Retail Roundup

Anyone interested in checking out a fashion show with the latest and

hottest looks for going back to school (gotta have it), undergoing beauty

make-overs (that’s bound to burst the ego) and obtaining free stuff

(free) should check into the junior department at South Coast Plaza’s

Macy’s store at 1 p.m. Saturday.

Seventeen’s style squad will stop by the store as part of its 60-city

national tour. Anyone familiar with the group may know Nicole Kenneally,

the celebrity scheduled to attend and sign autographs. But for us, unless

she was the model in “Planet of the Apes,” forget about it. But then

again, the free goodies beckon.

‘Scanty panty’ celebrating 20 years

In celebrating this, the 20th anniversary of the thong -- isn’t

everybody? -- Frederick’s of Hollywood will give away 100,000 special

limited edition anniversary thongs. Count us in.

Since the store introduced the thong in 1981, sales have skyrocketed,

the store reports. In fact, they say 90% of all their panty sales are

thongs, which were once dubbed the “scanty panty.”

So, every shopper who spends $20 or more during August will get one of

the commemorative and collectible thongs. That’s right, collect them all.

Plug your ears, this one’s gonna blow!

If you thought those little bubbles on bubble wrap were fun to pop,

get a load of Inflata-Pak from 3M. It’s a balloon blown up through a

straw that protects fragile items. It seems pretty strong, but if you

jump it constantly, it’s bound to pop. Just don’t leave anything too

important in it when destroying it.

Oh, and of course 3M performed a survey. Theirs found that more than

40% of Americans have received an item that was broken and damaged during

the shipping process. Anyway, the air packaging sells for about $3 for a

very small one and $5 for a large one.