Daily LInks
1. A secretive corner of the equity market: As the U.S. comes out of the pandemic, J.Crew’s shares have nearly doubled in value over the last three months. The company is now part of a shadowy group of retailers — including Neiman Marcus, JCPenney and Belk — that have gone through bankruptcy and now sit in a kind of ownership purgatory, with their equity held by a disparate group of former creditors. – Read More on Axios
2. Retail forecast raised with 2021 sales now expected to top $4.44 trillion: The National Retail Federation is now forecasting that retail sales will grow between 10.5 percent and 13.5 percent to reach more than $4.44 trillion. The NRF previously forecast growth of 6.5 percent to 8.2 percent. – Read More on MarketWatch
3. As retail prices rise, companies employ jargon to disguise it: Retailers sometimes absorb some of the price increases manufacturers demand, and the rest is passed on to shoppers. When prices do inevitably rise, as they’re doing now, manufacturers and retailers both take cover behind neologisms that Wall Street understands but Main Street sometimes doesn’t. – Read More on LA Times
4. Online wholesale marketplace Faire raises $260 million, valued at $7 billion: There are an increasing number of tech companies that are helping small and medium-sized businesses grow online, offering shipping, payment, e-commerce platforms and marketing services, and making it possible to sell outside of the Amazon marketplace. – Read More on Reuters
5. Jessica Simpson Fashion Brand Owner Preparing to Sell Assets in Bankruptcy: Sequential Brands is nearing a deal to sell its majority stake in the fashion line back to the singer and offload other assets as part of a potential Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. – Read More on Bloomberg
1. Online Sales Exploded in 2020 – but Mostly for Retail Giants: Well-known brands like Amazon and Walmart won big last year, as consumers who were new to online retail largely turned to familiar, big-name brands, and larger companies were better able to handle supply chain and shipping issues that arose during the pandemic. – Read More on Inc.
2. India’s Covid crisis has ripple effects for garment industry worldwide: India makes up about 16 percent of textile imports to the U.S. and about 5 percent of apparel and accessories. While the country constitutes a smaller fraction of imports as compared to China, it still plays a significant role in certain sectors, including raw gems, which makes it difficult to move supply chains outside the country. – Read More on NBC
3. As people move out of big cities, fashion retail follows: “This is potentially one of the most significant dispersions of income, wealth and economic opportunity and economic activity in modern history. I really can’t emphasize it enough.” – Read More on Fashionista
4. RELATED READ: The RealReal Says Apparel Sales Are Growing, as Consumers “Revision” Their Wardrobes Post-COVID. TRR has seen a “bit of a geo shift” outside of New York City and Los Angeles – which accounted for about 40 percent of TRR’s supply units pre-pandemic – with “people in Connecticut, New Jersey, and even Long Island being a little bit more active than people in Manhattan,” which could reflect an enduring exodus from cities across the U.S. – Read More on TFL
5. Most startups spend way too much on branding: Startups that invest in branding too early can end up with a muddled design or one that doesn’t quite work for the long haul because they’ve skipped the step of fine-tuning their strategy. – Read More on Fast Co.
