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Cool News Zara Buzz The new, “two-level 22,700- square-foot” Zara store in Skokie, Illinois “is awash in dark wood, white walls, stainless steel accents and glass … Garments hang on wooden hangers, as they would in a designer salon, and are displayed neatly along the walls and on tables with plenty of room to walk in between … “… The merchandise is grouped to help shoppers put together ensembles: sheer silk peasant blouses hang next to gray tweed skirts … Shoes are dispersed throughout the store in repetitive patterns: Gray leather boots are lined up under a table of folded cardigans.” In short, a remarkable shopping experience translates into remarkable buzz for Zara’s, enabling the retailer to pull off its launch “without a smidgen of advertising.” Zara’s buzz is also being fueled by “local fashion blogs,” such as GalsGuide.com. The interest is especially notable given that Zara’s prices “are higher than rival fast-fashion chains H&M and Forever 21.” But Zara does keep its prices relatively low by making most of its garments in-house. More important, Zara’s trendsetters “feed fashion intelligence to Zara’s 300-person design team … Collections are shipped to Zara’s 1,433 stores worldwide every two weeks, keeping inventories fresh.” [Source: Sandra M. Jones, Chicago Tribune, 9/26/08] Plain Aldi “What makes Aldi so special is that, quite simply, its prices are cheaper than just about anyone else’s, including Wal-Mart’s.” Now, Aldi’s U.S. sales are nowhere near Wal-Mart’s — $3.3 billion in 2006 versus $92 billion for Wal-Mart, according to FMI. But Aldi’s focus on cutting costs makes Wal-Mart look almost like Whole Foods by comparison. To save costs, Aldi doesn’t take checks or credit cards, it provides neither bags nor baggers and you even have to pay a quarter to use one of its shopping carts (it’s refunded when you return it, saving Aldi the expense of an employee to round up the carts). In addition (or maybe subtraction), “Aldi stores offer only 1,300 or so products, most of which are private-label brands. They are often displayed in the store in the cardboard box in which they were delivered.” The smaller formats simplify the shopping experience, and “ensures regular turnover, reduces spoilage and labor and gives Aldi tremendous buying power with its suppliers.” Next year, Aldi plans to add another 100 U.S. stores to the approximately 950 it currently operates. It has 1,800 stores worldwide. [Source: Andrew Martin, The New York Times, 9/7/08] Hermes Economy “I used to buy Sirius stock to keep myself from buying more Hermes scarves,” says shopper Jan Goode. “Now my Hermes holdings are much more valuable than my Sirius stock … Sirius is at 90 cents a share. I should have been buying scarves all along.” Such was the rationalization of one wealthy woman for standing “on” line to get into a Hermes sample sale on West 18th Street in N.Y.C. Another said: “Even if the economy’s down, a sale is all the more reason to buy something nice.” She continued: “Buy something nice, it makes you look good, you feel good. If you pay full price and things are unstable at your job, it takes away the enjoyment.” Of course, “not paying full price” at a Hermes sample sale means a $900 pair of boots, and spending “nothing” apparently means dropping at least a grand. As one shopper put it: “Even if I don’t find anything, I still spend a thousand. It’s like Costco.” Only without the “light bulbs, toilet paper or toothpaste.” But it’s not as though some of these shoppers weren’t feeling just a little guilty. “I’ll only buy if it’s something I really need,” said one. Others wouldn’t give their names because they were playing hooky from work to attend the sale. “Let’s just say my bank’s still around,” hinted one anonymous shopper, “That narrows it down to about four.” To which another retorted: “Stop bragging!” [Source:Susan Dominus, The New York Times, 9/26/08]
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