Drapers
31 March 2007
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Adams Kids loses senior team as new owner rejigs management
The senior management team at Adams Kids is to leave the company following a shake-up by its new owner. -
All clear for Pitti Immagine venue in Florence
The venue for the Pitti Immagine trade shows has been given the all-clear, after fears it would have to close for allegedly breaching refurbishment regulations. The Fortezza da Basso in Florence hosts the Pitti Uomo menswear show, Pitti Bimbo kidswear event and textile fair Pitti Filati. The next show at the venue is Pitti Uomo on June 20-23. -
Attracting a higher calibre of thief
Trying to sell some more expensive brands had unexpected consequences for Michael Ashison -
Baugur superstore gives me deja-vu
Whether or not Baugur’s new Souk concept makes it to the UK - and at this stage it’s difficult to see exactly what place it would take on a national high street already dominated by its fascias - the new superstore in Stockholm will no doubt give our retailers considerable pause for thought. -
Black Magic
From punk-inspired black leather and rivets to the new vogue for hats in all their permutations, Drapers rounds up the key accessory looks of the season -
Changes afoot as Treds unveils own-label and kids' collections
Independent young fashion footwear chain Treds has launched an own-label and kids' offer for spring. -
Cushe adds two new members to its team
UK footwear brand Cushe has made two new appointments. Neal Wells, previously with eyewear and lifestyle brand Oakley, is now global sales and merchandising manager, and Liam Fahy, a past winner of the Drapers Student Footwear Design Award, has joined the brand's design team. The label has now signed international distribution deals in France, Germany, Japan, Bulgaria, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Belgium and Portugal. -
Day Birger et Mikkelsen hunts for London sites
Danish contemporary bridge brand Day Birger et Mikkelsen is scouting west London for two boutique locations and is gearing up to open concessions in five or six House of Fraser stores this August. The business, which has a turnover of £30 million, plans to increase its retail offer and wholesale distribution following investment from Icelandic group Baugur. The brand already has a store in London's Sloane Street. -
Drapers Share Monitor - Acquisition talk bolsters Sports Direct
In a typically bold move, Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley this week snapped up 3.14% of sports brand Adidas, the label that has ironically been moving to tighten up its distribution policy to protect it from discounting. -
Early Sales are mad as a March hare
Rebecca Furbank is mystified by the short-term attitude of the high street's non-stop discounting -
Emanuel Ungaro to launch outdoor ad
Luxury brand Emanuel Ungaro is running a billboard advertising campaign in the UK to highlight its spring menswear offer. The two-week campaign broke nationwide on March 26. The move is part of a bid to re-establish Emanuel Ungaro as a leading worldwide menswear brand. -
Exploiting the Beckham effect
Wale Adeyemi's original career ambitions amounted to a job in window-dressing, but the Londoner overshot the mark to become a designer with bullet-proof credibility. His reputation was cemented when David Beckham was snapped wearing his iconic graffiti-print jacket. Adeyemi has since proved his versatility by designing for A-listers including Beyonce Knowles and Alicia Keys. He now has his own womenswear line, is creative director of urban range Fabulous 500 and is a consultant for US basebal -
Ex-Z closes its Zara end-of-line stores
Five-store business Ex-Z, which sells end-of-line Zara product, has shut all of its stores. The chain, run by a company called X-ara, operated five stores in outlet centres in Lincoln, Spalding in Lincolnshire, Durham, Braintree in Essex and Castleford, West Yorkshire. Zara UK said the company was not part of its operation, or a franchise arrangement, and that it had no plans to operate outlet stores itself. -
Fashion retailers taking a hike for charity
Places for the 2007 CARE International charity challenge are filling up fast. The event, sponsored by Prima Solutions (pictured), is on September 16 and involves hiking, biking and canoeing around Snowdonia National Park to raise money for CARE. For details, visit www.carechallenge.org.uk. -
Fat Face to trial kids' store as new owners eye growth
Lifestyle retailer Fat Face is planning its first kidswear standalone store as it expands the category under new owner Bridgepoint. -
Freespirit set to lose Quiksilver
Surf brand Quiksilver is pulling out of Blacks Leisure Group's Freespirit chain following demands for revised supply terms. -
French manufacturers to line up in London
A group of 12 French contract clothing manufacturers will show at an event in London next month. Participants include ACC, Getex, Jacques Bremaud and Textile Du Maine. The show, organised by the French Embassy, will take place at Le Meridien Piccadilly Hotel in London on April 18. -
Harrods reveals store plans for Terminal 5
Harrods has unveiled plans for its new concept store at Heathrow Terminal 5. -
Hazel Curry
Air passengers want more than ever from an airport retail offer. Hazel Curry is tasked with planning the fashion mix at BAA’s new Terminal 5 at Heathrow -
Independents lash out at 'unfair' business tax hikes
