I am so honored to be part of an amazing new book by Karen Sands, titled “Visionaries have Wrinkles.” Below is a short excerpt. Pick up a copy here to read more.


“Karen Sands: Tell me about the philosophy behind your business. What moves your designs?
Josie Cruz Natori: I believe today that women, more than ever, are really feeling more confident. You want to express yourself, and so in fashion, you don’t feel like you have to dress a certain way anymore. When you really look at all the trends in lingerie, which is really crazy, like, who dresses like that? [Laughs] But it’s really sort of like a sociological thing, where women are just saying, I can be sexy twenty-four hours a day. It’s more an affirmation of their independence.”


-Josie

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Wednesday, May 9, 2012

I had such an amazing evening at the Ochestra of St. Luke’s Gala. A truly magical night with an all Mozart program… It was a complete lovefest with my best friend Georgie Frasch and David Monn, both of whom have transformed OSL. I am forever grateful to all my friends that supported the event– we raised almost a million dollars!


-Josie

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Tuesday, April 24, 2012

I spent a special evening at a dinner honoring the one and only Bill Cunningham held by Carnegie Hall last night! What a great idea to honor such a remarkanble fashion figure. How amazing that they raised $1.5 million in honor of Bill! I was thrilled to be there to support a very special person.


-Josie

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Friday, March 23, 2012

It was a very special night to finally showcase the work of 21 amazing Filipino designers during Manila Night on March 14 with the launch of ManilaWear. The venue was so magical, courtesy of the brilliant artist Gino Gonzales. Thanks to Inno Sotto (the Prince of Filipino designers!), the production of the night’s presentation with over 60 models was brilliant….representing 10 designers plus a special setting showing the accessories of 10 other designers! I am the biggest fan of Filipino creativity and was so proud to be able to give a helping hand to make ManilaWear a reality!


We only have just begun and I look forward to collaborating further to develop this concept into a global brand!


-Josie

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Monday, March 19, 2012

I could not imagine a cooler way to celebrate the opening of our first signature Josie shop in Rustan’s in Manila. The amazing party in a very cool home with a very cool group of hip fashionable Manila socialites complete with live music courtesy of Bea Tantoco (dressed in a Josie slip as a dress)! It was a dream to be able to express the Josie lifestyle not only with models but on real people such as our four Josie muses. What fun it was to see the crowd connect with the concept and practically clean out the stock brought in for the event! Thank you to the team at Rustan’s for making this wonderful event happen!


-Josie

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Monday, February 13, 2012

An amazing exhibit opened this week at the FIT Museum that celebrates the last five decades of the Council of Fashion Designers of America. It is so inspiring and compelling to see every designer’s work that exemplifies his or her impact on the fashion industry. My choice for our impactful piece was easy—a stunning embroidered black and white kimono that’s elegant enough for a black tie affair! It embodies the east meets west aesthetic of our brand and the philosophy of clothing that has no boundaries!


-Josie

With Joyce Brown, the President of the FIT

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Sunday, February 12, 2012

I will confess this Valentine’s Day will be a first for me—not having my most loving hubby with me (he will spend it with my parents in the Philippines). Valentine’s Day to me is a day of remembering people you love….I am a romantic at heart so this day has always been special! At the very least, let your loved ones know you love them! Of course, giving a gift, however small, is special. We have always focused on creating special Natori Valentine’s Day gifts, whether it is lacey lingerie, alluring fragrance, or luxurious pieces for your home!


Happy Valentine’s Day!


-Josie

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Wednesday, December 28, 2011

This year I will be in Manila whooping it up with my 87 and 92 year old parents and my husband Ken! We also have friends from Tokyo visiting and cooking on New Years day, which is the Japanese tradition. I will for sure watch the ball drop at Times Square 12 hours later! Happy New Year!

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Monday, December 5, 2011

The opening of two new Natori boutiques at Rustan’s in Manila (like we did at Saks) was a thrill for me personally. Although the boutique was meant primarily for lingerie, we decided to have a trunk show of our ready-to-wear and our couture caftans to test the waters! Bingo—the ladies scooped up all the caftans plus they begged to buy the ready-to-wear samples for weddings and parties they would attend the same week. I could not help but indulge everyone to what they wanted plus so many special orders! Manila women love love to shop and love to dress up…my kind of lady!! And in addition they were scooping up the jewelry samples we had for the show as well!
Definitely no recession in Manila… I can’t wait to go back. I had a great time selling in this fabulous new boutique designed by my good friend Maja Olivares Co! Now, a new ready-to-wear boutique is slated to open in three months!!


-Josie

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Wednesday, November 23, 2011

We are sad not be with our son, Kenneth, daughter-in-law Anika and our adorable grandson Cruzzie for Thanksgiving… 12,000 miles away in Manila, my husband Ken and I will try to simulate the holiday (even though it doesn’t exist here) with my family. We are cooking turkey as well as duck and poached salmon. Luckily we found a gourmet store that is one of the few places to have turkey and brussel sprouts! It will be different, but in a way it is wonderful to be with my 92 year old father who has survived a difficult year of battling pneumonia and my 87 year old mother who is as energetic as a 60 year old!


-Josie

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