales and will hold comparable-store sales results for the month at or below plan in most cases, one analyst group forecast...

AVANTEX: ADDING TECH TO TEXTILE BUSINESS.(Symposium for High-Tech Apparel Textiles)(International Pages)
June 4, 2002... FRANKFURT -- Technologies ranging from jackets that can be inflated to increase their insulating capacity to clothing that uses the wearer's body heat to generate electricity were trotted out at last month's Avantex International Innovation...

CORRECTION.("schmatta business" remark attributed to Josie Natori)(Brief Article)(Correction Notice)
June 4, 2002... A remark attributed to Christina Johnson, president and chief executive officer of Saks Fifth Avenue Enterprises on page 7, May 20, was actually made by Josie Natori, ceo of Natori Co. Natori said: "I work in a profession where people often are...

TRADE BILL FACES POLITICAL PUZZLE.(Apparel industry lobbyists offer opinions)(Government Activity)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers return to Capitol Hill today to face a vexing issue: how to reach a compromise during an election year on a trade bill and still secure enough votes for its passage, particularly in the House. What the formula for...

NEW BOSS AT BOSS: LUCIA NAMED IN U.S. AS MARTY STAFF QUITS.(New president and ceo, Tony Lucia)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- The party's over for Marty Staff, the high-flying and flamboyant president and chief executive officer of Hugo Boss USA, who was put on paid administrative leave three weeks ago. On Monday, Hugo Boss AG said that...

MELDING FASHION AND ART.(International Festival of Fashion Arts )(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... HYERES, France -- Is the future of fashion represented by a sweater made of shredded plastic bags or a skirt-and-jacket combo? Actually, it's both, according to judges at last month's annual young designer festival here. Split on whether...

KEARSE OUT AT KMART.(Kmart Corp.'s executive vice president of merchandising resigns)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Ending months of speculation, Kmart Corp.'s top merchant, Cecil Kearse, is leaving the firm. No successor to Kearse, executive vice president of merchandising, has been named at the bankrupt Troy, Mich.-based discounter. ...

MAGAZINES TAP INTO THE ORIGINALS.(Women's clothing fall campaigns)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... PARIS -- Fashion's retro mood has stretched to photography. Legendary lensmen such as Richard Avedon, David Bailey, David Hamilton, Harry Peccinotti, Hiro and Francesco Scavullo are once again shooting fashion editorials at leading...

MEMO PAD.(Talk, Real Simple, Vogue, magazines)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... EARLY DISMISSAL: In January, Talk staffers found out their magazine had folded when the news was leaked via the Drudge Report. Now the award for most-awkward-way-to-find-out- you're-unemployed goes to Surface, where editors in chief Tom de Kay...

DICK NAMED CFO AT COLDWATER CREEK.(Melvin Dick, a former senior partner with Arthur Andersen)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Coldwater Creek named a former senior partner with Arthur Andersen as its new chief financial officer. The Sandpoint, Idaho-based firm said Monday that Melvin Dick today joined the casual women's apparel and accessories...

FASHION'S `MR. CONGENIALITY' GETS THE CELEBRATION ROLLING.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- If there's a troublemaker in every crowd, then the fashion industry's is Kal Ruttenstein. Just ask Helmut Lang, who discovered Ruttenstein's indelible presence while putting together slides from one of his first fashion shows...

NYGARD INTERNATIONAL EXPANDS.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... LOS ANGELES -- Better sportswear vendor Nygard International wants a $400 million business in the U.S. -- and it has built a distribution center to back it up. The Toronto-based brand, whose ebullient chief executive operates from a...

SHANGHAI TANG LOOKS WEST.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Shanghai Tang hopes the third time is a charm. The purveyor of Chinese designs, which is reinventing itself once again to have more mainstream appeal, recently unveiled its fall collection with a new infusion of Western...

CHRISTOPHER CANATSEY, 36, FORMER EDITOR AT WWD.(Brief Article)(Obituary)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Christopher Canatsey, senior service editor at Woman's Day and a former fashion editor at WWD, died here Sunday of HIV-related causes. He was 36. Canatsey, who was born in Boulder, Colo., graduated from Vassar College in 1987...

