Beauty. Not For Everyone.

Beauty is a beautiful idea. Just ask Gap Inc. The company has announced plans for a phased beauty rollout, starting with “test and learn” in Old Navy. The upside sounds enticing: fresh growth, new and repeat footfall, and cultural relevance. But beauty is rarely easy. Especially when an apparel brand tries shoehorn in a new […]

From Stitch to Scale: RSG x Lectra Survey

The fashion manufacturing and product development space is evolving fast. Naturally, this brings new opportunities but growth can be limited by persistent constraints. In our work with market leading brands, we get to see behind the curtain and discover some of the hurdles that limit the ability to capitalize on market trends and drive profitability. […]

How Fixing The Broken Telephone Leads to Profit (In Partnership with Microsoft)

Broken communication leads to lost profit. You can find any number of examples of this across industries.  Retail is no exception. I’ll give you an example from my own experience. When I worked as a merchant, I dropped into one of our flagship stores to check on the first delivery of the Fall season. The […]

Good Job Shopping!!

Second day in London and I need to grocery shop. I slam down the double espresso and march over to the Marks & Spencer on King’s Road. The first thing I see is a gentleman in an M&S-green polo with the words “Loss Prevention” embroidered into the garment. He locks eyes, beams, and welcomes me […]

It Flew Off On The Highway

Picture it… We’re cruising down a toll road in Spain towards Alicante. Toll paid, the barrier lifts, we accelerate. “Hey, what happened to the side mirror?” Liza says casually. I pull over. The mirror works, but the cap is MIA, apparently launched somewhere back on the highway. Two days later at a Volkswagen dealership: yes, […]

The Hot Sign Is Off.

I love donuts. I’m especially partial to mini cinnamon sugar. Oh, and donuts branded as “Floopy’s” that I can find at any Lidl location here in Spain. You know who else loves donuts? McDonalds. So much so that Krispy Kreme and McDonalds engaged in a brief love affair. However, this entanglement is a demonstrative example […]

Mismatched Outsourcing

Here are three observations that I have made regarding brands and their efforts to outsource design, sourcing and product development. 1 – Global apparel brand: Hired an existing vendor to deliver trend-right styles closer to market. After seeing the vendor’s capsule, the brand rejected it and sent them back to square one. 2 – Womenswear […]

More Time. More Sales.

Amazon announced they’re doubling down on Prime Day. In July, Prime Day will span four days. “We’re extending it to four days because our members have told us they just need more time to shop the deals,” Jamil Ghani, Amazon vice president of worldwide prime said in a Reuters article. It’s the longest Prime Day […]

We Are (Not) All In This Together

“When you say partnership, I hear: You have no money.” I read that on LinkedIn sometime ago. I used to think that was funny. Then the “strategic partnership opportunity” emails landed in my inbox And it turns out, it’s true! The idea is similar when applied to brand/supplier relationships. According to industry veterans, like John […]

Saks-Co???

When Halston made a deal with J.C. Penney in 1983, the designer wanted to expand his “brand diffusion” experiment to a broader audience. Halston would launch “Halston III,” a diffusion line priced at $24-$200 that he said was style “for the American people.” From the luxury point view, people hated this move. It was seen […]