New York & Co. Rebrands To RTW Retailwinds

To highlight its ability to grow into new markets and categories, New York & Co. is changing its name to RTW Retailwinds. The move comes as the retailer seeks to top the $1 billion mark in sales, Chain Store Age reported.

“We are at a defining moment in our corporate reinvention, with a proven track record for developing celebrity and sub-brand collections that resonate with our consumers,”  CEO Greg Scott said in a statement. “Today, over 30 percent of our sales are generated digitally, we have optimized our retail footprint and have the talent and infrastructure to capitalize on our strengths.”

Along with the name change, New York & Co. has taken initiatives such as unveiling a Kate Hudson branded casual collection and rolling out a lingerie lifestyle brand, which will both have digital sites. At the same time, the company seeks to speed up its core brand growth via partnerships with celebrities such as Gabrielle Union and Eva Mendes.

The news comes as a recent study says that U.S. eCommerce will exceed $506 billion this year. By 2022, online retail sales will go beyond $712 billion. According to Retail Dive, the study, released by Forrester Research, shows that 98 percent of American adults already go online at least once a day.

Many shoppers are choosing eCommerce because the information they find online is often more helpful than what’s available in the store. And, by shopping online, consumers don’t have to deal with certain frustrations, such as not being able to locate sales help. In fact, 6 percent of all possible sales are lost because of a lack of service, according to a report last year from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management.

The Forrester study also found that more than half — 53 percent — of the $3.7 trillion U.S. retail market will be driven through digital touchpoints by the end of the year. In addition, more than $1.3 trillion of U.S. retail sales will be impacted by smartphones in 2018. As a result, 71 percent of retailers last year planned to increase their investment in web optimization.