September retail sales rise a solid 5.1%, beating expectations

Putting worries about the economy aside, shoppers responded to deep discounts and the final weeks of back-to-school shopping by spending heavily at major chain stores last month.

The retail industry posted a 5.1% year-over-year rise in September sales, according to Thomson Reuters' tally of 23 large retailers released Thursday. That was better than the 4.6% uptick expected by Wall Street analysts and reflected a healthy shopping mindset among consumers despite an otherwise sluggish economic outlook.

"The general disconnect between U.S. retailers ... and broader weakness in the global economy continued in September," said Ken Perkins, president of research firm Retail Metrics Inc.

Sales rose 8.6% at discounters, 3.7% at department stores, 2.9% at apparel sellers and 6.2% at teen apparel chains.

Results are based on sales at stores open at least a year, known as same-store sales and considered an important measure of a retailer's health because it excludes store openings and closings.

All told, 60% of chains beat expectations.

The month's top performers reflected a mix of retail sectors. Leading the pack was Costco, which reported a 12% rise. Apparel seller Limited, parent to the Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works chains, said sales rose 11%. Upscale department store Nordstrom posted a 10.7% rise and teen retailer Zumiez saw sales increase 10.1%.

The worst results came from struggling apparel giant Gap Inc., which posted a 4% decline.

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Photo: A shopper at Westfield West Covina. Credit: Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times

Toys R Us expands layaway program, offers special online Bill Me Later option

Toys R Us is expanding its layaway program and offering special Bill Me Later finance plans to help consumers budget before the holidays.

The nation's largest toy retailer, which in 2009 launched a layaway program on big-ticket items such as bikes and later added other eligible categories, said that beginning Oct. 15 it would offer layaway on nearly all playthings in 450 of about 600 Toys R Us stores nationwide.

Toys R Us President Neil Friedman said the retailer hoped the program's expansion would help parents reserve their gifts "early in the season when selection is best."

"We know that consumers will continue to look for ways to stretch their dollars this holiday season, but they still want to make sure they have that special Christmas gift," he said.

The in-store layaway option gives customers 90 days to pay for their purchase. A 20% down payment is required and there is a $5 service fee for layaway. Half the total price of the order must be paid within 45 days. 

All layaway orders must be paid for in full by Dec. 4.

Popular during the Great Depression, layaway programs had all but faded away by the turn of the century as shoppers turned to credit cards to shop. But layaway has made a comeback since the most recent recession because it enables shoppers to select their items early and pay off those purchases in a series of small payments; retailers will hold the items during that time. Last month, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced that it was bringing back its layaway program.

Toys R Us also said that online shoppers could take advantage of a limited-time Bill Me Later offer to make payments for Internet purchases.

Through Oct. 22, customers can make no payments and pay no interest for up to 12 months on purchases of $500 or more that are paid in full in that time frame, or make no payments and pay no interest for up to six months on purchases of $100 or more that are paid in full within that time frame.

To promote the financing options, Toys R Us will introduce its first online catalog highlighting many of the big gifts that can be put on layaway or purchased online using the Bill Me Later payment option.

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Photo: A Toys R Us store in New York during the 2010 holiday season: Credit: Associated Press

American Apparel launches its first men's jeans

American Apparel is launching its first men's jeans this week, the latest addition to the denim line that the Los Angeles clothing maker debuted this year.

The "Men's Jeans: Regular Fit 100" will hit stores worldwide this week, the company said Monday, which like many retailers touted the line for its authenticity.

"We've come up with a truly authentic pair of jeans -- something the market has lacked for a long time," said Georges Atlan, director of denim at American Apparel, who called the product "the perfect men's jeans."

The jeans are designed and made at the company's downtown Los Angeles manufacturing facilities, which "will re-establish California's rich history of denim manufacturing." Another major retail chain, Gap, recently moved its denim design offices to L.A. to be closer to the heart of the denim industry, which is home to many premium players including True Religion Brand Jeans and 7 for All Mankind.

