Anna Sui

Anna Sui (born August 4, 1955)[9][10] is an American fashion designer. Her brand categories include several fashion lines, footwear, cosmetics, fragrances, eyewear, jewelry, accessories and home goods.[11]

Sui was named one of the "Top 5 Fashion Icons of the Decade" for 2000–2010,[12] and in 2009 earned the Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award from the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), joining the ranks of Yves Saint Laurent, Giorgio Armani, Ralph Lauren, and Diane von Furstenberg.[13]

Early life and family origins

Sui is a second-generation Chinese-American born in Detroit, Michigan. Her father, Paul Sui and mother, Grace Sui Fang met while studying at the Sorbonne in Paris where Sui's father was studying engineering and her mother, painting. Her paternal grandparents were Xiao Yulan, a Tahitian-Chinese businessman, and his wife Qiu Daidi .[14][15] Her maternal grandparents were Fang Chih, a Chinese diplomat and his Japanese wife named Fang I-chih (born Masue Ueki).[16][17][18]

Sui is a matrilineal descendant of the prominent Fang clan of Tongcheng, Anhui, notable for its many scholars and philosophers.[19] She is an 18th generation descendant of Fang Bao, an influential Chinese poet who founded the Tongcheng School of literary prose popular throughout the Qing Empire.[20] Notable ancestors also include Fang Gongcheng, tutor of the imperial palace, and Fang Guancheng, Viceroy of Zhili seated at Tianjin from 1749 to 1768 amongst other Qing era scholars.[21][22] Her niece is actress and model Chase Sui Wonders.[23]

By the time she was four years old, Sui knew she wanted to be a fashion designer.[24][25] Sui's mother taught her about putting together a wardrobe, bringing a young Sui with her to shop for fabrics. Sui would spend hours watching her mother sew and would collect the fabric scraps to clothe her Barbie dolls and her brothers' army action figures. Through this process, Sui learned the basics of making clothing and soon she was putting together her own outfits. This was accomplished by buying pattern pieces for the sleeves of a dress, and swapping them to match other dresses, to create her own look for the garments.[24]

As a teen, she read an article [26] in Life magazine about the achievements of Mia Fonssagrives-Solow and Vicky Tiel who graduated from Parsons School of Design in New York City and then moved to Paris, where Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton opened a boutique with the girls. Sui credits reading this article as a pivotal moment in her youth, which gave her clear direction on her goals for her future.[27]

Early career

Sui moved to New York and attended Parsons, but after finishing her second year,[28] Sui was hired in 1975 by Erica Elias' juniors clothing label Charlie's Girls,[29] where she learned by designing for sportswear labels and doing styling on the photography shoots of friend and former Parsons' classmate Steven Meisel.[30] Sui's work as a stylist for Meisel's shoots featured in the Italian magazine Lei specifically were very well received.[31] After the closing of Charlie's Girls, Sui worked for several other sportswear designers including Bobbie Brooks and Simultanee.[24][31]

During this time, she began designing and making clothes out of her apartment.[32] Sui stated that she was inspired to branch out on her own by a desire to dress rock stars and people who attended their concerts.[33] Indeed, during this period, the majority of her personal business was focused on targeting sales to music stores.[31] While working for the sportswear company Glenora, she brought her collection of five pieces to a New York trade show, and caught the attention of New York department stores Bloomingdale's and Macy's.[24]

A few weeks later, in August 1979, those clothes were featured in a full-page Macy's ad in the Sunday edition of The New York Times.[34] The manager at Glenora, where Sui was still on the payroll, was furious when he saw the advertisement in the Times and fired her on the spot. Left without a job, Sui took her $300 in savings and started a business out of a little corner of the living room in her apartment.[35] For several years Sui ran the company out of her apartment, doing odd-jobs for spare income and reinvesting every penny of earnings into her business.

