So, Liz Claiborne announced today that the company hired designer Isaac Mizrahi as its new creative director. It's a smart move on the part of Liz Claiborne, given Mizrahi's successful track record at Target, in terms of revitalizing the department store's brand. And it's a smart move on Mizrahi's part, too. His contract is expiring at Target -- and the chain seems to be losing some of its previous luster as the go-to "design for all" destination as many other companies copy its approach. In December, it saw a larger-than-expected decline in same-store sales and predicted a lag in fourth-quarter earnings.

In 2006, I interviewed Mizrahi his Manhattan office on the topics of branding, designing for different audiences, and his advice to companies looking to be ahead of trends as they emerge in the marketplace. It will be interesting to see if he applies some of these tactics as he moves to Liz Claiborne. Here's a link to the interview.