Egypt

In the final part of this two-part series on the "20-Plus Things to Watch in Retail” section of JWT's Retail Rebooted report, I discuss 12 of these 20-plus things, including the mobile-powered consumer, shopping hotels and variable pricing. In part one, I discussed 10 trends contained in the report, including 3-D printing, alternative brand currencies and click-and-collect shopping.

The Children's Place announced that it's signed a 10-year franchise agreement with Fawaz A. AlHokair & Co. SJSC, known as "Fashion Retail," to open stores across Saudi Arabia. The first two stores are scheduled to open during the second quarter of 2012. Jane Elfers, president and CEO of The Children's Place, stated, "We are very excited to begin our international expansion beyond North America with a number of stores opening in Saudi Arabia this year."

American Eagle Outfitters recently opened stores in three new international markets — Morocco, Jordan and Egypt. The retailer opened its store in Jordan at the Taj Mall on Nov. 30; the Morocco store opened in Casablanca at Morocco Mall on Dec. 1; and the Egypt store opened in Cairo’s City Stars Mall on Dec. 10.

Apparel maker Joe’s Jeans opened a retail store in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the first of at least seven stores it plans to open in the Middle East. The store at the Mirdif City Centre is part of an agreement with MultiTrend International MultiTrend International Follow this company to open stores in conjunction with exclusive rights to operate retail locations and market the Joe’s brand in Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates.

Almost two weeks after Egyptian President Hosni Mubarek resigned following the high profile protests against his regime, the country is now under military rule. The United States Postal Service said the situation is now sufficiently stable for all its services to recommence.

By now, you've probably heard about the ridiculous tweet sent out by designer Kenneth Cole, who used the volatile situation in Egypt to promote his new spring collection.