WWD :Adidas Unveils New Originals Concept

BERLIN — In a move to keep it original, Adidas launched a new global Adidas Originals Neighborhood flagship concept here Thursday. It did so right where the 12-year-old label made its retail debut 11 years ago: at number 13-15 Münzstrasse.

“We didn’t want to move. It’s where our consumer lives,” noted Originals head Arthur Hoeld of the Hackescher Markt area. “But the new interior, which was completely changed, is about setting a new tone and freshening it up.”

Along with the new interactive HomeCourt format, which bowed in Beijing in February, the Neighborhood flagships represent the German sportswear giant’s first new retail concept in six years. Why now? “There’s a normal life cycle of retail formats. It’s a natural thing,” Hoeld said. “It’s time and we were ready to give the brand a new buzz. The brand has grown up.”

The Neighborhood flagships will be rolled out to both new and existing Originals venues in London and Shanghai this spring and summer, with New York, Paris and Seoul to follow sometime later this year. Tightly edited to display “the very best of the brand,” such as sneaker highlights and limited-edition releases, the Originals store environments will be tweaked to reflect each respective city. “No location will look the same,” Hoeld said. “Each will blend into its neighborhood.”

In Berlin, that means retaining a raw edge, with concrete the material of choice for the floors, walls and ceilings of the 3,200-square-foot space. At the same time, there’s a cleaner polish to the interior. More space has been left between the more clearly defined display units, each dedicated to one of Originals’ collaborations, such as with Topshop, The Farm, Opening Ceremony or Jeremy Scott, or product ranges such as Soccer World Cup series. Hang tags with a photo of the key image identify each, accompanied by a short synopsis of the story behind the collaboration or product line.

The footwear wall, according to Hoeld, is the heart and backbone of the space. Marked with a bold three-stripe slash, the zigzag shelves hold the latest models, while a smaller zigzag unit will spotlight special or limited editions, like the new ZX Flux. To mark the Berlin opening, one ZX Flux style has been printed with satellite photos of Berlin streets, and on Saturday, the full ZX Flux photo print pack for spring 2014 hit the shelves.

One key difference between the new Berlin Adidas Originals Neighborhood flagship and its predecessor is the gender split. Men’s and women’s occupy opposite ends of the sales floor; the display units are in white wood and bronze-toned metal for women and darker wood and metal for men.“We split it in order to better focus on the different genders,” Hoeld explained. “We have specific collections for women, which we would like her to enjoy in a dedicated and completely merchandised environment.”

The Berlin store design has a strong urban undercurrent, the lighting system bringing to mind city transit grids, while the brand’s signature Trefoil has been rebooted and crossed with a 3-D map of the area.

Each of the Neighborhood stores will work with local talents. In Berlin, it was graphic designer Saskia Hahn, who scratched the brand’s Berlin Manifesto across the windows to celebrate the opening, and photographer Oliver Rath, who visually translated the Manifesto’s love letter to Berlin into photographs that will appear around the city as well as in the store’s new multimedia back lounge.

Throughout the year, the store will host special events, from product launches to artist collaborations or sneaker breakfasts, with a person on board “dedicated to energizing the store,” Hoeld said. In addition, the brand’s Tumblr site will include a specific Berlin flagship area with store-related content as well as more general news about what’s happening in the German capital. “We want to be able to tell that neighborhood story,” he said.

>>> Fitch: Japan Consumption Tax Hike from 5.0% to 8.0% will not Derail Recovery

Fitch: Japan Consumption Tax Hike from 5.0% to 8.0% will not Derail Recovery
- The rise in Japans consumption tax on 1 April is not expected to derail its economic recovery, according to the March edition of Fitchs APAC Sovereigns Chart of the Month.
- Consumer confidence has dipped ahead of the hike, offsetting the increase recorded since the election of the Liberal Democratic Party-led coalition in December 2012 and the coming of Abenomics. However, a close reading of the evidence around a previous tax increase in 1997 suggests the drop may be short-lived.

(BFW) Lagardere Denies Decision Taken on Sale of Magazines

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BN 03/31 08:57 *LAGARDERE SAYS DECISION SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 2 BFW 03/31 08:57 *LAGARDERE DENIES DECISION TAKEN ON SALE OF MAGAZINES BN 03/31 08:56 *LAGARDERE SAYS TALKS CONTINUE WITH POTENTIAL BUYERS FOR TITLES BN 03/31 08:56 *LAGARDERE DENIES DECISION TAKEN ON SALE OF MAGAZINES

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Lagardere Denies Decision Taken on Sale of Magazines 2014-03-31 09:00:33.965 GMT

