TONY SMITH
Tony Smith is a New York–born designer, creative director, consultant, and educator whose career bridges fashion, retail innovation, and sustainable design. His first encounters with creativity came through his father’s advertising agency, where hours spent in the studio sparked a lasting fascination with image, narrative, and design. While studying Fine Arts at Parsons School of Design, he immersed himself in fashion retail, an early hands-on experience that laid the groundwork for his dual love of art and clothing.
At just 22, Smith launched his first label and retail concept, THESMITHS, opening in Soho with a summer outpost in the Hamptons. His modern yet timeless approach attracted the attention of Barneys New York, where his men’s and women’s collections were sold exclusively. The brand developed a loyal following among artists, actors, and cultural figures, including Cindy Sherman, Christy Turlington, Ellen DeGeneres, Kevin Kline, Herb Ritts, and Mickey Drexler.
Drexler himself brought Smith into Banana Republic as head of men’s design and merchandising, where he helped evolve the brand toward a complete lifestyle vision. Soon after, Smith re-launched his own women’s ready-to-wear collection, picked up by top retailers including Barneys, Bergdorf Goodman, Nordstrom, and Henri Bendel.
Smith’s collaborative spirit led him to merge his design ethos with Billy Reid, serving as President & Creative Director. He built a design team, shaped brand narratives, and positioned the label to win its first CFDA Perry Ellis Menswear Award in 2001, establishing Reid as a major American voice in menswear.
His career continued through leadership roles at Club Monaco, where he directed men’s design, and IC Isaacs, a denim-focused licensing house where he worked with Catherine Malandrino and Marithé + François Girbaud. Partnering with Liz Claiborne and Isaac Mizrahi, he helped translate Mizrahi’s vision into a collection distributed worldwide through leading retailers.
In 2010, Smith became Creative Director of SHAE, a contemporary knitwear label where he combined his design sensibility with an early commitment to sustainable practices. He introduced circular upcycling, renewable fibers, and full-cycle traceability, long before these practices became industry standards.
Expanding his reach, Smith founded his consultancy LABADOOR, advising international and American clients including Bergdorf Goodman, Kate Spade, Etienne Aigner, Beams Japan, Takashimaya, DURING NY, and Shahid & Co. Today, he is also building ASMITH, a new circular concept uniting sustainability, artisanal production, and storytelling across apparel, home, and food.
In addition to his design and consulting work, Smith is a Professor of Fashion Design at Kent State University’s NYC campus, where he teaches senior portfolio, junior studio, and fashion media courses. A CFDA award–winning fashion director with decades of industry leadership, he now mentors the next generation of designers, encouraging them to explore heritage, sustainability, and identity through their work.