Donatella Versace is back.

Esprit Holdings Limited is facing a statutory demand for almost 4 million dollars. The Hong Kong-listed company announced on Thursday that it was served a so-called 'Statutory Demand' on September 16.

Whether the listing counts as a success depends on who is measuring. Shein raised 13.6 billion Hong Kong dollars and reached a public market after failed attempts in New York and London. Anyone who bought at the offer price is down more than a fifth.

The fashion industry influences almost a third of the world’s agricultural land when leather and wool are included alongside textile crops, according to a new report from researchers at the University of Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and Environment and DIRT Charity.

Mothercare has provided an update regarding its financial outlook following a cash injection from the liquidation of its former retail subsidiary.

On Thursday, Reuters published an investigation that brought new information to light in one of the luxury sector's most high-profile cases: the acquisition of Hermès shares by the LVMH group. According to the news agency, LVMH made a confidential agreement in 2002 with Éric Freymond, who was the wealth manager for Nicolas Puech, one of the heirs to the house of Hermès.

Consumer optimism about AI in holiday shopping has fallen, but confidence holds up when the technology is applied to narrow, practical tasks, according to research published by Sinch.

Finnish materials technology company Spinnova has signed a non-binding letter of intent with Portuguese yarn spinning company Tearfil – Indústria Têxtil (Tearfil) and its shareholders regarding the potential acquisition of all shares in the business.

eBay's UK arm is offering up to 200,000 pounds in grants to support young entrepreneurs and help established sellers create opportunities for young people.

Zurich - Swiss watch exports climbed 9.1 percent in August to 1.78 billion Swiss francs, driven mainly by China and Japan, which offset a sharp decline towards the US, the watchmaking federation announced on Thursday.

New Balance has filed a trademark infringement suit against two US subsidiaries of French sporting goods retailer Decathlon, alleging that a logo used on Kiprun running shoes is confusingly similar to its own "N" mark.

Bristol City Council has become the first local authority in the UK to restrict advertising for ultra-fast fashion, as part of broader measures targeting products and services it considers high-polluting.

GXO Logistics and warehouse robotics provider Exotec have completed the deployment of an Exotec Skypod system at GXO's Venlo facility in the Netherlands, the site that handles fulfilment for Guess across EMEA and Asia. The two companies announced the deployment on Tuesday.

Dutch-based digital luxury group LuxExperience B.V. announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ending June 30, 2026. The platform achieved group net sales of 653.6 million euros (750 million dollars) in the fourth quarter, representing a 7.6 percent increase excluding foreign exchange effects or 6.1 percent on a reported basis. Full year net sales reached 2.5 billion euros, up 3.2 percent excluding foreign exchange impacts.

US brand portfolio group Amer Sports, host of an Investor Day on September 17, 2026, in Annecy, France, has updated its long-term financial algorithm and third quarter 2026 outlook.

Three European retailers — Dutch department store De Bijenkorf, Amsterdam eyewear label Ace & Tate and German online fashion platform About You — disclosed customer data leaks in August. These companies faced the consequences of a cyber incident at logistics service provider Ceva Logistics, even though their own systems were not directly hacked. The case illustrates a risk facing any retailer that outsources part of its operation, and raises two questions: how can a retailer prevent customer data from being exposed via a third party, and what action should be taken if something does go wrong?

Authentic Brands Group is preparing for a potential initial public offering (IPO) in early 2027, with CEO Matt Maddox telling Bloomberg that the company is ready to begin the process.

Authentic Brands Group has named Mexican retail and distribution company Union Group as its strategic operating partner for Lee in Mexico, as it prepares to take control of the denim brand following a planned acquisition, expected to close in the second half of 2026.

In recent years, New York Fashion Week has found itself at the centre of growing discussion. Much like other major global fashion weeks, namely London, it has faced ongoing scrutiny regarding commercial viability, brand longevity, and overall industry influence, especially as prominent domestic designers began seeking higher-profile platforms abroad. This season, however, marked a clear turning point. Driven by a surge of high-profile debuts, revivals and returns, NYFW delivered a dynamic schedule. At the same time, new legislative efforts injected momentum into domestic manufacturing, while landmark brand anniversaries showcased the enduring legacy of the city’s leading labels, all accompanied by a touch of runway drama.

