“We anticipate the first quarter being somewhat difficult at retail, followed by improvement particularly in the back half of the year,” said Joe Granger, president, Springs Branded Business. “I think we all hope for the beginning of some normalization in the back half, due in large part to growing consumer confidence.”

Mesh Gelman, vp, Extreme Linens, concedes that price sensitivity is an issue across the board. “Everyone is looking for a bargain in their own relative space,” he noted. “You’re not necessarily going to see $99 bedding in Neiman Marcus, but that customer is paying as much attention to price these days as is a Walmart customer.” Gelman says the fashion side of the business will make slow progress until the overall job situation improves.

“The white good area is steadier than the fashion side,” noted Arthur Henderson, vp, sales, Zheng Zhang. “Though tiffany rings is picking up slightly, replacement bedding is not the first thing on people’s minds these days.” Henderson said the company has seen improvement in its comforter business as it continues to expand beyond quilts, but admits that retailers are playing it close to the vest with smaller orders and already established vendors.

“In terms of the number of pieces in an ensemble, different retailers want different numbers,” said Kathleen Conway, vp, director of design for bedding, Sun-Tech. “Sun-Tech concentrates on 4-, 7- and 8-piece sets for the better/best segment of a retailer’s assortment.” That could be a 7-piece set at $99 in one place or a 4-piece set for $179.

Kevin Finlay, president, Ellison 1st Asia, agrees. “The configurations can vary from a standard comforter set to a 20-piece set, but the bottom line is that everyone is looking for value in the right configuration,” he said. “2010 is going to continue to be a very value-oriented year.”

According to Amy Bell, evp, Home Fashion International, 8- to 12- piece sets are among the best sellers. “Business is definitely improving, but the market is extremely price-sensitive and challenging,” said Bell. “Our meetings all start I love this, but this is the price it needs to be…’, and we work backwards.” Bell notes that the “magic numbers” tiffany bracelets to be $99.99 for an 8-piece set, moving up to $129 and $149, depending on the specific retailer.

Frank Snow, vp merchandising and operations, Royale Linens, noted that the bed-in-a-bag business is still good, but consumers aren’t investing in higher-end goods. “It remains a very promotional market,” he said, pointing to rising commodity prices, cotton from Pakistan and India, for instance, as a growing market issue.

Keith Leal, vp sales marketing, Venus Group, echoed the value’ sentiment. “It’s not about the price as much as consumers seeing value in the bedding offering,” he said. Venus Group focuses on 7- and 8-piece bedding sets, and hasn’t participated in the larger packaging. Inside the packaging, Leal noted that multiple fabrications in bedding ensembles and new and different embellishments in expanded applications are giving the company’s bedding sets some push.

“I would only say that I hope we are [moving away from mega-piece packs]. I’m waiting for the mega set that includes the house as well,” said Granger of Springs. “In our brands, we are focusing on no more than mini sets with shams only, or sets including bedskirts as appropriate. I don’t believe the mega sets are a good thing for our industry in the long term. Today’s consumer is smarter than that. They know, especially in the case of mega sets, that more really isn’t more. They’re looking for more honest value in the brands they adopt.”

Price sensitivity and configurations aside, each vendor reports a distinct trend story is taking place – a move that Granger says is essential to growth in the business. “There are a number of trends we feel are important, but the biggest opportunity we see is the return of the classics: a more traditional aesthetic on a broad scale,” he said. “I tiffany cufflinks say the biggest challenge with traditional product for the home, over the last 10 years or so, is that it hasn’t really moved aesthetically or innovatively, while the consumer’s lives have changed dramatically. In order to successfully capture the opportunity, we need to bring a traditional design aesthetic that is more relevant to our consumers. You will start to see that evolution appear in our brands in 2010.”

