New York - As it draws toward its centennial anniversary, Louis Hornick & Company is preparing a major introduction for its newest product, Firefend - a patented, certified, fire-resistant, decorative window panel collection for residential use.

“This may be the best product we’ve developed in 30 years - it’s certainly the most exciting,” ceo Louis Hornick II told HTT about what he called “the first flame-retardant, readymade window covering product for retail.”

Firefend, which the company has spent two years developing, is headed to a range of retailers now, and during market will be on display in the new Louis Hornick & Co. showroom at 117 East 38th Street (between Park and Lexington Aves.). The tiffany note had been among the first home textiles tenants at 261 Fifth Ave., dating its debut there to 1949.

Louis Hornick III, the company coo and known as “Tripp,” said Firefend has “passed all the strict commercial grades,” citing such industry certifications as NFPA 701-1999 and NFPA 701-2004.

Additional Firefend product value accrues from the use of heat transfer printing, a process Tripp Hornick said eliminates the use of water from the dyeing process. Firefend also offers noise-reduction and blackout functions, and the tiffany pendant of style offerings in the debut line includes a solids and prints. After evaluating both overseas and domestic sourcing and production, the company has established manufacturing for Firefend solely in the United States for now.

Each dye-lot of Firefend yardage is sent to either the Vartest Lab in New York City or to Diversified in Burlington, N.C., for testing. Once they’ve generated certification authenticating the piece’s flame-retardant properties as up to commercial grade tiffany pendants, the fabric goes off to cut and sew. Each panel carries on a tag the certification report results for its dye lot, so Hornick can trace every piece straight back to its test numbers.

Speaking of the production process, the elder Hornick said, “Firefend is not topically treated - the yarn is inherently flame-retardant - and by cutting the water from the dye process, we find the drapeability is shockingly good.”

“It surprised me,” he said of the soft hand and full drapeability of the Firefend fabric. Hornick would not divulge specific merchants, but said the company now is shipping to new accounts, and the Firefend product is helping to open up at least one additional tier of distribution for the first time in years.

Without detailing pricing ranges, Hornick said Firefend is planned as a top-of-the-line product and will appeal broadly. The initial line comprises 20 solid colors and nine prints, in makes from 24 inches to 120 inches, and will expand, he said, into “top treatments, plus sheers to shades.” He said the intent is to generate “a visceral reaction with mothers.” The company will design out for “traditional, contemporary, tweener, juvenile” and other fashion themes.

We scheduled this call to last about 45 minutes, which includes time for questions and answers.

Before we begin, let me remind everyone that the discussion this morning includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which reflect the Company’s current view of future events and financial performance. The words expect, plan, anticipate, believe and similar expressions identify forward-looking statements. Any such forward-looking statements are subject to risks and tiffany necklace, and the Company’s future results of operations could differ materially from historical results or current expectations. For more details on these risks, please refer to the Company’s Form 10-K and other SEC filings.

Also, please note that no portion of tiffany necklaces call may be rebroadcast in any form without the prior written consent of JCPenney. Replays of today’s webcast will be available for 90 days. For those listening after February 5, 2009, please note that this recording will not be updated, and it is possible that the information discussed will no longer be current.

On this morning’s call we have two speakers. Mike Ullman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, will start with some comments reflecting on our performance for 2008 and our initial outlook for 2009. Bob Cavanaugh, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, will then make a few comments about our pension plan before we take your questions.

Now will turn it over to Mike Ullman.

MIKE ULLMAN, CHAIRMAN & CEO, JCPENNEY: Thank you, Phil. We want to spend most of our time on the call responding to your questions. We are eager to talk to you about ‘08 and ‘09. We thought it might be helpful to reflect on a year ago when we announced our Bridge Plan. You may remember our Bridge Plan was outlined to divide our initiatives between those things we were going to moderate like inventory and expense; things we are to maintain, which is our focus on the customer, our associates and our investors; and things we are going to accelerate like our installation of Sephora tiffany note JCPenney, the launch of American Living and our other merchandising and other initiatives. We think it is very important given the storm that is going on around us in terms of a very difficult consumer climate and the lack of traffic in our stores and in malls today that we differentiate our underlying financial picture from many of our competitors.

