Managing Editor James Mammarella delves into the branding, retail, and business issues that impact the home textiles industry. en-us http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370.html?nid=3788 Copyright 2009 Reed Business Information. Subject to its Terms of Use November 10, 2009 http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1300043130.html?nid=3788 It might be cool for activist investor Bill Ackman to hand out business cards that simply said: “William Ackman – Activist Investor.&rd... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/370043037.html?nid=3788 When something gets as big as Wal-Mart, it would be strange if there were no conflicting interpretations of its actions. I recently I posted my re... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1110042711.html?nid=3788 Dutch general merchandiser HEMA (which stands for Hollandse Eenheidsprijzen Maatschappij Amsterdam – thank you, Wikipedia!) sells a wide rang... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1320042532.html?nid=3788 Sometimes the world seems simple. Last week, Walmart said it would cut a check for $2 billion payable to its hourly wage employees. How&... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/700042470.html?nid=3788 And I thought felt was just boiled, compressed wool. Turns out there is far more food for thought – and product inspiration &ndash... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1310041931.html?nid=3788 The news report said “Tallest U.S. building to get new name.” I immediately wondered if Sears Holdings Corp. chairman Edward Lampert ... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1660041566.html?nid=3788 Who’s got a new model for doing more business in home textiles? It might be smart to take a look at what’s going on in furniture retail... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1320040932.html?nid=3788 Details are sketchy, but the scale is staggering: the government of China is subsidizing the establishment of hundreds of thousands of new retail... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/110040611.html?nid=3788 Well, you can’t fault ’em for not trying! Those glib handicappers over at Motley Fool have posted the winner of their annual &ldqu... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/870040487.html?nid=3788 As the song says, it’s that whole thing about “Let A Smile Be Your Umbrella.” Call them eclectic, call them retro, but... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/610040261.html?nid=3788 Want a hot tip? You’d be well advised to ask elsewhere – but since we’ve come this far: Short the Nasdaq Bailout Index... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/430040243.html?nid=3788 Retailers from coast to coast are hammering their landlords for relief. “Lower our rents,” they say, “or we may have to shutter... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1900039990.html?nid=3788 News Flash: Frugality. Hoo, boy – can’t we just have a Second Great Depression in peace and quiet? I mean, if we’re goin... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/700039870.html?nid=3788 Down to an utter shell, the national retailer that used to be Linens ’n Things is now a brand that could reappear as a going concern online... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/340037834.html?nid=3788 Maybe I should ask, “What’d you pay for that Dodge?” In an old, 1930s way, a person’s avocation, job or trade was ... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1270036927.html?nid=3788 Is yet another home furnishings specialty retailer about to become a statistic? Five months ago, Pier 1 Imports was making a hostile bid to acqu... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1170036517.html?nid=3788 Macy’s at 150. It gets you thinking. Pretty soon, you’re calculating. Macy’s Inc. is No. 91 in the Fortune 500, with 2007 reven... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/120035612.html?nid=3788 This is the third go-round in my scan of the top 10 retailers of home textiles. It started in November 2007. I compared my predictions in July; now... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/40030404.html?nid=3788 Last November, I looked over the top 10 retailers of home textiles and gave a prediction for each. Now that July is here, we have their fi... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1680026168.html?nid=3788 A decade ago, when Kmart went all-out to save its business, the biggest move by Kmart merchants was to secure and dynamically expand the Ma... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/140025414.html?nid=3788 Yesterday, I highlighted some basic retail operations metrics at Linens ’n Things. We saw that in the two years under its Apollo Management... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1330025333.html?nid=3788 Specialty retailer Linens ’n Things is deep in its mission to obtain new financial backing and in the words of chairman and ceo Robert DiNico... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/750025275.html?nid=3788 There are plenty of thriving companies that at one time or another filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. There are not many still ... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1490023949.html?nid=3788 Target’s marketing throw-weight is mighty, mighty. Especially as compared to its big-bruiser, mass merchandising rival, Wal-Mart. Ta... http://www.hometextilestoday.com/blog/1700000370/post/1620022562.html?nid=3788 Publicly held companies are supposed to compete on a generally level playing field. Macy’s Inc., in its latest fourth-quarter and ...