Global communications group The Independents announced on Wednesday the integration of Smuggler, an international creative and production studio, into its network. Founded by Patrick Milling-Smith and Brian Carmody, the production entity has offices in Los Angeles, New York and London. This move strengthens the group's expertise in strategic communication and event experiences.

Italian luxury footwear label Golden Goose Group has recorded a 15 percent revenue increase for the first six months ended June 30, 2026. Net revenues reached 380.4 million euros (439.5 million dollars), driven by momentum in its direct-to-consumer (D2C) channels. Adjusted EBITDA grew 9 percent YoY to 122.9 million euros, maintaining an adjusted EBITDA margin of 32.3 percent. Gross margin reached 75.8 percent.

Madrid – The Spanish retail scene continues to attract the attention of international groups and brands. It is now preparing to welcome a new operator: Polish fashion multinational Tatuum. The brand has been pursuing a determined international growth strategy since 2024. This roadmap is set to enter a new chapter with its upcoming entry into Spain.

Interview

Old Navy is making a bigger move into activewear with the launch of Old Navy Sport, a new sub-brand designed to give the retailer’s growing category a distinct identity.

Ralph Lauren Corporation said on Tuesday that it cut absolute greenhouse-gas emissions by 42 percent from its fiscal 2020 baseline and increased global financial support for cancer-related organizations by 14 percent, as part of the first-year update on its Timeless by Design 2030 sustainability strategy.

Takko Fashion is continuing its record-breaking performance.

Madrid – Building on our latest analysis of the Spanish fashion multinational, Tendam reported its results for the first half of its 2026 financial year on Monday. The company appears to be moving away from its aggressive commercial policy based on a discounted pricing model. The six-month period, from March 1 to August 31, saw the owner of Cortefiel, Springfield and Women'secret close with a solid performance, showing double-digit growth in sales and profit.

Over 450 FashionUnited business articles spanning the half-year reporting season, published until Monday, describe an industry that is cautiously upbeat but sharply divided. In six out of 10 reports, companies described rising sales or improving profits, and that majority widened from July into August as second-quarter figures came in. More companies raised full-year guidance than cut it: Adidas, Ralph Lauren, Levi Strauss, Birkenstock and most US off-price and department store chains lifted their outlooks, while JD Sports, Zalando, Lululemon and Under Armour moved the other way. The mood is relief rather than confidence.

Madrid – Spanish fashion and beauty multinational the Puig Group is strengthening its position in the strategic dermo-cosmetics segment. It has formalised an agreement with the pharmaceutical company Esteve to acquire its 50 percent stake in the dermo-cosmetics and skincare brand Isdin. The transaction, valued at a total of 1.2 billion euros, will result in the company, chaired by Marc Puig, holding 100 percent of the dermatological company's share capital.

Madrid – The US has remained Inditex's largest market by turnover, second only to Spain, since 2021. This is a position the Spanish fashion multinational fully intends to build upon. The company's chief executive officer has announced a new “country plan” through to 2027, following the release of its results for the first half of 2026.

Madrid – Following its acquisition in July 2025 by the Emirati company 2PointZero—formerly known as Multiply Group—the Spanish fashion multinational Tendam is set to play a key role within the new retail division of its new parent company. This position contrasts sharply with the long-standing off-price policy of its various portfolio brands. It seems clear the company is preparing to move away from this approach through a “value generation” strategy.

StyleBuddy is making a bigger bet than simply adding AI features to a fashion website. Under Founder and CEO Siddharth Pandit, the company is building an AI-powered commerce layer designed specifically for fashion - one that helps brands move shoppers from discovery to styling, visualisation and purchase within a more intelligent journey.

Pandit's starting point is straightforward: online fashion still asks shoppers to do too much imagining. A product grid can show what is available, but it cannot easily answer whether a look suits the shopper, works for a particular occasion, pairs with other pieces, or feels right before checkout. StyleBuddy is being built around that decision gap.

The company has already built a community of more than 100,000 users and engaged with 100+ fashion brands. It is now expanding that foundation into a broader StyleBuddy AI fashion commerce platform for brands, with three connected growth paths: Sell With StyleBuddy, Agentic Storefront and Virtual Try-On. All three are powered by the same AI styling engine and product catalogue layer.

