RTW Retailwinds, Inc. Announces New Digital-First Lingerie Lifestyle Brand

~ Uncommon Sense to Launch Today at www.uncommonsense.com
~ Collection comprised of Lingerie Lifestyle categories, including Intimates, Sleepwear, and Swim
~ Brand will be available at select New York & Company stores and www.nyandcompany.com

(Photo: Business Wire)

NEW YORK--()--RTW Retailwinds, Inc. [NYSE:RTW], formerly known as New York & Company, Inc. [NYSE:NWY], an omni-channel specialty apparel retail platform for powerful celebrity and consumer brands, announced the introduction of Uncommon Sense, a digital-first lingerie lifestyle brand which debuted at www.uncommonsense.com today.

Uncommon Sense has been led by a team of female entrepreneurs and features a lifestyle collection of bras, panties, sleepwear, and swimwear that not only looks great, but feels amazing all day. Pam Rice, Brand President for Uncommon Sense, states, “Our new lingerie-meets-leisure collection has been concepted to indulge the sensibilities of today’s modern woman featuring wear-anywhere, all-day luxury that provides uncommonly smart solutions to these categories.”

The brand will debut with a lifestyle assortment across the ‘sleep, beach, and everything underneath’ wearing occasions available at uncommonsense.com with an edited assortment soon available at New York & Company stores and www.nyandcompany.com. Along with its core collections, Uncommon Sense will feature curated stories including health and wellness, travel, and style available through its website to further amplify the brand’s lifestyle projection and build an engaging customer relationship.

Campaign Photoshoot available at www.uncommonsense.com.

Uncommon Sense promises to address the compromises many women are confronted with today, where trade-offs are made to look good and feel comfortable, yet also be stylish. “We started this journey by listening to our customers, specifically their challenges when shopping for lingerie. The common themes we heard brought us to solutions which is why our brand makes ‘uncommon sense’ in solving many of these pressure points,” according to Rice.

Uncommon Sense is part of RTW Retailwinds multi-brand portfolio, which includes New York & Company, Fashion to Figure, and two recently launched digitally-native brands including Happy x Nature, Kate Hudson’s first ready-to-wear collection which launched on April 4th, and Uncommon Sense, which is positioned to capture share given the disruption that is occurring in the lingerie lifestyle market. Commenting on the Company’s transformation to RTW Retailwinds, Greg Scott, Chief Executive Officer stated: “We are at a defining moment in our corporate reinvention, with a proven track record for developing celebrity and sub-brand collections that resonate with our customers. Our recent introductions of two new digitally-native brands reflect the team’s ability to leverage our competitive assets and infrastructure across design, digital, customer, and operations to develop and bring to market brands that address specific whitespace competitive opportunities.”

Uncommon Sense will be led by Pam Rice who brings over 25 years of industry experience to the position, having most recently led the reinvention and reposition of the GapBody brand and prior to that as Executive Vice President/GMM of Merchandising at Victoria’s Secret.

About RTW Retailwinds

RTW Retailwinds, Inc. (formerly known as New York & Company, Inc.) is a specialty women’s omni-channel and digitally enabled retailer with a powerful multi-brand portfolio providing curated lifestyle solutions that are versatile, on-trend, and stylish at a great value. RTW Retailwinds has grown to now operate 411 retail and outlet locations in 35 states while also growing a substantial eCommerce business. The Company’s portfolio includes New York & Company, Eva Mendes Collection, Gabrielle Union Collection, Happy x Nature by Kate Hudson, Fashion to Figure, Uncommon Sense and its subscription service, NY&Company Closet. Its branded merchandise is sold exclusively at its retail and outlet locations and online at www.nyandcompany.com, www.happyxnature.com, www.fashiontofigure.com, www.uncommonsense.com and www.nyandcompanycloset.com. Additionally, certain product, press releases and SEC filing information concerning RTW Retailwinds are available at the Company's website: www.nyandcompany.com.

Forward-looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements, including statements made within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Some of these statements can be identified by terms and phrases such as “expect,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “intend,” “estimate,” “continue,” “could,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “predict,” and similar expressions and references to assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable and relate to its future prospects, developments and business strategies. Such statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. These include, but are not limited to: (i) the Company’s dependence on mall traffic for its sales and the continued reduction in the volume of mall traffic; (ii) the Company’s ability to anticipate and respond to fashion trends; (iii) the impact of general economic conditions and their effect on consumer confidence and spending patterns; (iv) changes in the cost of raw materials, distribution services or labor; (v) the potential for economic conditions to negatively impact the Company's merchandise vendors and their ability to deliver products; (vi) the Company’s ability to open and operate stores successfully; (vii) seasonal fluctuations in the Company’s business; (viii) competition in the Company’s market, including promotional and pricing competition; (ix) the Company’s ability to retain, recruit and train key personnel; (x) the Company’s reliance on third parties to manage some aspects of its business; (xi) the Company’s reliance on foreign sources of production; (xii) the Company’s ability to protect its trademarks and other intellectual property rights; (xiii) the Company’s ability to maintain, and its reliance on, its information technology infrastructure; (xiv) the effects of government regulation; (xv) the control of the Company by its largest shareholder and any potential change of ownership of the Company including the shares held by its largest shareholder; and (xvi) other risks and uncertainties as described in the Company’s documents filed with the SEC, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise the forward-looking statements included in this press release to reflect any future events or circumstances.

Contacts

Investors:
ICR, Inc.
(203) 682-8200
Allison Malkin

Contacts

Investors:
ICR, Inc.
(203) 682-8200
Allison Malkin