GEOFFREY MILLER, 53, SALESMAN AT DRESSMAKER RAPTURE APPAREL.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Geoffrey Miller, a dress salesman at Rapture Apparel, a moderate dress manufacturer here, died May 25 at St. John's Hospital in Rego Park, N.Y. He was 53. The cause of death was a heart attack, according to Roger Pascal, a...

STEIN MART SUCCESSION: FISHER APPOINTED CEO.(Michael Fisher will succeed Jack Williams Jr. as chief executive officer)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Michael Fisher, president and chief operating officer of Stein Mart Inc., will succeed Jack Williams Jr. as chief executive officer of the company at the close of the current fiscal year. The announcement was made at the...

WHAT NERDS.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... The Neptunes specialize in what Germans call earworms -- songs so catchy they're inescapable. They've crafted hits for Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige, Britney Spears and No Doubt. But hip- hop producers Pharell Williams and Chad Hugo have left the...

EYE SCOOP.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... Ever since Swa went straight, the Hamptons have been bereft of a gay watering hole. That changed over Memorial Day weekend, when the owners of the Cock and Hole, undoubtedly the raunchiest pair of gay bars in the East Village, quietly opened a...

SIX DEGREES OF SEPARATION.(What six firms are doing to separate themselves from the pack)
June 4, 2002... NEW YORK -- Whether it's a ready-to-wear designer exploring sportswear or bridal designers expanding into eveningwear, vendors are braving the economy and branching out. Here's a look at what six firms are doing to separate themselves from...

FASHION SCOOPS.(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... RIDING HIGH: We've seen horses on the runway at John Bartlett in New York and Givenchy in Paris. But leave it to Hermes to sneak one into its annual shareholders' meeting. A dark brown beauty pranced onstage Monday at the Marigny Theater in...

HEADY COCKTAIL.(The CFDA awards)(Brief Article)
June 4, 2002... Just like Karl Lagerfeld, who accepted a lifetime achievement award on Monday night, the CFDA awards were slimmed down. Way down. And in the end -- despite all the pre-event whispers and bitching -- that's just the way the fashion crowd...

MARKET CALENDAR; THE ATLANTA WOMEN'S & CHILDREN'S APPAREL/ACCESSORIES MARKET, AMERICASMART, JUNE 20-24, 2002.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... SHOWROOM HOURS: Thursday, June 20, 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Many permanent showrooms are open Tuesday, June 25. Please call for appointments. THURSDAY, JUNE 20 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m.: Accessories Walk of Fame. The Atlanta Fashion...

ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... Located along a busy stretch of Piedmont Road in Midtown Atlanta, Atmosphere is appropriately named. It is situated in a charming renovated old house surrounded by a white picket fence. Inside, a tropical melange of color and sultry music...

COMMUNITY ART.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... It's a timely coincidence that the city that recently elected its first female African-American mayor is now host to a tribute to another monumental first in African-American history. From June 15 through Sept. 8, Atlanta's High Museum of Art...

HOTLANTA HAS IT; WITH THE ARRIVAL OF THE PREMIERE SHOW, BUYERS FROM OUTSIDE THE SOUTHEAST ARE HEADING TO ATLANTA, AND LOCAL BUYERS ARE NO LONGER DEPENDENT ON NEW YORK SHOWS.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... The inaugural edition of the Premiere show landed in April at the AmericasMart with great fanfare. According to AmericasMart founder and chairman John Portman, the show will "launch AmericasMart apparel to a national focus," due in part to the...

NEW LINES; A SNEAK PEEK AT THE LATEST AND GREATEST TO HIT THE MART.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... Ambrosia & CO. Room 9N104 Di Vita, Il Gilet Fashion industry veterans Joseph and Debra Greco, a husband-wife duo who met at an industry party and subsequently wed in 1990, launched in February two upper-bridge-priced collections,...

