Marks & Spencer has expanded its partnership with First Insight, which offers technology aimed at helping retailers and brands make better-informed product development and pricing decisions. Marks & Spencer uses the firm's predictive analytics platform for making design, buying and pricing decisions and noted that the extended partnership involves increasing the volume of products tested.

The retailer has used the technology, which garners insights into consumer behavior, in the merchandising of fashion apparel and innerwear as well as footwear, accessories, beauty products, home goods and food. "The software has enabled M&S to test tens of thousands of products across more than 50 departments in order to buy more of what customers like," First Insight said. "The platform has helped shape collections and resulted in customers getting the best products at the right prices."

In October, Bloomingdale's is opening a beauty shop-in-shop concept, focused on clean beauty called WellChemist. The boutiques will be open-sell concepts taking up about 250 square feet of space within Bloomingdale's beauty departments and stocking about 600 stockkeeping units from 35 brands.

The launch of WellChemist comes one year after Bloomingdale's introduced its first beauty shop-in-shop, Glowhaus, which is targeted at Millennials and stocks brands and products more commonly found on social media or in specialty retail than in a department store. Unlike Glowhaus, WellChemist is not as obviously targeted at Millennials and while most Glowhaus boutiques are located on the contemporary floors away from the beauty counters, WellChemist shops will be located on the beauty floor. "This concept has a much wider appeal, and that's why it's on the beauty floor," said Stacie Borteck, vice president and divisional merchandise manager for cosmetics at Bloomingdale's. "I see it as multigenerational — Millennials already know and are concerned about safer ingredients and environmental impact, Gen Xers and mature shoppers are focused on health concerns."

The WellChemist brand mix is focused on clean beauty products free of parabens, phthalates and sulfates, with a focus on products that are both high performance and formulated without ingredients considered toxic. About 60 percent of the assortment is devoted to skin care, with the rest split between hair, supplements and ingestibles, makeup and tools from both niche and established brands.

The first WellChemist is set to open at the East 59th Street flagship in Manhattan on Sept. 28, and eight more are expected to rollout nationwide in October.

read full article "Bloomingdale's Gets Into Clean Beauty With WellChemist" by wwd

Galeries Lafayette is set to open one more flagship store in Paris, in the second half of 2019. The new shop, which is to span over 8000 square meters and four floors, will be located at the Beaugrenelle shopping mall, in a space previously rented by Marks & Spencer. This flagship store perfectly matches the ongoing reinvention strategy of the Galeries Lafayette French network, with a more locally anchored, omnichannel and experiential concept, while being very complementary to current and future Galeries Lafayette locations in the capital. This store will allow the brand to specifically address clients in Western Paris, thanks to a relevant range of its premium and lifestyle Fashion offer.

in french: press release of galeries lafayette new beaugrenelle store

Germany's two major department store chains Kaufhof and Karstadt have sealed a merger to salvage their operations amid fierce competition from e-commerce players. The owners of Kaufhof and Karstadt — Canada's Hudson's Bay and Austria's Signa Holding — have announced that they've sealed a "merger of equals" to combine their European retail and real estate assets, with Signa now owning 50.01 percent in the joint venture and Hudson's Bay holding a stake of 49.99 percent. In a parallel transaction, both companies will form a 50-50 joint venture focused on Hudson's Bay's German property assets, with Signa taking a 50 per cent stake in that business. The merger of Germany's Galeria Kaufhof and Karstadt will form Europe's third biggest department store chain, behind Spain's El Corte Ingles and Britain's Marks and Spencer.

HBC press release on Kaufhof & Karstadt merger

Macy's-owned chain Bloomingdale's is launching its 'shop-in-shop' concept, to be curated every two months based on a different theme. The goal is to draw locals and tourists alike into the store. The spaces will also hold events, ranging from food tastings to fitness classes. "It'll be like a Broadway show, with limited showing," said Frank Berman, Bloomingdale's executive vice president and chief marketing officer. "That's the sense of urgency we want to have around the space."

