Diane von Furstenberg

Diane von Furstenberg was born December 31, 1946 in Belgium; her birth name was Diane Simone Michelle Halfin. She was born to Jewish parents Leon and Liliane Halfin, and her childhood was comfortable despite her mother's having survived a Nazi concentration camp. Thanks to her parents, Furstenberg was provided with the ambition and self confidence needed to make her one of the most successful designers in the world. She attended schools in Britain, Spain and Switzerland, and went to the University of Madrid in 1965. Transferring to the University of Geneva a year later, she majored in economics. While at the University of Geneva, Diane met Prince Eduard Egon von Furstenburg, who inherited the Fiat empire. The two were married in Paris in July 1969, and she designed her own wedding dress.

Diane von FurstenbergHer first designs were commercially acclaimed, but her marriage was a failure. Because of this, Von Furstenberg vowed to become financially self-sufficient, and because she had scant experience in the large-scale production of clothing, she worked with other manufacturers at first. However, in April 1972, she went into business with herself. With the assistance of her friend Richard Conrad, and with monetary help from her father, she opened a showroom on New York City's Seventh Avenue. Her most successful design from that line was the wrap dress; after just a few months, her company's sales exceeded one million dollars. She divorced the prince in 1983, keeping custody of their children Tatiana and Alexandre.

Von Furstenberg has a great understanding of economics and design, and with that, she built onto her fashion line for a few years after her showroom opened. Furs, jewelry, sunglasses, scarves and shoes were added to her collection; later there was a line of cosmetics that included a fragrance named after her daughter. Later years saw her branch out into the housewares section with bath towels, home accessories, and linens. Her statuesque good looks and her career have kept her in the spotlight, as has her 1977 book. She is also popular because she appeals to the average working woman, but has a luxurious side to her fashions as well.