Shop Talk

Rich guys love their manSpanx for looking thin

To the relief of many women (and men for that matter) out there, Spanx introduced its cotton-compression undershirts for men in February this year.

No surprise that a garment that helps hide unsightly potbellies and sagging rear-ends would be a hit. But I admit, I was surprised on a recent trip to Chicago to see Spanx for Men at the Neiman Marcus on Michigan Avenue. I thought, in my naïveté, that that product might be a bit downmarket for Neiman’s upscale male patrons.

I was wrong. Neiman wasn’t just passively selling Spanx — it was looping on a large screen a video extolling its virtues, gave it half a wall of display space and made sure the helpful salesman knew how to approach guys about Spanx without directly saying, “don’t think we can’t see your ample love handles.”

In an interview with Reuters on Thursday, Neiman Marcus Stores CEO Karen Katz (she becomes CEO of the whole company in October) said Spanx for Men has been a major hit.

“We have sold thousands of units of those Spanx for Men- it has been unbelievable,” Katz told us.  “Men in some ways are just as vain as women.” And lest any still-young, still-svelte man think he’ll never need them, she warned, “At some point you may get a little bit of stuff here and there,” pointing to her hips.

For a look at the modern man’s girdle, click here.

(Reuters photo)

Check Out Line: A smorgasbord of consumer earnings to parse

Check out the smorgasbord of quarterly earnings in the consumer sector.

Among the many companies to report earnings on Thursday were P&G, Burger King, OfficeMax, Colgate,  Fortune Brands, Bunge, Kellogg, Safeway and Mead Johnson. As usual, there was something for investors of all stripes.

P&G, for example, posted a better-than-expected profit, helped by its biggest volume gain in more than four years. That would please the optimists.

The pessimists, however, had their news to focus on as the world’s largest household products company, known for its Tide detergent (pictured), also forecast results for the current quarter below Wall Street’s expectations. Go figure.

Burger King reported a smaller profit, blaming severe winter storms during the period for weaker sales in North America, and the CEO said warned that high levels of unemployment and underemployment remained the biggest headwind.

Agricultural processor Bunge posted a weaker-than-expected profit and cut its full-year outlook. OfficeMax, the No. 3 U.S. offices supplies retailer, posted a higher profit as it gained market share and kept a tight lid on costs.

Meanwhile, Fortune Brands, known for alcohol, home products like Moen faucets and golf gear, affirmed its outlook from Tuesday in reporting its stronger profit and said it saw consumers “getting more active,” including stronger-than-expected remodeling activity in the housing sector.

Check Out Line: A denim blast from the past

Check out who is still selling jeans.

It’s Gloria Vanderbilt! Not bad for an 80-something heiress.

Oh, wait, it’s the brand that’s selling, not the heiress herself.

Gloria Vanderbilt was one of the top performing brands at Jones Apparel Group as the company posted earnings that beat Wall Street expectations.

“Gloria Vanderbilt was one of the drivers along with l.e.i. doing better than we expected,” CEO Wes Card told Reuters’ Phil Wahba in an interview. “The strength in Gloria Vanderbilt really showed up in the margins because that’s the highest margin brand.”

Overall margins for jeans were the highest in six years, Card said.

But the company is also looking to a newer name to help sell stuff, too.

Check Out Line: April showers bring strong earnings

Check out the latest wave of strong quarterly earnings from the consumer world.

Under Armour, Coca-Cola Enterprises, Estee Lauder, Ford Motor, Energizer Holdings and Group 1 Automotive were among the consumer-focused companies reporting stronger-than-expected profits, supporting the view that a corner has been turned in the economy.

Athletic clothing and shoe maker Under Armour posted higher-than-expected quarterly profit fueled by strong apparel and online sales, and raised its earnings outlook for the full year. The largest bottler of Coke beverages, Coca-Cola Enterprises, with growth in European markets, did the same.

Estee Lauder, the maker of Clinique, M.A.C. and other cosmetics, saw its profit more than double as women treated themselves to small luxuries such as new skin creams. It also raised its full-year outlook.

Ford posted a big profit as North American sales picked up and raised its 2010 outlook to “solidly profitable.”  The U.S. automaker cited market share and pricing gains and also raised its second-quarter North American production plan.

Energizer, which makes batteries, Schick razors and Playtex tampons, reported stronger-than-expected earnings but its sales came in below analysts’ forecasts as the battery market remained challenging.

Group 1 Automotive, the No. 4 U.S. dealership group, beat expectations as auto sales rebounded from last year’s slide.

Check Out Line: Whirlpool profit hits happy note

Check out the blowout earnings by Whirlpool.

The maker of Maytag and KitchenAid appliances posted a quarterly profit that left analysts’ expectations in the dirt. Try $2.51 a share compared with Wall Street’s estimate for $1.33. People, when a company tops expectations to the tune of $1.18, that’s crazy.

The strong results, not surprisingly, prompted the world’s largest appliance maker to raise its full-year outlook as well as its forecast for 2010 U.S. industry shipments.

The company had been hurt by the sluggish economy and weak housing market in North America — its largest market — but increasing demand for energy-efficient products and a federal stimulus program are luring shoppers back.

Not to be outdone, cigarette maker Lorillard posted a stronger-than-expected profit, helped by higher volumes and market share gains as U.S. smokers chose less expensive brands.

