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Articles Of Interest
Chinese Market to Crack
Down on
Pirated Products
Page
1
AAFA Pushes For Renewed Burma
Import Ban
Page
1
China's New Quota Website
Page
1
New Yorker Plans 200 New Stores
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2
Wal-Mart Sued Over Fake Fendi Goods
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Buyers' Best Sellers
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Ask Andy
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McPete Sez
Mailbag
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Bangladeshi Factories to Reopen
Page
3
Men Still Working in Saudi Lingerie Shops
Page
3
Ask Kevin
Page
3
Kreenholmi Valduse Cuts 300 Workers
Page 4
Bra Exhibit
Page 4
La Senza's Growth Plans
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May Retailers' Sales Review
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The Buzz
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Page 3
Gap's Poor Sales in May
Only Banana Republic enjoyed same-store growth Apparel giant Gap
said summer product sales were "disappointing" in May, leading to a 6% dip in same-store sales.
Net sales were US$1.16bn compared to $1.17bn last year. Same-store sales fell 8% in May 2005.
By division, Gap North America same-sales fell 5%, Banana Republic North America same-store sales edged up 3%, Old Navy North America same-store sales dropped 8% and Gap International same-store sales plummeted 13%.
Year-to-date net sales fell 4% to $4.6bn compared to $4.8bn a year ago, while same-store sales dropped 8% compared with 5% in 2005.
Gap had admitted its turnaround strategy is going slowly. The group has been struggling to pull back shoppers after its casual clothing fell out of
favor.
Announcing poor first-quarter results last month, it predicted continued same-store sales declines during the rest of the first half.
4/12
Bangladeshi Factories to
Reopen
Clothing factories in Bangladesh’s riot-torn export zone are set to reopen after talks between
the government, factory owners and workers associations led to the signing of a ten-point
plan. The plan includes the establishment of a minimum wage board, the immediate reopening
of factories and guarantees on workers’ rights including holidays, overtime remuneration, maternity leave with pay and proper
documentation.
The chairman of the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA), Mohammed Zakir Hossain, has been fired after the violent protests late last month, in which one worker was killed and many injured in clashes with police and security forces over alleged breaches of employment rules.
Several factories were set on fire, others were damaged and vehicles were attacked, forcing the closure of all 84 clothing factories in the Savar export zone on the outskirts of Dhaka.
The news of the factories’ imminent reopening followed a meeting of the Bangladeshi government, BEPZA and Export Processing Zone workers.
State Minister for Labor and Employment Aman Ullah Aman, who chaired the meeting, said all investors and workers would have to abide by the rules of the EPZ, adding that the Prime Minister, Begum Khaleda Zia, had asked for an investigation into possible breaches of those rules.
Workers arrested during the recent violence are to be released, no workers are to be
fired, and all sides have expressed regret at the riots.
International companies, which dominate factory ownership in the zone, had threatened to pull out of Bangladesh unless they were
given assurances on security by the government.
Nearly 70,000 workers are employed in the Savar export zone, but working conditions in the country have been described as appalling,
with workers reported killed in fires because of the lack of adequate emergency exits.
All points in the ten-point memorandum of understanding are to be put in place within a month, with the exception of the minimum wage
structure, which will be implemented within three months.
20/24
www.delicateillusions.com
Polo Ralph Lauren Cuts
Fur From Collections
Polo Ralph Lauren Corp yesterday said it has cancelled all pending orders for fur products and plans to eliminate fur from all its apparel and home
collections.
The New York based company said it had been considering eliminating fur from its lines for some time, but animal rights group PETA said the decision was accelerated after Ralph Lauren, the chair and chief executive officer, saw a video of the abuses endured by animals on Chinese fur farms.
PETA says China produces more than half of the finished fur garments imported for sale in the United States.
The ban will begin with the holiday 2006 season, although the fashion firm was keen to stress in a statement that fur had only been used “on a limited basis as an accent in some collections.”
Polo Ralph Lauren has also agreed to pull all advertising for fur and says it will donate 1200 of its brand-new autumn 2006 fur-trimmed coats to charities in developing nations.
12/24
"Ask Kevin"
For all of your website questions...
Kevin and his wife have been retailing lingerie and adult products since 1988. They believe that a large portion of their business success came from the
addition of their websites to their retail store and that in today's fast paced
market, internet marketing goes hand in hand with any business.
Kevin's personal site design experiences include all levels of internet marketing and design including secure server ordering processes, merchant account integration, HTML editing, photo editing, graphic design and banner
advertisements. All of which are needed on a business style website.
Kevin also designs websites and consults clients who want to do more business online.
Kevin welcomes your questions and comments regarding website design, internet marketing, photo editing, domain registrations hosting and more. For serious website entrepreneurs, he recommends this course for complete Internet marketing training. Internet Marketing & Site Optimization Tips:
http://www.marketingtips.com/t.cgi/848190
You can ask Kevin your questions at
Kevin@mcpetesez.com
The "Ask Kevin" Column is an opinion Column and may
not necessarily reflect the views of
McPete Sez.
