Inspired by Target’s GO Collaborations, Macy’s is creating a men’s private label line called Threads & Heirs that will tap guest designers to bring their work to the department store’s customers.

Durand Guion, Macy’s vice president and men’s fashion director told WWD, “Target has had great success taking higher and more advanced designers to the masses. All of us have been studying this [Target] and looking at what would be the right combinations.”

First up for Spring and Fall 2010, Ruffian’s Brian Wolk and Claude Morais. The boys have obviously been focused on women’s wear as of late, but we, like Macy’s execs, have no doubt they’ll translate their aesthetic nicely into men’s again. Brian said that the collection will Americana by way of Williamsburg-inspired with many layers, striped button downs (with white collars), blazers, classic knit polos, and lots of pocket detailing and pleating.

So, are you interested in another collaboration? Will it translate as well in the men’s market at this more mass level? Time will tell.

1. Who misses Tim saying, “Don’t bore Nina”, since you know, Nina’s never there anymore? So yes, Lifetime, that means we’re still kind of in a fight.

2. Michael, thank god you’re back. Will you please bring a few more bons mots along the lines of “teal charmeuse disco pumpkin” next week? It makes Thursdays at 10 pm way less dull than they’ve been lately. Thanks.

3. Also, how much did you love that he couldn’t contain his disgust as Louise’s dresses came down the runway? Because seriously, wow and ew, those things were Bad News Bears all the way around.

4. If Tim hates leggings so much, how could he ever support Lindsay Lohan’s design efforts for anything, let alone Ungaro?

5. Should we introduce Louise to Peter Copping so she can learn something about pretty, romantic ruffles?

Just In: Macy’s has cut 7,000 jobs, and their stock dropped 13% within ten minutes of the announcement on Bloomberg.

Remember back in November when we declared Macy’s status as somewhere around “screwed”?

That’s why it, sadly, comes as no surprise that Macy’s just announced the closure of eleven locations nationwide, including the one at the Ernst & Young Plaza in Los Angeles, which has been in operation since 1986.

Each store (except for the Hawaii location) will host huge, blow-out sales to clear the inventory, then hopefully, Macy’s will be able to dust itself off and recover enough to drudge through 2009.

In the meantime, even their site’s having a clearance sale, though there’s lots of clicking involved for shopping that one…

(Full list of closing locations, after the jump.)

To: Tips@Fashionista.com

From: Grass@Shopper.com

Hey F,

The Macy’s in Herald Square is open 24 hours from now until Wednesday at 6 pm.

I went last night and the store was EMPTY.

Great way to finish Christmas shopping.

xo,
A

A series of scary information has lead us to consider that Saks may be headed into some especially difficult times.

Recently, it came out that Saks has cancelled several planned store renovations, and they announced that they’re “not opposed” to closing certain locations if shoppers continue to prove unwilling to spend money on premier designer booties.

The next day, Moody’s (the credit ratings agency you might remember from a couple weeks ago) announced they’d have to “review” Saks’ credit-grade rating - and we all know what can come from that.

Since then, Saks has mounted the biggest sale we’ve seen so far this holiday season, and introduced a new Major Purchase Account option for frequent shoppers (which is really just fancy speak for layaway, something Walmart brought back this holiday season, as well.)

And yesterday? We were told (albeit, randomly) that the Saks in Philadelphia may be closing very soon, which (obviously) no one can (read: will) confirm.

It’s no secret high-end department stores like Saks have been feeling shoppers’ money problems more so than other types of retailers, but could the words “bankrupt” or just “closing” be on the horizon for one of the country’s most iconic stores?

Stay tuned.

Some facts:

1. At this moment, Macy’s has an 11-year streak investment-grade credit rating. Translation: It’s been considered a safe, solid company for investors to invest it.

2. Macy’s debt - which, at $9.8 billion is double than that of any of its direct competitors, like Nordstrom and Kohl’s - combined with the bleak upcoming holiday season, is making it trade like a junk bond. Translation: This could make their investment-grade credit rating, which is decided by ratings agencies like S&P and Moody’s, go down (in fact, both agencies have already announced they have a “negative” outlook on Macy’s rating, which is already at the lowest rung of the investment-grade credit ratings). Further translation: This makes them an unattractive company in which to invest, meaning they’ll have to promise a higher return to investors in order to keep them, meaning it’s going to cost Macy’s a whole lot more money just to keep their investors’ money in their veins. It also means that companies that simply aren’t allowed to invest in companies without investment-grade ratings - some funds simply will not invest in companies that are considered “speculative” - will pull their money out of Macy’s entirely, making it extremely hard for Macy’s to pay off its debt at all.

3. Ratings agencies give these credit grades based on how a company is doing, how much debt it has, etc. Macy’s is about to enter what was typically its most profitable time of year - four-fifths of their profits last year were made just during the holiday selling season - which we all know is expected to be the bleakest holiday selling season seen in some time.

The big picture? Right now, the future of Macy’s seems to be at the mercy of two factors - The credit rating they get, which determines the interest they’ll have to pay investors in order to fund operations, and the upcoming holiday selling season, which will play a huge part in ratings agencies’ decision of whether or not to downgrade Macy’s (they usually wait until after the holiday season to change grades for retail companies) from their current investment-grade rating to a lower rating of non-investment grade speculative.

So? Since the holiday selling season already looks awful (check out Macys.com for some already amazing deals pre-Thanksgiving), and since the main ratings agencies have already said they have a “negative” outlook on Macy’s credit rating, which can only cross the line into non-investment-grade speculative since it’s already at the lowest point of the good end, Macy’s, right at this moment, seems screwed.

But we promise we’ll be more upbeat from here. Ho ho ho.

Today’s WWD may be a little funky so far, but there’s at least one story they made sure to get up there, and it’s pretty dire.

They’ve broken that there’s been a sweatshop operating out of Long Island City (which we’ve always heard was a nice, cute place with great views of the city) that’s been employing “over 100 mostly immigrant workers” with illegally low wages and overtime hours since 2005.

The workers have been manufacturing garments for a company that supplies clothes for Macy’s, Gap, Banana Republic, Express, Victoria’s Secret, Limited and Coldwater Creek.

Workers were being paid on a per-garment basis, completing each one in under a minute. They had even been coached on how to respond to suspicious investigations, in case that ever happened.

We’re not surprised that there are sweatshops, but more so that this was happening so close to home. But what’s the response from each of these companies going to be?

Designer Allen Schwartz of A.B.S. was recently asked about his copycat style by The LA Times - if you didn’t buy an A.B.S. prom gown, then you may remember Schwartz as the guy who goes on The Today Show every year to explain how to buy knockoff Oscar gowns.

Except Schwartz told writer Emili Vesilind that “Words like ‘copying’ and ‘knockoff’ do not exist in my life… When you talk about this, it hits a nerve for me. It’s based on such an elitist attitude.”

Um, okay Allen.

But what about this find by reader Cindy, who pulls her own Tory Burch dress from the closet - then sticks it next to a recent A.B.S. offering from Macy’s? Tory’s print may be a smudge more complicated, but it’s the same dress - two seasons late and under $100.

On the upside, at least he’s not copying those Tory ballet flats, which seem to multiply faster than private school applications on the Upper East Side…