kate spade new york: all in good taste

About the book

The third book with kate spade new york, all in good taste is a charming entertaining guide to throwing chic, stylish get-togethers. The culture of entertaining is just as important as the food and drinks you serve, the flowers on your table and the music on your speakers; all in good taste sends rigid rules out the door and invites in unpretentious ideas that are easy, festive, and authentic, always with an air of deliberate polish. Filled with how-to's, personal essays, anecdotes, menus, tips, recipes and a liberal dash of style, all in good taste will transform you into the hostess everyone wants an invitation from. The book covers all of the essential lost arts-how to shuck an oyster, curating a stellar guest list, dinner-table topics, cocktails in the city-right alongside modern conundrums like food photo etiquette and innovations like serving pot pies in teacups. Whether you entertain a little or a lot, or just love being the person everyone wants to sit next to at dinner, all in good taste is the modern classic you'll treasure and dog-ear for years.

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Kate Spade New York Biography

Kate Spade New York is an American fashion house founded in January 1993 by Kate and Andy Spade. Kate Spade New York competes with Michael Kors. In 2017, the company was purchased by Tapestry, Inc., formerly known as Coach, Inc.

Business history

Prior to company creation

Katherine Noel Brosnahan (later known as Kate Spade) was born on December 24, 1962, in Kansas City, Missouri. She grew up in Kansas City and went to an all-girls Catholic high school. Eventually she moved to Arizona, where she attended Arizona State University and graduated in 1985. It is there that she met her future husband, Andy Spade. Katherine majored in journalism, while Andy majored in architecture. In 1986, after completing their education, the couple moved to New York City. It was in New York that Katherine worked as a style editor for Mademoiselle, but left in 1991 (with the title of senior editor/head of accessories) to start her own handbag line. To get inspiration, Kate browsed local flea markets and secondhand stores. She also researched the styles, fabrics, and potential production costs of making her own handbags. The team slowly worked their way up the social ladder until they were able to create a company that would be noticed by the public.

Early stages

Kate Spade New York was founded in 1993 by Katherine Noel Brosnahan and her husband/business partner Andy Spade. Kate Spade New York started after a suggestion from Andy when Katherine wasn't sure about her next career move after logging six years at Mademoiselle. Originally, the business started out with the Sam handbag and was only making colorful lively bags for consumers. Eventually, Andy withdrew $35,000 from his 401K account to fund the production of Kate's handbags. Her debut line infused classic shapes, colors and fabrics into a now iconic square bag with a little black label sewn to the outside of the bag that said “Kate Spade New York.” Their main target market at this time was the upper middle class. In 1996, Spade's company opened its first shop in New York City's SoHo neighborhood. Kate Spade rose in eight months after a journalist at Cleveland Research Co. recommended buying the shares because of the brand’s growth potential.The company started from nothing, and after 1998 it started to expand, with sales totaling $27 million. By 2006, revenue was reportedly near $99 million. In 1999, Neiman Marcus Group paid $34 million for a 56% stake of the company. In 2006, Neiman Marcus Group acquired the remaining 44% stake in Kate Spade for $59.4 M, valuing the company at $134 M.

Later stages

In 2004, Kate Spade operated only 13 stores in the United States, and did not ship out of the country (Cohen 198). The company initially sold handbags, but eventually extended to include stationery, personal organizers, address books, shoes, beauty products, perfume, raincoats, pajamas, and eyewear clothing. It now has a full women's clothing line. The business’ clothing and h ... Read full biography