Counter Culture

Msnbc.com interviews some of our favorite analysts about the state of apparel in today’s retail environment, and it’s not pretty. Apparently, consumers just aren’t buying clothes because they NEED to buy food and gas, which are both rising in cost and taking precedence over the newest Abercrombie T-shirt.

A quote by C. Britt Beemer, an analyst at America’s Research Group, is telling. “I’ve done research for 29 years, and what I’m seeing today I can’t compare to anything I’ve seen before,” he said.

Ouch.
Continue reading ‘Is Apparel Doomed This Year?’

Sharper Image has seen better days. The company filed for bankruptcy earlier this year after quarters of dismal sales.

Now the retailer has put itself up for sale. This brings us to the question: Who would find Sharper Image attractive right now?
Continue reading ‘Is There a Buyer For Sharper Image?’

So it’s really starting now. Sears, Kroger and others are vying for the rebate checks the government will issue consumers next month as part of a $168 billion economic stimulus plan to get the economy back on track.

The Kroger plan would allow customers to exchange their rebate checks for gift cards valued higher than the government-issued money. A $300 check would turn into a $330 gift card, $600 would bring in $660 and $1,200 gets the shopper $1,320.
Continue reading ‘Retailers Line Up For Rebate Checks’

An article in the Wall Street Journal (via Reuters) reports that General Growth Properties is looking at placing some of its marquee malls in joint-venture deals to pay off the REIT’s $18.7 billion of debt.

High-end assets that the company owns outright, such as Fashion Show Mall and the Grand Canal Shoppes in Las Vegas and Ala Moana Center in Honolulu, could end up as candidates, the article says. Bernie Friedbaum, General Growth’s CFO is quoted saying that the firm is approaching life-insurance companies and pension funds.
Continue reading ‘General Growth Looking At JV Sales?’

It seems that Circuit City’s management was just as surprised as we were about a proposed $1.3-billion offer to acquire the company by Blockbuster.

We were weighing a possible deal last week after reading a Business Week article but didn’t expect this.
Continue reading ‘Blockbuster’s Circuit City Surprise’

We just read a Business Week story that ponders whether or not Circuit City is putting itself up for sale. The retailer is getting pressure from investor Mark Wattles, who owns a 6.5% stake in the company, and other investors, to make changes. And there are rumors, the article says, that Circuit City’s management has hired Goldman Sachs to look at strategic alternatives.

Though Circuit City posted a $4.9-million fourth-quarter profit, management predicts a loss of between $180 million and $195 million in the current quarter. Q4 same-store sales fell 10.4%, and for the coming year, they are expected to decline in the mid-single digits.
Continue reading ‘Is Circuit City Sellable?’

An article in the San Jose Mercury News brings up a point we often wonder about. Are online sales less desirable for retailers than transactions in stores?

According to a Forrester Research-Shop.org study, Internet sales are forecast to grow 17% this year, hitting $204 billion. It is a large increase, but slightly down from the 21% gain, and $175-billion total retailers collected in 2007.
Continue reading ‘Do Online Sales Take Away From Stores?’

We’ve seen more and more e-mails lately regarding the International Council of Shopping Centers’ national convention in Las Vegas. Newly branded RECon, the event is the equivalent of a Grateful Dead concert for the industry.

We are again remiss in looking at our calendar, because, like every year, the damn thing has crept up on us. We’re exhausted just thinking about it.
Continue reading ‘ICSC Is…NEXT MONTH!?!?’

British grocer Tesco has made a lot of waves in the industry with the roll out and expansion of its Fresh & Easy chain on the West Coast. But now the retailer plans to slow down its growth.

According to a blog by the chain’s marketing director Simon Uwins, the company is now “pausing for breath” before it continues to open stores. After opening its first 59 Fresh & Easy units in Arizona, California and Nevada, management will wait three months before a further roll out, with the exception of a few Phoenix stores.

Why?
Continue reading ‘Tesco Slows US Expansion’