Is Nick Wooster Headed to J.C. Penney?

The New York Post is reporting that former fashion director for Bergdorf Goodman and Neiman Marcus, Nick Wooster, has been scooped up by the department store chain J.C. Penney. Known mostly to fashion industry insiders for his dandy-meets-daddy look, a hire like this would normally go unnoticed, but The Post makes note of an interesting point: Last year, Wooster was mysteriously fired from his position at the high-end luxury retail company after GQ released an interview with him wherein he referred to himself as, "an old f--ing midget queen." Ron Johnson--who was previously in charge of Apple's retail stores--took over at J.C. Penney last year to help revive the company. He has since hired the openly gay talk show host Ellen DeGeneres as the store's spokesperson, and ignored protests from the conservative group One Million Moms. While Wooster's role as creative director of men's fashion for J.C. Penney will likely be much less public, it's still an interesting move for the company, especially in light of Wooster's affiliation with more high-end labels, with the Post noting that "some insiders fret over Wooster's lack of experience in middlebrow togs," and are concerned that Johnson has yet to fill four high-ranking corporate positions in the men's department.

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