Drapers
6 June 2009
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Babar Ahmed
Hailed as a denim legend by his peers, Babar Ahmed’s unrivalled product knowledge has kept profits rolling in at supplier Duty Free Clothing, despite the collapse of some of its high street customers -
Basler launches premium range
Mainstream German womenswear brand Basler will introduce a premium collection for spring 10 to help expand its customer base. -
Buckle & Hyde opens second store
Independent handbag and accessories boutique Buckle & Hyde has opened its second store in the West Midlands selling branded and own-label handbags after securing a “good rent deal” because of the difficult economic climate. -
Colour blocking
The 1980s are ruling the rails for spring 09 and colour nlocking is one of the most versatile of the decade’s interpretations, appearing on everything from sophisticated draping dresses through to figure-hugging mini styles. -
Contemporary
Autumn 09 -
Derrick Campbell
Extending Lyle & Scott’s reach beyond that of retired bankers on the golf course sparked a menswear phenomenon, but the managing director behind the idea is teeing up to drive the brand even further -
Designers are finally starting to keep it real
According to some of our top designers who choose to use mere mortals as models, “real women” are in. -
Eaden Lilley in St Ives is bought by Townrow
Independent department store business Townrow is to snap up retailer Eaden Lilley’s store in St Ives in Cambridgeshire, after the company went into administration. -
EBTM bought out of administration
TKC Direct, parent company of six-store streetwear independent Route One, has bought Everything but the Music (EBTM), the music-inspired fashion etailer, out of administration for an undisclosed sum. -
Emma Watson stars in Burberry ad campaign
Burberry has signed actress Emma Watson as the face of its autumn winter 09 advertising campaign. -
Entrepreneurs to compete for free retail space
Three retailers will be offered business support worth £250,000, including free space in a Scottish shopping centre as part of a “Dragon’s Den” style scheme. -
Fashion sales drop 3.4% in May
Like-for-like fashion sales dropped 3.4% in May as retailers held fewer promotions and faced tough comparisons with last year. -
Fashion sales see first growth in a month
Like-for-like fashion sales rose 4.2% for the week to June 7, the first increase in four weeks, as promotions helped drive trade. -
Four Marketing sees profits grow 8%
Four Marketing, which distributes brands including Stone Island and CP Company, has seen operating profits climb 8% in the first quarter of the year despite being hit by customer administrations and the weak sterling. -
Freemans owner moves buying
Freemans Grattan Holdings (FGH), the UK parent company behind home shopping firms Freemans and Grattan, is to relocate the bulk of its buying for Freemans and Grattan to Germany, following a restructuring of its UK operation, as predicted by Drapers (November 14, 2008). -
Gelco
Colourful separates and a bullish strategy have put a spring in the step of the womenswear brand -
George at Asda kicks off Back to School sales war
George at Asda is launching its Back to School range in stores tomorrow, its earliest ever launch date, with a one-price-fits-all strategy for 3-16 year olds. -
Government's credit insurance top-up scheme extended
The Government has backdated eligibility for its credit insurance scheme to October. -
High street preview: autumn 09 menswear
For autumn the big menswear chains have looked to wholesale brands for inspiration, carving up the market by age and using the most commercially significant brands in each age segment as a design blueprint. -
House Of Fraser to house Marc O’Polo concessions
Lifestyle brand Marc O’Polo will launch its first UK concessions in House of Fraser in July for its womenswear collection. -
Indie department stores target takeovers
Independent department stores are looking for opportunities to expand in the recession by buying up struggling businesses. -
INDIGOFERA
Husband and wife Nick Stavrakakis and Abby Cornelius tell Laura Jackson why their agency stands out from the rest -
JD Sports Fashion sees sales improve
Like-for-like sales at JD Sports Fashion rose 1.7% for the eight weeks to May 30, with the group’s fashion division leading the increase. -
John Lewis sales hit by warm weather
John Lewis’ sales dropped 8.2% to £44.48 million for the week to May 30 as warm weather hit footfall. -
John Studley
Drapers probes leading independents to get their View From the Shop Floor. -
Knickers in a twist
Lingerie brands that cut costs and fail to innovate are falling foul of increased competition and the perils of the recession -
Know your customer, know your market
As the new selling season starts, most suppliers are finalising their plans to tempt new and existing buyers into placing orders with their brands rather than the competition. -
K-Swiss wields axe in cutbacks
K-Swiss, the sports fashion footwear brand, is to relocate its London head office and shut down some of its European marketing operations to cut costs. -
