Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Australia : Winning fashion designs invade iconic Australian brands - Fashion News Australia

Iconic Australian fashion stores Target, Country Road and Sportsgirl will soon be invaded by collections from RMIT University students, on 13-10-2009 as part of the Young Essentials Project (YEP).

Winners of YEP 2009 were announced at a gala event that featured a keynote speech from Target Australia Managing Director, Launa Inman.

Now in its 10th year, YEP gives Diploma of Fashion and Textiles Merchandising students from RMIT’s Brunswick campus the chance to work to a commercial brief for key Australian fashion retailers.

Many past YEP winners have seen their capsule collections produced and sold in store.

Marketing Manager, Target Australia, Murray Chenery, said: "It is great to see so much passion and energy about design and fashion from students and teachers. “The students’ work is of a consistently high standard and RMIT should be congratulated on developing our fashion designers of the future.”

YEP Coordinator, Ms Robyn Lyons said: “YEP provides an opportunity for close integration and communication between key industry and educational partners. “We are delighted to be able to work with such iconic Australian fashion names on such an exciting and challenging work project.”

Winners of the Young Essentials Project 2009
Target Australia: Brief – Destination Youth
Winning group: Juventas (Cassandra Varigos, Lynh Nguyen,Ashleigh Templer, Miranda Glennon, Hitomi Pratt, Emma Rosenhain, Labiba Latiff, Angeline Mugamu)

Country Road: Brief – A sub brand for denim
Winning group: Divinitus (Tasha Achilles, Julieanne Forbes, Angie Hanna, Emily Holdsworth, Samantha Hunt, Kishori Purcell, Natalie Saccaro, Mandeep Sharma, Sabrina Sulijevic)

Sportsgirl: Brief – A rewind range
Winning group: Timberly (Chloe Brooks-Dowsett, Kari Layton, Rebeca Spiller, Emily Healey, Sofia Pace, Jade Moroney, Erin Hodge, Chee Nam Wan)

Monday, November 16, 2009

USA : REI holds Twinkie Roasts to beckon Mother Nature for hearty snowfall - Apparel News USA

National outdoor gear and apparel retailer REI held the first of many Twinkie Roasts across the country, a quirky annual employee event to beckon Mother Nature to provide a hearty snowfall on behalf of snowsports lovers everywhere.

The REI Twinkie Roast began in the late 1970s at the co-op’s Berkeley, Calif. store. Today, its headquarters, two distributions centers and many of the company’s stores hold employee events to generate excitement about the upcoming winter season.

While REI doesn’t formally track the success of its Twinkie Roasts, there are several noteworthy, some might say mysterious, successes. According to employee accounts, after the Denver store’s 2006 Twinkie Roast, fondly remembered as the burning of the “Twinx” (Twinkie sphinx), there was a Christmas blizzard and the sixth highest single day snowfall on Colorado records. This success was surpassed in 2007 by the burning of the “Twinnacle” (climbing pinnacle wrought from sponge cake) when snow fell in the mountains 59 out of 62 consecutive days.

The co-op happily outfits its members and customers for a wide variety of snowsports, including skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, sledding and other activities. During the 2008-2009 winter season, REI sold enough skis and snowboards that when stacked equal the height of Mt. Rainier (14,410’) 19 times.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

UK : Habitat upgrades retail operations with Cegid Winshop.net - Technology News UK

Habitat, the international home furnishings retailer with around 75 stores across Europe, has recently launched its online sales channel, so that customers can now browse and order furniture directly from their homes. Home Accessories will be available online in early November 2010. The retailer currently has store operations in the UK, in France, Spain and Germany, as well as a large distribution network of retail partners throughout Europe and other parts of the world.

Business Challenges
The Habitat group needed to upgrade its retail, point of sale technology in a bid to streamline retail operations. The retailer originally turned to international software vendor Cegid a few years ago when it was experiencing problems with a mish-mash of ageing systems and poor reliability. It needed multi-currency retail software available in different languages, so that users, particularly staff in stores, would find it easy to carry out transactions, while management would constantly be kept up-to-date on sales. In 2010, Habitat will be implementing the latest version of Cegid’s retail point-of-sale solution, WinShop.net.

Alyna Farrer, Retail IS Manager at Habitat, said that the retailer is having to focus on improving stock availability, especially given the tough sales environment in retail today. Cost savings and improving service seem to be the biggest drivers.

“We need to upgrade our systems to take advantage of new functionalities, such as capturing contact information on customers for more targeted offers,” she said. “We also need to be able to trigger the replenishment of stock more directly from our point-of-sale system.”
Benefits

With the new software, store staff will be able to more easily order items (before, all furniture orders had to be done separately through the company’s existing ERP system), or advise customers on where products can be found in other stores. Mobile devices can even be used in future to enable staff to organise deliveries or check stock while on the shop floor.

