What: All 14 restaurants set to open in Printemps Doha will be supervised by a seasoned executive from the hospitality sector.

Why it is important: This appointment results from a double need to connect the F&B offer to the rest of the store features (especially in terms of systems) while also making sure that all points of sale are coherent with the general concept in terms of level of service.

Printemps Doha has announced the appointment of Paolo Alabiso as head of F&B, overseeing all 14 restaurants that will open in the store.

Alabiso has a track record in hospitality and is also credited with brining in global brands such as Pierre Marcolini to Middle East.

Printemps Doha appoints an hospitality executive to manage F&B 

What: Macy’s chief merchandising officer, Nata Dvir, discussed Macy’s priorities and objectives, as the retailer navigates challenges in the supply chain and shifting consumer shopping behaviors at the Jefferies Annual Consumer Conference.

Why it is important: Dvir started out stating that, Macy’s strengths in gifting, whether it’s for Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day; tailored clothing, and dresses, though she also cited strides in refined sportswear and the more casual sides of the business.

During the pandemic, part of what Macy’s sharp on was how they thought about inventory productivity. A lot of this was in flight, but the pandemic was an opportunity to think through what the sell-through of an item might be, what is the life cycle of a product. It has really taught Macy’s to think differently about every receipt dollar they spend, but also about making it easier for the customers to shop.

Macy’s is also so excited about so many things that are starting to check. Customers are going back into everything, events, working, and real life. Every moment now feels like a special occasion. Whether they are going up a size, or down a size, they have to really replenish their wardrobe.

Macy’s is conservatively forecasting that sales will be flat to up 1% for the full yea, but has been on a roll the last few quarters including reporting a net profit of USD 286 million in the first quarter this year, up from USD 103 million in the year-ago period, on a comparable sales gain of 12.4%.

It’s expected that among the categories that will be bolstered or will be new to the assortment are toys, pet supplies and technology. Both Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s will be growing their digital businesses by launching marketplace formats next August. Retailers operating online marketplaces procure merchandise through a few business arrangements including revenue-sharing agreements, commissions, wholesaling and drop shipping.

Macy’s is embarking on a sweeping overhaul of its private brand business, which accounts for just under 20% of the total business.

Macy’s CMO on shifting priorities, challenges and shopping trends

What:  Stockmann celebrates its 160th birthday with a nationwide exhibition.

Why it is important: The company has undergone some serious issues in 2019 – 2021, with a bankruptcy process and the sale of almost all its real estate, in addition to the war in Ukraine which has had some consequences on its partnership with the Stockmann Russian operator. It is therefore key to relay positive messages.

Stockmann, which celebrates its 160th birthday, has opened an exhibition showing the history of the company (which has become a stapple for all Finns) in the Helsinki department store. The exhibition will then be touring Finland in 5 other company’s stores.

The exhibition features memorabilia as well as historical pictures.

Stockmann opens a touring history exhibition in its department stores 

What: GMG has launched a new Nike concept store in Hong Kong as part of its plans to ramp up its investment in Asia.

Why it is important: This investment comes at a time when the business is especially difficult in Hong Kong. This could explain why Nike is not operating directly according to its global DTC startegy.

The store, which spans over 2171sqft in the East Point City shopping mall in Hang Tau district, sells sportswear for men and women in various categories including running, training and basketball.

GMG has partnered with Nike since 1982 in other markets. The company entered Asia in 2020 after buying Royal Sporting House, a leading multi-sports retailer and recently bought Nike retail stores from SUTL Corporation, expanding its presence in Singapore and Malaysia. The group currently operates more than 25 Nike stores in Asia, including 11 stores in Hong Kong, and represents 120 brands across the Middle East, North Africa, and Asia, including Under Armour and Timberland.

GMG sees Asia as a significant potential market, with Hong Kong’s sports and outdoor category predicted to reach 2.3 million consumers during the next three years.

Deputy chairman and CEO at GMC explains that “Asia is propelling the retail industry forward, generating a substantial portion of global growth in the sector and offering immense potential and expansion opportunities for GMC.”

