ONLINE COMMERCE THE STAR OF THE HOLIDAY: The online channel is posting dramatic growth, although it’s from a smaller base and is basically siphoning consumer dollars from brick-and-mortar stores, leaving the overall picture for holiday still decidedly bland.

CYBER MONDAY STRONG BUT GROWTH SLOWS: Digital pure plays and mobile shopping shined on Cyber Monday, but the day lost some steam versus a year ago as merchants focused on the five-day period from Thanksgiving through Monday.

DROP ’TIL YOU SHOP’S NEW CLEARANCE MODEL: Nick Rosenthal is looking to revolutionize the way brands and retailers clear goods with Drop ’Til You Shop — a reverse-auction Web site that officially launched this week that offers “rapid-fire deals,” putting goods up at a price that drops steadily until the sale ends suddenly. Read the rest of this entry »

ZAPPOS TAPS TALLEY: While Zappos has become a go-to site for Middle America footwear shoppers, it’s still seeking to elevate its image among more highbrow consumers. To that end, the Amazon-owned site has named André Leon Talley as artistic director of its high-end Zappos Couture business. The former Vogue eminence will oversee editorial content on the Zappos Couture site, including fashion shoots, videos and trend picks, all set to debut on Jan. 22. Read the rest of this entry »

NEW YORK, Nov. 27, 2013 /PRNewswire/ – Ruum American Kid’s Wear is gearing families up for the cold weather with warm kids clothing and holiday discounts to match. Browse its Interactive Digital Holiday Look Book for the 2013 season online and take advantage of 25% off orders $60 or higher. Dress children in new warm clothes now, or save them to be opened as gifts as the season progresses. Read the rest of this entry »

Thom Browne is launching a lower-priced line for fall 2014 centered around the classic gray suit — just don’t call it a commercial collection.

The designer, best known for his shrunken silhouettes and ankle-baring pant lengths, will introduce a line of suits, shirts, coats and neckwear with proportions that are “slightly less extreme” than his runway collection. Jackets will be more classic, a bit longer and the lapels will be slightly wider. Trouser length will be hemmed to the shoe with no break. Read the rest of this entry »

The artist isn’t doing interviews.

I received that text last week from a young colleague, Taylor Harris, WWD’s co-Eye editor, after I’d left a party we both attended and which she was assigned to cover. It was the opening of Isa Genzken’s spectacular retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art sponsored by Céline and hosted by Phoebe Philo. The night before, I attended the Pratt Institute Legends gala which honored, among others, Pete Hamill. WWD’s Rosemary Feitelberg was covering. Completely different affairs, yet linked in the absurdist manner in which the press — or at least this press, WWD — was handled. Read the rest of this entry »

NEW DELHI — As the Kenneth Cole brand becomes more aggressive about global expansion, the designer himself is engaging in more local terms across the world.

In New Delhi to mark his retail collaboration with Reliance Brands and the recent opening of the seventh store for the brand in India, Cole talked about the increasingly global component of his business and the fast growing niche of Asian markets. On Thursday night, his first fashion show in India at the Lodi hotel drew the city’s elite. It had the same spirit of his show during New York Fashion Week in September, with models taking selfies and a digitally inspired background of large television screens — “although the selection of outfits is more geared for the Indian market,” he said. Read the rest of this entry »

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Nov. 14, 2013 /PRNewswire/ –