Living the Dream

Although The Buffalo News neglected to mention it in its October 2, 2009 story, Worth a look: Adam Lippes makes a name in design, Adam Lippes, founder and creative director of the fashion line ADAM, is a 1987 graduate of Elmwood Franklin School. He remains closely connected to and supportive of the school, even hosting an alumni event last year at his flagship store in New York City. 

Adam signing autographs for some of his fans in Upper School.

An early highlight of the year was to have Adam visit on Friday and speak to the Upper School about his path to success and the importance of the foundation he received at EFS. Adam showed a short clip of his recent runway show at Fashion Week in New York and answered lots of great questions from our students and teachers. While many of the students were very interested in the celebrities he’s dressed (Oprah, Brad Pitt, Halle Barry, the cast of Gossip Girl, to name just a few), they also asked about his fashion inspirations, educational path, travels, the challenges of running a business, and social and environmental responsibility. Adam told them how important a second language, especially French or Italian, is in his business. He warned them that while modeling looks glamorous, it is anything but. Adam mentioned the important role that mentors have played in his success and that he now tries to do the same for young, aspiring designers. He spoke of learning to write a business plan. And he talked about the importance of having a family who believed in him and supported his dream. Perhaps the best messages of the day, delivered explicitly by his words and implicitly by his very example, were ones we’ve been stressing with our students this year: set goals, work hard, and surround yourself with allies who can help you realize your dreams. It's safe to say our students will not soon forget Adam's visit.

Adam spoke of the importance of mentors. In his case, they 

include his mom and Oscar de la Renta. Here Adam is pictured with

a couple of his non-fashion mentors, Tom Ryan and Mr. Ziggy.