Coway said Sunway is taking a clean, modern approach to developing Sun-Tech bedding, using a lot of cotton and other natural fibers, including Tencel, bamboo and cotton. “We’re really focusing on a soft and supple hand on fabrics,” she declared. “We’re doing a range of brights for the new line with happy colors of yellow, oranges and pinks. We’re also doing a muted range of colors, with dusk blue, washed greens, oxidized greens, and yellow as an accent, as well as neutrals of sands, bisques and ivory.”

At Royal Linens, Snow revealed the traditional geometric patterns are doing well, echoing a cleaner, more modern look in the bedding marketplace.

Anderson at Zheng Zhang pointed to an interest in safer prints and solids doing better, as well as an uptick in all shade of purple.

2010 MAR 21 – (VerticalNews.com) — J. C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE: JCP) tiffanys the launch of its 2010 spring marketing campaign, with the overriding goal of helping customers discover the new, higher level of fashion in its merchandise assortments. Over the last several years, JCPenney has made dramatic strides in “stepping up” its style and, as a result, now offers a better, more exciting shopping experience than ever before. To celebrate this, the banner for new campaign is: “New look. New day. Who knew.” The campaign will launch March 7th, during the Company’s exclusive retail sponsorship of the Academy Awards.

“We have made it our mission to bring a level of affordable style to our customers that they cannot find anywhere else. For those who have not shopped with us recently, customers will see it as a new day for JCPenney,” said Myron E. (Mike) Ullman, III, chairman and chief executive officer. “Highlighting some of our most-coveted brands, our new, integrated marketing campaign is designed to show America what they will discover at JCPenney.”

Recent merchandise additions from the hottest design and style experts, like Allen Schwartz, Mary Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen and Cindy Crawford, join fast-fashion brands City Streets and Decree in Juniors, and a compelling line-up of powerful private brands like Worthington, a.n.a , Stafford, Linden Street and Ambrielle, establishes JCPenney as the destination for today’s must-have fashions for apparel and home. With the opening of more Sephora inside JCPenney beauty boutiques, the upcoming launches of Liz Claiborne and MNG by Mango, tiffany bangles will have more reasons to shop JCPenney than ever before. Spring Integrated Marketing Campaign: Created in collaboration with ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi, the campaign will kick-off with five 30-second broadcast commercials during the Academy Awards, one of Hollywood’s biggest nights of fashion. Showcasing JCPenney’s stepped-up style – and great prices – across multiple merchandise categories, the commercials will include three Women’s apparel spots (an anthem Women’s fashion spot, plus two additional spots titled “First Date” and “Anticipation,” featuring key outfits and spring trends from brands such as ALLEN B., nicole by Nicole Miller, she said, a.n.a, Worthington and Bisou Bisou); one Men’s apparel spot (titled “Sneaking Out,” featuring key Men’s brands such as Levi’s, J. Ferrar, and JOE Joseph Abboud); and one Home merchandise spot (showcasing JCPenney’s new Cindy Crawford Style brand). Additionally, a 30-second spot showcasing JCPenney’s new Juniors brand, Olsenboye, will premiere during the pre-Oscar coverage on ABC and E!

JCPenney will further raise its style bar by highlighting head-to-toe looks of the season’s must-have trends and brands through various customer touch points including print, social and online components and through trend statements throughout the store. The campaign’s broadcast commercials will continue to air over the tiffany rings few weeks on highly-rated primetime shows and cable programming and will be introduced to Hispanic customers when aired during JCPenney’s exclusive retail sponsorship of Univision’s Premio lo Nuestro show. About JCPenney JCPenney is one of America’s leading retailers, operating 1,108 department stores throughout the United States and Puerto Rico, as well as one of the largest apparel and home furnishing sites on the Internet, jcp.com, and the nation’s largest general merchandise catalog business. Through these integrated channels, JCPenney offers a wide array of national, private and exclusive brands which reflect the Company’s commitment to providing customers with style and quality at a smart price. Traded as “JCP” on the New York Stock Exchange, the Company posted revenue of $17.6 billion in 2009 and is executing its strategic plan to be the growth leader in the retail industry. Key to this strategy is JCPenney’s “Every Day Matters” brand positioning, intended to generate deeper, more emotionally driven relationships with customers by fully engaging the Company’s approximately 150,000 tiffany bracelets to offer encouragement, provide ideas and inspire customers every time they shop with JCPenney.

