Industry: Retail
What do Paris Hilton, Amanda Bynes, Mischa Barton and Fergie have in common? KanDi Designs! A fashion design student at Parsons School of Design, and former art student at Cornell University, Dani Kates has always loved designing and creating. She has always believed that if you truly have a passion for what you create then the result will be a success.
As a fashion student, she had no intentions of starting her own jewelry business, or at least until she had finished school. While eating a candy necklace one day, she found herself thinking about ways she could make a candy necklace into something special that she could wear everyday. This idea evolved into a summer goal that included a diamond pendant and beads that looked like candy. The finished product created such a buzz that she had over 20 requests immediately. She decided to go with this idea and see how far she could take it. KanDi Designs was officially created. KanDi Designs' aesthetic has shaped the basis for the designers philosophy; whimsical yet chic, playful yet sophisticated, nostalgic yet innovative. The overwhelming response to her candy necklaces led to the design of an entire line of fashion-smart swimwear, KanDi Swim.
While Dani launched a KanDi Designs website quickly to support her growing business, she soon realized that the site did not reflect her design essence, and that a separate site would be needed for the KanDi Swim product line. She also realized that KanDiSwim would have to be supported by a far more professional site that incorporated solid business tactics for the next phase of KanDi Designs. But Dani had some pressing issues. First, a major trade event that would introduce her entire line to the world was approaching fast.