Miuccia Prada

Miuccia Prada

Do you recognize the last name of my hero?
If you do, you`re right. She is the owner of Prada Factory.
I admire Prada because her job. I think Prada is one of the most powerful brands on this planet.

Miuccia Prada's grandfather, Mario, founded the family luxury leather goods company in Milan in 1913. Mario's grandaughter, Miuccia Prada, was born in 1949.

"In 1978, a reluctant Miuccia assumed the reins from her mother, after completing a PhD in Political Science. After she finished her university, she entered the family business in 1978 and soon revolutionized the appearance of its products.

She was an unlikely successor, having spent the last five years studying and performing mime at Milan's Teatro Piccolo, being a paid-up member of the Communist party and champion of women's rights in Seventies' Milan. But she soon proved her worth. In 1985, she designed a new line of black, unlabelled, hard-wearing, but finely-woven nylon handbags that immediately became must-haves for the fashion cognoscenti, seen hanging off the arm of the likes of Jerry Hall and Marie Helvin. With retail prices starting at around £250, a bootlegging industry quickly sprang up, making the authentic articles even more desirable. More importantly, Prada bags were established as the accessory of choice for supermodels and fashion editors the world over."

Imagine this: in one year, Prada's total sales of Prada products were reported to be 270 billion Lira ($167 million). In 1996, total sales were 456 billion Lira ($296 million). This figure is expected to rise by 50% to 732 billion Lira in 1997 ($475 million). How cool is that?

I also think that she always comes with creativity. She always brings some fresh air to the fashion industry. "Her interest in unusual fabrics led to the distinctive trademark of Prada products: the surprising combination of materials." And what's more fun than that? It's what fashion all about.