Amanda Duranso Intro to Fashion Business Arnab Majumdar Designer Analysis September 20, 2013
Vera Wang Vera Ellen Wang was born in New York City, New York in 1949. Her parents were Chinese immigrants who were very well off, meaning Vera grew up within a wealthy family in Upper Eastside Manhattan. Vera went to Chapin School, followed by the School of American Ballet, Sarah Lawrence College, and she studied abroad in Paris at the Sorbonne for a short period of time. Growing up Vera Wang was a figure skater, she won many competitions but quit after college when she wasn’t accepted onto the Olympic team. In 1989 she married Arthur Becker, she ended up designing her own wedding gown for the occasion because she couldn’t find a dress that she liked. It was this wedding setback that gave her the idea to launch her own bridal boutique. Together Arthur and Vera have two adopted daughters, Cecilia and Josephine. After her college education, Vera knew she wanted to enter the fashion industry. She quickly got a job at Vogue and it took her only one year to be promoted to senior fashion editor. For fifteen years Vera Wang worked at Vogue, but in 1989 she decided it was time to move on and took a job as assistant design director of accessories at Ralph Lauren. In 1990, with the financial help of her father, Vera opened her first bridal boutique in the Carlyle Hotel in New York City. Her shop was stocked with designer dresses and within the next couple of years she integrated her own designs into her shop. Vera’s bridal and evening wear is now being sold in fifty-five different upscale retailers, and she is recognized world wide as a leading bridal designer. In 2001 Vera 1
Wang came out with her first fragrance line and she also published her wedding guide. Not only does Vera Wang design gowns, but she has wedding stationary, tableware, perfume, shoes, high end everyday wear and affordable everyday wear sold at Kohl’s Department stores and more. In 2005 CDFA chose Vera Wang as the Womenswear Designer of the Year. She is an extremely versatile designer, having lines in so many different areas of fashion. Los Angeles Times wrote an article talking about Vera Wang when she received this extremely high honor. The article included the story of how she decided to design wedding gowns. In 1989 as a forty year old bride, Vera Wang was faced with the difficult task of selecting a wedding gown that was not only sophisticated, but also modern and fashion forward. She didn’t want the “frou frou” that was a common theme throughout the bridal wear industry. She knew this could be her niche, she would create bridal wear for the modern bride. Vera was first put in the worldwide spotlight for her designs during the 1994 Olympics, when she designed Nancy Kerrigan’s figure skating costume, and from there her designs became globally sought after. Vera Wang’s signature elements vary by what type of her designs you’re considering. For example, her wedding dresses are known for their modern look, while still being formal, sophisticated, and elegant. In interviews, Vera states that the reason her dresses have become so popular is because of the attention she gives to the bride’s wants and needs, Vera needs the bride to feel exactly right in her wedding gown and that is what she seeks to accomplish. Vera is not opposed to any specific style or shape, if a bride requests a certain dress, Vera Wang will get the job done. As for her
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casual attire, she keeps the same aesthetic of luxury blending seamlessly with comfort and wearability. Vera Wang’s demographic for the most part is a bride. She appeals to brides who are willing to spend a little more money for a Vera Wang wedding gown. The bride who comes to Vera Wang for her bridal wear has a strong personality and knows what she wants. She values not only the quality of the garment, but also the attention to detail within the design. Her budget is either fairly high or basically nonexistent, unless she is shopping Vera Wang overstock or a non original design off the rack as a lower priced option. Vera’s Bridal designs are sold at over fifty-five upscale retailers, including Sak’s Fifth Ave, Niemun Marcus, and Barney’s as well as in her specialty shops. Examples of brides that Vera has designed for include; Jennifer Lopez, Ivanka Trump, Khloe Kardashian, and Brooklyn Decker. If you are shopping Vera Wang everyday wear, the designs are consistently modern and sophisticated. Those two key aspects are Vera’s checkpoints when deciding what pieces will continue on to the production stage. Women who wear Vera’s casual clothes will maintain a higher budget and will be looking to dress professionally, but with style. Her affordable line with Kohl’s Department Store keeps the same values of style and wearability, but at a lower cost. She has multiple lines with Kohl’s including lines for women, teens, home, dinner ware, accessories, makeup, and fragrance. Vera Wang has designs for a variety of price ranges. Vera says that, “Style is not about price, but about a look that works for the woman wearing it. Clothing has to be sensible.” In her bridal wear, pricing ranges from two thousand dollars, as a moderately priced dress, to twelve thousand dollars, for a more detailed gown. Custom wedding
