What: Saks.com will test the marketplace format in an effort to accelerate growth and expand its offerings to customers.

Why is it important: In creating a marketplace, Saks will be challenged to determine what brands and products, not previously carried, will resonate with the retailer’s audience and will buoy, not detract from, the Saks luxury image.

Last March, the parent HBC split the Saks Fifth Avenue stores and saks.com operations into stand-alone companies. Changes occurred since then, including launching everyday free shipping and free returns, advancing the digital stylist program, expanding Saks Limitless, an invitation-only program providing top saks.com shoppers with exclusive benefits and perks, and launching Saks Live, a livestream events platform. Marketing online expenses also ramped up to acquire new customers and to increase traffic.

Saks stores continue to work together with e-commerce to deliver an easy shopping experience, providing buy online, pick up in store service, and handle exchanges, returns and alterations.

Saks Fifth Avenue had a strong Q1 performance across all channels with total sales up significantly over 2019. Specific to the e-commerce business, Saks’ gross merchandising value exceeded expectations, up double digits versus 2019, with signs of an ongoing upward trajectory. Since March, site traffic is up 79% and new customers are up 84% to 2019. Saks stores total sales were reportedly higher than 2019.

To strengthen the dot-com’s capital structure, two financial steps — a syndicated USD 350 million asset-based, five-year revolving credit facility and a USD 115 million senior secured term loan — were completed to ensure liquidity and flexibility to drive growth.

Saks.com To Test a Marketplace, Investments Ahead 

Untapped Creatives, a platform for luxury, sustainable designs made between the U.K. and Africa, will debut in-store at the Oxford Street flagship and online, with fashion and beauty brands.

The products are often made to order, or done in small runs, and employ artisans in the countries from which the crafts or materials originate. Proceeds from some of the sales go to African charities.

Selfridges Makes Space for British, Black-Owned Fashion, Beauty Brands

What: Burberry, Louis Vuitton and JW Anderson are testing pop-up shops that pull in customers using tech like Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality.

Why is it important: In these uncertain times, going to a department store to do a pop-up is an easier and safer option.

Burberry’s new pop-up opens in Harrods with an AR experience that brings to life Greek Elpis statue in a Pokémon Go-style digital dimension. At Selfridges, JW Anderson has launched a pop-up created with Sharp End, a connected experience agency, that uses QR codes to trigger AR visuals like mushrooms growing, bees buzzing and flowers blooming. Louis Vuitton opened a pop-up in Paris, where customers can use the Vuitton app to tap into an AR experience interacting with animated mascots Zoooom with Friends, first introduced by Virgil Abloh for the Spring/Summer 2021 collection.

Despite easing restrictions in the UK and an initial reopening rush, footfall in the UK’s key shopping areas are still down, according to the latest weekly footfall monitor from Springboard, a retail data intelligence firm. The US, Italy and Sweden face similar challenges.

Pop-ups in department stores are proving to be especially popular, as many brands are hesitant to commit to longer term leases because of the uncertainty around when tourists will return, says Peter Mace, Cushman & Wakefield’s head of Central London retail, who specialises in luxury locations. However, large spaces have had “limited interest” compared to smaller premises because of the cost of fitting out a space.

New-era AR and VR pop-ups

What: Nordstrom announced the launch of a new collaborative collection with Wildfang, a brand that challenges stereotypes and gender norms.

Why is it important: Nordstrom ventures into inclusivity through a new private label.

Launching under the Nordstrom Made brand 'BP.',  the collection is designed for women-identified customers. Each piece was carefully sized for a variety of body shapes. The collection ranges from USD 12 to USD 89.

The collection is part of an ongoing collaboration with Wildfang, which includes gender knowledge trainings for employees, product research, social responsibility initiatives and marketing research. Nordstrom is giving five percent of total sales from the BP. + Wildfang collection to Year Up as part of the collaboration.

