Today I spent the day doing a comparative analysis of the different department stores in the city. Department stores began in New York in the mid-1850s to allow shoppers to find a variety of goods at retail price in one location. Department stores typically organize their merchandise into separate departments.
Macy's, Inc. owns the department stores Macy's and Bloomingdale's. As of 2010, according to Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited (Deloitte), Macy's Inc. is the world's largest fashion goods retailer and the 36th largest retailer overall.
Bloomingdales (59th and Lexington): Bloomingdale's is an upscale chain of department stores owned by Macy's, Inc. Bloomingdales spaces out their merchandise and organizes them by brand.
Macy's (Herald Square): Macy's is a mid-range to upscale chain of department stores owned by Macy's, Inc. Macy's has a variety of merchandise which is more crowded than Bloomingdale's, most likely because they hold more merchandise. Macy's was the most crowded store (both with people and merchandise) that I saw today.
Saks Fifth Avenue (49th and 5th): Saks is an upscale department store chain owned by Saks Incorporated. According to Vida Farwana, Saks' flagship store in midtown is the second visited place in NYC after the Statue of Liberty, therefore many tourists visit the store so the location holds many designers that are well known internationally. Saks caters to upper class working men and women. Saks had the most items on sales racks out of all the department stores that I saw.
Barneys New York (60th and Madison): Barneys is an American chain of luxury department stores that caters to the "shabby chic" market. Barneys has mostly up and coming designers that would not be displayed in the larger department stores such as Bloomingdale's or Macy's.
Bergdorf Goodman (57th and 5th): Bergdorf is a luxury goods department store that caters to households that earn the top 1% of income. There are only two Bergdorf Goodman locations, both in New York. The merchandise is spread out the most of any of the other department stores that I saw.
Friday, May 17, 2013
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Saks Fine Jewelry
Today I met with Vida Farwana, the manager of Saks Fifth Avenue's fine jewelry department.
Vida began her career in computer sciences and then went back to school to study management.
Vida explained that buyers for Saks determine which collections they want to sell in their stores. Then, vendors will host trunk shows where buyers select individual items outside of the collection to sell. However, according to the demographics of the store's location, Saks stores may have different merchandise depending on the consumer's styles.
The visual displays of the fine jewelry are done by the Saks visual team and the sales clerks will refill the displays with different merchandise as items sell.
While most jewelers do not work according to season, Ippolita stays up to date with changing styles.
Vida shared that the latest trends include layering and summer colors such as greens and blues. Marc Jacobs even designed stackable watches for this season.
Vida began her career in computer sciences and then went back to school to study management.
Vida explained that buyers for Saks determine which collections they want to sell in their stores. Then, vendors will host trunk shows where buyers select individual items outside of the collection to sell. However, according to the demographics of the store's location, Saks stores may have different merchandise depending on the consumer's styles.
The visual displays of the fine jewelry are done by the Saks visual team and the sales clerks will refill the displays with different merchandise as items sell.
While most jewelers do not work according to season, Ippolita stays up to date with changing styles.
Vida shared that the latest trends include layering and summer colors such as greens and blues. Marc Jacobs even designed stackable watches for this season.
Macy's
Yesterday I met with Anabel Caamano, VP of Macy's private label intimates and sleepwear items. Anabel started in the fashion industry by studying marketing at St. Johns University and now runs the designs of all six of Macy's private labels in her department.
Anabel and her team begin the design process by reviewing how their merchandise sold within the past two years. By analyzing the history of their brand the company can reflect on which items did well and which did not sell in order to learn what to do for their upcoming season.
Macy's private labels are considered vendors that sell to the Macy's store. The private labels account for 70% of Macy's total business.
Anabel says that color is the most important factor of design and this season the main trend is natural colors with an addition of pinks, blues, mint and greys. According to Anabel, fashion has recently been simplified and the upcoming styles will be more down to earth.
