Lillian Lee McKim Pulitzer Rousseau
By Stephanie Alcantar
Early Life•Lillian Lee McKim was born November 10th, 1931 in Roslyn, New York • Socialites
Robert V. McKim,and Standard Oil heiress LillianBostwick McKim had 3 daughters, Mimsy, Lilly andFlossie
Early Life cont…
• Lilly attended Finch College for a short time before dropping out to become an assistant midwife
• Lilly and her sisters attended Chapin School in New York and Miss Porter’s in Faramingham,Connecticut • The girls met the Bouvier
sisters at Chapin
•Lilly and Peter were ‘madly in love’ and eloped in 1952
Married Life
• The socialites were the‘life of the party’• They had three children, Peter, Minnie, and
Liza in 4 years
Motherhood• The transition from care-free socialite to 3children in 4 years was a little to stressful for Lilly to handle • She checked herself into a mental institution in 1957
The Lilly• The Lilly was created out of necessity for her and her friends, Laura Clark, juice Business• The ‘Lilly’ was constructed from cheap,vibrant fabric and a business was born in 1959
Key West Fabrics•Lilly loved colorful fabrics and contracted
a screen printingbusiness, Key West Fabrics to fabricate the “Lilies”
Eccentric Lilly•Lilly was known for her eccentric personality and free spirited soul•She hardly every wore shoes and disliked the feel of undergarments, thus it is why the Lily was
constructed with a broadcloth lining
Kennedy Influence• Jacqueline Kennedy was a friend of Lilly’s and wore
the Lilly on the cover of Life in 1962, which made the brand a national phenomenon
Lilly Pulitzer expanded into Men’s and Children’s
Apparel, Bedding, Swimsuits and Accessories in 1966
• Members of the Vanderbilt, Whitney and Rockefeller
families
• In 1969, Peter and Lilly divorce, but she found new love in a Cuban man named Enrique Rousseau •They
lived happily ever after till his death in 1993
Divorce And Love
Bankruptcy• In 1984, Lilly Pulitzer Inc. expanded too far and couldn’t keep up with the new trends such as shoulder
pads, muted colors and minimalist lines, and Chapter 11 bankruptcy was filed
Lilly Pulitzer Today• In 1991, Lilly Pulitzer Inc. was
revived by Sugartown World Inc. and now
has a new set of Americans, including celebrities, …
Lilly Pulitzer Today con…
the wealthy, and ever sorority girls wearing and living the Lilly life style
Lilly Pulitzer, Passed Away on April 8th, 2013 at 81 Years Old •Lilly officially retired in 1993 after helping Sugartown
World Inc. revive the brand she created in the 60’s, but still consulted with Oxford Industries, who bought Lilly Pulitzer Inc. in 2010, till her death
They still design everything by hand in the studio!
Top Related