Kazia Jaszkiewicz
Anna Le
Manuella Lupascu
Nhi Py
Weronika Kumanek
Quantum Retail, a next generation merchandising optimization software provider, is pleased to announce that Matalan, the United Kingdom’s leading value fashion and homeware retailer with more than 200 stores, has chosen Quantum’s Q software to optimize store-level replenishment activities. With a deep understanding of shopper behavior and merchandise strategies, Matalan hopes to service its customers better.
"Matalan recognizes the urgency and importance of aligning their inventory investment with their customers’ continuously changing demands,” commented Chris Allan, Quantum Retail’s chief strategy officer. “Q will assist Matalan in better meeting those demands by understanding localized inventory behavior.”
With Q: Allocation and Replenishment, Matalan can now monitor and react to the unique customer behavior in real-time at each store to easily determine inventory need throughout its supply chain.
"We expect significant results from a leading edge technology like Q,” stated Andrew Scott, Matalan’s head of merchandise planning. “The system is a necessary investment that will enable us to understand exactly what our customers want and need at every location so we can provide them unparalleled service.”
Quantum Retail, winner of Supply Chain Solution of the Year and Supply Chain Excellence awards, offers Q to retailers seeking a hyper responsive, consumer driven, merchandise optimization platform to localize inventory placement and increase sales, profits, and inventory efficiency. Solutions include Allocation and Replenishment, Forecasting and Order Planning, and Assortment and Range Planning.
Matalan joins Quantum Retail’s growing list of successful clients, including Marks & Spencer, New Look, Kohl’s, and Guitar Center.
Matalan is a leading UK ‘value’ retailer, with annual sales of £1bn through 200 stores. Matalan recently reported an increase of 30% in annual profit. Womenswear accounts for 35-40% of sales, followed by menswear at 25-30%, and childrenswear 10-15%.
In an announcement that is sure to reverberate through holiday gift lists in 2010, Vans announced that Yo Gabba Gabba! will make their Vans sneaker debut in November at better shoe stores worldwide as well as online.
Available in Vans' popular Classic Slip-On and Sk8-Hi Deconstruct styles for boys, girls and toddlers, the collection includes eight different versions, with each character represented on their own shoe as well as two versions of a Yo Gabba Gabba! group shoe. Yo Gabba Gabba!, created by Christian Jacobs and Scott Schultz, is produced by The Magic Store and W!LDBRAIN Entertainment.
Yo Gabba Gabba! premiered in the United States on Nickelodeon in August 2007 and quickly became a global phenomenon. One of the most popular series on television with a broad appeal among preschoolers, parents, teens and adults, the show infuses retro-style and beat-driven music to teach simple life lessons through music.
The series and the live show star DJ Lance Rock and a cast of colorful characters, including Brobee, the little green one, Foofa, the pink flower bubble, Muno, the red Cyclops, Toodee, the blue cat-dragon and Plex, the yellow robot.
Vans, the original action sports footwear and apparel company, is a brand of VF Corporation. Vans collections include authentic footwear, apparel and accessories, snowboard boots and the Pro-tec line of protective gear and are sold in the United States through more than 230 company owned stores as well as independent retailers. Internationally, Vans sells its goods in approximately 70 countries through a network of subsidiaries, distributors and foreign offices.
Models presents creations during the Colombiamoda fashion show in Medellin July 28, 2010.
Project Runway premieres on Thursday, July 29 at 9pm et/pt on Lifetime and FIDM Alumna Sarah Trost will be one of the designers vying to be Season 8’s winner. The 27 year-old Toluca Lake, California native currently works as a costume designer and cites designers such as Adrian, Nudie Cohn, Jean Paul Gaultier, and Elsa Schiaparelli as inspirations. Sarah holds a Fashion Design degree from FIDM, which is the West Coast home of the Lifetime show.
During her casting session, Sarah showed eclectic looks including a kitty print dress and a hand-dyed silk bow gown. “I want to do something vintage-inspired that’s fun and comfortable for people to wear,” she said. During a visit to her home, Sarah showed producers her 1930s era Singer sewing machine that she works with, her Elvis clock that is always set to “cocktail hour,” and how she keeps fabric in her kitchen cupboards.
When Project Runway moved to Los Angeles for Season 6, the show was filmed at FIDM. In addition, FIDM Graduates have enjoyed appearing on (and winning) Project Runway.
The swimwear collection „ Irma La Douce“ from Gomaringen based German company NATURANA will feature BIOPHYL, a sustainable ecotextile product from ADVANSA.
"Irma La Douce“ is a collection for the fashion-conscious woman, who sets a high value on extravagance and high quality materials. The integration of BIOPHYL follows the increasing demand for eco-friendly textiles. The offer comprises a Triangle Bikini with removable inserts as well as a Bandeaux-Neckholder Bikini with removable cups. Both models are characterized by distinctive beads applications.
