Photo: Getty Images
She's kept the brand alive.
By Bernadette Giacomazzo — Written on Jun 08, 2019
When Kate Spade took her own life last year, everyone in the fashion world thought that her eponymous brand would be forever destroyed. But thanks to the work of her best friend and business partner, the Kate Spade fashion brand is thriving. Who is Elyce Arons?
One year to the day after Kate Spade took her own life, Elyce Arons penned a heartfelt letter to her best friend and business partner, whose business she took over after her unfortunate suicide. In the letter, Arons spoke lovingly about her longtime collaborator, and promised to honor her memory in the best way she knew how.
Here’s what else we know about this strong, powerful woman.
1. They’d known each other since college
According to People Magazine, who’d published Elyce’s open letter to her late friend and business partner, the duo had known each other since they were both in college. Elyce revealed that both were journalism students at the University of Kansas, and that they were interested in starting a business together after they’d bonded over shared tragedies.
“It’s difficult to talk about a loved one who’s taken their life, and hard not to be angry with my friend who has left me so heartbroken. I am constantly thinking of her family and think of her every day. I hope that anyone reading this who needs help will know that loved ones are there for them, I pray that they will seek that help. Most of all, I hope that people will remember Katy, the best friend that anyone could ever dream of having — the funny, intelligent, sweet, sophisticated, whimsical, gracious woman I knew,” she wrote.
Elyce Arons took over the company after Kate Spade passed away.
2. Kate Spade’s husband also posted a similar heartfelt letter to his late wife
Elyce Arons isn’t the only one missing Kate Spade. According to Yahoo, Kate’s husband Andy posted a similar heartfelt letter to his late wife, calling her “his favorite poem.”
“You were my best friend, my confidant, my partner in life, business and mischief. The ying to my yang and the zig to my zag. We played ping pong with ideas. Our shared passion for The Golden Rule, Kipling’s “If,” Strunk and White, Atticus Finch and millions of other things bound us together like superglue. You were and still are my Superwoman... You were and still are my favorite poem,” he said.
3. Kate Spade suffered from depression and anxiety
In a different report for People Magazine, it was revealed that Kate Spade had suffered with severe bouts of depression and anxiety for many years before taking her own life. And it was a struggle that she didn’t talk about very much — even with her closest friends, like Elyce Arons. “Kate suffered from depression and anxiety for many years. She was actively seeking help and working closely with her doctors to treat her disease, one that takes far too many lives. We were in touch with her the night before and she sounded happy,” wrote People.
4. Even though she’s gone, her memory lives on in the company she’d founded
According to the Wall Street Journal, even though Kate Spade is gone, her memory lives on in the company she’d founded. The question “what would Kate Spade do?” is asked by every employee every time they go to work, and each employee strives to be kind, generous, and creative — just as Kate Spade was.
Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, and photographer whose work has appeared in People, Teen Vogue, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, and more. She is also the author of The Uprising series. Find her online at www.bernadettegiacomazzo.com and www.longlivetheuprising.com.