Michelle Obama was and is many things: the most influential First Lady in several generations, a lawyer in her own right, a wife and mother, an icon and more. But she was also the biggest American fashion icon in like three generations. The youths don’t remember, but every woman aged 18 to 88 was obsessed with Michelle’s style and her attention to detail. Michelle launched so many careers within America’s fashion industry, and to this day, people are excited to see what she’s wearing and who she’s discovered lately. Well, now there’s a book about it. Michelle and her White House stylist Meredith Koop have written The Look, what sounds like a really nice coffee-table book reminiscing about MO’s amazing FLOTUS style. That’s why MO has been out and about in the past week – she’s been making some TV appearances to promote this. From Puck News:
Michelle Obama is the most influential first lady from a fashion perspective since Jackie Kennedy—and she was far more prescriptive and strategic about the work than most, if not all, of her East Wing predecessors. She treated it like a job, offering a new generation of American fashion designers a massive platform along the way. As Anna Wintour writes in The Look: “The so-called democratization of fashion is very much on our mind these days, but Mrs. Obama was there well ahead of us.” (In retrospect, the Obama years look more and more like the peak of the Vogue World Order.)
Obama’s fashion was always most prominent when she traveled on the world stage, where she appeared invariably elegant and unflappable. Yet she now writes of feeling “a particularly white-hot glare,” constantly being judged by how she looked and what she wore—particularly as a Black woman. “Like most women I can be critical enough about myself without trying to see myself through thousands of others’ eyes,” she writes. “With the help of the skilled professionals whom I relied upon for styling, hair and makeup, I could trust that I would be comfortable and camera-ready for whatever event or appearance was happening that day. … I wanted to look good for every occasion and photograph taken, for me. This wasn’t just about outward presentation but about the inner strength that emanates from feeling strong, empowered and healthy.” She also helped the fashion industry sell a whole lot of clothes.
The most important of those skilled professionals in Obama’s orbit was Koop, who essentially functioned as an executive strategist on team #FLOTUS. A sales associate at Chicago’s tony Ikram boutique, and just 28 when Obama hired her, Koop gamely carried out the first lady’s explicit directives. Obama aimed for a classy, original, true-to-herself look—never fussy or overstyled—almost always from a broad range of multicultural American designers, a wardrobe that she paid for. Koop studied current events, and the latest politics, so that Obama’s outfits struck the proper tone. “Ultimately though, we always returned to a thoughtful strategy when it came to fashion to magnify her and her husband’s values of inclusivity, artistry and diplomacy,” Koop writes.
When Obama traveled abroad, she most often wore American designers, typically with a connection to the local culture. She played ping-pong in Beijing wearing clothes by Chinese American designer Phillip Lim. Her visits to India weren’t notable for wearing native saris, but Indian American designers: Naeem Khan, Bibhu Mohapatra, or Rachel Roy. “It’s the gift that doesn’t stop giving,” Khan told The Wall Street Journal in 2010. “My stuff is flying out of stores. … My business is taking a big turn for the better. … And for that I say, ‘Thank you, Michelle Obama.’”
David Yermack, a professor of finance at New York University’s Stern School of Business, once compiled a database measuring market prices against 245 items of apparel associated with 29 public companies worn by Obama in the 189 public appearances she made from November 2008 to December 2009. The upshot: A single availability was worth, on average, $14 million. “She moved markets, creating an unprecedented amount of value for the companies that make and sell the clothes she wears,” Yermack concluded.
Puck mentions at the end of this piece that Michelle’s style still has so much power – when she appeared the DNC last year, she wore an edgy Monse pantsuit which not only sold out, but Monse has now reissued in different variations because of the attention that one outfit got last year. Puck also compares Michelle to her predecessors, mostly Melania, who really does not have Michelle’s eye or taste. I liked the way Dr. Jill Biden dressed though – while Dr. Biden didn’t get credit for being a fashion-plate, she always looked cute and you could tell that she’s a teacher too! But yeah…. I’m buying this book for myself for Christmas. Michelle really was giving emerging designers $14 million worth of sales/advertising every time she stepped out.
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Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
