WWD articles from May 2009

WWD archives from May 2009

Joe's Jeans Net Spikes 149% In First Quarter.
May 1, 2009... Byline: Ross Tucker Growth in international markets and a boost in sales from the opening of four stores lifted results for Joe's Jeans in the first quarter. For the three months ended Feb. 28, the premium denim label said earnings...

In Brief.(Consumer Product Safety Commission on babyGap recall)(Thomas Lynch as chairman of Frederick's of Hollywood Group Inc.)(Brief article)
May 1, 2009... BABYGAP RECALL: The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a voluntary recall Thursday of more than 20,000 babyGap children's coats sold in the U.S. and Canada. The toggle fasteners pose a risk of choking for children because they could...

Unemployment Figures Aid Rise In Retail Stocks.
May 1, 2009... Byline: Evan Clark In another sign of how expectations have been altered by the recession, Wall Street essentially yawned through the bankruptcy of Chrysler on Thursday and retail shares rose 1.8 percent as the number of new unemployment...

Memo Pad.(American Society of Magazine Editors' National Magazine Awards)(Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia sales)(Desiree Rogers on new WSJ. magazine)
May 1, 2009... THE BIG WINNERS: The New Yorker, Esquire, Backpacker and Wired were the big winners at the American Society of Magazine Editors' National Magazine Awards on Thursday evening, taking home three Ellies each though none of the women's fashion...

Dsquared Twins Becoming Media Personalities.(Dan and Dean Caten)
May 1, 2009... Byline: Jean Scheidnes Get ready for a lot more of dan and Dean Caten. The brothers behind the Dsquared label are headed for the airwaves. All of their projects are intended to raise consumer awareness of Dsquared in America. The...

Nordstrom Offering Men's Style Tips.
May 1, 2009... Byline: Jean E. Palmieri NORDSTROM IS GETTING INTO THE BOOK BUSINESS. Just in time for Father's Day, the Seattle-based department store will publish the "Nordstrom Guide to Men's Style," a hardcover tome from Chronicle Books that is...

Camuto Inks Simpson Intimates Deal.(Camuto Group and Vandale Industries on Jessica Simpson lingerie collection)(Brief article)
May 1, 2009... Byline: Karyn Monget In another extension of the jessica simpson name, the Camuto Group has signed a licensing pact with New York-based lingerie company Vandale Industries to produce a collection of intimates bearing the name of the...

House Reintroduces Modified Design Piracy Bill.
May 1, 2009... Byline: Kristi Ellis WASHINGTON A bipartisan group of House lawmakers reintroduced a modified version of a bill on Thursday that would provide three years of copyright protection for fashion designs. The bill has been championed...

WWD ICSC Preview.(Brief article)
May 4, 2009... SECTION II Challenging Times After a wave of store closings and bankruptcies, and as the industry gathers for the ICSC convention in Las Vegas, landlords in the U.S. and abroad no longer have the upper hand over retailers. They're...

Space Glut And Retail Rut.
May 4, 2009... Byline: David Moin Developers are eager to deal amid rising vacancies and shrinking demand for square footage. There is no such thing as a free lunch. Tea and Scones, however, can be another matter at the Somerset Collection, a luxury...

Market By Market: Europe's Ups And Downs.
May 4, 2009... Byline: WWD Staff Rents and real estate values decline in a shrinking economy. MILAN Declining output, rising unemployment and a lack of cheap debt have made for a difficult year for the commercial realty market in Europe, and...

Tokyo's Ao Dares To Be Different.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Amanda Kaiser Striking 16-story design screams for customers' attention. TOKYO The Ao building, a newly opened retail and dining complex, makes quite an architectural statement one its retail tenants hope can lure...

The Meatpacking District's Latest Chapter.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Sharon Edelson Diversity is coming in the shape of museums, recreation and more retail. NEW YORK The Standard Hotel pierces the sky over Washington Street, towering over older and smaller neighboring buildings below....

Apparel Is Dispensable, Survey Finds.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Valerie Seckler U.S. consumers are first to cut clothing. More consumers in the U.S. are planning cuts in discretionary spending in the next 12 months than the consumers in eight other regions worldwide and apparel is the...

Texas Socialites Talk Shopping Recession-Style.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Holly Haber Less is in Vogue even in Texas. While the Lone Star State isn't suffering in the recession as much as California, Florida, Michigan and other locales with 6.7 percent unemployment in March versus the national figure...

Coming This Week.(Brief article)
May 4, 2009... MONDAY: Accessories and Intimate Apparel Market Weeks, New York (through Friday). Accessorie Circuit, Designers & Agents and Intermezzo Collections, New York (through Wednesday). The Estee Lauder Cos. Inc. reports third-quarter sales...

Thom Browne Ceo, CFO Depart.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Jean E. Palmieri The silhouette is not the only thing shrinking at Thom Browne. The high-end men's wear label has parted ways with its chief executive officer and chief financial officer, WWD has learned. The departures of...

Fashion Scoops.
May 4, 2009... THE NEXT HALSTON? Halston is looking for a new creative director, and one name being bandied about for the gig is none other than Olivier Theyskens . According to sources, Vogue's Anna Wintour is keen to find Theyskens, who recently exited Nina...

Biel Latest Addition To Revlon Team.(Jessica Biel as ambassador for Revlon Inc. )(Brief article)
May 4, 2009... Byline: Molly Prior One day after getting a new chief executive officer, Revlon Inc. named actress Jessica Biel as the latest Brand Ambassador for its flagship brand. Biel joins Halle Berry, Jennifer Connelly, Jessica Alba, Beau...

