The Prince of Lord & Taylor

New York Times
By Stephanie Clifford and Peter Lattman
Published: May 7, 2011

Anyone who thought Richard A. Baker was getting in over his head when he bought Lord & Taylor and the Hudson’s Bay Company must be reconsidering.

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The Prince of Lord & Taylor

HBC Retail Concept Gets Reformatted For U.S. Expansion

Globe and Mail
By Marina Strauss

As he mulls taking Hudson’s Bay Co. public this year, the U.S. owner of the iconic department-store retailer is turning his attention to a risky but potentially lucrative specialty-store expansion.

Richard Baker, a Purchase, N.Y.-based real estate heavyweight, will roll out HBC’s Home Outfitters chain by testing two new upscale home-goods stores in New Jersey starting in late summer. If successful, he will take the concept – dubbed Lord & Taylor Home after his U.S. department-store chain – farther afield in the United States.

It’s part of a wider strategy to capitalize on HBC’s core strengths in fashion and housewares by branching out into specialty-store retailing. The company intends to use some of the $1.8-billion-plus it got this year for selling its Zellers stores to U.S. titan Target Corp. to finance specialty-retail acquisitions and new concepts.

The strategy could face headwinds in the U.S. marketplace, where recession-battered consumers remain reluctant to spend and the housing market – which spurs home-goods purchases – is still under water for the most part. Nevertheless, the well-heeled shopper has recovered faster than others.

Mr. Baker knows better than most about gambling on U.S. home-goods merchandising. He was a minority investor in retailer Linens ‘N Things, which went into bankruptcy protection during the recession although it remained profitable in Canada. And he picked up the high-end home chain Fortunoff in bankruptcy only to see it collapse in the downturn.

Now he’s betting that the headway he’s made at HBC’s Home Outfitters and the Bay since he acquired their parent in 2008 will serve him well in new specialty ventures.

“We’ll incur these costs knowing there could be greener pastures,” said Fritz Winans, president of HBC’s specialty retail division. “Anything that we’re going to get into, we’re going to believe it’s going to have significant enough potential – otherwise we’re not interested in getting involved in it.”

Mr. Baker has enjoyed signs of improvement at his privately held HBC. Its 69 Home Outfitters stores turned a corner in 2009, moving into the black from red, Mr. Winans said. Same-store sales, which had been on the decline when the chain was purchased, rose in the single digits last year.

After years of struggle, the parent company more than doubled its profit in 2010 from two years earlier, thanks to cost-cutting and re-focusing on more profitable areas while winding down others, a spokeswoman said. Expenses also were trimmed at Mr. Baker’s upscale Lord & Taylor department stores..

Still, Mr. Baker faces stiff competition in specialty home goods, particularly in the U.S. northeast where rivals such as Crate & Barrel are well entrenched, said retail strategist Anthony Stokan of consultancy Anthony Russell and Associates. “There are several significant challenges in introducing any large-scale retail concept in the American marketplace right now,” he said.

The U.S. housing market is still soft, prompting less need for consumers to buy products for their homes, Mr. Stokan said. And it’s tougher for a retailer to gain traction by launching a new banner rather than acquiring an established player, he said. Lord & Taylor has built a solid reputation as a revitalized fashion brand, but will need to work at becoming a destination for home goods.

Despite the challenges, Mr. Baker is eyeing specialty retailing opportunities for future growth. The company revamped Home Outfitters in the past year, adding high-end brands such as Nespresso coffeemakers and, soon, Ralph Lauren bedding. It recently introduced a pet department, including beds and bowls for Fido, in response to burgeoning demand in that segment.

Within driving distance of New York City, the two test home stores will carry pricier brands as well as less costly private labels. If they take off within about five months, the company will expand them in the U.S. northeast and eventually across the United States, Mr. Winans said. Some industry observers envision more than 100 U.S. stores eventually.

Beyond Lord & Taylor Home, Mr. Baker is discussing internally other specialty retail opportunities, among them adopting formats from other countries and launching them in Canada, Mr. Winans said. He’s looking at both acquisitions and fresh rollouts for North America.

Bon-Ton Launching Pair of Private Brands

With an assortment that runs the gamut from men’s sweaters to pet beds, The Bon-Ton Stores Inc. is planning a major push for the inaugural John Bartlett-designed Consensus and Statements men’s private labels.

