My Day In The Fab Lane
21 Sep, 2012
I of course expected her to be tall. But the live, up close and personal version of fashion industry mogul Kimora Lee Simmons puts the meaning of the word in perspective. Her 6-foot frame towers over her entourage and everyone in her immediate vicinity. When she walked through the hallway of the Nordstrom flagship Michigan Avenue store, the small talk amongst the waiting media immediately stopped. Everyone’s head tilted up and followed her in unison as she walked through the door of what would serve as her green room.
It was a short walk but she managed to turn the distance into a runway. Every step was with purpose and with a force that made her hair bounce to the beat of her stride. I almost looked around for the wind fan. The colorful hues and fitted shape of her dress accented her petite frame that was much smaller minus the ten pounds added by the cameras. Her stilettoes were almost a natural extension to her mystique.
She meant business. While she got adjusted inside the room, I did my due diligence and went over the list of questions I’d memorized the night before. I went over the highlights of her new skincare line, Shinto Clinical, that she was there to debut.
She stayed inside the room for a short time before walking out with her main ‘person’ asking where the interviews would take place. We were told they would be conducted in the green room which was why we were all waiting outside the door. She quickly decided the green room wouldn’t do and made the executive decision that the interviews would take place in the lobby of the mall where her products were on display. She started walking to the lobby before the completion of her sentence and everyone fell in line.
Her confidence was contagious. I stood tall. With my shoulders back and head straight I did the best model walk of my life, which was great until I left the carpeted hallway and had to navigate the tiled floors of the mall. Had they just been cleaned? Feet don’t fail me now.
The line consists of 9 products that were packaged in sleek black tubes of various sizes. Each bottle was strategically placed next to the other on a clear tray. The black backdrop highlighted with ‘Shinto Clinical’ in red and white completed the look.
It became apparent how she turned a successful modeling career into a fashion and beauty empire. At 13 she was signed to Chanel. Later she’d become President and Creative Director of Phat Fashions where she turned the Baby Phat label into a lifestyle brand. Today, the mother of three continues her entrepreneurship role with the launch of her KLS collection as well as again taking presidential and creative director roles for personalized shopping website JustFabulous.
Her business persona hit as soon as she reached the table. She began spitting out instructions to her staff that immediately went to work. She had tenacity. She was quick on her feet. She knew what she wanted and most importantly how to get it. She’d later credit her success to having mentors.
While the chairs were being placed and the photographers were adjusting their equipment, she didn’t stand there to herself-she talked. We talked about life, relationships, travel and of course style. To my surprise, she was very pleasant and personable. We laughed as if we hadn’t just met less than 10 minutes before. She even removed her shoes in a height comparison conversation. Her reputation preceded her. The easy flow of conversation continued during the interview. She didn’t hold back. Our discussion ranged from the science behind her products to the regime she learned as a child with her grandmothers skincare routine. Her personality was big. Her smile was bright. The experience, for me, was fabulous.
B. Spencer
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14 Comments
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September 21, 2012
Great story. You nailed interview. Both of you looked fabulous!!!!
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September 21, 2012
Wonderful interview… It’s nice to know that all the ‘pomp and circumstance’ that seems to encompass her very public life doesn’t translate into who she is as a person…
Kimora continues to reinvent herself and attempt
to expand her ”empire”. I applaude her for that. ‘just fabulous’… -
September 21, 2012
You both looked fabulous! Great interview and description of her and the events taking place…it painted a picture for me as if I was there.
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September 22, 2012
Great and Fun read!!
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September 22, 2012
BeShanda, it appears that you did a great job with your interview. I found it interesting and funny.
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September 22, 2012
Love you girl.you look beautiful.from your sister-
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September 23, 2012
Great article! I felt like I was there…I wish I was there. It’s refreshing knowing that someone with her status is still a real and pleasant person.
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September 24, 2012
FAB article!!! It’s so great to get this perspective! Your day sounds great! And you looked beautiful!!! 🙂
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September 25, 2012
Love the article!! She sounds super down to earth…it’s refreshing to hear that someone of her celebrity has still maintained her “humanness.”
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September 25, 2012
Great job B! Great article, your descriptions made me feel like I met her too! 🙂
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September 25, 2012
Nice Work B. Great article and Interview
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September 26, 2012
Fabulous article! It was a great read; love you visual descriptions.
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September 28, 2012
Great article B! Love the imagery; makes we feel like I was there. Keeping Kimora’s celebrity intact while bringing out her everyday personality makes the article interesting, relateable and a great read. And you know you look fab! 🙂
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September 29, 2012
I was examining some of your posts on this site and I think this website is rattling instructive! Keep posting.
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