Apparel Magazine

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The Apparel Top 50: Rankings by Social Media Popularity 7/21/2011 Apparel’s second annual ranking finds apparel companies gathering Facebook fans and Twitter followers at a rapid pace, and seeking to monetize social media as the stakes grow higher.  Download Now

Marrying Your Physical and Financial Supply Chains To Create End-to-End Benefits 7/5/2011 By working closely with suppliers and finance partners on innovative financing methods, and utilizing new web technologies to connect the physical and financial supply chains, apparel companies can keep costs at bay and continue to do what they do best: make the garments that consumers love. Download Now

The Apparel Top 50 for 2011 6/30/2011 After several years of cost-cutting and right-sizing, apparel companies are expanding internationally, building better flagship stores, and investing in their strongest brands. Read up on the 50 leading publically-traded firms, ranked according to profit margins. #1 lululemon athletica It turns out that namaste means “really big profits.” Who knew? While its customers rest comfortably in shivasana (that’s the final yoga pose), lululemon is achieving bliss of a different sort. To put its profit margin of 17.11 percent in perspective: in the 20 years that Apparel has published its Top 50 report, no company has ever broken the 17 percent threshold, and just two (Wet Seal and True Religion) came even close, breaking the 16 percent threshold in FY2009, and both FY2008 and FY2007, respectively. So, what is the secret to financial nirvana?  While lululemon’s soaring profits reflect an uneven economic recovery that saw high-income consumers ready to splurge on luxury items — such as $100 yoga pants — as others proceeded with caution, the company’s success also stems from its relentless focus on customer and product. Yoga instructors offer in-store classes (and drive brand awareness) while behind the scenes the company has grown its men’s clothing business and rapidly expanded into running wear and other new categories such as bags, underwear and outerwear, while not losing sight of its core yoga business. Last year it introduced Silverescent, a line of yoga performance wear with silver-thread odor-fighting technology for easy transitioning from the gym to Starbucks. #2 The Buckle Buckle up for another great ride, as this denim destination turns in another fantastic performance, with net sales up 5.7 percent to a record $949.8 million and net income up 5.8 percent to $134.7 million. 2010 also marked the 4th consecutive year of positive comp-store sales, which were up 1.2 percent. Buckle’s private-label brands continued to flourish, growing from 29 percent to 33 percent of the business, and expanded to include new offerings and several brand extensions, including the expansion of bestselling brand BKE across all product categories. Building on its reputation for exceptional customer service, the company expanded its loyalty program by partnering with key brands to offer one-of-a-kind promotions, and enhanced its personalized shopping program, Get Fitted, with the addition of call-ahead shopping appointments. Buckle completed its new 240,000-square-foot DC in Kearney, Neb., opened 21 new stores and completed 25 full remodels, while also focusing on the online experience, helping to grow buckle.com sales by 19.3 percent to $62.4 million, or 6.6 percent of net sales. To read about all of the Top 50 companies, download the report now. Download Now

PLM for Apparel 2011: The Drive for Innovation Stretches PLM Boundaries 5/24/2011 Apparel firms are expanding the scope of PLM activities and upping investment plans, according to the 6th Annual Apparel and Gartner Research Study & Analysis. Download Now

A PLM for Every User 5/24/2011 Whether seeking a standalone system for managing product design or a robust solution that is closely integrated with enterprise software, apparel companies have plenty of PLM options to choose from. They just need to find the one that fits. Download Now

2011 Top Innovators Report 5/6/2011 Apparel Magazine salutes many of the key visionary firms shaping the industry in its 4th annual special issue. Profiles of our winners highlight their ingenuity in overcoming challenges, their willingness to adapt to change and their flair for tapping into consumer desires in a highly competitive global marketplace. Download Now

The Cross-Channel Roadmap: Unification Uncovers Lost Opportunities 4/7/2011 Retailers that do not integrate multi-channel business approaches or establish a cross-channel strategy under-perform compared to their integrated peers on key metrics such as customer satisfaction and average year-over-year revenue. Find out here how your business can work toward a successful multi-channel strategy. Download Now

Retail IT Trends: The Brave New World of Apparel Retail 3/17/2011 Mobile commerce and social networking have changed the landscape of apparel retail. The customer is now in charge, and apparel companies that want to keep up must embrace a new all-channel approach. Download Now

In the Stores 2/9/2011 This exclusive online feature from Apparel Magazine, RIS News and Consumer Goods Technology delivers key insight and intelligence for retailers and brands on three major technologies – Mobile CRM, Store Trafficking and POS – that are impacting today's dynamic store environment. Download Now

2011 Top Technology Trends in the Apparel Market 12/20/2010 According to this 5th Annual Report from Apparel and Gartner, as budgets hold steady, apparel companies indicate that retail planning and supply chain management applications are high on their investment lists, while companies looking to mature their business strategies are stretching the boundaries of application capabilities. Download Now