{{Short description|American fashion designer and businesswoman}} {{For|other people named Nicole Miller|Nicole Miller (disambiguation)|Nicole Millar}} {{Use mdy dates|date=December 2021}} {{Infobox fashion designer | image = Nicole Miller (cropped).jpg| | caption = Miller in 2003 | name = Nicole Miller | birth_date = | birth_place = Fort Worth, Texas | death_date = | death_place = | education = Rhode Island School of Design, Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne | label_name = | awards = | website = }}
'''Nicole Miller''' is an American fashion designer and businesswoman.
Miller attended the Rhode Island School of Design where she earned a BFA in Apparel Design.<ref>{{cite web |title=Apparel design {{!}} Alumni {{!}} Nicole Miller BFA 73 — industry leader |url=https://www.risd.edu/academics/apparel-design |website=RISD.edu |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20251123160112/https://www.risd.edu/academics/apparel-design |archive-date=November 23, 2025 |access-date=January 3, 2026}}</ref> She studied for a year at L'Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne<ref name=autogenerated1>Ball, Aimee Lee, [https://books.google.com/books?id=ExcAAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22Thoroughly+Modern+Miller%22&pg=PA38 "Thoroughly Modern Miller"], New York, March 8, 1993, pgs. 41–42.</ref> where she was trained to drape fabric and study the classical techniques of couture.<ref name=autogenerated3>Swimmer, Susan, "Nicole Miller", More, May 2009.</ref> Miller described her Parisian training as "intense", but explained that it gave her training in fabric manipulation, which became a signature of her designs.<ref name=autogenerated3 />
Miller's first shop opened in 1986 on Madison Avenue.<ref name=autogenerated1 /> The brand has grown to 20 boutiques in major cities across the United States.<ref name=autogenerated4>Chaplin, Julia [http://www.elle.com/Life-Love/Entertaining-Design/Our-Lady-of-Fiestas "Our Lady of Fiestas"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110212174235/http://www.elle.com/Life-Love/Entertaining-Design/Our-Lady-of-Fiestas |date=February 12, 2011 }}, Elle, November 2010. Retrieved February 23, 2011.</ref> and is sold in a number of high-end department stores. Miller designs an extensive collection for J.C. Penney and a home furnishing collection for Bed Bath & Beyond.<ref name=autogenerated3 />
Of her style, the designer has said: "I've always been downtown and uptown. I've had a lot of artist friends and I was always a little bit of a renegade."<ref name=autogenerated2>Johnson, Hilary, "A Fashionable Address", InStyle, June 2000, p. 532.</ref> Her modern design aesthetic is known for its bright prints and patterns.<ref name=autogenerated5>[http://nymag.com/fashion/fashionshows/designers/bios/nicolemiller/ "Designers: Nicole Miller"], New York. Retrieved February 23, 2011.</ref>
== Early life == Miller was born in Fort Worth, Texas.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sewing |first1=Joy |title=Designer Nicole Miller is proud of her Texas roots |url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/life/style/fashion/article/Designer-Nicole-Miller-is-proud-of-her-Texas-roots-4721364.php |access-date=18 February 2022 |work=Houston Chronicle |date=9 August 2013}}{{subscription required}}</ref> Miller's father and her Parisian-born mother met in World War II.<ref name=autogenerated1 /> Her father was an engineer at General Electric. Her father was great influence on young Miller; she attributes her ability to make clothing to her father's engineer-like mind. Miller said: "The way you figure out how to make something is engineering."<ref name=autogenerated1 />
Her mother, on the other hand, "hated" living in America and insisted on dressing her daughters in a French-influenced style.<ref name=autogenerated1 /> When Miller was asked by the Mattel toy company to design a Barbie doll, she claimed to have never owned a Barbie herself because her mother insisted that she and her sister play with French dolls.<ref>Lolla, Donna and Salkenstein, Jacklyn, "Barbie the Fashion Experience, Children's Museum of Indianapolis", December 19, 2009, p. 2.</ref> Since December 2009, Miller's Barbie has been featured in an ongoing exhibit, Barbie: The Fashion Experience, at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis.<ref>[http://www.childrensmuseum.org/barbie/ "Barbie: The Fashion Experience"] The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, Retrieved, February 27, 2011.</ref>
