Kate Spade announced Friday that she’d exit her own brand, which is now owned by Liz Claiborne. The question is, will it survive without her?
It’s true that Liz Claiborne is a millionaire franchise, with Juicy Couture and C&C California under its umbrella. But those brands aren’t built on a person’s lifestyle, and Kate Spade is more like Martha Stewart than Monica Botkier – her bags aren’t just cute, they’re a nylon embodiment of a cool way to live.
We know when magazines are named for women, they tend to fold when their founder leaves – witness Mirabella and Jane.
But what about clothing labels?
Coco Chanel, Christian Dior, and Cristobal Balenciaga are gone from their brands, yet their legacy keeps going. But those houses were founded before websites, product placement, and publicists. Kate Spade’s label was decidedly modern, and it wasn’t really built on beautiful handbags – it was built, instead, on living beautifully.
Sending whip-smart thank you notes. Smiling through your sunglasses. Looking incredible just off a plane. That’s Kate Spade.
It took Halston years to revive after the man himself faded; Perry Ellis is gone; Anne Klein and Bill Blass are just now getting back.
Does Kate Spade need Kate to keep going, or did you forget forever ago that she was even real?
Tags: Anne Klein, Balenciaga, Chanel, Christian Dior, Halston
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actually, my understanding was that, when the brand was founded, she *wasn’t* real.
iirc, she married her business partner andy spade several years after realizing that “kate spade” sounded more aspirationally-waspy-minimalist-chic than “kate brosnahan” and bulk-ordering the iconic white-on-black label.
still, i adore the lifestyle she sells, and if what’s happened to juicy is any indication, kate spade is going to be more diffused than a curly girl’s hair in front of the blowdryer. sadness.
I love Kate Spade, the person, and it will never be the same without her!
I lost interest when I found out she was David Spade’s sister-in-law. I haven’t seen a Kate Spade bag on a real person in years. Jack Spade, on the other hand, I have seen on gay guys everywhere.
she’s boring and her brand is boring.
I’m very bitter about Kate leaving. Just walking into her store leaves you feeling like you’re a guest in her home. Without her on board? It’ll be just another store, just another handbag brand.
I know it’s not the most avant-garde brand, but I’m not the most avant-garde consumer, so I appreciate her aesthetic. There seems to be a consistency that carries throughout her brand, and I think that consistency comes from having ONE person who really believes in that aesthetic/lifestyle, rather than a design team who conduct focus groups to determine what ladylike, preppy, classic, and stylish-but-not-trendy is.
It’s like the modern-day lady who lunches aesthetic, which I greatly appreciate. I hope it doesn’t go the way of the trashy Juicy line, though I bet she’s smart enough to create some legal ramifications if the line & her name are tarnished.
Also, I loved this summer’s lobster line. Genius.
Her line has been meh for a couple of years now. Once it hit Loehmann’s it was done,
I can’t speak for the merch cos you can’t get it in London but Oh god the website is to die for.
I live for her china and crystal lines through Lenox! http://www.lenox.com/cs/index.cfm?fuseaction=katespade
(but her handbags leave much to be desired nowadays)
wow, you described it perfectly – her brand was built on living beautifully. i never thought of it like that!
Given fashion’s obsession with what’s new and hot, in six months everyone will forget her.