Fashion designer Kate Spade took her own life in New York

The fashion world in the United States was in mourning Tuesday after the suicide in New York of the designer Kate Spade, 55, one of the great signatures of American fashion, particularly known for her bags.

A spokeswoman for the New York police did not elaborate on the exact circumstances of the suicide. But according to a source familiar with the matter, Kate Spade, who was married and had a daughter, hanged herself in her apartment and left a note.

The embodiment of New York style

Initially a journalist for “Mademoiselle” magazine, Kate Spade, born Katherine Brosnahan, launched her brand in 1993 with her husband, Andy Spade, an advertising executive, and outside investors. Although originally from Kansas City (Missouri), she embodied like few others the New York style, a mixture of modernity and classicism.

Specialized in accessories, Kate Spade will be especially marked by her bags whose very current style, chic but without ostentation, was the key to her success, as well as her shoes. Its most popular model, the “Sam”, a mid-size black rectangle bag, was relaunched this year, with several variations and new patterns and colors.

Numerous mentions in “Sex and the City”

“My grandmother gave me my first Kate Spade bag when I was in college,” Chelsea Clinton tweeted Tuesday. “I still have it,” she added, sending her condolences to the designer’s relatives.

The designer’s famous accessories had earned her several mentions in the reference television series of the late 90s and early 2000s, “Sex and the City.”

The president of the American Fashion Union (CFDA), the designer Diane von Furstenberg, and her CEO, Steven Kolb, said they were “devastated” by the announcement of the death of the designer, “a great talent who had a unmeasurable impact on American fashion and the way the world viewed American accessories. ”

A fashion empire

By 1999, Kate Spade had sold 56% of the capital of her company to the department store chain Neiman Marcus for $ 34 million, then the balance in 2006 for $ 59 million. Since then, she was no longer associated with management or creation within the house which still bore her name and which has since followed its own path.

The brand has diversified a lot under the leadership of Creative Director Deborah Lloyd (part end of 2017), who has turned it into a fashion empire with more than 315 stores worldwide and a turnover of 1, $ 38 billion in 2016. It was under his leadership that the brand entered the ready-to-wear world in 2009, three years after the departure of Kate Spade.

The Kate Spade group presented its condolences to those close to the designer on Tuesday.

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