A report said that fashion designer Kate Spade, who was found dead in her apartment, committed suicide. She was 55.
Law enforcement sources told TMZ that a “housekeeper found Kate’s body” at 10:20 a.m. in New York City, adding “she hanged herself using a scarf tied to her bedroom door knob” and left a note.
Spade was pronounced dead at the scene. The cause of Spade’s death is currently under investigation, said the New York City chief medical examiner’s office.
“There was a note left and the contents of the note, physical state of the apartment, and statement of the witnesses lead us to believe it was an apparent suicide,” said NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea, the New York Daily News reported.
According to the New York Daily News, her husband, Andy, was home at he time. Their 13-year-old daughter was at school.
“We are all devastated by today’s tragedy,” her family said in a statement to the paper. “We loved Kate dearly and will miss her terribly. We would ask that our privacy be respected as we grieve during this very difficult time.”
Born Katherine Noel Brosnahan in Kansas City, Missouri, Spade was a former accessories editor at the now-closed Mademoiselle magazine before she and Andy Spade launched their namesake design company, Kate Spade New York, in 1993. The couple married the following year, Reuters noted. They began by selling handbags before expanding to include clothing, jewelry, bedding, legwear, and fragrances.
Kate Spade New York issued a statement, calling the news “incredibly sad.”
“Although Kate has not been affiliated with the brand for more than a decade, she and her husband and creative partner, Andy, were the founders of our beloved brand,” the statement said. “Kate will be dearly missed.”
The Council of Fashion Designers of America added that she was a “great talent who had an immeasurable impact on American fashion and the way the world viewed American accessories,” Reuters reported.
Spade sold her company for $125 million in 2007 to focus on the couple’s daughter, Frances. Ten years later, Coach bought the brand for $2.4 billion.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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