Word: retail
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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Department store 57% Boutique 20% Retail chain store 15% Outlet store 5% Internet 2% Catalog...
Within 12 months, Elfers had streamlined the merchandise, discarding $350 million worth of retail volume. Out went Liz Claiborne, Tommy Hilfiger and Nautica to make room for Coach, Kate Spade and Tommy Bahama. "The big theme that drives retail is getting back control of the brand, which is what they've tried to do," says Chen. "The Starbucks theory [of always expanding] doesn't work for fashion." Since 2003 Lord & Taylor has replaced 85% of its merchandise and reduced its style count 45%. The current 47-store chain is more akin to a specialty store: manageable, edited and easier...
Despite the progress, not everyone has as much faith in the department store's future as Elfers and Baker do. "Lord & Taylor is a problem child, a tarnished brand, and has a long way to go," says Howard Davidowitz, chairman of Davidowitz & Associates Inc., a national retail-consulting firm. "I am not sure, in the current competitive climate, that Lord & Taylor can stand on its own two feet and be a survivor." Davidowitz points to the fact that Baker paid top dollar for a minnow in a sea of powerful retail companies. The store is loaded with debt while seeking...
...others see Baker's approachable personality and outsider status as key to Lord & Taylor's success. He's energized but not jaded. "He doesn't come from the realm of fashion retail as we know it, but he's become very smart and has developed relationships with people in the industry very quickly," says Steven Kolb, executive director of the CFDA. Tuleh's Bradley thinks Baker's ability to observe from a nonretail point of view is the reason changes have happened so quickly. "He is a big-picture guy, and when the small picture needs to be looked...
INSIDE TRACK TURNED NM'S WEBSITE INTO A RETAIL JUGGERNAUT...