Donna Karan's Urban Zen Makes it Permanent on Greenwich Street

You would think Donna Karan would have enough to do what with her name on two major fashion brands in the throes of a slow turnaround, but it turns out her real baby is the Urban Zen Initiative, an organization she created to administer the humanitarian enterprises spurred by her late husband Stephan Weiss' struggle with cancer. Her new store on Greenwich street was originally opened to temporarily accompany an Urban Zen seminar in May, but it was such a success that Donna decided to make it permanent. A portion of the store's proceeds will fund the Urban Zen activities which will be also be promoted there.
The store may represent a completely independent brand from her collection and DKNY lines, but inside it's classic Donna in her spiritual, world roaming mode. The space is whitewashed and furnished with natural materials and artifacts from her travels and, unlike her other stores, features other designers in addition to the Urban Zen label. The house brand consists of the kind of soft, drapey, layered dressing that never goes out of style for a certain customer. It should go over well with the Zoran/Eskandar/Dušan crowd. Particularly appealing were a group of weightless cashmere and silk knits made on seamless looms. Other labels are mixed together on the racks and include, among others, the expensive but inventive and luxurious knitwear from Irish designer Lainey Keogh. Artisanal jewelry, organic beauty products and home pieces designed by Weiss round out the assortments.
Donna has never been a quiet designer, and even her most loyal customers have, at times, wished she might pipe down and let her products speak for themselves, but this time she has gotten the balance right. The staff sets the informal tone for a serene atmosphere, though they were sure to let me know that it was a new store from Donna Karan. Though it's a bit off the beaten path, it should attract a following now that what we used to call "New-Age" thinking seems to be coming back even stronger than before.
Urban Zen 705 Greenwich Street between Charles & West 10th Streets, West Village