For Current Fashion, JC Penney Wants to be Your Retailer

Who are you wearing? It’s a common question on the red carpet (as well as occasionally among us ordinary folk) and the answer is often some high fashion designer. But JC Penney (yup, JC Penney) is aiming to change that.
The mid-level retailer, which has a store at 901 Avenue of the Americas in Manhattan; (212 295-6120), recently held a fashion show at New York’s Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center. (Bet you never thought you'd read the words “Fashion show” "JC Penney” and Alice Tully Hall” in the same sentence…)
The store has teamed up with some big-name designers in order to offer designer fashion at affordable prices--and in the process, change their image from a store more aligned with Kmart than Bloomingdales in many people’s minds.
Current hot designers include Charlotte Ronson, Nicole Miller (who has dressed such celebrities as Halle Berry and Felicity Huffman) and Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen, who already have two successful clothing lines elsewhere. (They attended the JC Penney Discover Spring Style Event at Alice Tully Hall last week.)
Uber model Cindy Crawford, who also attended the show, has a line of furniture for the store, and is developing a jewelry line as well--and she swears that she mixes clothing from stores like JC Penney with investment pieces, and has been doing so since she was a teen. A number of high-society fixtures like Tinsley Mortimer also attended the show, to promote (you read about it here) the new reality show “High Society.”
Get thee to JC Penney, ladies!

High Society? We'll Hang Out with The Regular Folks, Thanks

“Jersey Shore,” look behind you. “The Real World,” step up the pace. “Dancing with the Stars,” watch your step. A new breed of reality show is coming to town, and it’s the New York bluebloods who will be in the spotlight. And no, it’s not "Gossip Girl”: This is the real deal.
Premiering March 10 on the CW, “High Society” looks at the infighting, cat-fighting and general, well, fighting, of a group of upper-crust society ladies.
Tinsley Mortimer, 35, the uber-blonde, extra-skinny New York socialite, is the star of the new series, which focuses on Mortimer’s forays into society and dating as well as her high-profile divorce from Topper Mortimer (no, these names are not made up,) a descendent of John Jay, the first Supreme Court Justice. Her entry into high society started when she married him.
Other cast member? Society seekers? include Mortimer’s sister Dabney, her friend Jules (already infamous--more on her later), and her mother Dale.
Finding a socialite who would star in this series was apparently not easy—but viewers will not be disappointed. There’s as much—or more—backstabbing, name calling, and maneuvering than you would find in a high-school cafeteria. See Mortimer fight with the editor of "Hamptons" magazine! See rich people behave badly!
Mortimer's friend Jules Kirby, by the way, is already known for her declaration that she uses racial epithets, her yelling at hotel employees, and her throwing of drinks in nightclubs. Charming.
Well, it should certainly give “The Surreal Life” a run for its money.