Buzzed About Target-Neiman Marcus Collab Fizzles

Related: Target, Neiman Marcus, Apparel, Accessories

The Target-Neiman-CFDA collaboration was much-hyped and buzzed about but seemed to fall flat. The Missoni for Target collection crashed their website! And this event seemed to have all the components for a huge success. But for whatever reason, reports the Wall Street Journal, it didn't live up to expectations.

Both websites and stores remain well stocked. The only item sold out online is the zebra version of the Judith Leiber compact. A retail analyst told the Wall Street Journal he thought the collection prompted Target customers to shop in other parts of the store, which was one of the program's intentions, but sales were less than expected. "A [Target] employee commented that they expected the collection to sell out by the end of the weekend, but based on our early reads that felt unlikely," he said.

Neiman Marcus freshened up its brand image with the collaboration but they never saw the crowds they anticipated. The store at One North Dallas gave out wrist bands but the crowds never came. But Neiman Marcus is not a crowd type store.

"For our brand, it has been a good partnership," a Neiman Marcus spokesperson told the WSJ. "It has gotten high visibility among consumer groups that haven't thought of Neiman Marcus as a place to go for high quality affordable gifts."

Target, too, defends the partnership. "The largest misconception is that this was intended to be a one-day shopping event," said a spokesman.

What do you think? Do you think it was a success despite the non-site crashing results?