Apparel

Birdies has gotten some new seed — seed funding that is   The San Francisco startup, known for its stylish and comfortable house slippers, announced it has raised $2 million in seed funding. The round was led by Forerunner Ventures, the investors behind Jet.com and Dollar Shave Club, with participation from Slow Ventures, Graph Ventures, Social Capital and a few strategic individual investors.    

Off-price retailing is hot, but Neiman Marcus is emphasizing what it knows best.    Neiman Marcus will close 10 of its 37 off-price Last Call stores in order to focus on its full-line luxury department stores. Prior to the news, the retailer has already closed three Last Call outlets this year, including its locations at Allen Premium Outlets, Allen, Texas, and Legacy Place in Dedham, Mass.   

One of the nation's best-performing department stores retailers may soon be out of the public arena.    Nordstrom family members are close to selecting Leonard Green & Partners to help fund a buyout of their namesake department store, reported CNBC, which cited people familiar with the matter.  

rue21 has cleared a significant hurdle in its effort to move forward after declaring bankruptcy.   

Three-quarters of gross leasable area in American malls are inhabited by stores representing the slowest-growing retail categories.   That’s the basis of a report from CBRE advising mall owners to seriously consider diversifying their tenant mixes. Department stores sales are declining by around 4%, yet they take up 49% of mall space. Apparel stores that form 30% of mall makeup are growing at a 12%, but that’s well below restaurants at 32% and furniture, personal care, and health care stores at above 20%.  

Generation Y may be tech-savvy, but for many, store employees still play a pivotal role in their overall shopping experience.   In fact, 63% of shoppers aged 18-35 see store associates as extremely important to their retail experience, according to the “Store Associates Report,” from ChargeItSpot. The study is based on responses from more than 600 shoppers at malls across the country.  

As retailers consider how to best use their physical spaces in a digital world, Nordstrom is going "local," debuting a small-format retail concept that offers all sorts of personal services, but has no dedicated inventory.   

Rebecca Minkoff is making it easier for Chinese customers to purchase from the brand.   Through a partnership with Chinese online payment provider Alipay, upscale apparel retailer now enables Chinese shoppers to use their Alipay Mobile Wallet to make purchases at any United States-based Rebecca Minkoff store, or while shopping online. The mobile wallet is accepted in all Rebecca Minkoff stores located in New York, Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles.