THE COLLECTIVE DECISION: IT'S ITEMS THAT COUNT; COLLECTIONS TAKE A BACK SEAT AS RETAILERS SCOUR THE NEW YORK SHOWS FOR HOT PIECES TO JUMP-START LUKEWARM SALES.

Daily News Record, February, 2003 by ASKIN, ELLEN; GELLERS, STAN; LIPKE, DAVID; PALMIERI, JEAN E.

Buying collections is a thing of the past. Today's mantra is items, items, items.

Retailers scoured The Collective last week for that unusual, exciting piece -- from a Arnold Brant cashmere coat to a cycling print tie from Lee Allison -- they hoped would boost sales. "When traffic is off, you have to find interesting things to service your existing customers," said Don Guffey of Guffey's in Atlanta.

Other retailers agreed, but finding that elusive item was like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack. "The most interesting thing I've seen at the show is ...