DATE INTERVIEWED: June 12, 2017

SUMMARY: Josie Natori discusses her work in the fashion industry.

BIOGRAPHY: Josie Natori, born Josefina Almeda Cruz in the Philippines in 1947, is an American fashion designer and the CEO and founder of The Natori Company. Natorie was raised in a close-knit Filipino family, as the eldest of six siblings. Her first love was the piano, having performed solo with the Manila Philharmonic Orchestra at the age of nine. She learned about entrepreneurship from a young age from her father, and her grandmother who owned several businesses, including a pharmacy. As an adult, after working in finance for a number of years, Natori changed her career in 1977, after considering a number of other entrepreneurial ventures. She settled on fashion, specifically lingerie, after a buyer at Bloomingdale's suggested she lengthen some peasant blouses sent to her from her native Philippines. Natori currently serves on several charitable boards. In March, 2007, she was awarded the Order of Lakandula, one of the highest civilian awards in the Philippines. In April, 2007, Natori received the "Peopling of America" Award from the Statue of Liberty - Ellis Island Foundation.

The Natori Company sells lingerie, sleepwear, ready-to-wear, and accessories to upscale department stores in the US, and to at least fifteen countries internationally. Natori has said that 70 percent of her company's products are made in the Philippines. In addition to women's clothing, the company is also in the home furnishings industry, and in May, 2008 signed a licensing deal to sell Natori perfume. Natori also launched towel and eyewear lines in that same year.

Josie Natori. (2017, December 1). In Wikipedia. Retrieved June 20, 2018 from [ Ссылка ]

DISCUSSED: In this interview, Natori discusses her familial background and family's entrepreneurial influence and support, her religious background and upbringing, her first career on Wall Street, and how she transitioned to a career in fashion in the 1970s. She further discusses her concern over having her own manufacturing facilities in the Philippines, as well as the affect the internet has had on the fashion industry. Lastly, she discusses her concern for giving back by her board membership on multiple boards, as well as her formation of the Fashion Design Council in the Philippines and Manila Wear.

For more information on the SPARC’s Oral History collections, please visit our website: [ Ссылка ]

SPARC ID: US.NNFIT.SC.FITA.3.20.4.9.10.10

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