Accessories

New York -- Juicy Couture is closing its U.S. stores as it makes plans to debut a new retail store format in key high-traffic locations, including New York City, Los Angeles and Vancouver, in early 2015. The company expects to open 127 stores and in-store shops during the next five years in major cities across the globe.

Premium footwear, accessories and apparel brand Johnston & Murphy has selected Demandware to help it bolster its omnichannel capabilities.

Johnston & Murphy recently launched a new e-commerce site, www.johnstonmurphy.com, on Demandware. The brand plans to leverage the commerce platform to enable mobile optimized shopping experiences via responsive web design, and the integration of online and offline channels to provide customers with “buy anywhere, fulfill anywhere” capabilities.  

New York — Dear Rivington, a designer fashion boutique selling clothing, eyewear, pottery and jewelry, has signed a lease to relocate to a new location in the NoHo district of Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The 3,300-sq.-ft. store features 2,000 sq. ft. of ground floor space with high ceilings and a skylight. The 1,300-sq.-ft. lower level has also been fitted out for retail and not just storage.

The distinctive storefront features oversized barn style doors that give the store a private feel.

Philadelphia — Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust has executed leases with Retail Group of America to bring three international brands F&F, Flormar and SuiteBlanco to the Patrick Henry Mall in Newport News, Virginia. The transactions illustrate PREIT’s strategy for improving portfolio performance by seeking out emerging, first-to-market options.

New York – Online luxury fashion and beauty retailer Net-A-Porter is launching sales of Google Glass on June 23, available to shoppers in the U.S. Net-A-Porter will be selling a limited number of optical and sunglass styles, to be sold as exclusive packages.

Each bundle includes Glass, a frame and shade, a mono earbud, and case for $1,800.

New York -- Coach plans to shutter about 70 underperforming stores in fiscal 2015, Crain’s New York reported. The retailer, which has been under heavy competitive pressure from Michael Kors and other upscale companies, also gave a disappointing revenue forecast for its current fiscal year.
   

New York -- DSW Inc.'s Affiliated Business Group and Yellow Box Corporation will open the first-ever Yellow Box store on June 20, at The Falls Shopping Center in Miami. The store opens on June 20.

Francesca’s has tapped David Minnix Jr. as the new VP and head of boutiques. The former chief stores officer at Dots Fashion will start his job overseeing the upscale boutique chain’s operations on July 8.

Minnix has also formerly worked for retailers like Zales and Pearle Vision, and at Dots Fashion oversaw store support and loss prevention departments, among other duties. At Francesca’s Minnix will oversee the company’s 519 boutiques, each of which is meant to feel like an independent shop.

Rent the Runway, the popular online retailer specializing in rentals of pricey designer dresses and accessories, has opened a brick-and-mortar outpost on the second floor of The Cosmopolitan hotel’s retail complex in Las Vegas.

San Francisco — Lower gross profits and higher pretax losses helped drive The Gymboree Corp.’s net loss to $15 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2014, up from $2.85 million a year earlier. The retailer plans to open 50 new stores and close 25-30 existing stores during the fiscal year.

Net sales shrank 7% to $272 million from $292.78 million. Same-store sales dropped 10%. Gymboree plans to open new stores fairly evenly across its brands, and will spend $35-$40 million in capital expenditures during fiscal 2014.