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Clothing manufacturers are generally upbeat about business prospects in 1993. Designer collections from Donna Karan, Anne Klein and Calvin Klein are projected to increase annual sales by 25% or more. Clothing executives say that value is still highly important in the market and many are changing their resources to lower costs while holding down prices. Some companies plan to expand through their own stores or via foreign sales, particularly in Europe. Jeans continue to sell well, but junior collections are being phased out of some stores., NEW YORK -- Despite an economy they concede is not yet fully under control, sportswear houses are sharing in the groundswell of optimism that seems to be making itself felt [...]

The reasons behind the acquisition by Liz Claiborne Inc of most of Russ Togs Inc's assets include the close fit of the two clothing companies and the expansion potential of some Russ Togs lines. Liz Claiborne plans to market Russ Togs clothing to women looking for fashionable, wearable clothes at price points lower than Liz Claiborne lines. The company will focus on The Crazy Horse, Russ and The Villager labels and, contrary to rumour, department stores will remain the primary market, there being no plans to sell to discount retailers., NEW YORK - Liz Claiborne Inc. has carefully mapped out its move into the moderate-price business via the labels it acquired from Russ Togs Inc. 'We don't intend any of [...]

Moderate and designer apparel executives forecast a relatively gloomy six months overall. However, companies that have the right sportswear product will do well in the second half of 1992. Manufacturers are trying to manage the recessionary market by cutting costs and prices, and by picking up market share from companies forced out of business. The consumer is still in control, say the executives, as confidence in the economy remains very low., NEW YORK - Sportswear executives expect a tough second half, another stretch of cloudy economic weather with only a few rays of sunshine breaking through. Most consumers, they predict, will [...]

NEW YORK -- Better and moderate sportswear firms will be fighting to keep their market positions in 1992. Gains are being predicted -- from moderate to double-digit -- but they [...]

NEW YORK -- Better sportswear is becoming an even tighter race, with four big names grabbing an ever larger share of the purse. The Liz Claiborne sportswear lines continue to [...]

Karla Colletto has been a designer for the past 10 years, specializing in swimwear for the past four. But it wasn't until her cruise 1991 line that the 33-year-old's work [...]

NEW YORK -- It's been a rough two years from Kenneth Sitomer. The president and chief executive officer of Russ Togs, Inc., which makes moderate-priced sportswear, has been plagued by [...]

Sportswear Orders OK -- Up to Now NEW YORK -- So far, so good. That's how executives at moderate and better-price sportswear firms and generally describing the pace of their [...]

Leslie Fay Has Plan to Soup Up Its Superbrand NEW YORK - The Leslie Fay Cos. is out to put more muscle into what it calls its 'superbrand.' Three years [...]

SA Offers Stores A Helping Hand In Tough Times NEW YORK - Apparel manufacturers say they're lending more than the usual helping hand to retailers battling to revive stale sales [...]

After Long Rise, Cashmere Price Levels Stabilize NEW YORK - The good news in the luxury knitwear market for fall is that cashmere prices are holding level and in some [...]

FORECAST 1990 MULTI-PRONGED STRATEGIES FOR A DIFFICULT YEAR NEW YORK - Sportswear firms from moderate to designer will be attacking business on many fronts in 1990. They plan to add [...]

MURJANI PUTTING ITS MONEY BEHIND A THREE-WAY BET While spending millions in the attempt to turn Tommy Hilfiger into one of the top names in designer fashion, Murjani International, Ltd., [...]

Dep't Stores More Upbeat For MAGIC Department store executives will be bringing a more positive attitude, and in many cases more open-to-buy dollars, to the Men's Apparel Guild in California [...]

POST-HOLIDAY MARKDOWNS WERE UNABATED Hefty post-Christmas sportswear markdowns were the rule at major department and specialty stores throughout the country. Even after heavy price promoting that took place before the [...]

