The designer also talks Barbra Streisand, “Mahogany” and his new store on Rodeo Drive
Kerry Washington, Olivia Wilde, Gabrielle Union, Mindy Kaling, Kaitlyn Dever, Alexandra Schipp, Marisa Tomei and Zoey Deutch gathered at Canter’s Deli in Los Angeles on Tuesday night to help Michael Kors celebrate his new store on Rodeo Drive.
Guests were greeted at the door by tuxedoed waitstaff offering glasses of champagne. Hors d’oeuvres featured caviar while dinner began with a butter lettuce salad followed by a choice of Alaskan halibut, pan-roasted Jidori chicken or Westholme Australian wagyu. Dessert, including cheesecake and black-and-white cookies, was offered buffet-style in the Kibitz Room.
While the menu was designed by Wolfgang Puck’s Spago, the well-heeled attendees insisted on having some of Canter’s specialties. Union asked for pickles as did architectural designer Dax Miller, who also ordered a pastrami sandwich (with mustard, of course) for restaurateur and former “Ladies of London” reality TV star Marissa Hermer. Before anyone could utter an “oy,” Kathy Hilton took big bite out of a Hermer’s sandwich.
“It’s delicious,” Hilton said.
Dr. Brown’s black cherry soda was served in wine glasses as another guest asked for a plate of fries. “Those fries are so good with thousand island dressing,” one woman cooed. A few bowls of matzoh ball soup were delivered to tables as well.
All in all, it was a perfect mix of glitz, glamour and nosh.
“The coolest thing from a fashion perspective in L.A. is that this is the epicenter of high-low,” Kors told me as guests filed into the eatery. “This is the city where sneakers go with the dress, where people war a gown and eat a hot dog. It’s very much how I design. And I’ve always thought that was so quintessentially American. Everyone thinks New York when they think about fashion, but the world basically dresses like L.A.”
Here, some excerpts from our conversation.
Do you remember the first time you came to Canter’s?
My mom moved to Los Angeles when I was 18 and my grandparents when I was 14. I was probably at Studio One or something else in West Hollywood. When I went out in L.A., I never understood how everything closes at 2 a.m. I was always like, “Now, what do we do?” I’d end up at The Kibitz Room. And, of course, I have so many memories of Spago in both of its incarnations. I thought, you know what? Let’s do a one-night-only Spago at Canter’s.
What did your team think of the idea?
Everyone and everyone who works for me thought I was. I had to remind them that when we opened our first retail store was on Madison Avenue in New York. We were opening across from the Carlyle and everyone said, “Oh, we’re going to the party at the Carlyle.” I said, “No, I want to do it at E.A.T.” It’s where Martha Stewart could enjoy a hot dog.
Your first Rodeo store closed during COVID. Did you always know you’d come back?
Definitely. There aren’t many places like Beverly Hills that are a small-town attitude in the midst of a gigantic city. It’s a resort that’s not a resort and a street that represents glamour for the whole world. I was 14 the first time I saw Rodeo Drive and I was fascinated.
How is the new store different from the last?
In Los Angeles, there are two extreme different scenarios for people shopping. There are the people who come to L.A. as tourists who love to shop the streets. But then there are our steady Angelenos, who basically shop at home. We really wanted the store to feel like a jewel box showroom that the local customer can walk into the store very quickly and go, ‘That, that, that and that.’ The days of Fred Heyman and women and men staying in a store for three hours are gone. We wanted it to be able to be shopped easily, quickly, and really focused on the creme de le creme pieces.
Who was the first celebrity you dressed?
The very first celebrity I dressed in Los Angeles under my own label was at a store called Lina Lee on Rodeo Drive. It was the early ‘80s. I called and asked how it was going. They said, “One of our best customers came in. She bought one of everything and she looked spectacular. You would love how she looked.” They said, “It was Peggy Lipton.” I was like, “Peggy Lipton from ‘Mod Squad,’ my favorite person in the world?” Then shortly thereafter, I was messing around and we made a few men’s pieces. Tommy Perse at Maxfield bought them but said he wasn’t intending on selling them for men, that women would buy it. Barbra Streisand bought all of it.
What’s your favorite fashion movie?
I have two. The first is “Mahogany.” Besides the glamour and how amazing [Diana Ross] looks, it was the fantasy when I was young of what the life of a designer would be like. But the reality is there a lot of things in it that are pretty spot on. When she finishes the fashion show and she feels just exhausted and depleted – I know that feeling. The second would be “The Eyes of Laura Mars.” We shoot a lot with [photographer duo] Inez and Vinoodh and I always tell them, “You are Laura Mars.” Again, you have the glamour in the movie, but there’s a lot of reality in there. Of course, it’s got its campy moments but I love the clothes.
Which celeb do you still want to see in Michael Kors?
Miley Cyrus has never worn Michael Kors! I just I love her. I love her talent. I love her energy. Miley, Come on down!
