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This week, Louis Vuitton opens new NYC flagship, Dolce & Gabbana partners with Skims, and more.
RETAIL NEWS
Macy's CEO: Department stores can be repositioned as a marketplace
Macy's is trying to redefine the future of the department store as the 166-year-old retail giant attempts a comeback after years of struggles. "If I told everyone that I had a business, that we could be in the cosmetics business, we could be in the women's apparel business, we could be in the men's business, we could be in the home business, we could be in the electronics business, you might call that a marketplace and a marketplace is very attractive to people," CEO Tony Spring said at Yahoo Finance's Invest conference on Tuesday.
Louis Vuitton Goes Big — and Gourmet — With Temporary New York Flagship
Louis Vuitton 57th Street, which opens to the public on Friday, boasts a restaurant, chocolate shop and towering stacks of trunks to rival the Manhattan skyline.
The Fashion World Fears High Tariffs
President-elect Donald J. Trump has threatened a tax of at least 60 percent on goods from China — a move with the potential to decimate small American brands.
Tapestry and Capri Terminate $8.5B Merger Agreement
Tapestry Inc. and Capri Holdings are officially going their own way. The two companies agreed to terminate their merger agreement, which would have given the Michael Kors parent Capri an enterprise value of $8.5 billion and put the company under the umbrella of Tapestry, which already owns Coach and Kate Spade.
A Famed Dining Room Returns to Harrods
Harrods has revamped its Georgian restaurant, now a lavish 164-seat dining destination, continuing the department store’s legacy of retail theatre.
Dolce & Gabbana to Collaborate With Skims
The Italian luxury brand will bring a colourful ‘dolce vita’ aesthetic to Kim Kardashian’s shapewear label.
Embattled fashion house Burberry reveals massive overhaul sending shares to an all-time high
Burberry is aiming to win back shoppers and boost waning sales by refocusing on heritage designs and statement pieces under sweeping revamp plans designed to revive the luxury fashion house’s ailing fortunes. The “Burberry Forward” strategic overhaul, announced Thursday, intends to reconnect the brand with its “original purpose” while taking a more disciplined approach to product selection, with a focus on its staple coats and scarves, the company said.
Telfar to Open Its First Flagship Store
The cult apparel and accessories label’s 10,000-square-foot outpost in New York will include a year-round selection of its popular “Bushwick Birkins” and a television studio.
Alex Mill Steps Out With a Store in Rockefeller Center
The brand, run by father and son Mickey and Alex Drexler, maintains a tightly edited, classic and colorful collection, and sees potential to add more stores to the three-door chain.
Kendra Scott Expands Into Booming Western Wear Market With ‘Yellow Rose’ Store And Brand
Kendra Scott opens a new store, Yellow Rose by Kendra Scott, as the brand expands from its jewelry roots into the Western fashion market.
Luxury brands forgot about Gen Z. They can't afford to make that mistake again.
After the pandemic, luxury players took their eye off the ball with Gen Z, a generation Bain & Company estimates could account for nearly a third of all luxury purchases by 2030. Industry experts say brands took advantage of inflation by hiking prices and heavily focused on their wealthiest clients with VIP experiences, essentially putting aspirational consumers on the back burner. Two years later, this strategy seems to have backfired, shrinking the luxury customer base by 50 million, Bain reports in its 2024 luxury study.
Why founders of some small luxury brands are eyeing exits
With smaller budgets and fewer resources than counterparts owned by conglomerates like LVMH, indie brands are feeling the heat of an increasingly challenging retail landscape. Even the biggest and most successful independent brands with cult followings are under pressure.
Mulberry Bets on Lower Handbag Prices
CEO Andrea Baldo plans to turn the struggling British brand around by targeting customers looking for more affordable price points amid a wider downturn in demand for luxury goods.
So long, Fifth Avenue. The world’s most expensive shopping street is now in Milan
Milan’s Via Monte Napoleone has beat out New York’s Fifth Avenue to become the world’s most expensive shopping street, marking the first time a European city has topped the rankings.
BEAUTY NEWS
- China’s economic slowdown has presented a challenge for beauty companies for the past few years, but this quarter’s earnings reports show the slowdown spreading to the US and Europe.
- As shoppers have cut back on discretionary spending across categories, experts say price hikes have hit their limit of what consumers are willing to pay.
- Brands that break through are those succeeding with retail diversification and innovation, while Gen Alpha is starting to be taken seriously as a growth driver.
Prestige Beauty Continues to Outpace Mass in Circana’s Nine-month 2024 Results
Beauty’s growth might be slowing slightly in the U.S., but consumers remain just as engaged, new data shows. According to Circana data from January through September, prestige beauty’s growth is still beating out the mass market. The markets grew 7 percent and 2 percent, respectively. Fragrance was the brightest spot across the board, soaring 14 percent in prestige and notching 2 percent gains in mass.
Ulta Beauty bets big on market fulfillment center model
As part of its supply chain transformation, the beauty retailer is retrofitting some of its existing regional distribution centers with automation upgrades.
Credo Looks To 2025 As A Turnaround Year Following A Tough 2024
Like virtually every business this year, Credo faced tough macro conditions that caused consumers to pull back from purchasing. Beyond the economic environment, Credo, billed as the "Sephora of clean beauty" when it opened in 2015, has to reckon with its positioning in a beauty industry in which clean beauty is ubiquitous and many consumers have moved on to science-forward products.
Chanel Opens Its First House of Beauty in Paris
Chanel has opened its first House of Beauty, in Paris’ 16th arrondissement. It is the only location in the world where the French luxury brand consolidates its full beauty range and treatment offer under the same roof.
Why the Dire State of Black Beauty Threatens the Entire Industry
A decade-plus of explosive gains for Black-owned brands has given way to a slowdown in everything from funding to retail expansion — and the implications for beauty are far worse than loss of representation alone.
Who’s Winning the Beauty Retailer Race for Gen Z?
Gen Z is the only cohort whose beauty spend is growing in units, per NIQ — and the race for their loyalty is intensifying among a growing number of retail players.
What Happened to Beauty’s Billion-Dollar Brands?
BoF explores the rise and fall of indie beauty disruptors like Anastasia Beverly Hills and Morphe, while brands like Glossier stayed on top.
COMINGS & GOINGS
