The 2018 Rising Stars

Keynote Speaker John Varvatos

Presenters Isabel and Ruben Toledo Finalists Amanda Hearst & Hassan Pierre

THE PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE

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21st Annual Rising Star Awards

4Rising Star Cocktail Party

5FGI Annual Meeting

Upcoming Events

M A R C H 2 0 1 8

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ChairKatie Kretschmer

Editor / Contributing Writer

Writers / EditorsWendy D'Amico, Creative Consultant

Nancy Jeffries, Contributing Writer

Carolyn Moss, Contributing Writer

Melissa Pastore, Contributing Writer

Graphic DesignDebora DeCarlo, DDC Graphics

PhotographyGerardo Somoza Bruce BornerNancy Jeffries

The Fashion Group International Rising Star Awards

Presenter Gary WassnerFinalists Elle Macpherson and Dr. Barbara Sturm

Presenter Jason Wu

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David Chung

Farmacy

Fanny BalInternational Flavors and Fragrance

Fashion Group International Rising Stars Winners

Asher Levine Rich Scudellari and Mary Orton Trove

Dr. Marion Parke Marion Parke

Megan Berry, By Reveal

Mike RubinKrammer & Stoudt

Accessories Beauty / Fragrance Entrepreneur Beauty / Fragrance Corporate

Jacob LawsJacob Laws Interior Design

Anna Karlin

Womenswear (Tie)

Retail (Tie)

Hilldun Business InnovationHome Product Innovation

Presenter Todd Snyder

Accessor ies Awardpresented by Kate Lanphear

Marion Parke – Dr. Marion Parke 1 Atelier – Stephanie Sarkaand Frank Zambrelli Alumnae – Kari Sigerson and Eliza Axelson Chidseybehno – Shivam PunjyaM. Gemi – Cheryl Kaplan and Maria GangemiRory Worby Studio – Rory WorbyTarryn Simone – Tarryn Simone

Reta i l Award ( t ie ) presented by Robert Burke

by Reveal – Megan BerryThe Perfect Provenance – Lisa LoriMaison-de-Mode.com – Amanda Hearst and Hassan PierreQueen of Raw – Stephanie Benedetto

Beauty and Fragrance Corpora te Award presented by Matthew Malin and Andrew Goetz

International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) – Fanny BalThe Estée Lauder Companies – Elena WoodGivaudan Fragrances – Natalie Brand

Beauty F ragrance Ent repreneur Award presented by Isabel and Ruben Toledo

Farmacy – Mark Veeder and David ChungDr. Barbara Sturm Molecular Cosmetics – Dr. Barbara SturmStrangelove NYC – Elizabeth Gaynes WelleCo – Andrea Horwood and Elle Macpherson

F ine Jewel ry Award presented by Kelley Doherty

Anna Karlin Fine Jewelry – Anna Karlin 64 Facets – Gourav SoniCB Bronfman – Clarissa BronfmanMisahara Jewelry – Lepa Galeb-Roskopp

Home Product Innovation Award presented by Whitney Robinson

Jacob Laws Interior Design – Jacob LawsCharlie Sprout – Rebecca BravinHawkins New York – Nicholas Blaine and Paul DenolyYield – Andrew Deming and Rachel Gant

Menswear Award presented by Todd Snyder

Krammer & Stoudt – Mike RubinDyne – Christopher BevansPrivate Policy – Haoran Li and Siying Qu

Womenswear Award ( t ie )presented by Jason Wu

Asher Levine – Asher LevineJeffrey Dodd – Jeffrey DoddChris Gelinas, LLC – Chris GelinasCristina Ottaviano – Cristina OttavianoJ. Dosi – Jenna Marie PiantedosiRomeo Hunte – Romeo HunteTabula Rasa – Emily Diamandis