The American Apparel men's jeans have a dark resin denim with a classic 1950s cut, the company said. Unlike many of its unisex products, the Regular Fit 100s are designed specifically for men and have a relaxed fit and a tapered leg "intended to hit right above the shoe."

American Apparel's Chief Executive Dov Charney said in a statement that it took more than 40 fair-wage workers to produce each pair of jeans. "American Apparel doesn't take expanding into new products lightly, and for our men's and women's denim we've not only come up with a great, fashionable product but we've utilized our full factory capabilities to do it right," he said.

The men's jeans are in sizes 27 to 36 and will be sold in stores and on the company's website. The product's online price is $85.

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Photo: American Apparel's new men's jeans. Credit: American Apparel

Target announces Jason Wu as next designer collaboration

Its wildly successful Missoni line is still in stores (well, supposedly), but Target is already looking ahead. The discount chain announced Monday that it will next collaborate with fashion designer Jason Wu, who shot to fame after First Lady Michelle Obama wore one of his dresses to the 2009 Inaugural Ball. A limited-time-only collection of Wu's apparel and accessories will be available at Target in February.

Target began teasing the announcement on Twitter over the weekend, with tweets such as: "Clue 1: the new @TargetStyle designer began sketching the future of fashion at 5 years old" and "Clue 5: Senior year of high school in #Paris? Oui, oui. Our next designer has international influence."

On Monday, Target released a 37-second YouTube video revealing Wu as its next designer-collaborator.

"Just in time for spring, my collection for Target includes womens wear and handbags -- all for a great price," Wu says in the video, in which he describes some of his fashion inspirations and sketches some designs.

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Photo: First Lady Michelle Obama wore a Jason Wu creation to the Inaugural Ball in 2009. Credit: Carolyn Cole / Los Angeles Times

Retail Roundup: Sears, Chanel, Martha Stewart

-- Struggling department store giant Sears Holdings Corp. is leasing spaces inside its stores to other companies. Last year, Sears leased about 15% of its store at South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa to fast-fashion chain Forever 21. Now, according to the Wall Street Journal, the company has recently signed contracts with Western Athletic Clubs for space in a Sears store in Cupertino, Calif., and with a Gonzalez Grocery Store for space in a San Diego Kmart. All told, nearly 4,000 Sears and Kmart stores have space available for lease.

-- Chanel has filed a federal cyberpiracy and trademark infringement lawsuit in Nevada against 399 websites that it is accusing of selling fakes. The suit seeks unspecified damages from unnamed operators of websites that Chanel says operate from China, the Bahamas and overseas jurisdictions. The lawsuit alleges that the sites use Chanel-sounding names and keyword optimization tools to increase their placement in search engine lists.

-- Design maven Martha Stewart is teaming up with Avery Dennison to release a line of office products exclusively at Staples. The line, which will feature 300 items, will debut early next year at more than 1,500 U.S. stores and 330 Canadian stores. The products will also be available online.

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Photo: Sears is leasing out space in its stores to other companies. Credit: Associated Press

New holiday forecasts signal subdued season

Retail groups are predicting a quiet holiday season, with smaller gains than in 2010, as consumers struggle with prolonged economic worries.

The International Council of Shopping Centers on Wednesday forecast that U.S. holiday sales would post a moderate gain, with sales expected to increase 2.2% during the November-December combined period compared with the same time frame a year earlier. The group said retail momentum lately had been good but that there were economic roadblocks ahead that could dampen sales.

Last month, the group's chief economist predicted that sales during that period would be up 3.5%. In 2010, holiday sales rose 5% year over year in what was the best Christmas season since the recession.

Also on Wednesday, retail group ShopperTrak said it expected holiday retail sales to rise 3% and foot traffic to decrease 2.2% year over year, signaling that consumers will limit their shopping trips.

ShopperTrak said it expected foot traffic to continue decreasing through the end of the year because of high unemployment and gas prices. So far this year, shoppers have visited an average of 3.1 stores per shopping trip, down from 3.19 in 2010. "Converting fewer numbers of shoppers to buyers has never been more important for retailers," the group said.

