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JEWEL LITTENBERG
Jun 03, 2024
In Fashion Forum
The industry is not changing as quickly as it needs to, but at the Global Fashion Summit last week, there were innovative ideas as well as a few good news stories by Lucianne Tonti May is a big month in fashion. The Met gala, often described as the Super Bowl of fashion, sees celebrities arrive at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York wearing outfits so elaborate that ascending the stairs often requires assistance. The Global Fashion Summit, which takes place later in May, sees sustainable fashion experts and designers descend on Copenhagen for what could be called the Super Bowl of sustainable fashion. At the three-day conference, delegates’ outfits are scrutinised far less than ideas, innovations and new technologies aimed at reducing fashion’s ever-growing carbon, waste and water footprints. This year, on its 15th anniversary, the lack of progress towards industry-wide change dampened spirits. But, from fast fashion brands committing to circular business models, to advice on how to decouple carbon emissions from revenue growth, there was much to discuss. Here are 10 key takeaways: 1. It’s time for legislation Fashion’s emissions are still growing. “The global goals are not on track,” said the founder and former CEO of the Global Fashion Summit (GFS), Eva Kruse. She was speaking at a panel described by its moderator, Vanessa Friedman, chief fashion critic of the New York Times, as “the OG summit gang”. “I had no idea how slow this would go,” Kruse continued. “I thought at some point we would become obsolete, but we’re still here talking about the same things.” Her conclusion: “We have to call in legislation. It’s on us.” Her calls for regulation were echoed across sessions. The European Union’s extended producer responsibility scheme, which comes into force on 1 January 2025, is likely to be the first of several steps towards legislative accountability. The legislation will have an industry-wide impact because of the global nature of fashion’s supply chains. Plus, with legislative acts also being discussed in France, California, New York and Australia, it is clear that a line is being drawn. Regulation is coming and businesses must figure out how it will affect them. 2. Primark and H&M are committed to some rental, resale and repair There was a little hope in the shape of the Fashion ReModel project, which was launched at the summit by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF). It sees a coalition of fashion businesses including Primark, Reformation and the H&M Group (which owns Arket, Cos and Weekday) commit to replacing a portion of their revenue stream from selling new goods with income from circular business models: rental, resale and repair. At the moment, these make up 3.5% of the global fashion market, but the EMF says that, by 2030, there is the potential for these models to take up 23% of the market and be worth $700bn. 3. It is possible to grow a business and reduce carbon emissions This may sound too good to be true but Ganni, the favourite brand of Danish It girls, announced to a home crowd that it had achieved a 7% absolute reduction in carbon emissions compared with 2021, while seeing annual sales growth of 18%, proving it is possible to decouple revenue from carbon. It is a formula that, apparently, with the right expertise, can be replicated by other businesses. The Ganni co-founder Nicolaj Reffstrup has co-authored the Ganni Playbook with journalist Brooke Roberts-Islam laying out how. While full of detail on the challenges and financial cost, he kept things more topline at the summit. When asked what advice he had for other businesses looking to decarbonise their supply chains, he said, simply: “Just do it.” 4. Brands need to put their money where their mouth is The slow progress of change is, according to Peder Michael Anker-Jorgensen, who is on the board of Global Fashion Agenda, which organises the summit, down to a lack of financial commitment towards sustainable solutions from brands. He said: “1.5% to 2% of operating income is going into research and development.” Despite paying lip service to sustainability: “The money’s not where the talk is.” According to Christine Goulay, the founder of consultancy Sustainabelle, fashion’s investments pale in comparison to those by other industries. A recent report found electronics companies spend 10% to 15% of sales on research and development and pharmaceutical and biotech companies spend 20% to 30%. 5. Brands need to be more transparent The fashion industry is famous for working behind closed doors and guarding its secrets. Consensus across the forums was that these isolationist tendencies have hampered progress towards sustainability, which is dependent on overhauling interconnected supply chains. “If each one is just looking after his own small garden without industry collaboration, we’ll never get the results,” said Attila Kiss, the CEO of Gruppo Florence, a group that represents luxury production facilities in Italy. 