DennisDivas

WWDMilestones

DENNIS BASSO HAS BEEN MELDING THE WORLDS OF FASHION AND SHOWBIZ FOR 30 YEARS.

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And His

Hillary Rodham Clinton Joan CollinsJoan

Rivers Liza Minnelli

Diana Ross Ivana Trump Patti LaBelle

Paris Hilton Mary J. Blige

Zsa Zsa Gabor

Natalie Cole

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2 WWD TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2013

WWD MILESTONES

Glamour GuyEqual parts business, pleasure, social and celebrity — that’s 30 years at Dennis Basso.

1983 First fashion show, held at the Regency Hotel. The next morning, Ivana Trump came to the showroom and ordered seven coats.

1984 First “celebrity coat” designed for Zsa Zsa Gabor.

1986 First personal appearance at Martha on Park Avenue.

1989 Elizabeth Taylor becomes a client.

1991 A Basso creation appears on the cover of WWD for the first time.

1992 Signs first licensing agreement with TCJC for QVC.

1993 First QVC show. In one hour, $350,000 worth of merchandise sells, breaking QVC’s fashion record.

1995 Designs several fur wraps for Hillary Rodham Clinton to wear during an official tour of Asia.■ Hosts a private dinner for Hillary Rodham Clinton at which Johnny Cash sings.

1996 Ivana Trump is finale for fashion show at the Pierre.

1997 Joan Rivers is finale for fashion show at the Metropolitan Club.

1998 Eartha Kitt is finale for fashion show.

1999 Presents a fashion show at the Crillon Hotel in Paris, hosted by Princess Ira von Furstenberg.■ Patti LaBelle is finale for fashion show in New York.

2000 Natalie Cole is finale for fashion show. A dinner honoring the star, at which she sings, is held at the Rainbow Room.■ Hosts lunch for Hillary Rodham Clinton during her Senate race.

2001 Joan Collins is finale for fashion show. Dinner follows at Le Cirque.

2002 Liza Minnelli is finale for fashion show.■ Designs white mink coat for Liza Minnelli to wear at her wedding.

■ Inducted into the Council of Fashion Designers of America.

■ Boutique opens at The Little Nell Resort in Aspen, Colo.

2003 Basso’s 20th anniversary show held at Cipriani 42nd Street. Diana Ross is finale, and dinner for 700 follows.■ Flagship opens on Madison Avenue. Opening night party is hosted by Rena Sindi, Marjorie Gubelmann and Jeff Klein.

2004 Designs white mink coat for Star Jones’ wedding.

2005 Chicago store opens.▼ Maggie Rizer is featured in an ad campaign costarring an elephant.

2006 Basso holds his first show at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week tents in Bryant Park and launches ready-to-wear.▼

Designs fur coats for “The Devil Wears Prada,” worn by Meryl Streep throughout the film.

2007 Moves operations to a 30,000-square-foot facility in Long Island City. The space includes manufacturing, offices and the design studio.

2008 Tiger J becomes the exclusive manufacturer of all QVC merchandise.

2009 Basso receives the Ambassador of the Year Award at QVC.■ Shows collection at Badrutt’s Palace Hotel in Saint Mortiz.▼ Boutique opens at Harrods in London, feted by a dinner for 250 hosted by Rena Sindi, Serena Boardman and Tamara Beckwith.

2010 Boutiques open in Vail, Colo., and at Tsum in Moscow.

2011 Launches exclusive line of bridal dresses at Kleinfeld in New York.

■ Marries partner of 20 years, Michael Cominotto.

2012 The Dennis Basso fragrance launches exclusively on QVC, licensed to Cloudbreak Group.■ Coco Rocha is tapped as the face for Basso’s fall ads.■ A shoe collaboration launches with Pour la Victoire for spring 2013.

2013 The company marks its 30th anniversary in business.

SOURCES: DENNIS BASSO CORP.; WWD ARCHIVES

An early design by Dennis Basso, age seven, 1961. Note price: $500,000.

With Martha Phillips, the legendary proprietor of Martha on Park Avenue, 1990.

Meryl Streep wears a Basso fur in “The Devil Wears Prada,” 2006.

Maggie Rizer in a 2005 ad.

A Basso shop opens in Harrods, 2009.

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Michael Cominotto and Joan Collins, 2001.

