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KIMORA LEE SIMMONS
Some might say Kimora Lee Simmons is over-the-top or flashy, but as president of Baby Phat and creative director of Phat Fashions, she has proven herself to have quite the business head. Over the past 10 years, Simmons has partnered her brands -- Baby Phat, Phat Farm, KLS Collection and Fabulosity -- with extensions with major companies, including her Kimora Barbie doll with Mattel, her "Fabulosity" book with Harper Collins, several cell phones with Motorola, fragrances with Coty and her reality show, "Life in the Fab Lane" with the E and Style networks. She's come a long way since that first Baby Phat logo T-shirt hit store racks, which no doubt will be in evidence Friday evening at her spring runway show. Now that her ex-husband, hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons, has left the helm at Phat Fashions, Kimora is in charge and here she talks with WWD about the past and the future.
WWD: What does 10 years mean to you?
Kimora Lee Simmons: I think it says a lot when you can be in business for a decade. To think that we started with just a T-shirt and became a jeans company and then became a whole lifestyle brand -- we've gone through such an evolution and I'm so proud of what we've achieved.
WWD: How do you keep the Baby Phat customer interested in your...