6. The perspectives of garment workers from the global south are still lacking Panels were often made up of people who represented the corporate or consumer end of fashion businesses, rather than the farmers and manufacturers who produce fibres and clothes. It speaks to who gets to have a seat at the table. “When we talk about garment workers, farmers, tannery workers, we need those people to be in the conversation – not just spoken about in abstract,” said Emma Hakansson, the founding director of Collective Fashion Justice. In one instance, a representative from the Cambodian workforce, Athit Kong, joined a panel via video due to difficulties obtaining a visa to travel to Copenhagen. “The [summit] needs to take proactive steps to engage worker communities and representatives and, where necessary, provide sponsorship and support with visas,” said Olivia Windham Stewart, an independent business and human rights adviser, who moderated the panel. “Otherwise it will just be a forum for industry to tell their side of the story.” 7. AI isn’t the solution One thing driving fashion’s environmental impacts is the sheer volume of products that are never worn, a result of the time lag between orders, production and retail. Artificial intelligence is often cited as a solution, but Dr Ahmed Zaidi, the CEO of AI platform Hyran Technologies, said that, without overhauling fashion’s manufacturing processes to be more agile and responsive to consumer demand, “using AI [as a solution] is like attaching a jet engine to a broken process”. So if anyone thought AI was going to be able to fix our broken system, think again 8. Collaborations with Indigenous communities are moving forward Despite fashion’s reliance on the natural world for its most luxurious materials, the Indigenous and local communities who are caretakers of 80% of the world’s biodiversity have long been excluded from corporate sustainability conversations. But there is hope in the shape of a new guide. A collaboration between the NGO Conservation International and luxury group Kering to help brands partner with Indigenous communities, it was sparked by 2022 research from Textile Exchange that revealed only 5% of the of 252 fashion brands surveyed consult Indigenous people on their biodiversity plans. According to Dayana Molina, an activist and Indigenous designer at fashion brand Nalimo, it is a first step to “push forward to make fashion that is cooperative, collaborative and fair”. On a separate panel, Naiomi Glasses, a seventh-generation Diné (Navajo) textile artist and designer who collaborated with Polo Ralph Lauren on a collection, said she would like to see “more brands embrace telling more stories like mine … The power of collaboration is really beautiful because there are so many stories embedded in craft and it lets us show how Indigenous cultures are still here and still thriving.” 9. Another next-gen material is here to rival synthetics More than $500m was invested in next-gen materials in 2023. From mushroom leather to spider silk and viscose made from coconut water, innovations in the material space are often heralded as the future of fashion. But the challenges of producing them en masse at a competitive price often come as a cold shock to innovators. Nevertheless, there is a new kid on the block. New York-based Bloom Labs is making materials that feel like cotton and silk while being as functional as polyester, all from protein-rich biomass waste, including pre-consumer discarded wool and upcycled down from the bedding industry. 10. Fashion must lead or be led “Nobody in their right minds would design a system like this,” said former CEO of Unilever, Paul Polman, of the fashion industry’s take, make, waste model. He described making fashion sustainable as “the biggest business opportunity of the century”, rounding off his keynote speech with a line that would be repeated by speakers on many panels to come: lead or be led.  This article was amended on 30 May 2024 to correct the name of the representative from the Cambodian workforce. It was Athit Kong, not Adil Rehman as a previous version said.
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JEWEL LITTENBERG
Dec 26, 2023
In Fashion Forum
https://alecleach.substack.com/p/fashions-glory-days-are-gone-get#:~:text=In%20a%20piece,good%20old%20days%3F(https://alecleach.substack.com/p/fashions-glory-days-are-gone-get#:~:text=In%20a%20piece,good%20old%20days%3F) In a piece written earlier in the year forThe Cut,(https://www.thecut.com/article/fashion-world-talent-problem.html) legendary fashion critic Cathy Horyn summed up the creative dead end the industry finds itself in these days. Horyn, who’s been covering runway shows since the ’90s, described “a feeling of sameness, that things are stuck in place”. What was once a place for avant-garde thought is now a conveyor belt of expensive merch and obnoxious status symbols.
