Apparel

New York -- Simply Fashion Stores Ltd. has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and announced plans to liquidate nearly all of its assets. In its filing, it noted that the “exact plan” for the future of the company is still being refined.

The Birmingham, Alabama-based urban fashion retailer, which caters mostly to African-American women, operates some 250 stores in 25 states.

New York -- New York and Los Angeles may be the largest U.S. markets in terms of apparel sales, but online and smaller markets such as Orlando, Florida, and Washington, D.C., are the top markets driving both growth rate and dollar volume increases for the industry, according to global information company The NPD Group.  

Both Orlando and Washington had strong performance across in-store and online channels.

St. Petersburg, Fla. -- HSN, Inc. has appointed John Aylward as executive VP and chief marketing officer for HSN, an operating division of the $3.6 billion interactive multichannel retailer.

Irvine, Calif. -- Tilly’s announced today that CFO Jennifer Ehrhardt intends to resign from Tilly’s to relocate closer to her family and pursue other professional interests. She will continue to serve in the role for an interim period expected to end in June 2015, and will help with the transition process.

LIDS is celebrating 20 years of retail innovation with the launch of a new headwear line that will take customers back to the 1990s.

Available at select stores throughout North America and on LIDS.com, the 20th Anniversary Platinum Collection will feature a selection of limited edition (1,995 units) fashion hats inspired by popular designs from the past 20 years. The first style in the series, the Flawless cap, was originally launched in 2003 as part of a collection inspired by recording star Fred Durst of the band Limp Bizkit.

Sports retailer Adidas is trying to strengthen its “green” credentials with a promise to use plastic waste from the oceans in some of its products.

The company said it is partnering Parley for the Oceans to develop fabric made from recycled ocean waste for use in its clothing, and potentially shoe uppers, from next year.

New York – Retailers Amazon.com, HSN, Newegg, QVC and Zappos.com were among the 15 companies receiving the highest ratings in the 2015 Forrester Research Customer Experience Index. Forrester data indicates that improving the customer experience is a strategic priority for 73% of businesses, yet only 1% of companies deliver an excellent customer experience.

Overwhelming demand for Target's Lily Pulitzer collection caused a shopping frenzy over the weekend both in stores and online.