Independents have reacted with anger to the three percentage point rise in small business corporation tax in last week's budget. -
International ambition for Eton outfitter
Men's outfitter New & Lingwood, which supplies Eton College with handmade shirts and hosiery, is looking for an investment partner to fund international expansion. The company, which is owned by South African shoe retailer Anthony Spitz, has appointed Cavendish Corporate Finance to raise £10 million. -
Intimas on track for store debut
Lingerie supplier Intimas Group will open its first high street standalone store in the UK by the end of the year. -
Joules clothing sales correction
Sales at multi-channel retailer Joules Clothing increased by 180% to £1.6 million for February, surpassing its target of £1.2m, and not as stated in Drapers (March 24). -
Laura Ashley to increase its clothing offer as sales rise
Laura Ashley reported a 25.9% rise in fashion sales for the year to January 27. Fashion accounted for 18% of the chain's total annual sales of £225 million, including homewares and accessories. Laura Ashley chief executive Lillian Tan said the retailer, famed for its floral prints, would grow its clothing offer to account for 20% of the business this year. Laura Ashley is to celebrate the boost in fashion sales by launching a heritage range on April 16. The 26-piece Laura Ashley Archive colle -
Legal notices
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London hosts first Folk shop
UK contemporary men's casualwear label Folk has opened its first store this week on Lamb's Conduit Street in Holborn, London. The 600 sq ft store not only stocks the Folk menswear label, by designer Cathal McAteer, but also sells its footwear sister brand Shofolk, as well as complementary brands including Blue Blood, 6876, Humanoid, Tretorn, BSA and Birkenstock. The store's footwear range will be displayed on a specially commissioned art installation by Swedish designers Vujj. The shop was cr -
Monsoon chief takes early exit to join La Senza
Monsoon chief executive Rose Foster has quit the company two months earlier than planned, to join lingerie retailer La Senza. The move comes as Monsoon appointed ex-Somerfield chief executive Steve Back as financial director, to replace Mark McMenemy, who left this month. -
Mosaic on the hunt for new UK locations
Mosaic Fashions is scouting for up to 25 locations for new Warehouse and Principles stores in the UK. It has appointed retail agents CWM, Leslie Perkins and Michael Peddar to look for sites. -
Myer to sell Jeff Banks in Australia
British menswear designer Jeff Banks is to launch a menswear collection in upper- to mid-market Australian department store Myer through local licensee Ransal. His eponymous label will offer a range of men's suits, shirts, ties, shoes and accessories across the full portfolio of Myer stores in Australia. -
Myleene Klass joins line-up for M&S TV ads
Marks & Spencer launched its new TV ad campaign this week, with musician and TV presenter Myleene Klass joining the line-up for the retailer's spring campaign. Coinciding with the ads, M&S unveiled its revamped website, operated by Amazon.com, which includes colour-changing and zoom features. The retailer also launched its 'Do you need a bag?' eco-initiative this week. -
Nation lands second store at Stansted
Fledgling surfwear chain Nation will open its second store at Stansted Airport next month. The retailer, which was founded by wholesale surfwear veteran Peter Caldwell, plans to concentrate on opening in airport locations, before venturing onto the high street. -
New sales boss to increase Criminal activity
Young fashion brand Criminal has appointed Mark Giltrow as sales director. Giltrow moves from Levi's, where he was sales director. He replaces Peter Lynes, who has left the company to set up his own sales agency. Criminal is preparing to open its third shop, in London's Portobello Road, in May. -
New sales manager joins John Smedley
Knitwear brand John Smedley has hired Simon Tennant to take on the newly created role of sales manager. Tennant spent more than eight years at welted footwear specialist Alfred Sargent, most recently as sales manager. He will join John Smedley on April 3. John Day will remain at John Smedley in his role as sales director. -
Next chooses Slough to test its new fascia
Next has chosen the home of the BBC’s The Office as a test bed for its image overhaul by unveiling its new logo in Slough, Drapers can reveal. -
North-west nears retail saturation point
The north-west of England will become saturated with retail space by 2015 because more than double the required space is being developed, according to research from the British Council of Shopping Centres. The area has 8.4 million sq ft of shopping centre space in the pipeline, excluding retail parks. However, research from market analyst Experian indicates that the north-west region only requires 4.6 million sq ft to satisfy retail spending growth. -
Off the record
Rumours, gossip, parties -
Pavers kicks off Staccato growth
UK footwear independent Pavers is to open 20 stores under its young fashion fascia Staccato over the next two years. -
Phase Eight hopes to quadruple UK portfolio
