Kors grasped the impact of his fame a while back. A couple
of years ago, he told WWD that his fan base has grown dramatically with
"Project Runway." "I now have legions of fans in the single digits," he said
then. "Eight-year-olds love me." (And that's not a bad thing -- they will be
tomorrow's shoppers after all.)
Now it seems his time has come business-wise too. As reported
in WWD on August 6, Kors is about to open stores for his Collection in Chicago,
Palm Beach and Milan in the next year and a half, with plans to have 25
Collection stores in Europe in the next three years. He is also rapidly
expanding his lifestyle retail stores, which sell a mix of his Collection,
Michael Michael Kors and Kors lines. He is slated to open 14 such stores before
the end of the year, bringing their number to 45, with 25 more planned for
2009.
The flurry of activity is noteworthy. In the 27 years that
Kors has been in business, he, like so many other designers of his generation,
faced more ups and downs than one cares to remember. But all that seems to be
history now.
He is a great designer, but reporting the story, I couldn't
help but wonder if and how much "Project Runway" has contributed to his recent
successes. Casting the net a little wider, it also made me think about how
crucial it's become for designers to also be media stars. Does a reclusive
designer genius even have a chance still? I'd love to hear your thoughts on
that.
For someone as telegenic as Kors, being on-screen seems to come as naturally as designing. He is personable, funny, full of anecdotes and always good for some delicious dish. In fact, when we talked about his business expansion, he was calling from the set of "Gossip Girl." Kors is set to guest star as himself on the much anticipated new season. One thing is for sure: the move is bound to make him even more popular.
ADD A COMMENT
Sign in using your Facebook or Twitter account, or simply type your comment below as a guest by entering your email and name. Your email address will not be shared.