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Forecasts for women's clothing trends in spring 1996 include wider use of linen, plus embroidered rayon crepe for a very feminine look. Manufacturers who reveal their new contemporary lines include Mica, Emil Rutenberg, and Robin Piccone. Also described are junior styles, which feature bright prints. Lighter weight denim clothing will be used for jeans, dresses and shorts. Also, swim suits will vary from vivid tones to flowered prints., CONTEMPORARY Contemporary manufacturers have come to realize what an important role linen plays in developing their spring lines. Not only are designers offering linen in a variety of weights, they [...]

Polo Jeans Co, a new firm founded by Ralph Lauren, just opened its first showroom for women's jeans at 575 Madison Ave, New York, NY. Shipments of the line, which includes fleece and sportswear based on denim, will begin Aug 1, 1996 to around 600 stores. The basic jeans will compete with Calvin Klein and Guess and are priced at $48. Sales of $300 million are eventually expected, although results for the first year were not projected., NEW YORK -- 'It's very interesting to be out there on every level,' said Ralph Lauren as he toured the floor of the new Polo Jeans Co. showroom at 575 [...]

Women's sportswear designers for the bridge and designer markets are planning their strategies now for 1996, including aggressively pursuing affluent consumers. Expansion of product lines overseas has encouraged many companies to increase their production for 1996, and are predicting 20-30% growth on the year. Many companies are still fighting for market share, and some, such as Donna Karan and Escada, are opening early to catch customers willing to pay more for designer clothing., NEW YORK - As retail continues to shift, manufacturers in the bridge and designer markets look for new territories for expansion. Not everyone has the same approach. For Ralph Lauren, [...]

After years of brandishing their logos on scores of products across various categories, activewear giants are testing some new formulas going into the crucial second half. For some, that means [...]

Byline: SANDRA YIN In its latest attempt to cater to the athletic needs of today's 74 million [superscript]1 physically active American women, Nike has opened seven NIKEgoddess stores and in-store […]

With skateboarding on a roll everywhere from L.A. to Omaha to New York City, board sport retailers have been keeping an eye out for the Next Big Thing. And now [...]

Retailers will find some of their prayers answered at a new and improved StyleMax in Chicago this October. The largest women's clothing market in the Midwest will feature a new [...]

Travel On, Young Pants To Ann Brashares, a pair of jeans can be much more than covering for the legs. They can be an emotional reservoir. 'I loved the idea [...]

NEW YORK -- Knowing at least one customer was devoted enough to name her pet goldfish after Dana Buchman, the designer could imagine such fans looking for her name in [...]

SEARLE STRETCHES OUT: Less than three months after its opening, Searle is already expanding its store at 1296 Third Avenue at East 74th Street in Manhattan. The company has signed [...]

Lee Makes a Wish Lee has one big wish: to get a bigger chunk of the junior jeans business. It also has a problem: Many teen girls think of Lee [...]

NEW YORK -- This winter's tepid temperatures have some snow sport companies reexamining their core business and trying to energize their brands with different categories. In terms of frequent participation, [...]

NEW YORK -- They were splashy and fun in the Sixties, and this season, Marimekko prints are back. The renaissance of the Finnish textile firm's designs started in home furnishings [...]

NEW YORK -- Ever been tempted to run to the corner store in your nightgown? Designers are familiar with that urge, and for summer, they're offering street-worthy alternatives to the [...]

NEW YORK -- While many apparel companies are retrenching and holding back on starting new divisions, apparel firm Wearfirst Sportswear is taking a different route. The New York-based company has [...]

NEW YORK -- So long as the allowances keep coming and nothing happens to Britney, it seems there's nothing to worry about. While sales of fashion jeans dropped off along [...]

SAN DIEGO -- There were precious few board shorts shown at the ASR Expo, which closed its three-day run here Saturday, as surf and skate brands evolve beyond their traditional [...]

Instead of lounging by the pool in Las Vegas, Mecca executives will be pitching the streetwear brand's new licensed swimwear. Knowing many women don't have to live by the beach [...]

Woo Gear, the New York-based women's golf apparel manufacturer, is launching its third season collection for Spring '02. To promote the line, the company is planning a new marketing campaign […]

Sydney's Swimfest SYDNEY -- If one thing emerged from the recent fashion week here, it's that Sydney designers are past masters at the art of swimwear. And for that alone, [...]

NEW YORK -- Instead of complaining about the economic slowdown, activewear manufacturers are striving to build women's sales with more lifestyle products and a more focused pitch. 'For the past [...]

Sure, landing in Sports Illustrated's annual swimsuit issue can give any brand a serious boost. But SI aside, a range of magazines is giving swimwear labels a lift. Swim is [...]