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Photo: Shoppers will probably be watching their wallets again this holiday season. Credit: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times

Wal-Mart announces women-friendly initiatives

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Wednesday announced several new initiatives to promote women workers and women-owned businesses as part of an effort to improve its corporate image.

The nation's largest retailer continues to deal with accusations that it doesn't have an equal workplace and may face individual claims of sex discrimination after the U.S. Supreme Court threw out a class-action suit by female workers this year.

Among its efforts:

-- The nation's largest retailer said it would source $20 billion from women-owned businesses in the U.S. and would double its sourcing from such businesses in every market globally.

-- It will also offer training, market access and career opportunities to 60,000 women working in factories to help them "develop the skills they need to become more active decision-makers in their jobs and for their families."

-- In markets around the world, Wal-Mart will work with major professional service firms and merchandise suppliers with more than $1 billion in sales to increase women and minority representation on Wal-Mart accounts.

Wal-Mart said it would support the programs with more than $100 million in grants; funding will come from the Wal-Mart Foundation and donations directly the company's international business.

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Photo: A shopper outside a Wal-Mart store in Rosemead. Credit: Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times

Jakks Pacific receives takeover bid from Oaktree Capital

Jakks Pacific Inc., the Malibu toy maker, has received a $544-million takeover bid from Oaktree Capital Management after the Los Angeles buyout firm failed to work out a friendly deal with the company.

In a letter to Jakks' board Tuesday, Oaktree made an offer to take Jakks private for $20 a share in cash, a 25% premium on the toy maker's closing stock price of $16 that day. The company said it had been trying to work out a deal with the company since March; Oaktree Funds owns about 4.9% of Jakks already, according to the Associated Press.

Jakks' Chief Executive Stephen Berman responded to the investment firm in a letter Wednesday, saying the company would "carefully consider your indication of interest ... and will continue to act in the best interests of the company and its shareholders."

Jakks, one of the top five U.S. toy companies, designs and markets action figures, electronics, dolls, costumes and stuffed animals and is a licensee of major brands including Disney, Nickelodeon, Cabbage Patch Kids, Hello Kitty and Pokemon. It was founded in 1995 and went public a year later.

In an interview with The Times last week, Chief Financial Officer Joel Bennett said the company had 725 employees, 400 of them in the U.S. Jakks last year reported revenue of $748 million. 

A call to a Jakks spokeswoman was not returned early Wednesday. Shares of Jakks rose $3.78, or 23.6%, to $19.78 at 9 a.m. Pacific time.

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Target stores, website swarmed on first day of Missoni launch

Hordes of shoppers swarmed Target stores and heavy traffic temporarily crashed the company's website Tuesday for the launch of its new Missoni line, the retailer's largest limited-time designer collection ever.

The fashion line from the famed Italian luxury brand features more than 400 items in home, beauty, men's, women's, kids' and baby. Prices range from $2.99 for a piece of stationery to $599.99 for an online-only four-piece patio set.

Almost immediately, Target's website was shut down with a message that said: "Woof! We are suddenly extremely popular. You may not be able to access our site momentarily due to unusually high traffic. Please stay here and we'll try to get you in as soon as we can!"

Joshua Thomas, a spokesman for Target, called the launch "Missoni mayhem."

"The buzz surrounding the collection has been unprecedented and the response today has been overwhelming," he said. "It was very Black Friday-esque."

By Tuesday afternoon, dozens of items were already sold out online, including toss pillows featuring Missoni's signature zigzag designs, women's multicolor rain boots and a black-and-white luggage collection.

Thomas said brick-and-mortar stores would replenish some of the sold-out items throughout the week.

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Photo: A Target store in Vista on the first day that the company's Missoni collection launched. Credit: Reuters 

Macy's adopts new technology in stores and online

Macy's Inc. is launching a series of new tech-driven initiatives in its stores, including free Wi-Fi, digital receipts and cosmetics kiosks. It will also begin using computer tablets for product demonstrations and furniture deliveries.

Terry J. Lundgren, chief executive and chairman of Macy's, said the company's goal was to "build deeper relationships with customers and to ensure Macy's and Bloomingdale's are accessible no matter how or when" they choose to shop.

