Fourth Generation Fashion: A Profile in Experience

Growing up in the fashion industry offers a lifetime of experience that can't be matched. Fox Rothschild's Fashion Law Practice Chair Staci Jennifer Riordan has spent most of her life in the fashion industry – and her experience has not only helped her succeed, but also helped her many of clients' businesses thrive in a difficult industry.

Descended from a long line of garment makers, retailers and wholesalers, Staci knew how to sew by the time she was five. By the age of 13, Staci's mother – a designer and retailer – was taking Staci with her when shopping for her store. By the time Staci was finished college, she knew she wanted to be a lawyer, but chose to make her way to California to once again join her mother, who had started a new life and a new manufacturing business.

"When I joined her, she and her partner were just getting started – and within three days of my arrival, we had a full-store buyout order from one of the largest clothing chains in the business," Staci remembers. "We couldn't accept it – we were too small at the time – but we were able to take a much smaller order and the business was off and running."

The company grew from a $2-3 million business at the end of two years, to a $7-10 million business that continued to spark interest from the fashion industry all over the world. The partners designed the line and Staci made sure it was produced on time, on budget and properly shipped to the right customer.

"As things often do in this industry, the partnership dissolved, and I headed out on my own," said Staci. She spent the next six years earning a reputation as a savvy fashion leader while handling issues such as hiring, production, operations, supply chain and imports for a variety of apparel and textile companies.

Staci's success enabled her to share her experience, and she took a position as a professor at Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising. But her love of the law drew her back to school.

"I was inspired by a 'surf and skate lawyer' and just knew that as a lawyer, I wouldn't have to leave the industry I'd grown up in."

Staci's practice now focuses on fashion licensing, intellectual property and business litigation as well as strategic planning and client counseling. Her clients include designers, manufacturers, retailers, importers, exporters, entertainment entities and business proprietors.

She remains highly active in the fashion community, Staci is on the boards of Fashion Group, International, where she is Programming Chair and Regional Director Elect for 2010-2012; the California Fashion Association; Apparel Industries Group for the City of Hope; and the UCLA Extension, Business of Creativity, Advisory Council. Staci is also a member of The Professionals Club, the International Textile and Apparel Association, the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles, the Beverly Hills Barristers and the Los Angeles County Bar Association.

"I'm a business person first and an attorney second. I do what I do because I love it – and that connects me to my clients."

Learn more about Staci.