While Bloomingdale's hopes that its own permanent pop-up will drive customers into the store through sheer novelty, it projects that sales will be boosted as well. By partnering with new brands on a temporary basis, Bloomingdale's will be able to test their success and screen products for future long-term wholesale agreements, Berman said. "We want to make sure we're driving both interest and traffic. While we're looking to acquire new customers, sell-through is important," Berman said. "It's not meant to be a just an exhibit — it's an interactive shopping experience and [a way of] tracking new customer acquisition."

The Carousel will be featured in two Bloomingdale's locations in New York — Soho and 59th Street — as well as its San Francisco and Century City outposts. If successful, the concept could expand to other stores. Every space is about 950-square-foot, with the exception of 59th Street, which will be 1,600 square feet and is intended to feel like a standalone boutique. Online shoppers will get an idea of the shop through video content and its own store web page.

London's department stores are joining forces to mark the centenary of women's voting rights in the U.K. Harrods, Harvey Nichols and Fortnum & Mason will be commemorating the suffrage movement through dedicated window displays. Each of the department store's window displays will pay homage to the West End street protests of 1912, when suffragettes smashed department store windows to get their message across.

The three department stores' displays will feature a design representative of the smashed windows. Harvey Nichols' window will feature a shattered glass effect alongside a famous quote by Emmeline Pankhurst, the leader of the British Suffragette movement. A smashed window effect will also cover the Fortnum & Mason windows, and behind the glass, hampers will be on display to show the food and blankets that imprisoned suffragettes would receive from their loved ones. The Harrods' window will feature historic posters from the movement plastered onto a red brick backdrop, symbolizing the smashed windows. Footage of feminists, past and present, will also be playing on screens.

See pictures of the windows below.

With fashion critical to Penney's turnaround efforts, the retailer is launching Artesia, a private boho-style brand for women. It will be introduced in a big way, with nearly 400 of the retailer's 860 stores and the company web site carrying the collection at the outset. Artesia is being designed and manufactured by One World Apparel, a key supplier, and includes crochet cardigans and dusters, peasant blouses and tiered flounce tops with details such as flutter sleeves, lace, tassels and fringe. Items will be on sale for less than $30. Penney's described the line as "an effortlessly chic collection of relaxed silhouettes, flowy fabrics and peasant-style tops and dresses that bring a modern twist to the vintage, bohemian trend." The Artesia collection will be situated next to Penney's longstanding a.n.a. private brand and is designed to pair with a.n.a.'s denim selection.

press release on jc penney's new boho brand for woman

Another retailer is turning to real women to inspire purchases: Macy's new fall campaign, "Remarkable You," showcases a diverse set of six women going about their everyday lives. Macy's is one of many brands diversifying its advertising imagery. Such work answers public demand for ad images that are more reflective of a broad range of consumers. "We're concentrating on casting women in our commercials who are more presentative of real women," says Rich Lennox, chief marketing officer of the department store chain. "We went out and found some extraordinary women." The new push includes Tiffiny Blacknell, a public defender, Mishaal Ashemimry, an aerospace engineer and Becky Hammon, a professional men's basketball assistant coach. Macy's approach is to feature women of all shapes, sizes, ages and ethnicities in this new campaign which features role models "everyone could relate to or be inspired by."

see video of macy's campaign "Remarkable You" 

L Brands announced the closure of all 23 stores and the e-commerce site of its upscale Henri Bendel women's apparel banner, which has been open for 123 years. The stores, including the Fifth Avenue flagship as well as smaller-format stores in 11 states, are set to close in January 2019, though new merchandise will continue to arrive through the holiday season.

Heri Bendel, which opened its first store in 1895 in New York's Greenwich Village, was bought by L Brands in 1985. The company also operates Victoria's Secret, Pink, Bath & Body Works and La Senza.

press release "L BRANDS ANNOUNCES 2019 CLOSURE OF HENRI BENDEL STORES AND HENRI BENDEL E-COMMERCE"

Canada Goose is teaming with BHV Marais in Paris for a weather-themed pop-up store installation offering a weather experience to clients in the dome-roofed Observatoire space of the department store's top floor. Called "Weather Patterns," the spiral-shaped refuge will offer Canadian weather noises to visitors in its outer ring and a weather atmosphere in the centre. A representation of the sky overhead is meant to project the beauty of the northern lights. The Canadian label will sell vests, parkas and accessories at the temporary store, which will run from 6 to 26 September.

