In one of Kate Spade‘s last interviews, the fashion designer is seen laughing and joking with her husband and business partner, Andy Spade.
Spade appeared in a video posted on the website for her label, Frances Valentine, filmed by Simon Hacker. At the beginning, Spade jokes about not being sure when to start and where to look during the interview with her husband.
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Once the jokes are over, Spade takes viewers on a brief tour of the Frances Valentine showroom as she also gives an overview of her career.
Spade and her husband launched Kate Spade New York in 1993, and later sold it in 2006 to Neiman Marcus Group so the couple could spend time with their daughter, Frances Beatrix Spade. In 2016, the couple launched the new brand, Frances Valentine.
“The big difference between what I’m doing [now] and what I did at Kate Spade,” Spade said in the clip. “Our customer is someone who has a very personal sense of style and really buying what they like. I think that’s always who I’ve spoken to and I think that’s who’s always been attracted to my designs.”
Spade said she finds inspiration everywhere, including every day life. She did not go looking for inspiration, it just comes at her by surprise.
Spade also told her husband the best and most challenging part of the brand was the same. “Working with friends and family,” she said with a laugh.
One of the last Frances Valentine collections before Spade’s death was heavily influenced by a family vacation to Marrackesh, Morocco. She shared photos from the trip, taken by Andy Spade. The influence of the trip showed in the spring 2017 Frances Valentine collection.
Spade, 55, was found dead from an apparent suicide in her Manhattan apartment on Tuesday. Spade is survived by her husband and their 13-year-old daughter. At the time of her death, the couple was living apart.
In a statement released Wednesday, Andy Spade confirmed that his wife suffered from depression and anxiety, and was seeking treatment. Although they were not living together, Andy Spade said he spoke with her the night before her death.
“Kate was the most beautiful woman in the world. She was the kindest person I’ve ever known and my best friend for 35 years,” Andy Spade said in a statement. “My daughter and I are devastated by her loss, and can’t even begin to fathom life without her. We are deeply heartbroken and miss her already.”
Her father, Earl “Frank” Brosnahan, told the Kansas City Star he pleaded with his daughter to stop taking pills in a recent conversation. He said he hopes her body can be flown back to Kansas City so his daughter can be buried next to her mother.
If you or someone you know needs help, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
Photo credit: Frances Valentine
