Another Closure? Bon-Ton might be the latest store to face liquidation. In a hearing on Wednesday, the regional department store had a plan to pay a $500,000 fee to investors to stay out of bankruptcy rejected by a federal judge. This comes after Nine West Holdings, which owns Nine West, Anne Klein and Gloria Vanderbilt, filed for bankruptcy less than a week ago.
Men's Apparel: Nordstrom is debuting a men's store in New York City on Thursday. Menswear makes up 20% of the retailer's sales, according to Jamie Nordstrom, its president of stores. The store will have on-site tailors, personal stylists, 24-hour curbside pickup, and a bar and restaurant. Meanwhile, the US Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that men's apparel prices went down in March 2018—2.5% from the previous month and 0.4% year over year.
Consumers Have Spoken: Voice verification might have a future. In a Pindrop study conducted by The Harris Poll, 81% of US consumers thought there were benefits to using voice as a form of personal verification, and 48% would be likely to use it. Yet 94% felt there were drawbacks. Respondents' top three concerns were the technology not working because of background noise (61%), not working accurately every time (60%) and the potential for voices being cloned to hack accounts.