Skechers has added University of Southern California basketball standout Kiki Iriafen to its Skechers Basketball roster, while simultaneously welcoming Misa Rodríguez, goalkeeper for Real Madrid CF and 2023 World Cup champion, to its Skechers Football family.
USC forward Kiki Iriafen. – Skechers
Iriafen, expected to be a top pick in the upcoming 2025 WNBA Draft, will step into her professional career wearing Skechers Basketball footwear.
Currently averaging 18.6 points and 8.5 rebounds for USC while pursuing a master’s degree at the Marshall School of Business, Iriafen joins fellow WNBA star Rickea Jackson and NBA standouts Joel Embiid, Julius Randle, and others in the Skechers basketball family.
“After two years on the court in the NBA and WNBA, it’s a big moment for Skechers Basketball to sign Kiki, our first college player, and embark on the journey with her as she begins her professional career,” said Michael Greenberg, president of Skechers.
“Kiki is a rising star with a bright future in the league. We look forward to supporting her from the draft through her first season and beyond. As the second woman on our basketball roster, she also furthers our mission to engage with female athletes around the world so that more players everywhere experience the signature Comfort That Performs of Skechers.”
On the football side, Skechers signed Misa Rodríguez, who will compete in the brand’s high-performance SKX_1.5 Elite boots and appear in upcoming global campaigns.
Rodríguez adds to a stacked football roster that includes global stars like Harry Kane, Mohammed Kudus, and Oleksandr Zinchenko.
“We are very proud to have a player like Misa in the Skechers Football family, who, among many characteristics, stands out for her confidence, leadership, strength, and precision,” said Txerra Díaz, country manager of Skechers.
“We continue to strengthen our position in the sport with a product of exceptional quality, already recognized for offering a technicality and comfort that allow for better and greater performance on the field.”
After Off-White, Palm Angels and Alanui, also Ambush has left the struggling New Guards Group (NGG). The latter, a division of British e-tailer Farfetch, which was bought by Korean conglomerate Coupang in early 2024, acquired a majority stake in Ambush in 2020. Ambush’s founders, designer Yoon Ahn and rapper Verbal, have now bought back their stakes in the label.
Japanese rapper Verbal (left) and Korean designer Yoon Ahn – Ambush
The value of the transaction was not disclosed, but the operation, completed on April 11, marks a new departure for Ambush, a label with an avant-garde, deconstructed aesthetic. In a press release, Ambush said that “having gained complete independence again, [it] is planning to broaden its presence, expand its digital and high-tech initiatives, and continue to deploy new cross-genre collaborations with fashion, music and more.”
The label, born in 2008 with a jewellery collection, was set up jointly by influential Japanese DJ, musician and producer Verbal, and Korean designer Yoon, who grew up in Seattle. Ambush then introduced streetwear-influenced women’s and men’s ready-to-wear collections inspired by sub-cultures and the music world. The label operates a store in Tokyo and has grown in the last five years thanks to prestigious collaborations with the likes of, among others, Nike, Sacai, Off-White, Undercover and Bulgari.
“Regaining full ownership enables us to fully express the core values and original vision upon which Ambush was built,” said Creative Director Yoon. “Taking back ownership is an important milestone that restores our freedom to pursue innovation and deepen our community connections globally,” said Verbal, CEO of Ambush.
NGG has been gradually divesting its leading labels, with Off-White and Palm Angels recently bought by New York-based brand management company Bluestar Alliance, while Alanui’s founders Carlotta and Nicolò Oddi bought back their stakes last March, and seems destined to being dismantled. The Milan-based group, which also owns Marcelo BurlonCounty of Milan, Unravel Project, Heron Preston, Kirin Peggy Gou and Opening Ceremony, has been beset by financial difficulties, and last year applied for bankruptcy protection in Italy.
NGG was acquired by luxury e-tailer Farfetch for over €600 million in 2019, and was penalised by the economic crisis and the waning popularity of streetwear, as well as being burdened by Farfetch’s own problems. NGG’s future outlook clouded further after Farfetch was bought by Coupang, which indicated that it would chiefly focus on the e-tailer’s online business.
Indian diamond merchant Mehul Choksi has been arrested in Belgium, his lawyer said Monday, in connection with a case of alleged bank fraud.
