Three Decades American Fashion-MK

Michael Kors has been a presence in American fashion for nearly three decades. The designer received a lifetime achievement award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America in 2010.Mr. Kors’s knack for catering to clients’ fantasies — and his visibility as a judge on Lifetime’s fashion reality show “Project Runway” — have combined to transform his once modest business into a fashion brand with more than $600 million in wholesale revenues and 60 stores.His latest debut was less haute couture and more high finance.
On Dec. 14, 2011, his Hong Kong-based company, where Mr. Kors is the chief creative officer, priced its initial public offering at $20, above the expected range of $17 to $19. The stock sale, which raised nearly $950 million, values the company at $3.8 billion.Such rapid expansion has raised the eyebrows of retail analysts, who question whether the Kors label will maintain its cachet or succumb to the fickleness of fashion.Kors is also selling its shares into a choppy market. Investors have shied away from unproven companies, amid concerns over the European debt crisis and the sluggish United States economy. Stock of several hot debuts, like the Internet companies Groupon and Pandora, have dropped below their offering prices.Newly public fashion stocks have been soft, too. Prada, the Italian luxury retailer, is down since its debut, while a rival, Ferragamo, is flat.  michael michael kors jet set logo medium travel tote

Analysts are worried that Kors could suffer too, especially with the insiders paring back their holdings through the I.P.O. and an earlier private sale of shares. The stock began trading on Dec. 15 on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker KORS.For now, it appeared that Kors stock was as hot as its dresses. Orders for the I.P.O. greatly exceeded the amount of shares sold, people briefed on the deal said, driving up the price of the offering.Although Mr. Kors has created a globally recognized brand, his journey has not been without its bumps, including a bankruptcy in the early 1990s. Since 2003, when his company was sold to Silas Chou and Lawrence Stroll, former investors in Asprey, the British jeweler, with Mr. Kors retaining a sizable share, the brand has benefited from financial muscle. michael michael kors jet set continental wallet

Once chiefly a clothing brand, the Michael Kors line now includes handbags, shoes and other accessories (accounting for 85 percent of sales). In addition to the top-tier designer collection, there are two lower-priced women’s lines, Michael Michael Kors and Kors Michael Kors (shoes and coats), as well as a men’s wear label.Mr. Kors’s fashions display an infatuation with the traditionalism of the Eastern Seaboard haute bourgeoisie. Yet he also likes to tweak it for customers who want to look polished and prosperous but hip. In person, Mr. Kors makes a near fetish of affecting a patrician ease, but he cannot resist the self-deprecating quip.These days, Mr. Kors often encounters fans who know him more as a personality on “Project Runway” than a designer. On the show, he ladles out encouragement to aspiring designers like chicken soup, occasionally seasoning his homey brew with a stinging put-down.michael michael kors jet set continental wallet double zipper