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For retailers, the strong style trends of the past few markets — casual contemporary, modern and European — continue to be popular. So much so, in fact, that many of those who do not carry the styles are planning to add them and few say they will drop them.

By significant margins, more retailers responding to our 2006 Trends and Styles survey, conducted by fax last month, say they plan to add those three styles. Although some retailers, of course, say they plan to drop the styles, the net increases for casual contemporary (43%), modern (35%) and European (20%) indicate the projected appeal of those styles.

Losing ground slightly is Asian with about the same number of retailers (27% to 24%) saying sales will decrease as increase. Falling fastest, according to this group of retailers, is the cottage/country look, with 32% saying sales in those styles will drop.

In another way of looking at the popularity of styles, 14% of retailers who do not carry casual contemporary or modern say they plan to add the style. A similar number, 13%, say they plan to add classic styles. Although responses are mixed about Asian, 12% say they plan to add the style to their product mix.

Traditional, the most popular style with 74% of respondents carrying it, will be added by another 9% and dropped by only 3%.

In keeping with the belief retailers expressed that cottage/country is less popular, 14% who carry it say they plan to drop it and only 8% plan to add it, for a net change of -6%. The other loser in the style race is exotic/ethnic, with only one-third of retailers carrying the look and another 6% planning to add it. Ten percent who carry it plan to drop it.