Sell With StyleBuddy gives fashion brands access to StyleBuddy's shopper ecosystem, where products can be discovered through styling-led recommendations rather than being buried in a conventional feed. The ambition is to make discovery more contextual: shoppers arrive with an occasion, a mood, a budget or a style intent, and AI helps connect that intent to relevant products and complete looks.

The Agentic Storefront takes the same intelligence into a brand's own e-commerce site. StyleBuddy's AI stylist sits on top of the existing storefront and allows shoppers to describe what they are looking for in natural language. The system can recommend coordinated outfits from the brand's own catalogue, remember shopper preferences and keep the customer inside the brand's checkout journey. The goal is to make the storefront behave less like a database and more like an always-on digital stylist.

Virtual Try-On addresses another major point of hesitation: visual confidence. StyleBuddy's technology lets shoppers see how garments may look before purchase, while also giving brands a faster way to create visual fashion content. The company is extending this capability with AI content tools for product imagery, styling and background generation, making the proposition relevant to merchandising and marketing teams as well as to shoppers.

What makes the platform distinctive is the way these pieces are being connected. StyleBuddy is not positioning virtual try-on as an isolated widget, or conversational AI as a chatbot attached to a product page. Its vision is one intelligence layer across the fashion journey - discovery, styling, visualisation, content and commerce - with brands able to adopt one capability or combine them.

That ambition is closely tied to Pandit's own view of what fashion commerce should become. Digital shopping removed much of the emotional confidence of trying something on in a store and replaced it with flat images, filters and guesswork. StyleBuddy's aim is to put more intelligence and confidence back into that journey, while still keeping the brand in control of the customer relationship.

The company is also designing for scale. Its current brand proposition is built for fashion businesses across markets and digital channels, and StyleBuddy has stated an ambition to grow its ecosystem to more than 2 million users and 500+ participating fashion brands over the next 12 months. Its platform already references activity across 40+ markets, while the company continues to invest in consumer adoption, brand partnerships and AI-powered fashion experiences.

For Pandit, however, the longer-term goal is larger than user and brand counts. StyleBuddy wants to become part of the infrastructure through which fashion brands sell online: an AI layer that understands shopper intent, turns products into styled looks, helps customers visualise themselves in those looks, and creates a stronger bridge between inspiration and purchase.

Fashion e-commerce will continue to use search, filters and product grids. StyleBuddy's bet is that those interfaces will increasingly sit behind something more intelligent - a storefront that can listen, interpret, style, visualise and sell.

If that transition happens at scale, StyleBuddy wants to be one of the platforms defining it.

CEO Interview

US fashion platform Rent the Runway, Inc. (Rent the Runway) has reported a 20.8 percent increase in total revenue to 97.70 million dollars for the second quarter ended July 31, 2026, compared to 80.90 million dollars in the second quarter of fiscal 2025.

Madrid – Spanish fashion and accessories firm Bimba y Lola has once again demonstrated its solid business model. The company has successfully navigated a challenging first half of 2026, as reflected in the key financial figures released for the first half of its new fiscal year.

US apparel and e-commerce company Digital Brands Group (DBG) says it has secured a binding two-year US programme worth 165 million dollars, covering apparel, footwear and toiletries for 771,481 people re-entering the workforce.

October’s Very Own (OVO), the lifestyle and apparel label co-founded by Drake, is facing further legal complications following its recent deal with Authentic Brands Group and Vince Holding Corp., with lender A.R.I. OVO Growth Capital claiming it was not informed of the transaction and remains owed more than five million Canadian dollars.

US-based fashion company G-III Apparel Group (G-III) will directly assume control of its brand operations across Spain and Portugal starting December 31, 2026, ending its distribution alliance with All We Wear Group (AWWG).

US department store group Macy’s has raised its full-year 2026 guidance after reporting stronger-than-expected second-quarter results, with comparable sales increasing across its portfolio.

British sportswear manufacturer Castore has found itself at the centre of sale speculation after reportedly receiving a series of unprompted takeover approaches from competitors.

The renowned Madrid-based communications and event production agency Pelonio Press is beginning a new chapter under the name AM, with a new visual identity, headquarters and corporate structure. The change also marks the separation of the activities previously carried out jointly by its three founding partners.

