North America
North America
Consumers
Articles
Hope Springs
This year’s long, hard winter has been blamed for everything from slow housing starts to sluggish retail sales. Now that the warmer spring temps have supplanted sub-zero readings, numerous businesses…
Retail/Brands
Articles
The Retail Network
Walmart first established the gold standard of supply chain planning when it used its size and power to reduce costs and offer competitive pricing. Fast fashion, too, embodied speed and…
Supply Chain
Articles
Leading Responsibly
Cotton LEADS™, the program launched last year to raise awareness regarding the responsible growing practices among cotton producers in the U.S. and Australia, now has more than 100 textile business…
Consumers
Articles
Denim’s Renewal
Everyone has a favorite pair of denim jeans — until they start fraying or ripping. At one time, some funky patches might have helped to cover the holes and prolong…
Consumers
Articles
Sizing Solutions
Fit remains an essential component for shoppers looking to buy something new. So both online and brick and mortar retailers are looking toward high tech solutions in an effort to…
Retail/Brands
Articles
Widening Margins
Holiday 2013 proved consumers were all about the bargain, shopping heavily over Thanksgiving’s “Black Weekend,” and then holding out until the end for super discounts. Even with a steadily improving…
Consumers
Articles
The Denim Dialogue
With the Kingpins Show and Texworld wrapping up this week, those in the denim industry got a chance to see the next evolution of treatments and techniques. The options are…
Retail/Brands
Articles
Online Goes Offline
E-tailers may have saved the 2013 holiday season, with online holiday sales increasing 10.3% year over year, according to IBM’s Digital Analytics Benchmark report. Despite the strong growth, e-commerce remains…
Consumers
Articles
Reviving Consumer Demand for Home Textiles
The turnaround in the U.S. housing market has resulted in stronger home textile sales, but quality issues threaten to hamper future sales potential. Eight of the top 10 U.S. home…
Retail/Brands
Articles
A Slow Finish
If December determines store sales for the year, retailers should be cautious heading into this final stretch before Christmas. [quote]Consumer sentiment jumped more than 7 points, from 75.1 in November…