Anna Sui line

The 1980s was the height of "power-dressing", with companies such as Chanel, Lacroix and Versace setting the standard. Sui struggled to stand up next to the big-name fashion houses. Sui was one of the few designers of the period who distanced herself from the traditional fashion houses and explored the grunge fashion scene together with designers such as Marc Jacobs, Daryl K and Todd Oldham. Around 1987, Sui got the opportunity to move her line into Annette B, a showroom curated by Annette Breindel. Breindel, who had a history of nurturing young designers, was a major influence for Sui and helped the designer emerge onto the fashion scene. During this period, Sui finally was able to move her operation out of her apartment and into the garment district.[31] By the late 1980s, Sui had gained a global cult-like following, getting the attention of Japanese fashion powerhouses such as Onward Kashiyama. Sui would go on to greatly expand Japanese operations in the mid 90s.[36][37]

At Paris Fashion Week in 1991, Sui received one of the first major breakthroughs of her career. Sui was driving with her friend Steven Meisel to see the Jean Paul Gaultier show. On the way to the show, they stopped to pick up Madonna, a friend of Meisel's. Madonna surprised Sui by wearing her clothing to the event. Madonna would later wear the same outfit again for Meisel's photoshoot for Vogue.[38][39][40][41] Sui's first runway show took place later that year upon her return to New York City.[42][43]

In 1991, Meisel, Paul Cavaco and Sui's supermodel friends, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Linda Evangelista, got together and encouraged her to try a runway show.[31][44] Sui rented a small space in the Meatpacking District and paid the models by giving them the clothes. The successful show was the biggest breakthrough of Sui's career, with The New York Times commenting in reference to Sui's celebrity runway models: "That those beauties [Campbell and Evangelista] were then at the height of their fame helped stoke the reception Sui got from buyers and the news media."[45]

From her first show, Sui was known for her light-hearted, whimsical, homemade and entertaining approach to showcasing her collections.[46] The influences came from contemporary shows by designers such as Thierry Mugler and Jean Paul Gaultier where one of the goals was to charm the audience with the atmosphere created.[31] The atmosphere often had a distinct party vibe and the antics of guests and participants were described as a distinct cultural scene of the period.[47] Starting in 1995, Sui's designs were showcased regularly in Vogue Patterns. Her debut with the style magazine featured dresses from her Spring/Summer 1995 collection inspired by period pulp comics and the puffed sleeve, square shouldered, floral dress fashion popular during the war rationing years of 1940s era fashion.

Retail presence

The designer opened her first retail location in 1992[42] at 113 Greene Street in New York City's Soho District. The flagship store was known for its red floors, antique black furniture, signature dolly head mannequins and its purple walls which Sui painted herself.[48]

In 1993, the Anna Sui Corporation opened a store in Hollywood at La Brea Avenue expanding coverage and controlling North American distribution.[49] The same year, Sui introduced menswear into her runway collections with Mick Jagger later appearing on Saturday Night Live in one of the designer's suits.[50] Later, in June 2015, Sui relocated her Soho flagship store to 424 Broome Street from its previous 23 year long location on Greene Street.[48][51] The store moved out of the Broome Street space in late 2020.

Global expansion

1997 marked one of the pivotal years in the emergence of Sui onto the world stage. The first freestanding Anna Sui boutiques opened in 1997 in Tokyo and Osaka through a distribution and sales license with Isetan.[42] Sui also partnered with Italian shoemaker Ballin to create a shoe line.[52] For the Spring/Summer 1997 fashion collection, Sui drew considerable media attention when Dave Navarro of the Red Hot Chili Peppers appeared on the runway for her show in lacy underwear.[53][54] The same year, mannequin designer Ralph Pucci made full sized mannequins using her dolly heads. The mannequins were based on the measurements of model Michele Hicks and would later form the inspiration for Sui's first diffusion brand, Dolly Girl.[24] The Fall/Winter collection, which took place at the Church of Divine Paternity, a gothic style church in Manhattan, was noted at the time for its infusion of whimsy and lightheartedness and its repudiation of the conspicuously dark undertones traditionally associated with gothic fashion.[52]

In 1999, Anna Sui launched her fragrance, Anna Sui Classic, with Wella AG and cosmetics line with Albion.[42][55]

In 2000, Sui launched a skincare line, also with Albion.[24] The same year, her collections were featured as a part of the Fashion in Motion exhibition at London's Victoria & Albert Museum.[31]

In 2003, the designer launched her Dolly Girl fragrance together with several limited edition sets in the Dolly Girl series.[42] The same year, Wella AG was acquired by Procter & Gamble who continued the partnership.[56] In 2003, Sui launched a long-term collaboration collection with Peruvian designer Ali Rapp called Ali Rapp for Anna Sui. The collaboration consists of ready to wear, handbags, fashion accessories, T-shirts and cloth dolls. Items have been featured in Sui's shows in 2008 and 2013.[57]

