'Fashion Star' mentor Jessica Simpson talks about new show

The singer, designer and business woman has seen her Jessica Simpson Collection, which includes 22 product categories, surpass $1 billion - that's B for billion - in retail sales.

Simpson is known for her music but more so for asking her former husband Nick Lachey the infamous "Chicken of the Sea" question on their reality TV show "Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica." "Is this chicken what I have, or is this fish? I know it's tuna, but it says 'chicken by the sea.' " she asked back in 2003.

Flash forward to 2012 where, in the past five years, she and her team have grown her collection's product line to include footwear, handbags, denim, eyewear, lingerie, jewelry, outerwear, belts, luggage, ready-to-wear and two fragrances.

Last week, the pregnant mogul revealed her nude "Elle" magazine cover. She and fiance Eric Johnson are expecting a baby girl this spring. On Tuesday, she takes a "The Biggest Loser" contestant on a shopping spree and, later that evening, serves as a mentor for up-and-coming designers on the debut of the new NBC series "Fashion Star."

"Fashion Star" is a search for the next big brand with a twist - the winning fashions will be available in stores the day after the episode in which they are selected by buyers. And, in the end, the winning designer will get a contract worth $6 million in orders for his or her collection.

The series features host, executive producer and former supermodel Elle MacPherson; celebrity mentors Simpson, Nicole Richie and John Varvatos; and judges/buyers Caprice Willard (Macy's), Terron E. Schaefer (Saks Fifth Avenue) and Nicole Christie (H&M).

The challenges for the designers will include all aspects of the real world of building a fashion empire and a brand.

Keeping it about the customers is an all-important lesson Simpson learned when she started out in fashion, she said in a recent teleconference.

"At the beginning, I thought e! verythin g that I wanted to create was right and that that's what everybody should be wearing," said the Texas native. "But look, I don't wear flats and I'm very, very pregnant and it's my biggest selling shoe in the Jessica Simpson Collection, so I had to give in and be like 'OK, well 90 percent of America wears flats.' I really had to teach myself that it wasn't about everything that just I would wear.

"It's about looking at a person and giving them an overall look. And everybody is different and everybody has a different sense of style, so I need to really understand everyone's sense of style and make it cohesive in my brand."

Those competing on the show are already good designers, explained Simpson, and the challenges are simple.

"I think that simplicity is one of the hardest things to do as a designer, but it's also that the simple pieces are always the pieces that sell the most and they're your everyday wear in your closet."

She also stressed that the designers had to be able to design a great pair of pants but also be able to mastermind an ad campaign - "everything that goes into building an empire."

The show's producers brought in consultants to advise contestants about presenting fashions, creating billboards, how items will look in fashion magazines and even answering questions. It's the way a modern and real business operates, executive producer Ben Silverman said.

For Simpson, whose collection is known for being affordable and fashionable, the devil is in the detail of designing things like shoes. She knows what makes the "perfect" shoe.

"It's like if I see a shoe and the stitching isn't tonal, I like have a panic attack. And everybody in the company knows don't show Jessica a black shoe with white stitching on it.

"I mean, there are tons of little tricks that go into making the perfect shoe, but I think color is really important and different sizes of heels. There are all sorts of different kinds of tricks for making your legs look longer. ... A nude he! el on li ght skin really elongates the leg. And when you throw in a pop of color, it makes it a different look."

"Fashion Star" is not airing live because of the lead time required to make sure the fashions were manufactured and would be available online the night of each show and in stores the next day. It was filmed early last summer - before Simpson became pregnant. She's looking forward to seeing the TV series and her collection in its very first runway show.

"It will be amazing to see myself with a waistline," she said, laughing. "I'll be like a big blob sitting on the couch watching myself thin."

'FASHION STAR'

When: 8:30 p.m. Tuesday

Where: NBC, channel 2, cable 9

'Fashion Star' format

Each episode begins with a fashion show featuring models wearing the designs plus musical performances and dancers all in front of a studio audience.

Although the designers are usually unknown, they may already have collections of their own.

Each fashion show is a built around a challenge designed to develop and expand the designers' brands. Those designers whose men's and women's fashions are not bought by buyers at the end of each episode will be up for elimination. The mentors will be allowed to save one contestant each.

The winning designs will be available for purchase online after each broadcast and in the stores the next day.

A twist in the show is that the buyers are competing against each other to buy the fashions in real time.

The series moves to 9 p.m. Tuesdays starting March 20.

Original Print Headline: Step into style

Rita Sherrow 918-581-8360rita.sherrow@tulsaworld.com