SUMMER 2016 | 74 | MONTAGE

The first time I met Tory Burch was in the Los Angeles office of her New York City-based brand. At the time, I was a young editor-in-chief of a local luxury life-style magazine, and her team arranged the meeting while she was visiting the Left Coast. She was as pretty as one would imagine, all delicate features and perfectly sun-kissed blond hair. Unsurprisingly, her outfit was the ideal combination of put-together and relaxed, as was her demeanor. Her disposition, in many ways, is the embodiment of her designs: reserved yet still bold, colorful and likeable.

I was both intimidated and excited to meet her, the intimidation outweighing the excitement that morning when I realized I didn’t own anything meeting-appropriate from her line. Instead, I chose the blouse of another designer, only later realizing what I was wearing looked like a copy of one of Burch’s signature pieces. Even now looking back on it, I am mortified. But if Burch noticed any of this—my nervousness or the blouse—she didn’t let on. She couldn’t have been kinder, complimenting my outfit and showing genuine interest in my life, asking how I liked LA, my job and so on. That’s the thing about Tory Burch: After meet-ing her, you feel like you’ve just encountered a new friend—a fact that likely has contributed to her staggering success.

Celebrity stylist Karla Welch often works with Burch and her team and seconds that sentiment. “I used to read about Tory in Vogue and on all the socialite sites of the early ’80s and late ’90s,” Welch says. “I loved the New York persona of this incredibly chic woman. And then a few years ago, I was invited to have lunch with her, and she was so absolutely authentic and warm. I instantly liked her.”

Designer Tory Burch continues to evolve with a new performance activewear line that adds to

the allure of her global brand.BY SARI ANNE TUSCHMAN

THE STORY OF TORY

Renowned designer Tory Burch

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SUMMER 2016 | 75 | MONTAGE

Renowned designer Tory Burch

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SUMMER 2016 | 76 | MONTAGE

GLOBAL EVOLUTION

Today, years after my initial meeting with her, Burch is at the helm of a global company with 180 stores across North America, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and Asia. She serves as chairman, CEO and designer of the brand, which is reportedly valued at more than $3 bil-lion. Beyond the ready-to-wear collection, she has also launched Tory Burch beauty, watches, accessories, swim and home, and entered into partnerships with Luxottica for eyewear, Estée Lauder for fragrances and Fossil for timepieces.

Burch approaches these brand expansions with the same devotion to detail that first made her a household name for chic beach-to-drinks tunics and must-have logo flats. “When we enter a new category, we always want to be careful and stra-tegic in our approach,” she says. “We’re a patient brand and move forward only when the time is right—our partnership with Estée Lauder was a five-year conversation.”

Perhaps the biggest launch came last September, when Tory Sport was born. An avid athlete, Burch has long been brainstorming the concept for the performance activewear line. “I’ve always been pas-sionate about sports and grew up on a farm in the country where my family spent long hours on our tennis court,” Burch says. “Our Sport collection is something I’ve been thinking about for years—it’s a natural next step for the company.”

The new line has its own distinct look, logo, website, social media presence and now stores with the recent opening of a permanent New York outpost after an initial pop-up in the Nolita space where she first introduced her namesake brand in 2004. “We’re thrilled to have launched our first Sport store in New York City’s Flatiron District,” she says. “We [opened] a Sport store in East Hampton, [N.Y.,] this spring and [plan to open] a pop-up shop in Dallas in the fall, but we’re not in a rush. We’re interested in healthy, organic growth.”

The collection, ideal for the tomboy-slash-fashion girl, features pieces for specific sports including tennis, golf, swimming and running, as well as easy basics for the time in between Pilates class and everyday life—think printed rash guards, wide-leg track pants, performance cashmere sweaters and long-sleeved tops with sporty stripes. Tory Sport is the way someone as chic as the woman behind it does workout wear,

ATHLETIC

INCLINATION

DESIGNER TORY BURCH

RECOMMENDS THESE PIECES

FROM HER TORY SPORT

LINE, ALL AVAILABLE AT

TORYSPORT.COM.

