The Thread
Editor-in-Chief Jennifer Marks shares news and views from around the home textiles marketplace.
The Hasbro Model
There were a number of interesting presentations during Lenzing's celebration of the 20th anniversary of its Tencel fiber earlier this month in New Orleans. As far as consumers were concerned - understanding what's important to them and creating products and marketing that appeals to them - the focus was very much on Millennials, who are roughly between 13 and 29 years old. And the remark that rea... Read More
Comments (0)Whoda Thunk?
Apparently, old habits die hard. It was not much of a surprise that Amazon topped the list of consumers' favorite retail brands on a recent ranking by New Media Metrics, which tracks the emotional attachment Americans feel for brands.As Forbes noted in its report on the top 16 brands last week, Amazon's emotional attachment score of 45.7% was higher than any brick-and-mortar retailer.The shocker w... Read More
Comments (0)Hear Ye, Hear Ye
Tis the season. No, not the one you're thinking about.‘Tis the season to face the fact that the opening volley of winter trade shows is mere weeks away.In case you haven't seen the many emails we're sent out on the subject, here's the skinny if you are exhibiting at any of these shows and want to be included in HTT's editorial coverage.• Heimtextil: The deadline for submitting photos and informati... Read More
Comments (0)A Tweak? Or a Twist?
Let me start with this: I am rooting for Ron Johnson and the JCPenney/JCP ceo's strategy.I hope he does transform the company. I hope he does create a breathtaking, 21st century format for department store retailing.I want to walk into JCP - the moniker for the future, completely fresh format store than consists of 100 shop-in-shops - and be so blown away that my purse pops open of its own accord... Read More
Comments (0)Give a Hoot
Hurricane Sandy may have disappeared from news in most of the country, but it is still very much a factor in the lives of tens of thousands of people still without power as I write this nine days after the storm passed.Several retailers have donated to disaster relief in the wake of the storm, including Belk, Kohl's, Target, Macy's and Walmart. So have some home textiles suppliers, among them Alok... Read More
Comments (0)Changing Times
After previewing the New York Home Fashions Market week last month, one of the big take-aways was the market pivot to the Millennial generation. We've since seen more evidence of the trend. Last week, Macy's announced the launch of 13 new brands in the coming months to appeal explicitly to the 13- to 30-year-old population segment. The brands are apparel, accessories and footwear, although obvi... Read More
Comments (2)Déjà Vu
In remarks at the Fashion Group International luncheon last week, JCPenney ceo Ron Johnson seemed to confirm what we were hearing during last month's New York Home Fashions Market: some of the Martha Stewart merchandise being contested by rival Macy's as exclusive to its stores is headed to JCP minus the Stewart branding.The Martha Stewart product categories at Macy's, by the way, include bedding,... Read More
Comments (2)A Turning Point
For my money, the New York Home Fashions Market earlier this month was one of the most interesting - and pivotal - in years. You could say spring market of 2000 was the last in which the big U.S. mills were the undisputed Goliaths of the industry. (By summer, Glenoit would be among the first to file bankruptcy, and by fall, Wall Street analysts were already forecasting the same for Pillowtex.) S... Read More
Comments (1)Two Who Set the Tone
Retailers, I'm going to let you in on something. Nearly every new brand you see this week - and you will be seeing a lot of them - has been designed to win over one of two accounts: Bed Bath & Beyond or Macy's. In that order.Preferably with an upper tier that gets picked up by Macy's and an upper-moderate tier that sets hears aflutter at Bed Bath & Beyond.Just like every introduction you saw at la... Read More
Comments (5)A Middling Muddle
A question: How is home doing at retail these days?Answer: That depends on the retailer.During the years of the housing bubble, home textiles - and home furnishings generally - were hot pretty much across the board. The category actually began to sag ahead of the market collapse. During the worst of the recession, home textiles sales sank pretty much everywhere, with the rebound beginning at TJX a... Read More
Comments (7)Three Weeks To Go
New York Home Fashions Market is now just three weeks away, which means companies are starting to talk about what they've been up to since the spring market. Based on preliminary conversations with several execs in recent days, a few trend lines are beginning to emerge.Expansion: During the recession, many companies retrenched to focus on core competencies. Increasing numbers of suppliers are star... Read More
Comments (3)Celebrity Confessions
I confess I rolled my eyes when I learned last week that Donny Osmond is planning to unleash a home furnishings line late next year. I was not the only one among my colleagues to do so.Hoping to provide my sisters with a laugh, I dashed off an email titled "Are you ready to live the Donny Osmond lifestyle!" Guess what? They are."I will be very interested to see his products," r... Read More
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