Jenna Lyons
{{Short description|American fashion designer and business personality}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2021}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Jenna Lyons
| image =
| alt =
| caption = Lyons in 2020
| birth_name = Judith Agar Lyons
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1968|06|08}}
| birth_place = Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
| death_date =
| death_place =
| nationality =
| other_names =
| education = Parsons School of Design (BFA)
| occupation = {{flatlist|
- Fashion designer
- businesswoman
- television personality}}
| years_active = 1990–present
| known_for =
| notable_works =
| spouse = {{marriage|Vincent Mazeau|2002|2011|end=div}}
| partner = Courtney Crangi (2012–2017)
Cass Bird (2023–present)
| children = 1
}}
Jenna Lyons (born June 8, 1968) is an American fashion designer, businesswoman, and television personality. Lyons was the executive creative director and president of retailer J.Crew from 2010 until April 2017, when she announced her departure from the company.{{cite web|last1=Sherman|first1=Lauren|title=Jenna Lyons Exits J.Crew|url=https://www.businessoffashion.com/articles/news-analysis/jenna-lyons-exits-j-crew|website=Business of Fashion|access-date=December 31, 2017|date=April 3, 2017}}{{cite web|title=A Day in the Life of Jenna Lyons|url=http://www.oprah.com/own-oprahshow/spend-a-day-in-the-life-of-jenna-lyons-of-jcrew-video|website=The Oprah Winfrey Show|access-date=December 31, 2017|date=April 21, 2010}} Lyons began working for J.Crew in 1990 and held various positions throughout her twenty-seven years at the company.{{Cite web |title=Jenna Lyons - Biography |url=https://images.jcrew.com/fsi/investor2/phoenix2/phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenixd727.html?c=135311&p=irol-govBio&ID=188807 |access-date=July 10, 2023 |website=JCrew.com |archive-date=July 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230710072431/https://images.jcrew.com/fsi/investor2/phoenix2/phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenixd727.html?c=135311&p=irol-govBio&ID=188807 |url-status=live }} In 2013, Lyons was referred to as the "Woman Who Dresses America".{{cite web|last1=Colman|first1=David|title=Jenna Lyons, the Woman Who Dresses America|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/20/fashion/jenna-lyons-the-woman-who-dresses-america.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&|website=The New York Times|access-date=December 31, 2017|date=January 18, 2013}} She is the CEO and co-founder of LoveSeen, a false eyelash beauty brand. She is also known for starring in the reality television series Stylish with Jenna Lyons and The Real Housewives of New York City, which she joined in the show's fourteenth season.
Early life and education
Jenna Lyons was born Judith Agar Lyons in Boston, Massachusetts.{{cite web|title=Jenna L Mazeau|url=https://radaris.com/~Jenna-Mazeau/1196013871|publisher=Radaris.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230802054348/https://radaris.com/~Jenna-Mazeau/1196013871|archive-date=August 2, 2023|accessdate=August 2, 2023|url-status=live}}{{cite web|last=Austin|first=Ellie|title=How Jenna Lyons Bounced Back|date=January 13, 2021|url=https://www.elle.com/uk/fashion/celebrity-style/a35187689/jenna-lyons-elle-interview/|publisher=Elle|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221017191132/https://www.elle.com/uk/fashion/celebrity-style/a35187689/jenna-lyons-elle-interview/|archive-date=October 17, 2022|accessdate=August 2, 2023|url-status=live}} Her family then moved to Palos Verdes, California, when she was four,{{cite web|last1=Harris|first1=Sarah|title=The creative force behind J Crew|url=https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2012/apr/29/j-crew-fashion-jenna-lyons|website=The Guardian|access-date=December 31, 2017|date=April 28, 2012}} where she endured heavy bullying throughout her youth due to her "gawkiness" and specific health problems;{{cite web|last1=Sacks|first1=Danielle|title=How Jenna Lyons Transformed J.Crew Into A Cult Brand|url=https://www.fastcompany.com/3007843/how-jenna-lyons-transformed-jcrew-cult-brand|website=Fast Company|access-date=December 31, 2017|date=April 15, 2013}} Lyons suffered from incontinentia pigmenti, a genetic disorder which scars the skin, causes hair to fall out in patches, and causes teeth to be malformed—hence the reason she wears dentures.
