Apparel

NEW YORK — Saks has introduced its Saks Love Your Cause Initiative, which will give 5% of all registered purchases to the American Red Cross and select local organizations, during February.

“Saks Fifth Avenue is committed to our local communities. We appreciate our customers’ charitable involvement and look forward to giving back locally for a second year with this exciting and newly implemented national program,” Steve Sadove, chairman and CEO, Saks Inc., said.

New York -- Sears Canada is letting go of 700 workers as part of a plan to "right-size" the operation.

The lay-offs will include 360 department store associates and about 300 distribution center workers, as well as some head office personnel.

Sears Canada, majority-owned by Sears Holdings Corp., has falling sales. It is also facing major competition by Wal-Mart Stores and Target, which is set to make its Canadian debut this spring.

New York -- A report released Thursday by PwC found that U.S. retail and consumer merger & acquisition activity in 2012 drove both deal volume and value up from the prior year as the number of larger deals over $1 billion almost doubled.

According to PwC’s U.S. retail and consumer M&A insights “2012 Year in Review and 2013 Outlook” report, private equity activity in the retail sector comprised nearly 40% of deal volume and 55% of deal value, and IPO volume increased 38%.

Fremont, Calif. -- Men’s Wearhouse announced today the launch of a free mobile app called Wedding Tuxedo Group Manager, which provides couples with information about the rental of their wedding party’s tuxedos, simplifying the wedding planning process and providing peace of mind.

New York -- Australian import Lorna Jane will open the largest store in its U.S. portfolio, a 3,000-sq.-ft. unit in San Francisco, in February.
 
The retailer, which specializes in fashionable yoga clothing, opened 10 stores in Southern California in 2012, and is now expanding into the Bay Area. Lorna Jane is also looking at locations in Corte Madera, San Jose, Palo Alto and Walnut Creek, as it looks to open 15 more stores by the end of this year, the report said.

NEW YORK — Samsung Electronics has partnered with New York-based designer to create the industry's first co-created print inspired by crowd-sourced sketches and images using the Galaxy Note II. The print will appear on a limited-edition bag that will be sold in key markets around the world to raise funds for Art Start, an award-winning, nationally-recognized charity that uses the arts to nurture the creative talents of at-risk children and youth. 

New York -- Barneys New York said Thursday it will launch its off-price website Barneyswarehouse.com on Monday, following a two-week pilot in August. Merchandise on the warehouse site will be past-season sale items at discounts of up to 75% off retail, and will be used along with its brick-and-mortar outlets for liquidation.

Washington -- Consumers aren’t quite ready to shell out the big bucks for their loved ones this Valentine’s Day as much as they were last year. The 2013 Valentine's Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey conducted for the National Retail Federation by BIGinsight shows only a slight increase in expected sales this year with the average person planning to spend $130.97 on candy, cards, gifts and more, up from $126.03 last year. Total spending will reach $18.6 billion.