News Briefs

Skims, the $4 billion shapewear brand co-founded by reality TV superstar and entrepreneur Kim Kardashian, has made its long-awaited brick-and-mortar debut in New York City.

The brand has opened a 6,570-sq.-ft., four-level flagship near Rockefeller Center, at 647 Fifth Avenue near 52nd Street, in a space that formerly housed Versace. Designed by Rafael de Cárdenas, Ltd. with a monochromatic color palette, the store features a 15-foot Vanessa Beecroft nude sculpture in its front window. 

The new Skims offers the brand’s full product range, including shapewear, underwear and loungewear, as well as its holiday and exclusive collections. It also includes a showroom, VIP area, office space and room dedicated to collaborations,

The Manhattan Skims is the brand’s sixth physical location to date, with more on tap.  In a report by WWD, Skims co-founder and CEO Jens Grede said 11 new leases have been signed, including for an L.A. flagship on Sunset Boulevard, as well as stores in San Diego and Palo Alto, Calif. and Charlotte.

[READ MORE: Kim Kardashian’s Skims opening permanent stores — here’s where] 

“Going into physical retail, with 85% of our sales coming from e-commerce, we are under-penetrated, and there’s a tremendous amount of growth opportunities for us here in the United States... We’re hoping to open a lot more stores,” Grede told WWD.

Thomas Pink, a luxury British shirt and tailored clothing brand, has new owners who plan to expand the brand in the U.S. and around the globe.

The brand has been acquired in a join venture partnership of New York City-based clothing companies, Icon Luxury Group and CP Brands Group. In a statement, the new owners said they aim to usher in a “bold new chapter for the Thomas Pink brand, expanding its footprint while staying true to its British roots and legacy of excellence.”

“Thomas Pink is a symbol of British sophistication and craftsmanship," said Eli Yedid, CEO of CP Brands Group. “Our vision is to build on its heritage through key licensing agreements with best in class companies across categories spanning fragrances, eyewear and more.  Through strategic agreements, we are bringing the brand back to key regions, including the UK, Europe, the United States, Asia, the Middle East and Mexico."

As part of its growth strategy, the joint venture plans significant retail expansion of Thomas Pink in core markets. The brand will broaden its U.K. presence beyond its flagship Jermyn Street store in London in the first half of 2025.  Additional openings are planned in select markets across the Middle East and Asia.

According to a report by WWD, the new owners also plan to open standalone stores in the U.S., and also supply third parties, such as U.S. department stores. The report said that Thomas Pink was acquired by LVMH in 1999 and then sold in 2021 to private equity. It subsequently ended up in the hands of creditor banks who sold it to Icon and CP for an undisclosed price, the report said.

Thomas Pink was founded in 1984 by three Irish brothers. 

One foreign online marketplace saw the biggest jump in Black Friday - Cyber Monday spending compared to last year among shoppers who live paycheck-to-paycheck. 

According to data from financial wellness app Brigit, Temu, Walmart and Amazon saw spending increases of 19.65%, 11.11%, and 8.68%, over the five-day period, respectively. Total shoppers compared to last year increased 39.16% for Temu, 26.82% for Walmart and 47.58% for Amazon. Costco and Dollar General rounded out the top-five.

Retailers with the steepest year-over-year spending per user declines included Macy’s, Nike and Shein, which had decreases in spending per user from 2023 by -4.31%, -12.33% and -16.24%, respectively.

Overall, the average single transaction size rose 5.71%, to $42.34, compared to $40.05 in 2023, as shoppers set out to make the most of seasonal discounts.

[READ MORE: Report: 86% of Cyber Weekend shoppers bought from Amazon, followed by…]

"We’re seeing Americans go to great lengths to budget smartly and find deals that make holiday shopping more accessible as they battle the increasing cost of goods," said Zuben Mathews, co-founder and CEO of Brigit. "For many retailers, the increase in consumer spending this past weekend signals a clear demand for budget-friendly options and emphasizes the value shoppers place on holiday deals and discounts.”

According to recent data from ICSC, 207 million people, or 79% of all U.S. adults, bought items either in-store or online during the period. In 2023, 75% of all U.S. adults reported doing so.

Get ready for the next reboot of Lord & Taylor.

