Frank Castagna, Visionary in our Midst
I can count on one hand the true visionaries I’ve been fortunate to come into contact with – the unique individual who can bring people together around a shared purpose and motivate them to reach for the stars. I’m talking about the person who can connect with others, who understands their needs and makes them feel integral to the whole, who sets forth his agenda through persuasion rather than coercion, who is accessible and available, who leads through example, and who takes responsibility for mistakes and willingly and without fear charts a new better course . I think of George Washington, that brilliant leader who rallied people around his sense of decency and vision, and who never expected more from his troops than he himself was willing to give.
So, it is a distinct honor to know and be able to work with modern day visionary, Frank Castagna, owner of Americana Manhasset and Wheatley Plaza shopping centers. But Mr. Castagna is far more than the owner of these two incredible properties. He is the one who has conceived and built them, store by store, turning a dream into some of the most prestigious properties in the country.
When you meet Mr. Castagna, you are struck by how gentle and humble he is, more comfortable deflecting attention and praise onto those around him than accepting it for himself. His understated demeanor hides his curiosity, intelligence, and unbridled energy. This quiet man is one of action, and in fact, is rarely seen without his characteristic pin of a frog that he wears prominently on his lapel, a visible reminder to hopping. Keep looking ahead and keep moving. Know where you’ve come from, but never ever stand still. Challenges and obstacles are met with calmness, as if they are old friends that visit from time to time. Without obstacles, there is no growth. Without challenge, there is no incentive to do things differently. His confidence under fire, his determination and his energy, are an inspiration.
On a weekend day, you can see Mr. Castagna heading to his office bearing The New York Times, Crains, Women’s Wear Daily, Vogue, The Wall Street Journal, and a handful of other journals and periodicals. And come Monday, you can be sure to receive a copy of an article with a personal note, advising of a trend, a new collection, a potential peril, or just a humorous anecdote.
Philanthropy is his calling, and he uses his position at the center to insure that all of his stores give back in meaningful ways. This gentle man is a genius – in his informed management style, in his ability to keep his eye on the ball, in his kindness and humanity, in his energy and sheer unstoppability. Indeed, Frank Castagna is a visionary in our midst, and I am incredibly fortunate to be in the presence of such an inspired and brilliant leader.
Annie Fensterstock – Jewelry by Design
Annie Fensterstock eludes neat and easy categorization because she is and does so many different things. She’s a young woman proficient in the technique of ancient goldsmithing, an inspired jewelry designer and craftsman, an artist who paints, sketches and has a design in mind for everything she sees or thinks about, a mother of two young girls with a boy very much impending, and the wife of business partner and indie film producer, Mike Romero. Her black sketchbooks – she has about 35 of them from the last 20 years or so – contain her quick renderings of clothing, houses, jewelry and just about anything that attracts her attention. They speak to her keen eye and to her fundamental connection to the world through art. There is art in her blood, figuratively and literally; indeed, her grandmother was the famous Margit Beck, cubist and famous abstract expressionist painter known, among other things, for her aerial landscapes. Annie grew up seeing, feeling and ultimately learning art in Margit’s studio. Her mother, as well, is an artist.
For the last five years, Annie has been designing, creating and selling her own collection of handmade jewels under her own name. Art and travel are her source of inspiration. Using no molds, wax carvings or castings, her jewelry is entirely hand fabricated, working from solid metal, creating every link of every chain by hand. Her pieces are made in 18 karat or 22 karat yellow or white gold and platinum. She favors diamonds that are unusual in color and sapphires of hot pinks and moody blues.
Every piece is one of a kind, and indeed, so is Annie. No pretense, no affectation – just Annie doing what comes naturally and what she loves to do. Pure and steadfast as the gold she smiths. Hirshleifers is proud to carry her collection of fine jewelry.
Alexander McQueen
The world of fashion lost one it’s most influential and talented designers last week: Alexander McQueen. Hirshleifers was devastated to learn of the death of this immensely gifted individual, and our thoughts are with his family at this time.
