Fast forward some 50 years and that same message can get a little muffled. Here’s the thing, one can glob a statement onto practically anything one wears, and while much like the early ’70s hit I Am Woman, one doesn’t always have to scream it from the rooftops. Or in this case, from the front of a T-shirt. When it comes to dressing, designers the world over who have their pulse on the times are banding together – serenading the woman of today with the same tune, one with an upbeat tempo that the wearer can vibe to her own step.
Which is why a brand like Kate Spade is of supreme importance today. The late founder was first an accessories editor at Mademoiselle Magazine, leaving her post and making her mark, first with a functional, chic, reasonably-priced black nylon purse named Sam and later, expanding to shoes that gave a child-like whimsy back to women, before leaving the brand she built with her husband in 2007 to raise her daughter. That same year, president and chief creative officer Deborah Lloyd took over. She introduced a jubilant take on recessionary dressing with her floral frocks and preppy, punchy seperates and expanded the brand from an accessories line into ready-to-wear and jewellery, helping shape what a fully realised Kate Spade woman could look like. Today, Nicola Glass, who became the brand’s creative director in 2017 is carrying that legacy forward in her own way.
She has taken the quirk and fun the brand is known for and refreshed it with a distinctively modern point of view, abstracting the iconic markers of the brand like the graphic spade and print affinity then distilling it through the lens of our times, introducing a subtlely and pared-back approach to the brand that lets the woman enter a room first, before her dress does and simply adds an exclamation point to the statement she chooses to make. For FW’19 she mined a particularly poignant era in feminist culture’s – the late ’60s and early ’70s – sweet spot.
Tell us about the starting point of this collection and the ’70s please. What does the era of second-wave feminism and soft sensuality mean to you on a personal level? Is it a commentary of the times we live in and how does it resonate with the Kate Spade woman?
For Fall, I started by imagining raiding an insanely glamorous woman’s closet, and the rich, eclectic mix you’d find that you could make your own. I was inspired by the thought of where clothes end up rather than where they originated. I envisioned women who are looking for clothes that are spirited, feminine and fundamentally effortless. There’s a soft glamour to this collection… an easiness.
I’m really drawn to the tailoring and fluidity of the 70s era. For Fall 2019, the inspiration was pulled from a 70s-meets-40s mix – fluid silhouettes and fabrics with dramatic lengths in dresses and pants, and a sophisticated take on colour-blocking.
Continue reading your story on the app
Kate Spade New York said its creative director, Nicola Glass, has decided to leave the design house on April 1, as the company reshuffles its managerial structure.
Kate Spade New York, said the new creative organizational structure is “designed to sharpen its focus on the consumer, drive innovation and increase collaboration.”
The company is introducing two new roles: senior vice president for brand concept and strategy and head of product design. They will partner with Chief Marketing Officer Jenny Campbell and Chief Merchandising Officer Michele Parsons “to ensure a consistent brand experience across all customer touchpoints.”
Kristen Naiman, who has has been brand creative at Kate Spade for the past seven years, will become senior vice president for brand concept and strategy, effective April 1, and report directly to Liz Fraser, CEO and brand president of Kate Spade.
Kate Spade said it has begun a search for a head of product design who will lead design across all categories, including handbags and accessories, ready-to-wear, jewelry, footwear, and licensed categories.
“Over the past year, we’ve worked diligently to build a strong foundation for our future,” Fraser said in a statement. “We have made significant progress, refocusing on our core collection and bringing newness to the assortment to reflect the brand’s distinct DNA. To build on this success, we recognized an opportunity to modernize our approach and processes to fuel innovation and better serve our customers.
“As a result, we’ve reimagined our creative structure, centered on collaboration, to position us to more fully deliver on our brand promise across every customer interaction with clarity and cohesion. I am incredibly optimistic for our future, and confident that these changes will further position us to win with our customer in product, innovation, digital, community, and storytelling.”