Posts with tag wal-mart

As the world of fashion reacts to the tanking economy, some high-end players are making bold new compromises partnerships in order to break into a recession-friendly lower price point. For example, in an attempt to scoop up some consumers that will be broke bargain shopping for the foreseeable future (like us), Esteé Lauder will be launching a trio of fragrances exclusively at the fashion hub that is Wal-Mart.

The new line will be sold under the name C-Thru, as in the bottles are transparent -- or as in 'wow, the economy must really suck for Esteé Lauder to make such a transparent attempt to reach out to Wal-Mart shoppers.' While the move is totally uncharacteristic for the historically highbrow cosmetics firm, launching a Wal-Mart line is probably one of their best chances to grow in these tough times.



The C-Thru trio will consist of gem-inspired fragrances like Ruby, Purple Diamond, and Blue Opal. After their exclusive launch at Wal-Mart this December, EL's low-end fragrances will eventually be sold at other luxury stores such as Kohl's and Target. Weird.

[via HauteConcept]

So. This is what we know about good 'ole Taylor Swift: she's young, she sings country music, we've seen her on VH1's top 20 countdown a couple of times, and the year after we graduated from high school she came and performed in our auditorium.

Next time you're at Costco picking up a 5 gallon bucket of potato salad, you might want to stroll over to the sunglasses department. Tom Ford's eyewear is joining the surprisingly long list of designer goods being sold at the low-priced megamart. Prada, Versace, Fendi, and now Tom Ford -- it's all there for Costco members.

Yeah, I was surprised too -- I didn't even know that you could buy individually packaged sunglasses at Costco, much less a $1,300 purse. No, seriously, doesn't it seem sorta wrong to be buying designer handbags at Costco? What's next Cristal on the beer aisle at Wal-Mart?

If you're like me -- totally clueless about the world of Costco -- you ought to take a look at their website; just for your own entertainment. In the men's apparel section, you can grab anything from Citzens of Humanity jeans to a pair of teflon-coated mechanic's coveralls -- truly your 1-stop shop. Capitalism at its finest.

[via Fashionista]

Darlings, anyone with the most basic fashion sensibility knows that the only things more stylish than Wal-Mart shoes are... chemical burns!

Well, now you can have the best of both worlds, apparently. Check out this woman's account of her horrifying experience with some very normal-looking flip-flops that she bought from Wal-Mart. I didn't want to post any of the pictures of the serious burns left on her feet because some of you may find them quite unsettling.

Despite informing Wal-Mart of this major problem and hearing from someone else who experienced the same issue with identical flip-flops, not much progress has been made in the situation. The problem still has yet to be resolved and it looks like the woman's website will be updated as news comes in.

The scariest thing is that Wal-Mart is still selling the shoes. Sign of good customer care, right there.

[via: Boing Boing]

Last year Wal-Mart decided it would try and compete with retailers like Target and J.C. Penny, by trying to create a more contemporary, fashionable line of clothing to be sold in its stores. They hired a designer, rented some Manhattan studio space, and set to work creating a bland mix of ill-fitting clothing that occasionally borders on offensive.

Not surprisingly, sales have tanked, and now the company is pulling the new line from hundreds of stores. Plus, the reaction to the company's Metro7 line of nightclub wear was so bad, it actually sent customers shopping elsewhere, which has effected sales figures for the store as a whole.

I'm not sure what they were thinking. The idea behind creating a line of fashionable clothes would -- presumably -- be to entice those who are interested in looking trendy into the store. But no one who knows what they're buying would ever be into the lines Wal-Mart created, and those that aren't interested in fashion would never have bought these clothes in the first place.

Hopefully, if they try it again, they'll hire some designers who know what they're doing.

There's entire websites dedicated to big companies that rip off independent designers so they can look hip. This report from Consumerist.com, however, is far more troubling.

It seems whoever comes up with the t-shirt designs for Wal-Mart's "No Boundaries" line of "edgy" clothing thought it'd be ok to use the infamous "Death's Head" insignia originally worn by all members of the Nazi's SS concentration camp service.

I can't imagine how this actually got approved and made it store shelves, or why any sane person would think it looked cool.

This is the first news I've seen about the offensive slip-up, and have yet to hear any reaction from the company. I can't imagine they'll be on sale for very long.

Most of us are quite familiar with Isaac Mizrahi and the International "Go" lines that Target offers for trendier fashions. However, many of us may not know that Wal-Mart, too, has a "high end" apparel line. Metro 7, which debuted last fall, doesn't have any named designed attached to it, but the clothes are aimed at "hip urban fashionistas" who previously would come in for things like cereal and toilet paper, but would turn their noses up at " cheap, dowdy clothes now spilling off hangers."

This dress is from Wal-Mart's Metro 7 line -- a simple, sleeveless jersey babydoll dress with a deep V that overlaps in a little bit of modesty. The neckline and arms have a tiny ruffle. The waist is comfrtably elasticized and like the neckline, has an organza ribbon detail and sparkles. The dress comes in both black and grey with black detail, but the best part of the dress is that it probably costs less than that bulk toilet paper. It's only $16.94! The dress can be purchased online or in stores.

I'm not a big Wal-mart shopper. In fact, I'm not a Wal-mart shopper at all, but if you are lucky enough to have one of the supermega discount stores in your neighborhood, you can pick up a pack of five pairs of these socks.

The thick cotton socks, by Pink Stuff garments, come in various pink and white designs: one heart and ribbon design, one pink ribbon and stripe design, one "find a cure" and "breast cancer" message design, one "fight, happiness, family, pink, joy, find a cure." Pink Stuff will donate a portion of the proceeds from the sale of these items to cancer research and patient care.

The pack of five is $11.95, and also comes in an ankle-sock style.

The democratization of fashion may just have hit us all, or at least so says New York Times writer Guy Trebay in an article titled "Enter the House of Wal-Mart."

Indeed, Wal-Mart's pre-Fashion Week fashion event "Rock the Runway" dropped 27 outfits on New York, with the most expensive item (a leather jacket) clocking in at $98.94.

But rather than something like K-Mart's Jaclyn Smith Collection of days past, these clothes recalled the work of runway darlings Proenza Schouler and Roland Mouret. Indeed, as Trebay notes, Wal-Mart is taking the lead of the H&M and Zara: namely, offering designer-ish clothes for the mass market.

So, is Wal-Mart really the next H&M? Or, more importantly perhaps, is fashion really becoming democratized? And if it is, what does a $300 handbag suddenly mean?