Fern Mallis, the Godmother of Fashion Week, Talks NYFW, Fashion Icons and What It Takes to Make It Today

The creator of New York Fashion Week talks to Spark Hamptons about Fashion Week then and now, the next generation of designers and her 16th season of Fashion Icons at 92NY

SPARK FAST FIVE: Fern Mallis

Five questions with the people making sparks

There is busy. And then there is Fern Mallis.

Try keeping up with the legendary fashion executive on Instagram and you’ll understand. There are fashion shows, awards, designers, dinners, interviews and international trips. Mallis was recently in Malta for Malta Fashion Week at the invitation of U.S. Ambassador to Malta Somers Farkas.

When Spark Hamptons caught up with Mallis by phone on Labor Day, she was squeezing us in from a car wash in the Hamptons before heading back to New York City for Fashion Week.

Then again, New York Fashion Week takes on a new meaning when you’re talking to the woman who helped create it.

Widely known as the “Godmother of Fashion Week,” Mallis transformed the American fashion industry during her tenure as executive director of the Council of Fashion Designers of America.

She created 7th on Sixth, bringing New York’s once-scattered runway shows together under the tents at Bryant Park and establishing the centralized event that became New York Fashion Week.

Her influence and efforts were also instrumental in bringing The Heart Truth’s Red Dress initiative to life during New York Fashion Week. The campaign mobilized top designers to contribute red gowns, raising awareness about women and heart disease.

Mallis later served as senior vice president of IMG Fashion and today remains deeply connected to both the established names and emerging talent shaping the industry. She has been honored with countless awards. Most recently, she was presented with the Centennial Grand Fashion Gala Award by the China Institute as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award by Read Elysian at the Furbaby Fashion Show in recognition of a lifetime of profound impact and visionary leadership.

Her acclaimed Fashion Icons with Fern Mallis series at 92NY is entering its 16th year, with Studio 54 co-creator and hospitality visionary Ian Schrager joining her Sept. 30, followed by groundbreaking fashion designer Iris van Herpen on Oct. 29.

She’s also keeping an eye on the next generation, including 10-year-old fashion prodigy Max Alexander, whom Spark Hamptons has previously featured. Mallis invited us to join her Sept. 14 at Mood Fabrics, where Alexander will unveil his new limited-edition sustainable fabric collaboration and attempt another Guinness World Record.

With New York Fashion Week calling, we managed to get in five questions with Mallis about the industry she helped transform, who’s catching her eye now — and what it takes to make it today.

Here’s our Fast Five with Fern Mallis.

1. You created 7th on Sixth and brought New York’s fashion shows together under the tents at Bryant Park. What do you make of New York Fashion Week today?

It’s a jam-packed schedule with so many shows. There is no longer any kind of centralized venue anywhere — so you have shows in Brooklyn, uptown, the West Side, the East Side. There’s even a show, Collina Strada, in the middle of an arts center, Storm King, in the Hudson Valley.

Every day, professionals have to make judgment calls, so it’s a little bit frustrating. I’m not going to be able to make it to all the shows I’m invited to.

When I look at my schedule this week, I will say I am proud of what we created in one space at Bryant Park.

2. You see both established names and up-and-coming designers. Who is exciting you right now, and what does it take for a young designer to break through in today’s fashion industry?

I’m looking forward to Michael Kors and Tommy Hilfiger’s show at The Plaza. His new campaign involves a photo collaboration with Travis Kelce, so there is a lot of Taylor Swift media frenzy in anticipation. I like Tanner Fletcher — Tanner Richie and Fletcher Kasell. Those two boys are really doing lovely work.

And, of course, 10-year-old Max Alexander is launching a new sustainable fabric collection with Mood Fabrics. He’ll be at a Mood sewing machine there, and he is going to thread a machine faster than anyone to set a Guinness World Record.