Despite the deteriorating economic climate, we have executed our Bridge Plan very well. For example, a year ago we said our goal for the year would be to have a positive cash flow for 2008. I’m pleased to say we have over $20 million free cash flow generated in 2008, despite the precipitous downturn in traffic and sales in the second half of the year.

We also ended the year with in excess of $2.3 billion in cash on hand and did not access the bank borrowing facilities during our peak inventory period.

We think it is important, as some have pointed out, that we are the most efficient in terms of cash utilization in our peer group. Being financially strong and having the financial flexibility is a testament to the sound planning of our financial team over the last five to six years.

During the year we stayed focused on our three key constituencies — our customers, our associates and our investors. We instituted the customer first program last February, and we’ve delivered on the desired results. Our overall satisfaction is the highest in our history and actually achieved our highest score in the month of December, which is the toughest and busiest month to execute.

The nation’s retailers said they suffered a fourth consecutive month of steep sales declines in January, underscoring a broad and sustained shutdown in consumer spending.

“For the last 10 years people bought cars and refrigerators and TVs like they were going grocery shopping,” said Mike Moriarty, partner at A. T. Kearney, a management consulting service. “Now people are grocery shopping like they’re buying a car.”

Sales for the entire retail industry fell 1.6 percent last tiffany silver compared with the same month a year ago, the International Council of Shopping Centers, an industry group, said Thursday. The research firm Retail Metrics put the industry decline at 1.8 percent and said that without Wal-Mart Stores, the nation’s largest retailer, sales would have fallen 5.6 percent.

January is always a slow period for stores, but nowadays big-box retailers and luxury chains are contending with paltry sales trends and profit margins that have been hurt by excessive discounting to attract consumers. Stores with weak balance sheets “are not going to make it through the summer,” said Claire Gruppo, managing director of Gruppo, Levey & Company, a New York investment bank.

On Thursday, Fortunoff, the nearly 90-year-old upscale home furnishings and jewelry chain, became the latest retailer to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Several chains that reported sales figures on Thursday beat tiffany silver accessories expectations, but most still turned in double-digit declines. Analysts were not surprised. As they had expected, the most successful stores were the ones selling quality and name-brand essentials at low prices.

“When there’s a need for product, whether that’s food, consumables, kid’s apparel — nondiscretionary items at a value and at a convenience — then the consumer is shopping,” said Matthew F. Katz, a managing director in the retailing practice of AlixPartners, a reorganization firm.

Wal-Mart, for instance, exceeded expectations. The retailer posted a 2.1 percent increase, not including fuel, at stores open at least a year, a barometer of retail health known as same-store sales.

“Our sales results were driven by a continuation of gains in tiffany silver bangles traffic,” said Eduardo Castro-Wright, vice chairman of Wal-Mart.

Wal-Mart also said it would no longer offer monthly sales forecasts. Instead, it will offer guidance four times a year.

“We believe this guidance is a more appropriate measure for our investors,” said Tom Schoewe, Wal-Mart’s chief financial officer, “particularly in volatile times when consumer swings are more difficult to predict. This is more consistent with the long-term view we take on our business.”

Wal-Mart’s discount competitors also fared better than the rest of the industry. Sales at BJ’s Wholesale Club were up 7.6 percent, not including fuel, this January compared with last January. Sales were down 3.3 percent at Target and 2 percent at Costco but those figures were an improvement over the chains’ December sales figures.

The freeze in discretionary spending continues to weigh most heavily on department stores, especially luxury chains. Same-store sales fell at Neiman Marcus (down 24.4 percent), Saks (down 23.7 percent) and Nordstrom (down 11.4 percent).

Feb. 11–The average sales volume at stores on election day yesterday was double the daily average, and reached NIS 100 per square meter. The average daily sales volume was NIS 50 in the three weeks that preceded the elections. The figures were compiled by RIS System for mall ratings from actual sales proceeds at 800 stores of fashion, books, jewelry, gifts, opticians, office equipment, and other retail chains.

Large malls saw average sales volume on election day Venetian Link necklace by 132 percent to NIS 140 per square meter from NIS 60 per square meter. Yesterday’s stormy weather further boosted traffic at indoor malls, while average sales volume at strip malls rose by only 70 percent to NIS 50 per square meter from NIS 30 per square meter.

