Kim Kardashian, Nicole Richie and Jennifer Hudson Turn Up For Fashion's Night Out

Fashion Week launches today with a slate of events, not least of which is Fashion's Night Out, which always turns out a host of glamorous celebrities and designers in New York. Originally started by Vogue Editor-in-Chief Anna Wintour to celebrate fashion and boost the industry during times of economic recovery, Fashion's Night Out is now in its fourth very successful year running, and has been adopted in almost 20 countries worldwide, luring thousands of shoppers with big names, new trends and special deals. The full calendar of events for 2012 includes over 700 activities and spans all five boroughs of New York, but here are some to watch closely.

If you want to mingle with the celebrities, head over to Lord & Taylor where Kim Kardashian will be signing $123 gift sets of her perfume True Reflection, and be sure to drop by QVC, where Nicole Richie (pictured above) and Jennifer Hudson (pictured below) will be promoting their new clothing lines. If you're also a fan of music and want to mix vices, don't miss Cyndi Lauper performing at Manolo Blahnik, where she'll be promoting her new musical Kinky Boots, and Pharrell Williams set to make an appearance at Billionaire Boys Club & Ice Cream.

For the true fashion lovers and shoppers: Balenciaga's Meatpacking boutique will be debuting Grace Coddington and Nicolas Ghesquiere's new capsule collection, Pumpkin; Kenneth Cole will be bringing you a "freesome" tote bag event in partnership with Foursquare; and Bergdorf Goodman will be celebrating its 111th birthday — so be sure to parttake in the festivities.

Although Fashion's Night Out coincides this year with the final evening of the Democratic National Convention, above-pictured Wintour — a public supporter of Barack Obama — says attendees will have plenty of time to watch the President speak after five hours of shopping and event-hopping. And if you can't make it to New York, fear not: most cities from Dallas to Montclair have plenty of local events lined up for the annual occasion.

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