Nordstrom launches collection with Wildfang

What: Steen & Strøm has rebranded as Steen & Strøm 1797 following EUR 29.6 million refurbishment to reflect its heritage.

Steen & Strøm first opened in 1797 and is the oldest running luxury department store in the world. It is located in Oslo’s Promenaden Fashion District and comprises 135,625 sq ft over six floors of fashion, beauty, lifestyle and food.

The refurbishment includes a new store entrance, and a new beauty hall with a men’s grooming area and fragrance bar. The beauty hall will stock premium brands including Chanel and La Labo, as well as the first Dior Beauty Boutique in The Nordics.

Oslo department store Steen & Strøm relaunches

What:  JC Penney underwent a reduction of 20% of stores and 40% of associates following its purchase by SPG and Brookfield Asset Management

Why it is important:  The company is aiming at a new leaner model, focusing on flexibility, outsourcing, to make the most of a renewed and refreshed fashion and home offer.

JC Penney went into bankruptcy in May 2020 and by then, operated 846 stores across the country with 84,000 associates, before being acquired by Simon Property Group and Brookfield Asset Management.

Since then, 174 stores have been closed (20%) and 34,000 associates were made redundant (40%). The remaining teams are either working from home or in leased spaces, as the HQ has been given up, and some functions such as IT support are being moved abroad.

The strategy is to be leaner and more flexible, in order to attract again the customer base via a new fashion and home brand offer.

JC Penney cuts jobs

What: Called “Hudson’s Bay Charter for Change” it's a 10-year, CAD 30 million commitment through the retailer’s foundation to support five organisations focused on education, employment and empowerment.

Why is it important: Programmes are set to impact more than 300 000 lives.

Hudson’s Bay is partnering with five charitable organisations: Indspire, Black Youth Helpline, CEE Centre for Young Black Professionals, CPAC Foundation and MLSE Foundation.

Altogether, they will impact more than 300 000 lives through programmes beginning with scholarships and bursaries, initiatives with school districts and families to keep kids in school and initiatives to help immigrant upgrading their professional skills.

Hudson’s Bay Makes a Multimillion Dollar Commitment to Equality

What: Malls are replacing anchors (large department stores and retailers) by experiential spaces to drive traffic.

Retailwire reports that malls are betting on big, immersive entertainment experiences as a footfall-drawing scheme, such as a mall in Houston which replaced a 4,000 sqm Bed, Bath & Beyond by an interactive art museum, or another setting up an augmented reality experience on the former premises of a home décor chain.

Experts are dubious on the fact of being sure that this will be enough to cure the malls’ woes and issues. Analysts point out the fact that events and experiencial spaces, even though they generate traffic, might not help to convert said traffic into footfall in adjacent stores.

More than a theme-park, malls must get back to their initial function of drawing customers, families and communities with entertainment, experience and meaning. A farmer market might be more effective in that sense than an art museum.

Malls, Needing A Comeback, Replace Anchors With Immersive Experiences

What: Although still below 2019 sales levels, Nordstrom is well engaged in its digital transformation with an impressive 46% of sales achieved online, mainly thanks to its apps.

Why it is important:  Online is not anymore merely compensated lost offline sales, or coming as a complement to stores, but gaining market shares on its own.

While reporting Q1 2021 performances, Nordstrom announced that its total revenue YTD was still 13% below 2019 levels. However, e-commerce rose +23% last year, amounting to 46% of its total revenue, total revenue grew +44% vs. 2020 to USD 2.9 bn achieved through 100 Nordstrom stores, 248 Nordstrom Rack locations and the Trunk Club subscription service, and net loss was reduced to USD 116 million, from USD 520 million at the height of the pandemic.

Growth has been driven by the new apps (downloaded more than a million time), contributing to 75% of digital traffic and 2/3 of total digital sales.

Erik Nordstrom reiterated the fact that he was confident to achieve a full year performance of +25% with half of sales performed online, by anticipating a strong second half year.

