Direct To Consumer (DTC)

New York City -- Italian handbag maker Piero Guidi will open its first retail location in the United States, in New York City’s Soho district. The Soho store will be the company's fourth standalone store outside of Italy, following openings in China, Japan and Hong Kong.

San Francisco -- Gap said Tuesday it plans to open stores in both Vietnam and Guam as part of the retailer’s efforts to ramp up overseas expansion.

A Gap store is slated to open in Vietnam in October, followed by a Banana Republic store in late 2012.

The first two Gap stores will open in Ho Chi Minh City as part of a franchise deal with Imex Pan Pacific, with additional stores set for Hanoi in 2012.

SAN FRANCISCO — Gap Inc. announced that it plans to open its first stores in Vietnam and Guam through its franchise channel. In Vietnam, the first Gap stores will open this October followed by the first Banana Republic store in 2012. The first Gap store will open in Guam in 2012. The company first made its products available to consumers in this region last year through its international online shipping provider.

New York City -- Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, through his Inmobiliaria Carso SA investment fund, spent $8.8 million to up his stake in Saks, according to Bloomberg. 

Slim, who was Saks’s largest shareholder before the purchases and last acquired the New York-based retailer’s shares in April 2009, raised his stake to 16% from 15.7%, the report said. Slim has made it a practice to add to his investment holdings when the markets slump.

San Francisco -- Williams-Sonoma reported Tuesday that profit for the second quarter surged 28% to $39 million, citing online strength and international sales for the improved performance.

Revenue rose 5% to $815 million.

The company has raised its outlook.

Canton, Mass. -- Casual Male Retail Group continues to roll out its DestinationXL format, with the opening of its eighth store, in Fairless Hills, Pa.

DXL is an all-inclusive destination that encompasses Casual Male’s four existing apparel businesses, Casual Male XL, Rochester Big & Tall, Shoes XL and B&T Direct.

The company plans to open up to 13 DXL stores during the balance of 2011, another 20-30 stores during 2012 and approximately 100 stores over a four to five year period.

It’s always satisfying to look back and enjoy your professional successes. While I see nothing wrong with patting yourself on the back and basking in well-earned personal kudos, I have found that, from time to time, we must also remember where we’ve fallen short. Thinking about past mistakes certainly keeps me humble. More importantly, I’m almost always able to learn something from my missteps. After all, the more insight and information I can gather about why I was wrong about something, the more accurate I will be in the future.

SAN FRANCISCO — Gap Inc. reported that net sales for the second quarter of fiscal year 2011, which ended July 30, increased 2% to $3.39 billion compared with $3.32 billion for the second quarter last year. The company’s second quarter comparable sales, which include associated comparable online sales, were down 2% compared with a 1% increase in the second quarter last year. For the second quarter of fiscal year 2011, online sales positively impacted comparable sales for Gap Inc. by 2 percentage points.