Currently Charming Shoppes operated 2,221 stores in 48 states. Among them are 1,028 Fashion Bug and Fashion Bug Plus units, 722 Lane Bryant units, and 471 Catherines Plus Sizes stores. Comp store sales for the company rose 1% for the fiscal year, but fell 2% during the year's final quarter ended Jan. 29.

"We did not take the aggressive promotional posture that our competition did, and we got slammed in the second and third weeks of December," she says. The blow, however, "should not dwarf the turnaround story of Lane Bryant." She attributed much of the success in full-year performance to "strong operating margin improvement at our Lane Bryant brand."

There are two categories, denim and intimate apparel, in which "we are a 2,000-lb gorilla," Bern said. Together, these categories represent about 20% of all sales companywide, and account for 34% of Lane Bryant business. In addition, the casual "wear to work" category, which accounts for about a third of Lane Bryant sales, made significant market share gains, according to Bern.

Meanwhile, she noted that Old Navy is expanding to large sizes and "cannot be ignored by anybody." To protect its denim turf in particular, Bern said, "we didn't let grass grow under out feet." Charming Shoppes has expanded its denim assortment by adding premium fabrics and washes, which raises price points significantly.

Bras lead the intimate apparel category, and when a customer buys a bra, "she will buy three times more sportswear," according to Bern. Therefore, tests of expanded bra assortments are under way at units of all three brands. "LB expanded its assortment by from 20% to 25%," she said, adding that "Catherines took on a few additional brands to increase inventory and sales by the same amount, and, Bug has a fixture-driven inventory. We pulled bras from the back wall for better presentation and are having a 15% to 20% increase in sales."

Other growth initiatives include expanded online products and sizes, an increase in Lane Bryant units at strip centers and metropolitan areas, and catalogs down the road. "Our e-Commerce business doubles every year," Bern said, "and we're putting Bug online for the first time."

Calling success of the Lane Bryant unit at 34th St. in Manhattan "a big surprise," she said, "we're confident we have growth opportunities in metro areas in addition to strip centers. Sales at strip centers are outstripping sales at malls, and they cost a whole heck of a lot less." The metro stores especially serve African-American customers, a key market for the company. Bern did not reveal projected growth in units for any of the brands.

Skirts, bohemian looks, and color are key fashion ingredients for spring in all three brands. "Even though the consumer has more pink and coral than she knows what to do with," Bern said, "it's still a driver in all fashion areas. Capris and crops also continue. We believe in skirts," she added, saying skirt inventory is up between 25% and 30% in all brands, albeit from a low base. "They definitely have to be printed and have color. Soft fabrications do best," Bern noted. Skirt sales are expected to also boost sales of knit tops.

The daytime dress business has shifted to social occasion dresses, a category the company dominates, according to Bern. "For the African-American customer, it's church-driven," she said, pointing out that the shift in styling "also shifts our dress business to higher price points."