Months after falling into administration, LK Bennett is set to be revived through a new strategic partnership between IMG Licensing and its parent company Gordon Brothers. The US brand management firm has tapped IMG to lead a regimaging of the British label that will see it move beyond its fashion-focus to become a broader lifestyle brand.

Harvey Nichols has relaunched its e-commerce operations weeks after Frasers Group acquired the luxury department store and rescued it from the clutches of administration.

UK e-commerce group THG PLC (THG) has announced its interim financial results for the half-year ended June 30, 2026, recording a 7.2 percent increase in group revenue on a continuing constant currency (CCY) basis to 828.7 million pounds (1,123 million dollars). Revenue reached 828.7 million pounds on a statutory basis, up 5.8 percent compared to 783.4 million pounds in the first half of 2025.

UK-based conglomerate Associated British Foods (ABF) has issued a trading update for the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2026 ended September 12, 2026, revealing that group adjusted operating profit is expected to align with previous expectations, while adjusted earnings per share will exceed prior forecasts.

EXCLUSIVE

Interview Melanie Marsden co-founded Lounge in a spare bedroom in 2016 with 1,000 pounds and a conviction that comfortable underwear could still feel luxurious. A decade and more than 100 million pounds in annual sales later, she is applying the same argument to blazers, trousers and athleisure.

Paris - The number of visitors to the Temu and AliExpress websites significantly declined in France during the second quarter. This drop occurred even before the implementation of the three euro European tax targeting small parcels, Fevad and Médiamétrie revealed on Wednesday.

Madrid – The Spanish fashion multinational Inditex group (Inditex), parent company of popular fashion chains such as Bershka, Massimo Dutti and Zara, its flagship and “star” chain, reported its results for the first half of its current 2026 fiscal year earlier today. The period, from February 1 to July 31, saw the company once again record new all-time highs in both sales and profits.

Interview G.H.Bass is celebrating two anniversaries at once in 2026: It’s been 150 years since George Henry Bass entered the shoe-making business in Wilton, Maine, in 1876, and 90 years of the Weejuns penny loafer, introduced in 1936. The brand is commemorating both with a limited-edition capsule collection, released in select quantities and carrying a specially minted anniversary penny.

CEO Interview When the American sports-fashion brand Off Season launched in January 2025, it had five NFL teams, one product category and a founder the internet already knew. Kristin Juszczyk, the self-taught designer whose custom Chiefs jacket for Taylor Swift went viral in 2023, supplied the creative story supported up by Emma Grede, co-founder and CEO of Good American and founding partner of Skims. Puffer vests started at 295 dollars and the debut sold out.

A study published in PLOS One found that women may show a stronger preference for visible luxury products around ovulation, when fertility is highest.

A lavish Chinese client, who spent millions of euros on luxury goods at the Louis Vuitton store on the Champs-Élysées, allegedly received improper tax refunds. Five people, including former company executives, have been on trial since Monday at the Paris Criminal Court for organised fraud.

The John Lewis Partnership is opening more than 10,400 temporary positions across Britain ahead of the final quarter of the trading year, with the employee-owned group again expecting young workers to fill the majority of them.

Scottish luxury leather brand Strathberry has secured growth investment from Soho Square Capital to support its next phase of international expansion, with a particular focus on North America.

Madrid – The H&M Group appears determined to end the period of gradual decline it has been experiencing in Spain, both operationally and commercially. The company has announced the opening of a “production office” in the country. This department will now operate from Barcelona, strengthening the Swedish fashion multinational's product development capabilities.

Tennis fashion has long crossed into everyday style, as shown by Lacoste and Fred Perry over the decades. But in 2021, the word “tenniscore” transformed it into a global trend that has quickly been embraced by luxury brands and sportswear labels everywhere. Within that saturated market, Courtney Kelly, founder of Courting, is betting there’s still space for innovation.

The Alliance for American Manufacturing has asked the Federal Trade Commission to open an inquiry into the AI shopping assistants operated by major online retailers, arguing that the tools may be obscuring country-of-origin information and steering shoppers away from American-made goods.

It took Vinted a few months to become a serious enough problem to appear in Wall Street analyst notes.

