Women as designers have challenged beauty norms for decades. Women’s Wear Daily continues to honor those contributions over its 115 years of covering the fashion industry. Each year, taking a poignant look back during Women’s History Month allows us to celebrate their impact.
Betsey Johnson had a single prescription for fashion: fun. Her platinum, Raggedy Ann-style hair extensions, tulle tutus and signature runway finale cartwheel defined her look for decades. If she showed up any other way, even the strictest fashion critic wouldn’t accept it.
Betsey Johnson spring 1988, New York. Betsey Johnson fall 1999, New York.
Fairchild Archive/WWD
WWD followed her from the beginning, chronicling her rise as the “youthquake” movement took the fashion on a wild ride. Johnson’s bold, fun, affordable designs were perfect for young women and their friends — just as she wanted them to be. She designed what she wanted and attracted the young, hip crowd, including models and musicians who shared her bold and boundless approach to self-expression.
Betsey Johnson’s spring 2008 show, New York City. George Chinsee/WWD
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It all began in 1965, when Johnson landed her first design role and label at Paraphernalia, one of Britain’s hippest boutiques. From there, she designed for Alley Cat, freelanced, and then went out on her own. She opened the boutique, Betsey, Bunki, Nini, in the 1980s, dressed everyone from Madonna to Amy Winehouse, and, along with her business partner Chantal Bacon, built the Betsey Johnson collection, dressing prom-goers for decades.
Betsey Johnson spring 2011 runway finale, New York. Giovanni Giannoni/WWD
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Accolades, including a Coty Award and the Council of Fashion Designers of America “Timeless Talent” prize, and a multicategory lifestyle brand, have kept her quirky, kitsch, colorful anti-Seventh Avenue style at the forefront of fashion.
Through her resilience — including surviving cancer — Johnson story and decades of influence are fashion legend.
In celebration of Women’s History Month, we’re taking a look back at fashion’s colorful, ageless, punk princess through iconic runway looks and WWD’s exclusive collection previews from the Fairchild Archive.