B. July 2, 1922
Birthplace: San Andrea da Barbara, Italy
Awards: Sunday Times International Fashion Award (London), 1963 De d’Or Award, 1977, 1979, 1982
Chevalier de la Legion d’ Honneur, 1983 Fashion Oscar, Paris, 1985
Golden Orchid Award for Maxim’s, 1985
Foundation for Garment & Apparel Advancement Award, Tokyo, 1988 Grand Officer, Order of Merit, Italy, 1988
Honorary Ambassador to UNESCO, 1991
Pierre Cardin was born in Italy but spent most of his childhood in France.
The Cardins knew their son was destined to be a designer; his interest in costume design and architecture was evident at an early age. Cardin’s par-ents supported his interest in design by enrolling him in architectural studies at the school of Saint Etienne in France. By the time Cardin was fourteen, he was working as an apprentice for Manby, a local tailor. Anxious to start his career, the seventeen-year-old Cardin was on his way to Paris when World War II erupted and he was enlisted. After the war, Cardin returned to Paris, anxious to launch his career in fashion. Cardin landed a series of positions with prominent couturiers, including Madame Paquin, Elsa Schia-parelli, Jean Cocteau, and Christian Be´rard, which helped mold his design skills. He also spent four years at Christian Dior, from 1946 to 1950, designing coats and suits.
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In 1950 Cardin established the House of Cardin. His first collection, presented in 1951, featured sculptured suits and coats in heavy weight wool with exaggerated details and geometric shapes. These style characteristics continued to be prevalent in Cardin’s future collections, in garments such as in his barrel coat with oversized roll collar in 1955 and in his balloon dresses in 1959. In 1957 Cardin was presented with a unique opportunity.
He was invited to teach at the Bunka Fukusoi design school in Japan. His association with the school allowed him to be the first designer to form business relations with the Japanese market. When Cardin returned to Paris, he designed his first ready-to-wear collection which debuted in 1959 in Paris department store Printemps. Cardin was the first couturier to break tradition and design ready-to-wear clothing. This distinction earned him expulsion from the Chambre Syndicale. Cardin was reinstated to the Cham-bre Syndicale a few years later, after other couturiers began to see the financial benefits of providing ready-to-wear lines.
The sixties were full of freedom and experimentation for Cardin. His combined interest in space and technology fueled his futuristic collections.
Cardin’s use of man-made materials, such as vinyl, moldings, and paper constructed into fitted silhouettes with cutout details and geometric pat-terns, defined him as a fashion innovator. Cardin again broke the haute couture tradition in 1960 by designing a men’s ready-to-wear collection.
The collection consisted of slim, French cut suits with narrow shoulders, high armholes, and a fitted waist, paired with tapered pants. The European suits were not immediately popular in America; however, when the Beatles appeared on Ed Sullivan’s television show in knockoff versions of the same suit, a new men’s fashion craze was born. Cardin’s next venture was a line of children’s wear in 1966. Cardin even opened a children’s shop on the Rue du Faugourg Saint-Honore´ in Paris for the collection.
As the space age–inspired 1960s drew to a close, Cardin’s designs re-flected a new direction. The designs became more refined in the 1970s. His collections incorporated drapey fabrics, pleating, quilting, and asymmetri-cal design lines in either the hemline or neckline. His bold use of pattern was still apparent but more subtle. Cardin reached back to his sixties her-itage for space-age influence in the early 1990s. His couture line again showed futuristic characteristics reflecting a return to his interest in science and technology. In 1992 Cardin debuted Paris by Cardin, his first new line in the United States in thirty years. Cardin suffered an unfortunate loss in 1993 when Andre Oliver, a designer, retailer, and friend of Cardin’s, passed away in Paris. Oliver was instrumental in the development of Cardin’s men’s and women’s couture and ready-to-wear collections.
Cardin began to expand his business globally in the late 1970s. First, Cardin’s licensee Gruppo GFT entered into a joint venture with Tianjin Jin Tak Garment Company, a suit factory, to produce garments under the
46 Pierre Cardin
Pierre Cardin label. In 1983 Cardin became the first French designer to retail his line in the Soviet Union. Cardin also opened several outlet stores in India in 1996 under the name Pierre Cardin Fashions, Pvt. Ltd.
