• Online retailers are expecting a 15 percent sales boost this holiday season. Consumers like it because it's easier to comparison-shop online than in stores. [WSJ]

• Chilly October temperatures in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic have given stores a boost in sales, as shoppers stock up on coats and boots. [WSJ]

• Elie Tahari on Michelle Obama: “She will ignite the fashion industry. She is young, pretty, smart and well put together. These are a lot of great qualities.” [WWD]

• Enlightening story from today's Times "Styles" section: Many items listed in magazines like Vogue and Elle as "price upon request" aren't actually manufactured for sale. [NYT]

• Japanese denim mills are experimenting with new fabrics for jeans, like banana-fiber denim made from the discarded stems of banana trees. Can we please call them banana pants? [WWD]