As reported, the department-store chain last October inked a deal with Tharanco Lifestyles LLC for Bartlett to take over the design of its apparel and accessories collections starting this fall. The full collection, which offers preppie, military and outdoors-inspired styles, was unveiled at an event at the Ace Hotel in New York City Wednesday night.

“We’ve been working with John over the last six months to get ready,” said Steve Villa, senior vice president of private brands for Bon-Ton. “We’re really excited with the way it turned out and it’s been a great partnership. It’s really nice product and will help move us forward.”

Villa said the Consensus sportswear and the Statements men’s furnishings will anchor Bon-Ton’s updated area and will be showcased in a shop setting in all of the company’s 264 stores. The size of the shops will vary by store but the emphasis will make the brand among the company’s top three men’s businesses. It will begin flowing into stores in July with the full collection due in by Aug. 15.

Because of Bartlett’s ongoing support of animals, Bon-Ton also will offer John Bartlett Pet, a selection of beds, leashes, accessories and gifts, for fall. Other categories, such as boys’, is expected to be added in the future.

“This is our big push in men’s,” said Bud Bergren, Bon-Ton’s chief executive officer. Men’s wear accounted for 12 percent of Bon-Ton’s sales during 2010 year, or about $360 million of its $3 billion total.

The shops will feature the John Bartlett Consensus or John Bartlett Statements logo and will have distinct fixturing to set the merchandise off from the rest of the mix. “We’re focused on the product, him as a person and his viewpoint,” Villa said.

Villa said the company expects sweaters, woven shirts and outerwear to be among the most popular items with customers. “They’re really right on trend,” he said, noting there will be “less emphasis on bottoms and knits” at the outset.

Bartlett said he has worked to slim up the fit of the garments, which include everything from washed poplin shirts, which will retail for $45, flannels ($45), argyle sweaters ($65), chunky cardigans ($85), jersey knits ($30), Fair Isle sweaters ($85) and corduroy pants ($65) in Consensus. The Statements offerings include suit separates, which will sell for $175 for the jacket and $75 for the pants, as well as neckwear ($32.50), dress shirts ($34 or $52.50), loungewear ($26-$70) and outerwear ($125-$200).

“The fit is trim, yet relaxed, with engaging details that aren’t overdecorated,” Bartlett said. “I paid very close attention to the hand and feel of the fabrics, the washes, and the best in noble fibers to create the highest price to quality ratio possible.” He said he has created “a real lifestyle brand, which is where the business is going today.” Six to eight deliveries a year are planned.

The skinny dress shirts and ties are new for Bon-Ton, he said, and expected to appeal to a younger guy. Bartlett said he will introduce a slimmer suit silhouette for spring. “We’re really overhauling the whole tailored side,” he said.

Bergren said that the investment in revamping the private label offerings is part of the retailer’s efforts to set itself apart from its competitors. In addition to Consensus and Statements, Bon-Ton also offers Ruff Hewn for its outdoors-inspired offering, Kenneth Roberts for tailored looks, and in young men’s, juniors and children’s, the retailer just signed a licensing deal with Australian firm Mambo Graphics Pty Ltd. to bring the Mambo surf and street brand to the U.S. exclusively for fall. The company also has a deal with Casual Male Retail Group to provide Big & Tall men’s merchandise in select stores and online.

“This is what is going to differentiate us,” Bergren said, adding that while the company is “always looking for new lines,” no other deals are imminent.

Private brands are continuing to gain in importance in the men’s market. In addition to Macy’s and J.C. Penney, long the leaders in this category, other retailers have also had success with exclusive brands including Saks Fifth Avenue, whose men’s collection is now its number-one vendor and Lord & Taylor, which has had a strong response to its Black Brown 1826 men’s brand.

Fragrance Spritzers Hold Their Fire

New York Times
By Catherine Saint Louis
Published: April 15, 2011

Department stores are changing their approach to make the fragrance counter more welcoming.

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Fragrance Spritzers Hold Their Fire

Comeback: Designer Joseph Abboud

MRketplace
By Karen Alberg Grossman

President and creative director for HMX and designer for Lord & Taylor’s private brand, Joseph Abboud’s influence keeps growing.

