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For the first time in its history, luxury conglomerate LVMH has provided a peek into its exclusive workshops, design showrooms and wine cellars to reveal the hundreds of hands and delicate workmanship behind its expensive brands. Seeking to "reveal the true nature of high quality," according to LVMH, the company opened up 25 of its brands to the public on Oct. 15 and 16.

It's easy to avoid pushy sales clerks when shopping for new threads. A department store in Japan now uses inescapable RFID-equipped clothing hangers to try to sell you other products and accessories when you take a garment off a rack.

Tommy Hilfiger just signed on with DailyFeats. In the new campaign, users earn points by completing feats such as having family fun, calling your parents, walking the dog, riding your bike and spending an evening at home. The Hilfiger brand will reward participants with a $10 donation in their name to Millennium Promise, a nonprofit organization dedicated to eradicating poverty, to which the Tommy Hilfiger Corporate Foundation announced a $2 million commitment in 2009.

_ SANDPOINT, Idaho, Oct. 18, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Coldwater Creek Inc. today announced that it intends to offer to sell, subject to market and other conditions, shares of its common stock in an underwritten public offering. In connection with the offering, the Company expects to grant the underwriter a 30-day option to purchase additional shares of common stock. All of the shares will be offered by the Company. The Company intends to use the net proceeds of the offering for working capital and other capital expenditures, which may include investments in its marketing strategy and supply chain, as

Wal-Mart expects toys to be best-sellers this holiday season as its toy prices are lower than competitors Target and Kmart, according to a Bloomberg Industries analysis.

JCPenney is working on a new plan that will affect customers and vendors. Though the department store did not release specific details of the plan, JCPenney did reveal it will not adopt an everyday low-price model similar to Walmart's. Recognizing that it is extremely difficult to compete with Walmart in EDLP, JCPenney could be aiming for more of a hybrid high/low price strategy with its recent acquisition of Liz Claiborne. JCPenney acquired Liz Claiborne's brand portfolio for $288 million in cash, including an advance of $20 million in exchange for the company's agreement to develop exclusive brands for JCPenney.

O.co (also known as Overstock.com) announced victory in its two-year patent infringement lawsuit with behemoth Alcatel-Lucent USA, Inc. The eastern Texas jury deliberated for less than two hours before returning a defense verdict. The jury found that O.co and co-defendant Newegg did not infringe any of the three patents Alcatel asserted against them.

A new research report, 2011 Temkin Trust Ratings, examines the level of trust that consumers have in 143 large U.S. companies. The research is based on a survey of 6,000 U.S. consumers, who rated their recent customer service interactions with companies across 12 industries. Only eight companies earned "very strong" ratings while 26 earned "very weak" ratings.

YouTube has announced the ability to sell merchandise, tickets and more via the site. Through a feature called the Merch Store, YouTube partners will be able to sell artist merchandise, digital downloads, concert tickets and other experiences to fans and visitors.

Despite an economy that has many Americans on pins and needles, consumers were spending in September. According to the National Retail Federation, retail sales increased 0.4 percent from August and a better-than-expected 5.7 percent over last September, as shoppers continued to show strength during a weak economic recovery.