American Eagle Outfitters, Inc.

When hip is hot, it helps the hipster, which in this case is the budget-friendly clothing-store chain Aéropostale. Its stores, once indistinguishable from the likes of others in the mall, have become a must-stop for fashion-conscious teens and preteens.

American Eagle Outfitters announced plans to further expand its international retail presence with stores throughout Israel. The company has signed a multi-year franchise agreement with Fox-Wizel Ltd.

For merchandise sellers not rooted online, alternative payment programs such as PayPal and Bill Me Later once carried the stigma of being designed primarily for consumers with bad debt. But as representatives from two major integrated retailers, American Eagle Outfitters and Orvis, noted during a session at August's eTail Conference in Baltimore, that's no longer the case.

Gen Y apparel retailer American Eagle Outfitters doesn’t bulk-mail catalogs, but it does operate a thriving direct-to-consumer business from Web sales and orders placed in its stores. Like many other retailers that historically only dabbled in direct sales, American Eagle farmed out its fulfillment to a third-party firm. But as Web orders continued to increase, the company realized the need for its own fulfillment center. So one was built last year in Ottawa, Kan. The facility has a unique fulfillment operation that adapts to changing work volume requirements and available labor resources, said Steve Lyman, the retailer’s vice president of distribution, during a session

Dear Editor, RE: “DMA Drops MPS Fee” that ran in February's IndustryEye, the Direct Marketing Association took the right step by eliminating the $1 sign-up fee, but its Mail Preference Service (MPS) still requires a credit card number to ensure authenticity. There are more than 4 million names on the MPS suppression file, but DMA hasn’t done much to promote MPS to consumers and its membership base. More importantly, the DMA hasn’t made it easy for consumers to have their names added to the do-not-mail list. Catalog Choice’s goal — to stop unwanted mail to help clean our environment — is a worthy one.