Let The Negotiating Begin

Is it me, or does Egg Nog taste better when you drink it any other time of year except Christmas. I digress.

There are some things you can count in January:

1. Gyms will be packed (the resolution crowd)

2. Sports Bars earn their money (Football crowd)

3. Fewer people in front of office building shivering (smokers vowing to quit...again, the resolution crowd)

4. Clash of the Titans (retailers and vendors "talk" about markdown money)

I was reading the morning papers and I came across this article regarding what vendors are doing to minimize the impact of markdown-happy merchants.

(Reuters) - Clothing manufacturers, irked by the deep holiday discounts offered by retailers, may force department stores to absorb a larger chunk of the markdowns, Bloomberg reported.
Fashion company Liz Claiborne Inc, HMS Productions Inc and other apparel companies plan to push back at the retailers who slashed prices as much as 70 percent this holiday season, the agency said.
The agency cited Lou Breuning, president of New York-based HMS, saying the company was asking department stores for concessions. HMS sells Spence blouses at Dillard's Inc and Cable & Gauge knits through Macy's Inc.
Apparel manufacturers and department stores will meet before the retail fiscal year ends on January 31 to determine how to split discount costs, the agency said.
Liz Claiborne, HMS and Macy's could not be immediately reached for comment.
U.S. retailers faced what could be the worst holiday shopping season in nearly four decades as a year-long recession, tighter credit and mounting job losses squeeze household budgets.
Despite markdowns of 60 percent to 70 percent and extended store hours, retailers' hopes that the last weekend before Christmas would bring shoppers to stores were dashed, as poor weather kept many consumers huddled indoors.

On The Move...

Eilidh MacAskill, managing editor of InStyle, has been named editor in chief of British InStyle, effective February.

Trish Halpin, editor in chief of British InStyle, has been named editor in chief of Marie Claire U.K. Halpin will replace Marie O'Riordan, who resigned.

Lisa Schiek, global communications director at Tom Ford, will be leaving the company in early 2009.

Nathaniel Schachter is leaving his position in V and VMAN's marketing and events department after the holidays.

After two years at Prescriptives, Libbie Hess is now a global communications associate with Estée Lauder.

Lauren Sweder, public relations director for What Comes Around Goes Around, has resigned.

Gwen Wunderlich-Smith has officially launched Vital Public Relations as president and partnered with Vital Marketing.

Traci Young, formerly of Oxford Industries (owner of Tommy Bahama, Ben Sherman & Arnold Brant) has joined design house Robert Graham as vice president of PR and marketing.

ALSO...

Alison Brod Public Relations announces its representation of Hanky Panky.

The Bromley Group announces its representation of Fashion Forms.

People's Revolution announces its representation of Alternative and Davidelfin.

KCD announces its representation of Dunhill.

Season's Greetings From BRAG

PLAY TO ENJOY

Financial Education Series: Hedge Funds

There has been a lot of coverage in the media about the financial markets. Some of the MBAs BRAG has come in contact with over the weeks have been really chatty about the role retail is playing as a key economic indicator, especially this time of year where every lead story on the news is about retail sales.

They also mentioned that private equity and hedge funds are playing a huge role because some hedge funds and equity firms have put a large amount of capital into the retail sector. Apollo Group, the private equity firm managed by Leon Black, is the owner of Linen's & Things. As you already know Linen's & Things had to be liquidated and sources say, that Linen's & Things is currently have trouble liquidating due to the depressed credit market.

Prentice Capital, the hedge fund that was able to turn around Wet Seal, has been hit hard by the bankruptcy of KB Toy Stores. The fund CEO, Michael Zimmerman thought lighting could strike twice when he took the same strategies he used to turn around Wet Seal, and apply them to KB Toys. Experts say the reduction of inventory strategy for KB was a botched one, because it deprived the store of hot game consoles like the Nintendo Wii.

Some people are not exactly sure how hedge funds and private equity were able to buy some of their holdings when cash was so scarce. We had the same question at BRAG so we were able to have the Senior Editor of Marketplace, Paddy Hirsch (video below)explain how hedge funds acquire leverage.





A look inside hedge funds from Marketplace on Vimeo.

Malcolm Gladwell On Deliberate Practice

This is one of the best interviews I've seen on Charlie Rose- Malcolm Gladwell, the Caribbean-American writer from the New Yorker, stirs up some controversy on the concept of deliberate practice. I remember talking to a SVP of a major retail company about this very concept of "Deliberate Practice". Watch the video and let me know what you think.