Specialized collaborations

In April 2004, the designer entered a collaboration with Dark Horse Comics and William Tucci designing the wardrobe for several of the main characters in Tucci's Shi: Ju-Nen,[58] a miniseries in the hit comic Shi. Sui took the wardrobes from her Fall 2004 fashion collection, with items including yukata kimono minidresses and purple hose and high-heels.[59][60] In October, Sui partnered with Gonzo K.K. Studios to design costumes for the characters in their 2004 television series Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo, a series loosely based on The Count of Monte Cristo by French author Alexandre Dumas.[61]

In 2005, Sui was contracted by Samsung Electronics Co. in partnership with Vogue to design a Samsung SGH-E315 cell phone.[62] The limited edition handset which was available through T-Mobile sold out in the first month with products occasionally coming for sale on eBay.[63][64][65] Sui also partnered with Anthropologie to launch a fashion collection called Anna Sui for Anthropologie.[66][67] The same year, Sui also entered into a 2-year deal with Victoria's Secret designing a lingerie line for the company.[24]

In 2006, Anna Sui launched a limited edition Anna Sui Boho Barbie doll in partnership with Mattel. She later launched a limited edition collection with Victoria's Secret called Anna Sui for Victoria's Secret.[42]

For the Hello Kitty 30th Anniversary in 2007, Sui partnered with the Japanese company to create a limited edition collection in tribute to the milestone. The stuffed animals from this collection sell for over US$100.00 on eBay.[68] In November 2007, Sui followed up on the success of her US cell phone collaboration with the launch of the Dolly Girl by Anna Sui model fanfun. 815T cell phone in collaboration with Softbank Mobile which was distributed online in Japan.[69]

In 2008, Sui launched the Dolly Girl clothing collection in Japan to follow-up on her previous fragrance lines. Later in 2008, Sui partnered with Nissan to design a customized car, the Nissan 350z Anna Sui Limited Edition which was featured at various roadshows.

In 2011, Sui collaborated with Google to create a themed Google Chrome web browser extension.[70]

In November 2012, Sui and Albion partnered with UK online seller ASOS to launch a Fall/Winter 2013 Anna Sui Cosmetics line in Europe. The series featured a collaboration with Disney.[71]

In April 2014, Sui returned to her native Detroit to partner with the Ford Motor Company in creating the Mustang Unleashed Collection celebrating the 50 year anniversary of the Ford Mustang.[72] Later in April, Sui and Hong Kong based I.T. Apparels Ltd partnered with Lab Made, a Hong Kong ice cream vendor famous for pioneering the obscure market of liquid nitrogen ice cream to create an Anna Sui × Lab Made pop-up store which was featured at the company's Tsimshatsui branch throughout April 2014. The collaboration also featured Sui's own flavor of purple ice cream and the opening was announced by Hong Kong celebrity Alfred Hui, a contract artist for Hong Kong's Television Broadcasts Limited.[73] In July, Sui launched a lingerie line in Korea with Alvin Korea Co. Ltd. which was launched with a full scale lingerie fashion show at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Seoul.[74] In October, Sui partnered with the CFDA to launch a collaboration with Best Buy called Anna Sui × Best Buy as a part of their designer's series.[75]

In March 2015, Sui and Isetan partnered with Sailor Moon to launch the Sailor Moon × Anna Sui collection which was featured at the Isetan store in Shinjuku.[76][77] Sui also partnered with French dessert maker Ladurée to create a collaboration called Anna Sui × Ladurée as a part of the Les Merveilleuses Ladurée collection.[78][79]

In November 2015, the Starbucks × Anna Sui collection was announced, a holiday collaboration between the coffeehouse chain and the fashion designer.[80][81]

In August 2016, the 20th anniversary of Sui's entry into the Japanese market, Anna Sui Japan launched Anna Sui Mag, an online Japanese language magazine and lifestyle blog.[82] For Singapore's Golden Jubilee, Sui partnered with Uniform and Shentonista to create a commemorative SG50 tote featured in a blog series by Shentonista.[83]

In January 2017, Sui collaborated with Kenner/Takara to launch Blythe Adores Anna doll collection.[84] The collection released in Japan with a further 500 dolls being further released via international lottery.[85][86] In 2019, as part of Barbie's 60th anniversary, 4 limited sets of dolls with outfits from Sui's Spring 2019 collection were released.[87]

