Reed Krakoff (born February 20, 1964) 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 ...

and former

creative director A creative director is a person who makes high-level creative decisions; oversees the creation of creative assets such as advertisements, products, events, or logos; and directs and translates the creative people who produce the end results. Creat ...

of Coach and his own eponymous brand.

Early life and education

Krakoff was raised in

Weston, Connecticut Weston ( ) is a New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 10,354 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and had the highest median income in the state of Connecticut. The town is part of the ...

, one of three children, to Robert L. Krakoff, former chief executive officer and chairman of

Nielsen Business Media Nielsen Holdings plc (or Nielsen) is an American media audience measurement firm. Nielsen operates in over 100 countries and employs approximately 15,000 people worldwide. For most of its history, the company was known for its two subsidiarie ...

, and Sandra Krakoff (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Gusky), a consultant, both originally from

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

. He graduated from the

Parsons School of Design The Parsons School of Design is a private art and design college under The New School located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhattan art ...

Career

Krakoff worked at

Ralph Lauren Corporation Ralph Lauren Corporation is an American publicly traded fashion and lifestyle brand founded in 1967 by Ralph Lauren in New York City. The company markets products in apparel, home, accessories, and fragrances, and is most known for its flagsh ...

for five years and then took a job as creative director at

Tommy Hilfiger Corporation Tommy Hilfiger B.V. (; ), formerly known as Tommy Hilfiger Corporation and Tommy Hilfiger Inc., is an American clothing brand that manufactures apparel and licensed products such as footwear, accessories, fragrances and home furnishings. The co ...

.New York Times: "Another Notch in His Belt at Coach" By MICHAEL SCHULMAN
October 24, 2012 In 1996, Coach’s Lew Frankfort hired Krakoff, and gave him control of Coach’s products, advertising, store design, and merchandising. In 2010, he launched his own brand, Reed Krakoff. In April 2013, he announced he would leave Coach to focus on developing the Reed Krakoff label. The label folded in 2015 and began a process of winding down its operations and liquidating its assets. Krakoff then assumed the newly created position of Chief Artistic Officer at Tiffany & Co. following the departure of Francesca Amfitheatrof as Design Director. In his new position, Krakoff was designing new collections, aimed at refreshing the brand and targeting younger consumers. In early 2021 after LVMH's acquisition of Tiffany & Co., he was let go. He was named to the newly creative position of Creative Chairman of John Hardy in September 2022.

Personal life

He is married to Delphine Krakoff, an interior decorator.Wall Street Journal: "60 Seconds With: Delphine Krakoff - Savoir-Flair"
February 5, 2011 They have four children. He and his wife bought Lasata in

East Hampton, New York East Hampton is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in southeastern Suffolk County, New York United States. It is located at the eastern end of the South Shore (Long Island), South Shore of Long Island. It is the easternmost town i ...

, the girlhood home of Jackie Onassis in 2006. In 2007, Reed sold his NYC townhouse to

Roger Waters George Roger Waters (born 6 September 1943) is an English musician and singer-songwriter. In 1965, he co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd as the bassist. Following the departure of the group's main songwriter Syd Barrett in 1968, Waters became ...

for $15 million. In April 2014, with his wife he bought heiress Huguette Clark's French-style chateau known as "Le Beau Chateau," that sits on 52 wooded acres in

New Canaan, Connecticut New Canaan () is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 20,622 according to the 2020 census. The town is part of the Western Connecticut Planning Region. About an hour from New York City by train, the town ...

for $14.3 million. At the time, the home had been sitting empty for more than 60 years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krakoff, Reed Living people American fashion designers People from Weston, Connecticut 1964 births