“The opening of our new Nike store in a key market such as Hong Kong, the first in two years, further signifies the recovery of a post-pandemic economy while allowing us to strengthen our physical retail presence in Asia and empower even more people to embrace an active and healthy lifestyle.”

Nike concept store opens in Hong Kong 

What: South Korea’s duty-free shops are starting to see their long-awaited business recovery with a growing number of group tours.

Why it is important: According to a Lotte Duty Free official, some 150 tourists from Malaysia shopped at the Myeongdong branch for an hour on Tuesday before returning to their country.

Some 170 Thai tourists flew in on Monday to Jeju Island and shopped at Lotte and Shilla Duty Free shops. Jeju and Yangyang International Airports have resumed the visa-waiver program that has been suspended for over two years due to the COVID-19 outbreak.

Shinsegae Duty Free said approximately 30 tourists from Vietnam visited its Myeongdong branch on May 27.

Amid growing expectations for a revitalization of the group tour business, which accounts for 80% percent of total duty-free sales, stores are rushing to make renovations.

Lotte Duty Free Myeongdong recently installed three additional elevators exclusively for duty-free customers. Shinsegae Duty Free Myeongdong has completed renovation work of stores that sell electronic appliances and food products.

The South Korean government will lift a seven-day quarantine mandate for unvaccinated arrivals from overseas. It will also normalize the number of international flights and scrap the curfew for late night and early morning flights at Incheon International Airport.

Tourism: group tours to resume?

What: The new 12,000 sqm store in Liverpool will open on June 23.

Why it is important: This unit, which bears the name of a retailer but is operated by an hospitality operator, will be as much about retail than leisure and entertainment.

The new Flannels store in Liverpool is scheduled to open on June 23. We already reported the partnership with Barry’s here, on a total surface of 700 sqm, out of a total 12,000 sqm surface for the entire store.

More partnerships are announced, with the opening of a series of restaurants, which makes sense as the operations are held by Zanna Hospitality Group, which owns a dozen or so of F&B concepts.

The new Flannels Liverpool store has an opening date 

What: Joining other retailers investing more in augmented reality, Walmart announced this week that it will release two new app-based AR tools for at-home and in-store shoppers.

Why it is important: The new “view in your space” feature, which will be rolled out to all customers by early July via the iOS app, allows shoppers to view select furniture and decor items in their spaces. This will initially be available for 300 items but Walmart will expand the offering to back-to-college items in the coming months.

The other feature – which does not have an anticipated launch date and is still in development – is an in-store AR app feature to personalize product information. Shoppers and employees will be able “to simply point their mobile device camera at our store shelves via the Walmart app to filter our assortment based on your personal preferences,” per the post.

Walmart to release at-home and in-store AR tools

What:  GDR pays a visit to the newly opened Wow Concept store in Madrid.

Why it is important:  Experience and visual impact are supposed to be the magic key to attracting millennials… but spectacular stores also have to be profitable, which is another story.

GDR paid a visit to the new WOW Concept store which former El Corte Inglés CEO Dimas Gimeno just opened in Madrid in March over 5,500 sqm. Interestingly, they draw some conclusions that are not in line with the promises made in the press release of the company.

The reporter mentioned that the visual aspect of the store was astonishing, with a strong and impactful visual merchandising. For him, this is the proof that stores, if inspiring, are here to stay, but between the lines he also wonders if many of the visitors were really buying something or taking pictures.

The omnichannel approach is at the heart of this concept, by asking customers to buy on digital screens (there are no checkouts). This allows to present more brands online 250 than actually physically displayed (150). One may wonder however the efficiency of this setup knowing that it is difficult to sell something that is only presented online (as the article suggests that different products are presented online, not just simple color variations of products on display).

Finally, to keep the buzz, the store has also been designed to be always exciting through a permanent popup approach (just like Showfields), the possibility to also navigate in the metaverse, and the opening of a social space dedicated to local communities in order to foster conversations. Since the store is not fully functional yet, the reporter did not have the possibility to make himself an opinion.

A visit at Wow Concept store in Madrid 

What: Bernstein expects luxury demand to go back to an even keel and growth trajectory in China.

Why is it important: China’s strict COVID-19 restrictions led to a 6.7% year-over-year decline in retail sales of consumer goods in May, to 3.35 trillion renminbi.

