NEW YORK — On the third day of Fashion Week, 20 stories above the Bryant Park tents in his 42nd Street showroom, Michael Kors is taking a time out.

Casually dressed in jeans and a black T-shirt, the designer, who is two days away from his fall ’09 runway show, has stepped away from the model fittings and last-minute meetings to relax and talk about where his 28-year-old company is headed in the coming year.

Since launching the Michael Kors label in 1981, the Long Island, N.Y., native has built a lifestyle brand that goes far beyond its ready-to-wear roots into handbags, jewelry, home décor and, of course, shoes. The designer launched Michael Kors footwear nearly a decade ago, adding two more lines — bridge collection Kors Michael Kors and the lower-priced Michael Michael Kors — in 2002 and 2005, respectively.

Now, Kors and his team are turning up the heat on the footwear business. In November, the company announced it would end its nine-year relationship with Schwartz & Benjamin, which held the license for the bridge Kors line, in favor of bringing production in-house alongside the lower-priced Michael collection. The higher-end Michael Kors collection, meanwhile, is being created with Milan-based Iris SpA. (Iris’ parent company, Gibo, manufactures the Michael Kors ready-to-wear line.)

“Things have changed tremendously since we started in footwear,” Kors said. “Now, with everything under one roof, it’s a lot easier for us to sit here and [figure out where each footwear line] belongs and who it is appropriate for.”

While the shoe business may be undergoing big changes, Kors is determined to keep his design sensibility intact.

“So many shoes now have become jokey and ridiculous. Is that a cinder block on the heel? Oh, there’s a baby doll as the ornament on the front. It’s insane,” he said. “No one can wear them, and no one can walk in them. I’m all for a sexy and outrageous shoe, but it still has to have a reason.”

As for future projects, Kors was reluctant to comment, but did say he was sticking to fashion. “I’m not writing a book, I’m not doing food, I don’t know where Project Runway is going to be,” he said. “[But as far as shoes go], we’re so excited about having it all under one roof.”