Much of Lyons' outlook and adolescent interests stemmed from her negative experiences. On the subject of growing up, and of her health, Lyons stated that: "[My health] made me introverted, but it was also the reason I loved fashion, because it can change who you are and how you feel, and that can be magical." Her mother was a piano teacher who encouraged her to get creative, leading to an interest in the fashion industry. Lyons, in spite of any setbacks, loved to rebel against her school uniform, and learned to sew by the seventh grade, which gave her more confidence. One of her personal motivations for success stems from witnessing her parents' divorce, and forming the subsequent conviction at a young age to never need to rely on a man to get-by.
After high school, Lyons enrolled at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, before then transferring to Parsons’ BFA Fashion Design program in New York City. Lyons graduated in 1990, alongside classmate and designer Derek Lam. {{cite web |title=Jenna Lyons / Parsons Profiles |url=https://www.newschool.edu/parsons/profiles/?id=17179872868 |website=The New School / Parsons |date=16 February 2017 |access-date=July 2, 2024 |archive-date=February 16, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216004946/https://www.newschool.edu/parsons/profiles/?id=17179872868 |url-status=bot: unknown }} During her senior year at Parsons, Lyons interned for fashion designer Donna Karan.{{cite magazine |last1=Battan |first1=Carrie |title=Jenna Lyons's J. Crew Afterlife |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-new-yorker-interview/jenna-lyons-jcrew-afterlife |magazine=The New Yorker |date=27 December 2020}}
Career
=J.Crew=
Lyons landed her first job at J.Crew when she was 21. She began as an assistant designer in men's wear, and her first assignment was redesigning men's rugby shirts for the company. By 2003, she was J.Crew's Vice President of Women's Design.
When former CEO and chairman Millard Drexler was hired in 2003, he and Lyons began to form a close relationship. The two were key players in helping J.Crew triple its revenue from just short of $690 million in 2003 to just shy of $2 billion in 2011. In April 2010, Lyons was appointed executive creative director of J.Crew. In July of that same year she was also appointed president of the company. Lyons has said of her holding both of these roles, "no financial decision weighs heavier than a creative decision. They are equal." In this role, Lyons oversaw the over one hundred designers of J.Crew and directed the layouts, designs, and looks for the J.Crew catalog, or as the company calls it, its Style Guide.
One of the biggest changes Lyons made at the company was reinventing their Style Guide. Lyons wanted it to have the feel of a fashion magazine, and the amount of editorial content increased drastically. This included a section entitled "Jenna's Picks" that looked at her opinions and revealed more about her everyday life. It also highlighted Lyons' personal clothing style, described by The New York Times as "geek-chic quirkiness, which mixed camouflage and sequins for day, and denim and taffeta for evening, all of it layered with big costume jewelry".{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/04/fashion/j-crew-jenna-lyons.html|title=The Jenna Lyons Era at J. Crew Comes to an End|last1=Friedman|first1=Vanessa|date=April 4, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 15, 2017|last2=Paton|first2=Elizabeth|issn=0362-4331}} Lyons crafted the brand and style of J.Crew around her trademark style. She made J.Crew a tastemaker in the industry, though Lyons herself does not like to refer to herself as a tastemaker.{{cite web|last1=Young|first1=Molly|title=The J in J.Crew|url=http://nymag.com/fashion/11/fall/jenna-lyons/|website=New York Magazine|access-date=December 31, 2017|date=August 14, 2011}}
While Lyons' work at J. Crew contributed to her fame, she also faced controversy in 2011 when she was featured painting her then 4-year-old son's toenails hot pink. Some called this act "an attack on masculinity." Others, however, viewed it as a breaking from gender norms. Despite it gaining national attention, such as being featured on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart where it was labeled "Toemaggedon", both Lyons and J.Crew initially declined to comment. Lyons later stated that her son was watching her paint her nails and simply requested that she paint his as well.