The contraction in May was better than in April, which logged an 11.1% dip from the prior year. In the period between January and May, China’s retail sales of consumer goods were 17.17 trillion renminbi, down 1.5% from the same period in 2021, when the country enjoyed relatively robust growth while other economies struggled due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

In the past month, the Chinese government has been adjusting its dynamic-zero COVD-19 policy and announced a broad package of economic support measures to stimulate the economy.

A Bernstein report published Thursday predicts that the luxury and beauty industry will bounce back quicker than those catering to the mass market in China. Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Hermès and Dior were among the first to recover. Local media reported that long lines formed outside their stores in Shanghai’s luxury shopping mall Plaza 66 on the first day they reopened on May 29, after the city came out of the lockdown.

It’s also been reported in the local media that luxury brands in Shanghai were coming up with creative ways to entice high-spending customers during the lockdown, such as sending fancy takeaway meals and putting rare bags worth more than 100,000 renminbi on delivery platforms.

Companies with robust China supply chains like L’Oréal and Proya are gaining share during disruptions, while companies with supply chains disrupted by Shanghai lockdowns, including Estée Lauder and Shiseido, may see slow shipment recovery in the second quarter, despite strong online sell-through.

With regard to the broader apparel and footwear sectors, Bernstein suggests there will be a bounceback as restrictions ease, led by e-commerce, as China distribution centers and last-mile delivery are back on track, while in-store recovery will be slower as people remain nervous about going back to stores until mass testing eases.

China’s demand for luxury is back 

What: Walmart is testing its new store concept prior to rolling it over its home territory.

Why it is important: They are making the most of the learnings made during the pandemic ( in terms of social distance and feeling of comfort) and taken a new approach to merchandising and store organization. This might bring a new approach in physical grocery stores that could expand over the US.

Walmart released the first of its 50 remodels it is planning in Texas, in the Dallas Fort Worth area where it owns ¼ of the grocery market share and 35% when including Sam’s Club.

The new concept is all about improving navigation and ease of usage:

• Simpler titles and numbering to have alleys better identified,
• Wider aisles, with improved brand signage,
• Shopping carts with phone and drink holders,
• Grab-and-go section with individual snacks at the entrance of the grocery section,
• Dollar shop section at the entrance of the general merchandise entrance,
• Electronic section reorganized along long display tables, including proximity stocks to avoid having customers waiting for the products to come,
• News services such as free barbecue assembly at home,
• More checkout personnel and self-checkout lanes, including a Walmart-plus dedicated one aiming to convey the advantages of being a member of the loyalty program.

Walmart releases its new concept in Texas 

What: Shein's Adam Whinston spoke of the company's sustainability plan covering supply chain, carbon emissions and droves of customer data.

Why is it important: Leaning heavily into Shein’s data, head of sustainability, Adam Whinston, aimed to lay to rest some misconceptions about the company. Speaking to Shein’s small batch production (only 50 to 100 pieces) and real-time feedback loop from customers, Whinston argued the model is a “transformative” approach that “reduces our overall production and creates less waste.”

Shein styles have a 98% sell-through rate. Referencing customer data including a 15,000-person survey, only 1% of Shein customers are only wearing their Shein pieces once. Along with a 7% return rate, the company also found evidence of its customer engaging in circular habits despite the alleged quality indifference of fast fashion goods.

Whinston addressed the mission to expand Shein’s “EvoluShein” capsule line, which is a sustainably-billed line using recycled polyester, into the company’s broader sustainability aims. One goal is to convert its entire viscose base to CanopyStyle sourcing standards.

Along with improved auditing standards, Shein is “exploring on-shoring,” and already counts on a new Indiana warehouse to reach the land-locked U.S. consumer.

Shein’s head of sustainability sets company record straight

What: Lotte Shopping reported a net profit of 69.1 billion won ($54.2 million) in the first quarter, beating market expectations of 37.9 billion won,

Why it is important: Profit rose as footfalls increased at Lotte Department Store branches with the easing of restriction rules. Department stores sales in Korea rose 9.8% on year to 726 billion won.

