Badgley
Mischka is a design team of James Mischka born 1960 in Burlington,
Wisconsin, USA and Mark Badgley born 1961 East St. Louis,
Illinois, USA. They met when they both enrolled in 1982 at
Parsons School of Design in New York. After graduation and
separate apprenticeships Badgley with Donna Karan and Mischka
with Willi Smith, the pair formed their own company in 1985.
Their showroom was in the Hells Kitchen district of Manhattan.
It was up an old staircase and got crosswinds which often
blew the gowns across the car park. In 1992 however, they
managed to get financing from the German company of ESCADA.
In 2001, Escada launched a cost-cutting initiative which
did help the company to show a profit on sales of $ 40
million.
They decided to specialize in evening wear and now stars
and celebrities are clamouring for their unique brand of
elegance, particularly for Oscar night. To the 1998 Oscar
show, Wynona Ryder wore one of their gowns. Their 1987
show attracted buyers from major departmental stores who
were drawn to their elegant, contemporary versions of classic
designs.
In 1989, they won the Mouton Cadet Young Designer Award,
and in 1992, the Dallas International Apparel Rising Star
Award.
In recent years they have attracted a Hollywood clientele
for the Decollete Cocktail dresses and tunics encrusted
with beads as well as off the shoulder bridal gowns made
of ivory lace and silk crepe. Their clientele includes
Bridge Fonda, Winona Ryder, Teri Hatcher, Sharon Stone,
Andie McDowell, Whitney Houston, Madonna, and Jodie Foster.
Since 1992, their house has been financed by Escada, USA.
As part of the campaign to Aid Breast Cancer Research,
more than 70 designers took part and made in-store appearances.
Most of these have stores in New York's 5th Avenue. Badgley
Mischka created a beaded bag which went on sale in Autumn
1999, with a percentage of the proceeds going to this charity.
It has turned out to be a 'MUST HAVE' bag for customers.
When Mark Badgley and James Mischka set out to make a
beautiful evening gown, they look to glamour icons like
Rita Hayworth and Marilyn Monroe for inspiration. This
rang loud and true at their Spring 2002 Bridal collection,
shown at their New York showroom.
Spring/Summer 2003 Ready-to-Wear
Badgley Mischka showed the Spring/Summer 2003 collection
at the New York Fashion Week in September 2002.
Autumn/Winter 2003 Ready-to-Wear
New York - February 2003
Badgley and Mischka are a pair of evening-wear geniuses
who showed their latest range of richly embroidered and
bead-encrusted gowns, with spaghetti straps and sexy curves.
Many of these will be worn on Oscar night. One particularly
beautiful gown was a satin sleeveless column in brown and
gold pattern.
Oscar Night 2003
On Oscar Night in March 2003, among the celebrities
on the red carpet, were two ladies in beautiful Badgley
Mishka gowns.
Spring/Summer 2004
Badgley and Mischka collection for this season was
shown during New York Fashion Week in September 2003. A
dress from the show is shown here on the left. This is
only one of a very few day dresses, most of the rest were
evening gowns.
They were inspired by Maggie, the character played by Elizabeth Taylor in "Cat
on a Hot Tin Roof".
The fashion duo produced a run of sexy strapless dresses which glimmered
with a million sparkling beads, sequins and pearls. They have set their sights
on celebrities wearing their gowns at all of the red carpet events next Spring,
such as the Oscars and the Emmys.
Fall/Winter 2004
The Fall collection was shown during New York Fashion
Week in February 2004. The duo passionately embellished
yards of luxurious fabric resulting into a collection of
amazing dresses glittering with Swarovski crystals and
tailor-made for the Oscars as always.
Last year Mark Badgley and James Mishka put their company up for sale as
they were unhappy with Escada's tight financial controls, which failed to fund
the materials they require. This year, in July 2004, the duo have announced
that they would not be showing a collection for Spring/Summer 2004 at the New
York Fashion Week in September, since they just could not afford to do so.
They will however be producing a bridal collection in cooperation with Pronovias
USA who have been handling their bridal orders for the last seven years.