RIDING THE ROLLER COASTER; FIRST THE ECONOMY TOOK A TURN FOR THE WORSE, THEN IT IMPROVED. BUT NOW, ECONOMISTS PREDICT THE UPTICK IS OVER.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... The good news is the economy rebounded during the first quarter of 2002. The bad news is that economists think it may level off or slow down again. Measured as gross domestic product, the economy grew at an annualized rate of 5.8 percent...

STEAMY SURROUNDINGS; THE SOUTH OF FRANCE HAS ARRIVED IN SOUTH MIAMI, WITH THE OPENING OF LIFESTYLE BOUTIQUE STEAM.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... A new boutique, Steam, has rolled into south Miami with a design sensibility shaped by the travels of its owners. Actor David Caruso, the onetime star of ABC's "NYPD Blue," and his wife Margaret, opened in February the 2,400-square-foot space,...

COZY, COOL CAVU.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... To get a true sense of the people, style, culture and even a bit of the history of midtown Atlanta, spend an evening at Cavu Restaurant and Lounge. On the expansive, wraparound front porch, casually dressed locals mingle with business travelers...

BRAZILIAN CHIC; MOVE OVER, GISELE. THE MESQUITA SISTERS HAVE ARRIVED WITH A STORE FULL OF TRENDY -- AND RACY -- FASHIONS FROM THEIR HOMELAND.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... From jeans to models to waxing treatments, all things Brazilian are hot right now. So the timing couldn't be better to open K-la, a boutique celebrating the South American country's racy fashions. Located in Buckhead in the Around Lenox...

SOUTHERN STYLE; DESIGNERS WHO VENTURE BELOW THE MASON-DIXON LINE BRIDGE THE NORTH-SOUTH STYLE DIVIDE.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... Traditionally, Southern buyers' needs go beyond the obvious climate considerations of lightweight fabrics and color. With plenty of no-nos, including anything too sexy, or tacky, Southern buyers still clamor for good day dresses for a variety...

TOUGH AND TENDER.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... Bad-girl leather, sexy lace-up details and a bit of good-girl lace add up to fall's spicy equation.

MELISSA'S SWEET SUCCESS; MELISSA SWEET'S NEW BUCKHEAD FLAGSHIP IS JUST THE BEGINNING OF THE BRIDAL DESIGNER'S JOURNEY DOWN THE AISLE OF FASHION GREATNESS.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... Bridal designer Melissa Sweet in March paraded into her new salon, located in an elegant vintage mansion on Peachtree Street in Atlanta's Buckhead neighborhood. The new digs replace her first retail store, which opened in Atlanta in 1997...

NEW FAIR, VARIED WARES; AT THE INAUGURAL PREMIERE SHOW, AN ECLECTIC BATCH OF ACCESSORIES WAS TROTTED OUT IN FRONT OF TREND-HUNGRY RETAILERS.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... For buyers craving creative fashion accessories, the inaugural edition of the Premiere show was the place to be during the April market at AmericasMart. Distinct materials, design and construction were everywhere. This and That, for...

SPECIAL EFFECTS.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... Bags are full of surprises this season. Whimsical shapes and amusing patterns take them from ordinary to extraordinary.

GARDNER EXITS CALVIN KLEIN.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... NEW YORK -- Tim Gardner, creative director of design at Calvin Klein, has resigned from the firm. Gardner, who joined Calvin Klein in 1996 and was promoted to creative director two years ago, was Klein's top designer and had taken on...

FASHION SCOOPS.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... STELLA'S WORLD: Stella McCartney, who is showing her first cruise collection to retailers in Paris this week, has other new projects up her puffy sleeves. Sources say she's about to name a new president to run her American business and is in...

MOVADO NET IMPROVES.(Movado Group Inc.'s first quarter)(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... NEW YORK -- Fueled by sales growth and better operating efficiencies, Movado Group Inc. posted improved first-quarter results. For the three months ended April 30, income was $332,000, or 3 cents a share, against a loss of $128,000, or 1...

