Jill Stuart (born 1965) is an American fashion designer based in New York City, where she has been operating since 1988. She established her eponymous label in 1993. She also has a significant international client base, particularly in Japan.

Early life

Stuart was born in New York City in 1965. Her parents George and Lynn Stuart worked in Manhattan's Garment District and created the label ''Mister Pants'', which was an early creator of women's tailored trousers and trouser suits in men's fabrics. Lynn Stuart also had her own higher end label, and became known for creating outfits for actresses including

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, and

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. Stuart attended Manhattan's

Dalton School The Dalton School, originally the Children's University School, is a private, coeducational college preparatory school in New York City and a member of both the Ivy Preparatory School League and the New York Interschool. The school is located in ...

and later

Rhode Island School of Design The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD , pronounced "Riz-D") is a private art and design school in Providence, Rhode Island. The school was founded as a coeducational institution in 1877 by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, who sought to increase the ...

Career

Stuart sold her first collection to

Bloomingdale's Bloomingdale's Inc. is an American luxury department store chain; it was founded in New York City by Joseph B. Bloomingdale, Joseph B. and Lyman G. Bloomingdale in 1861. A third brother, Emanuel Watson Bloomingdale, was also involved in the bus ...

by the age of 15 – suede

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s and silver and leather

choker A choker is a close-fitting necklace worn around the neck, typically 14 inch to 16 inch in length. Chokers can be made of a variety of materials, including velvet, plastic, beads, latex, leather, metal, such as silver, gold, or platinum, etc. The ...

s. She opened her first store in 1988, an

Upper East Side The Upper East Side, sometimes abbreviated UES, is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, bounded by 96th Street to the north, the East River to the east, 59th Street to the south, and Central Park/Fifth Avenue to the wes ...

boutique focusing on accessories such as belts and handbags. By 1990, her stoles, bags and fur accessories could be found in stores such as

Neiman Marcus Neiman Marcus Group, Inc. is an American integrated luxury retailer headquartered in Dallas, Texas, which owns Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Horchow, and Last Call. Since September 2021, NMG has been owned by a group of investment compani ...

and

Bergdorf Goodman Bergdorf Goodman Inc. is a luxury department store based on Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan, New York. The company was founded in 1899 by Herman Bergdorf and was later owned and managed by Edwin Goodman, and later his son, Andrew Goodman. To ...

. Her eponymous label was launched in 1993 and included Skinclothes – a range of leather garments, such as slip dresses, kilts, jeans and jackets. Items from her collection appeared in the 1995 movie ''

Clueless ''Clueless'' is a 1995 American coming-of-age teen comedy film written and directed by Amy Heckerling. It stars Alicia Silverstone with supporting roles by Stacey Dash, Brittany Murphy and Paul Rudd. It was produced by Scott Rudin and Robert La ...

.'' The following year, Stuart's designs were stocked by

stores in the US. From the mid 1990s, Stuart began opening stores in Japan, including branches in Tokyo, Osaka and Kobe, and concessions in some 70 outlets across the country. Later the brand was sold in South Korea. In 2007,

Lindsay Lohan Lindsay Dee Lohan ( ; born July 2, 1986) is an American actress and singer. Born in New York City and raised on Long Island, Lohan was signed to Ford Models at the age of three. Having appeared as a regular on the television soap opera '' An ...

was photographed by

Mario Sorrenti Mario Sorrenti (born 24 October 1971) is an Italian-American photographer and director best known for his spreads of nude models in the pages of ''Vogue'' and '' Harper's Bazaar''. Early life Sorrenti was born in Naples, Italy, and moved to New Y ...

as the face of the brand in Japan, becoming the subject of some controversy. The brand is reported to have annual sales of around $30 million in the US, plus Asian sales of nearly $100 million. Customers include

Hilary Swank Hilary Ann Swank (born July 30, 1974) is an American actress and film producer. She first became known in 1992 for her role on the television series '' Camp Wilder'' and made her film debut with a minor role in ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (1992 ...

Kate Bosworth Catherine Anne Bosworth (born January 2, 1983) is an American actress. Following minor roles in the films '' The Horse Whisperer'' (1998) and ''Remember the Titans'' (2000), she rose to prominence with her role as a young surfer in the box-offi ...

and

Leighton Meester Leighton Marissa Meester (; born April 9, 1986) is an American actress, singer, and model. She is best known for her starring role as the devious socialite Blair Waldorf on ''Gossip Girl'' on The CW (2007–2012). She has also appeared in films ...

Family

Stuart lives in SoHo, New York. Her daughter, Morgan Curtis, established the Morgan Lane brand of sleepwear and lingerie in 2012 after working for Stuart.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stuart, Jill American fashion designers American women fashion designers High fashion brands American fashion businesspeople American women company founders American company founders Businesspeople from New York City Rhode Island School of Design alumni Dalton School alumni 1980s fashion 1990s fashion 2000s fashion 2010s fashion Living people 1965 births 21st-century American women