Lotte Shopping Q1 results

What: Chanel’s 2021 revenues rose 23% over pre-pandemic levels to USD15 billion. The brand now plans to open private stores for top clients as rapid growth risks overcrowding its stores.

Why is it important: Chanel’s sales grew far faster than the wider luxury market, and roughly one-third slower than rival leather goods powerhouse Hermès. Growth was driven by a “balanced” mix of price increases and higher volumes.

As sales continue to surge, the company remains committed to maintaining a tight store network, it presently has only 250 fashion boutiques. The company plans to boost customer service by hiring more than 3,500 new employees, including many sales associates.

Chanel also plans to open separate, private boutiques dedicated to serving top-spending clients, starting with locations in key Asian cities by early 2023.

Chanel to open dedicated boutiques for top-spending clients

What: Hudson’s Bay hired Nadira Singh as its new CFO.

Why is it important: Singh will report to Wayne Drummond, president of Hudson’s Bay.

HBC has been shifting its physical and digital operations over the past year. In June, the company announced it would separate Saks Off 5th’s digital arm from its brick-and-mortar stores after receiving USD200 million from Insight Partners and other investors. About two months later, the company made the same decision for Hudson’s Bay and dubbed its online business The Bay. The moves illustrate the parent company’s attempt to manage its real estate holdings as the retail industry shifts toward e-commerce.

Hudson’s Bay appoints CFO

What: Ulta Beauty unveiled a retail media network that leverages data from a rewards program with 37M rewards members.

Why is it important: The new UB Media platform draws on consumer profiles linked to the brand’s Ultamate Rewards. Advertisers using UB Media can tap into that data to inform campaigns spanning display, video, social media and influencer marketing, along with on-site sponsored product placements on Ulta-owned properties.

Ulta is also providing “closed-loop” campaign reporting services that share insights into how advertising efforts are resonating. Retail media networks continue to gain traction, including with specialty retailers that can offer brands a more tailored audience and potentially greater marketing precision.

The digital ad market has had an impressive run of growth that’s been bolstered, in part, by the retail media explosion. Brands are flocking to the concept as they contend with the deprecation of third-party cookies and try to align their marketing messages closer to the point of sale using first-party shopper data.

Ulta unveils media network powered by data 

What: To celebrate Earth Month, Neiman Marcus announces new initiatives, partnerships, and in-store activations that will further the organization's continued progress against its Environmental Social Governance (ESG) strategy.

Why is it important: As part of its efforts to reduce Scope 1 & 2 emissions by 50% by 2025 and procure 100% renewable energy use by 2030, this month, NMG partnered with Trane to replace natural gas-powered chillers with two new 500-ton water-cooled chillers at their Bergdorf Goodman's Women's Store in New York City.

Neiman Marcus stores across the U.S. are driving progress toward the company's goal to partner with customers to raise an additional $3,000,000 for Heart of Neiman Marcus Foundation grantees through point-of-sale fundraising. Proceeds from the campaign will fund creating a new NMG x FSF scholarship for students aspiring to careers in sustainable and ethical fashion.

Neiman Marcus also announced the upcoming launch of the new 'Fashioned for Change' and 'Conscious Curation' edits at Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman. They will identify items with preferred product attributes made with sustainable materials, including bio-based vegan leathers, as well as products that are responsibly manufactured, give back philanthropically, are made by diverse-owned brands, or promote enhanced transparency through digital product passports from groups like EON.

They will be hosting and sponsoring a variety of speaking events throughout the month to socialize the efforts above with associates, customers, and the broader fashion industry. To continue educating and amplifying the call for sustainable practices in the broader industry, NMG will sponsor the Women's Wear Daily Sustainability Summit and the Sustainable Fashion Forum fireside chat

Neiman Marcus Group celebrates earth month with events reinforcing its 2025 ESG Goals

What: Walmart’s sales growth slowed in the first quarter, and the retailer’s U.S. operating income took a USD1 billion haircut. Comparable sales in the U.S. rose by 3% and were up 9% from 2020.

Why is it important: Inflation took a toll on the company’s top and bottom line, with fuel, container, storage, and other costs spiking. At the same time, customers pulled back spending on high-margin general merchandise to compensate for rising food prices.