Joseph Abboud has found his place in the universe. Relaxed and contented in his beautiful Park Avenue studio surrounded by thousands of swatches of luxury fabrics, Abboud is clearly in his element, always happiest when he’s designing. (“I could sit for days in a room with swatches; just bring me an occasional pizza…”) Just back from Europe and on his way to host a retail charity event, Abboud chats with MR about the court battle for his name, his current passions and ambitions.

On his court battle with JA Apparel: It was never about the money; it was always the principle. I knew what I’d sold (a trademark) and what I didn’t sell (my name). Do I regret selling it? No, because I had every intention of staying at JA Apparel. What I intended was to free myself from things like leases and computers and negotiations in order to concentrate on design. (At that point, I was spending 90 percent of my time on tasks that had nothing to do with design.) And while it’s now water under the bridge, what it did accomplish was to establish a designer’s creative rights. It was not an easy process for me: it was two years of fighting, of getting the appellate courts to see the injustice of the original decision. It took tremendous intestinal fortitude but I didn’t roll up into a fetal position and as a result, I’ve been able to advise young designers on how to approach partnerships. Of course I’m delighted that I ended up where I knew I was supposed to be, but bottom line, I never wanted to infringe on their trademark: that’s the trademark I sold! I just didn’t want to be trivialized, marginalized like I didn’t exist.

In an important sense, it was a landmark case, a first amendment issue: If someone creates something, people have a right to know who created it. On the basis of that, we won. And in the end what I learned was how much I love what I do: not for the glory, not for the money, but for the actual process of designing.

On what he’s learned from mentors: From Louis Boston founder Murray Pearlstein, the most brilliant merchant I know (despite the fact that he was crazy enough to give me a $7 million OTB when I was 22!), I learned creative courage: if you believe in something, show it like you mean it! From Ralph Lauren, who I worked with for almost five years, I learned about the power of a brand: about creating a brand’s DNA, knowing exactly what it is and what it isn’t, believing in it and being fiercely protective of it. (I ultimately left Ralph because I had a different creative viewpoint but he was my graduate school, my MBA, and I’m forever grateful for all I learned.)

Guido Petruzzi was my angel in many ways: a brilliant architect of designer businesses, he came to me and asked me to partner with GFT. (Back then, GFT picked you; you didn’t pick them.) No one better understood the designer world; he gave us the space and the fertile environment in which to create. It’s hard to believe that two billion dollar empire is gone…

On the new HMX: My job here is to create a talent pool, to teach young designers how to think. At the moment, we’re working on three or four exciting new initiatives (Palm Beach could be the next Abercrombie if we do it right) in addition to growing our core brands. Our factories are near capacity. We have a great relationship with the unions: they are our partners, our assets. We make almost 500,000 suits and sportcoats a year, all right here in North America. And as production and shipping costs rise around the world, our domestic factories become more of an asset.

On his relationship with Doug Williams: He is a great friend and perfect partner because we get each other. We both acknowledge that what he does, I couldn’t do and what I do, he couldn’t do. We both operate organically: largely by instinct. And we agree on the important things, like being the licensor, not the licensee.

On the relationship between big stores and their vendors: There’s a healthy tension today between retailers and manufacturers and that’s okay. But unless it’s healthy, it’s a disaster. Because bottom line, we both need to be profitable; we need to survive together. Yes of course the big stores are protected for much of their risk taking but if those are the rules we have to play by, we’ll play by them. But they need to let us survive so we can work for them and with them. The best advice I ever got was from Murray Pearlstein: he taught me never to make too good a deal. If you destroy your source, you destroy your business.

Retailers need more creative courage. It’s time for stores to stand up for what they believe in, to create more point of difference between their store and the competition. I also believe we need new specialty store concepts to balance the majors. It’s important that we help cultivate and support new retailers with new ideas.

On getting American men into fashion: My goal is for more men to embrace fashion and style rather than be afraid of it. As an industry, we’ve done a terrible job of conveying an appreciation for fine clothing. The Europeans grow up with it; it’s in their pasta. Here, we turn guys off with ridiculous runway presentations so they think fashion is totally frivolous. If you’re a major New York newspaper, don’t show a guy on a runway on a horse with war paint and expect that your reader is going to understand your message. Talk to guys in a language they understand.

I think the problem for most guys is not a lack of interest but rather a lack of confidence. So we need to bring them fashion that makes them look sexy and handsome in ways they can understand.

