From the WWD Archive: Byron Lars, Rookie of the Year

The original article written by Constance White ran in Women’s Wear Daily on April 24, 1991.

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Byron Lars needs a good night’s sleep. The 26-year-old designer has been working nonstop to keep up with the tidal wave of attention generated by his witty, sophisticated fall collection.

“I saw it a few days ago and was blown out of the water,“ says Kal Ruttenstein, senior vice president and fashion director for Bloomingdale’s. “He was the freshest point of view of any of the young American designers I saw this season.”

Bloomingdale’s plans a signed Byron Lars area in its flagship. Martha International, Neiman Marcus and Macy’s Northeast are buying the collection as well. And this is only Lars’ second season.

“The rate at which this thing is catching on is frightening,” says the designer, an unassuming man who favors sweats and flower-strewn baseball caps. “I can’t believe it.”

Lars borrows from menswear for fun, sexy women’s clothes. He built his fall collection around a woodsman theme, cutting red and black buffalo checks, into fit-and-flare jacket dresses, and he draped fabric shirting into curvy little dresses. His premiere line for spring — all seven pieces — was a clever play on baseball uniforms that brought in orders from Henri Bendel and Martha International.

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“The whole premise for my collections is to take the ordinary and make it glamorous,” says Lars, noting the designers he admires most are Cristóbal Balenciaga and Charles James.

A native of San Francisco, Lars started making prom frocks for friends to earn money. He went on to study fashion design at Brooks College in Long Beach, Calif., and the Fashion Institute of Technology. Along the way, he apprenticed with Los Angeles designer Kevan Hall and freelanced for Ronaldus Shamask and Gary Gatyas in New York. He considers patternmaking and cutting his greatest strengths. “Even if the clothes are ugly, I know they fit beautifully,“ he says with a laugh.

Currently in search of a backer, Lars operates on the proverbial shoestring. “From 8:30 to 6:30, it’s ‘Hello, studio,” he says of the apartment that doubles as his design room.

His roommate, John Figueredo, a graphic artist, works on promotional literature for the collection — and on occasion helps cut fabric. There’s one design assistant, Carlos Torres. But, says Lars, “No one gets paid around here.” The collection is represented by Wheaton International, a New York sales representative and consulting firm.

Based on the reactions of retailers, however, Lars should be expecting some paychecks very soon. “He has an offbeat sense of humor,“ says Lynn Manulis, president of Martha. “As long as he remains a free spirit, he has a bright future.”

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