No Turn On Red

The Channel Checkers are reporting that Kohl’s has started selling Vera Wang merchandise earlier than the advertised street date of September 9:

We have been surprised so far in our survey. 12 of the 25 (48%) stores we have called this week have told us that they already have the Vera Wang line and are selling it. We were told there is a Vera Wang perfume on sale at Kohl’s now too. Many of the stores that have the line appear to be in the Pacific Northwest and the Southeast. Stores in Washington and Oregon and South Carolina and Georgia provided the bulk of our positive responses. We called one store in New York City and they claim to be stocking the line already as well.

Read more at their site under: Vera Wang Line Sneaking Into Kohl’s Early.

In the past, Kohl’s generally rolls out their national branch launches in highly coordinated affairs, unveiling the new line in all of the markets on the same day. We saw this in 2005 with the launch of Candies, as an exclusive Kohl’s brand, and we’ve seen it through the past few years of growth in the Chaps brand. These launches, from new fixturing to promotions to actual merchandise are all tied in to hit the stores on the same day, with major national ad campaigns behind them.

There are exceptions to this: Casa Cristina rolled out in the Southwest in Q4 2006 prior to a national launch in early 2007. More contemporary lines, such as Elle and Stamp 10, have seen staggered growth after successful launches. The retailer has also tested new products and concepts on smaller levels before rolling out nationally – case in point is the recent addition of a private-label tuxedo line to the menswear departments of their stores in a slow rollout.

It does surprise me to hear that Kohl’s may have let this merchandise out early. It seems to be against their past behavior. Is Kohl’s really selling Vera Wang merchandise early in an attempt to reach out to some test markets? This is the largest brand launch in the retailer’s history – so perhaps it is time to do things differently than they have in the past.

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It has been a long time coming, but we are all one step closer to seeing Vera Wang’s new collection in Kohl’s stores. A preview night was held last week, were the press and the public got to see the first glimpses of the collection, known as Simply Vera. WWD released some preview photos of the collection:

This style is much more fashion forward than anything else Kohl’s is currently offering. But I’m excited to see what the individual pieces look like when the line rolls out in September.

I first talked about this collection last August (here and here) and personally, I think this is a huge move for Kohl’s. When it was announced, it may not have seemed like a perfect fit between the designer and the retailer. Why Kohl’s? But as Kohl’s has unveiled other brand launches and grown their contemporary fashion offerings over the past few seasons, it now seems like all the wheels are in motion for a very huge launch.

After announcing a very positive Q1 results on today’s conference call, the retailer outlined some of their future merchandising plans:

The launch of the Simply Vera collection and the new housewares line by Food Network will be supported by new fixturing. This is on top of new fixturing that most stores already received this year for the expansion of Chaps into the Home and Plus Size areas.

Intimates will see much growth in the so-called contemporary and updated areas with the launch of Simply Vera, the expansion of the Daisy Fuentes line into more doors, and the launch of a new private label Intimates brand called Moments. The new line will launch in 200 doors in June with further growth in the Fall and will be available in all stores by Q1 2008.

Also on the growth front, they say that the launch of the new Elle line in Misses is going so well that they are ramping up the rollout with an additional 250 stores receiving the product in September and all stores carrying the line by Q1 2008.

Like I said before, it may have seemed that the match between designer and retailer may not have seemed to mesh with the core Kohl’s shopper. But as I look across the ‘blogosphere’, I’m seeing a lot of early positive reaction to these preview photos. Judging by the comments, Kohl’s is attracting attention from people who previously hadn’t shopped at the retailer.

Just a few of the blogs that I’m seeing activity on: Miss Lovely, The Budget Fashionista, Catwalk Queen, nitro:licious, MTV Style Blog, and FabSugar.

Did you find this post helpful? Then, you should also view these posts:

• Kohl’s testing Vera Wang early? (1)
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Let me say this first, I love Atlantic City. I do enjoy playing cards and sitting in front of an Elvis slot machine. Although my last few trips haven’t been very successful, I have enjoyed watching the development of The Pier at Caesars unfold.

The Pier at Caesars is a $200 million redevelopment project of the former Ocean One Mall on the beach in Atlantic City. Boasting a mix of high and mid level retailers (Coach, Gucci and Louis Vuitton meet Ann Taylor, Quiksilver, Gymboree and Victoria’s Secret), this mall has been eagerly anticipated by tourists and residents alike.

The mall officially opened on Tuesday, although it is only the first phase. About a dozen of the ninety stores are open, with none of the resturaunts open yet. Developers say that more stores will open throughout the Summer with everything open by Labor Day. Work is still being done on some of the more decorative pieces, including fountains and billboards.

A good overview is the mall and the opening is available from the Associated Press: Once Tacky Resort City Gets More Class. The Press of Atlantic City has another, localized article about the opening which says that opening day was not all that impressive to some shoppers.

The Pier at Caesars is the second major retail project the town has. 2005 saw the opening of The Walk, aka the Atlantic City Outlets. This $76 million retail development project is beautiful – a great mix of stores that seems to be doing extremely well. From Gap to Polo Ralph Lauren to coffee at Starbucks, I have enjoyed walking this outdoor mall. Last year, the Baltimore Sun had an excellent article about the retail development of Atlantic City, with a focus on The Walk.

With all of this retail development in a city that is increasingly focusing on non-casino offerings, Atlantic City has become a great place to visit for those who are interested in visual merchandising and creative retail solutions. I have already enjoyed trips to The Walk and I am very interested in going to see The Pier at Caesars. I believe shoppers and tourists will respond well to the mix of stores available in Atlantic City.

This isn’t the end of large scale, non-casino development in Atlantic City. I can’t wait to see what the next few years bring.

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