Tightening its grip on hosiery - AM: Special Supplement

Discount Store News, March 4, 1991

Tightening its grip on hosiery

* Black is still beautiful but options are nice, especially when it comes to tights. Opaque-style leg coverings and thick tights in a rainbow of colors and prints are delivering a needed kick to legwear for 1991.

The basic black tight made a relatively easy transition from the bodywear section to the fashion hosiery area at discount and apparel chains. Now, the hosiery departments at these stores are featuring expanded merchandise, from full-color stories to unusual patterns and textures. Both footless and full tights are being offered.

Retailers such as Venture and Caldor have redirected their hosiery sections to make room for hanging tights. While tights are generally part of the hosiery section, at stores like Alexander's tights are featured in the bodywear area, with bright florals and geometrics prominently displayed.

Retailers are happy with the category regardless of where it is placed because it is selling well on its own merits, without hurting other legwear business. According to Diane Kee, hosiery and bodywear buyer, Caldor, tights is a category unto itself.

"Sheers business continues to be flat, and tights don't seem to be hurting them any further. They also don't seem to be hurting bodywear leggings," she says. "It comes down to different customers. A person may not want to buy $16.99 leggings, but will spend $4.99 on an opaque pair of tights."

The category achieved $1.6 million in sales at Caldor for fall 1990. For spring, traditionally a slower tights season, the retailer expects to do at least $1 million. This is substantial for a category with only 12 feet of display space.

Knit bottoms of all types have in some ways replaced casual wear for women. Leggings and tights are now the more comfortable choice over even blue jeans. Molly Shifrin, merchandising manager, Danskin Legwear, notes that the phenomenon breaks through all levels of retailing.

"Age may be a barrier in some cases. Older women may feel somewhat undressed in just leggings," she said. "But younger women, no matter what size, love the idea." Even large-size women find that a well-fitting legging can look great under a long tunic top.

Danskin, New York, feels strongly enough about the category to devote an entire new line to tights. Although known mostly for its bodywear, including functional tights to match its activewear, Danskin Legwear will now offer fashion styles marketed specifically in hosiery departments.

The use of tights as accessories has also paved the way for better sales. "As we ride the recession, customers are looking for less expensive ways to make a fashion statement. Tights fit the bill," Shifrin notes.

Susan Cioffi, Willard Industries, notes that fresh styling on a basic tight creates merchandising opportunities.

While Danskin's line of bodywear tights include the brights important to the activewear market, its fashion line features more subdued earth tones. Burgundy, gold, and hunter green are part of the fall 1991 line, expected to include between 16 to 20 colors.

Color is also the key to Hanes' line. With tights generally considered a more casual legwear item than sheers, it provides the means to create broad ranges of color. In addition, Hanes is offering tights in a variety of weights.

"Color is very important to us," Kee says. "In the footless tights with the wide lace edge that we just put in, 70% of the business is in black and white. The color is more important in the cotton, footed versions."

Beyond color, the trend in tights is toward texture, which is being accomplished through printed patterns and special knitting techniques.

Hampshire Hosiery, New York, directed its line toward more tights styles last season. Blends of cotton/Lycra or cotton/nylon were featured in heavy jersey fabrics or lighter, traditional weights. The emphasis on tights will continue in its Flash Legs brand and in its various private label offerings.

One of the most fashion-forward prints is from Willard Industries. Its Caprice line of tights includes a '60s-inspired tie-dye look in light colors.

The success of this tight at all retail levels has surprised even the company. "It's great to see that even discounters and mass merchants are buying this item," Cioffi says.

At Hanes, texture takes on a more subtle approach. Cordes said ribs and other all-over patterns would be featured this fall.

Danskin also has a ribbed tight. The rest of the company's texture story is more sophisticated, featuring styles such as brocade.

According to Kee, Caldor will increase the number of textures in its category. "We had a ribbed style last fall that we couldn't keep up with. This year, we'll continue the rib and also offer a cable-pattern tight in various color assortments," she notes.

Shine is one of the more important trends for fall. Even companies providing the basic black tight will be making it shine. Shifrin points out that the shine is not achieved by color or metallic fiber, but by using a lustrous yarn.

One of the advantages of merchandising all of these types of tights is that they are not packaged like more delicate sheer hosiery. In most cases tights are banded and hung in the hosiery section. This gives retailers a greater degree of flexibility in presenting the merchandise, and customers can touch and examine the product.