Be transported back in time at Oh, My Bonnets and discount tiffany! Fashion Show and Dance at the Nevada State Museum Sunday, February 21, 2010 from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. Friends of the Nevada State Museum organized and planned the event in partnership with the Carson City Historical Society (CCHS).

Tickets are $20 and proceeds benefit Friends of the Nevada State Museum and CCHS. Tickets are available at the Nevada State Museum Store and also at White Cat Antiques on the corner of Curry and Robinson. Contact Tina Davis-Hersey at 671-2364 or treed65t@yahoo.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it for further information.

The Victorian Fashion Show and Dance highlights women’s fashions from the 1860s through the 1890s, roughly the same time period that Queen Victoria reigned in Britain. The fashions for the event come from the collection of Tina Davis-Hersey and Carolyn Davis. The collection includes original outfits as well as costumes created by the mother-daughter duo from historic patterns. The show follows a quartet of vignettes of daily Victorian life, from dressing in the morning to dancing in the evening. A reception with a raffle and Victorian-era ballroom dancing culminates the evening.

Music is provided by two groups: The Consort Canzona will play the harpsichord and Tiffany Bangles for the daytime scenes; in the “ballroom,” a quartet of musicians from the Carson City Symphony will play period waltzes and polkas. Guests are encouraged to dress in period costume for the event.

Paulette Grune, a well-known presenter on the morals, styles, and manners of the Victorian period, will be on hand to perform her show of Victorian underpinnings. Paulette, an excellent seamstress and researcher of historic fashion, does a wonderful job of explaining exactly what went underneath those big skirts-and why all the layers were necessary. Mourning attire is also on display, and a description of mourning etiquette and fashion accompanies the scene. Several other outfits for daytime or evening wear will be modeled as well.

The Friends of the Nevada State Museum, a private, non-profit organization, supports the museum through volunteer assistance, fundraising, and advocacy. Funds raised will support education programs and exhibits at the museum. The Carson City Historical Society’s mission is to preserve the unique history and Old West Tiffany Bracelets heritage of Carson City and northern Nevada.

The Nevada State Museum actively engages people in understanding and celebrating Nevada’s natural and cultural heritage. Exhibits highlight the state’s history, geology, plants and animals, Native American cultural heritage, Historic Carson City Mint, a replica walk-through mine, and ghost town. Current changing exhibits include Rock Art Perspectives: Petroglyphs and Pictographs, Slot Machines: The Fey Collection and The Art of Nature: Images from the Wildlands of Nevada. For information, call (775) 687-4810.

The Nevada State Museum is one of seven managed by the state Division of Museums and History, an agency of the Nevada Department of Cultural Affairs. The Department serves Nevada’s citizens and visitors through cultural and information management, presentation and promotion of cultural resources, and education. The Department also includes the State Office of Historic Preservation, Nevada State Library and Archives and the Nevada Arts Council. For more information, please call Teresa Moiola at (775) 687-8323 or visit the Tiffany Pendants website at www.NevadaCulture.org.For more information please contact: Sarabjit Jagirdar, Email:- htsyndication@hindustantimes.com.

