Reed Krakoff: There are probably a couple of answers. People have a deep love of its history. Right, no problem. Tiffany is perhaps the only brand that evokes such a powerful connection to a color—Tiffany blue. You see a box in that iconic shade and it says so much. What is it about that shade that makes it so recognizable? Tiffany has been around many, many, many years, and the experience people have had at Tiffany of finding something to commemorate a pivotal moment in their lives [has been repeated] over and over.
You know, a color is a color but this is imbued with such a sense of excitement. A recent example of that: We developed a new stone-cutting technique. It took almost a year to make one piece—a small piece—because of its scale and intricacy. So each stone has to be cut and linked to the next, which is just enormously difficult to do. He even posed for the cover of Art and Auction magazine.
The result was a great deal of exposure for his palatial residences, which he and Delphine would sell and then move on to the next—earning the couple a reputation of high-end flippers. During his time at Coach, Krakoff was an undeniable force in the fashion world.
After graduation Krakoff worked for Anne Klein and Ralph Lauren before becoming the top designer at Tommy Hilfiger, in the early s. I think he helped elevate our brand. But Krakoff now believes there was a silver lining to getting fired. They were doing super well. It was the best thing he ever did. He pushed me and I ended up at Coach.
Under his creative direction it became a trend-driven and popular company. Coach looked into acquiring a luxury brand—in particular, Burberry or Ferragamo—but ultimately decided to let Krakoff develop his own brand from within.
Ever since he got to Coach he has wanted to do this. Krakoff hired top talent to design, market, and style it all. Krakoff, who counts photography among his avocations, insisted on shooting the campaigns himself. Perhaps for a reason. It was just like, Really? It just went bam! He did the whole thing. It takes people years to phase in all those categories. With so much money and other resources from Coach, Krakoff spared no expense. It was just for show. They brought in wood parquet floors from France, and then they set it up and it was almost like a set.
Life imitating art. In a year tenure as creative director at Coach, he cut a name for himself remaking the once-stagnant handbag brand into a fashion accessory empire. At Tiffany, he is spearheading the push toward millennials—not known for either purchasing expensive jewellery or respecting American institutions—and to young, wealthy consumers in the burgeoning Chinese and Indian economies.
Krakoff strolls through the fourth-floor home accessories section—his first innovation at the brand—brushing each pedestalled object with his fingertips and trailing detailed commentary on their origin, conception, and the technical challenges of their construction.
He seems at home, despite his jeans, polo, and thick-rimmed Ira Glass frames. What do you get someone who has everything, right? The brand, which halted all design and production operations in March, says it's now "undergoing a thrilling transformation. After changing CEOs three times over the past year, the company has announced that it has suspended all design and production operations while it seeks outside investment. At an opening celebration for his new boutique in downtown Manhattan, the former creative director of Coach talked about store design and what's next for his eponymous label.
Designers peered six months into the future when creating their spring collections — and saw more than florals. It was the season of sleeveless coats, also known as vests. Well, we didn't think we'd see Camille Grammer come down the runway. If we were cars, these are the things that would fuel us.
I know, deep. As an intern, you will assist the Public Relations coordinator.
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