Junko Yoshioka, maker of fine hand-sewn, couture bridal wear, has signed a lease for seven years. (Could there be something to that?  To that odd number?  Like that Biblical thing about seven years of good luck and seven years of bad luck -- not to mention the seven-year itch…hmmm…)  The company has 18 bridal salons around the States and Japan, and this site will be a huge 3,000 square feet.  They're at 580 Broadway between Prince and Houston…as usual, with new leases, stay tuned.  We're sure to have more info down the road.

Just about the time last month that we were telling you about that "sneaky" Loehmann's opening on Broadway and 73rd Street, another stealthy retail debut occurred nearby, one that we have been meaning to write up and share with you. The shop is called Just Birdie, with homage paid to golfers (as its name implies), but its merch is not solely for duffers at all; "civilians" will find the stock alluring enough (and prices compelling enough) to make this shop a destination. And indeed, it's a darling, jewel-box-size store with wonderful cashmere-and-silk-blend sweaters, all of which would look very spiffy on the golf course. (The exterior of the shop is decorated with little vignettes picturing St. Andrews, and plaid seems to be the major design element on the interior -- so Scotland and golf are definitely part of the company's inspiration.)

Started in France in 1996, the company has five stores in Europe and the one here at 2047 Broadway btw. 70th & 71st Sts. is the first in the U.S. There are well-priced styles for both sexes, and classics include turtle-, crew-, boat-, and V-necks, zip fronts and traditional cardigans, polos, T-shirt styles, and much, much more. Prices range from $89 to $165 for men, and from $79 to $165 for women, but there are accessories, wraps, and scarves in the store that are lower-priced. There are nearly three-dozen rich colors in the company?s yarn palette, ranging from delicate violet to deep russet.  

And just in time for Mother's Day, the shop is offering 10% off your purchases (if you mention that you read about it here), and considering that these are such well-priced sweaters to begin with, it?s a steal. So, forget scoring a birdie -- the shop is a hole-in-one!  

Our friend the film critic likes to do all his filing in clear-plastic, envelope-style sheets, secured in binders from Muji. What?!?!?! You don’t know Muji? Well, soon you will. A Japan-based retailer -- with over 300 stores in its homeland, and another 69 stores around the world -- Muji sells environmentally conscious, minimalist housewares, paper goods, furniture, clothing, fabrics, accessories, and all kinds of things that you never knew you’d need or want, but need or want the minute you see them at Muji. And they’re cheap -- really cheap. Everything has a very less-is-more look and is well designed and clever. Muji will be opening in the Renzo Piano-designed new New York Times building at 620 Eighth Ave. btw. 40th & 41st Sts. Muji is the first tenant to sign a retail lease for the building, and is expected to open for the holiday season this year. (The name comes from the Japanese words mujirushi ryohin, which more or less means "no-brand quality goods.")

We’ve been watching the construction at the new Loehmann’s, on Broadway between 73rd and 74th Streets, for months and months and months. Ever the snoop, we kept asking about the opening date, which it seemed kept getting pushed further into the calendar. And then suddenly, poof!  The store flung open its doors. This past Saturday. No notices. No fanfare. No nothing. It was, as the salesperson at the register confided to us (when we were paying for our cheapie -- but really adorable -- Marc Jacobs silvery, glitter ballerinas),  “even a surprise to us.” (The staff.) Yeah, really. Apparently, sales associates came in that morning and were clueless that the store was going to open that day!

So, here is what we espied after a very quick trip around the vast football field of a store. (Remember, it was a Gristedes.) There are racks and racks of all the usual suspects: Anne Klein, Calvin Klein, DKNY, blah-blah-blah. You get the picture. As well as lots of names that mean nothing to you. BUT, in the accessories department, there were prestige brands that might tickle your fancy and put a little dent in your wallet, even discounted: A few stray Bulgari handbags (if only they were a New Yorker’ s favorite color  -- black -- and not a fashionably springy pink and beige), but they were not $530 as they might be midtown, but rather $269. Colorful Pucci summer bags ($309, as opposed to $445, according to their price tags).  Furla and Tod’s at discounted rates, too. In the shoe department, big names like Kenzo, Judith Leiber, Lacroix, and Cole Haan.

The store will be open (it’s really a soft opening) through the 7th, closed Easter Sunday, and then on Monday the 9th, open only until 3pm, and closed for the “big party” that night; then a preview day (like what’s going on now isn’t a preview?) on Monday the 10th; and then finally, on April 11th, the Big Opening Day. 

Sit tight for more reports from the front.

Uh-oh. We’re in deep cocoa trouble. Chocolatier Jacques Torres has just signed a lease to open his third Gotham emporium right across the street from -- dum-da-dum-dum -- our residence. Bring in the guys in the hazmat suits for damage control.  The new shop will be on Amsterdam Ave. just north of 73rd St., within punting distance of the 72nd Street subway stop and Verdi Square.  It will be 1,000 square feet -- in other words, just large enough to sell more chocolate than you could eat in a year. Stay tuned; we’ll be getting more particulars and an opening date...so you can mark your calendar and we can start the diet -- so we’ll all be ready for the maestro when he starts tempering that chocolate on the UWS.