Baby Phat

Baby Phat (/baby/fat/) is an American clothing brand started by Kimora Lee Simmons (now Kimora Lee Simmons Leissner) in 1999. The brand is an offshoot of her former husband Russell Simmons' Phat Farm clothing brand.[1] Baby Phat was officially relaunched in December 2019.[2] Baby Phat is an urban women's wear brand that was first established under Phat Fashions LLC in 1999.

Baby Phat
IndustryFashion
Founded1999
FounderKimora Lee Simmons
HeadquartersNew York, NY
ParentKellwood Company 
Websitewww.babyphat.com

History

In the beginning, baby Phat is an urban women's wear brand established under Phat Fashions LLC in 1999. Presented with a prototype of a Phat Farm T-shirt for female consumers. Kimora Lee Simmons recalled saying, "I would never wear this. It is very athletic and basic, a scaled-down version of what a guy would wear." Simmons not only criticized the prototype but decided to create a collection she would wear and took on the responsibility as Baby Phat's designer. The clothing brand included jeans and tops adorned with a curvy cat logo inspired by her pet cat, Max.[1] It was created for women, especially women of color, whom Simmons believed had no voice in the street wear industry.[2]

Baby Phat's first show took place in 2000 as an extension of Kimora Lee's former husband, Russell Simmons' Phat Farm, and Phat Fashions label. It drew attention from the hip-hop community, which had a close relationship with Russell Simmons' record label Def Jam Recordings. Baby Phat received celebrity endorsements from Aaliyah, who sat in the front row during a fashion show, and Lil' Kim, who modeled a rhinestone, logo-emblazoned sheer bikini under a faux-fur coat.[3]

In 2004, the company expanded its operations by selling a custom Motorola i833 mobile phone exclusively at Bloomingdales. The limited-edition pink, diamond-studded flip-phone was available for purchase for $699.99.[4] In the same year, Simmons created a new shoe line for Baby Phat that included stilettos, wedges, boots, and toddler shoes.[5]

In June 2019, Baby Phat collaborated with fashion retailer Forever 21.[6] The line had 18 clothing items featuring the brand's signature cat, all priced under $25.[7] On December 6, 2019, Baby Phat relaunched on its own and published a Spring/Summer 2020 campaign on its website. Simmons’ daughters, Aoki and Ming Lee were responsible for the relaunch.[8]

Influence

Influence on the Fashion Industry

Baby Phat's celebrity fans include Alicia Keys, Rihanna, Chrissy Teigen, Kim Kardashian West, Christina Milian, Britney Spears, Missy Elliott and Monica (many of whom sat front row during Simmons' Fashion Week performances).[9]

Models Alek Wek and Devon Aoki both collaborated with Baby Phat. Carmen Kass, Eva Herzigová, and Lil' Kim have also walked the runway for the brand.[10]

Kimora Lee Simmons, explaining her choice of models on the Baby Phat runway, said, "It's very deliberate. It includes people who are sometimes forgotten but are great models — they have fierce walks and bodies, strong girls, but they might sometimes be a size bigger than the other one who was a size 8. They have more 'hip', more color, more bang to their personality. It's what I represent culturally in society: all colors, all women, all shapes and sizes."[11]

References
  1. "40 Under 40 - Kimora Lee Simmons". Crain's New York Business. 2003-01-01. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
  2. Thornton, Cedric 'BIG CED' (10 December 2019). "Baby Phat Has Officially Relaunched". Black Enterprise. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
  3. A brief history of Baby Phat, the cult 00s label bringing sexy back | Dazed
  4. "Motorola i833 Baby Phat review".
  5. "Kimora Lee Simmons - Entered The Fashion Design Business". biography.jrank.org. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
  6. "Paging 1999! Forever 21 Launches Collaboration with Baby Phat — See the Nostalgic Looks". PEOPLE.com. Retrieved 2015-01-01.
  7. Channing Hargrove (June 14, 2019). "The Baby Phat x Forever 21 Items You'll See Everywhere This Summer". Refinery29.
  8. Tanay Hudson (December 7, 2019). "Baby Phat Has Officially Relaunched". Mada.
  9. "Baby Phat Is Back: See Celebs Who Loved the Brand". E! Online. 8 March 2019. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
  10. "The 2003 Baby Phat Fashion Show Was the MOST EXTRA". Daily Front Row. 2018-02-01. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
  11. ELLWOOD, MARK. "Baby Phat's Kimora Lee Simmons is fashion's diva designer". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2019-11-30.

Sources of Information: no source.

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