Abercrombie DM Sales Rise 44% in Quarter
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. posted net income of $62.1 million for the first quarter, a 3% increase over $60.1 million in the prior year....
Urban Outfitters’ Income Grows in Quarter
Urban Outfitters Inc. reported net income of $42.6 million for the first quarter, an increase over $29.4 million last year....
L.L.Bean Selects GSD&M Idea City as AOR
L.L.Bean has named GSD&M Idea City as its advertising agency of record. ...
Mothers’ Day Direct Sales Lag Retail
The majority of consumers shopping for Mother's Day gifts will head to specialty stores (35.0%), discount stores (25.7%) and department stores (28.8%). Others will shop at specialty clothing stores (6.6%), online (18.3%) and through catalogs (3.4%)....
Talbots To Rely More Heavily on DM in 2008
The Talbots, Inc. is planning for top-line growth of approximately 3%. Much of this growth will come from increases in direct marketing sales, which are seen as rising in the mid-single digit range....
Number of Religion, Auto Catalogs Increase In Last Five Years
The National Directory of Catalogs recorded 12,230 catalogs in its 2008 edition, up from 10,668 in its 2004 volume. The biggest category gainers included religion-focused catalogs, which increased from 205 five years ago to 329, and automotive catalogs, which jumped from 389 catalogs to 593 catalogs....
Borders Group May Sell; Lines Up $42.5 Million Infusion
Borders Group Inc., the direct marketer and retailer of books, said Thursday it may put itself up for sale and has lined up $42.5 million to stay in business....
Delia's Net Income Falls
Delia’s Inc. posted net income of $6 million for the fourth quarter, a decrease from $6.8 million in the prior year. ...
Next plc Income Rises 6.8%
Next plc, parent of the Next Directory catalog, posted net income of $353.9 million pounds ($701.3 million) for the year ended Jan. 31, a 6.8% increase over 331.5 million pounds ($656.9 million) in the prior year....
Charming Shoppes Posts $23 Million Loss
Charming Shoppes Inc. posted a net loss of $23 million for the fourth quarter compared to net income of $24.9 million in the prior year....
Lillian Vernon Reaches Tentative Sale Agreement
Lillian Vernon Corp., which filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last month, has reached a tentative agreement to sell the cataloger to an unnamed company for $9.3 million....
Trudy Purchases Music for Little People Catalog
Children’s book and audiobook publisher Trudy Corp. has acquired the catalog and e-commerce divisions of Musical Kidz LLC....
Live From NEMOA: Allen Receives Leadership Award
Former Vermont Country Store president Bob Allen received the New England Mail Order Association's Leadership Achievement Award on Thursday at the group's spring conference in Cambridge, MA....
ForestEthics Launches Effort for Do Not Mail Registry
Conservation group ForestEthics has launched a campaign to establish a Do Not Mail Registry modeled on the telemarketing do-not-call registry....
Bill Would Let Merchants Negotiate Credit Card Fees
Catalogers have long wanted relief from the fees charged by credit card issuers. But a bill introduced in Congress last week may not be the best way to get it. ...
Penney Posts Losses
J. C. Penney Co. Inc. posted net income of $430 million for the fourth quarter, a 3.6% decrease from net income of $477 million in the prior year. ...
Sharper Image, Lillian Vernon File for Chapter 11
Sharper Image Corp. and Lillian Vernon Corp., two financially troubled catalogers, have filed for bankruptcy protection. ...
Costs Contribute to RedEnvelope Losses
RedEnvelope Inc. posted a net loss of $4.3 million for the third quarter, compared to net income of $5.3 million in the prior year....
Some Rates to Exceed 2.9%; Mailers Tolerant
While the U.S. Postal Service said Monday it would raise standard mail rates by an average of 2.9% in May, a closer look at the rates shows some that will go up more....
No Changes Announced for D-to-C As Charming Shoppes Faces Cutbacks, Shakeup
Joseph M. Baron, executive vice president and COO at Charming Shoppes, Inc., has assumed leadership of the company's retail businesses on an interim basis, following the departure of Diane M. Paccione. ...
J.Crew President Jeffrey Pfeifel to Leave
Jeffrey Pfeifel will leave J.Crew Group Inc.'s effective Feb. 1. The company did not give any reason for why Pfeifel, who currently serves as president, is departing the company....
Retailers Not Up to Snuff on Cross-Channel Marketing: DMA
Although many retail businesses have mastered multichannel direct marketing, quite a few are still apprentices when it comes to cross-channel integration, according to "Channel Integration and Benchmarks in the Retail Industry," a new report from the Direct Marketing Association. ...
Lillian Vernon Cuts Staff by 25%
(Multichannel Merchant) It wasn't a very merry holiday at gifts and housewares cataloger Lillian Vernon. The Virginia Beach, VA-based company laid off about 25% of its full-time workforce on Dec. 20....
Sales at Restoration Hardware Shift From Stores to Catalogs
Restoration Hardware Inc. has reported that a significant share of its revenues have shifted from retail to direct marketing sales. ...
Holiday Shopping Reports: Buckle Up; We're in for a Bumpy Ride
October sales were up over the same period last year, but only slightly, signaling a slow-down in consumer spending just as the holiday shopping season begins, the National Retail Federation reported yesterday. ...
