Quant, Mary

(1934- )

   Born to Welsh parents in London, Quant was educated at Goldsmith's College where she studied illustration. Her first job was as a milliner's assistant. After her marriage to Alexander Plunket Greene in 1955, they, together with their accountant, Archie McNair, opened a store on Kings Road called Bazaar. With only a few evening pattern-cutting classes under her belt and no formal training as a designer, Quant began making clothing for her shop in 1958, specifically short skirts, which she named after her car, the Mini. Although there is disagreement as to who actually invented the miniskirt, Quant or André Courrèges, Quant was the first to trademark it. Similarly, she is also credited with being the first to offer colored pantyhose to match her clothing designs; however, this is also attributed to Cristobal Balenciaga. No matter who was the first, Quant was known for her interest in the mod youth subculture of the early 1960s and for her shop that was the hub of the "Chelsea Set" of "Swinging London."

   Quant created a black, five-petal daisy logo that would be her worldwide trademark She was the first designer to use polyvinyl chloride (PVC) for clothing and, in 1962, partnered with J. C. Penney's to create a less expensive line called the Ginger Group. By 1965, she was exporting her mod fashions to the United States; she opened a second store in Knightsbridge, a cosmetics line in 1966, and a third store on New Bond Street in 1967. In the late 1960s, she created her last big fashion statement, "hot pants." During the 1970s and 1980s, she concentrated on her makeup and household goods line. Quant's publications include Color by Quant (1984), Quant on Make-up (1986), and Classic Make-Up and Beauty Book (1996). Her awards include the Order of the British Empire in 1966, the Annual Design Medal of the Royal Society of Arts in 1967, the Hall of Fame Award for Outstanding Contribution to British Fashion by the British Fashion Council in 1969, and the British Council's Award for Contribution to British Industry in 1990; she became a fellow of the Society of Industrial Artists and Designers in 1993. In 2000, Quant sold her cosmetics firm to a Japanese company, which sells the line in more than 200 Mary Quant shops throughout Japan, as well as in New York, London, and Paris.