6. Lines between men’s and women’s fashion are blurring as more retailers embrace gender-fluid style: “Retailers and brands should be looking at gender-fluid apparel as an opportunity. It absolutely can’t be ignored. It will definitely be impacting the fashion trends of the future. And the retailers and brands that are doing it now are really going to be ahead of the curve.” – Read More on CNBC
1. Fashion e-tailer About You eyes 4 billion euro valuation in Frankfurt listing: The Hamburg startup will sell new shares worth 600 million euros via a private placement as part of the offering, and invest the proceeds in international expansion and in its business-to-business technology platform. – Read More on Reuters
2. Facing regulatory threats, Amazon ups its Q1 lobbying spending to all-time high: Seattle-based Amazon spent $5.1 million on lobbying in the first quarter, up 70% from $3.0 million in 2017, an all-time high as the company prepares for new potential regulations related to antitrust and other concerns. – Read More on S&P Global
3. What Business Leaders Need to Know About China Now: In China, when you go in to either trade with China or to invest in China, because as you say, it’s a huge prize, this giant market. You have to accept that the Chinese government will have not just an initial role, but an ongoing role as co-investor, as owner of IP, as a regulator, and they take that role very seriously. – Read More on HBR
4. Amazon scrapped arbitration, but that may not help consumers: Consumer advocates are cheering Amazon’s quiet decision to stop mandating arbitration for most customer disputes. The online retail giant, like other vendors, has heretofore included in its terms of service a ban on lawsuits. – Read More on Bloomberg
5. More than 1,300 department stores closed last year — here’s how malls are scrambling to survive: To evolve with consumer demands, some malls, even pre-pandemic, started transforming from places that provided goods to places that provided experiences. The pandemic only made this shift more urgent. – Read More on Grow
1. China’s Cautious Consumers Offer Clues for Post-Pandemic World: “Consumers are not necessarily cautious, but they are definitely more conspicuous. The long queues outside the luxury goods boutiques in China’s shopping malls seem to confirm this observation.” Also, sales of luxury cars have trumped those of middle-of-the-road options. – Read More on Bloomberg
2. Letter from gen Z: Thrifting is the future of fashion. Gen Z, in particular, has evolved the concept of thrifting, and there are three main factors driving this phenomenon: the input from brands, the role of influencers and the creation of experiences. Underpinning all this is the shift in terminology. ‘Secondhand’ and ‘used’ descriptors have given way to ones such as ‘vintage.’ – Read More on the Drum
3. May corporate bankruptcy filings fall to lowest monthly total in nearly 4 years: In May, 27 new corporate bankruptcy cases were filed, the lowest monthly total since July 2017. As of May 31, the year-to-date total was 210 cases, a lower figure than all but two of the prior 11 years — 2015 and 2014. – Read More on S&P Global
4. RELATED READ: A Running List of Fashion & Retail Bankruptcies. On the heels of an array of retail bankruptcy filings that began to unfold over the course of the year in 2016, New York-based designer Bibhu Mohapatra and retailers The Limited, Wet Seal, and Payless all made headlines when they filed for Chapter 11 protection in early 2017. They were swiftly followed by a handful of additional filings by other retailers. – Read More on TFL
5. Inside IKEA’s Digital Transformation: “The DNA of IKEA doesn’t change, and it’s important that it doesn’t. Operating model wise, it means we’re adding data, increasing speed, using analytics in all our decision-making.” – Read More on HBR
1. Rent the Runway’s business is up almost 100 percent compared to their Covid low: More customers are signing up for Rent the Runway’s subscription because they “want to consume more sustainably.” Hyman also talks about the decision to expand into the resale market in addition to their traditional rental model. – See More on Bloomberg
2. Clothes for the reopening: Brands like Athleta, Target, Wilson make a big bet that all-day workout wear is here to stay. While some look forward to again having occasions to get dressed up, the apparel industry is betting consumers won’t entirely give up the jogger pants, sweatshirts and other comfortable pieces that got them through the COVID-19 pandemic. – Read More on Chicago Tribune
3. Jimmy Choo on how Covid changed fashion and why he thinks we will dress up again: “As Covid slowly dies down, we will go back to the fashion runways. People like to hear the music and see the models. In digital, the feel is different. I think the real shows will come back.” – Read More on the WSJ
4. H&M’s online second-hand shop Sellpy launches in 20 more countries: The start-up handles the entire sales process from picking up the goods from sellers’ homes, to photographing, selling and shipping. The expansion will take its number of markets to 24 after it first launched in 2014 in Sweden. – Read More on Reuters