Walmart’s Q1 is another sign that consumers are changing their purchases to adapt to inflation. Along with pulling back on general merchandise, which as a category fell by low single digits at Walmart U.S., to account for price hikes in grocery, executives said that customers were trading out name brands for lower-priced private labels.

 Walmart’s profits take a hit 

What: John Lewis has partnered with The Little Loop to enter the childrenswear rental market.

Why is it important: John Lewis said the partnership will give parents access to the biggest wardrobe of rented kids' clothing in the UK.

Launching on Thursday, fifty-one products for babies to age 12 will be available, with special consideration for sustainable raw materials.

Clothes can be rented and swapped at any point, with customers receiving credit to use on future bundles. All returned items get professionally cleaned, and if needed mended, then are rented out again at a price that reflects their condition. Plans start at 18 pounds per month with customers able to rent 6 -7 products at a time.

John Lewis enters kidswear with The Little Loop

What: Shein is both customer-obsessed like Amazon, and data-obsessed like China. The combination lures customers and keeps them constantly engaged as well as operating with ruthless efficiency.

Why it is important: It demonstrates that low prices are as attractive as ever to young shoppers, even though surveys suggest that reducing their environmental footprint is a primary concern. And this is the result of formidable efficiency.

Shein the Chinese online fashion company is one of two Chinese firms to be valued at $100 bn or more (the other is ByteDance, TikTok’s owner). Its success is built on three elements:

• Supply chain: it taps into thousands of suppliers whom it pays on time generating trust. This in turn allows it to put in smaller orders. Last year Shein offered 1.3 million new styles compared to 35 000 at Zara and 25 000 at H&M. And prices were 40-60% cheaper.
• It connects suppliers together with its own software allowing updates, output adjustments, and detailed up-to-date knowledge of any market.
• Shein has become a master of “gamification”: customers browsing Shein’s app is like walking through a store with excitement, random discounts, micro-influencers and more.

In the first three months of 2022, Shein accounted for almost a third of fast fashion in the US, against H&M (17%) and Zara (10%).

Shein: fastest fashion online

What: In partnership with Skinney Medspa, Saks will offer botox, filler and Aquagold at its New York flagship.

Why is it important: Saks Fifth Avenue brings medical-grade services to its Manhattan flagship, with the program expected to roll out to Bal Harbour in Miami, and Houston.

Prices will start at USD300 per area for Botox, and filler starts at USD450 per half-syringe, although new clients are being offered USD50 off their first Botox treatments, and a limited-time launch offer knocks USD100 off the bill.

A report from the Aesthetic Society noted that non-surgical procedures using neurotoxins such as Botox numbered over 3.4 million last year in women, and over 155,000 in men. 41% of those procedures were in clients aged 36 to 50.

Saks joins a growing list of retailers driving trips with beauty services. Last year, Nordstrom introduced injectables to its Beauty Haven offerings in New York, in partnership with Dr. Dennis Gross, as well as HydraFacial facials and Cowshed body services.

Saks Fifth Avenue brings injectables in-store

What: Lindex owner Stockmann Group had a positive first quarter with clearly improved results across both divisions.

Why is it important: The company’s group revenue reached EUR196.1 million in the period to the end of March, up 27.1% at comparable currency rates, and the gross margin increased to 57.8% from 56.3%.

Operating profit swung to earnings of EUR9.8 million from a loss of EUR27.6 million a year ago, an improvement compared to the loss of EUR21.1 million in the previous year.

Lindex generated its strongest first-quarter sales and operating profit ever, due to increased sales in all channels and business areas. Sales in physical stores increased by 47.5% year-on-year, while digital sales, including both online and third-party sales, saw 8.2% growth.

And the Stockmann division achieved outstanding results, improving its adjusted operating result by EUR4.8 million to a loss of EUR7.3 million. The company stated that Q1 is usually negative for both divisions due to seasonal variation.

The division’s revenue grew by 9.2%. Sales in its stores increased because of higher visitor volumes and changed the balance between the sales channels. The stores generated 87.8% of its sales compared to 78.8% a year ago and the online store 12.2% compared to 21.2% of sales in Q1 last year.