Nordstrom Reduces Losses in Q1 

Nordstrom Reports First Quarter 2021 Earnings

What: Hyundai Department Store’s consolidated net profit more than doubled on year to KRW 55.85 billion (USD 49.9 million) in the first quarter as new stores were opened and consumption recovered.

Why is it important: Operating profit surged 336.3% during the same period to KRW 65 billion.

The company’s net profit in the January-March period jumped 133.8% on year to KRW 55.85 billion won from KRW 23.89 billion. Its sales increased 52% during the same period to KRW 683.23 billion from KRW 450 billion during the same period a year ago.

Opening of new duty free stores in Dongdaemun in central Seoul and Incheon International Airport and increased sales of imported cosmetics have also helped, according to the spokesperson.

Hyundai Department Store's net profit more than doubles

What: Kohl’s is making rapid headway towards recovery from 2020, but still reports numbers 5% lower than 2019 results.

Why it is important : Kohl’s continues to partner with new brands like Sephora and Calvin Klein in a broad-based merchandising revamp.

The retailer saw surprising Q1 sales results as it fights to recover from debt incurred during the global pandemic.

Kohl’s is strategically revamping its merchandising assortment through partnerships with major brands including Sephora, Calvin Klein, Eddie Bauer, And Tommy Hilfiger in hopes to transform its image and offering to customers.

Vaccines and the stimulus rollout likely gave Kohl’s a big push in Q1.

Kohl's posts 70% sales growth as it rides consumer momentum in Q1 

Kohl’s Halo Effect By Sephora And Others Will Pay Off

The French department store has recruited senior luxury executives Laurence Nicolas and Mathieu Staat who join the management board.

Laurence Nicolas will head the Boulevard Haussmann flagship and Mathieu Staat will manage the department store’s omnichannel strategy. Both executives will join the management committee.

Nicolas, a luxury retail executive with a business degree from Neoma Business school, started her career as a consultant. She was formerly executive vice president of Sotheby’s jewelry and watches activity and previously worked at Cartier and developed the watches and jewelry activity at Dior.

Staat, who studied at French business school ESCP, developed digital marketing and client relations activities at French hotels group Accor and was most recently digital director for Sephora in Europe and the Middle East. The executive also worked in marketing for French chain Fnac and cosmetic label L’Occitane.

Printemps Recruits Laurence Nicolas And Mathieu Staat 

What: From 1 September, Stefano Della Valle will succeed Vittorio Radice at the helm of the European arm of Central Retail Corp.

Why is it important: Radice will take on the role of non-executive board member and he will continue to be involved in the company’s decision-making process, dealing with stakeholders and overseeing Central Group Europe’s new openings in Wien, Dusseldorf and Basel, as well as the transformations of the units in Zurich and Geneva.

Della Valle will take on the role of CEO of the retail company, which operates Rinascente in Italy, the KaDeWe Group in Germany, Magazine Zum Globus in Switzerland and Illum in Denmark.

After turning Selfridges around between 1996 and 2003, Radice joined Rinascente in 2005 as CEO. Della Valle first joined Rinascente in 2006 as CFO, and in 2017, he was promoted to the role of Central Group Europe COO. Before landing at Rinascente, he worked at Deloitte and covered several executive roles in the Prada Group across Italy and France.

Central Group Europe Promotes Stefano Della Valle as CEO 

What: Marketing is oriented to better resonate with customers.

Why is it important: The department store favours local by paying tribute to the city.

As life in New York finally starts to normalize, Bergdorf Goodman’s pre-fall campaign embodies several of the city’s landmarks, communities and unique energy.

The campaign, called “It’s a New York Life,” offers content across Bergdorf’s digital platforms including bg.com, social media and paid social. There also will be activations and programs expanding the theme through the summer.

For Pre-fall, Bergdorf Goodman Tributes N.Y. Life 

What: Walmart is acquiring Zeekit, a female-founded startup based in Israel, to offer virtual try-on experiences.

