At a recent Parsons School of Design panel, Gabriela Hearst, Rachel Scott, and Veronica Leoni gathered not to discuss hemlines, but the structural inequities that still bind the fashion industry. The conversation, moderated by consultant Julie Gilhart, was titled “Women Leaders Crafting a New Fashion Future.” For the Lingerie Museum, this discussion resonates with a deeper history of female makers who, like the corsetieres and stay-makers of the 18th and 19th centuries, built their authority from the inside out—often without institutional support.
Veronica Leoni, the first woman to lead Calvin Klein’s collection since its founding in 1968 (a house that revolutionized minimalism and, notably, made underwear outerwear), recalled her start at a tiny family-run brand in Italy. There, she learned every stitch and seam, a method she still guards. “I like to keep the design team extremely contained,” she said, “to not close the fitting room door.” This intimacy echoes the atelier traditions of Madame Grès, whose bias-cut gowns required the same close collaboration between designer and artisan.
Rachel Scott, the first Black woman to helm a major American fashion house (Proenza Schouler, launched in 2002 by Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough), spoke of her apprenticeship at Costume National. “I learned everything working there,” she said, emphasizing her obsession with material manipulation—a tactile reverence shared by the lace makers and embroiderers who have long been the unseen hands of luxury.
Gabriela Hearst, a rancher’s daughter from Uruguay who founded her label in 2003 with just $700, noted that after World War II, houses like Lanvin, Chanel, and Schiaparelli were built by women. She now insists on sustainable packaging, even risking a department store order. “Stand up for your values,” she said.
Leoni captured the daily reality: “We fight every day. There is a certain patriarchy ruling the culture.” Scott added, “If space isn’t made for you, you carve it out yourself.” These women are not waiting for the system to loosen its stays. They are cutting new patterns entirely.
Originally reported by WWD