By Steve Rhinds March 31 (Bloomberg) -- The publishing group says talks continue with potential buyers for the titles and that a decision is scheduled for April 2. * NOTE: Lagardere to Sell Magazines to Reworld Media, Rossel, Echos Says {NSN N3A9B76K50YT <go>}

Link to Lagardere statement:{NSN N3ALZMBE07I8 <go>}

Link to Company News:{MMB FP <Equity> CN <GO>} Link to Company News:{MLREW FP <Equity> CN <GO>}

For Related News and Information: First Word scrolling panel: {FIRST<GO>} First Word newswire: {NH BFW<GO>}

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steve Rhinds at +33-1-5365-5072 or srhinds@bloomberg.net

WSJ : Asian Shares Rise as Quarter Ends

Asian Shares Rise as Quarter Ends

Asian stock markets continued to travel in different directions during the first quarter of this year but did so in unexpected ways—investors soured on China and Japan and returned to the fast-growing economies of Southeast Asia.

This marked a reversal of a key investment trend from late last year. Investors bet then that the economies of North Asia were positioned to benefit as the global economy gained steam, while emerging markets in Southeast Asia, particularly those with current-account deficits, would struggle as the U.S. Federal Reserve wound down its extraordinary monetary stimulus.

Instead, the Nikkei Stock Average has suffered its worst quarter in nearly two years, while the Shanghai and South Korean benchmarks are both in the red for the quarter. Meanwhile, shares in Indonesia and the Philippines are the region's best performers.

"In a way, the first quarter has been a bit perverse," said Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy and chief economist at AMP Capital in Sydney. "The emerging-market worries which had led some to focus more on countries with current-account surpluses haven't really panned out that way."

The key concern has been China. A string of disappointing economic data and bad corporate news has weighed on stocks and commodities. On the economic front, China's growth has slowed and there are signs of cooling in the property market. In addition, the country saw its first corporate bond defaults—raising fears of a surge in defaults.

Stocks in Hong Kong have fallen 5.1% for the quarter, while the Shanghai benchmark is down 3.7%.

In Japan, the Nikkei is down 9%, as the market pulled back from an extraordinary 57% rally in 2013. Sentiment toward Japanese shares has soured due to concerns about the impact of a higher sales tax that will take effect on Tuesday.

"The tax hike has been cited as a central factor behind much of the capital flight from Japan stocks over the last few weeks, but is now almost totally factored into the market," said Hiroichi Nishi, general manager of equities at SMBC Nikko Securities.

In contrast, markets in Indonesia and the Philippines have enjoyed healthy gains, rising 11.6% and 8.8%, respectively. Investors returned to these markets after fleeing last year ahead of the beginning of the Fed winding down its stimulus. Indonesia, in particular, has rebounded following a slew of data that showed the country's trade balance improving, inflation declining and foreign-exchange reserves swelling.

On Monday, Asian stocks maintained the positive momentum from last week ahead of the release of a wide range of economic data in coming days. On Tuesday, China will release its official manufacturing data for March and Australia's central bank will make a decision on interest rates, while at the end of the week attention will be on the monthly U.S. labor report.

Japan's Nikkei gained 0.9% to 14827.83 after the dollar gained 0.6% against the yen on Friday, before stabilizing on Monday. The greenback was last at ¥102.84. The Philippines PSE added 0.7% and Australia's S&P/ASX 200 added 0.5% to 5394.80, while South Korea's Kospi rose 0.1%.

In China, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.2% and the Shanghai Composite Index slipped 0.2%.

Chinese banks were in focus after China Construction Bank 601939.SH +0.25% reported that full-year profit beat estimates, rising 11.1% on the previous year. Its shares rose 0.9% in Hong Kong.

Also in Hong Kong, shares in lender Harbin Bank were unchanged in debut trading. Harbin Bank last week priced shares in its $1.1 billion initial public offering near the bottom of the proposed range.

(BFW) Aston Martin Said to Hold Talks With Daimler to Build Luxury SUV

Aston Martin Said to Hold Talks With Daimler to Build Luxury SUV
2014-03-31 07:50:55.847 GMT


By Brian Lysaght
     March 31 (Bloomberg) -- Aston Martin and Daimler are
holding talks to extend their cooperation to sport-utility
vehicles as Aston seeks to broaden its lineup, people familiar
with the matter tell Bloomberg’s Tommaso Ebhardt and Dorothee
Tschampa.
  * Daimler may share the underpinnings of a new full-size SUV
    with Aston Martin, said the people, who asked not to be
    identified because the discussions are private.
  * Story

For Related News and Information:
First Word scrolling panel: FIRST<GO>
First Word newswire: NH BFW<GO>

To contact the reporter on this story:
Brian Lysaght in London at +44-20-7330-7908 or
blysaght@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story:
James Ludden at +44-20-7673-2645 or
jludden@bloomberg.net