March 15, 2001
Issue # 46
Sleepwear-Daywear-Foundations-Loungewear-Hosiery-
Swimwear-Dancewear-Clubwear-Funwear
Ready to-wear.
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New research published earlier this month shows that by
2002, 90% of procurement professionals will be buying online vs. 25% today!
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Retail apparel chain Charming Shoppes Inc. on Thursday reported sales at its stores open at least a year
fell 7 percent from a year ago in February, as unseasonably
warm weather hurt the performance of its spring merchandise.
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Federated,
Profits Lower
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Federated Department Stores Inc.
on Tuesday reported lower fourth quarter profits as the slowing U.S. economy squeezed results
and prompted lingerie seller
Intimate Brands to warn of challenging times ahead.
Most retailers saw holiday purchases, which typically account for about 25
percent of annual sales, fall off sharply from a year ago as higher interest
rates, falling stock markets and a spike in fuel costs cut into shopping budgets.
Federated, parent of Macy's and Bloomingdale's stores, reported income before charges in the quarter ended
Feb. 3, 2001 fell 3.1 percent to $434 million, or $2.15 a share, compared with $448 million, or $2.04 a share
in the same quarter a year-ago.
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The Limited Reports Income Decline
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Specialty clothing retailer The Limited Inc. on Wednesday reported a 18 percent decline in fourth-quarter net income and
announced plans to sell its Lane Bryant division and restructure its men's
apparel business. The company met Wall Street's earnings expectations.
For the three months ended Feb. 3, The Limited earned $243.1 million, or 55 cents per share, compared with $294.9 million, or 66 cents per share in
the year ago period.
Analysts polled by First Call/Thomson Financial expected earnings per share
of 55 cents. The company has hired Lazard Freres to find a buyer for Lane Bryant, a women's plus-size clothing retailer.
The company had 688 Lane Bryant stores at the close of its last fiscal year, when those stores produced sales
of $934 million.
Intimate Brands profits fall, sees 2001 challenge
NEW YORK, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Lingerie retailer Intimate Brands Inc.
said on Tuesday its fiscal fourth-quarter profits fell 16 percent to meet analysts' lowered expectations and said given the current
state of the U.S. economy it expects the first three quarters of 2001 will be ``challenging.''
``Obviously the fourth quarter of 2000 was a major disappointment for us,'' Chairman and Chief Executive Leslie Wexner said
in a statement. ``Up until that point, we were well on our way to delivering excellent earnings growth for our investors as we
had each year since taking (the company) public.'' ``That said, given the U.S. economic situation, we are planning for modest profit growth in 2001, and we are expecting the first
three quarters of the year to be particularly challenging,'' Wexner said.
White lingerie, part of the Miss Dior Fall/Winter 2001/2002
women's underwear collection presented in Milan, Italy, Saturday,
Feb. 24, 2001. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni)
More on the Milan Show on page 4
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Over in the UK, four ready-to-wear exhibitions provided
retail buyers with an opportunity to monitor trends as they occurred across the entire fashion scene. Trims, checks,
formal eveningwear, corsets, and pastel colours contrasted with tie-dye and batik inspired designs, and a range of
print effects.
For more on this story go to Londons
Mood
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Gap Reports Decline in Profits
NEW YORK (AP) -- Gap Inc. the largest U.S. apparel retailer, reported a 34 percent decline in fourth quarter profits and warned that first quarter results
may fall short of expectations, citing a ``very difficult'' selling environment.
7/24
Nordstrom Rack to Open First Store in San Francisco
SEATTLE, Leading fashion specialty retailer, Nordstrom Inc., (NYSE: JWN - news) announced
today it will open a new Nordstrom Rack store at the 555 Ninth Street Retail Center in downtown San Francisco in fall 2001.
Nordstrom Rack is the off-price retail division of Nordstrom, Inc. offering customers 30 - 75% off regular retail prices. The
42,000 square foot store will be located approximately one mile from the Nordstrom full-line store at San Francisco
Centre.