The fabrics for the new products are supplied by Italian Piave Maitex, a manufacturer of circular and warp knits based in Feltre, who develops and produces in Italy since 1908 extremely successful quality fabrics for underwear and swimwear.
BIOPHYL fabrics are made of ECO-Polyester yarns, that are based on an innovative Polyester-Polymer. These yarns do not only guarantee a high colour brilliance and softness in touch but also provide the fabrics with an excellent stretch and recovery, ensuring a very pleasant wearing comfort.
The product managemt team at NATURANA comments: „ The new Irma La Douce collection that will be in trade as of march 2011 will especially distinguish these benefits: The material is super soft to the skin, supremely resilient and therefore very comfortable but at the same time easy to care for. It is simply made for swimwear ! But for us it is also important that BIOPHYL minimizes the use of fossile resources and contributes to the reduction of CO2 emissions “.
Luicano Colasanto, Market Manager at Advansa: „ We should add that this material absorbs less water and offers quicker drying than Polyamide, it is stain repellent and has a high durability. Other pluses of BIOPHYL are thermosettability, UV/chlorine resistance, ironability and certification according to the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 with the highest possible Class 1, which also includes the category for baby articles”.
In comparison to standard polyester and nylon, commonly used in swimwear and to which BIOPHYL is an alternative, CO2 output associated with production of the polymer is up to 63% lower. This contributes to reduction of the greenhouse effect. A simultaneous energy saving of up to 30% conserves additional resources.
“Everything has meaning” mystically, so too the Hamsa amulet, according to Celine Leora who inspired Hamsa Fragrance. This amulet is a good luck symbol appreciated by Muslims, Jews and all spiritual people.
The symbol looks like a stylized hand and represents the positive power of spirituality. The Muslims call it the Hand of Fatima, while Jews call it the Hand of Miriam, sister of Moses. It brings prosperity and good luck, while scaring away evil.
The symbol is also found in Kabbala. The Hamsa amulet is becoming increasingly popular as a spiritual, yet nondenominational symbol all over the world.
Designer Celine Leora developed the idea of using the Hamsa symbol on fragrance bottles, so that the symbol and its power will always be present in the home and wearer.
The fragrance, or cologne, permeates a scent that reminds the wearer of their positive spiritual potential. Moroccan born Celine combines her art, spirituality and personal mystical experiences to bring meaning to all who wear it.
Italian designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana have entered a 3-year deal with English soccer club Chelsea to dress their players, muscling their way in the fashion-hungry soccer market.
The soccer-loving duo, best known for their sharp men's tailoring and southern Italian style, said on Tuesday they would design the official suits and new stadium areas for the Premier League champions over the next three seasons.
"We are big football fans, for us it means healthy competition, intense passion and great discipline," Dolce and Gabbana said in a statement.
The deal marks the first partnership with a foreign top soccer club for the two designers -- whose suits already dress AC Milan players and Italy's national team. Dolce is an AC Milan fan and never misses their home matches at Milan's San Siro stadium.
Financial details of the partnership have not been disclosed.
Under the deal, the Premier League champions, including the Italian manager and former AC Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti, will wear blue suits -- the club's color -- with two-button jackets and blue jacquard ties.
Dolce and Gabbana -- whose wholesale sales were of 1.379 billion euros in the fiscal year ended in March -- will also design exclusive spaces at the Stamford Bridge stadium for guests attending matches.
For their worldwide appeal to fans, sculpted soccer stars have always been a safe bet for fashion brands such as Dolce and Gabbana, whose business interest in the game dates back to 2003.
The Italian designers also hired five Italian soccer players to strip down for their underwear campaigns ahead of the World Cup in South Africa in June. Italy was knocked out in the group stage.
Models wear creations from the Colombian fashion brand Agua Bendita at the Colombia Moda fashion show in Medellin, Colombia, July 27, 2010.
Models display creations by Lebanese designer Tony Yaacoub for his fall-winter 2010/2011 collection during a fashion show in Martyrs Square in downtown Beirut July 27, 2010.
Best of British Luxury, as one official activity of British Pavilion of World Expo, was launched in Shanghai on 22nd, July.
As the supporting media, Hurun Report invited some best British luxury brands to attend this activity. Such activity, on one hand, makes Chinese high end consumers know more about British luxury brands. On the other hand, it works as the best stage to promote British luxury brands in the fastest developed luxury market, China. Dunhill, Burberry, Jaguar, Land Rover, Windsor and so on all appeared at this activity.
On that afternoon, a forum named " Best of British Luxury: Connecting with the Chinese Luxury Consumer was held. Head officials from these British luxury brands and 50 media representatives discussed British Luxury brands' current situation in China market and the expectation for its development in 3-5 years.
On that night, 100 distinguished guests invited by Hurun Report got together to enjoy the British luxury feast.