Anabel and her team begin the design process by reviewing how their merchandise sold within the past two years. By analyzing the history of their brand the company can reflect on which items did well and which did not sell in order to learn what to do for their upcoming season.
Macy's private labels are considered vendors that sell to the Macy's store. The private labels account for 70% of Macy's total business.
Anabel says that color is the most important factor of design and this season the main trend is natural colors with an addition of pinks, blues, mint and greys. According to Anabel, fashion has recently been simplified and the upcoming styles will be more down to earth.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Versace
Tonight Versace held a fashion show downtown. Melissa George was wearing a leather crop top. Hayden Panettiere wore a white beaded dress. Taylor Momsen wore a leather suit. A lot of people had on leather jackets with stud details.
The following is a photo of Taylor Momsen.
Maidenform
Today I spoke with Cathy Goodman, VP of the intimates manufacturer Maidenform.
Cathy informed me that the main apparel trends for this summer are "tanks and dresses with peek-a-boo treatments". Bright colors are very popular this summer, especially green.
Maidenform adapts to these trends by manufacturing multiway convertible bras.
Maidenform translates apparel trends by making bandeaus and crop tops.
Maidenform's best selling item is their Flexees Fat-Free Dressing innerwear/outerwear tank.
Cathy shares, "there are an average of 42 components in a typical bra, but the main material is nylon/Lycra (microfibers)".
Cathy informed me that the main apparel trends for this summer are "tanks and dresses with peek-a-boo treatments". Bright colors are very popular this summer, especially green.
Maidenform adapts to these trends by manufacturing multiway convertible bras.
Maidenform translates apparel trends by making bandeaus and crop tops.
Maidenform's best selling item is their Flexees Fat-Free Dressing innerwear/outerwear tank.
Cathy shares, "there are an average of 42 components in a typical bra, but the main material is nylon/Lycra (microfibers)".
Impressionism, Fashion and Modernity
Today I also went to the Impressionism, Fashion and Modernity exhibit. The exhibition looked at the different costumes and accessories that were represented in 1800s French paintings. The museum captivated its audience by observing trends through the eyes of Manet, Monet and Tissot. The exhibit also displayed garments that are pictured in the paintings.
Punk: Chaos to Couture
Today I visited the MET to see the punk exhibit.
Designers in the exhibition will include Miguel Adrover, Thom Browne, Christopher Bailey (Burberry), Hussein Chalayan, Francisco Costa (Calvin Klein), Christophe Decarnin (Balmain), Ann Demeulemeester, Dior, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana (Dolce and Gabbana), John Galliano, Nicolas Ghesquière (Balenciaga), Katharine Hamnett, Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren (Viktor & Rolf), Christopher Kane, Rei Kawakubo (Comme des Garçons), Karl Lagerfeld (Chanel), Helmut Lang, Martin Margiela, Malcolm McLaren, Alexander McQueen, Franco Moschino and Rossella Jardini (Moschino), Kate and Laura Mulleavy (Rodarte), Miuccia Prada, Gareth Pugh, Zandra Rhodes, Hedi Slimane (Saint Laurent), Stephen Sprouse, Jun Takahashi (Undercover), Joseph Thimister, Riccardo Tisci (Givenchy), Gianni Versace, Junya Watanabe, Yohji Yamamoto, and Vivienne Westwood.
The surrounding walls of the exhibit were made of bottles and cans with ceramic over them to mimic the punk rugged style. The exhibit focused on the DIY ("do it yourself") component of punk style by providing examples of clothing with pressed beer bottle caps, rips, paper clips, scotch tape, plastic shopping bags, trash bags, graffiti and splatter paint.
The following photos - Left: a photo from the MET, Right: 2009 McQueen designs which were inspired by trash bags
In the spring of 1999 McQueen had robots graffiti a dress on the runway
In 2008 Dolce & Gabbana created an evening gown with splatter paint
The punk galleries also showcased the history of punk fashion. Punk style originated in New York in 1964 and appeared in London in 1975. A main focus of the history of punk is the collaboration between designers Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood in the early 1970s who worked for the boutique 'Sex' in London. Westwood and McLaren are largely responsible for making punk fashion mainstream.
