General Merchandise

CHILLICOTHE, Mo. — MidWest Gloves & Gear has introduced a new line of fashionable garden wear for women.

MidWest said its gardening colors line features raspberry red, lime green and teal blue, used as solid colors, unique stripe designs and in combinations. The lineup includes a waist apron, canvas gloves and a sun visor with an adjustable headband.

“We are quite proud of the coordinated color statements made with this new group of products. They are good-quality items and they are visually exciting and fun,” said MidWest president Stephen Franke.

DUSSELDORF, Germany, and ROCKY HILL, Conn. — Henkel's 2010 sales grew 11.2% to nearly $20.8 billion during the year, the company reported in its financial earnings release.

Henkel's North American sector also experienced strong growth, garnering $3.75 billion in sales for the year, an increase of 7% from 2009. The company also noted that organic sales growth totaled 3.5%, mainly boosted by its adhesive technologies, although sales of the laundry and home care and cosmetics/toiletries business sectors declined.

CLEVELAND — Greeting card enthusiasts that want to know what's new in the card aisles before hitting the stores now can see the latest innovations online, thanks to a new page on American Greetings' website.

AmericanGreetings.com's new page now features the latest product introductions, a special downloadable coupon and a store locator so consumers instantly can find retailers in their area.

LOS ANGELES — The most talked about musical performances on the hit TV series, "Glee," is arriving on Blu-ray and DVD from 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.

Featuring a set list that includes back-to-back musical performances from the series' first season, including songs by Lady Gaga, Madonna and more, "Glee" Encore is a perfect part companion.

"Glee" Encore will hit retail April 19.

CINCINNATI — Fashion designer Kimora Lee Simmons is adding "fabulosity" to Bounty's "We Love Our School" Week.

As part of the paper towel brand's "We Love Our School" Week, which kicked off on Valentine's Day, Kimora Lee Simmons announced Friday the launch of the Make a Clean Difference Pledge, hosted at Bounty's Facebook page. The pledge allows parents and teachers to submit their schools to support clean, creative learning environments for children.

Consumers may have a bit more to spend for the 2011 back-to-school season, so retailers should tweak their merchandise plans to accommodate.


Perry James, an analyst at the NPD Group, said that over the past few years, dollar trends in school supplies have not kept pace with unit supplies. Consumers also have been waiting until the last minute to shop. “As the economy gets better, retailers should be careful about too many promotions late in the season,” James said.

SUPPLIER NEWS — Marcal has reformulated its Small Steps line, which is made of 100% recycled paper, the company said. Marcal Small Steps paper towels now are stronger when wet, while Marcal Small Steps two-ply bath tissue is softer. The company also will reformulate its facial tissues.



NEW YORK — TeleBrands, a developer of "As Seen On TV" products, has introduced three new innovations.

The lineup includes:

• Pasta Boat, a 5-in-1 pasta cooker that cooks, strains, serves, steams and serves. Complete with stay-cool handles, the steamer rack can be used to steam potatoes or vegetables right in the microwave. Pasta Boat cooks pasta in approximately 18 minutes and carries a suggested retail price of $9.99;