Kohl's' Simply Vera launch-the secrets in the styling, not the price.

Implications: More than the name, styling will make the difference in whether Simply Vera is successful in Kohls stores.

Analysis: Everyone wants cheap-chic, but will it be chic, when it’s also cheap. Both Kohl's and Ms. Wang are betting that it will be with the introduction of the Simply Vera line of cloths.  Especially designed for the retailer, industry observers aren't sure; suggesting prestige conscious buyers of the high end Vera Wang designs will snub the label if it’s sold in a store like Kohl's. That certainly is the conventional wisdom, but it may not apply in this case.

Kohl's is a different kind of store. Part department store and part discounter, its image is more of a department store with good prices and great sales too, than that of a traditional mass merchandiser like Wal-Mart or Kmart. That may make a big difference in how the label is perceived in the future by current high end customers.

Whether Kohl's regular shoppers will buy it at regular price is probably the bigger question. Priced at least twice as high the stores typical labels, the Simply Vera name may not offer sufficient value added to entice Kohl's price conscious customers to pay more. However, I will venture to suggest that if the styling is 'dead on' target, customers will buy and that could reposition Kohl’s as a fashion leader in an industry that has lost much of its fashion rightness edge.

In the event that the product doesn't sell, Kohl's can always blow it out in one of their great sales. I am always amazed how much better jewelry and apparel designs look to customers at 50% off. But haughty comments aside, a big sale of the Wang brand could be the most damaging thing that could happen to the label if the goods don't sell.