On his unique design sensibility: I sometimes describe myself as a “creative chameleon,” but the common themes across all my designs are beauty, sensuality and wearability.

On the future of tailored clothing: Tailored clothing is morphing from that Monday to Friday 9 to 5 suit into a multi-function lifestyle piece. It’s now about softness and deconstruction, the problem being that most men don’t understand that less can cost more… That said, a base in tailored clothing is not a bad thing for a menswear company: all the great men’s brands (Armani, Ralph Lauren) are anchored in tailored clothing, which allows licensing opportunities in shirts, ties and accessories. In our brands, clothing still dominates the mix but we’re moving toward more sportswear; our goal is 50/50. If manufacturers don’t evolve silhouettes and fabrics, we’re dead because men are wearing suits totally differently today.

On advertising to men: Take any two guys from any two backgrounds or income brackets and what’s their common denominator? Sports. So we believe in using sports personalities, not just for endorsements but for relationships. Like Yankees first baseman Mark Texeira who does the radio ads for Hart Schaffner Marx: it’s not about Buy One Suit, Get Six Free. It’s about the integrity of the brand, about history and heritage and pride. I mean look at the history of HSM: for more than a century, they’ve made suits for presidents, uniforms for soldiers in two world wars. And men really do care about these things. So I believe our sports marketing works because it’s based on authentic relationships rather than hired spokespeople. And our HSM business after those radio spots (we tag Nordstrom and other major retailers) really spikes: men go into the stores and ask for HSM; it’s been fantastic. Which is why Hickey Freeman is now doing Sunday Night Football with Bob Costas and why HMX brands will be doing the Olympics and hopefully the Super Bowl.

On happiness: I’m not much of socializer: I don’t have lots of friends, I don’t go to many events or parties beyond what I have to do. My real happiness is my work and my family. In fact, I had a great evening last night teaching my daughter Ari some tricks for memorizing the American presidents…

Last summer, my older daughter Lila interned at HMX. One of her jobs was to straighten out these boxes of old swatches and she came to me with this mushroom-colored Donegal piece of sweater that she thought I might like. It was so gorgeous that I built an entire collection around it; it was one of our deliveries for fall 2010. And the next time she was at our offices and saw that collection, she was beaming; she was like, “Daddy, I discovered that swatch!” Now that to me is happiness.

The world according to Joseph Abboud

Most proud of: My consistency.

Biggest regret: Not always trusting my instincts.

Might surprise people: My sense of humor.

Would change about self: My intensity: I’m often obsessive: I don’t let things go which is both a blessing and a curse. I’m also cursed with a great memory.

A wish: That more guys would enjoy the shopping experience, that they’d view it like getting a massage (which you can’t do online…)

A motto: Surround yourself with talented people and you’ll be better.

Another motto: Fight fiercely for what you believe in, but not combatively.

What keeps him grounded: My wife and two daughters.

Best part of job: Going out to stores and sharing my passion with the sellers.

Lessons learned: The battles are won and lost on the selling floor.

Another lesson: The product makes the label, not vice versa.

Outside project: I’m renovating an old building up in Boston. I love home and interior; Doug and I have plans to incorporate home into several of our lifestyle brands.

Other passions: Squash (3 to 4 times a week), and of course the Red Sox!

Richard G. Shapiro, Led Filene’s During Glory Days Of Retailing

Boston Globe
By Emma Stickgold

In the days before the Internet, when shopping at a store was generally the method of acquiring goods, Richard G. Shapiro hoped the experience of going to a department store could help build a community around a shared activity.

As chairman of the board at Filene’s in the 1960s, during the glory days of retailing, Mr. Shapiro urged company officials to expand into the suburbs, rather than rely solely on drawing people to the flagship store in downtown Boston.

Mr. Shapiro, colleagues and family said, firmly understood customers and brought a sense of integrity and a matter-of-fact approach to the local retail scene.

“He had a very easy-going personality — he was not one of these my-way-or-the-highway personalities,’’ former colleague Simon Atlas said. “He encouraged people to give input, and he would listen to everyone’s input and make decisions on that basis. He was a good listener, a good mentor, and someone who would help people in their career. He was someone you could admire.’’

On weekends, he split logs and built fences, and he came home for dinner most weekday evenings, without bringing the office home with him, his family said.

