Music player as fashion plate catching on fast

Chicago Tribune writes that luxury stores and brands, such as Neiman Marcus and Coach, are cashing in on the popular Apple iPod craze "by offering designer covers costing as much as $840." For example, Nieman Marcus offers a Valentino Swarovski crystal-studded cover that "is more than double the $399 price tag for the most expensive version of the iPod."

Stephen Baker at NPD Group said, "The portable digital-player accessory market is exploding and it's not going to stop. Sales for the fourth quarter of 2005 are expected to exceed the total volume generated so far this year. With momentum like that, the industry is poised to approach $1 billion for 2005."

According to NPD, "cases and bags were the second-biggest category after speaker systems and accounted for 18 percent of the dollar volume."