Interview by Lori Bizzoco. Editorial by Sarah Ribeiro.
With New York Fashion Week currently underway, it’s fun to catch up with your favorite celebrities and see how they’re participating. During our chat with Kathy Hilton earlier this summer, we spoke to the businesswoman about designing her fashion line and staying inspired.
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Hilton launched The Kathy Hilton Collection in the spring of 2011. This line of dresses offers women high-fashion apparel at reasonable costs. The entrepreneur describes her line as “exquisite evening wear that mixes high society with marketplace prices.” She designs her dresses for women of all ages, and the line is available in over 400 fine boutiques and at major retailers — including Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom stores — nationwide and in 28 countries.
Always looking to challenge herself, Hilton will be launching additional lines of handbags and home goods soon. “My collection is a little bit of everything, which is important,” she explains. “I don’t want people walking in and saying, ‘Oh, everything looks the same.”
This, says the designer, is what made the Kathy Hilton Collection so significant at its onset. Hilton was approached by Mon Cheri CEO Steve Lang after years of run-ins at couture shows in Paris, Milan, and New York, and he asked her to design a dress line. “I was over the moon and excited. It’s every girl’s dream. Who wouldn’t want to design their own fashion line?” she exclaims. “I told him my collection would have to be something that makes sense. I wanted to create something to fill a void. I’m sick of spending over a thousand dollars on a dress. There’s nothing out there that’s beautiful and affordable, so I decided to make something that doesn’t break the bank, something that’s timeless and classic — no frills, stones, or lace all over the place.”
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What’s most important to Hilton’s collection, though, is its accessibility. “I want to be able to dress my nieces, my daughters, myself, and my friends — women of all ages and all body types.”
While the Kathy Hilton Collection will not be shown at New York Fashion Week, the famous face will still be attending the shows for inspiration. “I think it takes a couple years to be established. It’s something to look forward to.”
Stay tuned for our final post about Hilton, which will focus on her entertaining tips! In the meantime, you can check her out on Twitter @KathyHilton and www.facebook.com/OfficialKathyHilton.
