Elyce Arons, Cofounder and CEO of Frances Valentine, Reflects on Friendship With Kate Spade, Success of Frances Valentine and New Book
On the eve of the release of her new book, 'We Might Just Make It After All' (Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster) Elyce Arons held court at the Hotel Chelsea Monday night talking about her current business, Frances Valentine, and her long-standing friendship with Kate Spade, with whom she founded the multibillion-dollar fashion company, Kate Spade.
Arons and Spade became best friends in college (The University of Kansas and Arizona State University) and eventually moved to New York where they started a line of handbags — ultimately transforming the accessories industry. The Kate Spade brand was eventually sold to Neiman Marcus Group, Liz Claiborne Inc., and ultimately Tapestry Inc., where it lives today.
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Arons and Spade ended up starting another brand, Frances Valentine, in 2016 but Spade died of suicide in 2018.
Asked what prompted her to write this book about their long-standing friendship, Arons told WWD, 'It's taken me this long to actually get to a point where I could, but I feel like everyone remembers Katy for how she left us, but not how wonderful and funny and gracious she was. Most people don't because she was pretty shy…..I just feel like I want people to know the great times we had. I mean she was the funniest person you'd ever want to meet.' Arons wrote the book with her husband, Andy Arons.
Arons said that after they sold the Kate Spade brand, she and Spade went on to found Frances Valentine with a group of investors. Andy Spade, Kate's husband, is Arons' business partner. While Arons stayed pretty low profile in the ensuing years, the business has been experiencing some impressive gains. Frances Valentine, which has mostly focused on the direct-to-consumer channel, is up 40 percent this year, according to Arons. Frances Valentine's e-commerce is up 284 percent this month-to-date.
After COVID-19, Frances Valentine launched the apparel division and brought in a new vice president, who came from Zanella. Today, Frances Valentine sells such retailers as Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Nordstrom (all online), as well as Dillards, where it's available in-store, as well as francescvalentine.com and the brand's freestanding stores. She declined to disclose the company's volume figure.
At present, apparel represents 60 percent of the business, and accessories account for 40 percent. She explained that the business has been primarily e-commerce-driven since they started. They now have nine retail stores, which have been doing well. The breakdown is now 50 percent e-commerce, 30 percent retail and 20 percent wholesale. 'And wholesale and retail are growing really fast,' said Arons.
Frances Valentine's nine stores are on Madison Avenue and 73rd Street; Sag Harbor, N.Y.; Dallas; Houston; Palm Beach and Naples, Fla.; Birmingham, Ala.; Atlanta, and Alexandria, Va. Cities they're considering for expansion are Nashville; Charlotte, N.C., and Chicago, as well as various cities in California.
Describing the Frances Valentine customer, Arons said, 'I think it's a woman who really appreciates individual style. She likes to wear color, and I think that's why a lot of our business is concentrated in the South, and she likes prints. And there's a nostalgic feel to our brand because Katy [Spade] and I were such huge vintage shoppers. We just created these silhouettes that are pieces that you buy today and you want to pull out of your closet 10 years from now, and not feel like it's out of style. They're not trend driven at all. We're the opposite of fast fashion.'
Arons said she like to describe the line as 'modern vintage.'
'We put pockets in everything. We make sizes from extra small up to extra large,' she said. Arons said she's part of the three-person design team. While Arons said she doesn't sketch, she said they always 'make what we like.'
Arons said they took an eight-year break before they launched Frances Valentine. 'So when we came back, we were like, 'we know how to do this,' We'll do the whole thing again.' But she said that when they sold Kate Spade, they didn't have much of an e-commerce business, and it was just one person sitting in a corner doing e-commerce. 'So when we started Frances Valentine, we knew we had to build data. What we didn't realize was how much the wholesale business had changed and e-commerce had taken over so much, and how influencers had taken over from editors.' The business started in 2014 and was launched in 2016. William McComb, former CEO of Liz Claiborne Inc. (renamed Fifth & Pacific Cos.), is a board adviser.
The company makes their collections all over the world. The handbags are made in Italy and Asia, the knits are done in Peru, the denim is made in Turkey and the wovens in India. They also produce some things in the U.S. The sweet spot for dresses is $398.
Turning to opportunities for Frances Valentine, Arons said they just had a very successful collaboration with Caddis eyewear, which sold out in 48 hours. They're looking into licensing deals for jewelry, footwear, fragrance, eyewear and home.
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