Stockmann’s improving results, Lindex’s best-ever Q1 sales

What: Luxury fashion brands are amping up touch and texture in the pop-ups for their latest handbags.

Why is it important: Consumers need to be enticed back to physical retail and luxury fashion brands are doing just that.

Jacquemus’s previous pop-ups in Milan and Paris, one in white, the other in pink, both went viral on social media. Jacquemus has also occupied Selfridges Mews, located directly behind the Oxford Street store, positioning there its 24-hour vending machine that dispenses colourways of its top-selling Chiquiot and Bambino bags. At the Old Selfridges Hotel: Le Vestiaire is the title of an immersive experience that transports customers through a surrealist interpretation of a swimming pool and rooms with 3D sensory experiences.

Balenciaga has also taken the hyperphysical route. Last week, the brand opened pop-ups for the Le Cagole it-handbag in both London and Bangkok. The stores feature a joyous surfeit of shaggy pink faux fur that covers floor, walls, chairs and shelves.

Coach’s larger-than-life installation in central London this April, which was inspired by the puffy pillowy leather of its latest Pillow Tabby bag. And Mulberry is currently hosting a pop-up in Seoul to promote its new bag Softie. The space mimics the bag’s sensorial qualities, curved quilting that looks plush and squishy, with spongy furniture and decor that invites visitors to touch.

At a time when many consumers haven’t fully returned to real-life shopping, hyperphysical retail serves as a draw for younger consumers. Some 56% of global Gen Z shoppers head to physical stores for a fun experience, according to a 2018 survey by IBM and the National Retail Federation.

While e-commerce is accelerating to offer multi-layered experiences for customers and brands, bricks-and-mortar stores are becoming physical bastions of extraordinary, sensorial moments. Some luxury marketers see an opportunity to add ASMR triggers to physical experiences.

Sales don’t necessarily drive these sensorial pop-ups. The idea is to break the frontiers in the world of luxury so that all may feel welcome and have a great experience no matter what they do inside.

While pop-ups generate short-term traction, bigger long-term opportunities may be out there, such as turning retail stores into spaces with benefits. Dior’s new flagship in Paris where visitors can eat, sleep, wear and work out, is to position retail not as just shops but as venues.

Luxury fashion brands go hyperphysical

What: Saks Off 5th has remade its loyalty program in a bid to capture a wider audience, encourage repeat shopping and simplify the process of compiling and using points for purchases.

Why is it important: The new program reflects more aggressive marketing at the upscale off-pricer and greater awareness of what customers want.

Off 5th Rewards, launched Wednesday and was made to capture a wider audience, encourage repeat shopping, and simplify the process of compiling and using points for purchases. It’s tender-neutral, designed with a tiered structure that executives say is easy to understand, and replaces the “More” loyalty program that was phased out.

Through the tender neutral Off 5th Rewards program, customers earn points for every dollar spent at saksoff5th.com, on the Saks Off 5th mobile app, or at 100 Saks Off 5th stores, with points earned per dollar increasing with tier status. Once a customer accrues 500 points, they receive a USD 5 reward, redeemable in-store or online. They also get free shipping and access to members-only sales and events. The launch of the loyalty program is being supported through in-store and online marketing, including email, organic and paid social, display, and site advertising.

Saks Off 5th remade its loyalty program

What: Changi airport maximizes the opportunities to experience and feel, in order to become a destination per se.

Why it is important: An interesting feature is the giant slide, which is similar to what has been seen already at Showfields (US) which has made it an Instagrammable asset. The fact that to use it customers have to be holders of the loyalty card creates at the same time a sense of urgency to be member of the program, but also a sense of belonging and exclusivity.

Changi airport in Singapore has set up a calendar of activities aiming to make the place a destination in itself, instead of being a transit platform. For instance, in May 22, Changi offered a “night at the airport family camp” experience, which allowed families to camp in tents with air mattresses in the Changi Canopy Park.

Workshops are also available, and more interestingly, some features are designed to create a sense of belonging and exclusivity: in Terminal 3, a giant slide is available only to holders of the airport loyalty card, for a maximum of 10 rides a day. Tokens are not digital: they have to be redeemed at a counter where other products are also available for purchase.

Singapore airport goes big on entertainment and retail