Ed Filipowski
PR man to luxury fashion houses who was low-profile but ‘at the centre of absolutely everything’
ED FILIPOWSKI, who has died in New York aged 58, was regarded as the leading public relations executive in the luxury fashion business and a central figure in its development and growth over the past three decades.
In an industry rarely associated with such virtues, Filipowski’s success was ascribed not merely to impeccable judgment and strategic acumen, but also to his being straightforward, honest and kind, especially to those at a low ebb. This brought him clients such as Yves Saint Laurent, Tom Ford, Gianni Versace and Marc Jacobs, with many designers remaining loyal to his KCD agency for years.
Dressed more like a banker in a navy blazer or dark suit and blackrimmed glasses, he maintained a low profile despite being, as Anna Wintour, editor of Vogue, observed, “at the centre of absolutely everything”.
In 1985, while starting out in PR in New York, he read that Kezia Keeble was representing a fashionable boutique, Charivari. Credited with discovering the photographers Steven Meisel and Bruce Weber, she had founded KCD with Paul Cavaco and John Duka (having divorced the former to marry the latter). Filipowski sent her a Charivari bag with a congratulatory message and some freesias.
They happened to be her favourite flowers and she asked him to come and see her. Three weeks later, now the head of KCD’S new PR department, Filipowski found himself flying to Milan and Paris for the fashion shows.
When Duka died of Aids in 1989 and then Kezia Keeble of cancer the following year, Filipowski informally inherited the business with Julie Mannion, this being confirmed when Cavaco returned to the magazine world soon after. The two co-owners adopted a policy of “wait-and-see” towards growth, with Filipowski looking after PR and Julie Mannion organising fashion shows.
The first key designer they represented was Gianni Versace. Filipowski scored a coup by getting his clothes (worn by Claudia Schiffer) on to the cover of Time magazine in 1995, beating Chanel to deliver samples to the shoot. Thereafter he was a witness to the globalisation of the industry, its increasing coalescence with the entertainment business and the impact of digitisation and blogging.
“Somewhere I learnt to never talk about the past as if it should exist again,” Filipowski said. “I thought that was very wise advice. Just keep talking about going forward.”
Much of this development he helped to orchestrate, with KCD producing headline-making events. These included Alexander Mcqueen’s show in Manhattan in 2000, when the designer dropped his trousers to reveal stars-and-stripes boxer shorts.
The agency organised Elton John’s 60th birthday gala in Harlem, John Galliano’s return to fashion with Maison Margiela in 2015 and the Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards – the industry’s Oscars. Clients came to include Gucci, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Balmain, Tory Burch, Victoria Beckham and Misha Nonoo. Filipowski’s own favourite was Helmut Lang.
Fashion became, he remarked, a more sophisticated and rigorous world. “The divas are gone!” he said, thankfully. He recalled how there had been “a lot of dramatic, pushy, power-crazed editors … There is no room for that kind of behaviour.” Even so, he revealed in 2015 that his No 1 rule at fashion shows remained: “Find out where Anna Wintour is sitting.”
Edwin John Filipowski was born to Polish parents near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on June 27 1961. His father was a steelworker while his mother worked at JC Penney, the chain store.
He was bullied at high school for not fitting in but began to write a column for the local paper and went on to Northwestern University to study journalism. Deciding that his future did not lie in the media, he flew to New York with $200 and lived off pizza until he found a job in an advertising agency. From there he moved into PR.
“We have two clients here,” Filipowski said of the skills required in his work, “the designer or the fashion house, and the media. Our job is to take care of both, not one or the other. The bottom line is knowing what a good story is and the right place for it.”
Ed Filipowski died from complications of surgery. In 2015 he married Mark Lee, the former CEO of Gucci, who had been his partner since 1992. They were divorced in 2018.