Accessories

New York - Saks Fifth Avenue has named Tracy Margolies as chief merchant, effective May 11, 2015. Margolies will drive the strategic direction and performance of all buying activities for Saks, and will report to Marc Metrick, president of Saks Fifth Avenue.

Margolies rejoins Saks Fifth Avenue after serving as senior VP and general merchandise manager, beauty, contemporary 5F, footwear and handbags at Bergdorf Goodman. Previously, Margolies spent seven years at Saks as VP, division merchandise manager, women's footwear.

New York -- Stuart Weitzman Holdings announced that Alyssa Mishcon has joined as president, global retail. Mishcon will oversee all aspects of the global retail business including customer experience and relationship management, strategic operations development, merchandising and international retail growth.

Mishcon brings more than 15 years of experience in luxury brands, working most recently as president of Thomas Pink Inc., LVMH Fashion Group and then previously VP strategy, merchandising & retail at TAG Heuer, LVHM Watch & Jewelry Division.

Saks Off 5th is joining the likes of Nordstrom Rack, Marshalls and Old Navy as the newest tenant at a Southern California shopping center that serves by value conscious residents of a community synonymous with celebrity and glamour.

Specialty retailer the Children’s Place has rejected an alternate slate of directors proposed by a firm agitating for change after it acquired roughly 2% of the retailer’s outstanding shares.

Chicago -- West Marine will celebrate the grand opening of its Chicago flagship on Thursday, April 23, and continuing through Sunday, April 26.

At 20,000 sq. ft., the Halsted Street location will be the largest West Marine store in the Midwest. The new store will include such features as a state-of-the-art marine electronics display with over 100 units that shoppers can touch and test, and a dedicated "Paddle World" featuring a huge selection of kayaks and stand-up paddleboards, plus a broad range of paddling accessories.

Century 21, the coveted off-price store beloved by fashionistas in the Northeast, has announced that it will be heading south for its next location.

Century 21 will be opening an approximately 85,000-square-foot store – the first anywhere in the nation outside of the Northeast – at Sawgrass Mills in South Florida in the fall of 2016.

New York -- There’s been a change at the top at Saks Fifth Avenue. On Thursday, Saks parent company Hudson’s Bay Company announced that company veteran Marc Metrick, 41, is replacing Marigay McKee as president of Saks Fifth Avenue, effective April 2, 2015. It’s a return of sorts for Metrick, who is HBC’s executive VP and chief administrative officer. He spent the first 15 years of his career at Saks Fifth Avenue, ultimately becoming its chief strategy officer, before joining the leadership team of HBC in 2012 as chief marketing officer.

Fast casual chain Forever 21 has added men’s, girls and plus collections to 50 more stores as part of its global expansion plan.

Forever 21+, Forever 21 Men and Forever 21 Girls will now be added to 50 existing U.S. stores in markets such as Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, New Orleans, Orlando, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Stamford, Conn., and more.

Hosuton - Fashion accessories retailer Charming Charlie recently expanded its relationship with Stored Value Solutions (SVS) to offer e-commerce distribution of digital gift cards. Charming Charlie originally associated with SVS in 2012 for gift card processing in their more than 340 stores across the U.S.

Since introducing online access to digital eCards to complement the availability of physical cards, Charming Charlie gift cards purchased online during the winter holiday season grew by an exponential rate year-over-year.

New York -- Joseph Abboud has opened a flagship, the first under the umbrella of Men's Wearhouse, on Madison Avenue in Manhattan. Men’s Wearhouse acquired the Abboud brand in 2013.

The 4,300-sq.-ft. location was designed and styled collaboratively by Jeffrey Hutchison & Associates and Joseph Abboud, and is reminiscent of London's Savile Row.