In Fashion Part 11

KISMET AT THE UNION SQUARE FARMER'S MARKET "I ran into an old friend, Monica Zwirner, whom I'd met while working at Manolo. I hadn't seen her in a long time. She had been living in Germany and was styling advertising campaigns and international magazines. She was now back in New York and wanted to start a business. I'd been approached to partner before, but it hadn't been the right person. It's a marriage that really has to work. So we set up the company to design bags."

M Z WALLACE.

"Founded in January 2000, the mission of M Z Wallace is to create a handbag that is stylish, functional, lightweight, timeless, and affordable. An American cla.s.sic."

MY VISION WAS TO HAVE A STORE.

"During my time at Manolo Blahnik, I learned that if you have your own store, you can grow your business yourself and have control over your image." In May 2000, Monica and Lucy opened their own store, designed by Annabelle Selldorf, on Crosby Street in SoHo. Now M Z Wallace has two stores in downtown Manhattan, in addition to a store in Tokyo. M Z Wallace bags are also found at over three hundred specialty stores nationwide. Additionally they have a thriving e-commerce website that was started in 2003.

BUSINESS BALANCE.

"There are two things going on when we look at what we create. There's the edit of what's really new and what we love. Then there's the business edit. That is, the edit ensures that we are staying true to our mission statement. Fas.h.i.+on balanced with function. You have to always strive to have both.

"The conversation is like this: 'Do we need this item on the line? Why does this need to exist? Is it addressing a missing element?' Sometimes it needs to exist because it is simply fun and great looking. Sometimes it needs to be there because it is addressing a need that we feel is not being met. Sometimes it doesn't need to exist, even if we love it.

"Paul Cavaco really helped me become a brutal editor. He taught me to really question 'why?' 'Do you really need it? Why?' We try to be really tough on ourselves."

THE CHALLENGE.

"It all turns over so much faster than a few years back. There is no downtime."

DIVISION OF DUTIES.

"We both design. Monica does more sourcing and production, and she works closely with our design a.s.sistant, while I do more press and retail operations, and I have oversight of the website."

NEW KIND OF STRESS.

"Now I feel the stress of an owner with issues like sales, timely production, logistics, payroll, design, HR, and so on. This stress seems more real. It's different from editorial, where sometimes there was a freakout over shoes not being available, or a seat in the second or third row at a show, as opposed to the first. Looking back, that stress seems not as stressful as the stress I now experience."

FLIPSIDE.

"I also have the freedom to go to all of my children's school plays, or to the farmer's market, and I know everything at work is fine."

THE DREAM.

"To grow bigger and bigger organically. We've always made the harder choice. We invariably take the more painstaking road. We have consistently chosen quality and originality over easy fixes. Always."

MUSEUM STANDARDS.

M Z Wallace's Jane bag is the only handbag sold at the gift shop of the Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) on Manhattan's Columbus Circle.

ADVICE TO PEOPLE STARTING OUT IN ACCESSORIES.

"Keep your eye on the prize, be confident, and be prepared to work really, really hard. You have to really, really want it. Only the crazies don't quit. When it gets really hard, which it will, most sensible people give up-don't. Don't listen to ANYONE on how to do it. There are no rules. The only rule is that you have to do what works for you-and everyone, and every business is different. Always follow your gut."

M Z WALLACE SPOTTINGS.

"It's always a thrill, I have to admit. It's seeing the end result of your intention as a designer: that someone liked the bag, bought it, and is using it. It's incredibly nice to be with my children when that happens because they really get excited and feel a connection to my work. Not to be grim, but I mostly like to try to find out what women don't like about the bag, what's not working. I never tell them who I am."

PROFILE.

RUTH ANN STANLEY Designer, Depeche Mode Like many fas.h.i.+onistas, she never wears a lick of makeup. Her all-American style s.h.i.+nes through via her perfect posture, tall, thin stature, and whatever dress she's thrown on that day. Her look usually falls somewhere between bohemian chic and country-club preppy. The midsized dress company for which she has designed for over fifteen years produces its own label, Depeche Mode, as well as other licensed brands. This is a case in which you may own a Ruth Ann design and not even realize it.

