This year’s Tucson Fashion Week featured many talented designers including the New York City pop-culture icon, Richie Rich. He displayed his clothing line, The Richie Rich Project, which has been modeled by celebrities in the likes of Kim Kardashian, Madonna and Gwen Stefani.
Rich was originally born in New Jersey, but at the age of 11 moved to California’s Bay Area. During this time he actively pursued figure skating and went on tour with the Ice Capades.
However, Rich has always been a lover of fashion and the arts. Once the ice skating tour ended, things began to fall into place for him in the fashion world.
“Even when I was still skating, I would always hang out in the costume department with this guy named Jerry, but Jerry brought it to a level where I would rhinestone costumes and help him out,” Rich said.
After moving to New York for a change of scenery, Rich began working in clubs assisting promoters and making connections while still keeping an ear out for fashion opportunities.
“I would always make my own clothing because either I couldn’t find what I wanted or I couldn’t afford it, and then, little by little, my friends would ask me to make them this or make them that,” Rich said.
It was a trip to Tokyo that would ultimately launch Rich’s fashion career. Rich made shirts in Tokyo that Sara Jessica Parker ended up wearing on “Sex and the City” as style-guru and blogger Carrie Bradshaw.
This publicity kick-started Rich’s name in the world of fashion, and once Traver Rains and Rich met, the brand Heatherette was born. Rich has since displayed the collection on the runways of fashion shows around the world.
Heatherette has carved its own niche in fashion due in part to help from many big names along the way.
“It just grew, it happened organically,” said Rich. ”I think in pop culture, it was fitting in with the music scene and Gwen Stefani was a customer, and Madonna would wear some of our stuff.”
Despite having traveled all around the world with his clothing line, Rich is still very much excited to unveil his new line, The Richie Rich Project, at TFW.
“The line I’m going to be showing this weekend is not something I’ll actually be selling in stores,” Rich said. ”I wanted to do something very fun and back to my roots—something that is very pop culture and personality driven.”
Being a person that is inspired be nearly everyone, it was interesting to see Rich bring his unique “London underground meets New York with a splash of Blondie” style to the Old Pueblo.
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