Diane Von Furstenberg Biography

Fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg was born in Brussels, Belgium, in 1946. Diane grew up inspired by her parents, who’d survived the tumultuous era of Europe’s WWII; her mother had been a Holocaust survivor who endured the Auschwitz concentration camps and taught young Diane endurance and determination. After graduating from the University of Geneva with a degree in Economics, Diane moved to Paris and began working as an assistant to a fashion photographer’s agent. It was here that her love of fashion blossomed and set the stage for her life-long career.

Diane began designing women’s clothing in 1970. A move to New York brought her to a number of influential people in the fashion business, and it wasn’t long before she was receiving rave reviews for her designs. Ultimately, Diane rose to fame in 1974 as the designer of the “wrap dress,” which had tremendous influence of women’s fashion not only for the era but for the decades to follow. In 1976, Diane von Furstenberg was featured on the cover of Newsweek, in accompaniment to an article which compared her to such fashion legends as Coco Chanel.

Ultimately, by the late 1970’s her company had reached $150 million in sales, and von Furstenberg went down in history as one of the most influential women of the era. In the late 1990’s, Diane von Furstenberg re-launched her fashion company as (DVF), re-introducing many of her designs, including the legendary wrap dress. Although the company is located in New York City, DVF merchandise is marketed in over seventy countries with nearly a hundred boutique shops worldwide.

Aside from her achievements in the fashion industry, Diane von Furstenberg is also the director of a private foundation which provides support to a variety of non-profit organizations. The foundation focuses on a variety of issues, including Human Rights, the Environment, and the Arts. As part of the foundation, Furstenberg established the DVF Awards, which recognize exceptional women for their leadership and strength.

Most recently, Diane von Furstenberg published her autobiography, The Woman I Wanted to Be, in 2014. She is currently listed by Forbes as one of the 100 most influential woman in the world.