Born in 1969 in London to Scottish taxi driver Ronald and social science teacher Joy, Lee Alexander McQueen served an apprenticeship early in his career with Savile Row tailors where he learned his craft.
After a period of time working for designers abroad, McQueen returned to London and received his masters degree in fashion design at London’s most prestigious fashion school, Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design. His graduation collection was bought in it’s entirely by influential fashion stylist Isabella Blow. It was Blow’s early faith in his vision that launched his career.
McQueen was one of the youngest designers to achieve the title “British Designer of the Year,” and was named International Designer of the Year by the CFDA. McQueen’s company was acquired by Gucci Group in 2000, and under Gucci’s management McQueen’s brand continued to grow and inspire with outstanding collections each season.
This accomplished designer will be remembered for his inspiration, his creativity, his passion and most of all, undeniable contribution to the world of fashion.
Spotlight on Monique Pean
Every once in a while you meet someone so smart and genuine that simply being in their presence is an inspiration. You come away feeling energized, thinking that anything is possible no matter how cynical your outlook on life, and truly believing that even you in your little corner of the world can make the world a better place. How incredibly refreshing.
Monique Pean is one of those rare persons. I had occasion to first meet her last year when she came to Manhasset to show us her collection of jewels. I’m not sure what knocked me off my feet first, her exquisite collection or her fine personal qualities — her quiet understated intelligence, her warm smile that speaks to the goodness in her heart, her modesty in describing her impressive academic background and stint at Goldman Sachs, and her commitment to social issues and to the environment.
In 2006, Pean launched her collection of sustainable fine jewelry consisting of gorgeous pieces inspired by the indigenous cultures of places such as Haiti, Bali, Alaska and China. Traveling the world, as she did with her family when she was a child, Pean works with indigenous artists to find rare sustainable materials to incorporate into her designs. In her Bering collection, Pean integrates fossilized walrus, caribou and wooly mammoth ivory with recycled gold, stones and conflict free diamonds to make one-of-a-kind pieces.
In her Charity-Water fine jewelry collection, Pean seeks to raise awareness of the more than 1.1 billion people in the world who lack clean drinking water. The collection moves between blues and browns to glistening clear colors. Pean returns a percentage of the proceeds from each piece to Charity-Water to bring clean water into communities in need in developing countries.
Pean’s talent has not gone unnoticed. She was selected as one of the winners of the highly prestigious 2009 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund as well as the Ecco Domani 2009 Fashion Foundation award for accessories.
We’ve just seen the beginning of Pean, and the future promises so much more. With an “anything is possible” approach, Monique Pean is truly as stunning a woman as the elegant jeweled works of art she creates.
Happy New Year!
In a gentle way you can shake the world
THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING…
CARYN: be the change that you want to see in the world. ALEXIS: the federal/civil right to love/marry who I choose to and the right to divorce them. KIM: forget to hate and learn to appreciate. ANNABELLA: find a cure for cancer. CAROLE: end hunger. NILI: end child abuse and animal abuse. DIANNE: that every human on this planet has a happy and loving home and a family to share the happiness with in these hard times. NATASCHA: world peace; have our troops come home, and that a cure for AIDS be found. ROBERTO: no more war. ELAINE: no more hunger. ANDREA: no more terrorist attacks. MARILYN: peace amongst all nations. ROB: job security for all. SHELLEY: that our men and women fighting abroad come home safe and that they and their families be blessed with a sense of peace. ROBERT: I wish you generosity so you may share all the good things that come to you. SAMANTHA: when you plant a tree, plant three – one for shade, one for fruit and one for beauty. My wish is for the world to be kind to the environment. STACY: no more returns! World peace. MADISON: may your future be limited only by your dreams. PAMELA: find a cure for cancer and no more swine flu. MICHELLE W.: equal rights for all and prosperity for our nation. CLAUDIA: I wish for an end to world suffering. JENNIFER: for us all to see one another as equals, be respectful and compassionate. Cease fighting and war. Be charitable and patient as often as we can. RYAN: affordable college tuition. NICOLE: affordable health care for everyone. TOVA: let there be peace, love and understanding amongst us all. ASHLEY: no more animal cruelty. LORI: peace on earth now. EDDY: that the world be healed with music. GARNET: health care for all and an end to war for profit LILLIAN: that everyone gets along with each other and stops fighting. End world suffering. DR. DAVID: do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Downtime with Caryn Hirshleifer
For Much of my early life, I imagined two things: first, that I was mistaken for another baby at birth, taken home by the wrong set of parents from the cocoon-like safety of the hospital’s maternity ward; and second, that any day, there could come a knock at my front door and my true parents would reveal themselves. It’s not that my mom and dad were uncaring; it’s just that retail and business consumed every waking hour of their attention, and I simply didn’t get what was so intriguing about those subjects. In fact, I found them downright mind-numbing, especially when the world around me was in flames — draft-cards were burning, bras were burning, Watts and Detroit were burning. No way I could focus on a Norell dress when the fabric of society was in tatters.