Why it is important: It offers a solution to what has historically been a problem for many online brands, and for retailers last year when fitting rooms closed.

Having a virtual try-on feature gives customers a better idea of how a clothing item fits them and whether it matches their features.

The technology is not new as both e-commerce and name brands have debuted capabilities that allow consumers to virtually test items before purchase and provide a more convenient shopping experience.

As AR (augmented reality) capabilities grow, more players will begin to offer it as a way to reduce returns in the future.

Walmart to acquire virtual fitting room startup 

This week the department store will add yet another string to its foodie bow with the opening of the Chocolate Hall. Timed to celebrate the 150 year anniversary of the opening of Harrods’ first confectionary counter, and marking the end of an extensive four-year refurbishment of the store’s food halls, the Chocolate Hall promises to be as much an experience as it is a retail destination.

Harrods has a new food hall

What: The department store has renewed its commitment to its Herald Square flagship with USD 235 million of private investment in the surrounding neighbourhood.

Why is it important: To achieve these upgrades, Macy’s will leverage its underlying Herald Square real estate to build a commercial office tower above its iconic flagship store.

The retailer’s plan would upgrade Herald Square’s transit infrastructure and public realm into a pedestrian-friendly urban space with upgraded subway access, improved transit connections and ADA-accessible elevators.

Macy’s said the plan is expected to generate USD 269 million annually in new tax revenues for New York City, support 16,290 annual jobs and spark USD 4.29 billion in annual economic output.

Macy’s Announces Herald Square Upgrade 

What: Zara enters a very competitive market in the US

Why it is important:  Beauty is a traditional market for department stores providing a significant share of their margin. Any new player is potentially a new disruption to deal with.

Zara beauty is launched simultaneously on-line and in select stores, with a full assortment of formulas for eyes, lips, face and nails, developed by 9 different talents and partners. It aims to make the most of their millennial customer base and enter an already crowed – and competitive – market:

• Sephora is moving out of JC Penney and opens 850 stores in Kohl’s stores, plus 60 new free-standing locations,
• Ulta Beauty will add 30 new units to their 1,275 store-base,
• Macy’s has acquired 60 Bluemercury stores in 2015, expanding them to 183 this year and 213 in one year’s time,
• Amazon is reported to eye at this market too.

Zara Beauty launches

What: One, a store opened in East Hampton New York, is leaning on DTC brands for nimble inventory and restructuring the traditional wholesale payment model.

Why is it important: New wholesale business models are emerging, with a more equal financial split between store and brands. Another alternative retail concept, Platform, was reported by IADS last month (link below).

One store carries a chic mix of fashion and homewares, but it’s underpinned by online, DTC brands as well as an unusual deal to sell fine art curated by Artsy. Many, if not most, of the brands carried there are able to quickly fulfil One’s orders from their own DTC distribution channels. The model leans heavily on a form of consignment that shares a higher portion of proceeds with brands when goods sell.

Anna Mason, a London designer whose collection is sold at One, acknowledges that the model poses a significant risk because she isn’t paid until her fashions sell. She can make more profit, though, because she receives roughly half the sales. She also notes that One, without the risk of a big buying commitment, is willing to carry a broader selection of her label, which leads shoppers to see more of her work and remember her brand name.

One doesn’t anticipate participating in the discount fashion economy. One’s clients should not wait for inventory to go on sale. Pieces that don’t sell go back to the brand, which may put it on sale on its own site, or deploy it to another e-tailer or retailer.

Rethinking the US multibrand retail

Related Item:

• Is Los Angeles’ Platform the future of retail?

What: The franchise operator of Zara, Pull&Bear and Bershka will close all of its stores in Venezuela in the next few weeks.

Why is it important: Phonex World Trade, the Panamanian-based franchise operator, is re-evaluating the brands’ commercial presence in Venezuela to make it coherent with the new digital integration and transformation model announced by Inditex.