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Dennis Basso: Enjoying the Show The jovial designer opens up about his business, his life and hints at things to come. By Rosemary Feitelberg

BARITONE, GREGARIOUS, directorial — Dennis Basso is more often than not heard before seen. But once he does appear, he can pretty much command the room merely by walking into it. Warm and effervescent, tag-ging on a hug to the requisite air kiss, greeting visitors with a hey-how-are-you-honey like he is genuinely glad to see them.

Not-so-New-York as that might be, some-how the designer has made buying his clothes a bit like Old Home Week. On an un-seasonably warm January day, a few shop-pers greeted the handsome doorman at Basso’s Madison Avenue boutique with “I’m here to see Dennis.”

That kind of familiarity was just what Basso was after when he opened his first free-standing store, which he hoped would make customers feel as though they were walking into his home. Granted, the average urbanite’s pad is free from racks of sheared mink jackets and sable coats, but you get the point.

And apparently, so do his customers.During that recent visit, two friends

tried on several coats before deciding which ones to buy.

“It’s been an expensive morning,” one said with a laugh to the other as she said good-bye. Browsing through a rack of furs, the woman who remained said, “What’s more fun than spending money shopping?” to no one in particular.

Seated at his desk in a signature navy Ermenegildo Zegna blazer, Basso, 58, looks ever the Upper East Sider, but what might not be readily apparent is a sentimental side. He al-ways carries his father’s pen knife and the keys to the house he grew up in, in Lake Hopatcong, N.J., on his mother’s Gucci key ring.

His first job in the industry taught him how to do a little bit of everything, from designing to shipping and sales.

Along with the numerous press clippings about his 30-year career, there is a framed thank-you note from Meryl Streep; the first fashion sketch he drew at the age of seven (with $500,000 scrawled across); a photo of his parents, Theresa and Richard; another of his husband, Michael Cominotto, and their minia-ture schnauzer, Basso.

It’s all work and play. Whether hosting trunk shows, going from one meeting to the next, making appearances at QVC — the de-signer said he has no trouble working hard to get things done.

“It’s all part of who I am,” he said. “I could never imagine doing what I’m doing and not lov-ing it. That would not be possible. People who are successful at what they do love what they do.”

WWD: Besides the four Dennis Basso boutiques and concept shop at Harrods in London and an-other at Tsum in Moscow, your collection is sold at Bloomingdales’s, Saks Fifth Avenue and luxury bou-tiques. Will you open more stores?Dennis Basso: Our 2,000-square-foot boutique in Harrods has been extremely successful, both in the evening collection and the furs. New York is our top-selling location but Harrods is a very successful shop-in-shop.

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People who are successful at what they

do love what they do.

Dennis Basso in his Madison Avenue store.

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30 YEARS IN FASHION20 YEARS ON QVC AND THE #1 WEDDING GOWN AT KLEINFELDWE CONGRATULATE YOU ON YOUR

EXTRAORDINARY STYLE

DENNIS BASSO

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We are thinking of possibly opening stores in Milan, Paris and the Middle East through several partners.

WWD: How do you deal with the fur protestors?D.B.: You know, it’s America — every-one has his own opinion. That’s why we live here.

WWD: Would you ever sell the business?D.B.: It’s not something I would en-tertain immediately, but if somebody came to me with a great plan, I would entertain that thought. I believe the Dennis Basso label has a lot of unchart-ed water still to go into. I understand the luxury end in eveningwear and furs, and we have unbelievable mass-market appeal at QVC. But there is a whole middle-of-the-road area that has been untapped.

We’re actually working on finding the right partners to create that middle piece of contemporary sportswear.

WWD: How did you envision your career?D.B.: I thought that I would one day be a designer and wanted that very badly. But what I wanted when I would read about the then-famous designers was the combination of the designer and the lives they were leading — Bill Blass, Carolina Herrera, Oscar de la Renta and Yves Saint Laurent.

In the Eighties, Ivana Trump invited me to fly on their private jet, a 727, to go to [Mar-A-Lago in Palm Beach]. That’s when it was their private residence. She gave a dinner for 50. I was like, “You can’t make this up. This is great.”

WWD: How would you describe yourself to someone who doesn’t know you?D.B.: I’m fun — I like to have fun. I’m a very loving open-hearted person. I’m actually very inclusive. I love all

kinds and all types of people. That is something that has been beneficial to me from a business standpoint but also from a personal one. That makes me open to all sorts of opportunities.

WWD: So has your success been more a mat-ter of personality than craft?D.B.: You can’t be successful without a perfect product — the quality and the workmanship are paramount. But I think that the designer’s personality clearly lends something to what the de-sign is actually about and that connec-tion. It’s a very interesting mix and it all kind of melds into one.