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JEWEL LITTENBERG
Dec 11, 2023
In Fashion Forum
true story of the seamstresses in the workshop for luxury clothes in the most difficult extermination camp of all - women who sewed to survive. Read the introductory chapter https://www.ynet.co.il/fashion/article/bybdrttbp(https://www.ynet.co.il/fashion/article/bybdrttbp)
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JEWEL LITTENBERG
Dec 06, 2023
In Fashion Forum
How two savvy Southern belles styled  the first lady – and created her pink suit By Jan Tuckwood Special to The Palm Beach Post The ladies of Chez Ninon never considered Jacqueline Kennedy to be a great beauty. She looked exquisite in photographs, they would say. She knew how to pose and how to direct her wide-set eyes. She loved French couturiers and how their designs showed off her angular figure. She knew the colors that flattered her – and the power of a fashion statement. That’s why the first lady ordered a raspberry-pink, double-breasted, wool bouclé suit with navy blue trim from Chez Ninon, the New York boutique run by Sophie Shonnard and Nona McAdoo Park that had dressed society ladies since 1927. The suit was an authorized copy of a Chanel from the fall/winter 1961 collection. A receipt saved by Bill Cunningham, the famous fashion photographer who documented street style for decades and worked for Sophie and Nona in the ‘60s, shows a “fushia (sic) wool suit” was ordered for $495 on Dec. 19, 1960. That could have been the pink suit, because Sophie and Nona would have seen the Chanel collection in Paris and decided what Jackie might like. With an eye for style sharpened by their own high-society upbringing, Sophie and Nona were among the first Americans to bring licensed reproductions from Paris to New York. Jackie’s pink suit was assumed to be a Chanel because it looked exactly like one: the pattern, fabrics, trims and buttons came directly from Chanel. “We make all our own clothes here, some to our own design and some copied from French models,” Nona told the press in January 1962, after writer and politician Clare Boothe Luce accused Mrs. Kennedy of having a Marie-Antoinette moment and buying too many French clothes.  “Everything Mrs. Kennedy has purchased from us is made with American labor – and I think that is what is being questioned here,” Nona said. She was not about to take any criticism from Luce. After all, Nona McAdoo Park got her political smarts from her father, William G. McAdoo, who was President Woodrow Wilson’s secretary of the treasury and almost became the 1924 Democratic nominee for president. Luce was a Republican. Jan Tuckwood is the former associate editor of The Palm Beach Post. She is writing a book on Sophie Shonnard and Nona McAdoo Park. Entire article may be found on Google
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JEWEL LITTENBERG
Nov 20, 2023
In FASHION FACTS
Donna Karan and Bobbi Brown are also among 1,000 signatories to a letter calling for fashion companies to denounce any acts of Jew-hate Leading figures in the fashion industry including supermodels Bar Refaeli and Erin O’Connor, designers Donna Karan and Christopher Kane and the former editor of Vogue International have come together to call on the sector to take a strong stand against the open rise of anti-Jewish sentiment (https://www.thejc.com/news/news/swastika-and-kill-jews-graffiti-found-inside-north-london-private-girls-school-GOD5vdoxMKvBplTxBUEBZ)since the October 7 terror attacks.  More than 1,000 people working in the industry, from models and designers to agents, stylists, journalists and influencers, have signed the Fashion Against Antisemitism letter in light of the exponential rise in antisemitic incidents across the globe.   Suzy Menkes,(https://www.thejc.com/culture/features/suzy-menkes-has-always-been-in-fashion-but-now-she-s-totally-in-vogue-1.55973) one of the best-known fashion journalists in the world, who edited Vogue International for six years until 2020 is joined by British Fashion Council CEO Caroline Rush CBE and a slew of high-profile signatories including designer Donna Karan; makeup mogul Bobbi Brown; and musicians Jessie Ware and Noa Kirel. Designer and creative director Deborah Lyons, who coordinated the letter, said: "Fashion has always had the power to celebrate diversity and inclusivity, but it is disheartening to witness acts of discrimination and antisemitism within our industry. Antisemitism, in any form, is inexcusable in an industry that thrives on creativity and acceptance. We must take a stand.  “Within three days of the October 7 terror attack, I lost 1,000 followers because I posted about releasing hostages and calling for peace. But it did not stop there, I have received messages saying I should go back to Germany and be killed. I, like so many people in the Jewish community, know people in Israel affected by the Hamas attack, including people who have had to leave their homes because or rocket attacks, or whole families that have been wiped out. It’s heartbreaking.”  The letter calls on fashion companies and organisations to implement regular mandatory diversity sensitivity training for all employees, from designers to executives, with the aim of fostering "a deeper understanding of different cultures and religions, including Judaism”.  It adds: "Fashion companies should denounce any acts of antisemitism and take swift and decisive action against individuals or brands that perpetuate such behaviour." Menkes said: “The creative industries must be at all costs be free. Free from hate speech. From any attempt to influence evil; from any excuse of encouraging wicked thoughts in a whisper or a shout. There is no excuse". Last week, the Community Security Trust (CST) revealed that from October 7, when Hamas invaded Israel to October 31, it recorded 893 antisemitic incidents across the UK. This is the highest ever total reported to CST across a 25-day period since the group began recording incidents in 1984. The Metropolitan Police observed a 1,353% increase in antisemitic offences from 1 October to 18 October compared to the same period in 2022, with some 218 anti-Jewish hate crimes recorded by the force in that timeframe. In the US, the number of antisemitic incidents recorded spiked 388 per cent in the weeks following the Hamas terror attacks, according to the Anti-Defamation League. In a statement released on Sunday, the European Commission said: “The spike of antisemitic incidents across Europe has reached extraordinary levels in the last few days, reminiscent of some of the darkest times in history. “European Jews today are again living in fear.”