Consider the following responses to the same, straightforward, question: “How would you define discount tiffany fashion?” Frida Giannini, Gucci creative director: “Quality items that stand the test of time – it is this concept of sustainability, symbolised by a timeless handbag that you wear again and again, and can pass on, that I am always thinking of when I design.” Oscar de la Renta, designer, brand founder: “Sustainable fashion implies a commitment to the traditional techniques, and not just the art, of making clothes. I work today in the same way that I first learnt in the ateliers of Balenciaga and Lanvin 50 years ago. We need to ensure that the next generation of seamstresses and tailors have the skills necessary to develop clothes that are not only beautiful but extremely well made.” Anya Hindmarch, designer, brand founder, and initiator of the “I am not a plastic bag” initiative: “I would define the ideal as locally sourced materials that don’t pollute in their creation or demise (preferably recycled) and with limited transportation to achieve the completed product.” And, lastly, designer and brand founder Dries van Noten: “Most of what we may currently refer to as sustainable fashion is a contradiction in terms. It refers to how the fabric used for a new garment has been produced . . . Yet, I believe, we need to consider this issue from a more macro and profound perspective. Though a cotton may be unbleached, we need to examine how it arrives to the manufacturer or to us the wearer. What was the ‘carbon imprint’ of its delivery, for example?” Not all the same, then.

This is a problem, because words such as “sustainability”, “green”, “eco”, “organic”, and “ethical” are Tiffany Bangles a part of the fashion conversation. Last month the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in Geneva hosted an EcoChic fair, featuring a “sustainable fashion show” in which well-known designers created garments out of natural fibres manufactured in the “most sustainable way”. At London Fashion Week this month, an exhibit called Estethica will be devoted to “eco sustainable fashion”.

I am not the only one who thinks so. The blogger Fashionista-at-law, writing last December, asked: “Is Fashionista acting sustainably if she buys organic or fair trade clothes and what exactly are ‘ethical’ clothes? Fashionista would love to see those terms on labels so that she no longer has to spend her time researching a brand that claims to be ethical, green, organic, before facing the tricky question as to whether it is more ‘green’ to order the i tem of desire online or to check for its availability in a shop close by.” Christ ian Kemp- Griffin is chief mission officer for Edun, the sustainable fashion brand created in 2005 by Ali Hewson and her husband Bono, the lead singer of U2. At the Copenhagen conference, Kemp-Griffin told me: “The problem is there is no cohesion in this space. We’re all just doing what we can but, because there’s noofficial anything, no one knows the answer.” When Edun first launched, the brand identified its mission as driving “sustainable employment” in Africa – not anything to do Tiffany Bracelets the earth. But, four years later, it has expanded its definition; specifically, Kemp-Griffin said at the conference: “We found it was very important for us to know what was happening with the source of our cotton . . . not just the manufacturing, but with the farmers.” Nicole and Michael Colovos, creative directors of Helmut Lang, have taken account of this evolution too.

Negotiations are underway with a worldwide distributor, with stores bidding for exclusive rights to sell this exciting new collection of aspirational clothing, sportswear and accessories from the 8000inc brand.

The first 8000inc clothing line has been commissioned and designed exclusively for the Amateur Athletics Association of Barbados for the Athletes (AAAB) and their support team attending the Carifta Games in April 2010. With exposure from the national team, support staff and fans, demand for the AAAB shirt between now and the World Junior Games in August is estimated at 15,000 units, generating revenue of over $600,000USD for 8000inc in the first three months of trading alone.

The expanded 8000inc clothing range includes shirts, T shirts, polo shirts and accessories ranging from head wear to golfing attire, all bearing the exclusive 8000inc brand. This exciting launch will focus on the high end fashion market and includes the 8000Red(C) for men, the 8000Pink(C) for women and the elite collection, 8000Black(C). The product line will be available for direct worldwide distribution and sale through the imminent launch of the 8000inc online boutique and select associate sites, as well as the Flagship store in Barbados.

For more information and first sight of the latest designs, go to http://www.brand8000.com .

Thomas Kelly, CEO 8000inc stated, “The opportunity presented to us was too good to ignore. Our first tiffany bangles was to create the imagery and design for the AAAB travelling to the Carifta games in April. From that simple concept and opportunity, the doors opened for us to design an exclusive clothing range. The London team are doing a fantastic job turning this around and their design ideas are cutting edge. But the most important thing to the 8000inc brand is, from day one, 8000inc, its clothes, its people and the name will be worn and seen across the globe at international events from day one. That is as significant an opportunity as I have never experienced and everyone involved is grabbing hold of this initiative.”