My survival strategy? Books. During those days when I could not abide talk of the clothing business, and retail was the only channel with reception in my kitchen, I would hide away and read. Reading took me places I’d never been and helped me understand life. And even though I’ve grown up, and have come to appreciate how creative and fulfilling business can be, reading remains my favorite way to unwind. A list of my top ten all-time-favorite escape hatches follows. Cheaper than travel, fat-free and easier to deal with than people – what more could you want?
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer
Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon
Bridge Of Sighs by Richard Russo
American Pastoral by Philip Roth
The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
As A Driven Leaf by Milton Steinberg
Downtime Downtown for Shelley Hirshleifer
With the intensity of work leading up to the holidays, I find that spending time with my family is the perfect way for me to relax. While Lori is basking in the St. Barth’s sun drinking French wines, you’ll find me in downtown Brooklyn drinking fine Italian wines and visiting my adorable grandchildren, Prue and Marco. You might not understand the correlation between the two so I’ll enlighten you. My son Andrew and my daughter-in-law, Francine, own and operate a very popular restaurant on Flatbush Ave called Frannys. There I can unwind and enjoy a perfect meal – a nice bottle of Lambrusco, a perfectly done clam pizza and one of Andrew’s great special first plates. I can also enjoy watching Prue steal all the pancetta off my husband’s plate while Marco, at the age of two, likes to click his zippy cup against my wine glass and say cheers. Family, clam pizza and Lambrusco – my recipe for unwinding.
Downtime with Lori Hirshleifer Sills
Work gets me feeling pretty stressed, and by the time vacation comes around, I’m beyond ready for St. Barths, my idea of paradise. One of the most physically beautiful places I’ve been to, St. Barths has incredible white beaches, calm crystal clear turquoise waters warm enough to bathe in, and perfect spots along the rocky coast to watch the sunsets. And set amidst this natural beauty are happening restaurants, huge yachts, some of the best shopping around, and people and celebrity-watching that is pretty indescribable, especially considering the island’s compact seven square miles of size. Seductively hip? Absolutely, but it’s the warmth and welcoming feel I get that makes St. Barths so magical for me.
Bibhu Mohapatra’s Intelligent Design
The term ‘intelligent design’ might conjure up images of Darwinists battling creationists. When we talk about the intelligent design of Bibhu Mohapatra, however, we’re talking about something everyone can celebrate – beautifully constructed, elegant cocktail dresses, stunning draped gowns with layers that create the sense of movement, and “softer more wearable clothes” as he describes them.
I had the pleasure of spending time with Bibhu when he was at Hirshleifers last week to present his spring/summer collection, the second ready-to-wear collection under his own namesake label. A quick look at his work leaves no doubt that he is a gifted designer and master technician. More about that in a moment, but first, let me share the personal qualities that make this young man so unique: his gentle understated elegance, his thirst for knowledge, and his inspiring story of pursuing his love of fashion, which took him from a Masters Degree in Economics to the Fashion Institute of Technology where he received the prestigious Critic’s Award for Best Evening Wear Designer of the Year. And then on to serve as design director at J. Mendel, a post he held for five years before launching out on his own.
