Fashion design influencer Joan Kors, mother of designer Michael Kors, died peacefully of heart failure at her Los Angeles home Aug. 5. She was 84.
Her son confirmed her death in an obituary published by The New York Times. Joan worked as the brand ambassador of Michael Kors’ fashions. She personally attended his runway shows and fashion events, and was highly esteemed as the influence behind the Michael Kors brand.
“My mother was an iconoclast in so many ways,” Michael wrote in the obituary. “She was strong and independent and definitely forged her own path. She raised me as a single mom and her life ran the gamut from young fashion model to athlete to home furnishings designer.”
A private funeral and burial will be held for Joan Kors, who died Friday at her home in Los Angeles. https://t.co/yac6d0uhqc
— WWD (@wwd) August 8, 2023
Michael went on to describe his mother’s tenacity and strength.
“She was the first woman to attempt to try out for the NFL when she went for an open tryout for the Philadelphia Eagles in 1974,” he said. “She was a great supporter and a constant source of inspiration.”
Joan immersed herself in the world of fashion as a teen, when she made her modeling debut at the House of Revlon in New York City at 18, according to the obituary posted by the New York Times. She stopped modeling in the early 1960s to become a stay-at-home mother.
She joined her son at the Michael Kors fashion firm as the West Coast brand ambassador in the 1990s. Joan represented the Michael Kors brand by meeting with clients and hosting major fashion events in New York and Paris. (RELATED: Legendary British Singer And Actress Jane Birkin Dead At 76)
She is survived by her son Michael, her son-in-law Lance Le Pere, and her brother James Hamburger, and will be laid to rest in a private funeral and burial, according to The New York Times.