About KamaliKulture:
Norma Kamali has always been known as a designer who follows her own path. She has since designed collections for her own brand as well as collaborated on lines such as Walmart, Everlast and Spiegel. Norma Kamali is known for inventing styles that have influenced a number of trends through the years, from the iconic “Sleeping Bag Coat,” the high-heeled sneaker, clothing made from actual parachutes, and influential swimwear. She also introduced the idea of wearing sweats from the streets to eveningwear and more.
A native New Yorker, Norma Kamali is a graduate of Washington Irving High School and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 1964. Four years later (1968), she opened her first boutique in New York, featuring her first designs made with elaborate appliqués, lizard and leather patches, snakeskin and tee shirts with rhinestone studs.
In 1969 she introduced “Hot Pants” to the American market. Editorial coverage of her designs and shop were featured in Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. In 1974, the Kamali shop moved to Madison Avenue and Kamali introduced the Parachute Clothing. The following year (1970), she designed the “Sleeping Bag Coat.”
In 1976 Kamali opened a shop in Los Angeles and created her I Love New York promotion for Madison Avenue retailers. The following year (1977), she introduced her first wholesale swimwear collection and a Cosmopolitan cover featuring one of her bikini designs, which created an international demand.
In July 1978, Kamali opened her own business and retail store OMO (On My Own) Norma Kamali. In the same year she designed the costumes for the Emerald City scenes of Sidney Lumet's film The Wiz. That same year, Diana Vreeland included Kamali’s parachute designs in her Vanity Fair exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where they are now in the museum's permanent collection.
In 1983, Kamali opened her new OMO Norma Kamali flagship store on 56th Street in New York and began working on fashion videos. Her Fall Fantasy (1984) video pioneered an important trend in fashion merchandising. The following year (1985), she directed Fashion Aid, a video for the New York Honorary Committee designers in a benefit for the Live Aid Foundation fundraiser by the fashion industry. For her work in fashion videos, she was a recipient of three “Best Category Awards” at the First Annual Video Awards; and a Special Community Service Award for Fashion and Video (1986); and introduced her video catalogue the same year.
Norma regularly contributes to the Huffington Post, More.com (which focuses on women over 40) as well as Elle.com. She feels this will allow her to share the information she is finding to the everyday challenges the toxic planet present us with. By reaching people through her influence as a Fashion Designer, and presenting her wellness ideas through vanity, it has enabled her to reach a broader influence of people that wouldn’t normally classify themselves as “wellness people.”
On the technology side, Norma’s innovativeness is not just through design, but through the way she sells and markets her clothing. She launched her company website in 1996 and was one of the first fashion designers to do so. Her “Try Before You Buy Service” allows clients to decide in the privacy of their own home and only pay for what they keep. Her staff offers support for clients through vehicles like Skype.
Besides fashion, Norma is very passionate about two other topics: Wellness and Technology. Shortly after 9/11, she opened a Wellness Café at her flagship store. It started with her search for the best olive oils in the world, to products made from the olive tree not just as a component but for the core content. She soon discovered more and more people interested in solutions to what we are finding more and more to be harmful to our health. She believes firmly that exercise, dancing and overall fitness is what truly empowers women.