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JEWEL LITTENBERG
Nov 15, 2023
In FASHION FACTS
Why has no one from the German fashion industry spoken out clearly for over four weeks after the mass murder in Israel? Did I just miss that? Does the fashion scene have anti-Semitism in its ranks? Definitely not at first glance. As an external observer, I am not aware of any failures, neither at fashion shows nor at Fashion Week or the numerous workshops of the innovative startup scene. And yet anti-Semitism is part of today's fashion industry. And it's been that way since 1945. Non-stop. West German fashion companies built on the capital of Jewish companies that had been expropriated thousands of times, especially in Berlin. The clothing associations, the lobbies, the designers did everything – successfully – to cover up their own involvement. This is how a cartel of silence emerged. Recent memorial features, such as those for the Grünfeld company, Jewish and once on Kurfürstendamm, make an exception. The industry's anti-Semitic attitude began before 1933 and culminated, exactly 85 years ago this year, in the Berlin anti-Jewish pogroms around Hausvogteiplatz, Berlin's old fashion center. Over 2,000 Berlin Jewish fashion and textile companies were expropriated, vandalized, robbed and destroyed. Only very few of the fashion companies faced up to their past after 1945. No memory of the forced labor camps for clothing production or the Nazi raids on the couture fabric warehouses in Paris, Vienna and Budapest. To this day, not a word has been said about the fashion schools in Berlin that were closed at the time, such as the Reimann School. Will Fashion Week or the German Fashion Council want to remember this year? The liberal background of Jewish-influenced fashion in Berlin since 1830 could be the basis for a new fashion development in the 21st century. Yes, even after such a long time, their creativity continues to have an impact, just not on the fashion designers. Fashion needs liberalism and democratic freedom, otherwise it cannot be creative. Anti-Semitism always occurs where the past is buried. Fashion has a great appeal to younger generations, fashion has influence - especially through social media. The catwalk is ideal for reaching younger generations. Just like the members of the Council of Fashion Designers America (CFDA) are proving it these days. Designer Jennifer Fisher said: “The fashion industry has an ethical and social responsibility to show the world how fashion can be a powerful tool in combating anti-Semitism…Show solidarity with your Jewish peers and friends. If you see anti-Semitism, call it out.” The still prevailing amnesia of the German fashion and textile industry contributes to the fatal forgetting. What has been hidden for so long cannot now be discovered? Why wasn't one euro of the 20 million in funding from the Senate administration put into coming to terms with its own history? The defense of democracy is imperative for diversity, not just in the fashion scene. If this wasn't clear to you before, with October 7th and the unimaginable crimes committed in Israel and the global wave of anti-Semitism, that should now be abundantly clear. Never Again Is Now. Uwe Westphal
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JEWEL LITTENBERG
Jul 12, 2022
In FASHION FACTS
The definition of fashion according to the Oxford Dictionary Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. In its everyday use, the term implies a look defined by the fashion industry as that which is trending. The modern industry, based around firms or fashion houses run by individual designers, started in the 19th century with Charles Frederick Worth who, beginning in 1858, was the first designer to have his label sewn into the garments he created. Fashion started when humans began wearing clothes. According to Life 123, people began wearing clothes somewhere between 100,000 to 500,000 years ago. Clothing established social status and individuality. These clothes were typically made from plants, animal skins and bone .Before the mid-19th century the division between haute couture and ready-to-wear did not really exist. All but the most basic pieces of female clothing were made-to-measure by dressmakers and seamstresses dealing directly with the client. Most often, clothing was patterned, sewn and tailored in the household. When storefronts appeared selling ready-to-wear clothing, this need was removed from the domestic workload. (reference Immigrant Influence in the Garment Industry Immigrants & the Garment Industry By Dzvinka Stefanyshyn) New York, known as the “melting pot” of cultures, each immigrant group attempts to retain their traditions. Immigrants settled in particular neighborhoods in order to feel a sense of community of their old countries, and they even opened and expanded particular businesses that established ethnic niches. However, there is one commerce that has spanned across several immigrant groups, and that is the garment industry. Immigrants with limited knowledge of English and other skills turned to this industry as a source of income. With such an influx of immigrants, who provided cheap labor, America became reliant on production of clothing in the states (particularly New York). Since the early 1800s until the present, Germans, Irish, Russian Jews, Italians, Chinese, Puerto Ricans, and Latin Americans all have impacted the clothing industry. Though each of the immigrant groups that worked in garment manufacturing did preserve their background in the domestic