What: For the 2022 holiday season, Dior will strengthen its relationship with Harrods with a multi-pronged event lasting from November 10 to January 3.

Why it is important: Dior traditionally stages a summer pop-up in the London department store but is set to take over Harrod’s iconic Christmas displays, showcasing 44 windows, staging events on every floor, displaying the Dior compass rose in lights on the façade, along with a pop-up café.

Dior will launch a dedicated app for visitors to book slots for their exhibition that features small-scale reproductions of their Paris flagship, founder Christian Dior’s childhood home and Château de La Colle Noire. Harrods will carry exclusives and pre-launches alongside the 15-minute immersive Dior walkthrough attraction.

Dior to take over 44 windows at Harrods

What: La Fine Equipe opens a pop-up store at BHV.

Why it is important: The pop-up has more than 60 young creators with a renewed offer every Wednesday.

Their space in BHV is 100 metres squared with a selection of jewellery, accessories, decoration, and lifestyle products from 17 designers for the start of the school year.

Since 2015, La Fine Equipe has collaborated with many emerging brands while simultaneously bringing together different fashion players in the same space: creators, influencers, entrepreneurs and stylists.

La Fine Equipe “pops off” at BHV

What: Printemps introduced the make-over of its private-label fashion line, which are part of the modernisation strategy deployed by the group in March.

Why it is important: As part of its rejuvenation efforts, Printemps has made progress in the field of sustainability, after launching the ‘Unis vers le beau responsable’ (Together for positive engagement) initiative a year ago. With this initiative, Saison 1865 favours GOTS-certified cotton, recycled polyester and lyocell (eucalyptus cellulose), and mostly relies on Europe-based sourcing.

The aim was to create a fully-fledged fashion brand featuring the main wardrobe essentials, with an excellent value for money, and a directional twist in terms of volumes and fabrics; to be transgenerational, appealing to everyone, and eventually able to function on its own.

Giving Saison 1865 an international dimension is another growth driver for the label. Online of course, but also in upcoming locations set to open in Doha, Qatar, by the end of this year, and in New York, in 2024.

Saison 1865’s launch is supported by a press campaign and online initiatives such as partnerships with influencers and short videos broadcast online every week.

Printemps revamps private label 

Printemps Saison 1865 - Store Pictures 

What: Klarna saw its losses more than quadruple to 502 million pounds in the first quarter, blaming consumer slowdown.

Why it is important: Despite a 21% rise in the number of goods it helped to sell with revenues jumping 24% to 816 million pounds, the BNPL company pointed to higher credit losses in new markets, global expansion efforts and a rise in employee costs as the reason for not having recorded a profit in the last four years.

A slowdown in consumer spending amid soaring inflation and a looming financial authority crackdown in the UK to attempt to regulate BNPL products have significantly affected the environment in which Klarna operates.

Klarna’s value has fallen from 39.2 billion pounds in June 2021 to 6 billion pounds this quarter, following the company being caught in a technology stock sell-off due to market panic about its growth prospects.

Klarna losses quadruple

What: New owners, Central and Signa, are wanting to refurbish the underutilised space that could be a real asset to Oxford Street, as part of their plans to be the ultimate luxury online platform.

Why it is important: A plan for expansion will be put into place to be present in 11 countries, including Italy, Germany and Switzerland in order to bring promotion and awareness to their omnichannel services.

Their plan is to highlight the Selfridges global brand, its merchandise and brand curation, and specifically its exclusive collections. They will use data and technology to make the customer experience more personalized.

Selfridges is redeveloping underutilised space on Oxford Street

What: Macy’s has announced new initiatives to drive circularity through its social purpose platform, ‘Mission Every One.’

Why it is important: The newest goals of Macy’s are set around recycling which they hope to achieve by using RFID technology.

The report outlines the circularity-based solutions and services that the department store has implemented in the past few years, including reducing waste and packaging. As well, they have standardized the sizing and materials of their packing cartons.

The group’s beauty product team is launching a pilot program to ship outdated items to a third-party recycler. Macy’s has also partnered with ‘Give Back Box’ to enable customers to resell or recycle their clothing.

Macy’s sustainability initiatives

Macy’s sustainability initiatives - Source 2

What: John Lewis Partnership is recruiting more than 10,000 seasonal staff across the country to meet increased demand over the busy holiday season.

Why it is important: The group plans to offer all partners and temporary workers free food from October 3rd to January 6th as a way of helping address the rising food prices.

The 10,000 roles are within both Waitrose and John Lewis shops as well as its distribution network as the company seeks to recruit associates for its retail, delivery, temp, and supply chain operations. Those hired are promised a competitive salary, training and potential development opportunities.

