Industry insiders who must know if footwear illuminaries Kenneth Cole and Miuccia Prada will sweep this year's American Fashion Awards will have to wait a little longer than usual.
In an effort to heighten anticipation for the upcoming American Fashion Awards 2000, the Council of Fashion Designers of America announced last week that the organization will no longer reveal the winners until the night of the gala.
But unlike last year's lengthy televised show, this year's awards presentation -- scheduled for June 15 at Avery Fisher Hall in New York's Lincoln Center -- will be an intimate affair, organizers said.
This year's nominees include Donna Karan, Oscar de la Renta and Helmut Lang for Women's Wear Designer of the Year; and Cole (right), Marc Jacobs and Helmut Lang for Men's Wear Designer of the Year.
The ceremonies also will include a wide range of other awards. Richard Lambertson and John Truex, Janis Savitt and Helmut Lang are in the running for Accessory Designer of the Year.
Miguel Adrover, Jeremy Scott and Rebecca Taylor are up for the Perry Ellis Award for Women's Wear. Jason Bunin, Sean 'Puffy' Combs for Sean John and John Varvatos are competing for the Perry Ellis Award for Men's Wear. And Jean Paul Gaultier, Prada and Jil Sander are vying for the International Award.
Sports Authority Fine-Tunes Concept Stores
With the slogan that the neighborhood has a new indoor playground, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.,-based The Sports Authority Inc. recently opened a New Jersey store the company is billing as a retail sporting arena of sorts.
The store opened recently in Hazlet, N.J., amid a good measure of celebration, celebrity and marketing. Former Knick Willis Reed, New York Giant Michael Strahan and others were on hand as the retailer unveiled its 197th store.
The company said the highlight of the new unit is a virtual sports stadium, which includes 42 video screens and a high-powered sound system.
'Customers will be able to watch sporting events and feel like they're at the arena,' the company said in a written statement.
Bergdorf Brings in New Chief
Several months after its chief executive left the company to join an Internet firm, luxury retailer Bergdorf Goodman has found a new leader.
The Neiman Marcus Group Inc., Chestnut Hill, Mass., last week named Ronald Frasch chairman and CEO of Bergdorf Goodman. Frasch previously was president at apparel firm GFT USA.
From 1984 to 1994, Frasch was senior vice president and general merchandise manager for women's apparel at Neiman Marcus Stores. Stephen Elkin in January left as Bergdorf's CEO and chairman to take the reins as CEO of Fashion500.com, an Internet startup.
Sotheby's Looks at Shoes
The Bata Shoe Museum is coming to Manhattan -- in the form of a lecture at Sotheby's.
Edward Maeder, founding director of the Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto, Canada, in 1995, will lecture on the subject of shoes at the Sotheby's Institute of Art in Manhattan on May 9. Maeder will discuss the museum's exhibits and architecture, as well as 'stories told by the shoes of both stars and smugglers,' according to Sotheby's.
The event is being sponsored by Sotheby's and Via Spiga. The reception starts at 6:30 p.m., with the lecture starting at 7 p.m. The fee is $25. For information or to register, call (212) 894-1111.
Nike, Adidas Sue Wal-Mart
Nike and Adidas are on the same team for a change. Both companies are suing Wal-Mart Stores for selling counterfeit T-shirts. Portland, Ore.,-based Adidas America Inc. and Beaverton, Ore.,-based Nike Inc. each filed a suit in Federal District Court in New York charging Wal-Mart with selling knockoffs in its Sam's Club chain.
Wal-Mart, based in Bentonville, Ark., said it was not aware that it was selling counterfeit product and would never do so knowingly. This isn't the first time companies have sued Wal-Mart over charges that it wasn't selling the real thing. Nautica, Fubu and other firms also have gone after the leviathan retailer for allegedly carrying counterfeit product.
THE WEEK IN MARKETING
Foot Locker is going for a slam dunk with the NBA playoffs. When basketball fans in New York headed to see the Knicks and the Raptors face off in Madison Square Garden, many also were greeted with something else: fliers reminding the fans of Foot Locker's sponsorship of the Knicks. The retailer launched marketing, including posters with a high-tech look around the playoffs pitting the two teams. Foot Locker, which recently built up its basketball-shoe business with its 'House of Hoops' section, is getting the exclusive rights to a Reebok Blacktop basketball line.