Retail collaborations

In 2009, Sui partnered with Target to produce a Gossip Girl inspired line combining Upper East Side style with a "downtown" edge called Anna Sui for Target. The limited edition collection, with affordable reworkings of pieces from her previous runway collections, was launched in September and sold in more than 800 stores and online.[88]

In 2011, she partnered with Hush Puppies to create a limited edition shoe collection which debuted in the Fall 2011 fashion show. She went on to also partner with Tumi to create a line of suitcases and travel items.[89]

In 2012, Sui collaborated with Coach and created a handbag line called Anna Sui for Coach.[90]

In February, 2014, Lee Min-ho announced the Anna Sui for Fila collection in Asia on behalf of Anta Sports Products[91] and Fila China which launched in 2015.[92][93] In April 2015, Sui partnered with O'Neill to launch the collaborative collection titled Anna Sui for O'Neill, a collection inspired by the California beach scene.[94] In August, Sui partnered with American boot-maker The Frye Company to launch a limited edition collection titled Anna Sui × Frye, which expanded a previous collaboration between the two houses to develop boots for Sui's Fall/Winter 2015 fashion show. The collection was inspired by Nordic culture and History Channel's show Vikings.[95][96][97][98]

In February 2016, Sui partnered with Opening Ceremony to collaborate on the label's "Year of China" Spring Summer 2016 collection which also featured brands like Renli Su, Ms Min and Vivienne Tam amongst others.[99][100] For the collaboration, Sui and Opening Ceremony reissued pieces from Sui's 1993 and 1994 collections.[11]

In July 2017, Sui teamed up with Macy's, the retailer that gave her her first big break more than 35 years earlier. The collection, Anna Sui X International Concepts, included both new versions of runway pieces, jewelry and shoes, as well as "Anna Sui Loves" approved items by Macy's own design team.[101] In August, PBTeen launched Sui's collection, inspired by Art Nouveau and her own adolescent bedroom, with bedding, accessories such as rugs and lamps, and furniture. [102]

In August 2018, Sui collaborated with online retailer Modcloth on an 8-dress capsule collection in extended sizes. The dresses used adapted silhouettes and prints from previous collections in new colorways.[103]

Recognition

In 1992, Sui won the CFDA Perry Ellis award for new talent.[24]

In 2009, Sui was presented with the Classic Icon of Fashion Design award at the China Fashion Awards in Beijing and with the CFDA's Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award in her native New York City.[104][105]

In 2010, Sui collaborated with Andrew Bolton to publish a book chronicling her 20-year career.[106] Later in the year, she launched her Forbidden Affair fragrance.

In April, Sui attended the Identities 2011 fashion show at Harvard College where she spoke to the students and was honored with the program's Leadership of the Arts Award.[107]

From May to November 2013, clothing from Sui's 1999 and 2000 collections were featured at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology as a part of their RetroSpective: Fashion & Textile History Gallery exhibition.[108]

In June 2016, a historical retrospective of Sui's designs displayed at the Beijing SKP department store. The collection featured Anna Sui designed items and outfits dating from Sui's first show in 1991 through her 2016 collections.[109][110]

In May 2017, London's Fashion and Textile Museum debuted an Anna Sui exhibition titled The World of Anna Sui. The exhibition marks the first ever museum retrospective in the United Kingdom featuring an American fashion designer and the first time Sui has been the sole subject of a museum exposition.[111][112] The exhibition announcement coincided with the announcement of a new book on Sui's career by The Business of Fashion's Editor-at-Large, Tim Blanks.[11] The Anna Sui X INC International Concepts collection for Macy's was announced for September 2017 featuring model Karen Elson.[113]

In 2018, Sui received the Women's Entrepreneurship Day Pioneer Award[114] at the United Nations in recognition for her achievements in fashion.[115]

Reception

For her innovative work, Sui has been called a designer who "never panders" by The New York Times,[116] and earned the distinction of being named to Time magazine's list of the decade's top five fashion icons.[5] Sui's work has been extensively covered both by the journalist industry as a whole and by the fashion press in particular. Her seasonal shows are regularly covered by Vogue, Style.com, Women's Wear Daily and many other news and editorial platforms. In general, the ambiance created in the designer's shows is particularly well received with the media commenting on details such as the anticipation surrounding the soundtracks to the playful and lighthearted environment.[117][118] Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week called Sui's career "a classic American success story," quoting Sui's determined attitude: "You have to focus on your dreams, even if they go beyond common sense. How could this young girl from the suburbs of Detroit become a success in New York? It was always that dream."[119] Reviews generally refer to the thoroughness of the designer's research and her tying together of various trends and topics both historical and current.[31]