Hi l ldun Business Innovat ion Award presented by Gary Wassner

Trove – Mary Orton and Rich Scudellari

Menswear

Presenter Kate Lanphear

Presenter Whitney Robinson

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Fine Jewelry

Lisa Lori, The Perfect Provenance

Jeffrey Dodd

Fashion Group International

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Rising Stars

Fashion Group International held its annual RisingStar Award luncheon on January 25, 2018, at NewYork’s Cipriani. The awards recognize the achieve-ments and promise of emerging talent in fashion,beauty and design. Margaret Hayes, president of FGI,congratulated the nominees in the categories ofAccessories, Fine Jewelry, Beauty/FragranceCorporate, Beauty/Fragrance Entrepreneur, HomeFurnishings/Product Innovation, Retail, Menswearand Womenswear, and welcomed all the guests.

She explained FGI’s voting process, which beginswith the Rising Star Creative Committee, FGI Boardand committee members, and then opens to allmembers. She highlighted the unique characteris-tics of the Rising Star Awards, such as its devotionto new and emerging talent in the industry and, inparticular, how this year’s finalists celebrated the relationship between a range of disciplines, creative momentum in many forms, and coalescingprofessional outcomes.

Hayes set the tone of the afternoon, saying, “Talentis inherent, and it is the capacity for achievement,plus the time, energy and relentless drive it takes tocontinue, that characterize these achievers. We’veseen hundreds of talented individuals come throughour portals,” she said. She thanked the event sponsors, including Hearst Magazines, Saks FifthAvenue and the Hilldun Corporation; the MovadoGroup, for creating and donating the awards, as wellas the presenters, which included past Rising Starwinners Isabel and Ruben Toledo and Jason Wu.

Diverging Paths to Success

Hayes introduced the keynote speaker, designer JohnVarvatos, who welcomed attendees with a philosophicaljourney through his career. He emphasized how creativity takes many divergent paths, often bringingsurprise revelations along the way. Having estab-lished himself as a designer whose style combines“luxury, timelessness, and function with a Motowninfluence and a rock ’n’ roll sensibility,” Varvatosdescribed a nonlinear road to fashion design.

“I will not talk too much about the crazy path we’reon in our country now, but I will emphasize the paththat today’s Rising Stars have, and it’s very differentfrom the one that I have had,” he said. “It getsdown to your passion and your dream,” he said.Growing up in Detroit, which he deemed “not a fash-ionable city, but an industrial one,” Varvatos neverthought about fashion until he was in his teens, saying, “I wore something to school one day, andsome girls told me how much they loved it. It mademe think I needed more of this.”

A stint as a stock boy in a men’s store and a move tothe selling floor started him on his path. However,

growing up as one of seven in a small house inDetroit, playing baseball in college, and majoring inpre-med, did not put him on the most direct path tofashion design, Varvatos acknowledged. After graduat-ing with a degree in science and teaching chemistryat the university level, he worked at a menswear store,and was inspired to open his own men’s store inGrand Rapids, Michigan (which is still open, henoted). A move to Ralph Lauren in New York City,where he became head of sales, finally set him on acourse to becoming a designer, and he began takingclasses in design and illustration.

In 1990, he went to Calvin Klein and he started theCK brand. “I was a sponge for everything. I didn’twant to be a one-trick pony,” he said. In 1995, RalphLauren called him to head up the men’s studio, andin 1999, while walking through Barney’s, he realizedhe wanted to start his own brand, which he launchedin 2000. Varvatos called it an epiphany. “The pathswe take are ever-winding. In Detroit, although I wasn’ta good musician, I always had a passion to play. In2005, we started using iconic music in our line,which has become an important part of our brandDNA,” he said.

“Be true to your dreams,” he concluded. “Your pathwill take you in winding directions. Don’t be afraid ofit, never give up. In this world today, it’s challenging.Believe in your vision. We need the next generation tobe better than we were. I congratulate all of you.”

Innovation, Nature and Connectivity

Multilayered career paths were a thread throughoutthe presentation and Varvatos was not the only personsharing a circuitous path to professional fulfillment.“I am a trained podiatrist and I know the path to suc-cess is not always in a straight line,” said Accessorieswinner Dr. Marion Parke.