Combating fraud and improving security is another challenge facing most retailers today, and upgrading to the latest version of Cegid’s retail software will help alleviate some of these concerns. For instance, Habitat wants to be sure that gift vouchers used in one store can’t then be used in another. Security is also improved by flagging-up discrepancies and recording reason codes for any cancellations.

Customer relationship management is another area where the company wants to improve, for instance following-up on sales using the new technology. Habitat hopes to be able to use its insights into customer behaviour to offer what customers are likely to want, such as linked or complementary products.

Reporting is another benefit of the new software, with real-time information on sales and stock visibility. The new architecture, improved integration with SAP and a SQL 2008 database is expected tolead to more operational efficiencies. Online updates to and from stores can be exchanged immediately and so are expected to improve the information flow and overall monitoring of the international business. For instance, the real-time view of sales and stock is helping managers respond faster to optimise stock replenishment and profitability, says Farrer.

Saturday, November 14, 2009

India : Mr. Lalit Gulati takes over as AEMA’S President - Apparel News India

Mr. Lalit Gulati took over as the new President of 500 member Apparel Exporters & Manufactures Association (AEMA) for the year 2009-10.

He was elected unianimously at AEMA's 12th Annual General Meeting held here recently. Mr. Gulati takes over from Mr. Praveen Nayyar who was AEMA's earlier President.

Mr. Gulati is a founder Chairman of M/s Modelama Exports Limited, the country's leading manufacturer & exporter of Readymade garments. The group is set up between largest garment units in Northern Region where they cater manufacturing of garments in woven, knit and furnishing fab.

Mr. Gulati has experience of more than 30 years in the textile and industry and he heads the group's growth in the US, South America, Latin America and the European countries. He has in-depth knowledge and rich experience in the Apparel industry while giving presentations to the govt. authorities.

Friday, November 13, 2009

USA : Weapon Evo to be branded with iconic Star Chevron logo - Fashion News USA

Converse announced the launch of the Weapon Evo, an all-new, court-ready, basketball shoe evolved from the original Weapon, which was worn by superstars during the game's “Golden Age.” The Weapon Evo will be branded with the iconic Star Chevron logo, which will now be the primary logo on all Converse basketball footwear.

“The Star Chevron logo represents a defining time in basketball history,” said Geoff Cottrill, Chief Marketing Officer. “This logo first appeared on footwear when players changed basketball by bringing their unique style to the sport. Converse still stands for that today and we celebrate those who create positive change and challenge the status quo.”

The shoe's design is inspired from the original Weapon. It features an ankle support Y-bar and the original “broken Herringbone” traction pattern that allows increased grip. The iconic Weapon toe and heel overlays, along with bold color blockings, give the shoe a retro look for off-court appeal.

The Weapon Evo also debuts Converse Balls Technology, an all-new cushioning system in the shoe's heel that provides excellent impact protection. The heel of the shoe has several polyurethane balls that rebound and push back when compressed during play. The cushioning system creates unique, low profile support that reacts to the athlete's foot as it responds to the demands of the game. The balls are enclosed in a clear TPU cage to provide stability and attractive visible technology. The Evo also features a perforated leather upper for enhanced breathability, fit and feel and an additional lateral support overlay to help contain splay during hard cuts.

The Weapon Evo brings Converse's independent attitude to players, both pro and pick-up – with Converse Balls Technology and a refreshed design that brings Converse heritage to today's game. Converse introduced the Weapon Evo to musicians this summer at the first-ever Band of Ballers tournament. Jim Jones, Asher Roth, Pac Div, Matt and Kim and others laced up the Weapon Evo and squared off on the court in gritty 3-on-3 contents where Jim Jones walked away a champion. Content from the event is posted online in webisodes on Converse.com.

The Weapon Evo hit stores with two premium colorways that pay homage to the original Weapon, worn by two of basketball's greatest on-court rivals.The Weapon Evo will continue to roll out in nine team colorways at nationwide sports specialty retailers in September. Two additional in-line colorways roll out at nationwide sports specialty retailers in October 2009.

Converse Inc., based in N. Andover, Massachusetts, is a wholly owned subsidiary of NIKE, Inc. Established in 1908, the Converse brand has built a reputation as “America's Original Sports Company” and has been associated with a rich heritage of legendary shoes such as the Chuck Taylor All Star shoe, the Jack Purcell shoe and the One Star shoe. Today, Converse offers a diverse portfolio including premium lifestyle men's and women's links of london bracelet and footwear and apparel. Converse product is sold globally by retailers in over 160 countries and through 43 company-owned retail locations in the U.S.