Patagonia has joined a legal challenge against the Trump administration’s decision to reduce two national monuments in Utah, arguing that the move threatens public land protections, Tribal sovereignty and areas of environmental and cultural importance. The outdoor clothing brand announced the lawsuit on September 2, challenging President Donald Trump’s July proclamation reducing Bears Ears National Monument by around 91 percent, as well as also significantly cutting the size of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

Paying an influencer to create content does not necessarily give a fashion brand the right to reuse it. A brand may commission a short video for a product launch, then repurpose it for paid advertising, its website, an email campaign or an in-store screen. Months later, it may revive the content for a new colourway, even though the original permissions may not cover those later uses.

Traceability is increasingly seen in the apparel industry not as a competitive advantage, but as a prerequisite for market access. This is the key message of the recently published annual report from Oeko-Tex. New legal requirements in the EU, US and Canada increasingly demand that companies can prove the origin of their products and raw materials, as well as their manufacturing processes. Companies that can document their supply chain from raw material to finished product are therefore better prepared for customs inspections, regulatory audits and trade restrictions.

Beijing urged France on Thursday to abandon its recently implemented law on ultra-fast fashion, lambasting the new measure targeting major Asian e-commerce platforms including Shein and Temu as "clearly discriminatory".

The slump in Lululemon shares following weak figures and a revenue and profit warning is also expected to weigh on the shares of Adidas and Puma on Friday.

The main trading company of British department store Harvey Nichols owed an estimated 270.5 million pounds to unsecured creditors when it entered administration last month, with creditors expected to recover only a fraction of the money owed, according to a report from administrators FTI Consulting filed with the UK's Companies House.

US activewear brand Lululemon Athletica Inc. (Lululemon) reported a 4 percent decrease in net revenue to 2.4 billion dollars for the second quarter of 2026, ending August 2, 2026. On a constant dollar basis, net revenue fell 5 percent.

Victoria’s Secret is facing scrutiny once more in regard to its supply-chain practices after New York City’s Commission on Human Rights issued a compliance notice concerning a local casting call for its upcoming “Angels Among Us” campaign.

The potential sale of British online retailer Very Group is reportedly close to being scrapped after prospective buyers declined to meet the two billion pound asking price.

US lingerie retailer Victoria’s Secret & Co. achieved significant growth in sales and earnings in the second quarter of the 2026/27 financial year. In light of this recent positive development, management raised its full-year forecast on Thursday.

US-based smart eyewear developer Innovative Eyewear Incorporated has announced significant business progress for the third quarter of 2026. The Miami-headquartered developer and manufacturer, known for brands such as Lucyd, Lucyd Armor, Reebok, Nautica and Eddie Bauer, recorded record commercial performance alongside a series of retail expansions and strategic technology alliances.

US clothing retailer Lands’ End Inc. increased its revenue and returned to profitability in the second quarter of the 2026/27 financial year, according to an interim report published on Thursday.

Ermenegildo Zegna reported revenues of 987.3 million euros (1.15 billion dollars) in the first half, up 6 percent year-over-year and 9 percent on an organic basis. The direct-to-consumer channel drove the performance with a growth of 12 percent (+16 percent on an organic basis), accounting for 86 percent of the group's brand revenues. Meanwhile, the ongoing rationalisation of the wholesale channel across the three brands resulted in a 14.6 percent decline in wholesale revenues (-13.3 percent on an organic basis).

Poundland’s owner Gordon Brothers has reportedly launched a formal sale process for the budget retailer and is accelerating the search ahead of the Christmas trading period, a report by Sky News has suggested.

UK-based retailer Watches of Switzerland Group (WOSG) has reiterated its full-year guidance for financial year 2027 following a period of consistent trading momentum in the 17 weeks to August 30, 2026.

The UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint against Sports Direct over the use of a recommended retail price (RRP), as the retailer's parent company Frasers Group continues to challenge the regulator’s approach to price comparisons.

US apparel group PVH Corporation reported an expected decline in revenue in the second quarter of the 2026/27 financial year. The company also slipped into the red due to high one-off charges. The results, published on Wednesday evening, gave management no reason to change its full-year forecast.

