An interview with Israeli-American Fashion Icon and Mogul Elie Tahari

I recently had the honor of interviewing a man that I admire and respect so much and that person is none other than Elie Tahari. Elie is a renowned Israeli-American fashion designer and entrepreneur who built a billion-dollar fashion empire after moving to New York in 1971 with less than $100. He is the founder of his eponymous luxury label, Elie Tahari, and a co-founder of the popular brand Theory. The brand is celebrated for its sophisticated ready-to-wear collections, particularly its tailoring and workwear. Elie shifted his focus to tailored apparel, becoming one of the first designers to introduce clean, elegant tailored suits for professional women before other major luxury houses popularized the trend and formed his first major luxury department store alliance with Bloomingdale’s in 1989, expanding his brand’s footprint across premium US retail.

Some of the awards and milestones that Elie achieved include being honored by New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who declared September 4, 2013, as “Elie Tahari Day” to commemorate his 40th anniversary in fashion, his receiving of the prestigious Ellis Island Medal of Honor and the Brand Vision Award from Fashion Group International, his Company reaching a massive milestone in 2019 when his direct and licensed product sales officially hit $1 billion globally and most recently this past May when he received a lifetime achievement award from Hatzalah YS (Rescuers without Borders). But with all of these great accomplishments, what I most admire about Elie Tahari is his love for Israel and the Jewish people. I spoke to him this past Friday about his fascinating and unique life story and what matters most to him.

I would tell them to do something with your life that you enjoy, always enjoy what you do and you will be successful automatically. When I first came to New York, I stayed 2 blocks from where I now live in Manhattan at the YMCA for a few nights and then ran out of money, put my backpack in the Gym and slept in Central Park. The Building Highrise that I live in now wasn’t here then and it was open land and a garage where I would wash cars. From there, I went to stay in a shelter and I heard two guys speaking Hebrew (they were working in the Village outside of the shelter). I went to them and I spoke to them (they are still my friends until today) and they asked “where are you staying?” I said in the shelter and they said “no, you are not staying in the shelter you are coming with us.” They took me to Queens and I got a job selling clothes in a Boutique where they used to work and the rest is history.

I would say to them that this Country is still the best and is not as bad as Europe, in Europe it’s terrible. Then I would say to them to continue your life the same way, don’t pay attention to any of this and it will get better and better, the truth always wins. The truth is that there are people that hate us and they will always hate us and there is nothing we can do about it. We have to continue our life the same way as it was before.

My parents used to have a fabric store in Tehran and the Muslims put it on fire. At that time, EL-AL used to have flights after midnight (that was permitted by the Shah) to come to Israel for free, in which it was American money subsidizing it. So we took the plane and went to Israel and then we went to Jerusalem to Ma’abarot and I was born in a tent and I appreciate that and went on from there to Hadassah which is an American Hospital. From there, I came to New York and went to an orphanage. When I left the orphanage, I went to the military Air Force in Israel and when I finished the Military I went to New York. I consider myself lucky to have grown up as an American boy because the orphanage was subsidized by American money. So all my life I was an American boy and I was lucky to be an American boy, lucky to be in America and that is why this Country means everything to me.

It meant a lot and was a very emotional experience because I had to talk about the wounded soldiers in Israel that I sent clothing to, including the wounded women. I have several Businesses but that specific line of Business with the clothing dedicates 100% of the profits to the soldiers. I got very emotional talking about the soldiers, some of them send me videos after they receive the clothes. Some of them film themself in the dark because they have missing eyes, hands, legs and other limbs and it’s very sad to see them. I appreciate it, but it’s very emotional for me to see them and watch them. That’s why I got very emotional and it still stays with me all the time. We have a saying in Hebrew  “Kol Yisrael Arevim Zeh Bazeh” which is a fundamental Jewish principle translating to “All of Israel are responsible for one another”. Rooted in the Talmud, it establishes a deep theological and social bond, meaning that every Jewish person is a guarantor for the spiritual and physical well-being of the entire community. I believe that helping our brave and courageous soldiers is the embodiment of this precious message and we should all take it upon ourselves to help one another.