Tiffany killed it last month, LVMH killed it this week and now BASF thinks the cosmetics market is poised for a recovery (you know we wonder if this is on the strength of Pam Anderson and Heidi Montag alone): BASF SE, a possible bidder for moisturizer-ingredients maker Cognis GmbH, said there are signs that demand [...]

[Read more →]

For most of us, “blue laws” are those antiquated things that let us know what counties to avoid stopping over in on a weekend road trip, but if you live in Bergen County, New Jersey, you’re probably used to the malls not being open on Sunday. Yeah, in most of Bergen you can get some [...]

[Read more →]

Abercrombie and Fitch, considered by some a bellwether of the ‘massclusive’ market because of its various refusals to discount during the recession and other flailing efforts to stay an aspirational brand for high-school and college kids getting a nascent grasp on class warfare, reported widespread fail in its US stores: Sales at stores open at [...]

[Read more →]

I’m tired of beating the dead horse that is Treasury, so here’s some billboard vandalism for you. Our leggings-clad senior retail analyst LoLo has been out on the beat and found this; there are reports that François-Henri Pinault and PPR are rumored to be considering snapping up Abercrombie and Fitch ($ANF) to add to their [...]

[Read more →]

Maybe miracles happen on 34th, but the economy is still resting its head on 115,  and it’s starting to show in more ways then the scratchy, quel-horreurs-this-is-NOT-Frette linens and polyester-lined “bridge” collections now taking up floor space at what used to be our nation’s staid luxury retailers. Nope, this year it’s even hit a coveted [...]

[Read more →]