Mr. Shapiro died Feb. 10 at Collingswood Nursing & Rehabilitation Center in Rockville, Md. He was 86 and suffered from dementia as a result of a traumatic brain injury, according to family.

A US Army veteran of World War II, Mr. Shapiro emerged from Harvard Business School in the late 1940s, when “life was moving very fast . . . and retailing was quite dynamic,’’ said his wife, Lila. “It was an exciting time in the business world.’’

He started as an assistant buyer at Lord & Taylor and worked his way up; by 1962, he was senior vice president of the company. Three years later, he was hired, at age 39, to become president of Filene’s in Boston. A year later, he became chief executive, as well.

He often combined his sense for what people wanted with a special formula used to calculate quantities to buy, to determine how to keep customers coming back. He often gave the buyers he hired in various departments a lot of latitude to make key choices.

“He was very compassionate and identified with people who worked with him,’’ his wife said. “There was a comfortable quality; he never seemed to focus on his status as against anyone else’s. He could easily engage people and enjoyed them.’’

Mr. Shapiro helped expand Filene’s into the suburbs of Boston, hoping the store would eventually be a household name nationwide. It was, before Filene’s was sold to May Department Stores Co. in 1988 and folded into Federated Department Stores, Inc., which included the Macy’s franchise, in 2005.

“I think it was based on demographics, and he had the kind of mind that would work with facts, rather than just clear instinct, so he would study areas and demographics rather carefully,’’ his wife said.

Small details that affected the store’s image mattered to him, his wife said, such as making sure the boxes the store used for customers to carry home purchased clothing were sturdy.

He also tapped into celebrity power to bring attention to the store, while keeping a personal touch, especially during the holiday season, when he would greet customers by the escalators. For some customers, such as those in town to put on a show in a local theater, he would open the store at off-hours.

Younger employees often looked to him for advice.

“He was very savvy, and I would talk with him not just as a father-in-law, but as someone who had deep insights into understanding customers,’’ said his son-in-law, Steven Kostant of Chevy Chase, Md..

Born in New York City, Mr. Shapiro graduated from Davis High School in Mount Vernon, N.Y., in the early 1940s, although his higher education studies were interrupted by the war.

Initially, he was in an Army tank destroyer unit that was testing new bazooka rocket systems, family said. At the risk of being court-martialed, he raised concerns that the weapons lacked key safety features, and he refused to fire one until modifications were made. They were and, rather than discipline him, the Army transferred him to the intelligence corps and he studied Russian at Cornell in a total immersion program.

After his discharge, he graduated from the University of Michigan and then earned a master’s degree in business administration from Harvard.

He left Filene’s to become president and chief operating officer of Gimbel Brothers Inc., running both Gimbels and Saks Fifth Avenue stores, starting in 1973. In 1977, he became corporate vice president at W.R. Grace and Co., eventually heading their specialty store division. In 1982, he left that venture to start Nitrotech in New York, a company focused on energy. It was sold in 1996.

In 1972, he joined the board of trustees of Brandeis University in Waltham, during what his wife described as “a very exciting time to be part’’ of the school. He created a scholarship for foreign students and made sure they felt welcome in their new environs. He also joined the board of trustees at Simmons College in Boston.

On the tennis court, Mr. Shapiro had a good ground stroke, and he often used the game to show his children what he meant by living a life of moderation, encouraging a three-quarter pace for the first and second serves. And he would often tell them, “Don’t speak just to hear yourself talk,’’ and “Never think you’re the smartest person in the room.’’

“He had a tremendous capacity for joy,’’ his daughter Amy Kostant said.

His love of music was well known among family and friends, as he would often play his favorite tunes on the piano at family gatherings. At his memorial service, his grandchildren recalled that they noticed he was very patient with them and never seemed to be in a rush.

In addition to his daughter and his wife of 59 years, Mr. Shapiro leaves another daughter, Judith Sherer of Potomac, Md.; his son, Don of Rockville, Md.; his sister, Lois Miller of Eastchester, N.Y.; three grandsons; and three granddaughters. Services have been held.

Retailers Hit a High Note With Jessica Simpson

by Sharon Edelson
From WWD Issue 03/28/2011

Jessica Simpson’s teenage and twentysomething customers aren’t her only admirers. Retailers are singing Simpson’s praises as her brand prepares to launch sportswear in the fall.