The retail industry is becoming more open to brand name merchandise as sales of private label products decline. Manufacturers of brand name products were heartened by the announcement by R.H. Macy and Co that its private label declined from 23% to 15% of its sales volume. Retailers are heightening their efforts to develop exclusive products that are tied in with brand names. For a brand name product to be successful, it must be a quality product and have a distinct identity., NEW YORK -- Next year will be a busy for brand names. Manufacturers are showing a heightened interest in brand strategies to carry them into new classifications and even into [...]

Factory outlet stores are growing in popularity, for both the apparel industry and the consumer. From 1985 to 1991, there was a 200% increase in consumer spending at outlets, and outlet sales figures in 1992 are expected to reach $8.5 billion. Calvin Klein, which has 16 outlets, reports prices are usually reduced 30 to 40% below full price. Most outlets are located outside the usual market area to avoid competition with the stores that sell the merchandise at regular prices., NEW YORK -- The growth of outlet stores may not be as explosive as it was in the Eighties, but they are still on the fast track compared with other [...]

Swimwear manufacturers expect a flat-to-improved buying season for 1993. Wholesale prices show slight increases. The major swimwear trend is the strength of soft molded cup construction and diminishing interest in hard cups. Printed fabrics will be the most popular, with glitz detailing in evidence. Gabar suits will be tagged for particular body types or problems, Body Glove suits will seek to be more feminine and Jag intends to switch its young women's line to a high-luster Lycra fabric, despite an industry trend towards dull-matte finishes., Manufacturers are offering a smorgasbord of styles for cruise, with bookings expected to be flat to 30 percent ahead. While there appears to be a suit for everyone, some trends [...]

Swimwear retailers nationwide report that bad spring weather hurt swimwear sales in 1992. Most report that sales were up by early summer, with overall sales flat or slightly up from the year before. Moderately-priced, one-piece swimsuits were selling best. Although the suits display less skin, sheer fabrics were often used, as were printed fabrics. Underwire and hard cups emphasizing the bust were popular. Neiman Marcus has lengthened its swimsuit season and price markdowns begin Jul 4th instead of in Jun. Greater inventory is stocked for a longer selling season., A number of looks cropped up as strong sellers in spring swimwear, from mesh and sheer looks to animal prints and solids. Depending on the region of the country, both [...]

Knitwear manufacturers report that orders are up significantly for fall 1992. After a slump in 1991, business has picked up as much as 40%. Executives and designers attribute the increase to low store inventories and consumer desire for comfortable, relaxed clothing that is now acceptable office attire. Cotton, while still an important portion of the trade, is giving way to softer materials such as cashmere, and made-made fibers are showing an increase in popularity, mainly due to the need for more patterns, textures and colors., NEW YORK -- The improved pace of knitwear business that began to take hold last summer has not only lasted for more than a year, but is carrying briskly into [...]

NEW YORK -- The Leslie Fay Cos. Inc., which does the bulk of its business in dresses and suits, looks to more than double its sportswear sales to as high [...]

NEW YORK -- Kenneth and Bruce Ross have learned that staying focused can mean money in the till. The father-and-son team that runs JH Collectibles has the family-owned firm back [...]

NEW YORK -- From New York to Los Angeles, women at some of the country's tonier health clubs are toning up in a serious way. These workout devotees put extra [...]

NEW YORK--Makers of cashmere apparel continue to whittle despite the uncertain fall and despite the uncertain economy, they say bookings are running 20 percent or more ahead for their luxury [...]

NEW YORK -- Keeping the muscle in a brand name is a tough exercise these days. Drastic change continues to rock retailing. Traditional channels of distribution, where manufacturer brands flourished, [...]

NEW YORK -- Denim jeans had a sluggish back-to-school season, but as fall progressed they moved back into form as a mainstay of casual sportswear. That's the word from retail [...]

NEW YORK -- Retailers are encouraged by the new looks being offered for cruise and makers report increases in bookings are anywhere from slight to tripling the business over last [...]

It's Show Time NEW YORK - At the Fashion Coterie, the market showed early signs that it might be coming out of its slump. Several vendors reported brisk business for [...]

NEW YORK -- Manufacturers are racking up increases as high as 30 percent in cruise bookings as of late August and early September. They said 1992 orders have been helped [...]

