A U.S. FIRST FOR CARTIER/22 COURTENEY COX’S BEAUTY PLAN/28 WWDWomen’s Wear Daily • The Retailers’MONDAY Daily Newspaper • September 12, 2005 • $2.00 Accessories/Innerwear/Legwear Sweet Chic Alabama NEW YORK — Natalie Chanin may hail from down South, but the Project Alabama collection she presented on Saturday is fit for girls-in-the-know everywhere — from Montgomery to Milan. A perfect concoction of country and city, the lineup included hand-quilted looks, as well as sleek, polished combinations, like this starry jacket, bustier and skirt. For more on the collections, see pages 6 to 13. Revamping Bergdorf’s: Store Steps Up Program To Build Sales to $500M By David Moin NEW YORK — It’s been an expensive, 10- year, stop-and-go process, but Bergdorf Goodman’s overhaul is picking up steam again. The goal of the project, at an estimated cost of $80 million to $85 million, is to modernize the luxury emporium, retain the classicism while injecting some hipness it’s never had before and grow revenues to at least $500 million a year. And, as Bergdorf’s parent, the Neiman Marcus Group, is close to being acquired by Texas Pacific Group and Warburg Pincus for $5.1 billion, such growth will See Redesigning, Page16 PHOTO BY GEORGE CHINSEE PHOTO BY Advertisement The Australian wool industry has a small problem. It just landed on her right shoulder. Australia, home of the world’s finest calling for an immediate end to mulesing has spent millions of dollars on animal Merino wool and the world’s largest and for people to stop buying Australian welfare research including the search for Merino sheep flock is also, unfortunately, Merino wool until this practice is ceased. an effective alternative to mulesing. home to a particularly aggressive species This no doubt well-meaning but, in There are promising new technologies in of fly, Lucilia cuprina. Beautiful name, our opinion, misguided demand would development and the objective is to have but ugly reputation. have exactly the opposite effect to that a viable alternative fully operational as These blowflies specifically target presumably intended. It is estimated that soon as possible. Merino sheep and, without going into without mulesing up to three million Australian Merino wool is a natural, gory detail, can very easily lead to the Australian sheep would die a slow and renewable fiber produced in one of the sheep becoming infested and eventually agonizing death each year depending on cleanest agricultural environments in dying a painful death. the weather conditions. the world. Its amazing qualities of To prevent these deaths, Australian Furthermore if any call to stop buying comfort, drape, feel and style make it farmers remove a strip of skin from the Australian Merino wool proved effective universally desirable. So let’s hope that rear end of the lambs, preventing wool this could lead to grave problems for the common sense prevails so we can all from growing and becoming soiled Australian wool industry (which provides get back to enjoying high quality fashion and damp in the flies’ favorite target 65% of the world’s fine Merino wool). and other products made from the area. This practice is called ‘mulesing’ Australian woolgrowers pride world’s finest natural fiber. (pronounced mule-zing) after the inventor themselves on having animal welfare For further information please go to of the procedure J.H.Mules. and fiber production practices which are www.woolisbest.com Recently an animal rights group equal to any in the world. Over several targeted the Australian wool industry, decades the Australian wool industry 4 WWD, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2005 WWD.COM Retailers Step Up Katrina Aid By Sharon Edelson registries to access the service. cording to Robin Carr, Gap’s di- WWDMONDAY and David Moin The registry also can be ac- rector of media relations and Accessories/Innerwear/Legwear cessed at home via the compa- corporate communications. NEW YORK — As the chaos from ny’s Web sites. More than 1,300 Gap employ- FASHION Hurricane Katrina rolls on and The company, which has com- ees have been affected by the New York Fashion Week got under way over the weekend, with runway the death toll mounts, retailers mitted $17 million to the relief hurricane. The company wants 6 presentations from Tommy Hilfiger, Project Alabama and Baby Phat. continue to try to locate missing effort, is giving associates the them to know about Gap-spon- employees, assess store damages opportunity to apply for jobs in sored assistance such as housing and establish relief programs for regions where they’ve temporar- and clothing allowances and ad- GENERAL thousands of displaced workers. ily or permanently resettled. ditional pay, and urges them to RETAIL: The ambitious remodeling process at Bergdorf Goodman Wal-Mart said 93 percent of More than 1,000 people took ad- call Gap or to visit the corporate 1 continues, as it strives to grow revenues to at least $500 million a year. its 34,000 employees from the vantage of the offer, said Melissa Web site, gapinc.com, and click INNERWEAR: Luxury lingerie, with an accent on femininity and glamour, hurricane region are safe or O’Brien, a spokeswoman. on Hurricane Katrina Relief. headlined the action at the Lyon Mode City intimate apparel trade show. working in other company units. “They’re eligible for up to At one time, 70 Gap stores 18 That leaves 2,380 associates at $1,000 in cash,” said O’Brien. were knocked out, but as of JEWELRY: Cartier rolls out the red carpet to launch its high jewelry line as large. The company, as of Friday, “That will take them to the end Friday, there were just 22 still out. 22 Frédéric de Narp steps out as its North America president and ceo. had 15 stores closed. of the month. We’ve offered “We are going to reemploy ACCESSORIES: The Costume Institute is showcasing special baubles with Wal-Mart activated an online them a job wherever they are. our employees anywhere in the 25 the new exhibit “Rara Avis: Selections From the Iris Barrel Apfel Collection.” emergency contact registry for That’s a great relief.” country they want to be reem- customers and associates to e- Gap Inc. said Friday that 91 ployed,” said Carr. Entering its 20th year in business, Dockers is set to prove it’s about more mail, post and search for mes- employees were still missing, As part of the corporation’s re- 32 than just “Nice Pants” with a new, multifaceted marketing effort. sages from family and loved and it had received reports of lief efforts, all Gap, Banana Maidenform Brands has completed a successful IPO and is focusing on an ones. Associates and the public tragedies. A two-year-old child Republic, Old Navy and outlet lo- 34 ad campaign for The Dream Bra and growing its lines globally. can go to any Wal-Mart, Sam’s of one of Gap’s workers was lost cations are offering a 15 percent Club or Neighborhood Market in the hurricane, and one work- discount on merchandise and use store kiosks and gift er lost four family members, ac- through Oct. 31 to customers from EYE areas impacted by Hurricane The basic essentials to get through show week, according to attendees and Katrina, provided they show ei- 14 participants…Questions and Answers with Ron Galella. ther an Alabama, Louisiana or Mississippi identification card. Gap already has committed Classified Advertisements ..................................................................37-39 $1 million to disaster relief through Gap Foundation and is To e-mail reporters and editors at WWD, the address is providing a double-match for all [email protected], using the individual’s name. employee donations to the WOMEN’S WEAR DAILY IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF FAIRCHILD PUBLICATIONS, INC. COPYRIGHT ©2005 American Red Cross. FAIRCHILD PUBLICATIONS, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. VOLUME 190, NO. 56. WWD (ISSN # 0149-5380) is published daily except Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, with one additional J.C. Penney had about 900 issue in June, July and November, two additional issues in April, May, August and December, and three additional issues in people working in stores in the February, March, September and October by Fairchild Publications, Inc., a subsidiary of Advance Publications, Inc. 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