Pierre Cardin may be best known around the world for his numerous fragrances. His first fragrance, Geste, was introduced in 1958. Cardin signed a licensing agreement with Jacqueline Cochran, a division of Amer-ica Cyanamid, in 1970 to introduce his first men’s scent, Escape, which he followed with the fragrance Pierre Cardin. The fragrances were in high demand, and Cochran began distributing the fragrances to the mass mar-ket. Ultimately, this widespread distribution to moderate and budget re-tailers damaged the brand’s identity and Cardin’s name. Cardin was unable to regain control over his product, and name, until the license expired in 1991. The license was reassigned to Tsumura International, Inc., who also held the license for Cardin’s fragrances Pierre Cardin pour Monsieur, Bleu Marine de Cardin, and Rose Cardin. The fragrances were initially launched with a limited distribution in Europe but were later expanded to the United States. Cardin continued to expand his fragrance lines between 1992 and 1995 adding the men’s scents Enigme, Insatiable, and Pierre Cardin Sportif, which were carried in moderate department stores such as J.C. Penney’s and the French hypermarket Carrefour.
Cardin was a genius when it came to promoting his name. He licensed his name to a wide array of products including chocolate, pens, cigarettes, frying pans, alarm clocks, mineral water, cassette tapes, car-seat covers, and more. He has accumulated over 900 licenses worldwide, a feat to which no other designer even comes close. Cardin is the first couture de-signer to engage in such an exhaustive campaign to exploit his name. Car-din has over thirty licenses for apparel products incluCar-ding shoes, lingerie, blouses, neckwear, leather goods, belts, accessories, suits, and pants for men and women. His licensees include some of the largest manufacturers in the world such as Hart, Schaffner & Marx, Intercontinental Branded Apparel, Harbor Footwear Group, Vestra, Burma Bibas, Coronet, Appel Corporation, and Salant Corporation.
In addition to apparel and accessories, Cardin designed a collection of furniture which was produced in his French factory in 1970. The furniture line was designed to create an atmosphere for his clothing line. This line was relaunched in 2000 in collaboration with Daniel You. Another unique opportunity was presented to Cardin in 1988. He entered the restaurant business with the well-known French restaurant Maxim’s de Paris (now Maxim’s Restaurant). The complex held more than 125 guests in the L’Omnibus Restaurant and another 225 guests in the moderately priced bistro Super Club. Maxim’s is now located around the world in areas such as Rio, Brussels, Peking, Monte Carlo, Sydney, and New York.
Pierre Cardin is probably the wealthiest haute couture designer, realizing over $2.5 billion a year through his various product lines. His name
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pears on more than 800 different products in over 100 countries. He has accomplished this not just with his ingenious brand licensing, but also by being a fashion innovator and entrepreneur. Early in his career he recog-nized both the financial and marketing benefits of incorporating ready-to-wear and licensed products into the offerings of his couture house. He is one of the few couture designers ever to finance solely his own couture operation. His acute business sense and design abilities have allowed his couture line to retain its cachet, despite the widespread distribution of his licensed products to moderate retailers. See also: Paquin; Elsa Schiaparelli;
Christian Dior.
Website: http://www.pierrecardin.com REFERENCES
Gellers, Stan. “The Big Brand Era.” Daily News Record 25 (January 18, 1995):
S30.
Milbank, Caroline Rennolds. New York Fashion: The Evolution of American Style.
New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1989.
Murray, Maggie Pexton. Changing Styles in Fashion: Who, What, Why. New York:
Fairchild Publications, 1989.
N. S.
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Carolee
B. 1972
Birthplace: Greenwich, Connecticut
Award: National Woman Business Owner of the Year, 1999
Carol Friedlander, founder, president, and chief executive officer of Car-olee Designs, has succeeded literally in building a business from the ground up. Friedlander’s jewelry line was originally produced in her home before she launched her collection nationwide in 1985. The costume jewelry line she produces contains signature elements such as synthetic pearls that are so finely crafted as to appear genuine. Friedlander creates this illusion through a lost-wax casting process she employs in the production of each piece, a process which results in the look of fine jewelry.
The Carolee line was launched to the forefront of the costume jewelry industry when Friedlander designed a collection in 1987 based on jewels from the Duchess of Windsor’s collection. This collection brought Carolee to a new prominence in the public eye and allowed her to open her first boutique, located in Short Hill, New Jersey, in 1988. Friedlander’s success continued to grow throughout the early 1990s as she focused her attention
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on publicity for her company. One of Friedlander promotions was a joint venture with Este´e Lauder USA called custom color consultation. The pro-motion was held at Bloomingdale’s in New York City at the Este´e Lauder counter with consultants from both Carolee and Este´e Lauder. Consultants worked together to advise customers on techniques for selecting cosmetics and accessories that complement each other. The success of this promotion lead to new, exciting opportunities for Friedlander to expand her business, including entering into a licensing agreement with Ralph Lauren for a line of Polo jewelry to be launched in spring 1995.
