Andy Warhol once said, “My favorite smell is the first smell of spring in New York," and now someone has stepped in to capitalize on the scent (good thing he didn't say summer in New York). Along with the Gap now using Warhol's "hot dead celeb" status to sell khakis; Laurice Rahmé, creator of Bond No. 9, launches her latest neighborhood fragrance (in collaboration with The Warhol Foundation) this month: Andy Warhol Union Square. The......

Stores were packed with post-Christmas shoppers, as retailers marked down their products in hopes of boosting holidays sales. So far, holiday period sales are up 3.6%, which is the "lower end" of expectations according to MasterCard Advisors. The question is, will marking down a part of $1,380 shoes to $150 or $1,500 Gucci purses to $750 at Saks Fifth Avenue help? Well, given that people were waiting for doors to open and "not walking......

Today on the Gothamist Newsmap: a bank robbery on Austin St. in Queens, a pedestrian struck off Balfour Pl. and Empire Blvd. in Brooklyn, and a rescue on Bank St. in Manhattan. The Domino Sugar factory on Brooklyn's waterfront has achieved landmark status. David Chase is heading to court to face a former municipal court judge who claims he came up with an idea for a show about a northern NJ mob family. David......

It sounds like a Project Runway challenge: create a look Princess Grace would have worn. However, the six gowns that are currently being displayed in the windows of Saks Fifth Avenue were created by some of the top designers -- each being paired with a specific look to be reinterpreted in a modern way. To help mark the 25th anniversary of her death, and to raise money for the Princess Grace Foundation USA (which......

This week, the NY Times has some suggestions for wedding gifts from stores affiliated to museums, reasoning that those stores have wonderful gifts that are appealing to "people who are tired of shopping in the same old places — and might enjoy spending a couple hours in a museum as well." We wholeheartedly agree - when you know the couple well, that is. If you are wedding gift shopping for a couple you're vaguely acquainted......

The department stores have decorated their windows with holiday cheer, a tradtion that has been going on since the 1860's (Macy's first was in 1862)! Here's what you'll see this year: • Lord & Taylor has designed holiday themed windows inspired by vintage postcards. Photos here. • Macy's has created an interactive window with lots of multimedia features including music, video and animatronic parts! • Tiffany's windows feature a romantic scene of wintry woods (of......

Hmm, maybe it's time to ask Grandma or Great-Grand what they've gotten stashed away in a drawer: A woman auctioned a perfume bottle that her husband bought in 1939 at Saks Fifth Avenue and it sold for $216,000. Why was it so expensive? For starters, it was a bottle created by Lalique. And it was also one of 100 bottles produced. The woman, who is in her 90s, kept the original box it was presented......

In September, we wrote about department store Lord & Taylor and many praised its prices and shopping environment. One passionate comment:Lord & Taylor's is fantastic. Over the past 3-4 years, they've made a great effort to stock well edited pieces from younger, trendier brands. They're like Macy's in that they always have a great sale (and bonus coupons), but it's never as crowded, loud, chaotic, or unorganized. I've never had to wait in line for......

What's the use of locks on cabinets when a robber can just get a salesperson to open the cabinet containing millions of dollars worth of jewelry for you? Two men managed to steal a $900,000 bracelet from Saks Fifth Avenue last Saturday - right under the salesman's nose. Well, more like over the salesman's head: The post has video of the theft and you can see the salesman opening up a tall cabinet, ostensibly to......

There's a wonderful feature on department store Lord & Taylor by Toni Schlesinger in the Observer today. Earlier in the summer, it was announced that the Lord & Taylor chain had been sold to an investor group including the folks that backed the Time-Warner Center; though the deal isn't finalized yet, when Schlesinger wonders if condos could be built on top of the 424 Fifth Avenue location, lead investor Richard Baker says, "Yes, we could......

Jason Schwartzman, Actor, Shopgirl...

Gothamist guesses we need to report this bit of Lower East Side news, as Lockhart Steele is on vacation. As part of MTV's week of celebrating the MTV Video Music Awards, there's a $8.28 dinner entree promotion through tomorrow night at Lower East Side restaurants, including Essex, Punch & Judy, and AKA Cafe, are participating. See the full list here. Check out other VMA related events, like the Iggy Pop and the Stooges benefit......