H&M's New Brand Is So Close, Yet So Far Away

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First the good news: More details have emerged on the Hennes & Mauritz Group's new brand concept & Other Stories, and it's sounding awesomer and awesomer.

The brand will sell women's ready-to-wear, shoes, bags, accessories, and beauty. H&M told WWD that the lines are "diverse, ranging from masculine tailoring to feminine chic and are designed to provide endless styling choices." They also said the goal is to "design lasting wardrobe treasures within a wide price range." Expect prices to be higher than H&M fare, but lower than the company's premium COS brand.

And now for the bad news. It's only coming to Europe.

WWD reports that the chain will launch with brick-and-mortar stores in seven European cities—Barcelona, Berlin, Copenhagen, London, Milan, Paris and Stockholm—as well as an e-commerce site for Western European shoppers.

We hardly need to remind you that H&M e-commerce was supposed to launch in the US last fall, but was delayed. The company vaguely estimates the new launch date as somewhere around "the middle of 2013."

"All of us at & Other Stories are thrilled to open our first stores in some of the major European cities and we are looking forward to offering our collections to an even broader audience through stories.com," said a brand rep.

Will someone please send that guy a plane ticket to New York, wrapped in an American flag?
· H&M to Open 7 Stores for New Brand [Racked]
· Take a Peek Inside Upscale H&M Brand '& Other Stories' [Racked]