Meet: Nili Lotan
Nili Lotan is an Israeli-born and New York-based fashion designer who launched her own namesake label in 2003 with a wardrobe of luxurious, chic and timeless pieces for today's woman. The collection has since expanded to include jeans, belts and handbags, as well as limited-edition collaborations. Nili Lotan has several retail stores in the United States and the collection can be found at upscale retailers throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia.
Meet: Nili Lotan
Nili Lotan is an Israeli-born and New York-based fashion designer who launched her own namesake label in 2003 with a wardrobe of luxurious, chic and timeless pieces for today's woman. The collection has since expanded to include jeans, belts and handbags, as well as limited-edition collaborations. Nili Lotan has several retail stores in the United States and the collection can be found at upscale retailers throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia.
HOMETOWN:
Netanya, Israel
HOW IT STARTED:
After graduating from the Shenkar College of Engineering and Design in Tel Aviv, I moved to NYC in 1980 to pursue a career in fashion design, where I eventually led design teams at Ralph Lauren, Liz Claiborne, and Nautica. I was in my forties and after channeling other people’s visions for so long, I felt ready to express my own creative voice and vision, so I decided to launch my own label in 2003 with a 6-piece capsule: three pairs of pants, two jackets, and a skirt. One of those pieces was the Cropped Military Pant, which remains a bestseller to this day.
HOW IT’S GOING:
Over the years my product offering has evolved organically. In many ways, that first capsule I designed was the core of a woman’s wardrobe and since then, each category I have added to the collection has built off of those essential items. The first few seasons I introduced new pants, and then outerwear, jeans, and most recently belts and handbags. When I design, I ask myself what my wardrobe needs and what my lifestyle calls for.
MY DESIGN PHILOSOPHY:
Fashion is about change and evolution based on one’s personal references and point of view. We express ourselves through the clothes we wear, reflecting our own personal style, mood, or attitude. Neither loud nor aggressive, clothes should be clean and sophisticated. A designer should offer a woman the elements for her self-expression. A woman’s beauty and self should be enhanced, not defined by the clothes she wears.
SOMETHING MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW:
I recently became a grandma
DESIGN INFLUENCES:
It’s my childhood and the fashion that I saw in the seventies. It’s the desert and the sea, it’s my mom and my dad. It’s art, architecture and my life that influence and inform my designs, not the trends of the moment.
"Growing up, my family lived near the shore overlooking the Mediterranean. From a young age, I loved sitting by the window, gazing out onto the horizon. The blue of the water and the sky are the colors I remember most. I still feel happiest when surrounded by that blue." - Nili