WWD: What was it like when you first went out on your own?D.B.: My first office was at 307 Seventh Avenue. It was about 20 feet by 20 feet. I sublet it from a manufac-turer. Today, most dressing rooms are bigger than that. I showed my first collection in September of 1983, after forming my company that spring. After my first show at The Regency, the following day Ivana Trump bought seven furs from the collection and Leba Sedaka bought five. They are both close friends today.

WWD: How did you get started?D.B.: Actually, I looked in Women’s Wear Daily. There was an ad for Hi Fishman Furs that said, “Designer Sales Shipping.” And I thought, “This is great.” What I hadn’t realized was there wasn’t a comma between each position and that I would be doing all of those jobs. But they hired me and I really took to it.

I loved working in luxury and I to-tally immersed myself and I even got involved in sales and production. Even to this day I know how to pack a bag quite well.

WWD: When did you know you were onto something?D.B.: Around 1981 or ’82, a good friend wanted to buy a fox jacket wholesale for his girlfriend, so I had one made and sold it for $400, and my friend and I each left with $50. That was [some] nice little extra spending money in 1982.

Somehow this snowballed when word spread about what we were doing. Within one month, we could barely fit all the furs in a truck for these Tupperwarelike fur par-ties. We were going to Long Island, Greenwich, Short Hills, having two to three fur shows a week. This went

on for about a year until one morn-ing I came into work and Mr. Fishman called me into his office and said, “You’re fired.”

WWD: What did you do after that?D.B.: That day I was quite upset but my partner said, “Don’t worry. We have so many fur parties lined up.” As a young man living in such a big, glamorous city, it was exciting. There were limos everywhere, the “Dynasty” thing was going on and people really dressed to go out. At night we would go to the Limelight, Palladium.

WWD: From the mid-Eighties through the early Nineties, you had a celebrity finale for your runway shows. How much have celebri-ties influenced your career?D.B.: That was a very exciting moment, but it was about that moment in time. It was fun and wonderful. I loved the fact that in the opening scene of “The Devil Wears Prada,” Meryl Streep is wearing one of my coats. I’m sure that a lot of designers feel that way when they see someone wearing one of their dresses at an awards ceremony. And someone who says that is not a great feeling — I don’t believe them. It’s a big deal. And we have always had ce-

lebrity recognition as long as anyone could remember.

WWD: Do you have a few favorite celebri-ties?D.B.: I love Meryl Streep. We made a coat for Nicole Kidman in “Nine.” She’s so beautiful. That was also a big moment, to see her on the big screen wrapped in one of my coats.

I find that people are very lovely when you’re dealing with them. When I had my 20th anniversary, Diana Ross finaled my show. To have grown up with all of that music and knowing “Miss Ross” was actually in my fash-ion show and I was taking the final bow with her…to see her in my coat

walking with her on the runway. I’m not jaded at all when it comes to any of those moments.

WWD: Do you remember doing that sketch that is now on your wall?D.B.: I drew that in my bedroom at my table and chair. I still have that table and chair in our basement in Water Mill. I’m [an] only child, so my mother had every-thing well-preserved. I had a wonderful childhood so the memories of my child-hood and growing up were great. I have a lot of different mementos.

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Dennis Basso: Enjoying the Show

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It’s important that you always have an open mind, but it has to be who you are. When

grunge was big, I just couldn’t go near it.

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Joan Rivers, 1997. Patti LaBelle, 1999.A fur kaftan.

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WWD: What is most challenging about what you do?D.B.: The most challenging part is to stay current and modern, but yet be true to your own aesthetic. It’s about moving with the times and being aware of what your customer wants and what she needs, not always what some designers put out there. It’s im-portant to create a look and to make a statement, but it’s important to be true to your client and to know what they want. That is who has helped to build your business.

WWD: How do you stay current?D.B.: You have to surround yourself with a creative team that is bright and smart. You have to be willing to ex-change ideas. It’s important that you always have an open mind, but it has to be who you are.

When grunge was big, I just couldn’t go near it. No matter what the trend is, I like a finished, polished look. For me, that is the most important look. The Dennis Basso woman, no matter if she is 25, 35 or all the way to 85, is someone who wants a finished look. She likes being pulled together, even if it is in the most casual manner.

