Milly, Milly Fashion brand, Milly Fashion, Milly Official Website, In 2010 the brand plans to open its ecommerce shop and hopefully a retail space in the New York area while continuing to develop various additional product extensions.
Milly LLC ("Milly") was founded in 2000 by Michelle Smith and Andrew Oshrin. In deference to Michelle's childhood nickname, Milly was formed around Michelle's unique background and design skills. Michelle began her fashion education at FIT in New York City where she concentrated in fashion design. Upon graduation from FIT Michelle gained experience working in Paris for Hermes and several other prestigious design houses. There, she received her degree from the respected Parisian design school, Esmod. In all, she studied and worked in Paris for nearly three years and won competitive internships from famed design houses such as Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, and Torrente.
Upon returning to America, Michelle worked in several small companies which ultimately led her into the contemporary sportswear sector. Feeling confidence in her ability and the existence of a void in the emerging young designer market, Michelle discussed her aspirations with Andrew Oshrin, a close friend with a background in apparel operations-this ultimately led to the formation of Milly. Together, they envisioned a collection which would center on Michelle's unique experience-her New England background merged with a flair for European luxury-at a price that many more women could afford. In many ways the current collection embodies this combination- the collection is produced almost exclusively in the United States while fabrics and trimmings are sourced from some of the finest mills and vendors around the world.
Today, Milly has grown into the lifestyle brand that Michelle and Andrew originally envisioned with a presence in every major global market place. The company's corporate headquarters remain in the garment district of Manhattan close to many of the factories that produce the collection. Spring 2009 was marked by the opening of the first Milly boutique in Tokyo, Japan. A few months later at the Spring 2010 fashion show in Bryant Park, Milly debuted its jewelry collection which was well received by fashion critics from the industries most influential publications. In 2010 the brand plans to open its ecommerce shop and hopefully a retail space in the New York area while continuing to develop various additional product extensions.