Phase Eight believes it can add 150 stores to its existing 60-strong UK portfolio, after its recent sale to a group led by Icelandic bank Kaupthing. One of the main investors involved in the buyout, Jane Norman chief executive and Phase Eight non-executive director Saj Shah, told Drapers that it was considering all major UK locations and the market could handle up to 250 Phase Eight shops. Separately, Jane Norman has been approached by a number of potential US franchisees interested in taking -
Profits slump for Alexon in Dolcis aftermath
Alexon is expected to report full-year profit before tax of between £7.4 million and £7.7m on Monday, a fall of 62% on the previous year due to the sale of its underperforming Dolcis chain in December. City analysts said they were cautious about Alexon's recovery prospects despite shedding loss-making businesses Dolcis and Mandolin. -
Radley's first big ad campaign is in the bag
British accessories brand Radley is to launch its first major ad campaign for spring 07. It will break on April 1 with double-page spreads in weekend broadsheet supplements, including You magazine, Sunday Times Style and Stella, running until May. This will be followed by ads in Hello!, Grazia, Vogue, Vanity Fair, Tatler, Harpers and Elle. The £500,000 campaign was created by ad agency DDB London. -
Retailers say Primark will lift Oxford Street
Primark will open its most high-profile store to date next week when it unveils its new flagship on London's Oxford Street. -
River Island celebrates as pre-tax profits rise
Pre-tax profits at River Island are understood to have risen by more than 10% to over £155 million for the year to December 31, with sales increasing at a similar rate. Turnover for the same period in 2005 was £595.4m. The retailer has unveiled plans to expand abroad and is poised to roll out stores in Europe. Locations are expected to include Spain, Germany, Belgium, Austria and Luxembourg. -
Sandk to sell Danish brand Holly's in UK
Danish casualwear label Holly's, which offers babywear, kidswear and womenswear, has been taken on by kidswear agency Sandk in the UK. Holly's offers mix-and-match styles, mostly in cotton, with the spring collection priced from EUR7 (£4.76) for a long-sleeved baby's body suit and EUR17 (£11.56) for a women's tank top. -
Sell-off hint as Baugur's Souk opens
Baugur is to start selling off parts of its retail portfolio over the next two years, in a bid to prove it is not just an acquisitive investor. -
Shock departures at New Look as shake-up begins
New Look menswear director Andy King and business change director Kate Gibbins have left the business as part of wider management restructuring. -
Skinny model inquiry may hit retailers' ads
The British Fashion Council's inquiry into the use of unnaturally thin models at London Fashion Week could have wider ramifications for fashion retailers, if it is found that their advertising encourages an unhealthy body image. -
Supply Chain Focus: Brands - Chain links
When a fashion brand decides to open its own stores, an effective distribution strategy and supply chain is vital for ensuring sales success -
Supply Chain Focus: Etailing Logistics - Putting the e into retail
As the internet boom forces more fashion retailers to grapple with online retailing and become multi-channel operators, industry experts pick out the key logistical challenges. -
Supply Chain Focus: Future Strategies - Thinking ahead
What key factors will shape the supply chain model of the future? We posed questions to two retailers and two logistics providers -
Supply Chain Focus: Mosaic Fashions - Piecing together Mosaic
Balancing huge growth with the logistical demands of eight brands is all in a day's work for Mosaic distribution boss David Roberts -
Supply Chain Focus: Warehousing - Location, Location, Location
Choosing the right site for your distribution centre is about balancing costs with location. We take a look at the current hotspots and what they have to offer -
Talking Shop correction
The Talking Shop column that appeared in Drapers on March 24 was wrongly attributed to regular columnist Martin Jones, the managing director of the Vaughan-Davies menswear store in Mold, north Wales. It was in fact written by Richard Vaughan-Davies, an occasional contributor to Talking Shop and the owner of the store. -
The Drapers Fashion Fix Poll
Every week we ask Drapersblog.com readers their opinion on the question of the week. -
The Icelandic raider's cool-headed conquests
As fashion giant Baugur unveils its new superstore concept, its retail boss Gunnar Sigurdsson talks about the Icelandic group’s investment philosophy. -
UK suppliers wary of Asda pitch
UK manufacturers have given a positive but cautious reaction to Asda's proposal for Dragon's Den-style 'meet the buyer' sessions for its George brand, after it said it was looking to source more UK-made product. -
Urban Outfitters joins Bluewater and Dundrum
Urban Outfitters will open stores in Bluewater in Kent and Dublin in the Republic of Ireland this year. The 11,850 sq ft Bluewater store will open in June, while the Dublin shop will open in the Dundrum mall by December. The US chain has four stores in the UK and an existing store in Dublin. -
Wolford sets ambitious target for UK expansion
Luxury legwear brand Wolford is on the expansion trail in the UK, with plans to double its standalone store count, increase its shop-in-shop presence and open concessions. -
Woolworths plans standalone Ladybird shops
Woolworths is seeking sites for its first standalone Ladybird kidswear store in the UK, chief executive Trevor Bish Jones has said. Ladybird sales at Woolworths stores rose 5% in the past 26 weeks.