sphere, they all partook in the shaping of how Americans, but particularly New Yorkers dress. It is the economic and social forces that contributed to the employment of various immigrant groups in the garment industry, and they name New York as one of the world capitals of fashion. Famous foreign designers such as the Belgian Diane von Furstenberg stated: “There’s a buzz, a creative energy in New York City that can’t be found anywhere else in the world. It’s an extraordinarily stimulating place for fashion—I think that’s why so many people choose to be here.” New York City is home to one of the largest populations of immigrants, and thus, it is no surprise that it is the epicenter of world fashion. Its history of the garment district has been and continues to attract hundreds of designers, famous or those on the rise, to shape how people dress. In New York, the women began working at home, and when they acquired enough money, they began hiring workers. Eventually, many of them were able to open small businesses (their ethnic niche) that focused on specific areas of clothing production, such as designing and buying fabrics, and the actual sewing. Up until the early 1900s, workers of the garment industry focused on creating clothing most suitable for the working immigrants. Tedious working conditions in the garment industry led to changes in clothing worn by workers. Women began wearing more tight-fitted blouses to prevent them getting caught in machinery Clothing was not the only thing that was transforming during that period. Drastic changes were occurring within the production of clothing itself; at the time, most people worked from home, but changes in the law no longer permitted fabrication in residential buildings. Consequently, tailor businesses and small companies shifted to commercial lofts and assembly-like factories located in today’s garment district. As more and more people were migrating to New York, the demand for ready-to-wear clothing (clothing that was not tailored to individuals, but rather produced and sold in standardized sizes) was higher than ever. This led to a change in the casual women’s style – from skirts and blouses to dresses. Moreover, by the 20th century, American designers wanted to express the latest European haute couture styles, but such made-to-order clothing could not be easily transferred onto the American mass-produced clothing. Instead, manufacturers took apart the diverse styles of haute couture clothing, picking specific details such as a particular sleeve design, and applied each of these to separate clothing pieces. As a result, a greater variety of clothing was made available for the New York public; not to mention, it was also simpler. Lastly, mass production of clothing led to the need for showrooms, which paved the way department stores that still surround the garment district. Contemporary Fashion A new wave of employment was entering the market due to the changes in immigration law in the latter half of the 1900s. By the 1950s, the earlier immigrants wanted and urged their children to pursue different career paths than themselves (that is, not work in garment manufacturing). This led to opportunities for other immigrant groups. Those who arrived after 1965 found that starting small businesses within this industry proved to be the most rewarding. Lacking native competition (many believed that the prestige of a small business, which required demanding working conditions was low), Asians and Hispanics seized the opportunity to make their mark in New York fashion. Small tailor shops started to alter the garment environment, and trends that emerged were attributed to the skills these immigrant groups lacked. Unlike the well-established clothing firms, which created their own products and provided numerous specialized services, small immigrant-owned workshops were limited to a few styles. Rather than having to teach immigrant workers – who also lacked knowledge of English – manufacturers sought simple, labor-intensive designs (which also interrelated with the demand to mass-produce simpler couture-inspired European styles). Similar to an assembly line at a factory, each laborer focused on creating one part of the clothing piece, and passing it on to the next worker. Nevertheless, New York City continues to pave the road for world fashion. Social and economic forces brought about by the immigrants shaped the industry’s unique history regardless of whether they were tailors or customers of the clothing. As those forces shifted from one immigrant group to the next, production of clothing impacted fashion trends on a global scale. New York modified and adapted European styles that have been brought over since the 17th century, and is recognized for its much more casual flair. Although it is perceived that modern European designers influence how New York dresses, this is limited to the highest ends of couture fashion found in the exclusive boutiques of Fifth Avenue. For everyone else, it is ultimately what an individual chooses to wear that solidifies what it means to dress like a New Yorker. In fact, American designers turn to attire worn by the young people on New York streets for inspiration to incorporate into their latest collections. European designers compete with American designers to recreate the authentic “American” and “New York” style, but fail to express simplicity and comfort in tandem. Ironically, what they don’t apprehend is that these styles originated from Europe and were merely shaped and simplified to fit people’s lifestyles.
