Rachel Zoe is a household name when it comes to fashion. The stylist turned TV star turned author turned entrepreneur turned designer has successfully leveraged her behind-the-scenes time in Hollywood to land herself squarely in the spotlight. Intelligent and hilarious, Zoe is realistic about the challenges she faced on her way to where she is now, and those that still plague her. Wearing an all-white sequin suit (she joked that her TV show Real Life with Rachel Zoe was reflected by her sartorial choice, “White sequins in Texas? Real life,” she quipped), Zoe discussed career, kids and happy and sad colours. See the top 10 highlights below…
On starting out as a stylist
“For the first 15 years, I would say, ‘I’m a stylist’ and people would say, ‘Oh, you do hair?’ No…”
On the secrecy of styling once upon a time
“I think my career would have been very different if there was social media. A stylist used to be very secretive.”
On sad colours
“There are sad shades of pink. And there are definitely mean reds.”
On seeing her collection on strangers
“Seeing your collection on someone who has no incentive to wear it, is amazing.”
On her signature glamorous look
“It would be harder for me to put on leisurewear. This [gesturing to her outfit] takes me five minutes.”
On learning from her career and applying that to being a boss
“As a stylist, I had no work balance. I would work all the time. I missed everything and I expected the same from my team but now that my team has grown, I’ve realised that if you hire good people, you just let them do their job. There’s no need to micromanage.”
On her office culture
“My office is a family culture. We embrace everyone. You are never going to get guilt from us. I think people are best when they’re self-governed with boundaries.”
On putting a nursery in her office
“We had a nursery and it was the best. If you have the opportunity, put a nursery in your offices, please!”
On balancing her relationship with her husband Roger and working together
“We always say, ‘Work is hard, life is hard but we are easy.’ But there are times when I literally want to punch him in the face.”
On Tom Ford
“We now do the school runs together and let me tell you, he looks that chic at all times. I want everyone to know that.”
Now, see the new Gucci store in The Dubai Mall’s recently opened extension.