This news release contains forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected on the basis of such forward-looking statements. The words “estimate,” “project,” “intends,” “expects,” “believes,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are made based on management’s beliefs, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management pursuant to the “safe-harbour” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. For a more complete description of these and other risk factors that may affect the future performance of 8000 Inc. see “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-KSB and its other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made and the Company undertakes no obligation to disclose any revision to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

For further information: please visit: http://www.8000inc.net Or contact: enquiries@8000inc.net; tiffany rings, 10432 Balls Ford Road, Suite 300, Manassas, Virginia, 20109, USA, t. +1-703-881-7834, f. +1-703-881-7601, e. enquiries@8000inc.net

“He has passed away,” said a spokeswoman for Gucci Group, part of Paris’s retail-to-luxury group PPR SA. Mr. McQueen’s body was found at his London home Thursday morning, according to Samantha Garrett, a spokeswoman for the British fashion icon.

Little was immediately known about the circumstances surrounding his death, which came as the fashion elite gathered in New York for the start of fashion week, but police said it wasn’t being treated as suspicious.

Recently posted comments on his Twitter page showed signs of anguish over the Feb. 2 death of his mother. He said he wanted his mother to rest in peace, adding “but life must go on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” The British designer’s death also comes three years after the suicide of fashion guru Isabella Blow, who helped launch Mr. McQueen’s career.

Mr. McQueen was the creative chief behind the brand he founded in the 1990s and sold to Gucci Group in 2000. His dramatic designs, such as reptilian dresses and hoof-like shoes, were met with critical acclaim–he was named British Fashion Designer of the Year on four separate occasions. Yet he struggled to get cheap earrings success.

“He’s such an amazing talent. It’s hard to put into words. That’s a gigantic loss to the fashion world,” said Simon Doonan, creative director at Barneys New York, which carries the Alexander McQueen brand. “His shows were just so extraordinary and such amazing hire-wire acts of creative tension it sort of raised the bar on what people perceived as a fashion show.”

Mr. McQueen, who was also once the designer for French fashion house Givenchy, was due to present his collection during Paris fashion week in less than a month. A presentation of his secondary label, McQ, had been scheduled for Thursday’s opening day of New York fashion week. Mr. McQueen had never been expected at the show, which was quickly canceled.

News of the designer’s death sent shock waves through the fashion industry, casting a pall over New York fashion week. “I think everybody is absolutely devastated and shocked,” said Linda Fargo, women’s fashion director at Bergdorf Goodman. “Life churns on, but you feel it here [at the tents]. Everybody’s feeling not good this morning.”

Fashion designer Richard Chai, who learned of the news as he was preparing for his 11 a.m. show at Bryant Park, called Mr. McQueen’s death a tragedy. “He was a genius. I really have no words. It is just sad,” he said.

Known for his dramatic statement pieces and impeccable tailoring, Mr. McQueen helped raise the profile of British fashion and was recognized by Queen Elizabeth II in 2003 when she made him a Commander of the British Empire for his fashion leadership.

The designer received his training at London’s Central St. Martin’s College of Art and Design, cheap jewelry recognized for its fashion-forward approach and encouragement of young designers. He worked for traditional Savile Row tailors Anderson and Sheppard, and Gieves and Hawkes before branching out into his own more theatrical designs.

“He was 16 when he came here,” said John Hitchcock of Anderson and Sheppard. “He was a boy from Essex, he wanted to learn tailoring. He was a little bit different–he was very ambitious.”

The Associated Press and Ray A. Smith contributed to this article.