== Early career == After completing studies at the L'Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne<ref name=autogenerated3 /> and graduating from the Rhode Island School of Design,<ref name=autogenerated2 /> Miller interned with dress designer Clovis Ruffin in New York City.<ref name=autogenerated3 /> Miller began working as head designer at P.J. Walsh, a dress manufacturer. There, she was hired by the president of the company, Bud Konheim.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bocabeacon.com/news/featured-news/4461-profile-bud-konheim|title=BocaBeacon.com – Your weekly newspaper of Boca Grande, Gasparilla Island, FL – Profile: Bud Konheim|author=Marcy Shortuse|work=bocabeacon.com|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510094712/http://bocabeacon.com/news/featured-news/4461-profile-bud-konheim|archivedate=May 10, 2012}}</ref> Konheim said one of the reasons he hired Miller was for her belief that design and business can be successful in combination.<ref name=autogenerated1 /> In 1982, Konheim started the company Nicole Miller with Nicole.<ref>McConnico, Patricia Busa [http://www.texasmonthly.com/2000-08-01/howimadeit.php "Nicole Miller"], Texas Monthly, August 2000.</ref>
== Creative aesthetic == Her signature style has historically been black or boldly colored—with the cut of the clothes most important. Her main concern has always been proportions, curves and necklines.<ref name=autogenerated1 /> Her designs are known to be sexy, yet classic.<ref name=autogenerated3 /> She is a self-identified fabric junkie credited with popularizing many futuristic fabrics. Her styles range from body-conscious cocktail dresses, to wedding attire, to lounge wear, but she is best known for her form-flattering dresses and men's neckties.<ref name=autogenerated4 />
Miller draws inspiration from a wide range of influences including mid-20th century cinema, contemporary art, mid-20th century architecture, and exotic cultures.<ref name=autogenerated5 /><ref>[http://atelier.nicolemiller.com/about-nicole/ "About Nicole"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110315055349/http://atelier.nicolemiller.com/about-nicole |date=March 15, 2011 }}, NicoleMiller.com. Retrieved February 23, 2011.</ref>
== Company == In 1986, Miller opened her first shop on Madison Avenue.<ref name=autogenerated1 /> Miller's fashion line launched in the mid-1980s with a conversational print men's tie collection that became a hit in the fashion world for a number of years.<ref name=autogenerated1 /> Miller made headlines in September 1998 by presenting her spring 1999 clothing line one week ahead of her French counterparts, becoming the first American to do so.<ref>Healy, Orla (September 15, 1998). [http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/1998/09/15/1998-09-15_rebel_designers_fashionably_.html "Rebel Designers Fashionably Early For First Time, N.Y. Hot Shots Show Before Europeans"]. Daily News. Retrieved November 18, 2010.</ref>
In 2002, Miller designed costumes for the Houston-based Stages Repertory Theatre production of García Lorca's "Blood Wedding",<ref>Rozhon, Tracie [https://www.nytimes.com/2002/09/22/business/private-sector-her-fade-to-black-at-fashion-week.html "Private Sector; Her Fade to Black at Fashion Week"] The New York Times, September 22, 2002. Retrieved February 23, 2011.</ref>
In a departure from designing adult fashions, Miller designed a Sesame Street line of clothing for babies and toddlers in 2004.<ref>"Designer creates 'Sesame Street' line". The Hour (AP): p. A2. May 23, 2004. Retrieved November 18, 2010.</ref> She also created a line of makeup products for Melaleuca.<ref>Berman, Phyllis (November 10, 2004). [https://web.archive.org/web/20041011174747/http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2004/1011/089_print.html "If You Believe"]. Forbes Retrieved January 17, 2011.</ref><ref>Amin Khairuddin (April 10, 2010). [http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?sec=central&file=/2010/4/10/central/5993437 "Wellness store opens first outlet in Bangsar"], Malaysia Star. Retrieved January 17, 2011.</ref>
