Stella McCartney Success Story

Stella recently grabbed the “Brand of the Year” Award at the prestigious British Fashion Awards 2015 at the London Coliseum.

Childhood

Stella was born on September 13, 1971 in Lambeth, London to Sir Paul and Linda McCartney. Her father was an American musician and member of Beatles and mother was an American photographer and animal rights activist. Stella has two sisters and a brother. She has a half-sister from her father and his second wife. Her parents had their own pop music group, ‘Wings’. She travelled across the world with her parents. Stella did her from schooling from state schools, East Sussex. Passionate about clothes from a very early age, she did her Foundation Course from Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication. She studied Fashion Designing at Central St Martins College of Art and Design.

Early Career

Stella tasted her first success when her design collection during graduation was showcased by supermodels; Naomi Campbell, Kate Moss and Yasmin Le Bon at the graduation runway show. Her designs were an instant hit and made headlines. The collection was bought by a London boutique, ‘Tokyo’ and was accredited to Bergdorf Goodman, Joseph, Neiman Marcus and Browns.

Stella designed her first jacket at the tender age of 13! She embarked upon her fashion career as an intern for Christian Lacroix. She assisted him in his first ‘haute couture’ collection. She worked for Edward Sexton for quite a few years. These years of learning has stood her in good stead. Stella became the Creative Director of Chloé, Paris in 1997. Her designs were well received commercially and by fashion critics.

Heights

Stella McCartney’s success story is a milestone! She opened her own house of fashion in partnership with the Gucci Group in 2001. Her first collection was exhibited in Paris. Stella is a staunch vegan and does not use fur or leather in her line of clothes. She supports the ‘green fashion movement’.

From clothes to perfumes, skin care and then lingerie, Stella’s success in the world of fashion was meteoric. She introduced her first perfume in the market in 2003. Four years down the line, McCartney initiated her own organic skincare label, ‘CARE’. Enterprising and focused, Stella introduced her own lingerie brand and two years later her kids’ collection hit the world of fashion. Stella has designed handbags for LeSportsac.

McCartney designed Madonna’s clothes for her re-invention tour. Stella designed the wedding dress for Madonna’s marriage to Guy Ritchie. She was the fashion designer for Gwyneth Paltrow and Jude Law for the films; Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. ‘Nonchalance’ defines Stella’s designs.

She fruitfully partnered with Adidas and launched “Adidas by Stella McCartney", a sports performance collection for women. Stella created a diverse collection of clothes and accessories for H&M. The line was an instant hit and was sold out on the day of its launch. She joined forces on several projects with artists; Jeff Koons and Ed Ruscha. McCartney designed an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ assortment of jewellery in a joint venture with Disney. Stella walked the ramp at the Brandery fashion show in Barcelona in 2011. The same year the premiere show for McCartney’s designed costumes for New York City ballet, ‘Ocean Kingdom’ was held in the city.

It was no mean feat that Stella McCartney was the first well-known fashion designer to be selected as Creative Director of Team GB by Adidas for the 2012 Olympics. She designed the sportswear for the country’s team for all the events. Stella McCartney arranged for a performance of the Soul Rebels Brass Band at the exhibition of her Spring collection 2013 in New York City.

Stella has created an enviable position and name for herself in the fashion industry. She has 17 independent stores in different locations; Passeig de Gracia, Barcelona, Milan, Paris’ Palais Royal, Soho, Manhattan, West Hollywood, LA and Mayfair, London. She has established a stronghold in more than 50 countries.

Personal Life

Stella McCartney is married to Alasdhair Willis. Wills is Creative Director, Hunters, a brand in shoe wear. He featured among GQ’s ‘50 Best Dressed British Men’. The couple is blessed with four children; Miller Alasdhair James Willis, Beckett Robert Lee Willis, Bailey Linda Olwyn Willis and Reiley Dilys Stella Willis.

Recognitions

Stella McCartney is the subject for a recent case study by Anat Keinan highlighting that ‘luxury and sustainability need not be mutually exclusive’. Anat Keinan is a faculty at Harvard Business School.

Amidst much pomp and glitz, Mc Cartney bagged the ‘Brand of the Year’ Award at the prestigious British Fashion Awards 2015 held in the London Coliseum.

Stella was awarded the ‘VH1/Vogue Designer of the Year’ award 2000 in recognition of her accomplishments in the world of fashion and for her commitment to social causes. She received ‘the Woman of Courage’ Award for her initiative against cancer. Stella was honoured with the ‘Glamour Award for Best Designer’ of the Year 2004 and the ‘Organic Style Woman of the Year Award’ 2005. She was the ‘Star Honouree’ at the Fashion Group International Night of the Stars 2004.

McCartney won the Elle Style Award, British Style Awards and at the Spanish Elle Awards for the category ‘Best Designer of the Year’. She was accorded the ‘Green Designer of the Year’ at the ACE Awards 2008. Stella won the esteemed ‘Red Carpet Award’ 2011 by the British Fashion Council. Stella was recognised by the NRDC. She found a mention in ‘Time 100’ and was declared the ‘Glamour magazine Woman of the Year’. McCartney’s immense contributions to the world of fashion was appreciated in the New Years Honours 2013 and she was selected “Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)”. The same year, Stella was featured among the ‘100 most powerful women in the United Kingdom’ by Woman's Hour on BBC.

Jerry Seinfeld Interview with Stella McCartney