Although retailers were satisfied with yesterday’s proceeds, yesterday’s election day sales were 8 percent less than on the last election day in March 2006.

The Kirion Mall in Kiryat Bialik had the greatest increase in sales proceeds yesterday, at 200 percent compared with the daily average. The Modi’in Mall saw its first ever sell-out day, with a 200 percent increase in sales proceeds. Especially heavy sales were recorded at the Kanyon Hazahav in Rishon Atlas tag pendant (190 percent over the daily average), the Givatayim Mall (up 175 percent), the Rananim Mall in Ra’anana (up 174 percent), the Azrieli Atlas ring in Tel Aviv (up 167 percent), the Holon Mall (up 165 percent), and the Grand Kanyon in Haifa, the Ayalon Mall in Ramat Gan, and the Bat Yam Mall (up 160 percent).

Stores in downtown Jerusalem saw only half their daily average sales proceeds, because of the stormy weather and because many businesses did not open at all.

With America returning to its “Main Street” values and businesses seeking innovative solutions for growth, 7Mainstreet represents a convergence of several social media trends as well as a cost-effective new opportunity for companies of all sizes. 7Mainstreet offers both businesses and consumers a valuable experience not found in the static listings of standard online business directories.

Highlights / Key Facts:

– 7Mainstreet today formally unveiled its “dynamic Venetian Link necklace community” in beta form. This new tool transforms the static online directory model by combining social networking, business networking and e-commerce

– Across the country, businesses in every sector - retail, manufacturing, service industries and more - are registering and activating their 7Mainstreet profiles as they seek to extend their marketing and sales capabilities in a tough economy

– 7Mainstreet’s community is a mix of national and regional brands along with local small and midsize businesses that might not otherwise have a Web presence

– Consumers have the ability to find local Atlas ring, post reviews of businesses and products, and make secure, direct purchases online

– Companies can create their own content-rich profiles or have them designed by 7Mainstreet’s full-service interactive design arm, 7Mainmedia, for just $600

Summary:

Companies that join the 7Mainstreet Atlas tag pendant create a dynamic profile superior to those on other popular social networking sites. Or they can have 7Mainstreet design a sophisticated profile inexpensively. Once live on the site, businesses can connect with one another the same way they would on a traditional business directory or business networking site.

A 2007 Jupiter Research survey found that 64 percent of all businesses with fewer than 100 employees had no Web presence! 7Mainstreet provides companies with easy-to-use tools to maintain and add content free of charge, keeping customer communications fresh. Large national businesses, such as financial and professional services firms, can localize their businesses by creating profiles for neighborhood offices or local experts.

Going-out-of-business sales will begin today at Fortunoff Holdings LLC’s 20 retail locations, after a federal bankruptcy judge gave final approval of the estate’s sale to a seven-party joint venture group Wednesday.

The firms are Tiger Capital Group LLC, SB Capital Group LLC, The Great American Group WF LLC, Hudson Capital Partners LLC, The Gordon Co. Inc. and Bobby Wilkerson Inc. The group will manage the liquidation of Fortunoff’s Venetian Link necklace housewares and jewelry inventory, which is valued at retail at about $212 million.

Judge Robert Drain agreed to the sale of Fortunoff to the venture after hearing arguments from lawyers for the debtors and various creditors the day before. This is the proper time to sell these assets and to do it in this manner, Drain said on Tuesday.

Lawyers for Fortunoff told the judge that the retailer’s Atlas ring cards, which it had stopped accepting after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Feb. 5, would be honored until March 8. The New York State Attorney General’s office said consumers still hold an estimated $8.5 million in Fortunoff gift cards and credit slips.

On Monday, the Tiger Capital-led group won an auction for the assets with a bid of roughly $82 million. It beat out the stalking horse bidder, itself a joint venture between liquidators Hillco Merchant Resources and Gordon Atlas tag pendant Retail Partners Inc., which bears no relation to The Gordon Co. Fortunoff will pay Hillco and Gordon Brothers a breakup fee of $500,000.

