retailers

Gracious Home Files Chapter 11

Gracious Home, a New York luxury home-goods retailer, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The brand, which began as a hardware store in Manhattan in 1963 had morphed into a brand selling home decor, lighting, children's furniture, kitchen goods and more. The business will continue to operate during the bankruptcy and will be restructuring with the help of new investor, GH Acquisition, an affiliate of Meridian Ventures. The business listed assets and liabilities of $10 million to $50 million in court papers.

The business has six locations in Manhattan as well as an e-commerce website. "We want to assure our customers, our employees, our suppliers and our community that Gracious Home is operating - business as usual," Jordan Smilowitz, President and Chief Operating Officer said in a statement.

Tags: chapter 11 bankruptcy, gracious home, retail, retail sales, retailers

The Rich Will Rescue Christmas

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel

It looks like luxury retail is getting ready for a comeback. Shoppers in enviable tax brackets are doing a better job of prying their wallets open, at least if you can believe their stock prices. Tiffany, Saks and Nordstrom all showed signs of progress heading into Black Friday, meaning that investors were willing to bet on the wealthy.

Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak, explained to USA Today, "We're resting our (upbeat outlook) on the upper-income consumer, who seems to be holding up pretty well." This group, he continued, "is where the vast majority of spending in this country is done."

Research firm Penn Schoen Berland weighed in with agreement: "Well-to-do Americans are feeling much less of a crunch." Households with incomes of greater than $70,000 a year, the firm found, planned to amp up their holiday spending by 27 percent this year. Those with incomes below $40,000 are cutting their holiday joy by 14 percent.

While the bargain hunters turn to the discount retailers, which are expected to do well this year, look for the higher-income consumers to spend more at places like Williams-Sonoma and other mid-range to upscale retail establishments.

So, with deeper pockets starting to open this year, it looks like the wealthy will turn last year's holiday bust around. A good holiday season for Saks shows that those with the bucks are starting to open up, and recoveries start at the top.

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Tags: luxury retail, luxury retailers, LuxuryRetail, LuxuryRetailers, nordstrom, Nordstroms, recession, RecessionAntidote, recovery, retail, retail sales, retailers, RetailSales, saks, Saks Fifth Avenue, SaksFifthAvenue, tiffany, TiffanyAndCo, tiffanys

J. Crew's Job Cuts

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

The First Lady may outfit herself and her children in J. Crew (both Sasha and Malia Obama wore J. Crew coats to the inauguration), but all that free publicity hasn't spared the purveyor of preppy casual wear from being hit by the economy. The retailer has announced that it is eliminating 95 jobs in its New York offices and in distribution centers. The cuts represent around a 10% staff reduction. The company has also suspended matching 401k contributions and any merit-based pay raises.

The LA Times reports that J. Crew hoping to reduce its annual budget by $40 million. The cuts are inline with what has been seen at a variety of other retailers including the major department stores like Macy's, Saks and Neiman Marcus which are all wrestling with a decrease in consumer spending. Companies don't know when the economy will improve and shoppers will be back out in the streets so much of this is a preemptive measure to make sure that they are running as lean as is possible.

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Tags: economy, j crew, JCrew, job cuts, JobCuts, retailers

Bluefly Goes After The Younger Shopper

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Apparel

Online retailer Bluefly.com is doing its best to keep shoppers coming back. Over the last couple years they have run racy television ads to lure consumers, now after some new financing they have launched a new boutique within the main retailer. B*fly is a new boutique aimed at the younger crowd. It carries trendy separates for men and women that focus on contemporary trends at reasonable prices. The new store mirrors a move that some bricks and mortar stores such as Barney's with their Co-op and Neiman Marcus with their Cusp stores. Will it be enough to boost the online retailer, which has reported a weak fourth quarter and has released lowered expectations for the coming year?

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Tags: bluefly, entertainment-awards, online shopping, retailers

Chicago Bans Foie Gras

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Dining

As Nick reported at Slashfood, the city of Chicago has decided to ban foie gras from being sold by retailers and at restaurants. Any establishment or person who violates the ban will be fined $500, according to the New York Times. The legislature has been considering this ban for some time now in the face of mounting concern over the ethics of force-feeding ducks until their livers reach 10 times the normal size. The ban, adopted by a vote of 48-to-1 will take effect in 90 days, so any Chicago residents should take in their favorite dish at Rick Tramonto's Tru before it goes off the menu.