Wall Street Folly

• BofA Breakup Is New Snag in CEO Hunt
• Bernanke to defend his record and the Fed’s
• Bernanke Has Support of Majority of Senators on Banking Panel
• SEC Steps Up Insider-Trading Probes
• U.S. Taxpayers May Reap $3.17 Billion in TARP Warrant Auctions
• GM fires CEO Henderson. The board wants an outsider.
• Rothstein Charged in Ponzi Scheme
• Wells Fargo to shut 122 branches in state
• Merrill Sued by Client in Hong Kong Over $13 Million in Losses Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Autos, Bank of America, Ben Bernanke, Fed, GM, Insider Trading, Merrill Lynch, ponzi schemes, Retailing, Revolving Door, SEC, TARP, Wells Fargo

Wal-Mart not only wants to be there for your from the time you’re born, but now they aim to get your business when you cross over to the great beyond.  Following Costo’s lead, they’re selling caskets and urns online:

Prices range from $999 for models like “Dad Remembered” and “Mom Remembered” steel caskets to the mid-level $1,699 “Executive Privilege.” All are less than $2,000, except for the Sienna Bronze Casket, which sells for $3,199.

Caskets ship within 48 hours. Federal law requires funeral homes to accept third-party caskets.

Wal-Mart starts selling caskets, urns online – AP

Tags: Death, Retailing, Wal-Mart

• GMAC Asks for Fresh Lifeline
• Pay Czar Increased Base Pay at Firms
• Dem bill urges new US powers over financial firms
• U.S. home price gains may not be sustainable: Shiller
• Fears of a New Chill in Home Sales
• Icahn Sets Out to Derail CIT’s Revamp Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Autos, bailout, Carl Icahn, Compensation, GMAC, Pay czar, Real Estate, Retailing

• California Lawmakers, Governor Strike Deal on Budget
• CIT may be saved – but now what?
• Obama Seeks Ways to Aid Auto-Parts Makers, Locke Says
• Ex-CFO Sues D.B. Zwirn, Founder For Defamation
• Back-to-School Shoppers Plan to Spend Less, Save More Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Autos, Barack Obama, California, CIT, Hedge funds, Retailing

Briefing.com summarized the Tiffany conference call….

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: conference call, Retailing, Tiffany

What’s a store chain to do when its name is "99 Cents Only" and it’s facing rising costs?  They’re upping the price of their most expensive items…to 99.99 cents.  Nearly a penny.

The boost of less than 1 cent is “in response to dramatically rising costs and inflation,” Chief Executive Officer Eric Schiffer said in the statement. “Just as Motel 6 was eventually forced to raise its price above $6, after 26 years we are forced to raise our price by just about one cent.”

99 Cents Only Stores Raises Top Price to 99.99 Cents – Bloomberg

Tags: Retailing

This is a bit off the beaten path of what we normally post, but we just don’t get it.  We were perusing our Women’s Wear Daily (a must read if you follow the retailers) on an extremely lazy Friday and came across what sounded like one of the dumber business ideas that we’ve heard in a long time.  Cosmetics company Estee Lauder is coming out with a new battery operated $30 "TurboLash" mascara that, like an electric toothbrush, vibrates as you apply it.  Saks is gonna get to sell this "brainchild" of Estee lauder guys George Kress and Paul Marotta exclusively until December then it gets rolled out to all Estee Lauder customers.  Apparently other cosmetics companies have their own versions of the vibrating mascara concept on tap as well, including L’Oreal and Procter & Gamble.  WWD says:

Kress teamed up with Marotta to refine the
concept. "We focused first on studying what exactly happens to lashes when
you use the brush," said Kress. "We saw that the lashes instantly
separated and spread apart.  Once we knew that, we focused on the number of
vibrations, and then the formula needed to produce the best results."

The team determined that 125 micropulses
per second — powered by a tiny battery in the mascara cap which begins to
vibrate as soon as the user unclicks the tube — would offer the best results. 
The next challenge was to create a formula that woulnd’t splatter, which proved
to be "an interesting and arduous process," said Drell-Szyfer. [and
Estee global marketing exec].

Who knows, maybe we’re just missing the brilliance of the idea, and it’ll catch on.  But it just sounds dumb.  And potentially dangerous.  Can you imagine if one of these things goes awry and the applicator somehow winds up poking you in the eye?  And maybe this isn’t such a good idea for women (and some mascara wearing men) who don’t have such steady hands.

Tags: Cosmetics, Retailing

Diamonds are a girl’s best friend: Donald Trump’s little girl is branching out into retailing, selling diamonds in a new Madison Avenue, NYC store, one in Las Vegas and a third location yet to be disclosed:

 

Trump has formed a partnership with
  Dynamic Diamond Corp., a Diamond Trading Co. siteholder, to create a complete
  line of diamond jewelry under her name. The venture, which was first reported
  by WWD in December, is not a license but rather a partnership between Trump
  and Moshe Lax, principal of Dynamic Diamond, who became friendly through the
  real estate world. Three Ivanka Trump boutiques are planned to open this year.
  The first, a 1,100-square-foot unit, will open on Madison Avenue in September,
  followed by one in Las Vegas. She declined to give the exact addresses or the
  third location.

 

"I remember going to the couture
  shows as a little girl with my mother," said Trump, decked out in a black
  skirt suit from Brioni, Christian Louboutin pumps and, of course, several
  pieces from her line. "I always had an appreciation for fashion and
  [especially] jewelry."

 

Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Donald Trump, Retailing

Oogly: It’s selling a majority stake in Limited Express, is exploring strategic alternatives for the Limited stores, and treated investors to a whopper of an earnings warning:

Golden Gate Capital will buy 67 percent of Express, a clothing retailer, for $548 million, Limited said today in a statement. The unit had $1.75 billion in sales last year. The Columbus, Ohio-based company is exploring “strategic options” for Limited Stores, which sells sportswear for women.

The company is selling its namesake chain, started when Chairman Leslie Wexner opened his first Limited store in 1963, after three years of declining profit. Limited Brands’ first- quarter earnings fell to 12 cents to 14 cents a share, compared with its prediction of 25 to 28 cents, mainly because of markdowns at Victoria’s Secret, the company’s biggest unit.

Limited to Sell Express; Namesake Chain Is for Sale – Bloomberg

Tags: Retailing

Gap CEO Paull Pressler’s could benefit to the tune of $220 million if the company is sold according to the New York Post.  That’s because his stock options would immediately vest:

Pressler has vested options to buy 3.3 million Gap shares and unvested options to buy another 3.8 million shares, according to the company’s proxy filing last March. Like most companies, Gap has "change of control" provisions that trigger the immediate vesting of all stock options if the company undergoes a merger or sale.

Several bankers familiar with the company said a private equity firm could buy Gap for more than $31 a share, making Pressler’s share worth roughly $220 million. Pressler would have to pay the strike price of any options he exercised after a buyout.

Pressler’s Slice: $220M - New York Post

Tags: Gap Stores, Retailing