On The Move...

Traci Young, formerly of Oxford Industries (owner of Tommy Bahama, Ben Sherman & Arnold Brant) has joined design house Robert Graham as vice president of PR and marketing.

Lisa Schiek, global communications director at Tom Ford, will be leaving the company in early 2009.

Nathaniel Schachter is leaving his position in V and VMAN's marketing and events department after the holidays.

Eilidh MacAskill, managing editor of InStyle, has been named editor in chief of British InStyle, effective February.

Trish Halpin, editor in chief of British InStyle, has been named editor in chief of Marie Claire U.K. Halpin will replace Marie O'Riordan, who resigned.

Jesse Oxfeld, formerly senior editor at New York, has left the magazine.

Sheila Mahony, formerly director of marketing for Cottage Living, has been named integrated marketing director for Food Network Magazine.

After two years at Prescriptives, Libbie Hess is now a global communications associate with Estée Lauder. Lauren Sweder, public relations director for What Comes Around Goes Around, has resigned.

Gwen Wunderlich-Smith has officially launched Vital Public Relations as president and partnered with Vital Marketing.

Also...

The Bromley Group announces its representation of Fashion Forms.

People's Revolution announces its representation of Alternative and Davidelfin.

Shop 'Round The Clock

I was on the train this morning, thumbing through the New York Times to see what was on sale and I came across a Lord & Taylor full page ad. It's not unusual to see a L&T ad, what was strange was the store hours; 6am- 1am! 1am, really?? It had to be a misprint. I put on my BRAG connections cap and made a few calls to L&T and sure enough, 1am was correct.

It seems many of our department stores are banking on insomniacs like us at the BRAG office to shop 'til the wee hours of the morning, because my sources at Macy's told me that they will be open 24 hours starting Saturday.

My only question is what does one wear to 1am shopping? I think it should be a pajama party in the aisle.

Vera Wang Pulls Out of Lavished Tent Show

I came across an article in "the journal" (The Wall Street Journal for those of you that are in the know) about big name designers pulling out of lavish shows during Fashion Week. This is important because for years the big name designers would cover the cost of Fashion Week and the smaller core of diverse designer could ride their coat-tails all the way to fashion notoriety. It will be interesting to see what this means for Black designers that are looking to make a name for themselves in 2009.
Here is an excerpt from the article:

High profile designer Vera Wang has decided not to stage a pricey runway show in February in what could be the start of an exodus of American designers from the official New York fashion week venue.

Ms. Wang, who will hold a low key event at her new boutique in Manhattan's Soho district, is the most prominent designer to drop out of the shows. Earlier this week, designers Betsey Johnson and Carmen Marc Valvo said they would forgo the lavish runway productions that can cost up to $500,000 but provide important publicity to the labels.
"We feel that the intimacy of a smaller venue will be the perfect backdrop for the collection and is an appropriate statement for the times," Ms. Wang said in a statement.
Associated Press

A look from the spring 2009 Vera Wang collection at Fashion Week in New York in September.
The fashion industry is being hit hard by the pullback in consumer spending this holiday season. Department stores such as Saks Inc.'s Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus Group Inc., which are the main buyers of American designer labels, have reported steep declines in sales in October and November and have canceled orders.

by Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan (click to read full article)

THE POWER OF NETWORKING

Is this day and age it's not what you know and it's not even who you know. It's how may "friends" and how many "connections" you have. Yes, technically that counts as "who you know", but in the digital age "knowing" someone takes on an entirely different meaning. At BRAG we know the power of networking and staying connected.

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In 2009 we will be launching some new initiatives that will help us all stay connected. Whether it be for employment opportunities, education or just staying visible in the industry, we want to make sure our members are in the spotlight and are armed with the tools to stay current.

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Until then take a look at a few sites we recommend.

JOIN THE BRAG LINKEDIN NETWORK

VIEW THE BRAG/FIT FACEBOOK PAGE

On The Move...

Michael Scarpa, formerly president of Liz Claiborne Inc., has been named chief operating officer (and chief financial officer, effective January 5) of Talbots, Inc.

Andrew McLeon, formerly of Liz Claiborne, has been named chief operating officer of the European operating division of Urban Outfitters Inc.

Melissa Pordy, formerly director of media investment solutions at Cheil Communications America, has been named assistant vice president of advertising for Cartier North America.