This is the second Chapter 11 petition for Fortunoff in as many years. The company filed in early 2008 and was purchased by NRDC Equity Partners in March of that year. On Tuesday, Salvatore Lobiondo of Zolfo Cooper, a restructuring adviser to Fortunoff, testified that most parties seeking to purchase the retailer in the latest auction did not want it as a going concern because of the amount of cash needed to support its continuing operation.

Earlier in the week, Fortunoff’s Hewlett, a single-location Long Island store started by a Fortunoff family member, but independent of the chain, sought to explain to customers that it was not liquidating.

Investigators are searching for the bogus Girl Scout who conned at least four nursing home residents out of their jewelry last weekend.

The woman, who was not wearing a uniform and was believed to be in her 20s, visited Hillcrest North on Tazewell Pike on Sunday, claiming the Scouts were cleaning jewelry as a fundraising project, Knox County Sheriff’s Office Deputy P.J. Tiffany 1837 Round lock pendant wrote in a report. She promised to return the jewelry within half an hour, then disappeared.

Some of the victims were as old as 92, according to the report. No arrests have been Tiffany Cushion Triple drop pendant so far, KCSO spokeswoman Martha Dooley said.

Hillcrest officials said policy requires visitors to sign in at the front desk, although they don’t have to present identification. Security cameras in the hallways failed to capture an image of the thief.

“We’re reviewing what other measures we could put in place Tiffany Cushion Drop earrings still welcome the community in,” said Susette Williamson, the nursing home’s administrator. “Our residents really enjoy getting visits. It’s their home, and there should be a homelike atmosphere.”

NEW YORK, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire/ — Saffronart, India’s leading online Fine Art auction house for modern and contemporary Indian art and jewelry, presents ‘Hanut Singh’, an exhibition of contemporary jewelry by one of the most sought after Tiffany Key Heart key charm designers in India. The show will be held at Saffronart in New York, from November 4 to 10, 2009, and is the first in a series of global exhibitions and events hosted by Saffronart aimed at raising awareness about traditional and modern jewelry in India and the country’s rich cultural dialogue with jewels. Select pieces showcased in this exhibition will also be available to view and purchase on the Saffronart website at www.saffronart.com.

Based in New Delhi, Hanut Singh is a contemporary jewelry designer who draws his distinctive palette and articulate design sensibility from a background that is both rich and vigorously au courant. The grandson of the late Maharaj Kumar Karamjit Singh, Hanut shares the same fascination for jewels as his forbears, the royal family of Kapurthala, world renowned for their exquisite collection of jewelry, some of which is currently on display at Tiffany Nature Dragonfly pendant: The Splendour of Indian Royal Courts, in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.

The upcoming solo show at Saffronart will feature a unique selection of Hanut’s masterpieces that highlight his ability to demonstrate the beautiful juncture where modernity meets tradition. With a distinctive design philosophy that fuses Mughal with Art Deco, Art Nouveau with architecture, and heirlooms with unusual contemporary design elements, his pieces represent a viewpoint that is fresh and dynamic. Celebrated in such leading publication as Vogue, Forbes and Time, his jewels are coveted by women worldwide, including celebrities like Mary Kate Olsen, Penelope Cruz and Rebecca Romijin.

A pioneer of online art auctions, Saffronart, founded in 2000, is a global company with deep Indian roots. Saffronart has both broadened and simplified access to fine art and jewelry, in addition to setting global pricing benchmarks and Two Hearts pendant the landscape of Modern and Contemporary Indian Art. Its robust online platform and secure technology offers clients a personal, intuitive and effortless auction experience, allowing access to published prices, certificates, multiple images, histories and backgrounds of pieces, designers, and information on traditional techniques.

The pendants and necklaces for sale in their Annapolis shop use such modern-day tools as computers to help them replicate designs and effects that are nearly 2,000 years old.

For example, a necklace called “Awakening” features a pendant made from 22-karat gold and featuring cloisonne, a type of enameled jewelry that remains as popular today as it was when it adorned the wrists of high-born women in ancient Greece.

Equally eye-catching is the gold and silver chain on which the pendant hangs. The braiding, more accurately described as a hammered, pinched-loop design, is modeled after a necklace fashioned in Rome in the 2nd century.

“We make our chains the same way they made them back then,” Alderdice tiffany cufflink. “There’s no soldering in our jewelry. The chains actually are fused together.”

