T H E P O W E R L I S T
W O M E N I N F A S H I O N
7. Donna Karan
The Designing Woman Women Love
In the late 1990s, more than a few critics suggested that Donna
Karan had lost her way. A dozen years after she launched her own
label to great acclaim, winning the hearts of working women with
her streamlined, sexy suits, there was a sense that the native of
New York's Long Island had become sidetracked by her interest in
yoga and spiritual pursuits, turning out fluttery clothes more
appropriate for meditating in Bali than mediating in the
boardroom.
For her part, Karan insists she was never out of step, merely
ahead of her time. "I don't think the consumer was ready for what
I was talking about," she says, sitting next to the Zen rock
garden installed on the first floor of the Madison Avenue
flagship store. (The store for DKNY, her lower-priced line, is a
few blocks away.) "People thought I was weird for using candles
and incense, but now I can sell more candles than I can sell
clothes."
Whether the cash register is ringing up candles or evening gowns,
Karan's business overall seems healthier than it has been in many
years. After stumbling with a public offering in 1996 (the stock
price plummeted as extra inventory built up in discount stores
and staff layoffs broke in regular waves), the company was bought
by French conglomerate LVMH in 2001. More recently, CEO Fred
Wilson was replaced by Jeffry Aronsson, former CEO of Marc
Jacobs. Aronsson says he plans to build on the improvements made
by Wilson, who is credited with moving the business back into
profitability by controlling distribution and closing outlet
stores.
In the past few years, Karan has been through significant
personal transitions; in 2001 her husband and business partner
Stephen Weiss died of lung cancer. She gives yoga much credit for
keeping her balanced, and in the past few seasons, she has drawn
praise—rather than confused broadsides—for her collections.
There are fewer asymmetrically hemmed skirts, more form-fitting
and flattering basic pieces in her signature neutral palette. For
fall 2003, she showed a group of white dresses, one a
goddess-style evening gown in silk jersey patterned after the
dress she made for herself the night before her daughter's
wedding in 2002.
