Kohl’s to Launch New Ongoing Designer Series, Starting With Narciso Rodriguez

Last week, we relayed the news that iconic New York designer Narciso Rodriguez was plotting a lower-price line with retail chain Kohl’s, and today comes word from WWD that the project is actually much bigger than a single collaboration.

The trade daily is reporting that the Rodriguez line — set to hit Kohl’s shelves in November — is just the first of a larger initiative called Design Nation, which will feature monthlong, limited-edition designer lines for Kohl’s. But here’s the twist: Each collection will actually pair a designer with a city. Rodriguez’s collection, for example, was apparently inspired by Instanbul, where the designer was lucky enough to travel and explore thanks to the fine folks at Kohl’s.

With this new project, Kohl’s may have come up with a winning strategy to lure designers into collaborations — free trips anywhere in the world! To hear Rodriguez tell it, the trip really was a can’t-miss opportunity, and the clothing we’ll be able to shop in November will be a direct reflection of that energy:

“There is such a great mix of Europe and Asia, and a really cool new scene, from the arts to the kids, the graffiti, the colors of the streets, the patinas on the walls, the tiles on the floors,” Rodriguez said. “I was taking it in from so many different angles. The adventure seemed like a great opportunity to do something new.”

The collection will reportedly be priced between $30 and $150 when it hits shelves in late fall, and the Design Nation initiative (which was apparently developed by LF USA, the same folks who recently partnered with cult label Vena Cava) has other designers up its sleeves for the months to follow, though they’re apparently not saying whom.