eBay is diving deeper into mobile-enabled, real-time shopping with the launch of "shoppable windows," which will bolster the site's partnership with physical retailers while capitalizing on the greater shift to on-the-go shopping. 

The once online auction-only behemoth continues to expand its role as a middleman between consumers and retailers, following earlier pop-up shops and virtual storefronts. Last year saw the introduction of the mobile, same-day delivery shopping service eBay Now (which is relaunching on mobile) as well as partnerships with major retailers such as Macy's on mobile payments, and wooing major retailers like Target.

The first four windows will be open from June 8 through July 7 in New York City, each offering 30 items from the new Kate Spade Saturday collection, which was recently launched by Fifth & Pacific. The screens, which measure 9 feet across and 2 feet high, are placed on the front windows of closed stores, allowing shoppers to touch and order products, which are delivered within an hour via courier. Payment will be accepted by couriers through PayPal Here, eBay’s mobile payment service.Continue reading...

BlackBerry launches new Z10 smartphone in US today, as CEO says Apple's iPhone is outdated.

Pepsi introduces first new package design since 1997.

PPR, French owner of Gucci and Saint Laurent, announces rebrand to "caring" Kering with new owl logo.

Nike surges on China rebound, North American results in latest quarterly earnings report.

Asda pulls private-label corned beef from UK shelves over horsemeat discovery as new report finds consumer concern fading. 

Chrysler looks to Nike and Starbucks for inspiration.

Coca-Cola tops British grocery brands ranking as Walkers rises to #2.

Facebook tests yet another timeline design.Continue reading...

Alibaba names next CEO.

Denny's cancels franchise deal in China.

Google shows off sample apps for Project Glass a SXSW.

American Airlines and U.S. Airways prepare for merger bumps.

Apple and Samsung values soar.

Barney's New York rebrands Co-op stores as regular Barney's.

BlackBerry stock jumps on Lenovo takeover interest rumor.

BMW to build sub-brand for China.

Boeing sees investigators focus narrowly on batteries in Dreamliner probe.

China's Spring Airlines adds cars to in-flight sales offering.Continue reading...

Michael Kors may very well be the most influential person in New York fashion—or at least the one with the most business prowess. 

The brand was just named the most-searched American fashion brand worldwide, beating out prominent names like Marc Jacobs, Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein in a study by Digital Luxury Group.

Launched in the early 80's, the designer's clothing and accessories company continues to beat Wall Street expectations and reel in more HENRYS, or "High Earners Not Rich Yet" shoppers, with fashionable yet accessible handbags, watches and sportswear. Rightfully so, the designer's Fall 2013 collection debuted at New York Fashion Week with a survival theme, perhaps a reflection of its leading man's reputation in the industry. 

Arguably the new Coach, Kors claimed market share from its rival accessories manufacturer after the holiday shopping season. Coach has seen a slowdown as of late, with competitors like Tory Burch and Kate Spade—both of which appeared in the most-searched top 10—taking a strong stand in the luxury goods market.Continue reading...

Not long ago, Coach was the name to have on your handbag. Plenty of celebrities were walking around with them. Gwyneth Paltrow, Eva Longoria, and Jennifer Garner all had one, as did many other American women, whether the real thing or at least a knockoff.

Things changed fast. Now Coach is feeling pressure from competitors like Michael Kors, Ralph Lauren, and Tory Burch. It announced that sales dropped in the 2012’s final quarter despite the busy holiday shopping season and an overall 10 percent growth in the handbag market, marking the first time since it went public in 2000 that “North American sales grew more slowly than the broader market for women's handbags and accessories,” according to The Wall Street Journal. And North America accounts for two-thirds of the company’s sales.

So Coach says it's branching out, attempting to turn itself into a lifestyle brand — and turn itself around in the process. It will grow its footwear line this year before focusing on women's apparel, jewelry and watches, British Vogue reports. And its stores will also get a new look, Women's Wear Daily reports.Continue reading...

Should brand fans be able to own a piece of their beloved brands, without any middlemen taking a cut? That's the premise of Loyal3, which offers consumers a Customer Stock Ownership Plan (CSOP) where small amounts of stock can be bought directly from publicly traded companies via Facebook or a website. E.F. Hutton, are you listening? 

The pitch, on their website: “LOYAL3 is built on the simple and yet profound principle that people care more about things they own than things they don’t. We offer a revolutionary web and social media platform that enables public companies to sell their stock directly to customers from their Facebook page or website in just 3 clicks, creating more loyal customers.”

As Reuters notes, users can invest from $10 to a maximum of $2,500 per company per month. By leveraging consumer devotion for companies planning to go public, Loyal3 acts as broker. "People love Target and Coke," says Barry Schneider, CEO of Loyal3. "Why aren't more of them owners of those brands?"Continue reading...

The Liz Claiborne brand name was sold in November to J.C. Penney so it was inevitable that its parent company, Liz Claiborne Inc., would shed the brand from its name. The inevitable is now official. The 34-year-old fashion company is changing its name to Fifth & Pacific Companies, and will start trading under the ticker symbol FNP in mid-May, in addition to replacing its zippy liz.com corporate domain with fifthandpacific.com.

Claiborne unloaded its Mexx brand in September and then sold its namesake brand to J.C. Penney, along with its Monet brand, two months later for $267.5 million. It also got rid of its Kensie and Dana Buchman brands this fall as it attempted to right its own financial ship. Now FNP is left with three core brands in Juicy Couture, Lucky Brand, Kate Spade, and a sibling in the mens fashion/accessory brand of Jack Spade line, to focus on.

The new corporate identity may recall Gap's Forth & Towne, Gilt's Park & Bond, and Nordstrom's Treasure & Bond, but CEO William McComb argues that the name is a perfect synthesis of the east coast/west coast stable of brands, as it's "where California cool meets New York chic."Continue reading...

Liz Claiborne Inc. hasn’t turned a profit since 2006 so it’s no surprise that the company finally reached a tipping point of sorts and decided to massively shake things up. In the last of five deals that are focused on the company ending up with only its higher-priced brands, Claiborne sold off its namesake brand as well as the Monet brand to J.C. Penney Co. on Nov. 2nd.

Liz Claiborne CEO William McComb stated, "We are very proud of the value we have unlocked from our Partnered Brands group. What remains of that segment is a private brand jewelry design and development group that will continue to serve J. C. Penney, via our exclusive license for the Liz Claiborne and Monet brand jewelry lines. It will also continue to market Trifari and Marvella, as well as serve Kohl's with a license for Dana Buchman jewelry. Our jewelry capability is a profitable niche that was worth retaining, and will add to our earnings profile."

McComb continued: "With this announcement, the company has completed the last in a series of five transactions that in total have raised $471 million, allowing the company to meaningfully de-leverage and transform its balance sheet — while creating a portfolio focused on growth. ...We are now focused on our three global lifestyle brands — Juicy Couture, kate spade and Lucky Brand — and seeing the high growth and high margin opportunities they offer come to fruition as well."Continue reading...