NEW YORK -- Christy Turlington's yoga-inspired line, Nuala, is not just for 'downward dogs' and 'mountain' poses anymore. One year after Turlington launched Nuala, offering practitioners of the contemplative activity [...]

Style 1613 for women is made from 100% Evap-Away polyester. The material is engineered for superior breathability so that moisture is wicked off the skin but doesn't get trapped in [...]

Style 806 is a 100% cotton denim shirt that features a generous cut, double-needle construction, a double-back yoke, two-pleat back, and adjustable cuffs. Short- and long-sleeve versions come in sizes [...]

LOS ANGELES -- Monarch Knits, producer of Rampage Swimwear, will launch Gloria Vanderbilt swimwear, coverups and resortwear at the Cruise 2002 show in Miami in July. Aimed at women between [...]

NEW YORK -- Spring shopping got off to a late start this year, leaving many vendors to worry that the profitable portion of the selling season was going to be [...]

Jeans Brands Head for the Hills A trio of jeans brands -- Polo Jeans Co., DKNY Jeans and Jill Stuart Jeans -- will participate in 'Vogue Takes Beverly Hills,' an [...]

NEW YORK -- Patti Lynn Compton is getting into the swimwear business in a roundabout way. Instead of pitching her new Patti Lynn line to swim specialty stores, she is [...]

Teen fave Quiksilver will open 30 stores this year. The Huntington Beach, Calif.-based swimwear and apparel manufacturer opened 23 stores and 216 vendor shops last [...]

NEW YORK -- Easel is trying to get Madonna, Christina Aguilera and Faith Hill into the swim at next week's Grammy Awards Show. The contemporary sportswear label has designed a [...]

NEW YORK -- Like any true designer, Shoshanna Lonstein is not one to linger on the present. That is why for Lonstein, last week's party at B-bar, which marked an [...]

WOMEN'S-SPECIFIC SNOWSPORT APPAREL IS DEFINITELY A 'HOT' AREA FOR ANUFACTURERS. FOR WINTER '02, BURTON WILL OFFER THREE WOMEN'S APPAREL LINES: RADAR, TACTIC AND OSI. RADAR IS AIMED AT TEENS, WITH [...]

NEW YORK -- It's getting crowded. Lured by the burgeoning teen market and the explosive success of companies such as Delia's and Dollhouse, apparel companies of all stripes were clamoring [...]

NEW YORK -- It takes more than ads with smiling faces of Olympic athletes to get women to buy their products, so activewear makers are playing up fashion for spring. [...]

NEW YORK -- 'This is going to be the holiday season that separates the pros from the amateurs,' said Kal Ruttenstein, senior vice president, fashion direction at Bloomingdale's. 'Business is [...]

Take 2: Jordache's bump-and-grind ad Last week, I lamented the dearth of big ideas in this year's crop of consultant-created, number-crunching attack ads. I pointed out that nothing came close [...]

NEW YORK -- Activewear makers are upgrading their catalogs to get more women to turn the pages, and more important, order merchandise. Burton, Lucy.com and Mothers in Motion are some [...]

A staple in Southern California swim retailing for more than 35 years, Diane's Swimwear is trying to reinvent itself as an edgier, trend-driven operator, focused on resort and beach dressing. [...]

Focus groups can wash up surprises. For instance, they can bring to the surface clues to a prospective bestseller that otherwise would elude swimwear buyers and manufacturers alike. That alone [...]

NEW YORK -- Activewear makers are looking for gold in Australia. Having invested in athlete-endorsement deals for years, activewear makers are anxious to reap some big-time brand awareness at the [...]

Moderate sportswear houses this year are on the rebound from a stumble the market took in 1998-1999, following a dramatic three-year growth spurt that lasted through 1997. Manufacturers operating on [...]

Five-Pocket Cocktail This holiday season, shoppers may be able to belly up to the bar and get a pair of Polo Jeans. Looking for a way to improve the service [...]

Haggar Clothing Co. is shifting from first gear into overdrive with its new moderate-price women's sportswear label. The line was softly launched in January for fall selling and will start [...]

LOS ANGELES -- From hosting private fit parties to requiring sales associates to take scuba lessons, a growing number of swimwear retailers are taking novel approaches to customer service. Some [...]

NEW YORK -- Wolfgang Joop is targeting the U.S. market for his women's sportswear collection, once again. The German designer, whose company's main U.S. successes in the past decade have [...]

NEW YORK -- Katherine Shackelford is going back to her roots. The designer, who had a contemporary business under her name for three years before trading up to the designer [...]

NEW YORK -- Sometimes it takes an Olympian effort to get things going. Challenged by the fact that women's activewear has not taken off as much as it has been [...]

Lucy in the sky with sports bras Emma Lazarus might have written about 'your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free.' Her words were inscribed on Lady [...]