Born on September 1, 1971 in New York, Rachel Zoe first made a name for herself as a celebrity
stylist, but told Elle back in 2015, "I thought I'd be a restaurant hostess for the rest of
my life."
"You know, being cool."
"I'm so not about being cool I'm kinda a big fashion geek.
I'm fine with it."
Instead, she became synonymous with Hollywood's biggest names and the online fashion blog
The Zoe Report.
But following her meteoric rise to fame in the early 2010s, sparked by her reality show,
The Rachel Zoe Project, Zoe has nearly disappeared from the limelight.
Let's take a closer look at exactly what this fashionista's been up to.
"I'm really proud like I have the most amazing team and I think this is kinda where you see
it come to light."
Rise to fame
Zoe started out as an assistant at YM, after graduating college.
In just two years, she was promoted to senior fashion editor and then, she, quote, "decided
I'd be better off leaving my job to freelance as a stylist."
Working her YM industry connections, Zoe landed her big break, telling Elle, "I met Jennifer
Garner's publicist, and she hired me to style Jen for the Emmys at the last minute.
This was my first big job working with an actress, and her being seen in the glamorous
look I selected changed everything for me."
Fame and the 2008 premiere of The Rachel Zoe Project on Bravo would happen in the years
that followed — but it wouldn't last forever.
Must (not) see TV
"And pose."
"Ehh."
"Do you think it's good?"
"Out of control."
"Oh my gosh"
"Ba-nanas."
In 2013, Bravo announced that it would not renew The Rachel Zoe Project.
According to a source for RadarOnline, "Viewers loved the drama of Rachel's staff" but after
she fired two of her most popular employees, Brad Goreski and Taylor Jacobson, there wasn't
enough drama left to save ratings.
Zoe later returned to the small screen in 2015 with Lifetime's Fashionably Late with
Rachel Zoe.
"It took me a while to get back on TV I kinda had to wait for the right..
The right thing the right time and everything something that felt right and this just feels
so natural to me."
Haute mama
After tying the knot in 1996, Zoe and hubby, Rodger Berman, welcomed their first son, Skyler,
in 2011.
Then, in 2013 and the pair had their second son, Kaius.
Zoe immediately embraced motherhood, even cancelling her New York Fashion Week show,
following Kaius' birth.
"It's unfathomable love you know, and I think watching it I mean Rodger and I both get very
very teared up."
Zoe gushed to People, "They're both equally amazing, just totally different and delicious.
Skyler is me and Kaius is [my husband] in every way."
In 2017, the 45-year-old mom threw her boys the ultimate birthday party, with "65 kids,
30 reptiles and a 20 foot T-rex!"
Making herstory
In March of 2017, Zoe found a new outlet: Instagram Stories.
Harnessing the power of the Snapchat-like feature, Zoe now connects with her fans via
two-minute videos shot by her husband, Rodger.
She has dubbed the project Real Life With Rachel Zoe, sharing new clips every Sunday,
and telling WWD, "I think that given what social media has become in our universe, it's
just totally natural.
They want things that are quick, funny, fast, and not overproduced."
High-tech style
In an April 2017 collaboration with Google, Zoe was tapped to create a dozen stylish phone
cases, which retailed at 40 bucks a pop.
The Rachel Zoe Live Case collection features designs inspired by her fall ready-to-wear
collection.
Once snapped onto the phone, the cases sync with the device, pulling up custom wallpapers
that perfectly match the case.
That's...zoe amazing.
Kids x Zoe
Zoe teamed up with Paul Frank in April 2017 to release a stylish collection for kids.
She told InStyle, "They invited me to their fashion show in 2015 and I went with Skyler,
my older son, and my husband, and we had so much fun."
Zoe revealed, "Since I was pregnant, everyone has asked me 'when are you going to do kids?'...So
when Paul Frank approached me about doing this collection I was like, well this is sort
of the perfect way to get my feet wet and dive in and see what it's all about."
A good cause
In 2017, Zoe signed on with Moms +SocialGood, a United Nations Foundation and Johnson & Johnson
initiative, which aims to, quote, "share ideas, inspire action, and tackle some of the world's
most critical challenges facing the well-being of moms and their families around the world."
Zoe was brought on board as an A-list speaker to help "leverage the power of social media
to connect these passionate experts, advocates, and parents, with others around the world,
making it a truly global event."
Coachella bella
Zoe's Palm Springs event of the year, ZOEasis, is, quote, "arguably the most fashionable
fête at Coachella."
VIP guests — including style influencers, models and It-girls — are treated to what
Magnetic Magazine calls "a labyrinth of luxury."
The grounds of the 2017 bash included everything from a gourmet coffee bar, to a mini nail
salon, an ice cream counter, DIY jewelry space, and — and of course, plenty of cocktails
and swag!
Princess dreams
Despite having worked with some of the biggest celebs in the business — from Kate Hudson
to Jennifer Lawrence — Zoe still has one dream client that she has yet to collaborate
with.
She revealed to HELLO!, "I'm obsessed with the royals.
I love Kate Middleton.
I love her.
She's amazing.
I want to dress her...I feel like Kate wears a lot of lace and a lot of color and a lot
of jewel tones and she's such a classic beauty.
I would make her anything!"
A box of Zoe
Want $400 worth of "Rachel Zoe lifestyle" delivered right to your door?
There's a box for that!
Each quarterly Box of Style includes fashionista must-haves perfectly tailored to each season,
all curated by Zoe and co.
"Hello gorgeous! It's so cute... It just makes you feel better at that moment so right away you're happy
when you open a box of style."
First launched in March of 2015, the box delivers a mix of fashion, beauty and lifestyle staples
and treats.
Spring 2017's box included goodies by Tatcha, and a Stella Artois chalice in support of
Water.org's efforts to provide safe drinking water for developing countries.
Fabulous future
These days Rachel Zoe may be going less public, but that doesn't mean she's slowing down.
Juggling parenting, along with running her own business, designing several fashion collections
a year, and balancing an ongoing mix of fabulous side projects, it's safe to say this is one
fashionista who never sleeps.
"It's the last-minute finishing touches that make it that magical moment every single time."
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