AFP
Choksi and his nephew Nirav Modi fled India in 2018 and are being accused of playing a central role in a $1.8-billion fraud involving Punjab National Bank (PNB), the country’s second-largest public lender.
The case is one of several bank scandals that sparked public outrage in the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
“My client was taken into custody on Saturday and at the moment he is in prison,” Vijay Aggarwal told reporters on Monday, adding that they would file an appeal for release on grounds that Choksi was not a flight risk and was in ill health.
The arrest was made following an extradition request by India based on two non-bailable warrants that were issued by a Mumbai court in 2018 and 2021, according to local media.
Aggarwal, when asked about the request, said they would argue that it was a “political” case and mount a defence on grounds that Indian prisons have inhumane conditions.
His nephew Modi was dubbed a jeweller to the stars thanks to celebrity customers in Hollywood and India’s Hindi-language movie industry Bollywood.
Indian authorities have seized assets of Modi worth around $90 million including his jewellery business, overseas bank accounts, a London property worth around $7.8 million and two others in New York valued at $29 million.
In 2022, Modi, who is currently in custody in the United Kingdom, lost an appeal against extradition to India.
Pull&Bear, the youth-oriented fashion brand part of the Inditex portfolio, is reinforcing its presence in the United Kingdom with the strategic relocation of its London flagship. As part of its broader international development plan, Pull&Bear has unveiled its new flagship store at 207–213 Oxford Street, in one of the British capital’s most iconic and high-traffic retail thoroughfares. The brand previously operated a location at 315–319 Oxford Street, which closed its doors two months ago.
Exterior of Pull&Bear’s newly relocated flagship store on London’s iconic Oxford Street – Pull&Bear
Covering an expansive 1,391 square meters split across two levels, the newly opened store has been designed with a digitally enhanced, minimalist concept in mind. The space showcases a sleek, modern aesthetic characterized by metallic surfaces, industrial design elements, and refined wooden accents. As part of the interior concept, Pull&Bear collaborated with street artist Navinder, who contributed a collection of exclusive, site-specific installations that reflect his distinctive artistic signature and add a creative dimension to the shopping experience.
The store’s interior has been organized using a modular room system, allowing for optimized product visibility, clear navigation, and a smooth, elevated customer journey. Among the new features introduced are assisted self-checkout stations, and a dedicated service point for online order collection and returns. Additionally, the store features a uniquely immersive space dubbed the “Pull&Bear Room”, located within the fitting area and specifically designed to encourage customers to engage with the brand on social media platforms such as TikTok.
The store is carefully segmented into dedicated areas for womenswear, menswear, footwear, and accessories. It also features a space for Pacific Republic, Pull&Bear’s in-house women’s collection, and an area devoted to its urban sub-brand STWD, where the brand has unveiled an exclusive unisex capsule collection. To mark the occasion of the new opening, Pull&Bear is also previewing its upcoming limited-edition collection, which will be fully launched at a future pop-up store in Milan.
This reopening aligns with Inditex’s wider retail expansion strategy across Europe and internationally. As part of this growth plan, the group has recently launched a new Oysho store in Place de la Madeleine, Paris, and a major Zara flagship in Nanjing, China. Looking ahead, Inditex plans to open a new Massimo Dutti boutique, also on Oxford Street, further consolidating its presence in central London’s most coveted shopping districts.
The store’s interior features a series of installations created by street artist Navinder – Pull&Bear
By the end of 2024, Pull&Bear operated a total of 800 stores globally, comprising a mix of company-owned and franchised locations. The brand is also available in over 200 international markets through its e-commerce platform. In the United Kingdom alone, Pull&Bear currently operates 14 retail locations, with stores in key cities including Cardiff, Manchester, Kent, and London, where this latest opening brings the number of stores in the capital to three.
Established in 1991 and headquartered in Narón, in the region of Galicia, Spain, Pull&Bear is one of several brands under the Inditex umbrella, which also includes Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho, Zara, Zara Home, and Lefties.
According to the most recent financial figures, Pull&Bear generated €2.47 billion in revenue during its 2024 fiscal year, reflecting a 4.6% increase compared to the previous year. Parent company Inditex, chaired by Marta Ortega, recorded a 7.5% increase in total sales, reaching a consolidated revenue of €38.63 billion for the same period.