The Thursday, October 9th sale of the Volunteer Guild of RUNNELLS tiffany Hospital of Union County will feature sterling silver and fashion costume jewelry from Jewels N’ More. Make your selections from pins, earrings, bracelets, anklets, necklaces and rings that will be on sale in the facility’s multi-purpose room, 40 Watchung Way, Berkeley Heights. Sale hours will be 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. All major credit cards accepted.

“All sales are open to the public,” said Union County Freeholder Chester Holmes, liaison to RUNNELLS SpecializedHospital. “A percentage of each purchase made at these sales is credited to the Volunteer Guild. They use all funds raised to enrich the lives of residents and patients by obtaining items that may include cheap bangles, DVD players/VCR’s and prizes for their bingo games as well as paying for a variety of entertainment throughout the year. The Guild, which makes vendor sales possible, also sponsors a holiday party/gift distribution and a summer ice cream social in cooperation with the Berkeley Heights Lions Club.”

The Volunteer Guild and the Office of Volunteer Services of RUNNELLS Specialized Hospital are always interested in recruiting volunteers. Flexible hours and a variety of opportunities exist with resident contact as well as performing other tasks. Anyone who would like further information should call the Office of Volunteer Services at 908-771-5847.

Contact: M. ‘Peggy’ Salisbury, 908/771-5730; cheap bracelets T. Sheld, 908/771-5815.

M. ‘Peggy’ Salisbury, 908/771-5730; Norma T. Sheld, 908/771-5815.

“The implementation of VendorNet StoreNet Manager is part of Jones Apparel Group’s overall strategy to fulfill sales on our e-commerce platform by optimizing our current inventory to meet online demand and deliver best-in-class customer service,” stated Ron Offir, President of E-commerce for Jones Apparel Group. “We are very excited about our partnership with VendorNet. Its technology is helping us improve service to our customers by showing web shoppers inventory across all channels and capturing demand that may otherwise have been a lost opportunity.”

Jones Apparel Group rolled out VendorNet StoreNet Manager to its Nine West (www.ninewest.com) stores in a six week period this summer. It expects to have more than 500 stores across all its brands live by the end of 2008, including its newly e-commerce enabled Jones New York (www.jny.com) website.

VendorNet StoreNet Manager interfaces with Jones Apparel Group’s order management, e-bangles, and retail merchandising systems. Online orders that cannot be fulfilled from warehouse inventory are electronically transmitted to VendorNet StoreNet Manager, which routes the order to the best available store for fulfillment based on Jones-defined store allocation rules. Store personnel access the orders complete with pick list, packing slip, and shipping label through a VendorNet-enabled web portal. Store personnel pick the items, and confirm the picked quantities in VendorNet StoreNet Manager. This triggers printing of the packing slips with UPS shipping labels, and ultimately the transmission of shipping manifests to UPS notifying the carrier that packages are staged for pickup. In the event a store is unable to fulfill all items/orders, the whole or partial order is automatically allocated to the next best available store.

Upon receipt of the shipment by UPS, VendorNet StoreNet Manager obtains pick-up scans confirming carrier possession, and sends a ship transaction including tracking number back to Jones’ host order management system triggering a charge to the consumer’s credit card. Each night, VendorNet StoreNet Manager obtains updated store inventory counts from Jones’ retail inventory management system, and transmits the aggregate item inventory counts across all stores and the warehouse to Jones’ e-commerce system.

“As a result of our partnership with Jones Apparel Group we have created a new, innovative product for the retail marketplace that seizes new e-commerce sales opportunities without adding personnel or inventory overhead to the supply chain,” said Sharon Gardner, President of VendorNet. “VendorNet StoreNet Manager is based on VendorNet’s core supply chain management platform that facilitates order fulfillment for retailers with tens of thousands of their suppliers via the Internet. We were able to extend this proven technology foundation to retail stores to create a product that bolsters e-commerce sales and delivers efficiencies in personnel and inventory utilization.”

