Wal-Mart expands fashion line

Retail giant Wal-Mart is planning to develop additional fashion products for the customers of its Metro 7 fashion line. Stephen Quinn, senior vice president of marketing told of the company's plans at a Bear Stearns retail conference. He called the Metro 7 launch a "very important experiment to offer fashion-forward merchandise" and said of customers: "We found that if you make the fashion apparel available to them, they will buy it."

The Metro 7 line will be expanded with new product categories such as shoes and jewellery. Its apparel line will be upgraded with the introduction of organic clothing. Wal-Mart is also developing new marketing ideas, including movie and television initiatives.

"Later this spring, we believe the company will announce additional initiatives in its fashion offerings," said Bear Stearns retail analyst Christine Augustine. "In men's, we believe the company could announce a designer line, perhaps even a collection by Tommy Hilfiger." Augustine said that the retailer has been testing the line of urban apparel in one of its stores in Chicago and added that this had been a successful endeavour.

Wal-Mart is not complacent about its position in fashion. With a 40 to 50 percent share of all US basic apparel sales, the retailer is striving for an even larger share and better quality of its merchandise. A Wal-Mart spokeswoman told WWD that the company is looking to source more high end fabrics like silk and cashmere. "We have a ton of cashmere," she said.

Wal-Mart customers appear to be increasingly refined shoppers, demanding organic products. In response, the retailer is introducing organic food and apparel. It will even launch organic cotton baby clothes by George in June.

"We actually purchased an entire farm crop of organic cotton," said Quinn and added that the company will be "expanding beyond baby clothes into other organic apparel." The retailer is using a new marketing campaign called "Beyond the Basics" to target "selective" and even "sceptic" shoppers who only buy consumables. This campaign will help them to find upgraded products throughout the store.

Over the next 18 months Wal-Mart will be upgrading 1,800 stores with small-scale remodelling. It will begin the initiative in the New York metropolitan area with the reworking of electronics, apparel, home departments and bathrooms. Quinn said the remodelled stores would have a graphic look and feel to them. He also said that the company website is being redesigned to make it more attractive and functional.