Max is a winner. A short film about him in Aspen just got picked up by the Hamptons Film Festival. When the documentary by Dori Berinstein debuted at Tribeca, I sat there with Max and Dori for a panel discussion with 200 people. Max challenged the audience, saying, “How many people buy things from H&M, Zara and Shein? Put your fingers up.” Then he said, “You are the problem. They are filling up the landfills with the clothing you are buying.”

He is remarkable. I just love what he is doing and his commitment to sustainable clothing.

There are a ton of up-and-coming designers, and I applaud everybody — so creative. My heart breaks for a lot of them because the whole retail system isn’t what it used to be, nor are fashion magazines. Nobody is reading those magazines the way they used to. Today, it’s all about trying to create a profile on social media and selling on Instagram. It’s not easy to break through.

3. You’re entering your 16th year of Fashion Icons at 92NY. What excites you about your upcoming conversations with Ian Schrager on Sept. 30 and Iris van Herpen on Oct. 29?

Ian is an icon, a fashion designer, a visionary. Of course, he will be forever remembered for Studio 54, which was epic. He created the boutique hotels, working with the best architects and interior designers, starting with Morgans on Madison Avenue and introducing the world to Philippe Starck and the Royalton, and several others, like the Delano in Miami. His vision, his curiosity — just extraordinary.

Then, on Oct. 29, I talk with Iris van Herpen, who is really pushing the boundaries of design. Just groundbreaking work. Her sculptural garments are held in institutions like the Met Museum of Art and in London. Her retrospective show at the Brooklyn Museum now, Sculpting the Senses, is a must-see. It’s an extraordinary show.

Iris is revolutionary, and what she designs is beautiful and mythical and like nothing you’ve seen. I say run, don’t walk — or take the subway to the Brooklyn Museum to see this show.

4. After decades in the fashion business, what’s the best advice you give people who want to build a lasting career — in fashion or otherwise?

My general advice is be nice. Be nice to everybody — it comes back 10 times. Stay the course, stay passionate, find what you are doing that somebody else isn’t doing. You need to have a voice that resonates, that makes sense.

5. We know you toggle between NYC and the Hamptons when you’re not traveling internationally. What does being out East give you — and what do you do when you actually get a chance to relax?

I love being out East, and it’s killing me that I have to go back to NYC. It’s really the most special place, and I’m grateful that I have a home here that I love.

It has changed here, too, and I can’t say for the better. There were so many people out here this summer. Rides that used to take you 15 minutes can take you 45 minutes to an hour. Bumper-to-bumper traffic. Unbearable.

And why are there so many houses out here now — $45 million, $50 million, $100 million — with 15 bedrooms and 18 fireplaces? Who needs houses that big? How many rooms do people use other than the same room off the kitchen? Are they really filling them all up?

So when there isn’t traffic, and I get a moment to relax … I rest with my cat Dimples in the garden, looking at my beautiful lake. Basically, that makes me happy.

If You Go

Fashion Icons with Fern Mallis: Ian Schrager
Wednesday, Sept. 30, 7:30 p.m.
92NY, Kaufmann Concert Hall
1395 Lexington Ave., New York City
92NY.org

Fashion Icons with Fern Mallis: Iris van Herpen
Thursday, Oct. 29, 8 p.m.
92NY, Kaufmann Concert Hall
1395 Lexington Ave., New York City
92NY.org

For more on Fern Mallis, visit fernmallis.com or follow @fernmallis on Instagram.

Angela LaGreca

Editor, Co-Founder/Publisher

Angela LaGreca, Editor-in-chief and co-Founder/Publisher of Spark Hamptons, is a four-time Emmy Award-winning journalist, producer, writer and comedian/host. Her TV credits include NBC’s “Today,” ABC’s “The View,” and, most recently, the primetime cable news program “Cuomo” on NewsNation. On the East End, she was the Creative Director at LTV, VP Features/Events/Photo Editor at Dan’s Papers, and has performed at Guild Hall, Bay Street Theater and the WHBPAC. Her publishing career began at Modern Photography, where she was managing editor. LaGreca lives in Manhattan and East Hampton and can be reached at angelatvmedia@gmail.com and angela@sparkhamptons.com .