Lyons exited J.Crew in April 2017. Her departure was connected to declining sales and financial problems at the company.{{cite web |last1=Munzenrieder |first1=Kyle |date=April 3, 2017 |title=Jenna Lyons to Exit J. Crew |url=https://www.wmagazine.com/story/jenna-lyons-exit-j-crew |access-date=December 31, 2017 |website=W Magazine}} Her overarching role overseeing all aesthetic aspects of the brand (including store design and marketing) was not maintained, with the new chief design officer, Somsack Sikhounmuong, focusing more narrowly on women's, men's and children's clothing.
=Television=
In early 2014, Lyons made her acting debut in the third season of the HBO series Girls, where she played the role of a GQ editor that series creator Lena Dunham said was inspired by Lyons.{{Cite web |last=Murray |first=Darla |date=February 9, 2014 |title=Q&A: Jenna Lyons on Her Girls Cameo, Befriending Lena Dunham, and More |url=https://www.thecut.com/2014/02/qa-jenna-lyons-on-her-girls-cameo-fedoras.html |access-date=July 13, 2023 |website=TheCut.com |archive-date=April 10, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410065039/https://www.thecut.com/2014/02/qa-jenna-lyons-on-her-girls-cameo-fedoras.html |url-status=live }}
Lyons executive produced and starred in Stylish with Jenna Lyons, an unscripted reality competition series where contestants competed for a creative assistant job with Lyons, which debuted on HBO Max in December 2020.{{Cite web |last=Ellis |first=Rosie |date=November 24, 2022 |title=Interview with LoveSeen Co-founder Jenna Lyons |url=https://theregular.com/blog/interview-jenna-lyons |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230710080730/https://theregular.com/blog/interview-jenna-lyons |archive-date=July 10, 2023 |access-date=July 10, 2023 |website=TheRegular.com}} In October 2022, it was announced that Lyons was joining the cast of Bravo's The Real Housewives of New York City.{{Cite web |last=Tinoco |first=Armando |date=October 16, 2022 |title='RHONY' Season 14 Reboot Cast Confirmed With 7 New Housewives Including Jenna Lyons – BravoCon |url=https://deadline.com/2022/10/rhony-season-14-reboot-cast-confirmed-7-new-housewives-jenna-lyons-bravocon-1235146455/ |access-date=July 1, 2023 |website=Deadline Hollywood |archive-date=October 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221018222906/https://deadline.com/2022/10/rhony-season-14-reboot-cast-confirmed-7-new-housewives-jenna-lyons-bravocon-1235146455/ |url-status=live }} The fourteenth season of the series, Lyons's first, premiered on July 16, 2023.{{Cite web |last=Tinoco |first=Armando |date=May 1, 2023 |title='The Real Housewives Of New York City' Reboot Gets Season 14 Premiere Date Post 'RHOA' In New Teaser |url=https://deadline.com/2023/05/the-real-housewives-of-new-york-city-reboot-season-14-premiere-date-rhoa-1235351759/ |access-date=June 24, 2023 |website=Deadline Hollywood |archive-date=May 1, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230501161719/https://deadline.com/2023/05/the-real-housewives-of-new-york-city-reboot-season-14-premiere-date-rhoa-1235351759/ |url-status=live }}
=Other projects=
In September 2020, Lyons launched LoveSeen, a false eyelash beauty brand. She is co-creator and CEO of the company.{{Cite magazine |last=Matlin |first=Jessica |date=September 22, 2022 |title=Jenna Lyons Just Launched False Lash Brand Loveseen |url=https://www.harpersbazaar.com/beauty/makeup/a34115234/jenna-lyons-loveseen-eyelashes/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200923181255/https://www.harpersbazaar.com/beauty/makeup/a34115234/jenna-lyons-loveseen-eyelashes/ |archive-date=September 23, 2020 |access-date=July 10, 2023 |magazine=Harper's Bazaar}}
Personal life
Lyons was married to artist Vincent Mazeau from 2002 until 2011.{{cite web|last1=Marine|first1=Brooke|title=Jenna Lyons and Courtney Crangi Have Broken Up|url=https://www.wmagazine.com/story/jenna-lyons-courtney-crangi-broke-up|website=W Magazine|access-date=December 31, 2017|date=December 2, 2017}} They have a son.