Massive retailer Hudson's Bay Co. says it will showcase 12 new and established homegrown talents at a pop-up showcase this September curated by the Toronto-based fashion management firm, The Collections. Hudson's Bay president Alison Coville says the three-month project is meant to give a national platform to Canadian designers who otherwise struggle to break through. The pop-up launches Sept. 4 at five locations across the country, including two stores in downtown Toronto, and one each in Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary.

While shoppers seem increasingly headed to e-commerce, Coville expects this showcase will entice shoppers back to brick-and-mortar Hudson's Bay stores. "There's entertainment value to see what's new and see what's exciting," she says, adding that a strong patriotism will also help encourage shoppers to buy Canadian.

All five stores will feature designers Mikhael Kale, Pedram, S.P. Badu, WIL Studios, WRKDEPT, Hilary MacMillan and Sid Neigum. The Vancouver and Toronto Queen Street location will also include Atelier Guarin, Markoo and New York-based Daniel Gregory Natale, and accessories by Biko and Cuchara. Their wares will also be available online at www.thebay.com.

After a focus on Brooklyn and on Italy, Le Bon Marché is planning a storewide exhibition this fall devoted to Los Angeles. The Paris department store will welcome some 200 brands across fashion, cosmetics, food, accessories and homewear, with special guests including skater Scott Oster, who has designed a mirrored full pipe structure, to be suspended above the beauty department, that will host demos by professional skateboarders. Experiences also include Le Bon Marché's first-ever yoga studio, as well as West Coast tattoo artist Dr. Woo who's bringing his studio to Paris for two weeks in addition to designing a capsule clothing collection for the store, alongside a shoe collaboration with Converse and a mini-collection with MadeWorn.

The exhibition is divided into dedicated spaces reflecting the sun's trajectory through the California sky, three times of day. Sunrise is a focus on well-being, spirituality, self-awareness, all this through natural beauty products and yoga leisure; sunlight: is a celebration of LA lifestyle and outdoor activities culture through casualwear, sportswear, beachwear and ready-to-wear; and sunset is a combination of Hollywood glamour and rock 'n' roll with denim and sunglasses. The event is running from 1 September to 21 October

The IADS is organising a Retail Study Tour in Los Angeles which will focus on the influence of LA lifestyle on retail and food; West Coast retailers and the US retail market among other key themes. The Retail Study Tour will take place from 10 to 12 June 2019. More information below:

IADS LOS ANGELES RETAIL STUDY TOUR

Click-and-collect programs may be a convenient service for customers, but the offering is becoming increasingly valuable for retailers. And it's OrderDynamics, providers of the world's most advanced, out-of-the-box Distributed Order Management (DOM) System, that announced it in its latest consumer study, "The Rise of the Click & Collect Superconsumer." The research was conducted in order to better understand North American consumers participating in omni-channel retail. More specifically, the research investigates click and collect, also known as Buy Online Pickup In-Store (BOPIS).

The OrderDynamics study specifically identified four types of BOPIS consumers, including:

• Superconsumer (used BOPIS at least two times in the past 12 months)
• Occasional Consumer (used BOPIS at least once in the past 12 months)
• Non-User (shop online, but don't pick up in store)
• Lapsed Consumers (used BOPIS previously, but not in the past year)

Key research findings include:

• 37% of all online shoppers made additional purchases they were not planning on when they came to pick up their item in store
• 51% of Superconsumers made additional purchases they were not planning on when they came to pick up their item in store
• Superconsumers spend, on average, $40 more on additional unplanned purchases when in store for click and collect pickup
• 78% of Superconsumers want to pick up their BOPIS orders within 24 hours
• 53% of Occasional Consumers want to pick up their BOPIS orders within 24 hours
• 70% of Superconsumers prefer to return items in store
• 58% of Occasional Consumers prefer to return items in store

"The term 'consumer' has been used in the broadest sense to include a more general demographic of retail shoppers," said Nick McLean, CEO of OrderDynamics. "But with significant investments being made to improve omnichannel operations, it is important to understand the preferences and needs of consumers most likely to use offerings like click-and-collect. Through this research, retailers can grow their business and remain competitive by understanding exactly who the 'superconsumer' is."