On the other hand, Alberto Culver, which makes TRESemme, Albert VO5 and other shampoos and personal-care products, reported a smaller-than-expected profit, hurt by a plant closure and a switch to new software in the United States that has created customer service problems.

Pessimists remain as a Harris Poll showed many Americans remain gloomy about the economy.

Rue La La eyes TJ Maxx more than Saks

A few weeks ago at an investor conference, Saks CEO Stephen Sadove admitted that some online sites like Rue La La and Gilt Groupe, which sell excessive inventory of luxury products at steep online discounts, were worthy competitors.

But an executive at GSI Commerce, which bought Rue La La last fall, says off-price chains like TJX have more to fear.

Many vendors have relied on off price stores such as TJ Maxx and Marshalls to help sell extra merchandise, but Rue La La has taken that concept online and is growing quickly.

“I think the wave we’re riding is a $50 billion offline, off-price industry,” GSI executive vice-president Fiona Dias told Reuters. “If you’re TJX this is not good — because people have invented a better mouse trap online.”

Dias said Rue La La is betting that shoppers looking for steep discounts on designer brands will prefer its sleek online service to what she said can be unwieldy off-price stores.

Dias said Rue La La was differentiating itself from Gilt by focusing on luxuryitems, but not those at the very highest end.

“Gilt is the Neiman Marcus and Saks sort of world, and Rue La La is more the Nordstrom end of the world — upscale but not crazy,” she said. Nordstrom has been doing well and stolen market share from Saks and other luxury chains.

Check Out Line: Ackman out of Sears Canada

Check out Sears Holdings getting a bigger stake of Sears Canada.

Hedge fund manager Bill Ackman (below) is selling his stake in Sears Canada, about 17.3 percent of the company, to Sears Holdings, the U.S. based operator of Sears and Kmart that is controlled by another hedge fund manager, Edward Lampert (right).

If you’re scoring at home, that will give the U.S. Sears a 90.4 percent stake in the Canadian Sears.

Sears is paying C$30 for the shares, or 66 percent more than it was willing to pay in 2006 for all of the Sears Canada shares it did not own.

Patience is its own reward. But cash is nice, too.

Also in the basket:

Amazon outlook disappoints, shares fall

Check Out Line: Would you like some wine with that weak economy?

Check out the latest poll on affluent consumers’ spending habits.

Affluent consumers around the world may be worried about the economy, but they are still spending on items they value most: food, wine and dining out, according to a study released by HSBC Global Pulse.

Seventy-two percent of those polled said the amount of wine they drank had not changed in the past year, while 67 percent said their spending on wine was unchanged, HSBC said.

Meanwhile, 73 percent still dine out nearly once a week and 39 percent still eat at restaurants at least three times a week, according to the study.

Of those polled, 80 percent have household income above $100,000 and 19 percent are above $250,000, according to HSBC. Fifty-seven percent are college grads and 43 percent have post-graduate degrees.

That’s not to say these consumers are unaffected by the weak economy as the most important criteria (95 percent) in wine purchases is “value/price,” according to HSBC.

Fresh food and well-known brands also scored well. Seventy-nine percent said they are willing to spend more for locally grown products, 62 percent would spend more for organic foods and 82 percent would spend more for well-known brands, HSBC said.

Check Out Line: McDonald’s picks up the U.S. sales pace

Check out the jump in U.S. sales at McDonald’s.

The fast-food chain posted a 4.2 percent jump in sales at comparable restaurants in March, almost triple the increase it saw in all of the first quarter.

Positive same-store sales have been an increasing rarity for McDonald’s in the United States as the company’s customers face high unemployment and as competitors have ratcheted up promotions.

But a revamp of the company’s beverage offerings, including the addition of frappes and fancy coffee drinks and a new breakfast dollar menu have helped attract consumers.

Globally, same-restaurant sales rose 4.2 percent in the quarter.

“Our momentum continues with April’s global comparable sales trending at least as strong as first quarter sales,” CEO Jim Skinner said in a news release.

Is KFC’s Double Down a double whammy?

KFC’s new, artery-choking Double Down sandwich is getting lots of media buzz — but is it helping the brand?

The breadless “sandwich” is just the latest in a long line of decadent dishes from fast-food chains. It features bacon, cheese and “the Colonel’s” special sauce sandwiched between two boneless grilled or fried chicken filets.  It’s a low-carb dream but a healthy eater’s nightmare as it is loaded with calories, salt and fat.

The Double Down landed in stores on April 12,  about a year after the company introduced healthier grilled chicken nationwide. Its debut has nutritionists calling foul and served as fodder for late night jokes, food blogs — including those run by CNN, the Los Angeles Times and Consumerist —  and all those guys who make videos of people eating the latest headline-grabbing fast food.

But according YouGov BrandIndex, which does daily consumer perception research on brands, the Double Down has helped erase all of the perception gains KFC won with the launch of its healthier grilled chicken.

KFC’s “buzz score” levels had been steadily declining for the past month, leading up to the Double Down’s debut last week, YouGov said. Such scores can range from 100 to -100 and are compiled by subtracting negative feedback from positive. A zero score means equal positive and negative feedback.

KFC’s buzz score, which fell as low as 11.5 on the day of the Double Down debut, was 24.4 on March 1 and is currently trending around 14.