John Lewis to recruit 10,000 seasonal staff roles

What: The Mexican high-end department store has utilized a surplus of cash to diversify assets geographically by purchasing 293.8 million USD of Nordstrom stock.

Why it is important: Nordstrom has enacted a 'Poison Pill' plan to make a hostile takeover more difficult and expensive by allowing current shareholders to buy at an extreme discount ultimately diluting the pursuer's stake.

Liverpool is now one of the top shareholders with the largest shareholder being the grandson of Nordstrom’s founder who reportedly holds 15.86% followed by his sister who holds 9.68%. The department store chain has seen its shares rise 10% since the start of this year with double-digit revenue growth across its business lines in Q2. On the other hand, Nordstrom has seen the value of its shares drop close to 19% since the start of this year due to the economic pressures that customers have been facing.

The Nordstrom family offered to buy shares at 50 USD in 2018 but the board refused. Now the store shares are trading between 19 and 20 USD per share. Nordstrom has set in place a plan of action to protect the company from an unplanned takeover due to a company or individual acquiring more than 10% of shares, yet denies its connection to Liverpool's recent stake in the company.

The 'Poison Pill' plan demonstrates the department store's desperation to prove that its strategies are working despite time running out in the minds of shareholders.

Mexican high-end retailer Liverpool acquires passive stake in Nordstrom

Mexican high-end retailer Liverpool acquires passive stake in Nordstrom - Source 2

Mexican high-end retailer Liverpool acquires passive stake in Nordstrom - Source 3

What: Fashion for Good and the Dutch Circle Economy foundation researched to provide insight on the value of investing in scaling up their sustainability efforts.

Why it is important: The study of six European countries looked at the textile volume of post-consumer waste, the composition of recyclable textiles, and the capacity to sort and store the textile waste.

The research found that 494,000 tons of post-consumer textiles are available and usable for recycling. The study was conducted in Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain and the UK. Despite the varying volume of textiles collected across these six countries, the research concluded a connection with the local sorting capacity.

Fashion for Good calculated the potential price per kilo for the recycled material equaling 74 million euros in total. There remains a need to invest financially in improving recycling technologies and the automation of sorting.

Textile recycling could bring 74 million euros to EU countries

What: After over two years of shuttering its stores and moving into Saks stores, the Barneys New York brand will return as beauty and wellness products, including bottled water.

Why it is important: Barney’s New York is joining the wellness and beauty trend with a four-product skincare line and artisanal water offering.

The skincare line-up, consisting of a cleanser, a serum, a day cream and a night cream, costing from 48 to 168 USD will launch alongside the debut of Barneys New York bottled water, which is sourced from Norway and will be available for 5.50 USD per 11-ounce glass bottle.

In a post-bankruptcy return, the brand is expanding into a different kind of product assortment: skincare and bottled water.

Barneys New York is back, as a beauty brand

What: John Lewis has released an advertisement that highlights the highs and lows of modern family life in connection with its renewed brand promise: ‘For All Life’s Moments.’

Why it is important: Following research on the shifting consumer habits, John Lewis has rebranded its retail endeavours to be focused on ‘moments’ that connect with each customer’s lifestyle.

In an attempt to connect with clients in a new way and to navigate the uncertain financial times, John Lewis’ newest film communication portrays the difficulties of parenting through moments shared between a father and daughter.

The ad was created by adam&eveDDB.

John Lewis launches advert for rebrand

What: New owners, Central Group and Signa have big ambitions for Selfridges, and more UK cities could see new branches opening.

Why it is important: The joint partners plan to take advantage of a possible upturn in regional cities once the cost-of-living crisis ends by opening new stores, something which Selfridges hasn’t done in the past twenty years.

There are no concrete plans for UK expansion, but the owners have expressed their intention to establish a physical presence in second-tier cities.

While the company believes they are the only solution for luxury brands in terms of distribution, competitor department stores such as Harvey Nichols and Flannels have retail locations across the UK.

New Selfridges owners debate opening new stores

What: The city's premium shopping mall Harbour City saw more than 70 new store openings in the first three quarters of 2022.

Why it is important: The shopping centre expects to see 100 new tenants this year and with relaxing quarantine rules, Hong Kong is expected more visitors.

Much of the growth has been driven by local demand as strict border controls remain intact with quarantine rules starting to loosen just last month. Retail revenue reports for the luxury shopping destination show an increase of 1% and an operating profit rise of 6% compared to the same time last year. For the first eight months of 2022, weekend and holiday traffic increased 10% year-over-year.

