DALLAS — Coming off two months of solid sales, some buyers inched up spring budgets during the four-day market at the Dallas Market Center. Increases ranged from 5 percent to as much as 15 percent, though some remained flat.
Dresses, date tops, denim and bold accessories continued to draw orders at the market that ended Oct. 24, while bridge and activewear gained momentum. Retailers who had underbought for fall reordered goods and shopped for spring. The emphasis focused on buying close to need, and some vendors responded by carrying extra inventory.
“We were pleased with the buying activity and energy of market,” said Cindy Morris, chief operating officer of the Dallas Market Center. “Buyers seemed comfortable with their new inventory levels and were spending accordingly. We are anticipating continued stability for the new year.”
Related Articles
You May Also Like
Ferne Cinque, sales manager for Teri Jon dresses and gowns, said, “This part of the country is a lot healthier as far as our industry. They’re just a lot more positive.”
James Goodman, who represents Helios & Luna, Iris and Weill bridge collections at Moxiefashions showroom, said, “I’ve been doing trunk shows and things are opening up a little bit. The bridge [vendors] have lowered prices and margins and are making it up in volume. With lower prices, they are selling to more stores.”
Manufacturers, however, are feeling the pinch of rising production costs and price pressure.
“The cost of labor in China is increasing, which is good for the people, but it does affect us,” said Way Zen, a Chinese native who designs JSong embroidered linen dresses and suits in New York. “Now the workers cannot stop wondering if another company will pay them more, so we are constantly looking for new employees. All the costs are rising, but increasing price is not an option because of the economy in America.”
Fashionable activewear was a bright spot. Susanne Taylor, whose namesake showroom specializes in it, pointed to a stack of orders for capri leggings and detailed jackets by InPhorm, Beyond Yoga and Alo.
“It’s no longer just the yoga studios and spas, it’s the specialty stores who are buying,” Taylor said. “A lot of my companies took stock positions because many of the little stores are buying late.”
Premium denim is alive and well, said Mark Meyers, who represents IT Jeans, Fidelity and contemporary sportswear at his Remedy showroom.
“The stores thought $200 denim was dead, but it’s not over,” Meyers said. “[Women] may not buy as many, but they still want that brand and look and quality.”
Overall, retailers were upbeat about spring.
“Business is OK, better than last year,” said Irma Straffon, who planned to spend 10 to 15 percent more to stock her five-unit 5th Avenue chain of dress and eveningwear stores in Mexico City. “I love all the retro Twenties, Thirties and Forties looks that I saw at Jovani, Terani and Alberto Makali.”
Lee Murphy, owner of Kicks accessories and shoe store in Menlo Park, Calif., increased her spring budget 15 to 20 percent as she hunted for colorful, novelty items such as Lodi’s leather iPad covers and wristlet bags in bright colors and prints.
“In the last five or six months, people are not questioning the price,” Murphy said, noting she’s doing well with $300 to $500 handbags by Rebecca Minkoff and MZ Wallace. “My customers have trained even their kids to shop local.”
Teri Gandour said customers at her store, La Vita Bella in Gulfport, Miss., are starting to come back after they stopped shopping during last summer’s disastrous BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
“I’m slowly buying again,” Gandour said. “People are thinking about investment pieces. I’m buying Suzi Roher’s belts because I show my customers that they can be worn on the waist or hip.”
Sales are up 5 percent at Forsythe’s better-priced shop in Little Rock, Ark., and owner Robert Forsythe felt positive about spring. He sought coordinated jackets and pants for professional women, as well as colorful tops and dresses and wrote his first order for Desigual’s colorful mixed-print T-shirts and skirts.
“We’re underbought so far because the colors in the market are so bland, taupe and beige and sand, and a lack of jackets,” Forsythe said. “We think embellishment has possibly run its course.”