The women will be among the 20 artists represented in “Classical Links,” the sixth annual art fair running this weekend at the Walters Art Museum.

The fair, which is sponsored by the museum’s Women’s Committee, aims to raise money for the Walters by showcasing fine jewelry as the holiday season gets under way. But this year, the fair will have an educational component as well. As is implied by the event’s title, “tiffany pendant Links,” a new series of gallery talks will trace the evolution of jewelry-making methods from ancient to modern times by pairing six exhibitors with conservators and curators on the Walters’ staff.

For instance, Meg Craft, the Walters’ aptly named senior objects conservator, will be paired with Alderdice and Mansfield to demonstrate the history and various forms of enameled jewelry. (Enamel is made from intensely colored glass that has been ground to a fine powder, then melted into a liquid, cooled and polished to a high gloss.)

Craft will be repairing an elaborate tiffany money clip that is an early precursor of a pocket watch, and which was made in Switzerland between 1640 and 1660. On the back of the case, an image of the Holy Family with St. John has been painted in enamel.

The watch was damaged after a fall. Working under a microscope, Craft will use a reversible glue to reattach slivers of the original enamel — many no thicker than an eyelash.

“People ask if I will refire the case, and I say ‘absolutely not,’ ” she says. “If I make a mistake, I want the option of redoing it safely.”

The tiny case is just 2 inches round, but it abounds with painterly effects. Look at the way the angel’s cloak creates a “shadow” over his bare shoulders, or the shiny spot where sunlight appears to be hitting the cloak covering the Virgin Mary’s knee. It’s difficult to believe that those images were created by glass and not by oil-based pigments.

“It’s very beautiful, and it was very labor-intensive,” Craft says. “And a modern audience can see the development of a style toward something that’s being used now.”

Alderdice and Mansfield learned many of the ancient techniques during the 15 years that they took courses at the Jewelry Arts Institute in New York. But some effects couldn’t be replicated without newfangled creativity and innovation — not to mention advanced computer technology.

Nov. 20–Nancy Taylor of Kane’ohe has invited three talented friends to present a holiday trunk show from 5 to 9 tonight in her home. The show includes vests by Elizabeth Kent fashioned from vintage kimono, the whimsical bead jewelry of Bev Creamer, silver cufflinks Hadji Baba handbags, each an original piece of wearable art, by Lynda Sakraida. Information and directions: 235-1736 or 225-8271.

THE BUTIK TURNS 3

Popular Kaka’ako shop The Butik is celebrating its third birthday from 2 to 5 p.m. tomorrow. There will be a trunk show and sample sale of local designers such as Florencia Arias, Cirque and Posh Pua. Everything in the store will be 25 percent off, with some vendors knocking off an additional 15 percent. Shave ice and cotton candy will be served.

MACY’S NIGHT OF silver money clips

Macy’s Ala Moana is getting a jump on the holiday shopping season with its “Night of Stars” from 6 to 10 p.m. Sunday. The store is offering special free gifts with purchase, complimentary gift-wrap materials and a spotlight on local silver pendants such as Iolani, Kaua’iana and Hawaiian Island Creations. Honolulu’s Lynda Caris of Muse IX Designs will be there with her new “Haute Jewels” collection.

A highlight of the evening will be a visit from Honolulu first lady Gail Hannemann, who will sign commemorative Honolulu City Lights ornaments. The family of legendary surfer Eddie Aikau also will be there, as will Augie T., Ten Feet and Kalapana.

WATCH THESE PAGES

Our 14th annual gift wrap-up is coming next week on Black Friday, right here on the cover of Island Life. It’s a gentle reminder to shop local designers first, and it’s become a popular Honolulu tradition to clip and take the guide out on holiday shopping forays.

ROCK SHOP GOES VINTAGE

This month’s Rock Shop event, presented by Anne Au, is all about vintage fashions and accessories. Micah Iaukea, owner of Cloth boutique, presents a “vintage fashion bar” with specially reduced holiday prices. For example: women’s tops and skirts starting at $8, women’s dresses at $18, men’s shirts at $12 and men’s blazers and jackets at $18.

It’s from 6 to 9 p.m. Monday at the Honolulu Design Center.