The corporate-wide view of inventory provided by VendorNet StoreNet Manager allows Jones to sell down products and also keep styles live online through their entire life cycle across all its sales channels regardless of how the order is being fulfilled. Other benefits include the ability to prioritize stores, and dynamically take stores in and out of the program. By not treating every store equally, Jones can take advantage of pockets of inventory or leverage stores that may have less foot traffic giving store personnel more availability to fulfill online tiffany sale. According to Offir, the adoption of VendorNet StoreNet Manager has gone smoothly with Jones’ store personnel willingly embracing the software for its user friendly interface and ease-of-use.

“This all began with our vision to capture lost e-commerce sales and demand by leveraging in-store inventory for direct to the consumer fulfillment,” commented Offir. “Our vision led us to VendorNet and the creation of VendorNet StoreNet Manager. VendorNet is an excellent partner, highly responsive, and incredibly knowledgeable about the direct-to-consumer industry, Internet-based technologies, and their partnership with our shipping carrier, UPS. We also appreciate VendorNet’s willingness to embrace our vision and help us expand on it. It’s nice to work with a company that has the creativity to develop and implement what we collectively believed was going to be a big idea. VendorNet truly leveraged its technology and know-how to turn our innovative approach to growing our web business into a robust, easy-to-use reality.”

About VendorNet

VendorNet delivers web-based supply chain management solutions to multi-channel retailers enabling real-time collaboration with third-party suppliers and all corporate fulfillment channels including stores. Its flagship product, VendorNet Commerce Suite establishes a powerful foundation for solutions that dramatically improve supply chain processes, reduce costs, increase sales, and strengthen cross-channel inventory collaboration. VendorNet’s client base includes leading retail, catalog, and e-commerce companies such as Neiman Marcus, David’s Bridal, Guitar Center, Spiegel, Gump’s, Norm Thompson, The Swiss Colony, FrontGate, Kraft, Home Decorator’s Collection, Orvis, and Lands’ End. For more information on VendorNet, visit http://vendornet.com.

About Jones Apparel Group, Inc.

Jones Apparel Group, Inc. (NYSE:JNY), http://www.jonesapparel.com, is a leading designer, marketer and wholesaler of branded apparel, footwear and accessories. The Company also markets directly to consumers through its chain of specialty retail and value-based stores. The Company’s nationally recognized brands include bracelets New York, Nine West, Anne Klein, Gloria Vanderbilt, Kasper, Bandolino, Easy Spirit, Evan-Picone, l.e.i., Energie, Enzo Angiolini, Joan & David, Mootsies Tootsies, Sam & Libby, Napier, Judith Jack, Albert Nipon and Le Suit. The Company also markets costume jewelry under the Givenchy brand licensed from Givenchy Corporation, footwear under the Dockers Women brand licensed from Levi Strauss & Co and apparel under the Rachel Roy brand licensed from Rachel Roy IP Company, LLC. Each brand is differentiated by its own distinctive styling, pricing strategy, distribution channel, and target consumer. The Company contracts for the manufacture of its products through a worldwide network of quality manufacturers. The Company has capitalized on its nationally known brand names by entering into various licenses for several of its trademarks, including Jones New York, Evan-Picone, Anne Klein New York, Nine West, Gloria Vanderbilt and l.e.i., with select manufacturers of women’s and men’s products which the Company does not manufacture. For more than 30 years, the Company has built a reputation for excellence in product quality and value, and in operational execution.

Farb comes to Simparel with more than 25 years of sales and marketing experience in the advanced technology sector and fashion industry, including serving as CEO of The Edge, a manufacturer of contemporary casual clothing. His experience includes launching new products and creating innovative programs that penetrate new markets. His most recent focus targeted executing product development management and life cycle management initiatives that deliver speed to market to global supply chain organizations.

Mr. Farb reports to Ron Grilli, CEO, and is based in Simparel’s new corporate facilities in New York. Mr. Grilli says: “Richard brings extensive knowledge and experience to our sales and marketing initiatives, and more importantly, he truly understands the needs and challenges of the fashion industry. He easily relates to our target customer’s business needs since he was an owner/operator of a fashion business himself. We are pleased that Richard is now part of the management team of our rapidly growing organization.”

