{"id":379338,"date":"2026-10-22T05:34:26","date_gmt":"2026-10-22T05:34:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/379338\/"},"modified":"2026-10-22T05:34:26","modified_gmt":"2026-10-22T05:34:26","slug":"for-45-years-nicole-miller-has-been-nycs-secret-style-weapon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/379338\/","title":{"rendered":"For 45 Years, Nicole Miller has been NYC’s secret style weapon"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nearly 45 years after starting her fashion brand in the garment district, Nicole Miller<\/a> is still all-in on New York.<\/p>\n

Four days a week, the designer treks from her Tribeca apartment to her Seventh Avenue office building \u2014 the same one where she built her fashion collection<\/a> nearly 45 years ago.<\/p>\n

Under Miller\u2019s influence, New Yorkers began grabbing up the \u201cboho chic<\/a>\u201d staples \u2014 hobo bags, wide-leg jeans, velvet slip dresses, and romantic, billowing blouses \u2014 that still influence American style<\/a> today.<\/p>\n

Nicole Miller in her Seventh Avenue showroom. Courtesy Nicole Miller Archives<\/p>\n

But before Miller built a brand worth nearly $700 million or dressed celebrities like Angelina Jolie<\/a> and Beyonc\u00e9, she was like many high schoolers: making her clothes on a sewing machine at home in the Berkshires.<\/p>\n

That led to studying at the Rhode Island School of Design<\/a>, where classmates included future bohemian icons like David Byrne and Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads. After graduating in 1973, Miller beelined it to New York City.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhere else would you go?\u201d she asked \u2014 or score a one-bedroom Upper East Side apartment for $240 a month? (Fourth-floor walkups in the neighborhood now run about $3,500.)<\/p>\n

Off-hours were spent at Studio 54, Max\u2019s Kansas City, roller-skating at The Roxy, and attending Andy Warhol\u2019s<\/a> blind-date dinners at The Odeon, where everyone brought a blind date for someone else. Miller became part of that artistic downtown scene through her college friends, meeting the pop art king through photographer Paige Powell.<\/p>\n

After early gigs as a design assistant, Miller joined the New York dress company P.J. Walsh, where she first met Bud Konheim, a brutally frank and fast-talking executive. <\/p>\n

Though Miller was generally soft-spoken and relaxed, she found they made a good business pair, and in 1982, the duo quit their jobs to launch her namesake company. Konheim scraped together $100,000 from family and friends, and Miller pitched in $15,000 from her personal savings<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Naomi Campbell in an early Nicole Miller look on the catwalk in 1992. Courtesy Nicole Miller Archives<\/p>\n

The risk was worth it: The brand struck gold in its first year with an easy-to-wear<\/a> dress that flattered the body by draping easily across the waist, appearing almost belted at the hips. Her knack for making women feel relaxed but glamorous took off, and she racked up $5 million in sales in the first year.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Miller was hitting the town with friends Jay McInerney, author of Bright Lights, Big City, and Balthazar restaurateur Keith McNally<\/a>. As for how she met her longtime friend Candace Bushnell, author of Sex and the City?<\/p>\n

\u201cWell,\u201d Miller said, \u201cCandace used to date my husband.\u201d<\/p>\n

All in all, \u201cIt was just fun. Everybody was drinking too much,\u201d she said. \u201cThere were always some new trendy restaurants in New York. We were at The Odeon<\/a> all the time along with the whole art world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Being in such creative company fueled Miller\u2019s own vision, and after her first hit dress<\/a> became a magnet for cheap knockoffs, she imagined something new: designer ties for both men and women.<\/p>\n

Nicole Miller\u2019s original ties from 1996. Courtesy Nicole Miller Archives<\/p>\n

They took off in the late 1980s, when a security guard in Miller\u2019s former Madison Avenue store wore a tie printed with ticket stubs to his night job at the Metropolitan Opera. A Met staffer noticed the flashy neckwear, and the historic music hub soon placed a hefty order for its gift shop.<\/p>\n

Within two years, Miller\u2019s novelty neckties became a $12 million business, with brands like Frito Lay and Veuve Clicquot wanting to collaborate. \u201cIn the beginning, nobody was territorial about their logos,\u201d Miller said. \u201cBut with the candy tie\u201d \u2014 a bestselling design featuring chocolate snacks hand-drawn by Miller and her team on silk \u2014 \u201cwe had M&M\u2019s, Hershey\u2019s, Nestl\u00e9, and Mars. They were like, \u2018Thank you for making us a tie, but next time don\u2019t put us with our competitors.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Miller\u2019s booming tie business unexpectedly led to love. After a meeting with Absolut about their own custom cravats, one executive cajoled Miller into making her first-ever wedding gown<\/a> for his friend, along with a series of bridesmaid dresses.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t say no because it was Absolut Vodka,\u201d Miller said with a laugh. At the wedding, she met her husband, Kim Taipale, a former investment banker and lawyer. They married in 1996, with former Mayor Rudy Giuliani officiating at City Hall. \u201cWe had Champagne and caviar afterward,\u201d she said. \u201cHe was such a good mayor, and now he\u2019s gotten so weird.\u201d<\/p>\n