Earlier this year, Regal Brands Global acquired the iconic department store company’s intellectual property, including its trademarks, brand assets and proprietary designs. The company plans to debut a revamped website for Lord & Taylor early next year, reported WWD, with a soft launch possible later this month.

The site initially will feature a luxury category for designer and luxury brands, a Lord & Taylor heritage section, a dedicated dress section, and a Gen Z “focused-store” featuring edgier styles in an affordable price range for the targeted demographic, the report said.

Sina Yenel, the chief brand strategy officer of Retail Brands, told WWD that the company plans to basically split the IP into two different focus points, with one being the retail part of the IP and the other the product part.  For the retail component, Retail Brands hired 70 professionals to support the brand, including building the website.

“Our main focus is to launch the website with very well-known brand names, and to position the Lord & Taylor heritage products next to these brands,” Yenel said.

To read the complete WWD story, click here.

About Lord & Taylor 

After years of struggling, Lord & Taylor declared bankruptcy in August 2020 and eventually liquidated all its stores. The Saadia Group bought the company’s intellectual property and e-commerce assets from its then-owner, Le Tote Inc., in a bankruptcy auction in October 2020 for $12 million. 

Saadia relaunched Lord& Taylor as an online-only retailer in April 2021, but Saadia eventually was caught up in legal difficulties. It closed down earlier this year.

A new grocery store is coming to Manhattan, and will be among the largest street-level grocery stores in the borough.

Local grocer Lincoln Market has signed a 20-year-term lease for a 35,809-sq.-ft. store at River Place Apartments (660 W 42nd Street). The store is slated to open late 2025, and marks the grocery’s ninth location. Other locations include stores in Brooklyn, Queens, and Harlem.

Katz & Associates’ Scott Sher represented Lincoln Market, his fourth lease for the grocer, while Cushman & Wakefield’s Sean Moran, Steven Soutendijk, Alan Schmerzler, Michael O’Neill, and Taylor Reynolds represented the landlord, Silverstein Properties, Inc.

“We’re excited to bring our high-quality products to another New York City neighborhood,” said Lincoln Market. “The size and location of this store are perfectly suited to the great mix of organic and conventional items we will provide to the residents of River Place and beyond.”

[READ MORE: Fifth Avenue is no longer world’s most expensive retail destination]

The grocer, which opened its first store in 2017, noted that it aims to continue growing in the New York Metro area and is seeking sites between 15,000 and 50,000 sq. ft.) in Manhattan and the outer boroughs, as well as in Bergen County, N.J.

"We are thrilled to welcome Lincoln Market as a new service provider for our tenants,” said Joseph Artusa, senior VP of leasing at Silverstein Properties. “Their decision to join our property highlights the ongoing growth and success of the neighborhood."

Malbon is expanding its fledgling retail footprint.

The Los Angeles-based golf lifestyle brand has opened three new stores, with locations on West Randolph Avenue in Chicago, the Georgetown section of Washington, DC, and Greenway Parkway in Scottsdale, Ariz. The stores, which run from 600 sq. ft, to 1,100 sq. ft., feature the brand’s collection of golf apparel and accessories for men, women and youth, including jackets, sweatshirts, polos, bucket hats, shorts, golf shoes, bags and gloves.

Malbon currently has seven stores in the U.S., with the other locations in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, and Carmel by the Sea, Calif. The brand is planning to open even more locations in 2025, co-founder Erica Malbon told Chain Store Age.

As to Malbon’s real estate strategy, it doesn’t take a one-size-fits-all approach.

“Instead, it’s more of a case-by-case evaluation based on what aligns best with the local consumer behavior and overall brand strategy,” said Malbon, who co-founded the company with her husband Stephen Malbon. “It depends on the city, the environment and how people engage with the brand in that specific location.”

Malbon said the new stores represents the brand's commitment to retail design while celebrating the culture of golf. Each space features custom-designed fixtures, including golf bag racks, putter holders and shelving units, with all created to highlight Malbon’s product range. The clothing racks have a swirled base designed to mimic the eye of the Buckets’ logo. 

The overall design treats the fixtures as sculptural furniture pieces, emphasizing materials and craftsmanship while creating a curated environment similar to an art gallery. The fixtures were fabricated off-site and installed to maintain a clean and modern build-out process.

(Editor's note: The photo is of Malbon Chicago. Photo credit is to Chloe Camille Photography.)