November, 2016 The well-heeled clientele of Toronto-born jeweler Myles Mindham have the luxury of shopping the world, but when it comes to dreaming up special pieces to last a lifetime, these connoisseurs come back home to collaborate with him. With no formal design training, the 57 year-old designer has been catering to celebrities and socialites alike for 25 years with …
Olivia Kim
September, 2016 With competition heating up, retailers are on a constant quest for cool. And few are doing it better than the Seattle-based, century old chain Nordstrom, thanks to a dynamic fashion fanatic named Olivia Kim. Raised in New York, the 38 year-old merchandise maven spent ten years working with hip retailers-turned-designers Carol Lim and Humberto Leon of Opening Ceremony …
Jessica Alba
August 9, 2016 A self-proclaimed “big thinker”, 35-year old Jessica Alba wasn’t content to rest on her acting career laurels for long. In show business since the age of 13, the California-born beauty has been on a mission since she latched onto a healthy lifestyle concept back in 2008, with the birth of her first child. Three years later, she …
Kate Moss (June 2016)
June 2016 Arguably the most iconic, influential and controversial model of her time, Britain’s Kate Moss was still a schoolgirl from suburban Croydon when she first auditioned for designer John Galliano at the tender age of 15. The year was 1989, and no one suspected that the enigmatic, 5’7”, fresh-faced beauty would soon be turning the fashion world on its …
Carol Lim
June 2016 When Japanese born-designer Kenzo Takada first opened his “Jungle Jap” store in Paris in 1970, he likely never envisioned that not only would his brand go down in history as a trail-blazing force in fashion, but that 46 years later, his jungle motif would still be going strong. In an inspired collaboration with Disney, the dyamic duo that’s …
Maria Giulia Maramotti
May 2016 Maria Giulia Maramotti really has her work cut out for her. As the heiress to her family’s 65- year-old fashion business, the 32-year-old U.S. Director of Retail for Max Mara—and Global Ambassador of the tony brand—faces the challenge of bringing an edgy new energy to the Italian house, known in the past for its classic take on luxury. …
Johnny Coca
May 2016 It’s long been said that in fashion, God is in the details. So when it came time for iconic British brand Mulberry to find a new creative director, it’s no wonder the victorious candidate would be someone who really knew bags inside out. After all, 70% of Mulberry’s business revolves around their bags, which first surfaced when the …
Peter Simons
March 2016 When John Simons opened his first dry goods emporium in Old Quebec City in 1840, you have to wonder if he had any idea of how frenzied the retail landscape would one day become. Then again, if vision is something that runs in families, perhaps he passed some down to his great, great grandson Peter. The 51-year-old President …
Vince Camuto
“I never met a man in my life who has as much guts as he does!” The beautiful Louise Camuto – 1989’s Miss Sweden and a Miss Universe first runner-up – is singing the praises of her husband, Vince. He’s sitting across from his adoring wife of 15 years at a Bay Street boardroom table in Toronto and looking elegant …
Tommy Hilfiger
Back in the mid 1980s, I went to New York to profile an ambitious young entrepreneur with a funny-sounding last name. Tommy Hilfiger, who had just launched a provocative ad campaign implying that the then-unknown upstart was one of America’s greatest men’s wear designers, had chutzpah to spare. Although his audacity was a little off-putting, I came away impressed, even …
Lola Rykiel
Those with a penchant for Parisian chic will appreciate the fact that Sonia Rykiel, the petite redhead whose spirit and style personified the Left Bank, first set the standard back in the late sixties. Once dubbed the Queen of Knits by Women’s Wear Daily, the legendary French designer, famous for her “poor-boy” sweaters and unconventional seams on the outside of …
Jaleh Farhadpour
It’s no wonder that Toronto’s Jaleh Farhadpour has a lifelong fascination with precious gems: Back in the 18th century, her Persian family owned two of the largest diamonds on Earth. Team that with her architectural-design background and love of fashion and you have the makings of a style-savvy entrepreneur who feels the Canadian market hasn’t kept up with the yen …
Francois Nars
It’s hard to imagine that what started as a humble collection of 12 lipsticks could translate into a private Polynesian island, but that’s what happened for François Nars. Famous for being the makeup man who helped give Madonna her signature ultra glam look, Nars, who was born in the south of France, moved to New York in the mid 1980s …
Heidi Klum
We’re at Yorkville’s swank Hazelton Hotel and Heidi Klum is sad. Looking like Glamazon Barbie in a red tailored pantsuit and blond ponytail, the 38-year-old, 5’9” German beauty had her heart set on shopping Toronto’s mink mile, but it’s been pouring rain all morning and now she’s got a spate of media interviews to finish and a plane to catch. …
Giles Deacon
For ladies who lunch, it doesn’t get much better than being treated to an intimate, high fashion show at a chic downtown eatery in the presence of a much-buzzed-about international designer, all for a great cause. That was the case at the Thompson Hotel’s Scarpetta recently, as Yorkville’s swank George C. boutique hosted a charity fashion luncheon to benefit the …
Arianna Huffington
As glamourous as she is intellectual, Arianna Huffington has positioned herself perfectly in the eye of the new media storm. At the helm of the ever-popular Huffington Post, the online publication which she launched in 2005, and sold six years later to AOL for 315 million dollars, the Greek-born journalist, author, and entrepreneur continues to mastermind an international brand that …