Jennifer Marks

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Back to the Future?

It's been a while since we've seen a company in the retail space like the one that Bed Bath and Beyond is evolving into - a multi-nameplate retailer that operates in a diverse array of product sectors.You have to go back to the late 1980s and early 1990s to find something similar, and even then the examples are ... limited.Until it began spinning off properties in the early '90s, Melville Corp. op... More

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Trendspotting

Last week's High Point Market officially wrapped up the winter/spring trade show season that began with the big Heimtextil show in January. Combing through home introductions from key shows, here are a few stand-out product directions.1. TextureSurface texture is important in every product category. We're seeing more ruffles, more roushing, pintucking and gathering. Cuffs on sheets and cases are g... More

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Retail Inspiration

Sometimes you need to recharge your batteries and look outside your own universe. To that end, I recommend the National Retail Federation's "This Is Retail" competition at nrf.com.The contest is now down to 10 semifinalists. Sadly, there are no linen stores among them. Nevertheless, the two-minute videos from the contestants provide a nice pick-me-up - and, who knows, maybe a few ideas.T... More

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Back to the Future

After Best Buy announced last week that it will close 50 large-format stores and open 100 small Best Buy Mobile stores, Bloomberg News proclaimed: "The Era of Big Box Retail Dominance is Coming to an End."The rise of online shopping was cited as one of the factors along with the "showroom" phenomenon whereby consumers visit a store to check out merchandise in person, then pull... More

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The E-Game

 There was a lot of buzz about ecommerce during the New York Home Fashions Market two weeks ago - a significant, eyebrow-raising amount of talk.Ecommerce buyers I heard mentioned most often included Amazon, macys.com and Overstock. There was also a fair amount of chatter about the appearance of Groupon in New York showrooms during the week. Increasing numbers of suppliers are talking about their f... More