BEHIND FOSTER GRANT? $52M AND NEW CELEBS.(Cindy Crawford and Jeff Gordon in new sunglasses ads)(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... NEW YORK -- The answer now is Cindy Crawford and Jeff Gordon. The question being posed after nearly a dozen years of brand invisibility is: "Who's that behind those Foster Grants?" At the tail end of an almost three-year turnaround...

DENVER FASHION GROUP FORMED.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... DENVER -- The fashion community here has decided there must be power in a united front. The New American Fashion Association for independent designers (NAFA) has announced it is planning a Denver Fashion Week for fall 2003. The group is...

A NEW VISION FOR L.A. EYEWORKS.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... LOS ANGELES -- Boundary-pushing architects are used to transforming the most intangible of dreams into physical realities. So when Gai Gherardi and Barbara McReynolds hired architect Neil M. Denari to invent the environment for their...

AGGRESSIVE GROWTH FOR TJX.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... FRAMINGHAM, Mass. -- TJX Cos. expects to expand from 1,665 stores to 4,200 stores in nine years, growing 11 percent annually and posting an average 3 percent comparable-store sales gains during the period, Edmond J. English, president and...

CLAIBORNE, TEFLON IN CAREFREE DEAL.(Carefree clothing line has adopted DuPont's Teflon technology)(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... NEW YORK -- Liz Claiborne's Carefree clothing line has adopted DuPont's Teflon technology. The built-in fabric protector, featured on items such as white button-down blouses and black pants under the Lizsport label, acts as a repellent...

J. JILL SPLITS STOCK 3-FOR-2.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... NEW YORK -- The J. Jill Group announced Tuesday a 3-for-2 stock split in the form of a stock dividend to attract a broader reach of investors. The Quincy, Mass.-based specialty retailer, which markets to women over 35 through its 63...

IMPORTERS SEEK DELAY ON SETTING VIETNAM QUOTA.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... WASHINGTON -- Eyeing huge increases in apparel and textile imports from Vietnam, importers want to put up a roadblock against a bilateral textile and apparel agreement and the quota limits it would contain. Peter McGrath, chairman of the...

SINGAPORE JOINS PORT SECURITY PLAN.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... WASHINGTON -- Singapore will be the first Asian port to allow U.S.-bound cargo to be prescreened, as part of the U.S. push to protect shipments from being used to smuggle terrorist weapons, the U.S. Customs Service said Tuesday. Canada...

DOUGLAS GILES, MAY CO. EXECUTIVE.(died May 27)(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... NEW YORK -- Douglas J. Giles, a retired senior vice president of human resources for May Department Stores Co., died May 27 of lymphoma at his home in St. Louis. He was 60. "Doug made tremendous contributions during his 30-year career,"...

EUROPE'S GROWING OUTLET OPPORTUNITY.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... MAASMECHLEN, Belgium -- Competition between designer outlet centers is intensifying in continental Europe. Value Retail PLC last week opened Belgium's first designer outlet mall in this eastern border town, with shops such as Versace,...

ESCADA BOUNCES BACK WITH RISE IN NET, SALES.(first six months of fiscal year)(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... BERLIN -- The Escada Group returned to profitability in the first half of the fiscal year after ending 2001 with a loss. During the six months ended April 30, the Aschheim, Germany-based company posted net income of $5.9 million, more...

FINITY APPAREL GROUP FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY.(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... NEW YORK -- Finity Apparel Group on Monday filed a voluntary Chapter 11 petition for bankruptcy court protection in Manhattan. The better sportswear firm said it plans on restructuring operations. Three other affiliates -- GSA Group...

LOOK SHARP.(The best clothes for resort keep fuss to a minimum)(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... NEW YORK -- Take the easy way out. After all, the best clothes for resort keep fuss to a minimum. A handful of designers here are simplifying things even further, using crisp black and white shades on their own or together. At Chaiken,...

ZIP CODE.(Racy leather is everywhere this fall,)(Brief Article)
June 5, 2002... Racy leather is everywhere this fall, and the top picks of the season combine the ease of a sweater with the polish of a jacket.