Why are there so many reality competitions about fashion? We can add another to the dog pile with word that NBC will air a show this fall called Fashion Star, which features Nicole Richie and Jessica Simpson mentoring contestants. Picture this, if you will, you graduate from design school and then take a few years working for various lines building up your expertise in design, merchandising, and marketing. You have the talent, but just need a platform to increase your exposure. So you sign up to be a contestant on a reality competition called Fashion Star in hopes of meeting and working with some of the country’s best-known brands. Maybe land yourself an introduction with Oscar de la Renta? Possibly get the opportunity to partner up on a challenge for the Met Ball in New York? So you pack up your bags, sign a bunch of contracts, and fly off to LA to start production. Then you find out you are going to be mentored by Jessica Simpson and Nicole Richie.
Simpson, as you probably know, is somehow sitting on top of an accessories empire. Her forte is creating looks for the everyday woman, like the ones who live in the middle of the country and can only shop at retailers that sell oversized pleather bags and platform rubber pumps next to barrels of beef jerky and cases of laundry detergent. Richie is the daughter of a singer and a former reality television veteran herself. She became famous getting photographed at parties wearing clothes that look like drapes and bangle bracelets.
The most interesting part of this fontrum? The two “mentors” hate each other.
US Magazine this week reports:
Two blonde ex-reality stars turned fashionistas don’t see eye-to-eye? Who could’ve predicted that one?
Nicole Richie and Jessica Simpson are both mentors on Fashion Star, a reality competition for aspiring designers debuting midseason on NBC. But a source tells the new Us Weekly — on stands now — that there’s “definite friction” between the two women.
“They chat only when they need to, and they have wildly different opinions about style,” adds an insider.
Richie, 29, “thinks Jessica doesn’t have much of a high-fashion eye” and “makes snarky comments about Jessica’s outfits,” according to a source.
But Simpson, 31, isn’t phased by Richie’s digs. She “really doesn’t care what Nicole thinks,” says an insider. After all, Simpson’s fashion empire had $750 million in sales in 2010, while Richie’s lines pulled in an estimated $10 million.
“Nicole may know trends, but Jessica believes she know how to make clothes for all kinds of women,” says a source. Still, other insiders tell Us the ladies “get along well, and hang out on set.”
Terrific idea! Take two improbable fashion experts that hate each other. It’s a terrific message for all those young women looking for a realistic look at the design industry.
-Kate Casey
Kate Casey is a Pop Culture Lover. PR Pro. New mom. Comedy nerd. Celebrity gossip fan. Follow her on Twitter @KateCasey