A podiatric surgeon as well as a footwear designer,Parke creates shoes that blend thoughtful construc-tion with style, meeting the needs of women whodesire elegant footwear that is also functional. Herdesigns feature arch support and medical-grade cush-ioning that molds to the foot, offering a collection thatis luxurious and high-performing. Fine Jewelry winner Anna Karlin also exemplified thetheme of divergent pathways: She took home theRising Star award for Home Furnishings Innovationseveral years ago.

Innovation and creative thinking remained key to thenew directions evident at this year’s award ceremony.In the Retail category, new formats and types of customer engagement demonstrated fresh ideas andperspectives in the field. A tie between Megan Berry,founder of By Reveal, and Lisa Lori, of The PerfectProvenance, recognized two different types of retail

experiences. As a small-format, mobile boutique, ByReveal offers customized, in-person engagement witha brand, while The Perfect Provenance offers a curat-ed gallerylike environment in a retail store. Retailclearly continues to undergo radical shifts, impacteddramatically by the Internet and social media, how-ever, the place for the personal appears to be aliveand well. In her acceptance, Lori noted the impor-tance of curation, as her venue offers luxury itemsreflecting the best in culture, food, travel, home andfragrance. “Retail is not dead. It has moved to theone-on-one experience,” she said.

Among finalists in the Beauty/FragranceEntrepreneur category, the natural world and thehuman biome played a significant role. Dr. BarbaraSturm, of Dr. Barbara Sturm Molecular Cosmetics,created a line based on utilizing the body’s own pro-teins to treat the skin; while Farmacy, winner in thecategory, harvests nature’s bounty for its ingredientprofile, combining farm-grown, hand-picked botani-cals and cutting-edge science. The brand’s patentedEchinacea Green Envy, an organically grown variantof Echinacea Purpurea, contains a potent naturalantioxidant, called Cichoric Acid, known for itsrestorative properties and protection of the skin’s collagen. Strangelove NYC, by Elizabeth Gaynes, usesnatural floral essences and oils to create artisanalperfumes. WelleCo, cofounded by Elle Macphersonand Andrea Harwood, harnesses the power of naturalwhole foods to create bio-live organic plant-basedsupplements that fuel the body with nourishing pro-teins to help maintain a healthy alkaline balance.

Gary Wassner presented the Hilldun BusinessInnovation of the Year Award to Mary Orton and RichScudellari, for their app, Trove, an example of agrowing emphasis on interrelationships. Wassnerobserved that in today’s climate there are moreopportunities to speak directly to consumers, saying,“In supporting innovation, we couldn’t find anyonebetter than Mary Orton and Rich Scudellari.” TheTrove app is about deepening connectivity betweenbrands and retailers through influencers, discoveringtrends and products, or curating your closet, via the digital world. “Trove is bringing fashion and technology together,” said Scudellari.

Throughout the event it was apparent that interrela-tionships deepen experience, whether in divergentprofessional pathways, fashion and function, or theinterdependence of nature and science in beautyproduct development; and each category’s represen-tatives, in their own ways, attested to the phenomenon.

— Nancy JeffriesContributing Writer, bnjcasa@aol.com

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A slight change of venue didn’t alter the anticipa-tory mood at the cocktail party feting the finalistsfor the Rising Star Awards, held January 16. Thecrowd—which included a four-legged guest—mixed and mingled over savory treats andsparkling drinks.

Hosted each year by Saks Fifth Avenue (thankyou so much!), the fun and intimate party is usually held in the SFA Café, but it’s under construction so the event was held this time inThe Advance on Five, where some of the racksheld garments produced by past winners.

Margaret Hayes summoned the attention of FGIboard and committee members, rising star finalists, past winners and guests. “The missionof Fashion Group is to foster rising as well asestablished talent,” she said, explaining how thefinalists had been culled from a starting pool ofmore than 100 nominees in eight categories to agroup of 35. She also highlighted the many pastfinalists and winners who have gone on to furthergreatness—Catherine Smith, Clio, Donrad Duncan,Loris Diran and Brandon Maxwell, to name just a few.