BACKGROUND.

"I learned to sew when I was four when my mother made me start embroidery and cross-st.i.tching. Both parents could draw. We would spend evenings together doing drawings. I also took art lessons." In Southbury, Connecticut, where the family lived, Ruth Ann's mother made all of her clothes.

EDUCATION.

Graduated from Marymount Manhattan College, New York City, BS in fas.h.i.+on design (called home economics in the day). Later on, night cla.s.ses at Parsons School of Design, New York City.

CHILDHOOD DREAM.

"Beginning in the sixth grade, I wanted to be a designer. I knew this world existed from reading magazines, like Vogue. For me it was a straight path, from the Girl Scouts to Seventh Avenue."

BABYSITTER AND MENTOR.

"My mentor was this beautiful blonde, who went to Marymount and also happened to be my childhood babysitter. She ended up in the most amazing job, managing the Calvin Klein brand inside Bloomingdale's, basically the in-store representative for Calvin, working for both the brand and retailer at the same time."

CANOEING OR CLUBBING?.

"My mentor called to offer me an interns.h.i.+p at Calvin Klein for the summer after my junior year in college, and I had no idea what that even meant. She called me all excited with the news. I said to her, 'I'm supposed to go to the Adirondacks to be a camp counselor.' My thinking was that this would be my last summer to be swimming and backpacking in the mountains and that I should enjoy it. I gave the interns.h.i.+p to my roommate. Looking back, I can't believe I didn't take that opportunity. I would've had such a leg up at the beginning of my career."

CAREER CHANGER.

STARTED AT: b.u.t.tERICK PATTERN COMPANY.

SWITCHED TO: DESIGNING DRESSES.

To make this step, Ruth Ann took night cla.s.ses at Parsons so that she could learn how to build a design portfolio. She also entered and won a sewing compet.i.tion, which helped infuse her with the confidence she needed to go for what she loved.

FIRST JOB.

Dressmaking coordinator, editorial, at b.u.t.terick, which Ruth Ann describes as "the best job I ever had."

HOW RUTH ANN STOOD OUT.

"I entered a sewing contest that was sponsored by the company. I won the suit category. The judge was the head of design. That's how I first got noticed. I spent a lot of time talking to her. Helping her with projects helped her get to know me. It was a good opportunity."

BIG BREAK.

"Someone didn't come back from pregnancy leave. I got her job as a designer of b.u.t.terick patterns."

HOW DID YOU GET INTO READY-TO-WEAR (RTW)?.

"After a few years at b.u.t.terick, I realized I had to get into ready-to-wear. I met a friend of my boyfriend's who was a buyer who had had a showroom appointment at [the Seventh Avenue dressmaker] Gillian that day. He told me that they were looking for a design a.s.sistant.

"I called Kay Unger, and she said, 'Can you come in tomorrow?' I said, 'Tomorrow is Sat.u.r.day.' She said, 'Yes. Can you come in tomorrow?' I found out that Kay, and pretty much every other designer on the face of the earth, was famous for working crazy hours, and every Sat.u.r.day.

"So, I went in to meet her on a Sat.u.r.day. She looked at my portfolio and said 'You know, honestly, I don't like your taste level, but I think I can trust you.' She asked what I was making at b.u.t.terick. I told her $25,000. She gave me $27,000."

FIVE-YEAR PLAN AT GILLIAN.

"I started by doing 'specials,' which meant updating designs that had been successful-working with everything that sells. I grew into the role of designer, Gillian Dress Company, and started to design for specialty chain stores, and other labels."

MOVE TO DEPECHE MODE.

"When Gillian went out of business, I was able to take my contacts, experience, and relations.h.i.+ps with the buyers to Depeche and continue the same business."

FOR THE PAST FOURTEEN YEARS.

Ruth Ann has been a designer at Depeche Mode, managing the product development side of one of their private label divisions.