Panel Speaks On What It Takes To Succeed.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Gillian Koenig and Julie Naughton "When I go to work in the morning, I take two Tylenol because I know I'll have a headache," a wry John Demsey, group president of the EstA[c]e Lauder Cos., told an audience of 300 at the Fashion...

Here's The Good News!
May 4, 2009... Byline: Bridget Foley "YOU PEOPLE ONLY WRITE THE BAD NEWS." "You think? Well then tell us some good news." So went the challenge, and you responded with crisp perspectives and admirable candor. There is no question the industry...

A Cautionary Mood Engulfs Market.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Karyn Monget May market is shadowed by rising concerns among innerwear executives about the swine flu outbreak, which has many vendors on edge. Although a number of manufacturers said they foresee few or no cancellations, there...

Memo Pad.(Visionaire's May issue )(Jennifer Garner as ambassador for Save the Children)
May 4, 2009... IN THE SWIM: V magazine's May issue is the fashion insider's answer to the annual Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue. Editor in chief Stephen Gan and Mario Testino started talking about producing a different kind of swimsuit issue last year and...

Mayor Proposes N.Y.C. Sales Tax Hike.(Michael Bloomberg )(Brief article)
May 4, 2009... Byline: Stephanie D. Smith Mayor Michael Bloomberg wants to increase the New York City sales tax to 8.875 percent from 8.375 percent in an effort to plug holes in the city's budget. The hike would raise an additional $552 million in...

Komar Co. Acquires O'bryan Bros.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Karyn Monget The Komar Co., a 101-year-old innerwear firm, has acquired the assets of O'Bryan Bros. Inc., the 88-year-old Chicago-based warmwear manufacturer. O'Bryan Bros. generates annual wholesale volume in excess of $50...

Unite Here's Wilhelm Rejects Settlement Offer.(John Wilhelm)(Brief article)
May 4, 2009... Byline: Kristi Ellis WASHINGTON John Wilhelm, president of UNITE HERE's hospitality division, rejected an offer Friday by representatives of a breakaway union to enter into a settlement or begin arbitration, following the collapse of...

Designer Maria Pinto Honored At SAIC.(School of the Art Institute of Chicago's Legend of Fashion award)
May 4, 2009... Byline: Beth Wilson After garnering national attention as First Lady Michelle Obama's designer of choice on the campaign trail, Maria Pinto joined the likes of Anna Sui and Nicole Miller as the recipient of the School of the Art Institute...

Nancy Gonzalez Expands With Retail Move.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Sophia Chabbott While many brands are taking this point in time to consolidate and conserve, Nancy Gonzalez is poising itself for growth. The Cali, Colombia-based brand known for its luxurious array of exotic skin handbags has...

Atelier Minyon Brings Essence Of Turkey To Soho.
May 4, 2009... Byline: Sophia Chabbott Turkey is known for its grand bazaar, melding of cultures and flavors, and its fine jewelry. The fine jewelry industry has found itself captivated by Turkish jewelry in the last few years, with exports such as...

Natori Inks Eyewear Pact.(Natori Co.'s licensing agreement with Zyloware Eyewear )(Brief article)
May 4, 2009... Byline: Karyn Monget The Natori Co. has signed a licensing agreement with Zyloware Eyewear to manufacture, market and distribute Natori Eyewear. This will mark the lingerie and apparel company's entrance into the eyewear field. The...

Retail Stocks End On Down Note.(Brief article)
May 4, 2009... Byline: Arnold J. Karr and Evan Clark THE WINNING STREAK ENDED AT SEVEN. Retail shares weren't able to pull off an eighth consecutive week of gains, falling 2 percent on the week after a 2.3 percent decline on Friday, but their...

Weekly Stocks.
May 4, 2009... 52-WEEK***************VOLUME*****AMT High*****Low*****Companies*****P/E**********Last*****Change 77.25*****13.66*****Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF)*****8.9*****20350297*****25.92*****0.56 26.31*****8.50*****Acadia...

In Brief.(Finlay Enterprises Inc. report)(Brief article)
May 4, 2009... FINLAY CONCERNS: Finlay Enterprises Inc. said, in its annual report released Friday, there is "substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern" due to its 2008 operating loss, the expectation of another loss in 2009 and its...

Rock Stars.(precious stones wore by celebrities)
May 4, 2009... The "Taj Mahal" necklace Richard Burton famously gave to Elizabeth Taylor . A blinged-out watch owned by Elton John . And Steve Wynn 's 231-carat diamond that was heavy enough to sink a small ship. All were on display Thursday night in honor of...

Memo Pad.(Azzedine Alaa)
May 8, 2009... WEAR AND TEAR: Azzedine AlaA[macron]a isn't easing up on his anger over the Costume Institute exhibit "The Model As Muse" and the Monday night gala but perhaps it's misplaced. AlaA[macron]a is upset none of his designs were included in the...

Stop 'N' Shop.
May 8, 2009... Less than 24 hours after the costume institute gala ended, the fashion pack was at it again, flocking to the Upper East Side to mark the opening of the new Marni boutique. "It seemed like good timing, there was good energy," said Consuelo...

Eye Scoop.(Annette de la Renta's testimony on Brooke Astor case)
May 8, 2009... Byline: Elisa Lipsky-Karasz ANNETTE DE LA RENTA, DAY TWO: After a delay of two hours, many tears in the gallery from a distraught Charlene Marshall , and the dismissal of one juror, Annette de la Renta took the stand Thursday at the...