Earnshaw's

Douglas Company, known for its plush products, has signed an agreement with Scholastic Media to produce Clifford the Big Red Dog plush dogs, as well as fashion plush, such as the Sassy Pet Sak.

 The Douglas Clifford collection will target specialty toy and gift stores in the U.S. and Canada and will debut at the Winter Shows and the 2012 International Toy Fair in New York in February.

Marvel Entertainment has appointed Jakks Pacific, manufacturer and licensee of assorted toys and figures for brands like Cabbage Patch Kids and The Smurfs, to create a line of plush products based on its Marvel Super Hero Squad.

The line-which ties into the new Marvel virtual online world, HeroUp.com - will launch at specialty retailers this spring and will be distributed in mass retail channels beginning in 2013.

Holiday sales rose by 4.1 percent, to $471.5 billion, topping the 3.8 percent growth initially predicted by the National Retail Federation, the organization announced Thursday.

December retail sales figures released by the Commerce Department Thursday show total retail sales for the month increasing by only 0.1 percent over November, but by more than 6 percent year-over-year.

Womenswear designer Isaac Mizrahi will launch his first line for infants. The line will be manufactured and distributed by the licensor bon bebe. The debut 25-piece collection will be available in department and specialty stores starting this fall. Mizrahi plans to eventually expand the collection to bigger sizes.

Go to a children’s wear market (or men’s or women’s) and look to your right. Now look to your left.

It won’t be long before you realize more than a few items look more than a little familiar. If you’re a buyer, you might see a bonanza of price wars.

If you’re a manufacturer, chances are you’re seeing red. Knock-offs, flattering though they might be, are the bane of designers’ livelihoods as copycat designs pop up at every tier.

These days knocking off top fashions has become something of a sport.. .

This is officially too funny.Our ad manager, Rita O'Brien, clearly takes her work home with her. First, her kids always want to know if her mood has anything to do with the number of ads she managed to sell that day.

Second, her daughter Stella has started speaking in fashion tongues. Just watch this video where she advises a young fan on where to get the best clothes.

Is wearing Right Bank Babies while touting Right Bank Babies a conflict of interest? No matter.. .