The Fancy

Flipboard, a news-reading app with more than 90 million users, is now moving into shopping territory.

E-commerce site of all kinds have a new focus: mobile. One need only look at a few stats to see why. For instance, according to a report by Mobify, mobile web adoption is growing eight times faster than web adoption did in the 1990s; mobile traffic now accounts for 15% of all web traffic; 90% of people move between devices to accomplish things; U.S. mobile commerce sales hit $24.66 billion in 2012, up 81% from 2011; and 58% of consumers in North America now own a smartphone. Mobile commerce has become especially important for fashion retailers.

Yesterday, Bloomberg reported that social discovery/e-commerce site The Fancy had been valued at $600 million and that American Express and actor Will Smith had come on board as investors. The Fancy has yet to officially confirm the news, but there's no doubt that now is an important time for the four-year-old site. We spoke with founder and CEO Joseph Einhorn about what The Fancy is, how it's grown so quickly, the importance of having Kering's Francois-Henri Pinault on board, why Zara is one of his biggest inspirations, and more.

Christmas/Hannukkah/whatever holiday you celebrate that involves the giving of gifts is right around the corner and while you've generously been spending all of your time finding the perfect gifts for your loved ones, you may have forgotten to tell people what they should get you. You could leave them to their own devices, but we wouldn't advise it. Thanks to technology and the proliferation of content curation and social sharing platforms, there are many easy, effective ways to tell people what you want. Click through for our favorites, many of which have a fashion-y slant.