“I Mean…What?!?” – Abe Gurko

For those of you who do not quite know what a Fotzy Balloon is, I figured this is a critical moment to explain it since the fotzy balloons are coming. So…What is FOTZY or FOTZ ? Etymology: What started out as a sarcastic reference to something, someone, well, anything, that “thinks” or acts like they are way too fascinating. It’s started as a sarcastic dishy slam: “Oh, they’re fascinating”. And evolved to… “Well, aren’t they fotzinating”. Which shrunk down to… “They are fotzy”. Which became… “Fotzy Balloons.” And finally… “Fotz”. Here are a few examples: Bing is fotz. What Madonna… Read More »

FNO – Rest In Peace – Sayonara Shopping Sisters – See You At The Next Market Crash Fashion Night Out: Here lies a perfectly great idea that came to light at an incredibly upsetting time in our economy and leave it up to the PR & Marketing Gods & Godessess to have taken this brilliant concept that Anna Wintour created for the City of New York and turned it into a cheap cluster-fuck of nonsense and even cheaper thrills. Two years go while walking through the Meatpacking District smack dab into the POP CHIPS activation, I turned to my friend… Read More »

After seeing how enthusiastic and motivated consumers are that come out in droves to suck down all the free booze and “shop”–using the term loosely here–there is so much more to do altruistically speaking. All this good-will can be harnessed and the giving aspect of this event can be multiplied exponentially. … Read More »

Don’t get me wrong, I have been a cheerleader for Fashion’s Night Out since the day it was first announced over three years ago. In fact, we rallied retailers that first year as there were plenty of skeptics. Naturally, Anna Wintour prevailed. The 3rd Annual Fashion’s Night Out was a zoo, especially down in the Meatpacking District. So zoo-like, that it was unpleasant in certain spots, with lines to get into stores, blaring dueling DJ’s in the streets and plastic cups strewn on the ground, like a bad weekend street fair. The street activities need some curating, benchmarks, something, because… Read More »

Well, just when I thought I could not stand the slew of Republican candidates running for President in 2012 comes a reason to despise them even more. Because this pack of wolves was having their stupid debate on September 7, the same time Barack Obama wanted to announce his huge new jobs plan for the U.S., John ‘Orange’ Boehner drew a line in the sand and said, “We called firstzies”. So like the gentlemen Barack is, he moved his big speech to September 8, on Fashion’s Night Out. Between the NFL Pre season game and Anna Wintour, he will lose… Read More »

While we were toiling around New York City, dashing uptown to Lincoln Center, then down to MAC & MILK, and of course to must-see shows like Alexander Wang at Pier 94 and Rodarte on West 22nd Street, something far more important in terms of fashion was happening in the world that completely went off of Anna Wintour‘s radar. Yes, of course, she is so busy between running a magazine, seeing all the shows of in-book advertisers, plus those that will one day, producing a TV show for CBS-TV on Fashion’s Night Out and producing Fashion’s Night Out, it is understandable… Read More »

There are millions of opinions about Fashion’s Night Out and half of them belong to me. My client, the Meatpacking District, was agog with festivities, in the streets, in the stores, the energy was palpable from the second the clock struck 6PM. It was like New Year’s Eve came early…only with shopping. Did you buy something? I did. Everyone that participated in Fashion Lives Downtown did a fantastic job and this new found retail holiday needs to happen every month. Maybe not with such a fervor and expense. But Fashion’s Night Out needs to be monthly. Period. Retailers needs more… Read More »

It’s Vena Cava in the lead…wait…what’s this? Nicholas K is coming up around the bend leaving Ruffian and Richard Chai in the dust… And the fashion horse race is on! Don’t know about you, but I am exhausted already from the Tri-fecta that is  New York Fashion Week. Between the shows uptown and downtown coupled with Fashion’s Night Out, one needs an oxygen tank and a jet pack to get to where all the main events are happening around New York City. With all the strategic planning for Fashion’s Night Out and the Spring ’11 fashion shows in full gallop,… Read More »

What do Selma Blair, Christina Ricci, Kelly Rowland, Sean Lennon, Robin Thicke, Charlotte Kemp Muhl, Helena Christensen, Miike Snow, DJ Cassidy, Ali Hewson, Harley Viera Newton, Mia Morretti have in common? Fashion’s Night Out in the Meatpacking District, which we have sub-named…Fashion Lives Downtown. Say what you want about Fashion’s Night Out, that Anna is only doing this for Vogue, or that Jews in Borough Park are mortified because it falls on Rosh Hashanah, or that this is about drinking and not shopping, but Fashion’s Night Out is like The (Fabulous) Blob and literally engulfing all of Manhattan. Yes, I… Read More »

Allow me to take this day of rest…the Sabbath of the Summer….Labor Day…to share with you some well wishes and reflection of the summer we just had. First let’s review the origins of Labor Day, which somehow got lost in the sauce of barbecues, picnics and final summer blow-out parties. The first Labor Day was celebrated in 1882 in New York City, was started by a carpenters union to honor those who bust their ass. In 1894, President Grover Cleveland rushed legislation through Congress to make Labor Day a national holiday in an attempt to boost his popularity as it… Read More »