Another turning point in Friedlander’s career came in 1996 when she attended a Sotheby’s auction. At the auction she purchased a collection of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’s jewelry for $81,000. From this collection, she created a seventeen-piece Carolee collection which virtually replicated the original pieces. After a special unveiling at the New York Blooming-dale’s flagship store, the collection was distributed to other BloomingBlooming-dale’s stores across the country. This special collection also inspired Friedlander to expand into fine jewelry. Her new fine jewelry collection includes such materials as freshwater pearls, sterling silver, gold, and hematite.
Friedlander’s company is located in her hometown of Greenwich, necticut, with factories in Providence, Rhode Island, and Greenwich, Con-necticut. Friedlander produces new collections four times a year which can be purchased at department and specialty stores worldwide. She has also added new product lines to her company including handbags, belts, and small leather goods which are produced by Koret of California. See also:
Este´e Lauder; Ralph Lauren.
REFERENCES
Hessen, Wendy. “Jackie O Pearls to Launch Carolee Line at Bloomingdale’s.”
Women’s Wear Daily 172 (August 29, 1996): 10.
Milbank, Caroline Rennolds. New York Fashion: The Evolution of American Style.
New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1989.
Newman, Jill. “Carolee and Lauder: Getting Together.” Women’s Wear Daily 163 (May 8, 1992): 10.
Pofeldt, Elaine. “The Self-made Women.” Success 44 (June 1997): 37.
N. S.
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Cartier
B. 1819 D. 1904
Birthplace: Paris, France
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Almost from the moment Louis-Franc¸ois Cartier took over the shop of his former employer in 1847, he attracted prosperous clients by selling jewelry and art objects which he purchased from numerous manufacturers.
He opened several more locations over the years, but the Cartier name became even better known when, in 1899, son Alfred and grandson Louis opened a new shop at 13 Rue de la Paix in Paris, which was, at that time, the heart of the haute couture and jewelry district. Louis, in fact, married Andree Worth, granddaughter of Charles Frederick Worth, the “Father of Haute Couture,” that very same year. To this day, it is still Cartier’s pri-mary location.
The fame of Cartier continued to grow, especially when the company started to restore, redesign, and create custom pieces for the aristocrats of Europe. For the coronation of Edward the VII, so many orders were re-ceived from London that the London branch was opened the same year, 1902, and eventually managed by grandson Jacques, who remained as di-rector there for the rest of his life. In 1909 grandson Pierre opened the New York branch on 5th Avenue. Although the Cartier shops were located in only three cities until the 1960s, the business stretched throughout the world. From Saint Petersburg to Moscow, from Bombay to Kashmir, the House of Cartier offered the rich and powerful the most superb quality and design in watches, brooches, rings, bracelets, necklaces, and objets d’art.
Many new styles of jewelry came from the Cartier workshops. Among their best-known innovations are the broche de de´collete´ (dress clip or clasp), first shown at the 1925 Paris Exhibition; their convertible jewels, such as the brooch that turns into a pendant and the headband that con-verts to two bracelets; diamond “curls,” individually mounted and attached to one’s hair or eyebrow; and beautiful objects (cigarette cases, perfume bottles, desk clocks, powder boxes, and so on) inspired by ancient motifs from Egyptian amulets, Japanese scrolls, Chinese carvings, and Islamic min-iatures.
The Cartier style was also differentiated by a nontraditional approach to design, such as the famous panther-skin ornamentation, which became the house symbol; the brilliant use of color (emeralds, mother of pearl, coral, lapis lazuli); and the introduction of platinum, the precious metal which Louis Cartier described as “the embroidery of jewelry” due to its ability to retain strength even when a very thin gauge is used. Evidence of its flexi-bility can be seen in the light and lacy effects for which their delicate pieces are known.
Still coveted today are the fine watches Cartier is known for, among which is the Tank, a modern simple rectangle with gold bars on each side, and the Santos-Dumont, a sleek and flat square which is both timeless and functional. Perhaps Cartier’s most enduring contribution to wristwatch
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style is the boucle deployante or folding buckle, introduced in 1910 and currently used in many contemporary timepieces.
The Maison Cartier was owned by family members until 1962, when great grandson Claude sold the New York branch and, within a few years, the Paris and London branches. In 1972 the company was reunited by its new owners, and in 1973 a new mass-produced line of articles known as Les Must de Cartier was introduced through Must boutiques throughout the world. Today, Cartier Monde is renowned for its writing instruments, handbags, perfumes, and scarves, as well as timeless gems of extraordinary quality. See also: Charles Frederick Worth.
Website: http://www.cartier.com REFERENCES
Rudoe, Judy. Cartier: 1900–1939. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1997.
Snowman, A. Kenneth, ed. The Master Jewelers. New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1990.
S. B.