From fragrance to bags, from T-shirts to gloves. Every item that comes out from Marc Jacobs fashion house confirms his never-fail, trend-setting vision.
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April 9, 1963. After graduating from the High School of Art and Design in 1981 Marc Jacobs entered Parsons School of Design. As a design student at Parsons, Jacobs was the recipient of some of the schools highest honors including Design Student of the Year. In 1986 Jacobs designed his first collection with the Marc Jacobs label.
The following year, Jacobs received the distinct honor of being the youngest designer ever to be awarded the fashion industry’s highest tribute: The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Perry Ellis Award for New Fashion Talent. In the fall of 1993, Jacobs Duffy Designs Inc. launched their own licensing and design company: Marc Jacobs International Company, L.P. Jacobs and Duffy joined Louis Vuitton in 1997, Jacobs as Artistic Director and Duffy as Studio Director.
Jacobs introduced the secondary line, Marc by Marc Jacobs, with a spring 2001 runway show. He has gone on to win seven CFDA awards including Womenswear Designer of the Year, Accessories Designer of the Year and Menswear designer of the year. The first multi-brand store in the U.S. opened in August 2004 on Boston’s Newbury Street and May 2005 brought the opening of 3 new stores in Los Angeles.
The company opened their first free-standing European store in Paris at The Palais Royal in January, 2006 and followed with a London location in February, 2007. In the Spring of 2007 a full line of children’s wear, aptly named Little Marc Jacobs was launched. In January, 2008 a Marc by Marc Jacobs boutique opened in Chicago’s Bucktown and several limited edition fragrances were launched. The fall brought openings in Paris, Madrid, Istanbul and Athens--all with their first Marc by Marc locations.
The company has expanded to more than 100 stores worldwide. Currently Marc Jacobs Collection and Marc by Marc Jacobs stores can be found in four locations in Hong Kong, four locations in Taiwan, twenty-five locations in Japan (including flagships in Osaka and Aoyama) and five locations in Korea. ■