Who knows what really motivates people to buy apparel, but enthusiastic sellers who “look the part” and a relaxed, no-pressure environment are certainly key to the formula.

I recently attended a “shopping party” (a modern take on Tupperware parties ) at a friend’s home for a women’s clothing line. It was called CAbi, for Carol Anderson by invitation, and...

What to do if you’re an independent merchant competing with all the recent price-cutting on European designer brands? “Smart retailers still see the value in European brands,” insists Lou Bonnanzio, “but lesser-known brands, where you’re getting the design heritage and hand craftsmanship without having to pay for all the marketing…”

Below: Gene Beola and...

I was not all that excited when I got a call yesterday from Steve Weiner of Hartmarx: something about finding framed material from the early 1900s, event programs, photos, newspaper articles, etc. But the enthusiasm in his voice convinced me to walk over and take a look.

Am I glad I did! I ended up spending a good hour or so reading through a few dozen old...

How easy to forget, especially in these troubled times when we’re all struggling to stay afloat financially, that what matters most is not making money but touching lives. To paraphrase the Talmud, he who rescues a single life is as praiseworthy as he who saves the entire world.

Yesterday, I spent the afternoon with the UJA-Federation fashion division...

If you like to commiserate with unhappy stressed-out people, try hanging out at the Lost & Found at Grand Central Station. I was there a few weeks ago to look for car keys that had fallen out of my coat pocket from the overhead bin on the train. Miracle of Miracles: some one had actually found them and turned them in!

So there I was, all smiles and...