5. RELATED READ: ‘Pre-loved’ fashion moves from niche to mainstream as retailers join the fray: Research in the US, for resale site ThredUp, suggests that 70% of women were prepared to buy secondhand fashion in 2019 compared with 45% four years earlier. It predicts that the resale market will be bigger than fast fashion by 2029 as traditional charity shops sell more items and the for-profit resale market balloons. – Read More on the Guardian
1. Online clothes shopping has one big problem: returns. Farfetch, Asos, Yoox and Shopify are increasingly using technology to ensure online shoppers buy clothes that fit at the first time, as “the category that most retailers consistently have the highest return rates for is women’s fashion apparel and that’s mainly due to sizing issues.” – Read More on SCMP
2. Love them or hate them, Crocs are back: Sales have surged during the pandemic and the brand’s signature foam clog is turning up everywhere.” – Read More on the Washington Post
3. ‘Cruella’ Designer Snubbed Over Licensing, Costume Designers Guild Decries Unfair Practices. “Historically, this is a huge issue for our membership, and for all costume designers,” says CDG communications director Anna Wyckoff. “Because, as everyone knows, a costume has a long life after the project — in merchandising and toys and Halloween costumes. So, there are many opportunities for the costumes to be used in an ancillary marketing fashion.” – Read More on Variety
4. If you care about fashion ethics, it’s time to start paying attention to Amazon warehouses: Amazon is “the largest online clothing retailer” in the United States and the behemoth corporation is a precedent-setter for the future of retail. “Amazon plays a much larger role in the world of fashion than we tend to think.” – Read More on Fashionista
5. DC’s antitrust suit against Amazon will rely on high burden of proof: The District of Columbia claimed Amazon.com Inc. engaged in anticompetitive conduct, but analysts believe courts will require a rigorous standard of proof for the case in the absence of any U.S. precedent on the matter. – Read More on S&P Global
1. Watchmakers Don’t Invest Enough in Typography, And It Shows: Hermès’ approach to watch typography is unusually poetic. In reality, only a small and decreasing number of watchmakers go to the trouble of creating custom lettering for their dials. More often, watch brands use off-the-rack fonts that are squished and squeezed onto the dial’s limited real estate. – Read More on Bloomberg
2. Luxury consumers in Vietnam prefer shopping for Gucci, Chanel and Dior on social media sites rather than physical stores – and the trend only grew during Covid-19: E-commerce in Vietnam grew 46 per cent year on year, alongside strong growth across most sectors except for travel. Looking towards 2025, they suggest the e-conomy will reach $52 billion in value, ranking third in Southeast Asia. – Read More on SCMP
3. How to trade Europe’s incoming ‘revenge spend,’ according to BlackRock: A strong rebound in economic activity will lead to a deluge of consumer spending on dining, drinking, travel and leisure. Also … consumers are increasingly balancing share price decisions against criteria of sustainability, suggesting that companies with strong social, environmental and governance are rapidly becoming a “must-have” in investment portfolios. – Read More on CNBC
4. Fashion Could Feel Effects of COVID-19-Induced Labor Crisis Until 2023: Globally, the world’s 2 billion-strong informal work sector — think delivery workers, ride-share drivers, day laborers in factories and farms — remain vulnerable because they lack basic social protection. In fashion, this informal labor is found in subcontracted garment work and the heritage handwork of textile artisans, among other areas. – Read More on Yahoo
5. Luxury’s Battle for the Metaverse: Luxury names are indeed in the process of creating their own version of metaverses by tapping consultants, early adopters, and gaming experts to devise their immersive spaces. “All of the luxury brands are planning things and talking about how to create a virtual digital representation of their brand as another touchpoint.” – Read More on Jing
1. Less Is More, Retail CFOs Find as They Plot Post-Pandemic Strategy: Finance chiefs at apparel retailers are working to reduce inventory levels, lower rent payments and rely less on promotions in an effort to increase profitability. Smaller orders from suppliers help with reducing the amount of promotions that retailers need to run to sell their products. “We want people to buy things when they see it, and not wait for a sale.” – Read More on the WSJ
2. Approaches To Retail, Entertainment and Banking Onboarding: Gap and Costco cited sizable growth in eCommerce sales in their quarterly results, but Gap plans to close stores as Costco looks to expand its brick-and-mortar footprint. In acquisitions, Amazon plans to buy iconic film studio MGM. – Read More on PYMNTS
3. China’s woke Gen Z want sustainability, mindfulness and “invisible luxury.” Discreet luxury is another consumer trend that has become a priority post-pandemic. Considering that the gap between the haves and the have-nots has grown significantly in the past year, it is hardly surprising that the affluent class avoids displaying their wealth and now prefers a less visible, silent form of luxury. – Read More on SCMP