Each cutout in the LASER-EYELET

TENNIS DRESS is created using an

exclusive laser technique, $495.

For weekend workouts, lightly

layer with the COLOR-BLOCK

TRACK JACKET and COLOR-

BLOCK TRACK PANTS, $165 and

$135, respectively.

The PERFORMANCE

MERINO SHORT-SLEEVE

SWEATER exudes vintage flair

while effortlessly balancing style

and function, $165.

WHEN WE ENTER A NEW CATEGORY, WE ALWAYS

WANT TO BE CAREFUL AND STRATEGIC IN OUR

APPROACH. ... WE’RE A PATIENT BRAND AND MOVE

FORWARD ONLY WHEN THE TIME IS RIGHT.

—TORY BURCH

Tory Burch launched a performance activewear line, Tory Sport, last year.

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SUMMER 2016 | 77 | MONTAGE

and it’s resonating. “I’m obsessed with the sports line—it’s genius,” says Welch, whose clients include Olivia Wilde, Michelle Monaghan and Karlie Kloss. “I want to start golfing just to wear the clothes. Maybe tennis, too.”

Much like Burch’s primary line, the pieces are classic enough to defy seasons but unique enough to make a statement. When interpreted through Burch’s lens, even something as classic as tennis whites feels edgy and fresh.

CREATIVE COLLABORATIONS

It turns out Burch isn’t just ambitious; she’s a rather exceptional over-achiever. “When we started 12 years ago, I had a five-year business plan to open three stores,” Burch says. “We opened 17. It’s been an incredible journey—one I never imagined.”

Always the innovator, Burch is no stranger to creative partnerships, including those with Montage Hotels & Resorts. This past February, Montage Magazine’s website featured an exclusive live stream of her New York Fashion Week fall show, and the brand’s swimwear is sold at Montage Laguna Beach and Montage Kapalua Bay.

Burch has also made it a point to give back as her business has grown, creating the Tory Burch Foundation in 2009 to empower female entrepre-neurs by giving them access to capital and business and management education, as well as mentoring

and networking. “Being a woman in business can be challenging,” Burch says. “When I was starting out, being ambitious was looked at as a negative. Hopefully, we can help change that sentiment.”

In fact, Burch says the origins of her brand were rooted in her desire to give back. “I started our company because I wanted to start a founda-tion,” she says. “Social responsibility was part of the business plan from the beginning. As our company has grown, I’ve learned about the obstacles women in business face, from balancing work and family (my greatest challenge) to secur-ing financing, business networks and training. By providing resources and tools, we can level the playing field for women entrepreneurs and help them grow their businesses, which benefits their families and their communities and, in turn, cre-ates jobs and economic growth.”

It seems that Burch has a keen understand-ing of what women need, both in their lives and their closets. “The key to her success is that she understands her customer,” Welch says. “She knows women want timeless pieces that are affordable.” For the woman behind the brand, it’s all about making a mark, not only on a ward-robe but also on individuals. “I hope we will be known for designing beautiful collections that are inspired by women from around the world,” Burch says, “and for creating a foundation that made a lasting difference.” M

Tory Sport’s new location in New York City’s Flatiron DistrictTO

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DESTINATION STYLE

TORY BURCH SHARES HER

FAVORITE PICKS FOR

SUMMER GETAWAYS.

Fabric used in the TALISAY

ONE-PIECE features SPF 50 sun

protection, $215, at The Shops at

Montage, Montage Kapalua Bay

and Montage Laguna Beach.

The design behind the SAVANNAH

TUNIC DRESS was inspired by

a vintage piece that belonged to

Burch, $450, at toryburch.com.

Slip into a PIETRA SANDAL,

straight off the spring runway,

$350, at toryburch.com.

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