An Interview with Randolph Duke, Fashion Designer.
You’re a fashion, shoe, accessory, and home furnishings designer for your HSN collection called “The Look,” a fashion television commentator, an author, and a former consultant, and if that wasn’t enough for one person, you’ve also worked as a costume designer for various theatrical productions, including ballet. How do you keep it all in check while remaining sane?
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It’s a mix of having the appropriate people in place and being an excellent multitasker. Before entering the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) in Los Angeles, California, you studied classical piano at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. What inspired you to seek a profession in fashion design? My destiny was not to play the piano.
I was competent, but not exceptional. When I was eight years old, I started painting and showed potential as an artist. It all started when I had a professor who mentored me and walked me through the process of creating a portfolio.
You started your career as a swimsuit designer for Anne Cole in California, then moved on to Gottex in New York. In 1987, you created your own sportswear company, replete with a store on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Were you merely giddy with anticipation at the time?
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The beauty of youth is that you don’t think about what you’re doing while it’s occurring.
What was it like to go from working as a designer for an apparel company to creating your own line?
It was a natural evolution. I used to make little amounts when I had my own shop. I was able to start my wholesale company after proving myself in retail.
Explain the technique you used prior to developing the Halston collection, which provided you with the background and foundation you needed to begin the design process. What kind of research did you do to learn about the brand’s history?
Did Halston have any substantial archives that you could go through?
I didn’t have to sift through much of the archive. Instead, I imagined what kind of contemporary apparel Mr. Halston would design today if he were still living. He wouldn’t be doing Ultrasuede anymore; instead, he’d be into microfibers.
Your novel, The Look, was published by Random House in 2006. It assists women of all ages in selecting clothing that is suitable for their size and form.
“I first met Randolph Duke via my stylist while prepping for the Academy Awards,” your customer Marcia Gay Harden stated of you.
Randolph analyzed my body type, he understood a woman’s figure, and with one sweeping motion of red, he exalted hips and busts, elegance, drama, and maturity.
Randolph collaborated with me, and the outfit turned out beautifully!” Is the book’s theme based on your innate ability to alter women? If that’s not the case, how did it happen?
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When I returned to Los Angeles, I did a lot of thinking, and one of the things that kept coming up was how many questions I had about the issue and how there seemed to be a gap.
It sparked an idea in me to write a book, a tool that I thought was lacking. I began my study by looking at what resources were available to women in terms of establishing, nurturing, and expressing their own distinctive styles on a daily basis.
I began an experiment in which all I did was stare at ladies in public. And I observed something in practically every situation that stood out to me, and it was a proportion issue.
I had a guide that helped people get dressed nearly from the inside out; it was a procedure that wasn’t available on the market. Many people believe that style cannot be learned, but I believe that it can be taught to some extent. It all started with the desire to build a tool for the consumer.
Many talented designers have built successful Home Shopping Network companies.
What made you decide to work in the television retail industry?
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I was on QVC in 1992, although it was just for a brief time. It was back when electronic retailing was still in its infancy. Then, in 2001, another chance with HSN arose that appeared like a tremendous prospect, and I was familiar with it since I had done it before. We started because the formula was excellent and made sense to me, and I wasn’t frightened of it at all.
Every successful fashion designer with their own design studio needs to assemble a creative team that can carry out their concept.
How significant do you think this is?
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This is an intriguing topic since it has always been my greatest struggle. Due to budgetary constraints, there were occasions when you had to accomplish everything from the start.
I recall moving racks to 7th on 6th in New York while wearing dark sunglasses and a cap to hide my identity; you do what you have to do. Delegating is a good thing, but it requires a lot of trusts, as I’ve discovered over the years.
You must master the art of trust. From a skeletal workforce to a fully fleshed-out crew, I’ve had it all. Fashion, in my opinion, is a collaborative industry that thrives on the reality that you can’t do everything alone.
I wouldn’t have a company now if I didn’t have the right management team in place.
Around the world, there are a plethora of brilliant and aspiring fashion designers. What advice would you provide to a fashion designer that is trying to find that special something that would help him or her stand out from the crowd?
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I’m not convinced there’s a one-size-fits-all approach to this.
What I recommend to students and anyone seeking a career as a fashion designer is to keep focused on what you like rather than getting caught up in what you believe other people will appreciate. One is a little manipulative and pandering, while the other is sort of accurate.
And it has nothing to do with whether you think people will like it or not because once you start down that route, you’ve lost your authenticity completely. My most successful presentations were when I was absolutely true to myself in every way, including utilizing music that I loved and selecting models that I liked.
It required the type of self-discipline that comes from listening to other people’s viewpoints but eventually making your own decision.
What advice would you provide to someone who wants to be a fashion designer?
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My first piece of advice is to never be afraid to seek assistance. It doesn’t seem to be cool in the fashion industry. However, this is not the case. People, I believe, want to be a part of what you’ve created. Make as many friends as possible in the areas where you need to improve.
With the rise of fashion reality TV series like Project Runway on Bravo, the fashion business has altered dramatically over the years.
What are your thoughts on the influence this has had on the fashion business and on what fashion means as a creative effort and an art form?
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So many designers nowadays do not have a formal education in fashion. It seems to be a bit less defined. Everyone believes they’re fashion designers, which irritates me. It’s unfortunate that fashion is underappreciated in terms of the elements required to create that thing. Today, there are a plethora of options for achieving that aim.
How to Self-Evaluation: If Fashion Design is for You?
The fashion business is recognized for having a plethora of highly creative individuals with outlandish personalities. The drama may sometimes reach operatic dimensions. What do you suppose the source of this is?
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This is a fascinating subject to ponder. It’s something I believe comes with the territory. Being so theatrical makes it more interesting and intriguing. It’s unique to New York in several aspects. It’s a uniquely New York phenomenon.
It’s all part of the process of building a brand. It has a lot to do with what consumers anticipate and want from someone in the fashion business.
“Clothing Royalty” and “King of Red Carpet Glamour,” as you’ve been dubbed. What do you think of these descriptors, and how do you see yourself in relation to them?
The way things happen has a kismet quality to it.
When people think of you in that light and say things like that, it’s flattering. In my youth, I was a more dramatic and serious person, but now my actual personality is emerging, which is much sillier and less serious.
Describe how you would spend your ideal day.
For me, the ideal day would consist of doing what I like and being entirely pleased and happy in my current location. It’s when I’m entirely focused on the current moment, not worrying about the past or the future, and completely at ease.
