Beyond beauty, creativity, and style, fashion in New York is all about the Big B-- Business. So, naturally, when the American and consequently, the world economy tanked, the New York fashion scene was the first to keel over. I witnessed how the mighty stores at Fifth Avenue and Madison became empty spaces of luxury--hardly any shopaholic in sight and the cash registers were as still as the mannequins on display. This was February of this year.

Coming back to New York this September as a member of the international press covering Fashion Week Spring 2010 for Manila Bulletin, I felt the air has changed dramatically since my last visit to the city. With the rise of shoppers’ traffic on Fifth and diners’ traffic (long queues to get a table!) at a Meatpacking District restaurant, I felt that New York has returned to its busy state of mind. But nowhere else in the city did I feel such action in the heart of Manhattan than at Bryant Park, home of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week.

Global media was once again focused on the business of fashion as well as its trends and creative directions. “Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week runway shows continue to be one of most desirable invitations to have during fashion week,” says Lisa Holladay, brand experience marketing manager at Mercedes-Benz USA. “Design and fashion are core to the Mercedes-Benz brand so it’s our DNA to create activities that help generate excitement and energy around each season.” With 80 runway shows in one week plus a number of accessories exhibitions attended by A-list Hollywood celebrities, fashion editors, writers and bloggers from all over the world, the buzz is, indeed, back in New York City as the world’s fashion capital.

“The designers worked long and hard to create collections to inspire their customers to once again go shopping,” says Fern Mallis, senior vice-president of IMG Fashion, which owns and operates the event.

Fashion’s Night Out!

In an initiative designed to restore consumer confidence in a time of recession, Vogue partnered with the Council of Fashion Designers in America (CFDA) to kick off the Spring 2010 showings with a one-night-only event, the Fashion Night Out!, where designers and the fashion elite can engage directly with customers and the general public.

The Fashion Night Out!, stores were open until 11pm, privy to such rarefied sights as Oscar dela Renta singing in his store, Alexander Wang styling shoppers in Barneys and Vogue’s editor-in-chief Anna Wintour descending—and almost getting mobbed--on Macy’s in Queens.

With the entire fashion population of New York united in strengthening and promoting retail in style, Fashion’s Night Out! reportedly spurred a 3.4 percent nationwide traffic increase in apparel and accessories stores in the US, with nearly a 50-percent rise in Manhattan. The CEOs of Macy’s, Brooks Brothers and Bergdorf’s were said to be pleased with the expected rise in sales.

Grand fashion advocacies like Fashion’s Night Out! send a strong message that fashion’s essence can transcend vanity and self-absorption. Recession and crisis become an opportunity for people to go beyond themselves and reach out to others. As they say, the worst times bring out the best in us. And such optimism was in the New York air at Fashion Week.

Three quintessential New York designers--Donna Karan, Michael Kors and Marc Jacobs--whom I had the privilege to be up-close with after their shows, expressed the same message of positivism and cheerfulness in their Spring 2010 collections.

DKNY

With the return engagement of Eighties fashion on the runways, Donna Karan, who revolutionized the concept of power dressing and streetwear back in that era of excess, has managed to present a new take on old silhouettes in her DKNY Spring 2010 collection aptly named “City in Bloom.”

The collection blossomed into urban chic bursting with fresh color and a frenzy of pattern. Bright-colored, slouchy, crepe jumpsuits, sharp-shouldered, tailored jackets in floral graffiti prints, silk fabric in neutral colors executed with fabric-flower appliques and sequinned details in pink, salmon, and sage, offered a contrasting yet cohesive collection. “The look I have envisioned is all about the bright and the fun side of the city,” explains Karan. “It’s New York City and it’s a neutral palette, then all of a sudden, the explosion of spring.”

The swimwear that doubles as sportswear is a winner for our weather. Overall, Karan’s vision for spring channeled DKNY’s classic downtown edge with optimistic attitude.

MICHAEL KORS

Michael Kors still must have been on a Michelle Obama high following the White House release of the first, official portrait of the First Lady wearing his all-black shift dress early this year. The sleeveless, shift dress came in different details in his Spring 2010 collection, all in architectural and feminine silhouettes. Most notable were the dresses in sky blue with origami-like folds, crushed techno taffeta, silver, crinkle lame, draped jersey and in crisp, black and white with sharp slashes at the necklines and hems.

With Hollywood stars like Michael Douglas at the front row, the menswear collection was primed to be as important as the womenswear. True to his signature Old Hollywood look, the flannel suits, country-club blazers, cotton slacks in luxurious fabrics, and powder and bold colors channeled old Hollywood charm combined with the urban sleek of Manhattan.

The show ended on a high note with the models coming out in silhouettes evoking a nighttime skyline to a remix of Madonna and Lady Gaga, underscoring the upbeat energy of the entire collection.

MARC JACOBS

Undoubtedly the most anticipated collection of the season, the Marc Jacobs show was the only one unlisted in the schedule board of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. It was the hottest ticket in town. Every fashionista in NYC would have killed for an invite. Only the time and date of the show was publicly announced, the venue was kept secret until the night before the event when the invites were deliberately delivered fashionably late.

Madonna and Lady Gaga, this time, were in actual attendance, with the latter arriving late.

With the huge expectations attached to the show, Marc Jacobs delivered with a bang. The models looked like geishas, with a touch of harlequin/ballerina, delivering the desired theatrical drama despite the minimalist production.

Over-the-top femme silhouettes, with an abundance of ruffles in soft, pastel colors, set the tone for a modern take on theatrical. The steel blue pastel stood out from the lavender and the peach tones, making it a sure hit among the Spring Summer 2010 trends. True to form, lots of layering and beading and mixing of florals and plaids elevated the complexity of the collection. Sharply tailored military jackets with pinstriped, ruffled numbers and dreamy gowns in ultra-light colors punctuated a show saturated with drama.

The final look was the perfect way to end the designer’s signature collection. A super light, almost gravity-defying, dreamy gown showcased the designer’s keen eye for editing and his expertise in tailoring, making him worthy of his title as America’s biggest superstar of fashion.

MARC for MARC JACOBS

Marc Jacobs channeled the decadent Eighties again for his Spring Summer 2010 collection for his streetwear line Marc for Marc Jacobs. The designer mentioned to me backstage before the show that this particular collection is inspired from the 1980’s New Wave band, Bow Wow Wow, and the Mudd Club, the hip NYC bar of the early ‘80s, where punks and literary icons were known to have shared a cocktail or two.

As I watched the models parade in bright colors with print over print looks, I saw boys and girls in “I-just- wanna- have- fun” attitudes. The audience erupted in loud applause when the familiar bunny bows adorned models’ hair, echoing the designer’s unforgettable Vuitton look last season.

The beauty of this collection lay in the expert layering of fabrics and the bold mix of colors, as in the pink, pop checked shirt mixed with turquoise, star skirt with metallic, tube necklace and gold, wedge sandals. Another notable look was a yellow sweater paired with cream, denim pants with green belt and fuchsia, wedge, lace-up shoes.

Jacobs also added a hint of tribal style with a twist in this collection, showing tees in yellow and navy cheetah prints paired with shorts and army hi-top sneakers and sapphire, striped jackets over talc, maze-print shirts in sapphire pants with black skeleton necklace.

Marc Jacobs never fails to surprise even the most jaded of fashionistas and, for this collection, the surprise was his brilliant mix and match of the most unlikely elements, transforming contradiction to perfection and irony to harmony.