LFN to hold second "trading online" seminar
The London Fashion Network will host the second in its series of Online Trading seminars this Thursday. -
LFW steals New York and Milan’s thunder
Are you in the mood to celebrate? It may be too soon to ask just yet, with all the mixed messages about whether or not we have hit the bottom of this downturn, but there is great cause for the British fashion industry to feel in buoyant mood this week. -
Lilly and Sid
London-based Lilly and Sid is the latest kidswear brand on the block after launching just 14 weeks ago. -
Lisa Montague resigns from Mulberry
Mulberry chief operating officer Lisa Montague has resigned. -
London College of Fashion presents Made in Britain
Drapers’ highlights from the debate chaired by writer and broadcaster Caryn Franklin -
Louis Vuitton, London
Open space complemented by chic fittings give the luxury brand’s new store an air of subtle opulence -
M&S bosses miss out on bonuses
Marks & Spencer chairman Sir Stuart Rose and other senior management at the business missed out on pay rises and bonuses last year, after pre-tax profits at the retailer dived 40%. -
Mainstream
Autumn 09 -
Meltin’ Pot returns to UK for spring 10
Italian denim brand Meltin’ Pot is returning to the UK in spring 10 as a flagship label for the Terry Bates Agency. -
Menswear Young Fashion indicator, June 6, 2009
Access Drapers’ unique source of sales information from young fashion retailers, revealing the best-selling brands, the hottest products and the latest issues to affect menswear by clicking on the PDF -
New Look set to pounce on overseas shops
High street multiple New Look is understood to be eyeing up struggling international chains to speed up its overseas expansion strategy. -
Off the record, Contour Fashion Ball
This year’s Contour Fashion Ball brought together the lingerie industry in aid of the Retail Trust and the Textiles Industry Children’s Trust. -
Off the record, The Clothes Show London
A collection of photos from the 2009 Clothes Show London where Drapers hosted a series of trend presentations. -
Onetwentyeight founder adds Number Seven store
Mark Batista, founder of streetwear show To Be Confirmed (TBC), is to open his second streetwear store in London. -
Pringle to show at London Fashion Week
Pringle, the Scottish knitwear brand, is set to leave the Milan catwalks to show during London Fashion Week this September. -
Retail Trust searches for shopfloor "stars"
The Retail Trust is inviting budding shopfloor singers and department store dance troops to enter its Search for a Star competition. -
Sarah Coggles in York
One of the original northern boutiques, the Sarah Coggles business was started by Victoria Bage more than 35 years ago and has a unique story behind it. -
Shop Direct invests £10m in etail
Home shopping giant Shop Direct Group, the owner of Littlewoods Direct, has invested £10 million in a new web platform to help it catch up with online rivals Next Directory and Asos. -
Stella McCartney to design kidswear for Gap
British designer Stella McCartney is to design a kidswear range for Gap. The collection is expected to hit select Gap Kids and Baby Gap stores in late 2009. -
The weekend newspaper round-up: June 6-7
The best of the fashion business-related headlines from the weekend’s newspapers… -
Tillman vows to bring the buzz back to LFW
The return of two high-profile designer labels to the UK’s fashion capital in September was applauded by the industry this week. -
TK Maxx ramps up European expansion
TK Maxx is to open 35 stores across Europe this year, including 10 in the UK and Republic of Ireland. -
Tommy Hilfiger posts 21% sales growth
Tommy Hilfiger saw sales rise 21% to €1.6 billion (£1.4bn) in the year to March 31, but warned that sales had slowed dramatically since October last year. -
Tomorrow’s shoppers will play hard to get
In the past year the global fashion industry has taken a hammering. -
UK Fashion Exports winners announced
Knitwear brand John Smedley took the Gold Award at the UK Fashion Exports Awards, which celebrate excellence in selling overseas, yesterday. -
Utilise the uncovered talents of our youth
In a bid to harness and encourage our country’s emerging design talent, Unique Collections and its new women’s fashion brand Forever Unique launched a competition aimed at university students from a fashion design background. Their task was to design a dress with Unique Collections turning the winning design into a working sample which would be added to the Forever Unique collection for autumn 09. -
Value
Autumn 09 -
We must invest in our future
An extract from House of Fraser chief executive John King’s speech to launch Skillsmart Retail’s Diploma in Retail Business -
Whitepeak Group launches new website
Recruitment firm Whitepeak Group has relaunched its website this week as part of its birthday celebrations. -
Womenswear Young Fashion indicator, June 6, 2009
Access Drapers’ unique source of sales information from young fashion retailers, revealing the best-selling brands, the hottest products and the latest issues to affect womenswear by clicking on the PDF -
Young Fashion
Autumn 09
