Page 6 - Ragtrader Magazine April 2020

6 APRIL 2020
NEWS WWW.RAGTRADER.COM.AU April:
The headline makers
1Ragtrader presents the stories that are shaping the industry.
Country Road encourages businesses to take charge
“You can’t wait for the government. As businesses, we use a lot of raw materials so how can we do that more sustainably?” Country Road MD Elle Roseby has called on the apparel industry to embrace circular fashion. In addition to having a Group-wide sustainability program, Country Road has been trialling micro initiatives. Roseby revealed one project involved Robe-based recycler Brad Scott, who created a homewares product for its flagship store. Scott collects disused bread clips and repurposes them in a kiln to create bowls. “We put them into our Chadstone store and they sold out,” Roseby said. The retailer has also worked with a Bangladesh denim vendor who regenerates disused denim into new fabric. “That’s the most frustrating bit for us,” she said. “There is going to be landfill but what is Australia doing, from a technology point of view, to address the issue?” Country Road is also a partner of rental site Glam Corner and Red Cross Fashion Trade.
3Who is Myer’s new womenswear hire?
Department store Myer has publicly announced an overhaul of its womens- wear department. Ragtrader can reveal the new hire is Sue Price, formerly in charge of Myer’s lucrative beauty business. CEO John King revealed the cosmetics department continued to break records during the competitive summer trading season, selling its highest ever rate of beauty gift sets with 800,000 cleared. “We have a clear plan to address the underperformance in womenswear with new management and a strengthened design team for Myer Exclusive Brands,” he said. Footwear, childrenswear and men’s fashion contin- ued to outperform the women’s fashion category, with shoe sales increasing over 40% during the half year due to a boom in sneaker culture. Skechers, Adidas, Tommy Hilfiger and Lacoste were cited as top sellers. King said while womenswear was significantly impacted by the exit of Country Road, mens- wear continued to trade well via brands such as Rodd & Gunn, Polo Ralph Lauren and yd. Gant is scheduled to launch across 18 stores in June.
Fast fashion site Verge wins case
Verge Design has successfully opposed a trademark application by Romani Clothing Co, ATF the Dionyssiou Family Trust. The attempted registra- tion would cover eyewear, jewellery, bags and leather goods, retail services as well as some apparel. Verge won on the basis of its Australian reputa- tion, having used the trade mark since July 1998 on women’s clothing. The Australian Trademark Office delegate ruled the brands could be per- ceived as one entity. “Give2n the strong reputation of the opponent’s marks in Australian fashion generally, their substantial similarity to the trade mark, the strong nexus
between the respec- tive goods and ser- vices, their use in the same markets and trade channels and examples of actual confusion hav- ing already occurred, I am satisfied that a con- sumer with an imper- fect recollection of those marks, on seeing the trade mark used on similar goods and services, might be con- fused or caused to won- der whether Verge Girl is a brand extension or otherwise associated with the opponent.”