The Amazing Mr Kors

With a love for dressing women of all ages and sizes, Michael Kors has built a global empire based on inclusivity, individuality and a fervent belief that fashion should inspire happiness. Justine Picardie meets the billionaire designer driven by a desire to bring out the best in everyone

- Justine Picardie

In an industry full of big personalities, Michael Kors is one of the biggest — but not in a terrifying, tantrum-throwing way. Instead, he is warm, funny, upbeat and positive — all characteristics that are also evident in his runway shows. Long before anyone started talking about diversity, you’d see women of all ages, shapes, sizes and backgrounds on the Kors catwalk. Perhaps most radical of all, you’d see models who looked happy and healthy, rather than miserably hungry.

It’s hard not to feel cheerful in his company, as I am reminded when we meet at his new London townhouse boutique on Bond Street. “I’m really happy to be here,” he says, “and really happy to see you.” He flashes his signature sunny smile and his exuberance fills the room. At 60, he is one of the great icons of American design — famed for his vision of sleek, sporty, jet-set luxury — with an ability to blend glamour with an apparently effortless joie de vivre.

Kors attributes his success to growing up on Long Island in a family of strong women who cared fervidly about fashion. “They were all very specific in their point of view — they were all very opinionated,” he says. “To this day, the question I hate the most is when people say, ‘Who’s your muse?’ And I say, ‘Muse? If I’m only designing for one woman, then we’re in trouble.’” He remembers his mother and her sister-in-law engaging in heartfelt debates “over whether taupe or camel was a better colour for a winter coat”. (For the record, he believes that camel looks good on a blonde, such as his mother, but that his dark-haired aunt was better suited to taupe.)