It's been a magical time for London Fashion Week this September - celebrating it's 25th anniversary, and with that, bringing back some of the best names in the industry to their homelands. Alongside the Brit brands joining the eclecticism that is LFW, there are a few new faces joining the party: possibly one of the most exciting being People's Revolution founder, Kelly Cutrone. It was announced that the British Fashion Council had chosen Cutrone's company to promote LFW in order to "increase awareness and exposure of British designers amongst US media and buyers with the goal of supporting the growth of designer businesses and increasing the attendance of these audiences at London Fashion Week”, and with Anna Wintour set to make an appearance on the front rows, Kelly seems to have done just that. So you can imagine our excitement when the PR guru, elite businesswoman and MTV star spared us a few moments of her busy schedule to talk about the 25th anniversary, reality shows and her new book, and what's more, she was absolutely adorable.
The Fash Pack: What does it mean for yourself and People's Revolution to be involved in London Fashion Week, particularly as it celebrates it's 25th anniversary?
Kelly Cutrone: Work! [laughs]. London is an amazing city, I'm thrilled to be a part of this. It's authentic, communicates spirit, edge... creativity. Each city sells something different. New York is very commercial, London has the edge, Paris sells mystery and Italy sells sex. I think that London definitely suits People's Revolution, and reflects the brands that we represent. I think that's important.
TFP: How is the documentary for Bravo coming along?
KC: It's going well. The film crew are following us all week, it should be released sometime next year. The team and I are used to being followed because of the MTV series, in fact I didn't realise how popular it was over here. When I visited recently I was shocked at how many people recognised me and approached me. I had no idea that it was that big! And I love the fans, they're great. Whitney comes back to work for me in the next series, so watch out for that. As well as the documentary, we have a book coming out next March, it's called If You Have To Cry Go Outside & Other Things Your Mother Never Told You, with HarperOne - they told me that it's the 'spiritual' spin off of Harper Collins, apparently that suits me better!
TFP: Do you have any advice for people that want to get into the industry, and PR in particular?
KC: Get rid of anyone that says you can't do it! I think that everyone in the industry has had to do that, we've all had knockbacks. The majority of the most successful people in the fashion industry aren't from wealthy families, or born into the industry. They're kids who had a dream and made it happen. You need to know what you want your career to look like, and intern, intern, intern! Pick brands that suit you, and be honest. Don't write 'Dear Sir, I have a passion for fashion', on your cover note. You need to be genuine from the start, show that you have chosen the brand for a reason.... offer to work for free for as much as possible, get all the experience you can. And don't expect to get a job immediately after graduation: the best time to get a job is usually Jan/Feb, or Aug/Sept. I also hate when cover notes say that they know they love the fashion industry. You can't just go from shopping in Century 21 and come thinking that you know the fashion industry - the point is that you're there to learn about it.
