Monday, March 23rd marked the final of three “Fashion Talks” presented by the The French Institute Alliance Française (fi:fa) with moderator Pamela Golbin, and what a grand finally it was. Tonight’s talk featured the one and only Diane von Furstenberg. She is an extraordinary woman, full of knowledge, life and charisma. She had the whole room hanging on her every world and laughing with her along the way. Diane is a fashion icon, a phoenix that has risen from the ashes, and not only risen, but risen stronger, prouder, and more successful than ever.
Starting off the conversation, Golbin asked about the Council of Fashion Designers of America and specifically Diane’s tenure there. Diane recalled how the CFDA welcomed her with open arms when she returned to the industry after a ten-year hiatus. She felt she owed them a debt of gratitude. She was on the board to help appoint the next president and recalled jokingly, perhaps “no one else wanted the job,” or because of her “poor salesmanship,” she ended up with the position. Diane commented how the CFDA works as an organizing force among the design community. It drives the success of new talent, while being supported by the successful talent it has already fostered. Currently the CFDA continues its commitment to combat counterfeiting.
In addition, Diane spoke of her interest to promote New York Fashion Week and make it “really exciting.” She seeks to package it and make it into a brand. Who better to do this than a living fashion brand? In addition, Diane hopes to have consumer-based fashion shows, geared towards the end consumer rather than trade, as she did this past season in conjunction with American Express. Diane showed her Spring line during Fall fashion week, right at the time when the clothes were hitting the stores. This proved to be successful by driving sales of the line at department stores and her boutiques.
The subject now moved to Diane’s background - my favorite part of the talk. By now, the audience was completely taken with her. She projects no barriers, walls, or insecurities; she is completely confident and content with herself and her life. This energy radiated from her like a glowing aura. Diane began to talk about how she has had two careers. The first spanned from 1972-1976, and the second started in 1997 and continues today. She spoke of how fashion was never a goal for her. Her objective was simply to become the type of woman that she wanted to be and that she saw herself as: “Independent, secure, and in the drivers seat.”
I am reminded of her commercial for American Express, and much like the first time I saw the commercial, I got a little welled up. Diane began her career as an intern working for an Italian Industrialist Angelo Ferretti, and she is not ashamed to admit that he had a little crush on her. Although she thought she was doing nothing at the time, in retrospect, she was learning the skills that she would need to carry her through to where she is today. Working with Mr. Ferretti’s many businesses, Diane learned a great deal. At his print factory, she learned from the best colorist, and at his jersey textile mill, she learned from the textile designers. Later, Mr. Ferretti also purchased a clothing construction factory, which she also had exposure to. At the time, she was dating Prince Egon of Fürstenberg, and would travel to visit him in New York, where he was completing his own internship. The moderator then added, “the rest is history.” Much to Goblin’s surprise and to the delight of the audience Diane replied, “No, the rest is I got pregnant.”
Diane decided to marry Egon, but also made the decision that she needed to have a career of her own. She asked Mr. Ferretti if she could make some samples to take with her to New York and he agreed. Diane constructed samples from scraps and bits she found around the factory and the 22 year-old carried them with her to her new life in New York. After landing in NYC, Diane admits everything happened very quickly. By 1974, she had two children, Prince Alexandre and Princess Tatiana, and by 1976, she had become a brand (although she admits that she did not understand what that meant at the time) and was producing 25,000 dresses a week. Things grew too fast however, and Diane, being very young, made some mistakes. The market became oversaturated, and inventory began to build up. Diane decided to build a beauty business, which was very successful, but in her words, was poorly managed by “men in business suits.” Having already ended her marriage with Egon, Diane exited the industry and moved to Paris.
It was not until 1997 that Diane triumphantly returned to the industry with her iconic wrap dress and re-launched her brand and line, coinciding with the publishing of the biography, "Diane: A Signature Life" (Simon & Schuster; 1998). Although the return was not without its challenges, Diane overcame them with her determination, experience, and honed instincts. She did not talk much about her time on QVC and her Silk Assets collection; she does not consider this the start of her second career. In her mind, her second career began when Saks Fifth Avenue took on her line of signature dresses. As she is often quoted, “feel like a woman, wear a dress.”
There is no doubt that Diane is all about the idea of the woman. As her source of inspiration, a woman’s movements, actions and characteristics all play an integral role in her work. Unlike Catherine Malandrino, Diane has no desire to dress men, and only thinks about the woman when she is designing. Her self-proclaimed mission in life is to “empower women,” and she does this by giving them the tools to complement their lifestyle, rather than creating fashion that they have to adapt to.
Diane takes pride in dressing women for everyday, referring to her clothing as “friends” that a woman takes out of her closet to help her through her day or join her on her journey. Although Madonna does not wear her clothes for high-fashion editorials, or red carpet events, Diane is very proud that she wears her clothes on a very regular basis, when she is not directly in the spotlight and being more “herself,” because that is what she designs for.
Diane is an empowering woman in her own right. What she has to say about fashion, life and the world is moving, and comes from a great deal of experience and knowledge. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to every bit, and in closing I would like to leave you with one of the most compelling things that she said that evening.
Diane looks at life in three stages, “development, enjoyment, and fulfillment,” and considers herself in the fulfillment stage of her life. When asked what lessons she learned during the development and enjoyment stage, she said that she has learned the same one over and over again. It is that the relationship with oneself is very important and you have to be your own friend. Fortunately for her she learned this lesson very early on, adding that she “loves life, and lives it the best way possible.”
~ Written by Brian Ciabotti
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