Merchandising

Last week, Target came under fire for describing the color of one maxi dress as "dark heather gray" while calling the plus-size version "manatee gray." Now it's caught with another product-naming problem: its Mossimo brand "Orina" sandals. While the retailer initially believed the word "Orina" to mean "peace" or "peaceful" in Russian, about a week ago it found out that it actually means "urine" in Spanish.

Sears Holdings has launched a new business unit that will focus on the development of entertainment-driven fashion and lifestyle brands. The unit, called Shop Your Way brands, will be lead by Bernt Ullmann and his team from Star

Brian Sozzi, chief equities analyst at NBG Productions, said Lulu's forecasts may prove too optimistic. "It looks like they're expecting a return to their glory days by the mid-year," he said. "I can't necessarily believe in that, because for the first...

Athletic apparel maker lululemon athletica will be hurt by a large recall of black yoga pants that were unintentionally see-through. "The ingredients, weight and longevity qualities of the pants remain the same, but the coverage does not, resulting in a level of sheerness in some of our women's black Luon bottoms that falls short of our very high standards," the company said in a statement Monday. lululemon said the recall, which amounts to 17 percent of all women's pants sold in its stores, will have a significant impact on its financial results.

Folks who walk into a Bonobos Guideshop can't help but notice one thing: There's hardly any merchandise. That's on purpose. Bonobos (say "bu-NO-bos") Guideshops are men's clothing stores that basically don't sell anything. Consumers can try stuff on for size, put outfits together and get advice from salespeople. But if they like it, they've got to order it on the Bonobos website. This small store is a big deal. If other stores catch on — and it may be more of a question of when than if — this could ultimately change the business model for the nation's retail establishments.

It would be fair to call Etsy, which bowed in 2005, a disruptor. The online marketplace birthed a new business model that gives independent designers a global platform to sell everything from handmade jewelry to vintage clothing and home furnishings. But lately mainstream, national chains like Nordstrom and West Elm have been turning to Etsy — which swelled to $895.1 million in sales in 2012, up from $525.6 million in 2011 — to inject their stores’ merchandise with a patina of one-of-a-kind-handcraft authenticity, much like many big Hollywood studios set up independent film divisions to burnish their art-house cinema bonafides.

Big box is so last decade. That's why Wal-Mart is upping the ante on its expansion efforts with smaller stores. According to Bill Simon, head of Wal-Mart's U.S. division, who spoke on an industry conference call yesterday, "They compete really well against multiple channels," including competitors such as Dollar General, Walgreens and supermarkets. Simon said the company plans to add 115 new outlets that have less than 60,000 square feet of selling space this year. Wal-Mart's not abandoning the big box yet, however. Simon says to expect 125 supercenters to open this year, too.

DSW, a branded footwear and accessories retailer, announced the launch of Luxe810, its new luxury experience website. Offering top luxury brands at up to 50 percent off, the Luxe810 assortment includes shoes, handbags, jewelry and other accessories for men and women. Among the brands featured at Luxe810 are Gucci, Prada, Bottega Veneta, YSL, Sergio Rossi, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Pucci, Giuseppe Zanotti and more.

One of the benefits of shopping on Amazon.com comes from how the company presents alternatives to searchers on the site. These search results give shoppers additional choices beyond what they may have thought they already wanted. But like many things in life, there's always someone who doesn't gain the same benefit that many other people do from a given practice. As law professor Eric Goldman noted at Forbes, Amazon's search results and merchandising earned it a court challenge.

Welcome to the new age of retailing: the internet, social media, tablets and smartphones, to name but four, present new challenges for retailers. Because of these new channels and technologies, consumers rarely need to travel down just one road to do their shopping. They are, in a very real sense, moving targets that weave in and out at will, doing their shopping through different channels, from a PC to mobile application to a TV shopping network. Whatever channel is most convenient to them at the time is the one they'll use to connect to your store.