4. The Company Starting to Break Down Fashion’s Waste Problem: A positive climate impact would be a key selling point for any business marketing recycled textiles, but proving that will be tricky. Because there’s so little accountability data in the fashion industry, there’s no generally accepted baseline from which to measure. – Read More on Bloomberg
5. Experts seek standardized rules for climate-related disclosures by companies: Adopting the disclosure norms recommended by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, or TCFD, can be a step as countries in the region set net-zero goals for carbon emissions. Japan, New Zealand and Australia are aiming net-zero by 2050, and China by 2060. – Read More on S&P Global
1. The rise of the haute hand-me-down: Passing down clothes from one child to the next isn’t new – even the royal brood are habitually seen in outfits that once belonged to other family members. But the hand-me-down is acquiring a cachet with the rise in sustainable fashion and new childrenswear brands aiming to shift to a circular economy. – Read More on the FT
2. Why even rich Chinese consumers choose counterfeit brands: Despite significant progress in the fight against counterfeiters, it only takes a few clicks for Chinese consumers to acquire the fake luxury items of their choice. The relative ease of buying and selling counterfeits, and the increased sophistication of their production and distribution, remains a headache for many luxury brands. – Read More on SCMP
3. RELATED READ: From the Climate Crisis to China, What Companies Need to Focus on When it Comes to Brand Protection. Online IP commerce enforcement is now the number one priority for brand owners. But they cannot ignore that fake products must still be made and shipped; IP owners must work out how to apportion resources, to stop visible online offers and target the offline sourcing trade behind this. – Read More on TFL
4. Retailers and unions agree on 3-month extension to Bangladesh workers’ safety accord: Retailers and unions negotiating over a legally binding workers’ safety accord in Bangladesh due to expire on Monday reached a tentative deal to extend it by three months, unions involved in discussions said, provided the around 200 signatory retailers agree on the extension. – Read More on Reuters
5. Women could add $280 billion to Southeast Asia’s e-commerce market by 2030: The “anonymity” of e-commerce has reduced many of the barriers to entry traditionally faced by women and afforded them the opportunity to thrive in new sectors. – Read More on CNBC
6. Mexico accuses Zara, Anthropologie & Patowl of cultural appropriation: The Ministry of Culture said Zara, owned by Inditex, the world’s largest clothing retailer, used a pattern distinctive to the indigenous Mixteca community of San Juan Colorado in the southern state of Oaxaca. – Read More on Reuters
1. What would happen if the world stopped shopping? The greatest danger for the garment trade is not a slowdown in shopping, but a failure to find a way to slow down shopping. In a world in which billions of people already have enough apparel, the only way to keep them buying is to generate unnecessary demand. – Read More on Fast Co.
2. Brick-and-Mortar Retail Isn’t Going Away: The pandemic experiment provided some useful perspective regarding the next leg of e-commerce adoption, supporting our contention that omnichannel will outperform. Omnichannel was clearly very popular among new e-commerce shoppers (given that both rose in tandem in 2020). – Read more on Morning Star
3. RELATED READ: From Luxury Stalwarts to Millennial Makeup Brands, How Companies Are Catering to Post-COVID Consumers. If recent trademark applications are any indication, Glossier has plans to engage with consumers in the post-pandemic brick-and-mortar landscape beyond its existing few flagship stores. The buzzy beauty brand filed a handful of applications for registration with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for “Glossier Alley.” – Read More on TFL
4. British retail faces “tsunami of closures” without rent help: Citing survey data it said two thirds of British retailers have been told by landlords they will be subject to legal measures to recover unpaid rent from July 1 when the moratorium ends. The survey found 80% of tenants said some landlords have given them less than a year to pay back rent arrears. – Read More on Reuters
5. Nasdaq-Beating Multiples Threaten to Cool Europe’s Luxury Sizzle: Stellar earnings, M&A speculation and the promise of post-lockdown demand have sent shares of companies like LVMH and Hermes rocketing to all-time highs, giving them multiples far richer than the Nasdaq 100. “These companies are Amazon-proof, they know how to protect their brands.” – Read More on Bloomberg
6. There’s more to China’s post-pandemic boom than meets the eye, economists say: Diminishing returns on investment, increased corporate leverage and high government debt means that Beijing will be hard-pressed to sustain the status quo for much longer. The rebound in China’s growth is very much driven by infrastructure investments — not by consumption — and in my opinion, it’s driving imbalances in the Chinese economy.” – Read More on NBC