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JEWEL LITTENBERG
Jul 09, 2022
In FASHION FACTS
Betsey Johnson (b. 1942) > Birthplace: Wethersfield, Connecticut Betsey Johnson was drawn to the arts already in her childhood, favoring drawing and dance. Her love for sketching flashy, elaborate costumes that she wore during dance recitals spearheaded her career as a fashion designer. Johnson is known for her quirky, out-of-the box aesthetic and is dubbed as a pioneer of New York City street fashion during the late ’70s. Johnson is also famous for doing a cartwheel at the end of every New York Fashion Week. Calvin Klein (b. 1942) > Birthplace: New York City, New York The American designer was known as much for his brand’s controversial ads as for the apparel line. Klein’s clothes were simple, comfortable, and relatively expensive, and American consumers responded favorably to his collections. Ads featuring a teenaged Brooke Shields wearing Calvin Klein jeans (“Nothing comes between me and my Calvins”) was pilloried in some circles as objectifying young girls. Donna Karan (b. 1948) > Birthplace: Forest Hills, New York The native New Yorker gained recognition for her apparel line’s simplicity and comfort as well as for the soft fabrics of her mix-and-match collections. Karan is credited with mainstreaming uptown New York chic to middle America and influencing how women dressed for work. Eventually, she diversified into menswear, children’s clothes, jeans, and perfume. 18. Michael Kors (b. 1959) > Birthplace: Long Island, New York Prominent fashion designer Michael Kors moved in the 1970s from Long Island to New York City, where he attended the prestigious Fashion Institute of Technology for two semesters. At the age of 19, he landed a job at Lothar’s, a French boutique in Manhattan, first as a salesman then a designer. Little did he know this would be the start of a lucrative career. He designed and sold his first collection at the popular boutique, regularly visited by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, Diana Ross, and Vera Wang. By 1981, he launched his own line, called Michael Kors Women’s Collection, which was sold in two upscale department stores: Bergdorf Goodman and Saks Fifth Avenue. Kors was also one of the premier judges on reality fashion show Project Runway from its inception in 2004 until 2012. Ralph Lauren (b. 1939) Birthplace: New York City, New York Born as Ralph Lipschitz, Ralph and his brother changed their last name to Lauren in high school after years of bullying. Unlike a majority of the acclaimed fashion designers on this list, Lauren was born into a relatively poor family. After high school, he took up a day job as a salesman and took business classes at night. To say his hard work and perseverance paid off is an understatement. Today, Ralph Lauren has a net worth of $7.3 billion. Lauren designed clothing for actors in the 1974 film adaptation of “The Great Gatsby” and for the movie “Annie Hall” in 1977. Tommy Hilfiger (b. 1951) Birthplace: Elmira, New York Tommy Hilfiger, the second of nine children in an Irish-American family, is known for his cool, preppy American style and his signature tri-colored flag on his apparel. He launched his eponymous brand in 1985, drawing on pop culture and Americana. Shortly after the launch, he rankled some people in the fashion industry when he proclaimed himself as the next great American designer. Time has proven him to be somewhat right. Global sales of Tommy Hilfiger reached $7.4 billion in 2017. Vera Wang (b. 1949) Birthplace: New York City, New York Vera Wang is probably the most famous designer of bridal wear in the world, and her evening wear and couture creations are favored by the Hollywood elite. Wang might have been a champion figure skater, but instead decided to become a fashion journalist for Vogue magazine. She then shifted to the other side of the fashion business and became a design director for the accessories department at Ralph Lauren. She made her own wedding dress and then opened a bridal boutique. Wang gained attention for a hand-beaded dress she designed for figure skater Nancy Kerrigan in 1994.
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JEWEL LITTENBERG

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