New York’s Michael Kors

The designer celebrates his 40th anniversary

Odyssey’s track “Native New Yorker” from 1977 conjures up many icons of culture who hail from the Big Apple. Directors Woody Allen, Martin Scorsese and Spike Lee, writer Fran Lebowitz, hotelier Ian Schrager or yes, fashion designer Michael Kors. Believe it or not, Kors is celebrating 40 years in business with a big show dedicated to Broadway tomorrow.

In a way, his career is a Broadway play in itself. Ups and downs included, from near bankruptcy to a fabulous ascent to the top of the American fashion world as a stock market winner, and most recently with the creation of Capri Holdings, which also includes brands Versace and Jimmy Choo. The foundation for this new fashion group was the Long Island-born designer’s success, whose namesake brand now employees 15,000 people worldwide.

What makes Michael Kors stand out is his unabashed love for the city and its icons. And he has been a longtime champion of the charity God’s Love We Deliver, and to mark the occasion of tomorrow’s show, he and the company will both be making donations to The Actors Fund. The show itself, which was filmed on location throughout New York’s iconic theater district, shines a light on Broadway, which has been hard hit by the pandemic. To kick off the experience, Kors will introduce the runway show live from the theater district. Teaming up with singer Rufus Wainwright, who has crooned for a Kors show before, the multi-layered digital experience will probably serve up the core of Kors: chic American sportswear with sophistication.

“When I was starting out at 21, I could never have imagined I’d be here, 40 years later, sharing my collection with the whole world,” says Michael Kors. “I’ve been fortunate to do what I love my whole life, and I want to use this celebration to spotlight another institution that means a great deal to me, and that could use our support—the New York theater community. I’m grateful and excited to share this anniversary collection, and to continue celebrating the city that made me who I am.”

The Michael Kors Collection Fall/Winter 2021 runway show will be live-streamed on Achtung tomorrow at 3 pm (CET).

Title image: Michael Kors illustration by Sarah von der Heide exclusively for Achtung.