Men Still Working in Saudi
Lingerie Shops
Saudi women will have to continue to discuss their bra and panty sizes with male shop assistants for while. A June 1 government deadline for underwear shops across the conservative Muslim kingdom to replace their male sales staff with women has been postponed.
Some clerics are continuing to oppose the idea of women holding a job, while the government has said it is giving lingerie stores more time to hire female staff.
The deadline was announced last year to grant greater job opportunities for women. It was also meant to eliminate an inconsistency in a kingdom so puritanical it forces women to cover themselves from head to toe in public, does not allow them to travel unless accompanied by a close male relative, balks at the idea of women behind the wheel of a car - yet forces them to discuss their lingerie sizes with men.
At the moment, only a handful of all-female shopping malls in large cities cater to women seeking greater discretion. Men are not allowed to enter these centers and all the sales staff are women.
About 10,000 Saudi women have applied for jobs in lingerie shops.
More Saudis now seek jobs once considered menial amid a slowdown in growth that has seen the kingdom go from being an economic powerhouse providing cradle-to-grave benefits for all its citizens to a country still rich in oil but unable to provide jobs and security for all.
Lately, the government has been urging Saudis to get educated and snag some job experience on the grounds that the kingdom cannot afford to keep paying expatriates for jobs Saudis could do themselves. There have also been calls, rejected by the clergy, to allow women to contribute to the economy by working. About half of Saudi Arabia's 20 million people are female.
Models show off a new line of 'World Cup' underwear
by the Swiss company Triumph
Central American Textile
Producers Benefit By
New Export Fund
Textile and clothing producers in Central America are set to
benefit from a new export fund set up by financial systems operator TradeCard for its customers.
The company has joined forces with Innovative Trade Services Corp (ITS) to develop the fund in association with a number of Central
American banks.
It will offer pre-export and post-export financing to users of the TradeCard payments system in countries covered by the recently
enacted US-Central America Free Trade Agreement including Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Dominican Republic and El Salvador.
Although open to other businesses, the fund has a particular focus on textiles and apparel companies, which have the largest
proportion of trade between the US and Central America.
ITS president Adolfo McGregor said the agreement should help trade in the region. “It is expected that the textile and apparel sector
will have the greatest growth in terms of absolute values,” he added.
The fund, managed by ITS, will offer financial services and a technology platform for secure, automated transactions around the
world.
Stupid Criminals
Colorado Springs: A guy walked into a little corner store with a shotgun and demanded all the cash from the cash drawer. After the cashier put the cash in a bag, the robber saw a bottle of scotch that he wanted behind the counter on the shelf. He told the cashier to put it in the bag as well, but he refused and said "Because I don't believe you are over 21." The robber said he was, but the clerk still refused to give it to him because he didn't believe him. At this point the robber took his drivers license out of his wallet and gave it to the clerk. The clerk looked it over, and agreed that the man was in fact over 21 and he put the scotch in the bag. The robber then ran from the store with his loot. The cashier promptly called the police and gave the name and address of the robber that he got off the license. They arrested the robber two hours later.
Yankton, South Dakota: A woman was arrested at her step son's Boy Scout meeting. While watching a policeman demonstrate his drug dog's ability, the dog found a bag of grass in her purse.
Stag Shop Launches Video
On Demand
Stag Shop's DVD Manager, Lee Mattina, announced the launch of Stag
Shop's Video On Demand, beginning June 1, 2006.
Stag Shop customers will be able to view thousands of DVD quality movies from top studios in the adult industry via www.stagshopvod.com. With instant access to a list of impressive titles, stars and scenes from a variety of genres, stagshopvod.com offers pay by the minute billing with no membership costs or monthly fees.
Stag Shop's Lee Mattina is thrilled to be able to offer stagshopvod.com to Stag Shop customers. "In offering this Video On Demand service to our customers, we've been able to customize our DVD product offerings specifically for Stag Shop customers according to their DVD interests and needs," he said. "In this sense Stag Shop customers can enjoy their own private custom theatre in the privacy of their homes instantly without making a commitment."
Stag Shop customers will enjoy this pay-as-you-go service privately and securely. By offering this new Video On Demand service, Stag Shop is able to offer the same security and privacy afforded to current stagshop.com customers. "We've built a reputation for having a safe, user-friendly online business," said Mattina. "It is with this same commitment to security and respect for our customer's privacy that we offer stagshopvod.com."
About Stag Shop Inc.
Enhancing sex-positive attitudes and sexual well-being since 1972. The Stag Shop is Southwestern Ontario's original adult fun store offering everything from lube to lotions, lingerie and adult toys.
Hey Sales Reps !!!
Would you like to write an article for this newsletter? we are
looking 
for information for our readers and if you have anything to
contribute please e-mail me.
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