WWD: You appeal to the social set, many of whom are friends. How frequently do you go out?D.B.: Sometimes we are out several nights a week — it goes in waves. We spend a lot of time at our house in

Water Mill, so that tends to be friends coming over for a bite or going out for a casual bite. We travel a lot for busi-ness — sometimes your life becomes not your own. We don’t go out just for the sake of going out. I like to go out for a reason. Otherwise, it’s fun to stay home. Michael works on the collection for QVC in product development. We got married last year at The Pierre’s first same-sex wedding.

WWD: Why do you still work so hard?D.B.: Listen, I am a very positive in-dividual. It’s a gift. I wake up happy

every day. In business, there are peaks and valleys every day. The day there is a valley, you look around and think, “Whose idea was this any way?”

You work so hard to make the pic-ture grow, and that’s a lot of responsi-bility. The fun, the recognition and — dot, dot, dot, the aggravation — grows with the whole scenario.

In the 30 years, there were differ-ent financial challenges and you have to go back and reevaluate. I was al-

ways very fortunate to keep things level and move forward in a very posi-tive manner.

WWD: Is there anything you would have done differently?D.B.: I never felt like I was a quote-unquote struggling designer. I think it was because of the support of my parents, helping me along the way. Though there were challenges, I al-ways continued to have a very nice life but was not afraid to work to get it done. Like today.

WWD: Did you ever think that going into busi-ness might not have been the greatest idea?D.B.: I don’t think we were smart enough to be scared. I was able to live in my L-shaped studio in a door-man apartment building on East 58th between Second and Third. I was doing something that I really fell in love with.

WWD: What would people be most surprised to learn about you? D.B.: That I’m really a little bit shy and extremely, extremely sensitive.

WWD: What is the biggest misconception about you?D.B.: That I’m full-speed ahead and nothing can stop me. That may have to do with my having a big-sounding voice.

WWD: What would you most likely be doing if you weren’t working? D.B.: C’mon, I’d be on the big screen. I like to get a late start, not necessarily sleep late, then get ready and meet two or three friends for a fantastic lunch together. We go to Cipriani, Amaranth,

Michael’s, Ciro’s.WWD: What was the road not taken? D.B.: Do I wonder what it would be like to be a doctor who saves lives? I marvel at people who have that kind of intelligence but that was not my calling. It gives me great pleasure to do what I do.

WWD: What is your most prized possession and what is your greatest accomplishment?D.B.: My life at home, and being a good partner of 21 years.

WWD: You have dressed Hillary Clinton and were in the White House when a gunman opened fire on a group of men on the north lawn thinking that President Clinton was among them. Did you fear for your life and did that experience make you change the way you live your life?D.B.: I didn’t think we were in dan-ger until after it happened. Not one drop. Right after it happened we were at a dinner at the White House and President Clinton came over and said, “I hope tonight is a little less eventful for you.”

WWD: What’s next?D.B.: I want to grow this business even further. I feel as though I’ve only just begun. Actually, a day without some sort of work for me is really a day with-out fun. I wouldn’t know what I could do if I couldn’t get dressed and do some sort of work. And I think the sky’s the limit. In a perfect world, I could see myself having a morning talk show.

WWD: Not to rush things, but how would you like to be remembered?D.B.: As being kindhearted and caring.

Dennis Basso: Enjoying the Show

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In a perfect world, I could see myself having a morning

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2003Naomi Campbell in the fall 2009 campaign.

The store in Harbin, China. With Eartha Kitt, 1998.

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COUTURE

CONGRATULATIONS

INNOVATION

LUXURYUNSURPASSED

CRAFTSMANSHIP

ARTISAN

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BRAVO

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Mass AppealHe creates gowns worn by socialites and red-carpet fare, yet Dennis Basso is no elitist. By Sharon Edelson

TO SAY THAT Dennis Basso loves the limelight is an understatement.

The furrier and designer of drop-dead sexy red-carpet gowns has a flair for the dramatic, whether he’s telling a story or creating a furry confection with exotic pelts. It’s no wonder that 21 years ago he took to selling on QVC like a movie star takes to the Croisette in Cannes.

“I have a little inner desire and feel-ing for show business,” Basso said. “[QVC] has that show-biz situation. You get that adrenaline rush. You always get that little pumped-up feeling before a show.”

Basso has a lot of experience with tele-vision home shopping. “I have a 21-year following,” he said. “I’m never at a loss for words and I understand the customer.”

After more than two decades, Basso is still a bit in awe of the medium. “It’s like a live fashion show coming into your home,” the designer said. “[I love] the excitement of TV. The client total-ly relates to it. They [QVC] have been strong partners.”

