loose threads

Uniqlo to Open on Fifth Avenue; Azzedine Alaïa Slams the Fashion Calendar

• Uniqlo will open a flagship store on Fifth Avenue. The lease has been signed, though an opening date is not set. [WWD]

• J.Crew CEO Millard “Mickey” Drexler got a $2 million bonus, while designer Jenna Lyons was named executive creative director and got an extra $325,000. Last October, she was given $1 million to stay on until October 2011. [WWD]

Daria Werbowy is on the cover of the May issue of Spanish Harper’s Bazaar. [Design Scene]

• Azzedine Alaïa: “Designer fashion is different now. Designers cannot create so many collections — cruise and pre-fall, accessories — when normally two a year is more than sufficient. A designer simply cannot invent something new every two months or so. It takes six months of research and work to build a new silhouette.” [Fashionista]

• According to a new study, the luxury sector in Italy is expected to grow this year, and in almost every other country except Japan. Luxury-goods sales are expected to grow most in Asia, predicted at around 15 percent. [Independent UK]

• Target’s collaborative collections with Cynthia Vincent and Eugenia Kim went on sale on Friday. [Nitrolicious]

• The Macy’s in Herald Square will get a makeover, possibly as early as this year, to ease foot traffic and make the space look updated. [WWD]

• People’s Revolution’s employee and Kell on Earth star Andrew Mukamal was challenged to wear a tennis sweater different ways for five days straight. [Refinery 29]

• Eva Mendes wore a Snuggie at a dinner in honor of Flaunt magazine’s partnership with the leather-goods brand MCM. She was cold, and someone happened to have that, of all things, on hand. [Page Six/NYP]

Uniqlo to Open on Fifth Avenue; Azzedine Alaïa Slams the Fashion Calendar