It seems that David Jones in Australia will be linking up with Walt Disney Australia and New Zealand when it launches its A$200m redevelopment of its 12-storey Sydney flagship and will be introducing what's almost a mini theme park. It is clear now that experiences are important for modern retail and David Jones certainly seems to be doing that. Opening in November, customers will be able to shop in a number of separate 'neighbourhoods' such as 100 Acre Wood from Winnie the Pooh, a Brooklyn-inspired loft storytelling area, a Disney princess enchanted world of castles and magic mirrors, and a Star Wars-themed galaxy. But the kids' floor won't only be about toys : there'll be an events space that will showcase fashion brands alongside other kid-focused products such as toys, books and games, while also heavily pushing upcoming Disney releases. Other feature will be a nursery design service.

David Jones CEO David Thomas and Walt Disney Australia and New Zealand's Kylie Watson-Wheeler.

Chile-based retailer Falabella revealed it would buy e-tailer Linio for $138 million to boost its online footprint. At the same time, the firm said it will launch an $800 million stock offering to finance the acquisition and accelerate other logistic and technological expansions. Part of the funds will also back the roll out of Ikea stores in Chile, Peru and Colombia. "Linio will boost Falabella Retail, Sodimac y Tottus," the retailer said, becoming de facto the site for marketing the group's department-store, home improvement and supermarket divisions, respectively. The units will continue to operate their own online stores.

Linio has 107,000 fashion products, most of which appear to be private label goods. It also stocks a range of local and international brands, for men, women and children.

Falabella, with 491 stores and 49 shopping malls, posted e-commerce sales of $769 million in 2017, up 36 percent.

Emojis drive consumer engagement and even boost revenue from marketing messages

Mobile engagement specialist Leanplum has analysed emoji usage in push notifications and e-mails and found that including them can drive open rates and even revenue up radically. In a follow-up to a study released last year, it looked at as many as 300m e-mails and push notifications worldwide in the 12 months to June 1. And it found some companies were seeing a massive impact.

The report also found that emoji usage continues to rise. The average number used per message and the percentage of messages including at least one emoji have both doubled in the past year. The report said e-mails with emojis are opened 66% more than e-mails without them. And push notifications with emojis are opened 254% more than those without. That's as much as three times higher than in last year's report, which could mean that consumers are becoming more emoji-aware but also that businesses are learning how to use them much more effectively. Joyce Solano, SVP of Global Marketing at Leanplum, said this is happening because "emojis convey emotion and personality from brands, which help marketers deliver in-the-moment engagement and build long-lasting user retention."

Starbucks has announced that it's going to be opening its very first "Signing Store" in the US for customers that are deaf or have hearing impairments. [Starbucks launched its first-ever "Signing Store," located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, two years ago.] Approximately 20 to 25 of the partners who will be hired to work at the Signing Store will have partial or complete hearing loss, and all of the employees will be required to know how to converse using American Sign Language. Deaf baristas will don aprons with the company's name embroidered in ASL. Hearing employees capable of signing will wear an "I Sign" pin. If a customer doesn't speak sign language, they'll have access to directions for making and receiving an order.

The branch of the coffee chain will be launched in October this year in Washington DC, close to Gallaudet University, which educates students who are either deaf or hard of hearing. Businesses surrounding Gallaudet have taken steps to be inclusive of deaf and hard-of-hearing residents.

press release "Starbucks to Open First U.S. Signing Store"

C.banner, an international retailer, had agreed in May to buy a 51 percent stake in House of Fraser but on 1 August it cancelled a planned share placing that would have funded the deal and announced a profit warning. "In light of C.banner's announcement... House of Fraser is in discussions with alternative investors and is exploring options to obtain the required investment on the same timetable," the 169-year-old retailer said in a statement. House of Fraser had agreed to close stores as part of the rescue deal, and in June creditors approved a restructuring plan which would see 31 of its 59 stores close early next year and pave the way for the loss of 6,000 jobs.

C.banner, a major retailer of mid-range to premium footwear brands in China, bought famous London toy shop Hamleys in 2015.

