DRESS DESIGNER

Proving American Style Sensibility.

Designer Charles James was instrumental in introducing American high fashion to Europe. Widely respected for his original dresses, he was unique among American designers in the 1930s in that he operated on the Paris pattern, creating clothes for private clients and then selling the original models to leading stores throughout the United States. In 1952 he entered the wholesale business, making his designs available to the general public through mass production. In 1955 he opened his own retail stores.

Early Life.

Charles Wilson Brega James was born in England in 1906. Finding school dull, he refused to attend the college his father had chosen for him. Instead, he went to work with a family friend who taught him the basics of business. In 1927 James moved to the United States and opened a dress shop in New York. He presented his first collection in London in...