Since 2005, Miller has designed a line of affordable clothes, handbags, footwear, fashion jewelry and other accessories for J.C. Penney. J.C. Penney credits this collaboration as result of extensive customer input.<ref>"J.C. Penney: Retail Merchandiser", July 7, 2005, p. 40.</ref> Miller also designs a home furnishings collection that is distributed through Bed Bath and Beyond.<ref name=autogenerated3 />
Celebrities of varying ages including Anjelica Huston,<ref name=autogenerated4 /> Beyoncé Knowles,<ref name=autogenerated4 /> Angelina Jolie,<ref name=autogenerated5 /> Brooke Shields,<ref name=autogenerated3 /> LeAnn Rimes,<ref name=autogenerated3 /> Lauren Hutton,<ref name=autogenerated1 /> Jennifer Stone, Susan Sarandon<ref name=autogenerated1 /> and Eva Longoria<ref name=autogenerated1 /> have worn, and continue to wear, her designs. Miller designed clothes for singer Cyndi Lauper's world tour.<ref name=redcarpet>Lee, Michelle, "Red Carpet", In Touch, December 14, 2009, p. 74.</ref> She created gowns for Sheryl Crow to wear at the Grammys.<ref name=redcarpet />
Miller and her partner, Kohnheim, have been in business together for over 28 years; the label has brought in $650 million in annual sales.<ref name=autogenerated4 />
Currently, Miller's women's collection apparel is sold in more than 1,200 independent specialty stores and namesake boutiques in cities such as New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, Atlanta, Philadelphia and in the affluent resort town of La Jolla. Her fashion line is also sold in department stores such as, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale's and Nordstrom.<ref>[http://www.nicolemiller.com/store/boutiques.aspx "Store locator"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110310052228/http://www.nicolemiller.com/store/boutiques.aspx |date=March 10, 2011 }}, NicoleMiller.com. Retrieved February 23, 2011.</ref>
In 2012, Miller joined the Fashion Advisory Board of Balluun.com, a fashion technology start-up focused on connecting fashion designers and retailers to conduct wholesale trade.<ref>Balluun.com (August 8, 2012). [https://archive.today/20121217115004/https://www.balluun.com/blog/2012/08/fashion-business-ordering/ "Balluun Introduces New Social Business Platform to Empower Fashion Designers to Create Impact for Their Brands and Businesses – Nicole Miller Joins National Advisory Board"]. Retrieved September 28, 2012.</ref>
== Personal life == Miller and her husband, financier Kim Taipale, were married in 1996 by then-New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.<ref name=autogenerated2 /> They have one son and divide their time between New York City's Tribeca neighborhood and a weekend home in Sag Harbor, New York.<ref>Sugi, Rima, ''American Fashion Designers at Home'', Assouline Publishing Inc., 2010.</ref>
Miller is a member of the Council of Fashion Designers of America and serves on its board of directors. Nicole is an avid collector of contemporary art and French modern furniture. Her art collection includes work by Damien Loeb, John Stango,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://phillystylemag.com/celebrities/articles/thoroughly-modern-nicole-miller?page=2|title=Thoroughly Modern Nicole Miller|work=phillystylemag.com}}</ref> Ellen Gallagher, Andy Warhol and Le Corbusier.<ref name=autogenerated2 />
== Television appearances == * ''Iron Chef'' (2009) as a guest judge. * ''The Chopping Block'' (2009) as herself (Episode 3). * ''Holland's Next Top Model'' (2006) as a guest judge (Season 1, Episode 7). * ''America's Next Top Model'' (2004) as a guest judge (Season 3, Episode 7). * ''The Apprentice'' (2004) as herself. * ''Miss Universe Pageant'' (2002) as a guest judge. * ''The Price Is Right'' (2011) as a guest presenter. * ''Rocco's Dinner Party'' (2011) as a guest. * ''Love Broker'' (2012) as herself. * ''Miss USA 2023'' (2023) as Telecast judge.
== Filmography == * "Picture Me" (2009). Directors: Sara Ziff and Ole Schell. A documentary about the inside world of modeling. Miller appears as herself.
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == {{Commons category|Nicole Miller}} * [http://www.nicolemiller.com/ Official website] * {{IMDb name|1177949|Nicole Miller}} * {{fashiondesigner|id=nicole-miller}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Miller, Nicole}} Category:Living people Category:American fashion designers Category:American businesspeople in fashion Category:Businesspeople from Fort Worth, Texas Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:École de la chambre syndicale de la couture parisienne alumni