Story and Photos by Kathleen Gasperini and Tom Wallace The flagship Agenda trade show in Long Beach, CA, from January 7-8, 2014, represented a quintessential snapshot of where the marketplace of streetwear, action sports, and music-inspired lifestyle apparel, footwear, and accessories is headed. The show was packed with business being done at the brisk pace […]
The fashion trade show season is about to get underway with a variety of top shows starting this week, including Agenda in Long Beach on Tuesday-Wednesday, January 7-8, 2014, Bread and Butter in Berlin, and the upcoming Vegas shows in February. It’s an exciting time for major transitions to the trade shows, including new owners […]
They call it their “profit improvement plan” to streamline the brand, and focus, but another way to put it is that Quiksilver, once the kingpin of surfing and action sports, has had to deal with a harsh wake-up call that they simply aren’t popular with their once-core market of teens. Quiksilver hasn’t turned a profit […]
Billabong continues to struggle along, this time by selling 92 West 49 retail stores across Canada to YM Inc., owners of Sirens, Stitches, Urban Planet, and Bluenotes for approximately C$9 million-C$11 million or between USD $8.6-$10.5 million. In a statement Neil Fiske, CEO of Billabong, said, “The sale of West 49 is part of our […]
While Nike tends to still hold fast to the notion that sneakers are not fashion, but are first and foremost about high-tech function, niche brands with a nod towards fashion have plowed their way into the cool aesthetics of a new culture of sneaker-heads. Not that Nike’s not on the leading-edge of sneaker style, because […]
To be privately held for more than 50 years in the fashion industry is about as punk rock as it gets. But Dr. Martens, the quintessential boot of music icons and the genre of punk is in talks to move on from the Griggs family in a potential $485 million deal with Permira, owners of […]
At the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting last month, one of the inspiring announcements came from TOMS founder, Blake Mycoskie, in stating that starting in January 2014, they would be manufacturing shoes and hiring local people in Haiti—one of several countries that TOMS supports with its buy a pair give a pair to a […]
Over the past several years, downtown LA’s fashion district has become a hub for a growing number of showrooms and brands, particularly men’s brands, but was often overlooked within the fashion industry. This week, several of the showrooms in the area including The Ntwrk Agency, The FNDTN, The Park, and Flagship got together and decided […]
With the rise in popularity of American heritage brands, Woolrich’s recent announcement to partner with Portland Product Werks to create a shoe collection sounds promising. Debuting for Fall 2014 and launching first at FFANY trade show in NY in December, followed by Outdoor Retailer in January and Project in Vegas in February, Woolrich’s shoe collection […]
Fresh research and analysis released today, September 16, 2103, from Label Networks’ 13th Annual Fall Youth Culture Study 2013 reveals where shifts in the youth marketplace have created new opportunities and trends across fashion, technology and communication, effective advertising and sponsorship, music, digital entertainment, social networking, mobile phone culture, plus automotive, fast food, and beverages based […]