Art Of The Deal: Bon Business

One street-savvy Parisian launched a small, affordable California contemporary label 17 years ago. Today BCBG Max Azria Group is a $1 billion global fashion powerhouse

MAX AZRIA HAS SPENT HALF OF HIS LIFE in France, but he thinks Americans are more fashionable than Europeans. "The American woman is more stylish than any other in the world," he declares, in English less fluent than his French. "She understands the power of good style and has the confidence to feel comfortable." In 1989, inspired by what he saw on the streets of Southern California, he founded a modest contemporary label named after the saying bon chic, bon genre, Parisian slang for "good style, good attitude." Today he is chairman, CEO and designer of BCBG Max Azria Group, a...

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