News Briefs

Primark has expanded its brick-and-mortar footprint to the Lone Star state.

The global value fashion retailer has opened a 37,000-sq.-ft. store at  La Plaza in McAllen, Texas, giving it a total of 29 U.S. stores across 12 states. The new location features  women's, men's and kids fashions and essentials as well as home goods, beauty and accessories.   

Primark’s growth into Texas isn’t stopping at La Plaza. The retailer has announced additional lease signings in the state with the intent to open new stores at: 

• Cielo Vista Mall, El Paso;
• Grapevine Mills, Dallas;
• Katy Mills, Houston;
• North East Mall, Hurst; and
• Willowbrook Mall, Houston.

“The opening of our La Plaza store is an exciting milestone for Primark’s American ambition,” said Kevin Tulip, president of Primark US. “We look forward to bringing ‘Primania’ to more shoppers across the state and region in the years to come.” 

In other expansion, Primark has signed a lease for its first Manhattan storefront, in the Herald Square neighborhood. The store will serve as a flagship location for Primark and feature more than 54,000 sq. ft. of retail space.  

Primark is known for its budget prices, with denim starting at $10 and tee shirts at $4. It also sells licensed products, with collections such as Netflix, Disney and Marvel, and sports offerings including NFL and NBA apparel.

Founded in Ireland in 1969 under the Penneys brand, Primark operates 450 stores globally. The company is owned by Associated British Foods.

A deal that would bring new owners to the Neiman Marcus Group is closer to becoming a reality.

HBC, the Canadian parent of Saks Fifth Avenue, Hudson’s Bay and Saks Off-Fifth Avenue, has secured a $2 billion-plus junk bond that puts the company on track to close its deal to acquire the Neiman Marcus Group, reported WWD. 

The deal, which would create a luxury powerhouse, was announced in July, with HBC entering into an agreement to buy the Dallas-based retailer in a deal valued at $2.65 billion. Amazon, Salesforce and private equity firm Apollo are also investors in the deal. Authentic Brands Group plans to make a minority investment in Saks Global after the deal is completed, the report said.

The acquisition cleared an important regulatory hurdle in August, when the Federal Trade Commission decided to let it go through without a second request for more information.

The transaction could close in a matter of weeks and would bring Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman,  Saks Fifth Avenue and Saks Off 5th under the Saks Global umbrella, according to WWD.

Saks Global will also include HBC’s U.S. real estate assets and Neiman Marcus Group’s real estate assets, creating a $7 billion portfolio of well-located retail real estate assets in luxury shopping destinations.

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.