Global Vibes

Galliano kids?
ITALY: High-end designer John Galliano has teamed with Italian street brand Diesel to design a children's collection. The pair has signed a five-year agreement that will see Diesel work with Jardins d'Arvron SA, the company which looks after Galliano's production and distribution. The as yet unnamed collection is set to launch in January. The new kids range is aimed at children aged between four and 14 with Galliano designing the collection and Diesel looking after production and distribution. The newly formed brand hopes to launch 350 stockists in Italy, France, United Kingdom, Russia, US, Japan and Eastern Europe.

HoF ups ante
UNITED KINGDOM: Department store House of Fraser is continuing to turn up the heat on rival Debenhams by overhauling its advertising strategy and reducing its focus on cut-price promotions. The store has announced it will spend only 30 per cent of its advertising budget this year to promote discounts - down from 80 per cent in previous years. The news comes on top of plans to develop a new small-store fashion format that could aid its expansion plans in town and city centres. It is understood the small stores, which will be branded HOF rather than the full House of Fraser name, will focus on fashion - including its own labels such as Linea.

Indian heat
INDIA: The Indian TCF industry is set to announce plans to promote the region as a super brand for apparel sourcing. The news comes as the province faces intense competition from low-wage countries and consequent shrinking of textile and garments exports. India's ministry of textiles has prepared a proposal which will see the country achieve wider penetration in select markets as well as increase the acceptability of Indian apparels for increased export earnings. The group is also looking at advertising campaigns in different foreign media, increasing its participation in trade fairs, co-promotion through retailers and strengthening of its market intelligence network as part of the brand building exercise.

Retailers lose out
UNITED KINGDOM: Major UK retailers could lose £100 million ($A229 million) in revenue this Christmas in a struggle to keep up with 40 per cent year-on-year growth in online sales, according to a new survey. The survey, by Webcredible's, found that while online sales revenue from the Christmas shopping period this year is predicted to top £10 billion, the UK's leading names in retail risk losing substantial revenues due to sliding standards of their online sales channels. The report found basic rules of good usability were often being ignored, frustrating consumers trying to find, view and pay for merchandise. Hidden delivery costs, confusing check-out procedures and repeated error pages also contributed to a poor customer experience online.

Demand grows
UNITED STATES: Demand for plus-size girl's apparel clothing in the US could soon claim as much as 18 per cent of the $US35 billion ($A39 billion) kids apparel market, according to a report in the LA Times. The newspaper  states that as apparel makers answer the call of increasingly heftier Americans, more stores are now showing an interest in catering for the "harder-to-shop-for" segment. The report quoted a National Centre for Health Statistics survey that showed 16 per cent of children aged six to 19 were overweight. The list of retailers that have already cottoned onto the trend include J.C. Penney, Wal-Mart Stores and Sears Holdings Corp, which also carries "husky" sizes for boys.