Charity and community involvement

In 1996, Sui partnered with General Motors Corporation as a part of the GM/CFDA Concept: Cure collaboration between General Motors and various fashion industry companies, raising awareness about and raising research funds for breast cancer. As a part of the program, Sui designed a GMC Yukon which was sold at silent auction to raise funds.[120]

Following the September 11th attacks in 2001 on New York City's World Trade Center, Sui worked with actor Ellen Barkin designing an outfit to raise funds to benefit the Leary Firefighters Foundation and the firefighters who perished in the response.[121]

Sui designs and manufactures her signature collection in her New York City headquarters on Fashion Avenue and has been an advocate of her Made in USA approach. In addition to her work as a designer, Sui has ardently fought to keep the industry alive and has spearheaded a campaign to "Save the Garment Center," which was highlighted during Fashion Week in September 2008.[122]

Following the 2008 Mumbai attacks, Sui put several of her designs up for auction on eBay, donating the proceeds to Citizens for Justice and Peace, a Mumbai-based civil-rights organization.[123]

In 2010, Sui partnered with Isetan and Bearbrick in a charity event benefitting the World Wildlife Foundation and Malaysia's Forest Restoration and Orang-utan Monitoring Project, with proceeds from a limited edition collection going to the cause.[124]

In March 2011, following the Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that devastated Japan, Sui designed and sold shirts in lavender and black printed with the words Japan, We're All in This Together. All proceeds were turned over to the Japan Disaster Relief Fund.[125]

In 2012, Sui worked with musician and friend Jack White to design uniforms for employees at White's Third Man Records retail store which opened in Nashville in November 2012. A second location also opened in Detroit's Cass Corridor in November 2015 also featuring Sui's uniform dresses.[126][127]

In September 2014, in celebration of the 75th Anniversary of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, Warner Bros. and the Tonner Doll Company organized the creation of a collection of commemorative dolls designed by several famous American designers including Marc Jacobs, Donna Karan, Charlotte Ronson, Trina Turk and Sui. The collection of dolls was exhibited at the Fashion Institute of Technology and Bloomingdale's between September and October 2014 before being auctioned on eBay Giving Works with proceeds going to Habitat for Humanity's There's No Place Like Home campaign.[128][129]

In June 2015, Sui partnered with New York restaurant Serendipity 3 in a charity fundraiser to celebrate the restaurant's 60 year anniversary benefiting the Bowery Mission, a rescue mission and shelter in the Bowery area of Manhattan.[130]

Sui regularly gives lectures to students and around the United States to inspire future generations to pursue their dreams. In October 2015, Sui spoke to local students about her experiences at the Michigan Theater in Ann Arbor as a part of the University of Michigan's Penny Stamps Speaker Series hosted by the Stamps School of Art and Design.[131] Sui emphasized the need to not be intimidated by the industry which is sometimes described as cutthroat, even recounting her experiences from when she had been fired from a position at a sportswear company early in her career. Following the lecture, some of Sui's designs went on display as part of the Detroit Historical Museum's Booth-Wilkinson Gallery exhibition Fashion D.Fined: The Past, Present and Future of Detroit Fashion.[131]

In January 2017, Sui showcased a pair of Vans shoes she designed to benefit the Vans Custom Culture competition, an annual campaign by Vans raising funds and awareness for high school art programs.[132][133]

Lines

Anna Sui Shoes, manufactured in Venice, Italy, premiered on the runway for the fall collection in 1994. Later, Sui began production of a diffusion fashion line called "Sui by Anna Sui" and a jeans line called "Anna Sui Jeans" with Italian fashion house Gilmar S.p.A. The same year, Sui and Marc Jacobs also began consulting for Gilmar's Cento x Cento and Iceberg brand lines respectively.[134][135][136][137]

In print

In popular culture

See also

• Naomi Campbell
• Sofia Coppola
• Linda Evangelista
• Steven Meisel
• Mudd Club

External links