Canadian apparel manufacturer Gildan Activewear (Gildan) is under investigation for potential securities fraud following allegations of channel stuffing that led to a sharp decline in its share price.

US fashion group G-III Apparel Group (G-III) has reported its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2027 ended July 31, 2026 with net sales decrease of 10 percent to 554.1 million dollars.

Following refuted speculation about disagreements between partners Alexandre Birman and Roberto Jatahy, the Brazilian conglomerate Azzas 2154 Group announced an agreement for a corporate reorganisation on September 2. The official statement confirms the separation of both companies.

After nearly 70 years as a wholesale-driven Canadian womenswear house, Joseph Ribkoff is making its most significant strategic pivot to date: the brand has launched its first global direct-to-consumer (DTC) digital flagship, unveiled a renewed brand vision centered on “Elegance in Motion,” and named Elizabeth Hurley the face of its new global campaign.

The China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) has rejected a non-use cancellation action brought by Alo Yoga against the Chinese trademark registrations for jewelry held by Alo jewelry CZ, s.r.o., the Prague-based jeweller announced on Tuesday.

Kontoor Brands, Inc. announced Helly Hansen's long-term growth strategy and 2030 financial targets on Wednesday, which Kontoor Brands will present at the Helly Hansen Investor Day. The plan is designed to scale Helly Hansen globally while significantly expanding its profitability through 2030, with a revenue target above 1.1 billion dollars — a compound annual growth rate of roughly 10 percent.

Danish industrial conglomerate Schouw & Co. has completed the acquisition of a 75 percent majority stake in Spectre, a family-owned specialised business-to-business (B2B) manufacturer of premium functional outdoor and sportswear apparel. The closing follows the initial agreement announced on July 2, 2026, after all regulatory approvals were obtained and standard closing conditions were fulfilled.

US brand management firm WHP Global and US fashion company G-III Apparel Group (G-III) have completed the acquisition of American brand Marc Jacobs from French luxury conglomerate LVMH. Concurrently, WHP Global and G-III have formed a joint venture to co-own the Marc Jacobs intellectual property and accelerate the brand's global expansion.

German premium brand Hugo Boss will terminate its share buyback program early following announcements from UK retail company Frasers Group that it intends to build a controlling stake of more than 50 percent in the business.

American apparel and accessories supplier Randa Apparel & Accessories (Randa) has acquired the operations and brand of US-based menswear company Untuckit. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Europe's leading textile federations called on the European Commission on Tuesday to set at 10 euros per parcel the handling fee it plans to introduce on small parcels arriving largely from China, according to news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Victoria Beckham Holdings Ltd reported an operating profit for the first time since it was created in 2008, the company announced on Monday. It rose 15 percent to 129.8 million pounds (175.7 million dollars) in the year to the end of December, marking the fifth consecutive year of double-digit revenue growth. It also posted a pre-tax profit of 3.38 million pounds (about 4.5 million dollars), compared with a loss of 4.85 million pounds (6.57 million dollars) the year before, while operating profit reached 7.3 million pounds (9.8 million dollars) against an operating loss of 1.6 million pounds (2.17 million dollars) in the previous year.

Mayors of five Bavarian cities are appealing to the state government to help save local branches of struggling department store chain Galeria from closure, according to German press agency dpa.

Inditex's French subsidiary generated a turnover of 1.91 billion euros for the financial year ending late January 2026 (+0.9 percent). This is a seemingly modest increase. However, it contrasts sharply with the overall decline in the French apparel sector.

Italian fashion group Aeffe, owner of Moschino and Alberta Ferretti, ended July with net debt of 112.61 million euros, barely moved from 112.37 million euros a month earlier, as it works to negotiate its way out of a financial crisis. Of that total, 96.37 million euros is short-term borrowing against 29.06 million euros of medium- to long-term debt and 12.82 million euros of cash, meaning more than three quarters of what the group owes falls due within a year. The company disclosed the figures in a statement on Monday.

Woolrich is closing its Bologna office in Northern Italy, resulting in 78 redundancies. According to the local newspaper 'Il Resto del Carlino', the final day of operations for the historic company's Bologna headquarters was yesterday August 31. The company was acquired last December by the Turin-based group BasicNet, which has decided to relocate the brand's activities to the Piedmontese capital.