Why You HAVE to Boycott Baby Phat

The holidays are here and no doubt, you've either seen some Baby Phat gear that you like, your kids have seen some Baby Phat gear that they like, or just out of habit, you are planning to pick some up as gifts or to give your own wardrobe a little pick me up.  Don't do it.

First, Kimora Lee Simmons isn't there anymore.  I bet you didn't even know that.  She left August, 2010 and it wasn't something that she wanted.  The company that owns Baby Phat, Kellwood Company, pulled one of the nastiest tricks I ever recall in the world of fashion.  Read this to get some background.

To deny that most people have purchased Baby Phat over the years in direct response to just how hot Kimora Lee Simmons made it look, seem or feel--the energy she put into making us all feel like superstars when wearing it--even little girls, is just wrong.  You know that's why we all grew so fond of it in the first place.  She helped make us feel like we could take on the world, so long as we were wearing some hot jeans and a cute top...with stilettos.

So, to have Kellwood Company essentially just boot her out the door, not make any announcement to us and continue to push the brand as though she is there, using little girls that look like her own in the ads to try to trick us, is unacceptable.  It stinks of racism. We deserve more than that, she deserves more than that and her team, the supportive force behind her all these years, deserves more than that. We deserve respect.  You think that if the Creative Director behind one of these brands purchased predominately by our white friends was replaced, the owners wouldn't make an announcement to those buyers? Hell yes they would! So, why didn't we deserve the same? 

Don't buy it anymore.  Follow her on Twitter @OfficialKimora and check her website, KLS.com often for updates on what she's up to.  She was recently named President and Creative Director Just Fabulous, an awesome power move, so check them out and support her there.  I know that Baby Phat has held a special place in your heart all these years, but dear reader, it's time that we moved on to bigger and better things.  That we move on into a new present and even better future with Kimora--afterall, she helped make us feel so great in the past.  --Sugar

ALSO: We're trying to convince Madame Tussauds NYC to add a Kimora Lee Simmons figure there! So, head on over there and add your name to that petition!

Kimora Covers Harper's Malaysia!

Just over two weeks ago, I mentioned that Kimora Lee Simmons was doing cover shoots for both Harper's Bazaar Malaysia and Harper's Singapore. The Malaysian edition is hot off the presses and it is smoking.  She was sent the picture above via Twitter a short while ago by @MisDeeds.  Check back here and KLS.com for updates.  I'm guessing Kimora will post the article, or a link to the article, when she gets it.  --Sugar

New Madame Tussauds Petition!

We had to make a  few tweaks to the original petition to have Kimora Lee Simmons added to the collection at Madame Tussauds NYC.  The premise is still the same.  She should be represented there.  So, check the petition out here and let's make this happen!  See you at the unveiling! : ) --Sugar

Just Stop It

I had originally decided to post this without any commentary, but I think I will say something.  Hell, it's my blog.  Last night, I started seeing tweets that said that garbage site had something that Kimora needed to check out.  When I went there, it had a post suggesting that Kimora and Djimon were separating.  My heart sank, but that site isn't exactly known for being accurate, so I decided I'd wait to see if Kimora had anything to say about it.

Sunday night, she sent several tweets that said the claims are not true and unless she says otherwise, that's what it is. So, stop gossiping and hoping that someone is going through a difficult time.  It's not going to make you any less broke or ugly. --Sugar

Petition to Have Kimora Immortalized in Wax!

Madame Tussauds wax museum is known the world over for giving some of the most influential celebrities, politicians and other historical figures immortality...in wax.  The amazingly life-like sculptures have wowed visitors in London (the flagship location), Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Berlin, Hollywood, Las Vegas, Shanghai, Sydney, Washington, D.C. and New York City.  Tussauds landed in Times Square in 2000, shortly after receiving rave reviews for the first U.S. location in Las Vegas.

Imagine my shock when Kimora confirmed this morning that she does not have a figure in the Times Square location!  In 2000, Kimora Lee Simmons would have been about 24, 25 years old when Tussauds opened there.  She was already kicking down doors in the fashion world with the Baby Phat brand and at such a young age, she should have been a sure thing to have been added to the collection! 

She produced the first live broadcast of a fashion show down in Times Square and there probably isn't a soul alive in N.Y.C. who doesn't know who Kimora Lee Simmons is or that she is synonymous with business, power, philanthropy and popular culture in that city.  She's now the President and Creative Director of Just Fabulous and at only 36 years old, is ever-expanding her business might.  So, here's hoping that finally, 11 years later, Madame Tussauds will make this right.

One of Kimora's young followers on Twitter, @Lile_Fab, started a Twitition, after another, @LUV_U_KLS_ suggested she should be added, to convince Tussauds NYC (@NYCWax on Twitter) to add the Queen of Fabulosity to its collection. Sign it and spread the word!  This should be a no-brainer Tussauds! The unveiling of her sculpture will be out of this world! --Sugar

Kimora Lee Simmons Gives Away Shoes!

Kimora Lee Simmons, the still fresh and new President and Creative Director of Just Fabulous, gave away dozens of pairs of shoes this week. Check it out:

NO Baby Phat This Christmas!

Kellwood Company thugs visit Boycott Baby Phat 11/15/2011
(Click to enlarge.)

As you make your holiday shopping lists I hope you will remember to leave the Baby Phat clothing items on the racks and shelves and in the bargain bins.  Don't buy any of it.  I don't care how tempting or inexpensive it may be.  Kimora Lee Simmons created a brand that burned itself into the hearts and minds of women and girls the world over, but she's not at Baby Phat anymore, the company is now being run by clueless idiots and the quality is not anywhere near as reliable as it once was.  And, to repeat yet again, we all deserved--customers, Kimora and her staff--a more respectful transition where Baby Phat is concerned. 

All these months later, they are scheming and plotting trying to keep up the ruse--that Kimora is still there. They seem to think that customers are so stupid, we'll just go along with the program as they shoo models of color out the door, start using cut-rate materials to produce the line and snoop around this little blog as if they don't have enough work to do on a daily basis.  Customers know that something is wrong...different...and one by one I'm gonna tell them. 
Kimora is now President and Creative Director of Just Fabulous, her new skincare line, Shinto Clinical, will be available for sale soon and she's shoring up her KLS clothing line.  Some months ago, on her hit reality show on the Style Network, Kimora: Life in the Fab Lane, she announced that she and her girls Ming and Aoki were working on a clothing line for kids which will be called Miyoki.  I'm not sure where it is in the development stage, but Kimora doesn't release anything that is not up to par, so count on that line to be a top contender.  I'll keep you posted here and you should be sure to check in at KLS.com often for updates.

This is all such a mess and over a year later, I'm still disgusted about it.  You, dear reader (not you Kellwood minion), should be too.  There are not that many women of color making a mark in the fashion world and Kellwood Company and Sun Capital severed ties with this one without a second thought.  Now, they are trying to morph the brand into something completely different (i.e. not urban...i.e. not appealing to people of color) and it's just not going to work.  We aren't going to allow it work.

I know that you thought that by now I would have given up on this boycott.  You are fools to have thought such a thing and I'm sure you notice that more and more people, from all over the globe, are coming here and finding out what you did.  This will continue.  No respect? No dollars.  --Sugar