PROFILE.

JACK TUNG Designer This cool, talented, personable, handsome young designer seems to have a.s.sembled a lot of key qualities and might someday be the next Jason Wu or Zac Posen.

BACKGROUND.

"My parents came to Baltimore, Maryland, from Taiwan with empty suitcases and $20. They've been working superhard-in groceries, restaurants-ever since."

JACK'S WAY OF LOOKING AT LIFE "I am writing my own autobiography every day. I've only got my one little life, and I want my story to be exciting and compelling. You don't have chances to do rewrites, so take advantage of every opportunity to enrich your life story. If you want something, the only person who'll stand in your way is YOU."

JACK'S CATHARSIS "I had always dreamed of working in fas.h.i.+on, but thought I lacked the creativity. On top of that, I'd never drawn in my life, and I knew nothing about fabrics or clothing construction. I saw some shows online and thought this world seemed glamorous and creative, but well out of reach. Despite that, at twenty-three, I looked in the mirror and asked myself: Was I happy in my heart? Was I fulfilled? I knew I was done with the wis.h.i.+ng thing. My mom told me to wait until I was financially stable. But my window of opportunity was narrow, so I decided I couldn't afford to wait. I didn't want to lead a what-if life, so I made my move."

GUARDIAN ANGEL.

"I first met Felicia DaCosta, the chairman of the Concept Development department at Parsons School of Design, when I was twenty-three, during an informational interview at Parsons. Two years later, in my soph.o.m.ore year at Parsons, during my first year of concentrated fas.h.i.+on studies, Felicia DaCosta was my teacher. Then I kept in touch with her when I was at the Parsons program in Paris the following year. She made sure that I stayed in school (despite a job offer from Louis Vuitton) and learned as much as I could. I got a lot of great advice from her: how to quiet my mind, how to quiet my anxieties."

PARIS TERM.

"I took advantage of the opportunity to go to Parsons in Paris for a semester during my junior year. Sometimes to be creative, you have to breathe different air. Eat different food. I didn't speak French. I'd never been to France. I went with a clean slate. Open, young, excited about opportunities. Pretty French girls everywhere. It was kind of cool. Never in your life can you be so free."

FIRST FAs.h.i.+ON JOB = FIRST BRUSH WITH GREATNESS.

A teacher at Parsons in Paris referred Jack to a colleague of his, Peter Copping, now head designer at Pucci, who happened to be Marc Jacobs' right-hand man at Louis Vuitton.

"I sent sketches of projects and my resume in December, and by January, I was working there. I was a full-time paid intern, earning 1,400 euros per month as opposed to nothing. That for me was my entree into fas.h.i.+on. Coming from New York, this was like the difference between playing in the Turkish basketball league and the NBA."

PINCH ME.

"Sometimes when I was sitting in Paris, I'd ask myself how a kid like me could possibly have met as many talented people as I have."

CAREER CHANGER.

STARTED IN: FINANCE.

SWITCHED TO: FAs.h.i.+ON DESIGN.

To make the leap from his high-paying a.n.a.lyst job on Wall Street to new nonpaying beginnings in fas.h.i.+on, Jack Tung first took evening drawing cla.s.ses so that he could build a portfolio and apply to Parsons. During his studies in Paris with Parsons, he landed his first design jobs, with Louis Vuitton (nonpaying, but prestigious) and then Ungaro (paying, and prestigious).

YOU SAID NO TO A JOB AT VUITTON?.

"I understood I was breathing this rarefied air. But I ultimately declined when they offered me a continuation in textile design. Wherever you go next, you have to make sure you have all your skills and qualifications under wraps. Why be pigeonholed or stymied?"

INDEFATIGABLE INTERNING STUDENT.

Interns.h.i.+ps with Patrick Robinson at Paco Rabanne and Gaspard Yurkievich followed. "Then I graduated from school, barely, receiving my second bachelor's degree." His last interns.h.i.+p, with Parsons graduate Peter Dundas at Emanuel Ungaro, would turn into Jack's first design job.