When wedding trends loosened up, the designer started offering some of her evening dresses in white. Then shoppers started asking for some of her cocktail dresses for bridesmaids, so she whipped up a bridesmaid dress line. \u201cWe kept getting asked to do these things. It happened spontaneously,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Christy Turlington in Miller\u2019s famous \u201cbaseball dress\u201d circa 1992. Courtesy Nicole Miller Archives<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the tie revenue allowed her to spend more on runway shows and cast major 1990s supermodels like Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, and Linda Evangelista, turning the media spotlight on the designer.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey were very serious about their profession. And they were always really nice. It\u2019s funny, because some of the second-tier models were always a little attitude-y,\u201d she said. (Ever the professional, Miller declined to name names, but did share that Tyra Banks<\/a> was \u201cone of the nicest models ever.\u201d)<\/p>\n

The supermodels\u2019 Midas effect led to some celebrity dressing and wardrobing for movies and TV. Cardi B, Angelina Jolie, Kim Kardashian, Brad Pitt, and Kim Cattrall have worn the label.<\/p>\n

The designer got famous enough to make her own Barbie doll<\/a>, along with a luxe collection for The Price Is Right contestants. She\u2019s also served as a judge for the Miss USA and Miss Universe pageants.<\/p>\n

But in 2022, three years after her partner Konheim\u2019s death, Miller decided it was time to take back some of her time. She sold a majority stake in the business and set up licenses for furniture, kitchenware, and beauty products. You probably have a Nicole Miller umbrella somewhere in your apartment.<\/p>\n

Miller\u2019s new campaign was shot across the city. Jeremy Choh<\/p>\n

But Miller soon realized she couldn\u2019t avoid the style spotlight entirely.<\/p>\n

In 2024, she started selling a new collection on QVC. A few times each month, she and her son Palmer Taipale, who works as her brand\u2019s senior e-commerce and marketplace associate, go live on-air to front the label.<\/p>\n

Sometimes, they even beam into their livestream from Miller\u2019s Seventh Avenue showroom.<\/p>\n

Nicole Miller\u2019s brand turns 45 next year, but the designer is getting a jump on the milestone. <\/p>\n

Today, she unveils a signature collection for the first time in three years. Some styles riff on old favorites \u2014 there are taxi cab prints and a strapless bandage dress made with the designer\u2019s novelty neckties. <\/p>\n

The designer has even reimagined her famous \u201cbaseball dress,\u201d a sporty white tank dress with red stitching worn by Geena Davis to the 1992 premiere of \u201cA League of Their Own.\u201d The new version is longer, with sequins.<\/p>\n

The collection marks Miller\u2019s 45th year in the business. Jeremy Choh<\/p>\n

And Miller continues to feed off the city\u2019s energy. She and her husband live in a 3,100-square-foot apartment that used to be three separate spaces \u2014 including the original apartment where she used to roller-skate around her living room on weekends. Their son also lives in the building.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s just so much to be inspired by here, just walking around all of the different neighborhoods. If you\u2019re a theater buff, you can go to the theater, or go to concerts and all kinds of things,\u201d she said, continuing to scout new haunts. (Current favorites include Wild Cherry at A24\u2019s Cherry Lane Theatre and Patsy\u2019s Pizzeria in Harlem.)<\/p>\n

Miller\u2019s hard, enterprising work has also earned her a Sag Harbor<\/a> manse, where the designer likes to waterski in the summer. She only recently stopped wakeboarding. (\u201cIf you wipe out, you wipe out hard,\u201d she explained.) Friends include Countess Luann de Lesseps and Dexter producer Sara Colleton.<\/p>\n

As for the company she\u2019s built, Miller said, \u201cI just look at it as, I\u2019m still having a good time, and I\u2019m enjoying what I\u2019m doing.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nearly 45 years after starting her fashion brand in the garment district, Nicole Miller is still all-in on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":379339,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[139248,3741,17479,232,29965,9,139249,56,63,65,64,1540,3098],"class_list":["post-379338","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-christy-turlington","tag-fashion-beauty","tag-fashion-designers","tag-lifestyle","tag-naomi-campbell","tag-new-york","tag-nicole-miller","tag-ny","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-headlines","tag-nyc-news","tag-tyra-banks","tag-womens-fashion"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379338","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=379338"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/379338\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/379339"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=379338"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=379338"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=379338"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}