Direct To Consumer (DTC)

Rue La La is embarking on a cross-border journey.   Pure-play retailer Rue La La is going international.    The retailer is expanding its reach to members in 219 countries and territories.    By utilizing the Borderfree Retail Platform from Pitney Bowes, the brand can now support a seamless shopping experience internationally, from leveraging local currency to accessing available local shipping services, regardless of where the member is located.

Gap to shut all Banana Republic stores in the U.K.   Shoppers in the United Kingdom will soon be able to buy Banana Republic merchandise only via the chain’s website.   Gap Inc. plans to close all eight of its Banana Republic stores in United Kingdom by the end of its fiscal year, Bloomberg reported.    In May, Gap announced that it planned to shut about 75 stores across its Old Navy and Banana Republic brands, with most of the closures overseas.

eBay’s newest furniture destination looks like a page right out of Architectural Digest.  

The great outdoors has come to Fifth Avenue — courtesy of The North Face.   The retailer, a division of VF Corp., is opening a two-level, 20,000-sq.-ft. flagship in the old Manufacturers Trust Company building, a New York City landmark of modernist architecture. (The official opening date is Oct. 26.)  

Warby Parker goes back to the future — design-wise at its new store in Seattle.   The design recalls the classic library-inspired aesthetic of the brand’s first-ever store in downtown Manhattan, and is outfitted with light oak shelving, spacious marble tabletops and brass detailing.   It also features exposed metal ceiling beams, concrete flooring and skylights.   

The great outdoors arrived on Fifth Avenue today. At least that’s what North Face is shooting for with its new global flagship store in the old Manufacturers Trust Company building, a New York City landmark of modernist architecture.   Though the canyons outside the expansive windows on the second floor of store are formed by skyscrapers and not rock bluffs, North Face’s VP of direct-to-consumer retail Erik Searles finds the airy atmosphere a fitting backdrop for the high-end camping and climbing gear being merchandised there.

As online merchants firm up their holiday operations, they may have to rule out using Fulfillment By Amazon (FBA).   Amazon.com is restricting new merchant access to its warehouses during the busy holiday shopping season as a means of ensuring it has the capacity needed to quickly receive, store and ship merchandise to its Prime membership customers, reported Internet Retailer.  

There is no fancy packaging to be seen on the shelves of Bulk Nation.    The Tampa-based grocer sells mostly unpackaged food, ranging from grains and pasta to spices and beans, all sold by weight, the Orlando Sentinel reported.