The Census and Statistics Department reported in July that retail sales value rose 4.1% year-over-year to 28.3 billion Hong Kong dollars, or 3.6 billion USD, reversing a two-month decline. July sales of watches, clocks and valuable gifts jumped 28.3% in value, while apparel retail sales value rose 3.7%.

Online retail sales value increased 8.6% year-over-year to 2.2 billion Hong Kong dollars, or 280 million USD.

Hints of a retail rebound in Hong Kong

What: Neiman Marcus is taking their partnership with Brunello Cucinelli to another level with a 360-degree campaign called “Muse of the West” which launches Monday.

Why it is important: The campaign is part of the company’s strategy called “retail-tainment” where they come up with more imaginative and complex experiences and presentations for shoppers that goes above and beyond the usual retail experience.

This collaboration with Brunello Cucinelli is a full-blown collection across women’s ready-to-wear and accessories- 30 different styles, and not a constructed capsule collection.

The Muse of the West collection draws inspiration from the American West with an Italian twist, blending classic imagery and elements of the West (plains, ranches, and horses) with Italian landscapes and autumnal colours.

Marketing initiatives include a lookbook and a first-time video with Carolina and Camilla Cucinelli. The video shows a dinner and fashion presentation for VIP customers and influences spending a day at the 100-acre RoadRunner Ranch in Dallas, mingling with Neiman’s executives and the Cucinelli sisters.

“Muse of the West” campaign by Neiman Marcus and Brunello Cucinelli

What: Bloomingdale’s reflects on 150 years of business and its history of propelling menswear brands as it finishes renovations on the 59th Street men’s store flagship.

Why it is important: Keeping the evolving menswear market in mind, the Bloomingdale’s team reconceptualized the space to provide increased space and a wider offer. IADS has also recently held a meeting regarding menswear which can be accessed through this link: https://www.iads.org/web/iads/5067-iads-merchandising-meeting-6-mens-fashion.php

A 13,000-square-foot shoe department that is 70% bigger with a more varied assortment of casual and dress shoes from designer to performance brands is only the beginning. That floor includes accessories, select fragrances and a gallery of hats. As well there are new areas for denim and advanced contemporary vendors.

The re-imagined store reflects the emerging post-pandemic trends for men’s fashion and shopping habits by adjusting the flow and assortment to meet the new customer demands.

Home and cosmetics are two other categories that Bloomingdale’s is looking to grow.

Bloomingdale’s modernizes menswear

What: OpinionWay and IloveRetail.fr conducted surveys listing the main expectations for website and marketplace portals that consumers prioritize.

Why it is important: The surveys list the highest ranking features for customers ranging from the possibility to return in-store to the possibility of a ‘one-click’ payment, generating a ranking of the best store portals for fashion, beauty and accessories.

Un-surprisingly, 87% of respondents said that security of payments comes first, ahead of costs, delivery times and methods, return conditions, store list and preferred store memorization. The option for a one-click payment was only considered useful by 63% and 31% of respondents.

The top sites ranked per their categories were: Kiabi, Louis Vuitton, Sephora, Decathlon, Histoire d’Or, and Marc Orian.

Most popular beauty & fashion ecommerce features

What: Fast-fashion e-tailer Shein continues to cement its brick-and-mortar strategy with its most recent pop-up in London’s West End that will house a curated collection of its seasonal lines, wardrobe staples and partywear.

Why it is important: Despite continued criticism around health and safety violations, plagiarism accusations and sustainability concerns, Shein focuses on targeting its young audience of teenage girls who are attracted to its on-trend designs at affordable prices.

The pop-up will open just in time for London Fashion Week. Younger shoppers can purchase Shein’s curation of styles from September 16th to the 18th.

Shein opens pop-up in London

What: The John Lewis Partnership reveals its ‘How we shop, live and look’ report highlighting annual insights into consumer trends of 2022 which has sparked the retailer to scrap its 97-year-old ‘Never Knowingly Undersold’ price pledge and shift to a new brand promise: ‘For All Life’s Moments’.

Why it is important: John Lewis’ findings show that consumers self-reported their plans to continue shopping despite rising living costs, citing the importance of celebrating special moments with family and friends

Shopping itself became more of an enjoyment, as 60% of people surveyed said they went shopping ‘for the joy of it’, 72% said they don’t have to spend a lot of money to be happy, and 77% of respondents said that despite the rising cost of living, it was still important to experience moments that make them happy.

People want to return to in-person events because of covid lockdowns and living in an increasingly digital world. This shift has been linked to hat sales increasing 169%, occasion shoe sales rising 38% and bridesmaid dress sales increasing 19%. The indication that people are ‘reclaiming their homes’ was linked to a decrease in soup makers and bread bins, while commute-ready laptop bag sales rose 20% and travel mugs rose 65%.

John Lewis’ report on consumer shopping trends sparks rebrand - Source 1

John Lewis’ report on consumer shopping trends sparks rebrand - Source 2

What: Entrepreneurs across Mexico are capitalizing on Shein’s cult following and cheap prices by creating networks of shops dedicated to bulk buying, warehousing and selling Shein products.

Why it is important: The lack of permanent physical Shein locations along with Mexico’s lack of trust in digital businesses and low connectivity rates in large parts of the country has made it possible for boutiques to sell the fast-fashion products despite lacking authorization.

While internet penetration has a rate of 75%, Mexico’s digital shoppers only account for 9% of the country’s formal retail purchases. Many of these boutiques instruct customers on how to order through them while selling products at the same price that appears online. The method for making a profit lies in the boutiques leveraging the gamified discount system. They receive a wholesale price by buying in bulk and receive points that can be exchanged for discounts from every purchase.

Mexico is a priority country for Shein as they have made repeat appearances of their travelling pop-up shops over the past couple of years.

Unauthorized Shein boutiques appear across Mexico

What: Amazon made a proposal in July, promising to set up a data silo to prevent its retail arm from using data to prioritize and influence its private label products using statistics from its competitors.

Why it is important: Several non-governmental groups and the pan-European consumers’ organization BEUC criticised the offer and urged the European Commission to demand adjustments.

The EU antitrust chief is in the process of assessing the complaints and will consider the suggested improvements regarding the proposal. There is also a line of communication set up between the EU and the US Department of Justice to set in place greater regulations for Big Tech.

Lack of trust in Amazon’s proposal to end unfair business practices

What: Athens is going to have one of Europe’s largest retail space with Ellinikon, slated to open in 2026.

Why it is important: Attica, a major department store in Greece (and the leading one on the luxury segment) plans to open a new door in this project. Soon we will be reviewing how the company had evolved over the years.

Ellinikon is a new real estate project being built just outside Athens, and a bet that it will soon become a must-see destination both for locals and tourists. The €8bn project will span over 200,000 sqm along the sealine, and will include a mall, stores, restaurants, entertainment, office spaces, and a retail park including big-box stores such as Ikea.

It aims at developing a distinctly Greek flavor to make sure it can attract more than a million tourists a year, and the first phase is planned to open in 2026

Ellinikon, Greece’s largest shopping mall to rise near Athens 

What: H&M and Decathlon were found to have used unclear and insufficiently substantiated sustainability claims.

Why it is important: The two retailers have pledged to inform their consumers more clearly in order to minimize the risk of misleading practices, as well as donating a total of 900,000 euros to different sustainable causes as compensation.

H&M and Decathlon were offering products under general terms, such as “eco-design” and “conscious.

H&M and Decathlon forced to stop sustainability claims

What: Frasers has recently received an irrevocable commitment to acquire 103,745,000 MySale shares from the former non-executive chairman of MySale after he quit his position due to conflicts of interest.

Why it is important: Frasers is eyeing 481,276,224 MySale shares representing 48.5% of voting rights. Because the company is listed on the London Stock Exchange, the UK Takeover Code’s rules apply meaning Frasers is required to make a mandatory cash offer for the shares not held by it or ‘any persons acting in concert with it’.

Frasers will likely buy on the open market which is trading only marginally above its original offer price of 2p per share.

In addition to acquiring the entire holding controlled by the former non-executive chairman Carl Jackson, Frasers has also received an irrevocable commitment from Jamie Jackson for 62,145,385 shares.

Frasers to make mandatory cash offer for MySale takeover

What: Nike’s shares went down due to weaker margins, a build-up of inventory, and fallen revenues in China.

Why it is important:  It became clear to Nike that the conditions in North America are shifting again.

Nike’s inventories were valued at 9.7 billion USD at the end of the quarter, up 44% from a year earlier. However, revenues in Greater China fell by 13% to 1.7 billion USD as the country continued to struggle with COVID-19 restrictions. Gross margins declined which raised concerns about just how promotional the market could become as the fashion industry and consumers muddle through a weakening economy.

Nike shares decreased by 9.2%, resulting in investors’ skittishness thanks to a dicey market complicated by supply chain troubles, inflation and the threat of recession.

Nike shares are impacted by economic turmoil