The singer-cum-actress-cum-designer with the disarming honesty and ability to laugh at herself is also a shrewd businesswoman. Simpson’s brand generated $750 million in retail sales in 2010 and is poised to break the $1 billion mark in 2012.

With the Camuto Group, which has made Jessica Simpson footwear since 2005, she has inked licensing partnerships for 22 other categories, ranging from jeans, sportswear, fashion accessories, swimwear and dresses to outerwear, watches and fragrance. Department and specialty stores are eager to get their hands on the next piece of the franchise — the sportswear — which is aimed at better junior areas for fall.

At Belk’s, Simpson’s ready-to-wear will be sold in the young contemporary section of better sportswear departments. “The two businesses [denim and rtw] will be housed side-by-side,” said Kathryn Bufano, president and chief merchandising officer. “We see adjacencies with Kenzie Girl and Miss Me denim. Our junior girl is on the young side. Mothers and daughters shop together in many cases. We’ll align with the twentysomething customer. Even though the mom and daughter are shopping in juniors, it’s the postgraduate, early 30-year-old who will buy the sportswear.”

Belk’s has a “gigantic” shoe, handbag and costume jewelry business with Simpson, Bufano said. “We have a very nice dress business in the young contemporary dress area. When dresses and sportswear can catch up to shoes, that will really be something.”

A spokeswoman for Camuto said the company is focused on building in-store shops for Simpson. “We did 600 shops for jeanswear last year,” she said, noting that the shops convey a sense of glamour with chandeliers and sleek white fixtures with chrome accents. “When we launch sportswear in the fall, it will be as an adjacency to the denim shops. We’ll be taking a bigger pad [on the sales floor] and increasing our size.” Shoes, accessories and jewelry are sold in other departments, but the in-store shops have bays devoted to those categories to remind shoppers of the full offering.

Martine Reardon, Macy’s executive vice president of marketing and advertising, said Simpson’s collection appeals to a crossover shopper, from 16 to 40 years old. “To me, it’s more about a mind-set than an age,” she said. “It’s someone who shops missy, but likes to see what’s going on in a more youthful brand. It’s fun, fashionable and trend-right. You’ll see some of the complete looks displayed together. We’re starting to do more of that in all our merchandising. We’re trying to help the customer put it all together.”

Simpson appeals to consumers because she’s not simply the face of the brand, said Reardon.

“Jessica was a singing star and actress,” she said. “She’s proven herself to be a designer who’s extremely involved in the look and feel of her brand. She’s a celebrity and a designer. They can be interchangeable, depending upon their talent. Jessica is not a spokesperson. She is the brand. It’s Jessica’s sensibility.”

“Our customers respond to Jessica Simpson because the line offers fun, stylish shoe wardrobe updates at a great price,” said Kristin Frossmo, Nordstrom national merchandise manager for Brass Plum shoes. “The brand is quick to respond to trends and understands the young, contemporary shopper.”

Lord & Taylor’s Jessica Simpson business has expanded over the past few years across all categories, beginning with shoes, sunglasses and dresses. “Now, it’s on to sportswear,” said Liz Rodbell, executive vice president of merchandising. “We have seen strength with dresses and dress shoes this season and the launch of denim was a success. Our customer has responded to the fit and price-point. The collections are right on trend and have a feminine touch with a strong price-to-value equation that resonates with our customer.”

“When we launched denim, we had a strong direct-mail campaign,” Bufano said. “We do promotional pieces for the shoe business called Footwear Frenzy. We’re very aggressive in terms of going after this label. Shoes have been up by double digits year after year, as have handbags and jewelry. We continue to see that growth trajectory.”

Any marketing or advertising effort by stores is aided by Simpson’s own exposure. When she appears on TV or is mentioned in the tabloids, stores see sales spike. Likewise, when Simpson visits a store, “sales go off the charts,” Reardon said. “The last big thing she did was during the holiday season, when she did a PBS special and launched a CD.”

“Our young contemporary and junior customer is very tuned into media and fashion trends,” said Bufano. “She has very high awareness among our customers. We had a special event last fall in our Southpark flagship [in Charlotte, N.C.] and close to 600 people drove from miles and miles around. She has a huge fan base, but her denim, dresses and shoes speak for themselves. Personalities and stars can only go so far, but her merchandise fits with her brand.”