She's Got The Look

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In movies, it's Natalie Portman. in music, it's Norah Jones. And in fashion, it's Phoebe Philo. "It," in this case, refers to a woman who, without much hype or hoopla, emerges as the leader of the pack in her field, the swan the others paddle behind like cygnets. All three women are young and down-to-earth. And everybody wants a piece of them, or in Philo's case, as many pieces — bags, skirts, dresses — as they can afford. But unlike Portman or Jones, Philo is not yet a household name. She is the 31-year-old creative director of the so-venerable-it's-fresh-again French label Chloé. And since 2001, when she took the line over from her former boss, Stella McCartney, her breezy, romantic look has become the uniform of fashion-obsessed celebrities and front-row types. "For two solid years I've sold out of the stuff the minute it hits the floor," says Tracey Ross, owner of her eponymous West Hollywood boutique. "She is definitely driving the whole contemporary market. They're all looking to her."

Indeed, at Paris runway shows and Hollywood premieres, stars from Portman to Jennifer Connelly are turning up in Chloé's soft-flowing dresses, peasant skirts and chunky heeled boots. Her influence is spreading even to women who have to pay for their clothes. Not since Helmut Lang introduced superskinny stovepipe pants in the early 1990s has fashion seen such a radical shift in shape. "She has absolute precision in terms of being able to seize the fashion moment," says Claudine Barnabé, owner of Espionne, a trendy fashion boutique in Paris. "She knows exactly what women are going to want tomorrow."

From whence comes this sixth sense for style? "A massive part of it is being a woman who loves clothes and bags and shoes," she says. "I'm quite simplistic and spontaneous. I can't really analyze it and intellectualize it." Crucially, Philo's smart sensibility extends to handbags, the heavy artillery in many labels' arsenals. The clothes are lovely, but accessories make money. This season's Paddington bag by Chloé, which retails for $1,280, has generated multipage waiting lists at several boutiques around the world. In London, the police were called in to Chloé's Sloane Street boutique to discuss security surrounding the arrival of a shipment of bags.

Ralph Toledano, Chloé's ceo, took a gamble on Philo. When she was offered the top job, she was a rebellious, unknown assistant with a penchant for gold teeth, diamanté-studded nails and hip-hop. Although many fashion insiders credited her street smarts for Chloé's success during McCartney's tenure, she was not an obvious choice to reinvent a 50-year-old brand. Fashion wasn't even Philo's first love. The daughter of a graphic designer and a surveyor, she initially studied sculpture and painting at London's Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design but switched to fashion as a more practical career choice. McCartney, a friend, offered her a job with Chloé in Paris, and by the time she was 27, Philo was at the label's helm. But in a business in which many designers crave the spotlight and egos frequently outpace talent, Philo is nonchalant, modest and (brace yourself) a team player. After a five-month maternity leave for the birth of her daughter, Philo had her assistants take the final bow at Chloé's show in March.

Toledano's gamble has paid off. Chloé, which reportedly generates about $200 million a year in wholesale revenue, has seen its orders rise 80%. Owner Compagnie Financieré Richemont, the world's second largest luxury conglomerate, is adding all the frills of a successful label: more advertising and product lines, new stores, lines of children's clothing, jewelry and watches. Even with all this success, Philo remains as cool and breezy as her washed-silk peasant skirts. "I still don't really understand who I'm designing for," she says. "It's definitely not me." It must be that sixth sense of style.