This is a section in BTT for the readers who are keen to know what is happening in retail world. Global retail world is important equally for our readers locally and internationally as Bangladesh has been considered as one of biggest manufacturers of the world especially when it apparel & textiles. I am Ataullah Al Farhan, editing this section for you all.
World top retailers to expose Safety Inspections in Bangladesh
Major retailers have signed up to a safety agreement after more than 1,127 workers died in a Bangladeshi factory collapse. Primark and H&M are the latest to sign up to the Bangladesh Fire and Safety Act after manufacturing workers in Bangladesh unrested over substandard working conditions in the industrial Ashulia district of Dhaka. Italian fashion brand Benetton, Spanish retailer Mango and British retailer Marks & Spencer have become the most recent global retailers to agree to sign a one-of-a-kind accord to improve safety at Bangladesh factories following a building crumple that in the country last month.
The Inditex Group, which runs Zara, Massimo Dutti and Pull & Bear; Calvin Klein owner PVH, Tommy Hilfiger, C&A and Tesco have also signed the agreement in an attempt to better working conditions in the country.
PUMA joins up with INVISTA on new premium product innovation in performance apparel
Global sport lifestyle brand PUMA exposed a range of training tights, shorts and tops this month, PUMA ACTV and PUMA RCVR. Both take performance wear to the next level by using LYCRA® SPORT fabric in a first-to-market use of both athletic string and enhanced compression within the garments. PUMA ACTV has been awarded the sports industry “ISPO Gold Award” quality seal in the Compression Apparel category, at ISPO 2013. PUMA worked closely with INVISTA, makers of LYCRA® fiber, to determine the best fabric for the ACTV range of garments. The silicone ‘taping’ is attached to LYCRA® SPORT fabric, which makes up the main material of the performance wear. This is part of an on-going active wear innovation partnership between PUMA and INVISTA.
Walmart instigates National Advertising Campaign to Show “The Real Walmart”
Walmart has recently pronounced the launch of a national television and digital advertising campaign and accompanying website (www.therealwalmart.com). The campaign shows how people across America count on Walmart to save money on the products they want and need, how the company offers tremendous career opportunities for its associates and how it creates efficiencies and works directly with manufacturers to assist deliver low prices. “We have wanted to do this for a long time because we know that people trust Walmart even more when they understand the opportunities we provide our associates, who the customers are that shop with us and how we deliver low prices,” said Bill Simon, president and CEO of Walmart U.S.
Gap Inc. Reports Strong Sales for April
Gap Inc. has just reported net sales for the first quarter of fiscal year 2013 increased 7 percent compared with the first quarter of fiscal year 2012 and that April 2013 net sales increased 5 percent compared with last year. Net sales for the first quarter, which ended May 4, 2013, were $3.73 billion compared with $3.49 billion for the first quarter last year. In addition, net sales for the four-week period ended May 4, 2013 were $1.21 billion compared with net sales of $1.15 billion for the four-week period ended April 28, 2012.
“We are pleased with our sales performance this month, led by our largest brands, Gap and Old Navy,” said Glenn Murphy, chairman and chief executive officer of Gap Inc.
J.C. Penney’s shares go up on better sales
J.C. Penney Co. has achieved in New York trading after analysts at Cleveland Research said deeper promotions this month have increased sales by bringing more shoppers into stores. The shares rose 2.9 percent Monday to close at $18.24. The Plano-based company’s shares have slid 7.5 percent this year, compared with a 15 percent increase for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index. The chain’s new boutiques include shops for designers Michael Graves and Jonathan Adler and clothier Joe Fresh. Penney said in its filing that initial sales at the shops have been “positive.” In a sales event for Mother’s Day, J.C. Penney used the term “doorbusters” to advertise in-store savings of as much as 40 percent.
New Mango Strategy Looks More Like Zara
After a 60% decline in profit through the last year, Mango has taken a page out of Zara’s playbook and cut prices by about 20% across the board. Recently, Mango has abandoned the glitz in favor of more casual dress like that from Spanish competitor Inditex SA, the world’s biggest seller of apparel and owner of the Zara brand. The change has helped Mango outpace Inditex in Spain’s 16.2 billion-euro ($21 billion) clothing market.
Tennis icon Andre Agassi rejoins Nike- declares $0.21 quarterly dividend Worldwide footwear, apparel, equipment, accessories and services supplier Nike has announced that its Board of Directors has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.21 per share on the company’s outstanding Class A and Class B Common Stock payable on July 1, 2013, to shareholders of record at the close of business on June 3, 2013. At the same time NIKE, Inc. is delighted to announce an exciting new chapter with sports icon Andre Agassi. The renewed partnership will focus on a shared passion for tennis, along with a commitment to help kids become more active and recognize their full potential through sports.
Primark profits as it spurn internet
Primark has continued to challenge the economic shadow that has determined other fashion retailers by reporting a 24% jump in sales, as its strategy of embracing the high street over the internet has paid off. The bargain clothing chain saw sales rise to £2 billion in the six months to the beginning of last month, with operating profits increasing 56% to £238 million. The huge dive in turnover is largely due to new shopfloor space, but like-for-like sales, which strip out new openings, rose 7%. Primark is committed in its opposition to an online operation, preferring to open new and bigger stores at a time when high street competitors are focusing on multichannel sales, smartphone apps and click-and-collect services. On the other hand Primark has just reconfirmed plans to provide victims of the Rana Plaza factory building in Bangladesh collapse with compensation.
True Religion agrees to $835m buyout offer
fashionable jeans and denim brand True Religion True Religion is to go into private ownership after agreeing to a buyout by investment group TowerBrook. The deal, worth $835m, is the latest in a string of contemporary luxury brand possessions by private equity groups in recent months, indicating that the sector holds considerable appeal for investors thanks to booming sales growth, particularly in China. TowerBrook will pay $32 a share in cash for all outstanding shares in True Religion, a 9 per cent premium to the Los Angeles-based brand’s $29.44 per share price. The company’s first-quarter results – announced alongside news of the buyout – revealed total net sales of $120.8m for the three months ending on March 31, an increase of 13 per cent on the same period of last year.
Levi’s deals for shifting Santa Clara Stadium to Levi’s® Stadium
After celebrating 140 Years of a Cultural Icon The Levi’s® Brand has just announced with San Francisco 49ers that it will present the Santa Clara Stadium Authority a proposal for a 20-year, $220 million naming rights contract for ”Levi’s® Stadium”. The apparel company is offering a naming rights joint venture with the Santa Clara Stadium Authority and San Francisco 49ers that would make the company an official sponsor of the 49ers, and feature best interior and exterior branding of the new Levi’s® Stadium. Levi Strauss & Co. CEO Chip Bergh said, “Levi’s® Stadium will connect two iconic Bay Area brands that share similar values, a rich heritage and a pioneering spirit. Joining the incredible legacy of the 49ers organization is a perfect fit for the Levi’s® brand – and a chance for us to keep with sports and music fans across the Bay Area and around the globe.”
