Candy Pratts Price’s work always had an entertaining edge. Not afraid to break the rules, Candy asked for a job at Charles Jourdan after falling in love with a pair of yellow high-heeled shoes in the window. Although Charles Jourdan had a elite and selective recruiting process and preference for hiring French women, she got the job. From selling shoes, she moved to the untouchable master of window dressing. She set a new standard for the visual merchandising industry. Pratts Price borrowed art from the MoMa, to put into her displays, which officially made the windows become the show. “The museum was basically on display, 24/7, people started to line-up, the windows became very popular, artists then started to call” she recalls.
Once Candy’s windows caught the attention of Marvin Traub and the Bloomingdale’s family, Candy went from working solo at Charles Jourdan, to the Display Director of all Bloomingdale’s. 33 branches, 40 windows, interiors, and the New York store with a staff of 150 people, plus the union, and a on-site team of carpenters under her belt, her time at Bloomingdale’s, was “the best time of her life” and also one of the hottest and most exciting times in retail history.
She created windows that dared to capture the essence of the times. Pratts Price’s artistry was referred to by some as “street theater”. Crowds would line up each week as the curtain was raised to reveal her new installations. Through her vision and creativity she influenced an entire generation of young visual merchandisers and opened doors for many women hoping to enter the field.
After leaving Bloomingdale’s, Pratts Price went on as Creative Director at Vogue, Executive Fashion Director at Style.com, Creative Director at Ralph Lauren, Accessories Director for Vogue, Fashion Director for Harper’s Bazaar and more.
Recently, she went back behind the window glass with Michael Kors. “One day he called and left a message saying he had an idea, and I should call him back.” She called and listened as Kors described his new Graffiti collection, inspired by New York street art of the ’80s, and his desire to shake things up. Intrigued by the dynamic black and white collection, Pratts Price agreed to bring her creative visions to life and return to window design. She worked with Kors and his design team to help develop the line of merchandise and the window concept to be showcased at New York’s Rockefeller Center.
Throughout her incredible career, Pratts Price is excited to share her archives with WindowsWear. She was inspiring people with Bloomingdale’s and felt that WindowsWear is the center of how global people can express their products and merchandise, along with pop-ups and exhibitions.
“If you don’t allow the staff to see things, this is a great window to the window of the world.” she states. “You have to go out and be out!”