Bethenny Frankel is expanding her empire.
The reality show star and entrepreneur will reveal today that she is extending her Skinnygirl franchise from spirits and specialty foods to fashion.
In partnership with One Jeanswear Group, Frankel will launch Skinnygirl Jeans, a collection of denim, knit tops and jackets for women, at retail beginning this fall. The line will be targeted to department stores and will retail for around $100. It will also be sold online.
Frankel said she hadn’t been searching to enter the apparel space, but a friend introduced her to Jack Gross, chief executive officer of OJG, and they hit it off.
“Jack said he was meeting me as a courtesy because he wasn’t looking for any more celebrity brands right now,” Frankel said. OJG has collections with Gloria Vanderbilt, Jessica Simpson and William Rast (Justin Timberlake’s line), among others.
But once they discussed the possibilities of creating a collection, they both agreed they should move forward.
“I said I would give her 15 minutes, and after 10, I knew this would be a big idea,” Gross said. He said since that initial meeting he has been even more impressed with Frankel’s commitment to the collection.
He said she has a high level of engagement
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