Paco Underhill

About Paco Underhill

Paco Underhill is the CEO of Envirosell, a research and advisory firm with headquarters in New York City and offices across the world. He is the author of multiple books, including "Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping, Call of the Mall and What Women Want. Paco speaks across the globe to brands, merchants, trade associations and non-profit trade groups. p.underhill@envirosell.com.

There Is Trouble Down in Texas and Her Name Is Lulu

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There have always been turf wars in the fashion retail world. Competition is the backbone of our free market economy, but in the fashion industry, drama often trumps pragmatism. The most recent example, accelerated by Covid-19 is the news that Lululemon, from their secure base camp in Vancouver, has been in a clandestine war with Levi's, Wranglers, and Calvin Klein. The Pants Battle Jeans -- high end and low end - are pitted against the yoga pant as the CV-19 world perceives comfort and fashion. The net result of Covid-19 is that the war Lulu …

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Musings: Post-Pan Beauty and Culture

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As a high school junior, I got invited to a Spring Prom at a fancy private school in Wellesley, Massachusetts by a girl I barely knew. I rented a tuxedo with a Spring-white dinner jacket. It was a hot May night, and there were lots of slow dances. At the end of the evening I had lipstick on my cheek and a dark brown stain on the right side of my white dinner jacket where her makeup had rubbed off. The Tuxedo rental place charged me $25 to remove the stain when I tried to return the outfit. It was my first introduction to makeup and its …

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Farmers Markets During the Time of Coronavirus

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In the sea of the coronavirus, I've made my bi-weekly pilgrimage to the Union Square farmers market in New York for fresh food. Whatever the many other negative aspects to the pandemic lockdown - I'm am the lightest weight I've been in 30 years. Yes, it's the stress, but eating only at home, the fresh foods at the farmer's market and daily exercise have made a difference. In various other parts of the country farmers markets have been closed responding to the government requirements for social distancing. In LA the mayor shut down his city's …

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PostPan Generational Reflections

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At 10:00 in the evening as I sit in my West Village garden, the city is remarkably quiet. There is a dusting of white pear tree blossom petals everywhere. No jets passing over, the sirens are a distant wail in my deserted neighborhood. It is as if 150 years has disappeared. It hasn't. Next Gen Angst For my GenZ 19-year-old this is a cataclysmic time. It is the first time in her adult memory the broader world has intruded on her life, uninvited. Her college sent her home. Her physical isolation is profound. And while Zoom gatherings are a …

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Cash or Credit?

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New York City recently voted to ban retail businesses from credit card-only operations. City Government has stated that it is discrimination against New Yorkers who either don't have credit cards, or who simply want to pay in cash. Tender Greens and Sweetgreen's -- both millennial-focused food service operations - have been credit card-only businesses and they have been given nine months to change; reports are that the store managers are livid. They are not alone. The trend to cashless retail is growing. Across many cities in Europe and Asia, …

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Nordstrom 57th Street Opening Night

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A cast of thousands mostly well-dressed New Yorkers poured into Nordstrom's on 57th Street and Broadway on opening night to celebrate and examine the new entrant in luxury shopping in New York City. Those of us from the broader retail pundit community welcome a breath of fresh air and a new standard of service and friendliness to our landscape. That's the Nordstrom promise. On a chilly rainy night that level of friendliness was self-evident. Each Nordstrom interaction started with a smile and sense of genuine interest. Many of us noticed …

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Retail as Supporting Cast

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At 7:00 AM on a Monday morning, 70 percent of the almost five thousand slot machines at this Indian Casino in South California are occupied. How many stayed through the night and how many arrived after an early breakfast isn't clear. The data collection engines you might find on the Las Vegas strip haven't made it this far - but the latest IGT and Aristocrat slots have. The casino floor is windowless, the noise is loud, and the visual cacophony of screens is overwhelming. For the most part, the participants are seated and singularly focused. …

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What Women Want

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It is very dangerous in the 21st century for an aging man to talk about the changing status of women. A few years ago, I wrote a book, "What Women Want," on the topic and then hid under my desk. The book did well, now available in 14 languages. One of the feminist reviewers for a major American newspaper said in her review, "I picked this book up expecting to hate it - in the end it was mostly funny and sometimes funny uncomfortable." So please take what I have written below with the best of intentions. Female Decision Makers The most seminal …

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