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dress designs will start at around twelve thousand dollars and go up from there. Vera’s high end everyday wear ranges from about five hundred dollars to about two thousand dollars. As a designer Vera Wang’s bridal designs gross more than two hundred and fifty-million a year. Kohl’s lines, Simply Vera Vera Wang and Princess Vera, are moderately priced for the average man or woman to be able to afford. Her Kohl’s prices range from around thirty dollars to about two hundred dollars. As for Vera Wang’s sizing, she aspires to include every bride in every size and shape. Her off the rack bridal wear ranges from a size zero to plus size twenty-six. She caters to the individual brides sizing needs when creating custom gowns. Her Kohl’s lines are the average small, medium, large sizes, as well as zero through fourteen with short, regular, and long options for pants. As a constant seeker of quality, Vera Wang’s wedding gowns are made using the finest of fabrics, rich details, and the best craftsmanship possible. Much of the detailing on her bridal wear is done by hand, including hand stitched beading and lace. Each dress is made to flatter the woman wearing it. Vera Wang dresses the modern woman exactly the way she wants to be dressed on the most important day of her life. For Vera, it’s about making a dress that will not only make the bride feel beautiful, but also ensure the bride is comfortable and chic on her wedding day. If the bride wants a black dress, Vera will make her a black dress, like Shenae Grimes; if the bride wants a pink dress, she will get a pink dress, like Sharon Stone. Vera’s own sense of style is incredible. She’s a sixty-four year old woman in black leggings and high heeled booties, she has her trademark long, black, middle parted hair, and tiny body frame. Her outlook on the fashion industry is truly inspiring.
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She not only has a bridal empire, but she has a ready-to-wear line, multiple Kohl’s lines, a wedding guide, et cetera, et cetera. Vera Wang literally has a toe in so many aspects of the industry that one wonders how on earth she does it all. Young designers aspire to be like her, successfully paving the way through parts of the fashion industry that are entirely unheard of. Candy Pratts Price, executive fashion director of Style.com says, “Vera is just very cool.” Much of the fashion world looks at Vera in awe, that she can be so multitalented and maintain a business so well. “You’re either in the history books, or you’re not,” Vera Wang wanted to be known as a full blown designer, and when she won the Council of Fashion Designers of America’s Womenswear Designer of the Year she was officially added to the history books. Since Vera Wang is still a leading force in the fashion industry it’s hard to say what her exact impact will be on it, but she is sure to leave a large legacy. Aspiring designers will look to Vera’s fashion journey for guidance, advice, and encouragement. She knows that you do not get to start out on top, the fashion industry is just like any other industry, you will start from the bottom and make your way up from there. In conclusion, Vera Wang is not only the mastermind behind a bridal empire, but she takes so many other aspects of the fashion industry and twists them to make them her own. She successfully runs her bridal wear and ready-to-wear business while at the same time being a mother and an entrepreneur in so many other ways. Vera Wang is a perfectionist, and this is one of the traits that has granted her such immense success as a fashion designer. One of the other top reasons that Vera Wang has had so many great achievements is because of her attention to detail and her commitment to quality clothing that caters to the wants and needs of the women wearing her designs.
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Bibliography Vera Wang Analysis Text Info • "Vera Wang's Fashion Empire." - Articles. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Oct. 2013. • "Who Is Vera Wang?" About.com Weddings. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Oct. 2013. • 08, June. "Vera Wang Is Named Top Women's Wear Designer." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 08 June 2005. Web. 26 Sept. 2013. • "Vera Wang Prefers Democratic Over Dilution | Beneath the Brand." Vera Wang Prefers Democratic Over Dilution | Beneath the Brand. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Oct. 2013. • "Vera Wang." Vera Wang. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Oct. 2013. • "USATODAY.com - Vera Wang to Design Line Just for Kohl's." USATODAY.com - Vera Wang to Design Line Just for Kohl's. N.p., 24 Aug. 2006. Web. 26 Sept. 2013. • "Vera Wang." Gawker. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Oct. 2013.
Photo Credits
• www.exposay.com • lindaikeji.blogspot.com • www.verawang.com • www.zimbio.com • www.sheknows.com • cultureofchinese.com • www.vibevixen.com • www.fresheventscompany.com 6
• www.mybeautyblackbook.com • allegrophotography.com • downthataisleinstyle.typepad.com • www.bridecouture.com • www.simplelove2u.com • www.eyesonfirstave.com • www.pinterest.com • paseodegonzalez.blogspot.com • www1.macys.com • inviteetc.com • www.brides.com • www.furniturefashion.com • www.verawangfragrances.com • www.ktmerry.com
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