Bibhu’s spring/summer collection explores the theme of inner beauty, something he clearly knows much about. Inspired by x-rays, he has created a beautiful linen blazer with delicate spine-like lace-up back. Blouses in jersey, linen and layers of organza, some in a blue and black print resembling x-ray film, are lovely. Stunning cocktail dresses and gowns, in buttery yellow charmeuse and white lace to pale green with appliquéd embroidered squares, create a sense of softness with layers draped and floating.
Inner beauty is joined by outer splendor. Now that’s intelligent design.
If it’s Peter Marino, it must be black Friday
You know it’s black Friday when Peter and his entourage come to call. That’s Peter Marino, internationally acclaimed award winning architect, designer of Hirshleifer’s 3200 square foot Chanel boutique as well as much of Americana Manhasset, New York personality, motorcycle aficionado, body builder, retail confidante and friend.
Every black Friday, Peter comes to call, first lunching with Americana Manhasset owner Frank Castagna, and then stopping by to check out Hirshleifers new offerings and to check in with his wife, Jane, who’s spent the afternoon shopping.
Dressed in biker black, Peter posed with Lori and Caryn Hirshleifer and in-store display artist Robert Heneks. Born to be wild? Maybe. Born to design? Definitely.
Ashley Olsen, a young woman of grace and elegance
I imagine that fame must be a really hard thing to navigate. One must be a strong individual to bear the burden of so many people projecting onto you their expectations of how great your life must be. That’s why Ashley Olsen, whom I had the pleasure of meeting last night, is so impressive. Ashley and her staff were at Hirshleifer’s to show the spring/summer 2010 collection of The Row, the three-year old fashion brand conceived by the Olsen twins. For those not up on The Row, the collection, named for the impeccable tailoring standards of Savile Row, offers hip beautiful T-shirts, blouses, leggings, blazers, pea-coats, all with a fit, luxurious texture and feel that makes the collection comfy and wearable.
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And while the collection has been the subject of rave reviews, what to me is even more impressive was Ashley, the young woman, whose warmth, grace and kindness illuminated the room, who took time to personally greet each and every fan who came there to be touched by her magic, to take home a little bit of her because it in some way made them feel better about their own life.
For me, it was magical to watch the interactions, to observe Ashley’s strength and courage as she gave of herself to those in the room in many different ways throughout the evening. It was an evening I will long remember. I was honored to be in the presence of such a talented young woman, and a person of great strength, warmth, grace and character.
On the road with KAUFMANFRANCO
On Wednesday, October 23, Isaac Franco was here to present the KaufmanFranco Resort 2010 collection. Isaac was traveling solo, as artistic collaborator and co-designer Ken Kaufman was enroute to the Far East to scope out resources for their next collection.
Kaufman and Franco make an incredibly talented design team and have succeeded in turning out collection after collection of sophisticated sensual pieces that speak to craftsmanship, detail and luxury.
Isaac Franco spoke to us about the Resort 2010 collection which he described as double-themed to reflect the melding of the two different design presences. “A meeting between Madame Butterfly and the Mata Hari, perhaps?” The delicate sensuous asymmetrical butterfly-winged hems of the dresses, shirtings and evening wear of the collection conjure up the image of Madame Butterfly, while the chunky vintage jewels that bedeck the pieces of the collection take us back to the infamous seductress, Mata Hari. The hues of the collection are cool and introspective with names like onyx, silver, blue steel, ice, optic white and indigo. Franco wants women to style the pieces for themselves, and so offers drawstrings and other accoutrements on their pieces that permit experimentation and invite customization and individuality.
As always, KaufmanFranco drew an impressively strong client response. Why not? The clothing is stunning and Isaac and Ken are fun, easy and professional to work with. And most important, they’re dog lovers. So, what can be bad?
KaufmanFranco
Resort 2010