NEW YORK -- Sharper pricing and more focused lines are expected to give moderate-price sportswear a needed boost for spring after a few tough years. While the recession continues to [...]

NEW YORK -- This week's swimwear market gave buyers sizzling suits for cruise. Many of the emerging trends matched those on the street, while others remained strictly seaworthy. There were [...]

NEW YORK -- Regular price swimwear ads that come early in the season can set the tone for the beach or poolside with new fashion trends -- and they can [...]

NEW YORK -- Bernard Chaus, founder, chairman and chief executive officer of Bernard Chaus, Inc., died Friday at Mount Sinai Medical Center of a subdural hematoma, a buildup of blood [...]

Leslie Fay's First-Quarter Net Rises 5% NEW YORK -- Earnings of The Leslie Fay Cos., Inc., for the first quarter ended March 30 rose 5 percent on a sales gain [...]

CASHMERE Putting a Lid on PRICES NEW YORK -- After years of spiraling prices, capped last year by a sluggish fall, makers of cashmere apparel are lowering their price points [...]

NIKE, REEBOK AND ADIDAS NEW YORK - Change has been the operative word over the past year for the traditional Big Three names in athletic footwear and activewear. Each of [...]

LIZ AND ART A Year on the Go NEW YORK - A little over a year after stepping down from a company they built into a sportswear powerhouse, Liz Claiborne [...]

SK & CO. Making It Fast In Moderate NEW YORK - Proving that there is still vigor in the moderate market, Bonaventure U.S.A., Inc. - generally known as SK & [...]

OUTLOOK FOR KNITS BRIGHTENS FOR '89 NEW YORK -- Ending a three-year run of vigorous sales and production levels, sweaters became one of the weakest players in the overall weak [...]

ANDREW ROSEN: PURITAN PROGRESS Andrew Rosen has been bounced up, down and up the corporate ladder at Puritan Fashions Corp. He's back at the top now, moving one of the [...]

NEWPORT CENTRE: SPORTSWEAR FINDS ITS NICHES Niche retailing gets a workout a Newport Centre, where a lineup of new mall shops is crowding the old faces. The center, which opened [...]

FORECAST '88: A BUMPY YEAR FOR SPORTSWEAR A difficult retail environment is putting sportswear manufacturers to the test as they make their plans for 1988. Most agree this is not [...]

SPORTSWEAR: FALL BOOKINGS STRONG NEW YORK -- Despite a continued tough retail environment, executives at moderate to better-price sportswear companies report healthy increases in fall bookings -- a marked improvement [...]

HOW RUSS TOGS IS BATTLING FOR MODERATE MARKET Eli L. Rousso has been involved with the ups and downs of the apparel industry for more than 40 years. Lastely, he [...]

NIKE, ADIDAS, REEBOK: STRIDING INTO FASHION Fashion is the common thread running through the efforts of the big three athletic shoe makers --Reebok International, Ltd., Adidas USA, Inc., and Nike, [...]

LESLIE FAY EYES $1 BILLION IN FIVE YEARS John J. Pomerantz, chairman of Leslie Fay Cos., is sitting atop a hefty apparel company that last year had record net sales [...]

SEARCHING FOR RIGHT DIRECTION: AN ELUSIVE HUNT NEW YORK -- After almost a year of hearing complaints about the lack of fashion direction, sportswear manufacturers say they are listening more [...]

SPRING MARKDOWNS -- NEW YORK -- Post-Easter sportswear markdowns, a fact of life at department and specialaty stores throughout the country, are at about the same level as a year [...]

PLAYING THE POWER GAME Liz Claiborne, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Anne Klein II, Ellen Tracy, Adrienne Vittadini, Chaus and Esprit--sportswear resources who wield power in department and better-price specialty stores-- [...]

A NEW GAME PLAN FOR ACTIVEWEAR NEW YORK -- Activewear firms are doing a reshuffling act. They're developing products for more activities, targeting younger market segments and finding new competition. [...]