The move came as the Venezuelan government increases efforts to draw foreign investment back into the country by effectively ending years of socialist policies. Sieged by U.S. sanctions, the Nicolas Maduro administration has allowed the country to slide into a de facto dollarization since 2019, offering private companies some breathing room to operate.

Inditex entered the Venezuelan market in 1998, first managing the retail stores directly and then under a franchise model. The franchise navigated years of exchange and price controls that often led them to temporarily close stores due to a lack of merchandise.

Zara Stores To Close In Venezuela as Inditex Brands Exit

What: The British retailer loss reflects a collapse in clothing sales due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Why is it important: Marks & Spencer has traded well in the early weeks of the 2021-22 year, expecting profits to recover.

M&S made a pretax profit before one-off items of GBP 50.3 million (USD 71.2 million) in the year to April 3, down from the GBP 403.1 million made in 2019-20.

The 137-year old group said like-for-like clothing and homeware sales plunged 31.5%, damaged by multiple coronavirus lockdowns which shuttered stores. Clothing and homeware sales in stores crashed 56.2%, partly offset by online growth of 53.9%. In food, where space remained open during the crisis, like-for-like sales rose 1.3%.

The retailer is focusing on transforming the company’s culture, while closing stores, investing heavily in technology and e-commerce, and improving product and value. It forecast underlying pretax profit to recover to GBP 300-350 million in 2021-22.

M&S’s Annual Profit Slumps 88% As Covid Crushes Clothing Sales After Store Closures 

M&S full year results 2021 press release

The retailer just launched a curated collection of products that can enhance sex life and improve body positivity. In addition to toys to use with a partner or by yourself, the new offerings include shaving products, massagers, lubricant, and more and the majority of featured brands are female-led. There’s Dame, which specializes in ergonomic, inclusive vibrators (their suction toy, available in Bloomingdale’s new sexual wellness shop, is a top seller), created by Alexandra Fine and Janet Lieberman, body hair care company Fur, founded by Laura Schubert, and Maude, a modern minimalist line of goods for before, during, and after sex, dreamed up by Eva Goicochea.

Prices for items in this new shop-in-shop start at USD 10 (for a travel-friendly bottle of lubricant) to USD 200 (for a cleverly designed, body-hugging vibrator), so there’s a little something for every need and price range.

Bloomingdale's Sexual Wellness Shop Is Filled With Female-Run Brands

Related Item:

• Business Case #6: Monoprix, your new wellness guru

What: The new private label, Ryegrass, aims to offer luxury styling at accessible prices.

Why is it important: The retailer raises the bar in its women’s private brand portfolio to offer customers more elevated, on-trend styles.

Ryegrass is the fifth private-label womenswear brand launched by J.C. Penney in the space of six months. These launches are part of a wider development strategy that has also seen the refresh its denim brand, activewear label and Liz Claiborne collection. According to the company, further additions will be made to its women’s private-label portfolio and broader brand offering throughout the year.

JC Penney launches elevated womenswear brand Ryegrass

What: Covid-19 restrictions affected its operations in Chile and Peru.

Why is it important: E-commerce posted record numbers reaching a gross merchandise value of USD 880 million in 2020, representing an increase of 140% when compared to 2019.

Chilean retail conglomerate Ripley reported that consolidated revenues had fallen from CLP 1 727426 million (USD 2.4 billion) in 2019 to CLP 1 499 541 million (USD 2.09 billion) in 2020. The company stated in its financial report that the 13.2% decline had been due to Covid-19 restrictions affecting its operations in Chile and Peru.

Even though the company’s retail segment recovered 28.8% during the fourth quarter of 2020, it wasn’t enough to offset store closures earlier in the year that contributed to a 10.4 per cent drop in 2020 when compared to 2019.

Chilean Retail Giant Ripley Reports 2020 Revenue Decline of 13.2% 

Financial Statements Ripley Corp 4T20