Jacobs, Marc

(1963- )

   Born and educated in New York City, Jacobs began his affair with fashion, when, at the age of fifteen, he managed to gain entrance into the hip nightclub Studio 54. It was the stomping ground of the fashion world and Jacobs was hooked. He received his first break while presenting his senior collection as a Parsons School of Design student in 1984. His first ready-to-wear collection in 1986 was produced by Rubin Thomas Inc. and, in 1989, Jacobs became head of design at Perry Ellis and brought the "grunge look" to the runway. It was his promotion of this look that got him fired from Perry Ellis. In 1994, he showed under his own name and, in 1997, became artistic director at Louis Vuitton. Jacobs gave new life to the logo and, starting with one handbag on the runway in 1998, celebrated the end of a successful show in spring 2004 with every model carrying a different Vuitton bag. Jacobs succeeded in making the Louis Vuitton bag, once feared to become a fashion has-been, a fashion must-have. It was this same year that Jacobs and his business partner Robert Duffy signed a ten-year contract with Moët Hennessey Louis Vuitton (LVMH), keeping Jacobs and the LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault in a continuous business partnership. Both parties committed to growing Marc Jacobs into a global fashion market force. The designer bridge line, Marc by Marc Jacobs, was launched in 2000' and Little Marc, a collection of childrenswear for ages two to seven, was launched in 2005. Jacobs has always had an affinity with vintage and has successfully incorporated the vintage details he finds attractive into his collections. He is the recipient of numerous Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) and other design awards, and his apparel includes womenswear, menswear, accessories, fragrances, home items, eyewear, and a watch line.