Target has developed a secret, by-invitation-only app to connect Target designers with the customers who are the potential end-users of the merchandise. Membership in the service is limited to roughly 600 people (0.002% of Target shoppers), each personally invited to join, chosen from respondents to online research and satisfaction surveys generated at the checkouts. Participants are encouraged with points that can eventually be redeemed for discounts or gift cards, but those involved tend to be just as interested in being part of the company's design feedback loop. For example, the app has helped Target advance its new private label line of housewares, Made by Design.

M&S has become the latest retail giant to dive deep into incubator-land and has partnered with Founders Factory to launch Founders Factory Retail, a joint venture partnership focused on discovering and developing start-ups. M&S will be Founders Factory's exclusive UK retail partner, and will invest in a number of start-ups, sourced through Founders Factory's global network, "which will expose the business to new technologies, business models and entrepreneurial thinking, as it seeks to put digital at the heart of its transformation strategy." The retailer will also be the majority shareholder within the JV which "will build a portfolio of investments in fast growth start-ups, which it will seek to grow and scale." It's a bold move for the company and the retailer's CEO Steve Rowe said the deal "gives M&S access to a global network of start-ups and entrepreneurs which will provide disruptive thinking and questioning to the way we work at a time of critical transformation within the business. Founders Factory has a great track record in creating successful businesses and by investing in new innovative technologies and products we hope to change the way we work and operate."

The retailer also recently announced a strategic partnership with Microsoft, which is testing the capabilities of technology and artificial intelligence in a retail environment.

press release "MARKS & SPENCER PARTNERS WITH FOUNDERS FACTORY AS EXCLUSIVE UK RETAIL INVESTOR"

Marks & Spencer has announced that it is entering into a partnership with Microsoft to develop artificial intelligence which will improve customer experience in stores. According to management, this could be a "game changer" for the UK retail industry. Microsoft is reportedly working on technology that would eliminate cashiers and checkout lines from stores in a challenge to Amazon's automated shop. M&S announced a five-year transformation plan last year which would "restore the basics" and shift its culture towards a faster, leaner, and more digitally focused business. The company recently saw its second straight year of falling profits.

Woolworths of South Africa has announced that the managing director for clothing and general merchandise is leaving its Australian department store company, David Jones, just one month after its country CEO was also dismissed. Another 15 jobs at its head office have also been cut. According to management, the changes will provide a flatter, more customer-focused structure. Woolworths is still making strategic investments in the company such as adding food halls. Some commentators on the other hand, say the changes will make the business more difficult to manage. The debate is over whether the company is managing decline by cutting costs or whether it sees a future for the business.

According to a study published by GartnerL2, Macy's earned a "genius" rating on the firm's annual Digital IQ Index, above Nordstrom. It was praised for its site performance and traffic (it was recently named the top US apparel retailer with 55.9 million average monthly visitors); omnichannel features such as in-store availability on product pages; social media engagement; mobile performance; and tailored search capabilities. It also scored high in digital marketing. JC Penney dropped from third to sixth place, ousted by UK companies Asos, Marks & Spencer, and John Lewis.

From 5 to 7 July 2018, Alibaba rolled out a pilot FashionAI concept store on the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) campus pairing GUESS' retail knowledge and latest collections with advanced Alibaba AI and other technology.

It was built around Alibaba's e-commerce platform Taobao. Users check in to the store with their mobile Taobao QR code and all the items displayed in-store came with corresponding Taobao product listings, so that users could add the items they would like to purchase directly to their Taobao cart. Within the store, each item came with an RFID tag. When a customer picked up a product, the smart mirror closest to the user registered the tag and displayed an image of the item as well as the product details on the screen. The smart mirror could also provide mix and match suggestions for items in the store and styling suggestions based on previous purchases made by the user. Taobao mobile virtual kiosks displayed items in sizes and colors that weren't available in stores, and check-out was done by scanning the mobile app.

For Guess, Inc., the FashionAI store is part of the company's ongoing partnership with Alibaba to expand the brand's presence in Asia. And Alibaba's partnership with Guess has allowed the retailer to "train and refine" its FashionAI system, according to Zhuang Zhuoran, vice-president of Alibaba. "[We have married] technology with fashion in a way that's never been done before," Zhuang said.

watch video of Alibaba's FashionAI concept