Mr. Farb adds: “I am thrilled to be part of this exciting new venture. Every decade or so a new technology emerges that changes our industry. Simparel is that new technology. Complex fashion-related businesses can now manage their enterprise in a fast, flexible and affordable way.”

About Simparel, Inc.

Simparel, Inc. has developed a new generation enterprise solution that delivers the unique combination of discount tiffany the simplest, quickest and most affordable global supply chain business solution available today. Simparel’s initial market is fashion-related businesses, including apparel, footwear, accessories, costume jewelry, home furnishings and toys. The Simparel solution is so adaptable that it can expand beyond the apparel and fashion-related businesses into numerous other industries that are characterized by quick market response to ever-changing consumer demands. Established in 2007, Simparel has its corporate offices in New York.

The Seattle-based retailer said Thursday sales at tiffany sale open at least a year declined 10.6 percent for the five weeks that ended Jan. 3.

Nordstrom also said that because of “higher than expected” pressure to mark down prices, it does not think it will meet its outlook for a fourth-quarter profit of 35 cents to 45 cents a share.

If there’s a bright spot, it’s that Nordstrom beat the 13 percent decline in same-store sales that analysts polled by Thomson Reuters predicted.

Even so, shares of its stock closed down 35 cents, or 2.4 percent, at $14.53 Thursday.

Nordstrom reported preliminary total sales of $1.13 billion for the five weeks, representing an 8 percent decrease from a year ago.

The company said it continues to adjust its inventory levels and Tiffany Bracelets them to be “more aligned with current sales trends” by the end of its fiscal year on Jan. 31.

Also, Nordstrom generally is not filling open positions for headquarters jobs downtown, and it is laying off some salespeople in stores, said spokeswoman Brooke White.

The 2008 holiday-shopping season proved difficult for virtually all retailers. December same-store sales declined 4 percent at Macy’s, 19.8 percent at Saks, and 8.1 percent at J.C. Penney.

Even Wal-Mart posted a smaller sales gain than Wall Street expected and cut its earnings outlook for the fourth quarter.

The nationwide picture was bleak: Same-store sales for November and December combined were 2.2 percent — the weakest holiday shopping season since the International Council of Shopping Centers and Goldman Sachs started the index in 1969. For all of 2008, sales rose just 1 percent, the weakest in at least 38 years.

“The blanket that has covered the North American consumer that has kept them from spending is heavier than expected,” said Dean Hillier, partner in the retail practice of consulting firm A.T. Kearney.

The malaise was widespread — kitchen gadgets to jewelry to clothes. Several stores such as Toys R Us and Macy’s said business improved in the last weeks of December as shoppers pounced on the best deals, but people still cut back overall.

Wal-Mart, the world’s largest retailer, benefited last year as shoppers focused on necessities and switched to cheaper stores, but analysts say its disappointing December performance may signal that shoppers are pulling back even more. December sales were up 1.2 percent including fuel sales and rose 1.7 percent without. Wall Street was expecting 2.8 percent excluding fuel.

Ken Perkins, president of research company RetailMetrics, expects Wal-Mart to cut prices even further, fueling price wars. That’s good news for shoppers.

Rival store Target, which had been stumbling because it depends more on discount tiffany items like trendy clothes, said its same-store sales dropped less than expected. Target cut prices to gain market share and clear out inventories, but it says those moves will hurt its fourth-quarter profit.

Macy’s cut its full-year earnings outlook because of heavy markdowns and said it plans to close 11 stores, though none in Washington. Its same-store sales were down 4 percent in December, and more than 7 percent for November and December combined.

High-end stores fared far worse. Saks posted a decline of almost 20 percent, while Neiman Marcus Group was down more than 27 percent.

Information from The Associated Press is included in this tiffany pendant.