One of my favorite places for classic pieces has gotten a makeover at its SoHo, NYC location.  Banana’s SoHo flagship stored just reopened this past Wednesday, November 11, 2009, after a remodel.  The 18,000 square-foot store (um, drooling) was overhauled with a design that is intended to make shopping easier, and more fun.

The new plan has large sections devoted exclusively to special collections and accessories, with a circular section in the front for Banana’s limited-edition, slightly more expensive, Monogram Collection.  In the back of the store you’ll find a large space that showcases their jewelry line (I could spend hours here!), right  next to the classic Heritage collection.  Menswear is just upstairs,  with shoes, sunglasses, and tables of apparel overlooking New York City’s Broadway through expansive windows.  The entire space is crowned with strings of lights that cast an ambient glow.

I’m excited to check out the new layout (and maybe some new products).  It might be an occasion to plan a girls’ shopping trip and a nice lunch.  I am in the market for some new shoes, you know….

Last Thursday, 33-year-old Megha Mittal won the bidding war for Escada. She notably beat out an offer by Sean Ley, the son of Escada’s founder. Mittal will buy Escada for an undisclosed amount. Current CEO Bruno Saelzer is slated to stay, whereas Ley and his team had planned to hire Giacomo Santucci, the former head of Gucci. Mitall is behind in current CEO Saelzer’s plan of turning Escada into an affordable luxury label by adding more day-wear to the collection, which currently relies heavily on high-priced red carpet formal wear.
You may be wondering who Megha Mittal is exactly. It’s not a name I’ve heard yet in the fashion world. It turns out she is the daughter-in-law of Lakshmi Mittal who is the chief executive of ArcelorMittal, the largest steel company in the world. Lakshmi Mittal is the richest person in the whole United Kingdom, not to mention the 8th-richest person worldwide. Megha had also expressed interest in Gianfranco Ferré, as she has been considering a big fashion investment for about a year.

Day-wear from Escada? Count me in! I’d love to see a line with elegant designs that can be worn more often. This is one we’ll want to watch.

Beyond Beauty Basics has been invited by the National Arts Club Fashion Committee to attend Betsey Johnson’s awards dinner this Tuesday!  How exciting!  Stay tuned for a full report on this black tie event, but in the meantime, here’s the press release.

LEGENDARY FASHION DESIGNER BETSEY JOHNSON TO RECEIVE THE NATIONAL ARTS CLUB’S MEDAL OF HONOR FOR LIFETIME ACHEIVEMENT IN FASHION ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 13TH

New York, NY – Legendary fashion designer and New York native Betsey Johnson will be awarded The National Arts Club’s prestigious Medal of Honor for Lifetime Achievement at a dinner held in her honor at the historic members-only Gramercy Park club in New York City. Johnson, who has earned a much-deserved stellar reputation within the fashion industry by following her own set of rules, will join the esteemed ranks of previous lifetime achievement honorees including Geoffrey Beene (2003), Oleg Cassini (2004), Carolina Herrera (2005) and Arnold Scaasi (2006).

There will be a retrospective showing of Betsey Johnson’s work during this event in the entrance of The National Arts Club in addition to the unveiling of a new portrait of Johnson, which was painted by Visual Arts Committee Chair Dianne Bernhard. The portrait will be displayed in The NAC’s permanent collection.

“I’m so excited, honored, and thrilled! It doesn’t get any better than this,” states Betsey Johnson.

“It is an extreme honor for the Fashion Committee of The National Arts Club to have the privilege of formally recognizing the unmatched visionary talent we call Betsey Johnson with the Lifetime Achievement Award for Fashion,” says Chrishaunda Lee, Chair of The NAC’s Fashion Committee. “Her vivacity and timeless message of an energized and inspired life through her designs has influenced the fashion industry for over three decades and runs parallel to our mission statement at The National Arts Club.”

Since the 1960’s, Betsey Johnson has been rocking the fashion industry with her over-the-top, exuberant and embellished unique designs. She began to first make her mark in fashion history as top designer for Paraphernalia (1965) and it was then that she began to apply her childhood aspirations of becoming a dancer and love of costumers to developing her trademark look of sexy silhouettes; hippie inspired flowing fabrics; whimsical detailing; and a fabulous fit. Thirty years later, alongside her friend and business partner Chantal Bacon, Johnson has witnessed the evolution and expansion of the Betsey Johnson label as it continues to rank as one of the top recognizable American lifestyle brands with over sixty retail stores in international markets. The National Arts Club’s Fashion Committee is proud to honor Betsey Johnson for a lifetime’s worth of success and will continue to support her with all of her future endeavors.

The National Arts Club:

Run by volunteers, the Arts Club was founded by Charles de Kay, New York Times literary and art critic, in 1898 with the mission to stimulate, foster and promote public interest in the arts and educate the American people in the fine arts. A historic staple in Gramercy Park, the Arts Club is located in the Tilden Mansion which was built in the 1840’s. Today, The National Arts Club hosts art unveilings, award dinners, film screenings, lectures, dances and many more various types of art performances. In order to help recognize untapped talents, the Arts Club’s committees frequently award scholarships to young artists, writers and singers to help them develop their talent and work towards their dreams.

Estée Lauder has announced its decision to close the Prescriptives brand on January 31, 2010.  After January 2010, Prescriptives products will cease to be produced, but products will remain for sale in stores and online until stock runs out.  It’s a good idea to stock up on some of your favorite products!

The message sent to Estée Lauder employees said that, “After a thorough analysis of the Prescriptives brand, we have concluded that the brand’s long term business model is no longer viable in the current market environment. We believe that this decision will allow The Estée Lauder Companies to redirect and more sharply focus our resources to key strategic imperatives where we see the highest growth potential for our Company.”

There is a tiny but of good news, we’ve just learned that the Prescriptives fragrance Calyx will continue to be distributed through Aramis and Designer Fragrances and sold at the fragrance bar in select fine department stores and online beginning February 1, 2010.

It’s the end of an era.  Prescriptives: we’re really going to miss you.