The following picture -- Left: picture from the exhibit Right: Vivienne Westwood designs
The exhibit also focused on influences from music such as Sex Pistols and the Ramones.
Designers in the exhibition will include Miguel Adrover, Thom Browne, Christopher Bailey (Burberry), Hussein Chalayan, Francisco Costa (Calvin Klein), Christophe Decarnin (Balmain), Ann Demeulemeester, Dior, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana (Dolce and Gabbana), John Galliano, Nicolas Ghesquière (Balenciaga), Katharine Hamnett, Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren (Viktor & Rolf), Christopher Kane, Rei Kawakubo (Comme des Garçons), Karl Lagerfeld (Chanel), Helmut Lang, Martin Margiela, Malcolm McLaren, Alexander McQueen, Franco Moschino and Rossella Jardini (Moschino), Kate and Laura Mulleavy (Rodarte), Miuccia Prada, Gareth Pugh, Zandra Rhodes, Hedi Slimane (Saint Laurent), Stephen Sprouse, Jun Takahashi (Undercover), Joseph Thimister, Riccardo Tisci (Givenchy), Gianni Versace, Junya Watanabe, Yohji Yamamoto, and Vivienne Westwood.
The surrounding walls of the exhibit were made of bottles and cans with ceramic over them to mimic the punk rugged style. The exhibit focused on the DIY ("do it yourself") component of punk style by providing examples of clothing with pressed beer bottle caps, rips, paper clips, scotch tape, plastic shopping bags, trash bags, graffiti and splatter paint.
The following photos - Left: a photo from the MET, Right: 2009 McQueen designs which were inspired by trash bags
The punk galleries also showcased the history of punk fashion. Punk style originated in New York in 1964 and appeared in London in 1975. A main focus of the history of punk is the collaboration between designers Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood in the early 1970s who worked for the boutique 'Sex' in London. Westwood and McLaren are largely responsible for making punk fashion mainstream.
The following picture -- Left: picture from the exhibit Right: Vivienne Westwood designs
The exhibit also focused on influences from music such as Sex Pistols and the Ramones.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Tigers
The tiger graphic is still big this season and has been prevalent in a number of stores. Here are two examples of how it is used
SHARI'S PLACE
Yesterday I met with Shari Kaynes, owner of a luxury women's clothing store. Shari carries designers such as Balmain, Chloe, Stella McCartney and Belstaff with items including apparel, jewelry, shoes and scarves. After attending Paris Fashion Week Shari knew that the latest trend is punk. With this new trend suede and leather are the latest fabrics and navy, black and green are the upcoming colors. Shari and her team market her store using the tabloids, Facebook and, recently, blogging. Lastly, Shari let me in on a little piece of information that I had not known -- jewelry can last in a store up to three years whereas apparel has a lifespan of about six months. Fashion moves quickly and Shari knows how to stay up to date.
This is a photo of the stylish Shari and the following pictures are shots of her beautiful store.
Shari's window displays had mannequins riding motorcycles
Monday, May 13, 2013
Today (May 13) I am going to Long Island to meet with Shari, a high-end boutique owner http://sharisplace.com/. During my time with Shari I will find out what are the most popular items in the store, observe trends among the clothing items and ask Shari how she determines what items to put in the store.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Street wear
This is Alex an 18 year old visiting the city from Connecticut. Alex is wearing a skull scarf with a Vince leather jacket. She said her favorite designer is McQueen and her favorite stores include Intermix, Theory and Barney's. Alex's favorite trend this season is printed pants and her least favorite style is tasteless cut out dresses. Her ideal stylist would be Kendall Jenner and her favorite celebrity style is the Olsen Twins. Alex represents the style of my target market.
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