Lyons is a lesbian.{{Cite web |last=Spruch-Feiner |first=Sara |date=June 7, 2021 |title=Jenna Lyons on brands' LGBTQ+ responsibility |url=https://www.glossy.co/beauty/jenna-lyons-on-brands-lgbtq-responsibility/ |access-date=July 10, 2023 |website=Glossy.co |archive-date=June 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210607101731/https://www.glossy.co/beauty/jenna-lyons-on-brands-lgbtq-responsibility/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Velasco |first=Matthew |date=May 8, 2023 |title=Jenna Lyons Put a New York Spin on Kentucky Derby Fashion |url=https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/jenna-lyons-kentucky-derby-housewife |access-date=July 10, 2023 |website=W Magazine |archive-date=May 10, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510104927/https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/jenna-lyons-kentucky-derby-housewife |url-status=live }} During the midst of her divorce from Mazeau in 2011, Lyons was outed by the New York Post. Lyons later recounted that the publication contacted her while she was at work to tell her that they would be running a story about her being in a relationship with a woman, Courtney Crangi. Lyons expressed that the experience was traumatic for her because she wasn't ready to publicly come out and hadn't even told her friends and family about the relationship at the time.{{Cite web |last=Heaney |first=Katie |date=March 2, 2021 |title=Jenna Lyons on Coming Out (and Being Outed) After 40 |url=https://www.thecut.com/2021/03/jenna-lyons-on-coming-out-after-40.html |access-date=July 10, 2023 |website=TheCut.com |archive-date=March 2, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302131553/https://www.thecut.com/2021/03/jenna-lyons-on-coming-out-after-40.html |url-status=live }} In 2012, Lyons publicly acknowledged Crangi as her girlfriend. Lyons and Crangi split up in December 2017.
In 2023, Lyons announced that she is currently in a relationship with photographer Cass Bird.{{Cite web|last=Testa|first=Jessica|date=June 25, 2023|title=Jenna Lyons, Unlikely Housewife|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/25/style/rhony-jenna-lyons.html|access-date=August 2, 2023|website=The New York Times|archive-date=June 25, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230625103146/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/25/style/rhony-jenna-lyons.html|url-status=live}}
Awards and accolades
Lyons won Glamour's 2012 Women of the Year award.{{cite web|last1=Wicks|first1=Amy|title=Jenna Lyons: The Fashion Original|url=https://www.glamour.com/story/jenna-lyons|website=Glamour|access-date=December 31, 2017|date=October 31, 2012}} She is a member of the Council of Fashion Designers of America Board of Directors.
In 2013 Lyons was selected for the Time 100 list of top 100 most influential people as a Tastemaker, noted for how "she has made fashion relatable... She understands our zeitgeist. Being fashionable doesn’t mean being trendy; it means having a sense of style."{{cite magazine |last1=Gurung |first1=Prabal |title=Jenna Lyons: The World's 100 Most Influential People |url=https://time100.time.com/2013/04/18/time-100/slide/jenna-lyons/ |magazine=Time |date=18 April 2013}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{IMDb name|id=4406654}}
- {{Instagram|jennalyonsnyc}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lyons, Jenna}}
Category:American lesbian artists
Category:American women fashion designers
Category:American fashion designers
Category:Parsons School of Design alumni
Category:American LGBTQ businesspeople
Category:American LGBTQ models
Category:Lesbian businesswomen
Category:LGBTQ fashion designers
Category:LGBTQ people from Massachusetts