BIG BREAK.

"They gave me a shot at Ungaro. In three months, I went from intern to a.s.sistant designer to head designer of the jeans line."

THE WALLET FAIRY.

One day while working at Ungaro, Jack lost his wallet. Before the end of the day, he found an envelope containing a stack of euros on his desk. That was the kind of boss Peter Dundas proved to be.

MILAN MEETINGS.

After leaving Ungaro, Jack interviewed in Milan with Tomas Maier at Bottega Veneta and at Versace.

ADIEU, PARIS?.

"I wound up interviewing at a lot of other places. At that point, I had a temporary visa tied to my job contract. In order to renew my visa, I needed a new contract, which in turn required a new work permit, which I couldn't get without a new contract. On the day of my appointment to renew my visa, with neither job contract nor work permit in hand, I went to the prefecteur and told them in my best French that I was waiting for feedback from really great companies, that this was the one opportunity in my life that I could work at this level. I literally begged them for more time, a few weeks at least, and they actually gave me four extra months. Life will never give you anything you won't ask for yourself. While I was awaiting feedback from the companies I'd interviewed with, I ran out of money."

HARD-EARNED (UNDERGROUND) EUROS TO KEEP DREAM ALIVE.

"Because my work permit had expired, it was impossible for me to find legal gainful employment because n.o.body wanted to sponsor my visa. I wound up working illegally as a dishwasher and kitchen a.s.sistant in a Chinese restaurant in Belleville, one of Paris' two Chinatown districts. It was quite a humbling experience to be chopping vegetables, mopping floors, and taking out garbage, working thirteen-hour s.h.i.+fts six days a week. But it gave me a chance to keep my dream alive. I thought if I worked hard enough and believed in myself enough, my story of struggle might somehow turn into a story of success. In the end, my luck ran out, my options dried up one by one, and I realized I was fighting a losing battle. The United States is home; nonetheless, it was really sad to leave. I had basically the adventure of a lifetime. Closing that chapter of my life, acknowledging and accepting my failure, was an incredibly painful experience."

BACK TO THE USA.

"After the incredible journey of the previous four years, it was quite sobering to move back in with my parents, with no money and no job prospects. Fortunately for me, I have amazingly supportive and understanding parents, who, despite their lack of education, means, and resources, nonetheless worked tirelessly in their unconditional support of me and my career. They truly believe in me, and made the pursuit of my dream into the pursuit of OUR dream. Based out of the bedroom I grew up in, I regrouped myself and started sending e-mails and making phone calls to try to land job interviews in New York, all the while doing more projects to keep my skills in place and stuff my portfolio with fresh work. I would wake up at 5 a.m. to catch a bus to New York, do three or four interviews, and catch the 5 p.m. bus back to Baltimore the same day. Sometimes I would have only one interview on a given day, which meant that I would spend eight and a half hours on a bus just to do a thirty-minute exploratory interview. In the meantime, I again had to bite the bullet and support myself as a part-time sales a.s.sociate at the local mall."

GOOD-BYE, MALL; h.e.l.lO, ZAC POSEN.

"After about twenty separate interview trips to New York, I found myself sitting in front of Zac Posen. I did a project for him and started working there right away. Then the market crashed, and I left. A couple weeks later, I met Nicole Miller, and she offered me a job on the spot."

WHAT NICOLE SAW IN JACK.

"I thought he seemed very capable and talented and that he had a wide range of experience. I liked his ill.u.s.trations. I hired him without hesitation."

WHAT MIGHT SURPRISE THOSE AROUND HIM.

"I still see myself as a banker masquerading as a fas.h.i.+on person."

WHAT'S DIFFERENT ABOUT THE DESIGNS OF A STRAIGHT MAN?

"There aren't that many straight male designers. There's actually a pretty big difference between the designs of a straight guy and those of a gay guy or a woman. I have a different appreciation of the female form. Knowing the various women in my life and what they want to wear, I bring a unique perspective."