But whenever I visited her stores incognito–I even put on grubby clothes to see how shop staff would treat the atypical Tory Burch customer–I encountered similar hospitality. I wondered whether it was the mom in her–or just the media-savvy entrepreneur. Often, she didn’t wait for me to answer she’d just fetch water or ask her assistant to order us lunch. Over the months I spent shadowing her, there wasn’t a day when she didn’t ask if I was thirsty or hungry. This instinct pervades the brand of Tory Burch. Tory doesn’t even appear until page 9, and even then, it’s just in a grainy, black-and-white photo with Reva. The second honors Reva (for whom Burch’s famous ballet flats are named). Burch’s anniversary book indicates how important Buddy and Reva have been: Its first spread celebrates Buddy, who died in 2008. Her main muses have been her parents, Buddy and Reva Robinson–and specifically, the 1960s and 1970s incarnations of them. No other major lifestyle brand so reflects its founder’s personal history season after season. It was a learning experience, and it was especially hard for me because I’m not one to always love being in the spotlight.” “He said, ‘The name is ridiculous! Change it!’ He was right. One night, she sat next to the jewelry designer Kenneth J. She has walked in those shoes.” Keep It Personalīurch struggled at the start with her brand’s personal nature it was originally called “Tory by TRB.” “Honestly, I’d tried to get 10 other different names that had nothing to do with my name, but there were copyright issues,” she says. She lives the life herself–she’s a busy working mother. “From the beginning, Tory has understood what women’s lives are about. “When there’s a wonderful story about the product, it tends to resonate with customers,” says Neiman Marcus CEO Karen Katz. While she had no formal design training or prior entrepreneurial experience, she spent a decade in PR and marketing, working for Ralph Lauren, Vera Wang, and Narciso Rodriguez. This has been Burch’s great strength and true innovation.