78 marieclaire.com.auAUSTRALSCOPE; GETTY IMAGES; COURTESY OF MICHAEL KORSthe store, all the other sales assistants
ran away, they were so afraid. So I
walked over and I pretended to be
composed – I wasn’t. She was looking
for jeans for herself and for [daughter]
Caroline and I figured that it was best if
I took her into a private office, so she
didn’t have to use the regular changing
room. I went into the room a few
minutes later to see how she was doing
and she couldn’t get her boots off – they
were stuck – and I said, “Do you need
any help?” And she said, “That would
be wonderful.” I pulled the boots off!
JF: What in particular do you love about
those style icons?
MK: When I think about women
like Jackie and Ali MacGraw and
Lauren Hutton, and
I take it to modern
times and think of
people who look
great on the go –
whether it’s Kate
Moss, Kendall or
Gigi – they all have
this effortlessness
about how they put themselves together
that I find very intriguing. I’m never
one for lacquered and perfect. When I
can tell someone’s spent too much time,
it’s a bit of a turn-off. Even if in reality it
took three hours to get ready and look
effortless, I don’t want to know.BIG BUSINESS
JF: You’re very much part of America’s
celebrity circle, with so many famous
connections – Angelina Jolie, Julianne
Moore, Halle Berry, the list goes on.
Do you socialise with them or do you
keep it strictly professional?
MK: It’s what I call “professionally social”.
JF: Ha! What does that mean?
MK: Am I going to say, “Hey, do you want
to come over and hang out in your
underwear and have a pint of ice cream
with me?” No, the odds are very slim,
but when I see them, is it a laugh? Do
we have a good
time? Is it silly?
Yes. Even if you’re
walking a red carpet
with someone, the
minute you get off
the carpet do you
both laugh about it?
Is it fun? Yes. Most
of the celebrities I know are upbeat and
excited about what they do, they have
an optimistic outlook. I’m the same.
JF: You are also a fashion billionaire,
thriving when others have crashed.
What’s been the biggest challenge?
MK: People – fashion people, not real“When I can tell
someone’s spent
too much time
getting ready, it’s
a bit of a turn-off ”people – can look at things that are
wearable and accessible and scoff at
them and say, “That’s so commercial.
He’s so commercial.” Well, I think
commercial means that people want
to wear it, want to use it, want to live
with it. So it’s a great compliment and
I have never caved in and said,
“OK, let’s make a jacket with three
sleeves, let’s make a handbag so heavy
you can’t lift it, let’s make a shoe that
you can’t even walk or sit in.” And at the
end of the day the customer votes.
JF: What have you found makes women
feel most confident about themselves?
MK: I have to say that every woman,
even if she’s a supermodel, has
something that she doesn’t love and
everyone, even if they beat themselves
up, has something that they like.
In today’s world we all have too
many pictures of ourselves, but you
can literally look at your phone and
say, “Wait a minute, every time I show
my legs I feel good about myself,
or every time I show my shoulders, or
every time I wear red, or every time I
wear white or gold, or when I put on a
floral I feel happy.” You need to find
your ethos, your attitude. You should
focus on that and forget about the bad.STYLE GURU
Clockwise from
right: Kate
Hudson wears
a Kors creation;
preparing for his
spring/summer
1991 show;
Joan Kors
cheers on her
son, who helped
design her
wedding dress
when he was
five (below);
Cindy Crawford
on the catwalk
with Kors
in 1990.Q&A