TONY SMITH
Tony was raised in New York. As a youth, he spent many hours at his Father’s advertising agency where his love for design flourished. Educated at Parsons School of Design for Fine Arts, he worked for a clothing retailer after school hours. From this hands on experience, Tony’s journey with art and fashion had begun.
At the age of 22, he officially launched his own label and retail stores called THESMITHS. The first concept store was opened in Soho, New York with a summer location in the Hamptons. Tony’s timeless style, together with his effortless designs, personal authenticity and a studied eye for detail brought both his Men’s and Women’s collections to the attention of, and sold exclusively through Barneys New York. The store and collections gained a strong following among industry veterans, artists, actors and models like Mickey Drexler, Cindy Sherman, Kiki Smith, Ron Gorchov, Herb Ritts, Kevin Kline, Ellen DeGeneres, Christy Turlington, Marisa Tomei, to name a few.
The chance to work with legend Millard "Mickey" Drexler of The Gap led Tony to join Banana Republic as head of men’s design and merchandising. He successfully helped move the brand to a total lifestyle vision before returning to re-launch his own women’s RTW line, which was an instant hit and again picked up by top retailers including BARNEY'S, BERGDORF GOODMAN, NORDSTROMS and HENRI BENDEL.
Tony then merged his vision and collection with BILLY REID. As Creative Director, he authored narratives, design ethos, branding strategies, and put together an incredible team. Within the first six months of operations Tony and his team brought both his own label and Billy's to prominence capping off the year when Billy won the...
CFDA 2001 - Perry Ellis Menswear Designer Award.
Tony returned to vertical retail as Director of Men's at CLUB MONACO and later as VP of the Design at IC ISAACS, a denim based licensing company for Catherine Malandrino and Marithe & Francois Girbaud. Tapped as VP of Design Tony Partnered with Liz Claiborne and Isaac Mizrahi to successfully merge Mizrahi’s vision for LC and his designs in a collection that was distributed worldwide through major department stores and retailers.
In 2010 Tony went on to be Creative Director and launched SHAE a contemporary knitwear brand having instant success with retailers such as BLOOMINGDALES, INTERMIX, and ANTHROPOLOGIE, and press: Elle, The Cut, W and Glamour to name a few. He championed new sustainable resources, circular material up cycling and traceability in the every step of the production cycle.
In 2015 Tony started his own consulting firm, TONY SMITH. Clients include DURING NY a women's concept knitwear capsule and Tyler Boe Men’s Collection. Tyler Boe Men's launched in 2020 quickly gaining traction with menswear specialty retailers throughout the US. Tony is also actively creating a new circular concept bringing his talents to sustainable innovation through renewable materials/production for apparel, home and food.
Other work:
Kate Spade, Beams Japan, Takashimaya NY and Japan, Shahid & Co NY, Bergdorf Goodman NY, Kelly Klein, Etienne Aigner NY, Sanyo Japan, Kent State University ( Senior Portfolio Reviews )
Visual portfolios available at tsmithnyc.com - email contact smithaesny@gmail.com