Jewelry

New York – The top holiday purchase items this year range from the less personal to the very personal. According to a recent online survey conducted by Harris Poll on behalf of Macy’s among nearly 1,700 U.S. adults 18 and older who are holiday shoppers, gift cards (61%) and clothing (52%) top the list when it comes to the types of gifts that holiday shoppers plan to buy this season.    Other popular holiday items include:  

HSN is looking to drive more sales by leveraging the popularity of former NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal with a new product line.

HSN and O’Neal will be selling a new collection near and dear to his heart: DRONE Precision Timepieces, a range of men's and women's watches.

Houston — In its surprise change of leadership, Francesca's Holdings Corp. named Michael W. Barnes as chairman, president and CEO, effective immediately. He joins Fancesca's after serving as CEO of Signet Jewelers since 2011, and leading the company’s $1.46 billion acquisition of Zale Corp. Barnes left the Ohio-based Signet in October, saying he wanted to be closer to his family in Dallas.  

New York City - Brixmor Property Group announced the hiring of Chardell Steves and Jerry Teitelbaum as VPs of Strategic Leasing for the West and North regions, respectively. Both seasoned mall leasing professionals, Steves joins Brixmor from General Growth Properties and Teitelbaum joins from Taubman Centers.

New York — J. Crew provided the best overall online customer service in October, marking the retailer’s third time topping the Stella Benchmarks rankings from StellaService in 2014. The retailer ranked 4th in phone, second in email, eighth in shipping and 17th in returns.
  Stella Benchmarks includes 138 companies evaluated on a daily basis by StellaService. Customer care channels, phone, email and chat, are measured daily, while fulfillment metrics are measured across multiple orders each month.
 

New York has unseated Hong Kong for the dubious distinction as the world’s most expensive shopping destination, according to a fascinating new report examining 330 markets worldwide.

Tiffany & Co. reported a better-than-expected increase in same-store sales, mainly due to strong demand for high-end fashion jewelry in North and South America.  

Hamilton, Bermuda – Signet Jewelers Ltd. has named Daniel Shull as its first CIO effective Jan. 5, 2015. As CIO, Shull will be responsible for Signet's IT systems across its three divisions.

Luxury goods retailers face a new competitive challenge from a consignment Web site called Couture Within Reach that has the potential to siphon off traffic and sales.

Los Angeles -- A round-up of new additions to Los Angeles shopping destination Beverly Center have further elevated the shopping experience at the Bloomingdales- and Macy’s-anchored center.

 

Uniqlo opened on Oct. 10, introducing a Los Angeles flagship for the fast-fashion retailer in 30,000 sq. ft. of space that is the largest storefront in the Uniqlo portfolio.