February 19th, 2009 · 2 Comments

LAGUNA BEACH – For many of us fogies who grew up in the 1970s and 1980s, surf and skateboard brands that come to mind might be all about Quicksilver, Ocean Pacific, Sims and Birdwell’s. If you are a boomer, the brand might be Hang Ten. Yet it doesn’t take long for a brand to become [...]
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Tags: Fashion

Easy to Pair. Fun to Wear. That’s the simple premise of Garanimals. And they are back this February 2008 at Wal-Mart. It’s the perfect brand to bring back. The public knows the brand story. Its simple; match the animals, and the clothes match. The line was founded in 1972, though Garan, the company, dates from [...]
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Tags: Department Stores · Fashion · Retail · Zombie
December 17th, 2007 · 3 Comments

Perhaps the most famous revived brand in the U.S. is Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF). The company was once an old-line sporting goods company selling guns and tents to presidents and such. Today, American mall-goers are so mesmerized by the half-naked teens of today’s Abercrombie that we forget that it was a carriage trade store. In [...]
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Tags: Retail

Whatever happened to Carroll Reed? It’s a question many East Coast folks have been asking since the ski-focused clothing chain shut down. At one time, there were 54 stores. The Carroll Reed Ski Shops Inc. was started, not by some matronly woman, but by Carroll Purinton Reed, a clever entrepreneur who not only built the [...]
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Tags: Commentary · Fashion · Retail · Tourism
November 27th, 2007 · 1 Comment

If you are interested in the mind and shopping habits of the American WASP, please read Bunny Tomerlin’s Blog. It has all of her favorite things. Lotsa Brickman’s. Brands mentioned by this Men’s Vogue blogger include Carroll Reed, Gloverall, Neese’s Sausage, Bazzini’s Pistachio Nuts, Kinloch Anderson, Brickman’s of Martha’s Vineyard, Petit Bateau, Schiaperelli,
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Tags: Fashion