“Ten years ago, at the dawn of the millennium, fashionistas would have looked to couture designers and the runways of New York, Paris and Milan to anticipate how fashion trends would unfold during subsequent decades.  Very few would have believed that the fashion world would be profoundly affected by a controversial line of affordable children’s clothing sold at Wal-Mart.

However, a little-known legal decision from a decade ago about one of Wal-Mart’s lines of children’s clothing is profoundly affecting fashion today, and its impact will likely continue to be felt for the decade to come. (more…)

It’s often work, work, work.However, in 2010, I’ve made a commitment to post more on Fashion Lawyer.

First things first, I’m moving into a new office soon- a very exciting event for me, because it means I get to embrace one of my other life’s passions: decorating.I’ve been checking out a few design blogs lately for inspiration.  Obviously a Fashion Lawyer’s office won’t be your run-of-the-mill boring grey carpet and cubicle cookie cutter.  I’m going for a homey, eclectic vibe.   I’m thinking pink and black. Urbane.

Kmart has other ideas than lay-away to combat tough economic times this year.  Namely, the bog box is planning to begin traditional Black Friday sales THIS SUNDAY.  Kmart is hoping that you will come into the store and get the good bargains for Christmas barely after Halloween. (Ad Age- subscription required.)

In case you didn’t know, the Friday after Thanksgiving is called Black Friday because it is the day when many retailers are able to turn a profit for the year, thereby converting the profit/loss sheets from red to black ink.

I can’t see myself heading to do Christmas shopping this Sunday, but I never was a fan of Black Friday sales anyway- too crowded.

Retail giant, Kmart, has a new 30-second spot featuring a married couple who, thanks to the wife’s spunk and resourcefulness, decide to buy Christmas gifts early from Kmart.  But… how can they afford gifts in these tough economic times when credit cards are starting to tighten the availability of easy credit?  Lay-away, of course!

Yes, Kmart has revived the concept, pulled it out of a deep storage closet and blown off the dust.  Lay-away!  Facetiousness aside, it’s a pretty genius idea, actually, since the store holds onto the product until the consumer has made all the payments.  It will be interesting to see if this campaign works to increase the holiday sales.

According to this week’s Advertising Age, Wal-Mart plans to start advertising holiday sale items now.  Normally retailers wait until after Halloween to set up Christmas displays and mark items for holiday promotion.  However, Wal-Mart has already begun to stage their stores with Christmas items- the displays should be up and ready as early as tomorrow.

Wal-Mart is also sticking to its low price policy by offering 10 popular toys for $10 each this holiday season.  The retailer is hoping that the cheaper items will pull in consumers who will splurge on impulse buys once in the store.  I don’t know about you, but that strategy always seems to work for me in the grocery store- or is it that I shop when I’m hungry?

One of today’s biggest losers was big box, Dillard’s, which ended the day at $11.06 per share- a 8.9% drop.  I dread seeing the numbers this upcoming holiday season.

It’s going to continue to be a sticky road for retail for the next few months (or longer), I fear.  Concerned and cash-strapped consumers aren’t helping to push up the bottom line, either.

If the financial woes continue, and the U.S. Government can’t push some sort of aid package, then retail will really be hurt. The lack of available cash for credit companies may cause consumers’ credit lines to be shortened. If that happens, unless consumers have cash to pay for purchases, the “buy now, pay later” approach won’t work, because buyers will not have credit. No credit is a problem for retailers who depend on shoppers swiping to buy non-necessity items.

It could get very ugly for retail.

The weekend boasted a heaping of fashion’s finest.  Here’s the round-up for today’s official shows:

Fashion Lawyer will be covering the shows, reviews and big news of Fashion Week, so be sure to tune in!  If you’re interested in reading about the hidden costs in producing a show in Bryant Park, click here to read an older post on the economics of a fashion show