Anna Wintour and Ralph Lauren Honor Macy’s CEO Terry J. Lundgren at FIT Gala

by The Daily Front Row

The Fashion Institute of Technology held its annual gala last night, which was hosted by Ryan Seacrest and honored Terry J. Lundgren, chairman and chief executive officer of Macy’s Inc.

Anna Wintour and Ralph Lauren presented Lundgren the award in front of a packed crowd. Before handing over the accolade, Wintour recalled an excursion to Flushing, Queens with the CEO for Fashion’s Night Out. “Early on a September morning back in 2009 I found myself in Macy’s in Flushing, Queens with Michael Kors and Kate Hudson in full glam mode at 8 o’clock in the morning. We were there to kick off Fashion’s Night Out, an initiative to…make shopping a lively and meaningful experience—something Terry Lundgren has devoted himself to his entire career. Of course, we could have begun the day with any retailer. Manhattan is not without department stores, to say the least. But for Michael and myself, there was no other option than to be at Macy’s, and this is largely because of Terry.”

“Anna and Ralph are such icons in our fashion industry that they don’t even need to be mentioned by their last name,” Lundgren said as he accepted the award. “It’s like Bono and Beyoncé, or something.”

Lundgren will pass his CEO baton to Macy’s president Jeff Gennette this month. “I’ve loved working with Jeff for a long time,” Lundgren said. “You’re the perfect person to lead this company to the future. I’m just so proud of all that you’ve accomplished and what you’re about to accomplish.”

Notable attendees included Ricky Lauren, David Lauren, Vera Wang, Fern Mallis, Leonard Lauder, Jane Lauder, Maurice Marciano, Lisa Perry, B Michael, Josie Natori, Sebastian Suhl, Chris Pawlus, and Jay and Patty Baker. Those who couldn’t be there, such as Tom Brady, Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, Tory Burch, and John Varvatos, sent congratulatory video messages. The celebrations continued as Lundgren’s wife, Tina, gave a surprise 65th birthday party for her husband, with a personalized cake from chef Daniel Boulud and a birthday serenade from P. Diddy.

The gala raised an impressive $4.5 million for the FIT Foundation and Lundgren’s Alma Mater, The University of Arizona.

BY CAREY CASSIDY

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