And QVC shares the sentiment. “Dennis strongly resonates with custom-ers,” said Doug Howe, executive vice president of merchandising, planning and sales at QVC. “In my mind, Dennis has a gift for understanding the custom-er. He can anticipate the questions. He’s very passionate and has a great amount of pride for the product. He’s very genu-ine, sincere and transparent.”

Basso is surprisingly egalitarian for a designer who works with wealthy women and actresses including Amanda Seyfried and Sharon Stone, and uses expensive and rarefied mate-rials such as Barguzin sable, sapphire chinchilla and Russian broadtail and lynx to make coats with five- and six-figure price tags.

“The Dennis Basso luxury brand caters to a group of international women,” he said. “On QVC, we’re reaching nurses, school teachers and moms.” And Basso doesn’t discrimi-nate when it comes to size. “For QVC, I do XX-small to 3X-large, about size 24 to 26. It’s very important to me to be able to accommodate a wide range of women. Just because a woman is ex-tremely petite or full-figured doesn’t mean she shouldn’t shop with me. A

woman shops with me because she wants to feel good.”

According to Howe, Basso was the first person to break $1 million in sales with a Today’s Special Value — an item chosen by the network to be promoted on a specific day, during a certain time period. Basso’s success was a faux fur zip-front hooded coat, presented dur-ing the midnight time slot.

Since then, he’s earned a place in the QVC Hall of Fame, having broken the $1 million mark in the midnight hour 19 times. Basso’s best selling item, a revers-ible-washable faux shearling hooded coat, sold 58,000 units when it premiered as a TSV on Dec. 13, 2003. It went on to become Basso’s most popular item with more than 157,000 units ordered.

Giving every woman a taste of luxury at an affordable price is Basso’s mission.

“I grew up an only child with very loving parents,” he said. “I’m a happy person. I wake up happy.”

And a good part of that joy comes from his QVC business, which now en-compasses the home and ready-to-wear categories in addition to outerwear.

“I’ve designed 1,200 styles for QVC and sold millions of items,” Basso said proudly. “I see myself as part of the QVC family. As their business has grown, my business has grown.”

Basso continues to introduce more products and go deeper into certain areas, such as a complete rtw collection.

While Basso has a rapport with all the network’s hosts, one of his favorite on-air partners is Joan Rivers, who sells a jewelry collection. It’s hard to imag-ine two people as chatty as Basso and Rivers giving each other a second to get a pitch in, but Basso said it works.

“There’s no one-upmanship,” he explained. “We try to help sell each other’s products.”

When Basso began selling on QVC in 1993, he was a pioneer in the fashion in-dustry. Few designers would venture to QVC’s West Chester, Pa., headquarters. “When I started, people thought it was an interesting move,” he said. “What caught me was the TV part. I don’t know if I would have created a line for a store selling a lower-priced collection. As it progressed, friends were mesmerized. ‘Is the counter real?’ It is. ‘Are the num-bers real?’ Yes.”

Basso travels to West Chester two or three times a month to go on air.

“It feels like a second home,” said Basso, who always stays in the same suite at the local hotel.

Just then, an attractive young woman is ushered into Basso’s office by a sales associate, wearing a black Dennis Basso gown from the luxury collection. “She’s wearing our dress tomorrow to a Goldman Sachs dinner,” Basso said, sotto voce. “It’s $15,000.”

The irony is not lost on Basso. “Tonight, I’m headed to QVC and then tomorrow morning, I’m on air with a wonderful spring jacket that has a pais-ley lining and is machine washable. It’s great. I love it all.”

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I don’t know if I would have created a line for a store selling a lower-priced collection. As it

progressed, friends were mesmerized. ‘Is the

counter real?’ It is. ‘Are the numbers real?’ Yes.

— dennis basso

Dennis Basso with models wearing

fake fur coats from the QVC

line retailing for about $169.

Water-resistant polyester coat that reverses to textured fake fur was a Today’s Special Value item in December 2011 and has sold about 41,000 units at $153.

Washable suede coat was a Today’s Special Value item in August, selling about 35,000 units at $162.

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STILL FABULOUS AFTER ALL THESE YEARS. Congratulations to Dennis Basso on 30 years in fashion—and 20 years at QVC.

© 2013 QVC, Inc. QVC, the Q and the Q-Ribbon Logo are registered service marks of ER Marks, Inc.