Andre Soriano (born September 17, 1970) is an American

fashion designer Fashion design is the Art (skill), art of applied arts, applying design, aesthetics, clothing construction, and natural beauty to clothing and its Fashion accessory, accessories. It is influenced by diverse cultures and different trends and has va ...

, specializing in couture and wedding gowns. He is also a

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...

star.

Early life and education

Soriano was born and raised to a Filipino family in

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. He grew up in a family of four with a mother who designed clothes for his family and taught him to make clothes. He immigrated to the United States at an early age. Soriano served as president of his high school’s fashion club. He attended the

Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) is a private college in downtown Los Angeles. The college was founded in 1969 by Tonian Hohberg, the institute's president and CEO. In 2023, Arizona State University (ASU) announced that ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

Television

In 2013, he competed on the first season of '' Styled to Rock''.He went on to design clothes for

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...

and

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973), also known mononymously as Pharrell, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, rapper, record producer, and fashion designer. He first became known as one half of the music production duo ...

, who served as the show’s executive producer/presenter and an on-screen mentor, respectively.

Fashion

Soriano opened his first clothing store in San Francisco, which specialized in couture gowns. The store closed in 2008 after he moved to San Diego with his husband. Andre Soriano's first runway show was at San Diego Fashion Week. In 2014, Soriano was featured at Style Fashion Week L.A. officially known as

Los Angeles Fashion Week Fashion Week in Los Angeles occurs biannually. Multiple show producers hold events throughout the Greater Los Angeles area each March and October. Traditionally, the City of Los Angeles identified the third weekend of those respective months as t ...

, showcasing his a pre-fall collection. His models included celebrities such as

Jessica Sanchez Jessica Elizabeth Sanchez (born August 4, 1995) is an American singer-songwriter. She rose to prominence following her finish as the runner-up on the eleventh season of ''American Idol''. Early life Jessica Elizabeth Sanchez was born in Chula ...

and

María Conchita Alonso María Concepción Alonso Bustillo (born June 29, 1955), better known as María Conchita Alonso, is a Cuban-born Venezuelan-American actress, singer, and beauty pageant titleholder who represented Venezuela at Miss World 1975 and placed in the t ...

. He was praised for his ''Heiress'' collection at Style Fashion Week. Soriano eventually opened an

atelier An atelier () is the private workshop or studio of a professional artist in the fine or decorative arts or an architect, where a principal master and a number of assistants, students, and apprentices can work together producing fine art or vi ...

in Occoquan, Virginia. Soriano's swimwear line has been worn by

Maitland Ward Maitland Ward (born Ashley Maitland Welkos; February 3, 1977) is an American actress and model. She made her acting debut as Jessica Forrester on the CBS soap opera ''The Bold and the Beautiful'' (1994–1996). Continuing to appear in film and ...

. He is also well known for his luxury bridal wear. Soriano designed a dress for singer Joy Villa for the

2015 Grammy Awards The 57th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 8, 2015, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The show was broadcast live by CBS at 5:00 p.m. PST ( UTC−8). Rapper LL Cool J hosted the show for the fourth consecutive time. ...

made entirely of orange construction fencing that attracted media attention. He was also featured in '' Vanity Fair''. In 2024, Soriano designed a dress collection inspired by First Ladies of the United States, which premiered at the 2024 Glitz & Glamour charity gala. In 2025, Soriano designed a dress for

Miss America 2025 Miss America 2025 was the 97th edition of the Miss America pageant, held inside the Walt Disney Theater, located at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Orlando, Florida, alongside the Miss America's Teen 2025 competition on Janu ...

Abbie Stockard Abbie Stockard (born July 26, 2002) is an American beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss America 2025. Stockard was previously crowned Miss Alabama 2024, making her the fourth woman from Alabama to be crowned Miss America. Early life ...

, who wore it to

Secretary of Health and Human Services The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Robert Francis Kennedy Jr. (born January 17, 1954), also known by his initials RFK Jr., is an American politician, environmental lawyer, author, conspiracy theorist, and anti-vaccine activist serving as the 26th United States secretary of heal ...

’s inaugural ball.

Politics

Soriano has publicly voiced support for the LGBT community. Being a supporter of

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

president

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

, he designed a gown for Joy Villa for the

2017 Grammy Awards The 59th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on February 12, 2017. The CBS network broadcast the show live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The ceremony recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, ...

in support of Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. In 2020, Soriano again created a dress worn by Villa supporting Donald Trump's 2020 presidential campaign.

Personal life

Soriano was married to Thomas Gamez Brown, a contractor. Brown passed away from cancer, inspiring Soriano to organize the Glitz & Glamour charity gala, which supports charities such as We Will Survive Cancer and Children’s National Hospital.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Soriano, Andre 1970 births American fashion designers American businesspeople in fashion American LGBTQ businesspeople LGBTQ fashion designers Living people LGBTQ people from California Designers from San Diego Participants in American reality television series Filipino fashion designers People from Manila California Republicans 21st-century American LGBTQ people