Michele Promaulayko, formerly executive editor of Cosmopolitan, has been named editor in chief of Women's Health.

Eleanor Banco, formerly associate director of public relations for style.com and men.style.com, has been named director of public relations for TeenVogue.

Per Inglander, formerly chief executive officer Rozae Nichols, has been named senior vice president of wholesale for Lacoste USA.

Bill Andrulevich, formerly general manager for Condé Nast's Fairchild Fashion Group, has been hired as executive vice president of operations and business development for Stylesight.

David Kurtz, formerly senior sales executive and China country manager for Worth Global Style Network (WGSN) in Asia, has been hired as senior vice president of sales for the Asia/Pacific Region for Stylesight.

Isham Sardouk, formerly design director for Victoria's Secret Intimates, has been hired as senior vice president of trend forecasting for Stylesight.

Jennifer Styles, formerly of Harrison & Schriftman, has left to create The Workshop, where she serves as managing partner.

Michael Crooke, formerly CEO of Revolution Living, has been named chief executive officer at Prana Living LLC.

Trey Sarten, previously with FULL PICTURE, has joined the Starwood Hotels Global PR team, working on the W Hotels and Le Meridien brands

Deanna Kangas was just appointed CEO and president of Stila Cosmetics.

ALSO:
Ashley Robb is no longer with Keri Levitt Communications. Her last day was Friday, December 5.

Krupp Group announces its representation of jewelry designers Kimberly McDonald and Roxanne Assoulin for Lee Angel.

Paul Wilmot Communications announces its representation of WOOLRICH John Rich & Bros.

On The Move...

Lewis Hopkins, formerly vice president and divisional manager of women's couture and evening apparel at Neiman Marcus, has been named senior vice president and general merchandising manager of women's wear at Holt Renfrew.

Cory Ohlendorf, previously of the Washington Post and most recently senior editor of DC magazine, has left to pursue the growth of his men's style site, Valetmag.com.

Redbook photo editor Annemarie Castro Muscatella has resigned and will be the photo director at Parents starting December 15. Her last day at Redbook is December 12.

Emily Debevoise, formerly of the accessories department at BluPRint, has been named West Coast VIP manager for Tod's.

Jill Fehrman, formerly acessories coordinator at BluPRint, has been promoted to head of the department.

Alison Brod PR announces its representation of Kelly Van Gogh ColorCouture. They will also now work in conjunction with Judith Ripka's internal PR team.

Deep Discounts Draw Shoppers

Sales in the nation’s stores were strong over the weekend, to the relief of retailers that had been expecting a holiday shopping period as slow as the overall economy.

But while spending was up, there were troubling signs in the early numbers. The bargains that drove shoppers to stores were so stunning, analysts said that retailers — already suffering from double-digit sales declines the last two months — would probably see their profits erode even further. Also, after shoppers flooded stores on Friday, foot traffic trailed off significantly on Saturday and Sunday.

Retailing professionals consider the weekend after Thanksgiving a barometer of overall holiday sales, which account for 25 to 40 percent of their annual sales. And in a year marked by an economic crisis, they are desperate for any signs that consumers are still willing to spend.
Their first glimpse came from two industry surveys released on Sunday. ShopperTrak, which does research for retailers, said sales increased 3 percent on Friday, compared with last year.
The National Retail Federation, adding up sales Thursday through Saturday and projected sales for Sunday, said that each shopper spent about 7 percent more this year than last year. Shoppers spent an average of $372.57 Friday though Sunday, according to the federation, a trade group.

“It seems that not only did retailers do a good job of attracting shoppers but it seems that shoppers were also excited again to take part in the tradition of Black Friday weekend,” said Kathy Grannis, a spokeswoman for the federation.
That study also showed that Friday was by far the busiest day of the weekend, with traffic trailing off by more than 16 million people on Saturday.
Analysts said the discounts that drew in shoppers over the weekend were so steep that many ailing chains might be no better off in the long run.
“You’re looking at discounts of 50 to 70 percent off,” said Matthew Katz, managing director in the retail practice of Alix Partners, an advisory and restructuring firm. “You have to sell two to three times as much to break even.”

Chains as varied as Target and Neiman Marcus offered goods at some of their lowest prices ever. At Target, a 26-inch LCD HD-TV, originally $429.99, was selling for $299. Last week Tracy Mullin, president and chief executive of the National Retail Federation, noted that “this could be the most heavily promotional Black Friday in history.”