"It is important that we develop and test new ideas so we can learn and continue to improve," Lundgren said. "We are committed to leading in the adoption of technology that resonates with our customers, recognizing that not every idea will prove to be successful in the long term."

Among the new offerings:

-- Beginning in late October, Macy's will experiment with digital receipts in 50 stores around the country. When making a purchase, customers can choose to have a copy of their receipt emailed to them. Next spring, Macy's customers will also have the option to select digital receipts only.

-- Macy's and Bloomingdale's have begun installing free Wi-Fi service in stores nationwide; by the end of October, access will be activated in about 230 Macy's and nine Bloomingdale's locations.

-- Macy's and Bloomingdale's stores will test computer tablets and hand-held devices in several departments. This fall, about 350 stores will be using tablets to help customers select skincare products at Clinique counters. In shoes, Bloomingdale's will be using tablets and hand-held devices in five stores. In fine jewelry, 25 Macy's stores are beginning to use tablets to demonstrate product features and offer matching jewelry pieces.

-- At the end of October, all Macy's and Bloomingdale's furniture and mattress delivery associates will be equipped with computer tablets to plan daily routes, find locations via GPS, record delivery verification signatures and access sales transaction information on-site to answer customer questions. The company said the technology would improve customer service by more accurately predicting arrival times.

-- The brands have also added live chats to their online shopping sites, allowing customer service representatives to provide real-time assistance to customers.

-- By early next month, Macy's will begin testing Beauty Spot, a custom-designed cosmetics kiosk that will be installed in a handful of stores. Customers interested in lipstick or foundation, for example, can use the kiosks to look at product details, and a dedicated associate will be available to process credit-card transactions using a hand-held mobile device.

-- Macys.com has launched a new denim fit finder for women powered by fit personalization software. The function allows online shoppers to select a pair of jeans among all of the denim brands offered by Macys.com using a three-step process based on a customer's body type and style preferences.

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Photo: A Macy's store in Chicago. Credit: Bloomberg

Wal-Mart brings back layaway program for the holidays

Wal-Mart, seeking to reverse a prolonged U.S. sales slump and assist its core low-income shoppers, is bringing back its layaway program for the key holiday shopping season. 

The discount giant and nation's largest retailer said Thursday that it was reinstating the program that it had discontinued in 2006.

Under the terms of the new program, which begins Oct. 17, layaway items will be limited to toys and electronics. Each item must be at least $15, and a customer's shopping basket must total at least $50. Shoppers are required to make a 10% down payment and pay a $5 fee upfront; a $10 cancellation fee applies if the item isn't picked up by Dec. 16.

In a call with reporters, Wal-Mart Chief Merchandising Officer Duncan Mac Naughton said customers had requested the return of layaway as a way to help them manage their budgets during the frenzied Christmas season.

"It just tells us that the customer is struggling," he said. "There's a fragile economy and our customer needs our help."

In particular, Mac Naughton said Wal-Mart's customers were faced with three major spending constraints: unemployment and job security woes; higher energy prices, especially for gas; and housing concerns tied to their mortgages and foreclosures. 

Popular during the Great Depression, layaway programs had all but faded away by the turn of the century as shoppers turned to credit cards to shop. But layaway has made a comeback since the most recent recession because it enables shoppers to select their items early and pay off those purchases in a series of small payments; retailers will hold the items during that time and typically don't charge interest. 

Wal-Mart's announcement follows similar moves by rival chains in recent years. Sears brought back layaway in 2008 after scrapping the program two decades previously; and Toys R Us in 2009 introduced a layaway program for big-ticket items such as bikes and cribs. Last year, Kmart, one of the few retailers to consistently offer layaway, said it would expand its program.

Wal-Mart did away with its layaway program five years ago, saying few people took advantage of it anymore.

On Thursday, the Bentonville, Ark.-based company said it would honor any price reductions during the time an item was on layaway, and said layaway merchandise was eligible for the chain's ad match program. 

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Photo: A Wal-Mart store in New Jersey. Credit: Associated Press