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U.S. retail sales growth slowed in February from a year earlier as consumers, made skittish by the weakening economy, shied away from buying spring apparel at
stores like the Gap and instead sought bargains at such chains as Kohl's, Kmart and Wal-Mart.
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Shops see big drop in retail sales, nation's consumer confidence
American consumers are losing confidence in the economy and are less satisfied with the products they buy, which is not an
encouraging scenario for the financial future of the country.
Last week's report from the Conference Board reported consumer confidence has dropped to its lowest level since June
1996. "The erosion in consumer confidence continues to be fueled by weakening expectations regarding business and
employment
conditions," said Lynn Franco, director of the board's Consumer Research Center.
While the survey found a majority of the people said they believe the economy still is good, they are increasingly concerned
about the stability of the job market. When workers start fretting about the security of their jobs, they have a tendency to
become financially
cautious.
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Legs are back in fashion.
Not since the 60's when miniskirts and 
hotpants ushered in a decade of colored, printed and fishnet stockings, have legs enjoyed so much exposure. Modernist Jean-Paul Gaultier is just one of the fashion leaders who is doing the haute leg, giving bodysuits and hosiery a brand new luxury twist for Spring.
The fishnet, as opposed to the Internet, hosiery plays a big role in this hosiery
revival. Fashion's favorite designers have put them on the runways and pronounced them chic. That's a long way from the time when they were
associated with cabaret dancers, ladies of the night or Punk rockers.
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UK: Courtaulds Picks Up The Pieces
For M&S
Courtaulds ladieswear factory in Peterlee, Co. Durham, which made around 70 per cent of its workforce redundant
following M&S’s decision to source clothes offshore, has found a new line of business – mending apparel from the
foreign companies that now supply M&S.
The 60 workers who have kept their jobs at the Courtaulds plant say they are now repairing shoddy workmanship
shipped in from the foreign companies.
Sue Sowerby-Scott, shop steward for the GMB union said: "The quality of the overseas work is dreadful and we have
been restitching and reshaping the women's clothing that comes in from abroad.
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UK: Textile And Apparel
Job Losses Speed Up
The number of people employed in clothing and textiles in the United Kingdom has more than halved in the last 20 years.
And figures gathered by the Office for National Statistics indicate that the rate of job losses is increasing with the move to
offshore production.
Between 1980 and 1999 a total of 360,000 jobs disappeared from the industry in the UK, reducing the workforce to
336,000 - an average of just under 19,000 jobs a year lost during the period. Figures for the period from 1993 to 1999
show the rate of job losses slowing. A total of 79,700 jobs were lost in that time - an average of just over 13,000 a year.
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Deb Shops Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year
Financial Results
February Same Store Sales Increase 3.5%
Net sales for the full year increased 6.4%
Deb Shops, Inc. (Nasdaq: DEBS - news), a leading teen apparel retailer, today
reported record financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended January 31, 2001. The Company also released
February apparel sales and same apparel store sales for the month ended February 28, 2001 and announced guidance for the
company's first fiscal quarter of 2002 and for the full year.
For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2001, net sales rose 9.1% to $83.0 million compared to $76.1 million in the fourth quarter a
year ago. Gross profit was $37.5 million resulting in a gross margin of 45.2% for the current period versus gross profit of $32.4
million and a 42.6% gross margin in the fourth quarter of 2000. Fourth quarter net income rose 24.5% to $13.8 million
compared to $11.1 million in the prior year while diluted earnings per share totaled $1.02, compared to $0.82 last year, a
24.4% increase.
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Nordstrom Rack, the off-price retail division of fashion specialty retailer Nordstrom, Inc., announced today it will open a new
store at the Esplanade Shopping Center in Oxnard, California.
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Sara Lee Corp. said Wednesday that it expects operating profit at its intimates and underwear business to
rise in the fiscal 2001 fourth quarter despite aggressive price cuts by Fruit of the Loom Ltd. which will affect
Sara Lee's Hanes brand.
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