Susan Chandler

Five years ago, the story of 72 Thai garment workers held prisoner in El Monte, Calif., captured the nation's attention. The illegal immigrants, who sewed clothing for a supplier to...

Call it scavenger chic or junk collecting--decorating your abode with scuffed-up wooden crates or weathered stone cornices has been the height of home fashion for several years now. That's been...

There's plenty of evidence that mass and class don't mix in the retail world. Saks Inc. found out the hard way and now has plans to split into two companies,...

After almost a decade of casual workplace dressing, you'd think that most people would have the hang of it by now. They don't. Some men come to the office dressed...

As Sears, Roebuck and Co. has expanded its e-commerce business, it has stayed close to home--its shoppers' homes, that is. First, it sold Craftsman tools. Then Sears added appliances and...

Two years ago, the executives at Spiegel Group knew they had lost touch with their working women customers--sagging sales provided plenty of evidence. To get the catalog business back on...

For 20 years, Patricia Rhodes has crafted couture-quality evening wear in the Northwest suburbs. Her attention to detail and willingness to add a little flash and sizzle to her designs...

More and more specialty retailers have decided it makes sense to have two locations in downtown Chicago. Williams Sonoma, the upscale kitchen retailer, is keeping its store in the Chicago...

Jay Goltz is an old hand at weathering economic downturns. His custom framing business, Artists' Frame Service on Clybourn Avenue in Lincoln Park, has survived four recessions and is going...

Mattel Inc. could sure use a winner these days. Its $3.5 billion acquisition of the Learning Co. has flopped. Sales of Barbie dolls appear to have peaked. And exciting new...