–– Katie KretschmerEditor/Contributing Writer

Rising Stars Cocktail Party Rising Stars Finalists and Winners 2018 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Home Product Innovation finalist Rebecca BravinWomenswear finalist Romeo Hunte, Marlisse Flusser Lynne,and Accessories finalist Tarryne Simone

Womenswear finalist Chris GelinasGivaudan team - Kate Greene (right) with finalist Natalie Brand (center)

Estee Lauder team with finalist Elena Wood (center)Kelley Doherty, presenter, Fine Jewelry

Amy Rosi and Marylou LutherPresenter Andrew Goetz and Mr. Greenberg

Rising Stars Cocktail Party

SAVE THE DATE

2018FALL / WINTERApril 20, 2018

The Hearst Tower / 300 West 57th Street

9 a.m. Trend Presentation

12 Noon Trend Presentation(with panel discussion)

2 p.m. Trend Presentation(with video encore of panel discussion)

Fashion Group International Margaret Hayes Wraps Up The Year At The Annual Meeting

The Fashion Group International requisite AnnualMeeting was held on January 30th at FGIHeadquarters in New York. Essentially a summary ofthe year’s activities, the meeting also serves to welcome members newly elected to the Board of Directors and to bid hail and farewell to those stepping down.

In opening the meeting, FGI prez Margaret Hayesannounced Rachel Vaisman, of the RealReal andClaudia Poccia as new members of the Board;Roseanne Morrison, of the Doneger Group, who isreturning to the Board after a brief hiatus, and PamLinton, of LIM College, who has been serving as thealternate to LIM’s Elizabeth Marcuse, as an officialBoard member. Hayes then asked Board members inattendance, Deirdre Costa Major, Frederic Pignault,Nicole Fischelis and Nancy Berger, to stand and berecognized.

Hayes went on to review the year’s calendar of 20-plus events, referencing, in particular, Night ofStars–extra-specially moving due to the surprise awardhonoring Marylou Luther, creative director of FGI’stwice-annual ready-to-wear presentations. The crystalobelisk was presented to her by her long, long-timefriend, Stan Herman. Hayes went on to say that the

FGI Rising Star Luncheon and Awards ceremony, heldonly days before, was one of the most successful ever,both financially and inspirationally, featuring, as itdid, John Varvatos as the keynote speaker.

After presenting the Treasurer’s Report, Hayes calledfor committee reports which were delivered by chairsKatie Kretschmer, for publications; Amy Rosi, for special events; Trish Maffei, for membership; MaryAnne Grisz, for social media, and Emily Koltnow, forthe regional directors’ conference.

At the close of the evening, the eagerly anticipatedawards were presented. Alan Lungen, a New York attorney who has been generous in offering pro bonolegal counsel to the organization, was honored withthe President’s Service Award. Bestowed upon TammyApostol, the Miami-based founder and creative director of her eponymous couture business and a very active member of FGI’s South Florida region,was the Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

The meeting was adjourned, the conference roomemptied and guests headed for wine, nibbles and networking.

–– Wendy D'AmicoCreative Consultant, Wendy7d@aol.com

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Calendar of Events

March 14, 2018Frontliner

The New Sustainability

5:30pm-7:00pm

FGI HQ8 West 40th Street, 7th Floor

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April 12, 2018Lunchtime Workshop:

“Plan Your Next Career Move”

Speaker: Claire Steichen

12:30 to 1:30

FGI HQ8 West 40th Street, 7th Floor

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May 10, 2018Beauty Symposium Luncheon

Hilton New York

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June 5, 2018Retail Symposium Breakfast

Roosevelt Hotel

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June 20, 2018 Tastemaker Breakfast

Tapestry’s Victor Luis and Rose Marie Bravo

For more information and to purchase tickets Visit www.fgi.org or call 212.302.5511