The Coach Revolution

We can almost count on our hands the number of designers who enter a house and manage to completely turn it upside down…for the better. Stuart Vevers, executive creative director of Coach, has mastered that particular transformation. His whimsical approach to design (complete with Rexy, the dino!) has ensured that this American powerhouse is back where it rightfully belongs—on top.

BY EDDIE ROCHE PHOTOGRAPHY BY WILLIAM JESS LAIRD

You’ve been at Coach for a few seasons now. Is the brand where you want it to be? I’m really proud of what we’ve achieved, but there’s never an end to my ambitions. First and foremost, Coach is a fashion house, and that’s one of the things I’m most proud of. We will always be most known for our leather goods—I see Coach as America’s original house of leather—but a shearling coat is now as much a part of Coach as a saddlebag. What’s in Coach stores for Spring this season? Shine, sparkle, and grit! It’s the Coach girls’ downtown take on dressing up. It was all about New York City attitude. Keith Haring’s graphics were key to the collection. I’ve always loved his work and being able to reference his work from an authentic New York house like Coach was really exciting. Does that collection feel like a million years away now? [Laughs] Kind of! It does, but I’m very proud of it. I love the immediacy when I see it in the store. What else is new at the brand these days? We have an exciting collection coming up in September. I’ve been working with Selena [Gomez] on a capsule collection of leather goods, but also readyto-wear. That’s going to be really fun! Are you surprised that Rexy [the dinosaur] has become such a thing? That wasn’t our plan—there was no strategy there. I’m drawn to working with people who like to laugh and have fun, and Rexy definitely came about in one of those moments in the creative process! Now she’s become a Coach mascot and has her own celebrity following—Selena Gomez, Julia Roberts, Kate Moss, Zayn Malik, Michael B. Jordan. Your shows are very impactful. Why is a major production so important? The first collection came together quickly, and I feel fortunate that the stars were aligned. It generated a really positive reaction, and that gave me the confidence to push my vision for Coach forward. Showing during New York Fashion Week was really my chance to say, “You know, look things are changing, things are happening. This is a new day for Coach.” And that’s why it’s been really important to show it. Why was Selena Gomez the right fit for your campaign? The words I use to describe Selena are the same words that I use when I talk about Coach—honest, authentic—and she has a certain effortlessness. Selena makes a real point of being close to her fans. There’s a reason why she has such a strong following in the world of social media. She’s also really lovely, fun, charming, beautiful. One of the things that Selena has done with us is be a supporter of a group called Step Up, which is all about empowerment of young women through mentorship and education. Tell us more about working with her. It was super fun. Selena is obviously very creative, and we sat down [to conceptualize it] as two creatives. I brought the knowledge of leather goods; I worked with her to really figure out what she would want to use. It was very personal. Then we talked a lot about how we would make this really unique to her. It has a lot of personal touches—an empowering phrase that she wrote that’s inside the bag, for example. We played, pulled out swatches, and had a real laugh. She really wanted to understand how the process worked and wanted to see all the stages, and that made the experience authentic. Do you have a favorite Selena Gomez jam? It’s a tie between “Fetish” and “Bad Liar.” Why did you pick Steven Meisel to shoot the campaign? He was my first and only choice. I don’t have to explain the level and quality of his work. I wanted to convey that Coach was about celebrating a downto-earth and honest approach to luxury. I’m not interested in some fashion fantasy lifestyle! I felt like Steven was the only choice for making that “everyday feel” seem super special, and giving it that kind of finesse that his work has. Your casting is excellent. Who are your muses? I’ve worked a lot with Lexi [Boling]. She was in that first presentation for Coach, and we’ve done loads of things together. I love Chloë Grace Moretz, Zoë Kravitz.… I’m definitely drawn to people who have something to say and a point of view. Of course, Adwoa [Aboah]—I’ve known her for well over a decade. Was she modeling at the time? No. She was a little girl—she could have been 8 or 9. She and her sister, Kesewa, were in a Coach show together, and I thought that was really charming. I loved seeing them together backstage. Fashion has shifted to Los Angeles in recent years. Why do you think the town has become more relevant? For me it’s a reference. Whether it’s for inspiration or the youth or surf culture. It’s the home of some very unique style tribes.

You’re based in New York, but what are your favorite things to do when you visit Los Angeles? I like to do very L.A. things when I’m there, like go to dinner in Malibu or Santa Monica. I like to do all the things you wouldn’t be able to do in a lot of other cities. I usually stay at the Chateau Marmont, and I really like that kind of dark vibe and those rich fabrics. It’s such a cool place to hang out. The movie Somewhere [shot at the hotel] is one of my favorite movies of all time. I bought a poster signed by [director] Sofia Coppola. I really enjoy shopping at Opening Ceremony here. There’s always something really new and special there. Last but not least, I always try to make it to Disneyland. It’s the original, so there’s something super nostalgic and charming about going there. Who’s your favorite Disney character? Wow. That’s difficult. It would probably have to be Mickey Mouse. He’s an icon. The David Hockney LACMA opening is this month. We understand you are a huge fan of his work. Maybe it’s because we are both from the same part of the world. I was born in Yorkshire [England] like him. The thing that I always take away from Hockney’s work is it’s so transportive. When you are standing and looking at a piece, you feel transported. Whether it’s his paintings about Mount Fuji or his famous ones from the ’60s, there’s something transportive about it. Do you have a favorite piece? I love the L.A. pool series. The most famous one being “A Bigger Splash.” There’s a nostalgia to them that I really love. Do you remember your first visit to the West Coast? I think I was 21 or 22 years old and I was living in New York. I met two friends and we did a long weekend, and we did that classic L.A. to San Francisco on the Pacific Coastal route. We did one night in L.A. and one night in San Francisco. It was so much fun. What struck me about the trip was the landscape. That Californian landscape is so epic. In L.A., we stayed in a motel somewhere. It was really rough and ready, but when you’re that age, that’s fine. ß

A MAN AND HIS MUSE Vevers (right) with model Adwoa Aboah.

—VICTOR LUIS, CEO, TAPESTRY

—GLENDA BAILEY, EIC, HARPER’S BAZAAR

—SELENA GOMEZ

—KATE YOUNG, STYLIST