Mike Amiri

Mike Amiri (born September 6, 1976) is an American fashion designer and the founder and creative director of the fashion house AMIRI, based in California.

Mike Amiri
Mike Amiri in 2019
Born	(1976-09-06) September 6, 1976 (age 48) Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Nationality	Iranian American
Alma mater	University of California, Los Angeles Loyola Law School (JD)
Occupation	Founder of AMIRI
Known for	AMIRI
Website	amiri.com

Early life and education

Mike Amiri was born and raised in Hollywood, California, to parents of Iranian descent. He graduated from Beverly Hills High School, studied history at UCLA, and later earned a Juris Doctor degree from Loyola Law School.^{[citation needed]}

Career

After working in the music industry, Amiri transitioned to designing handcrafted stage outfits for musicians. According to interviews, Amiri’s work with musicians included detailed customization, which later appeared in his brand’s designs.^[1] In 2014, Amiri released a debut capsule collection of menswear for the Los Angeles concept store Maxfield.^[2]This collection led to the launch of his brand, AMIRI, later that year.

AMIRI

Amiri launched his fashion brand, AMIRI, in 2014.^[3][4] The brand is available in over 160 retailers worldwide, including Bergdorf Goodman in New York, Neiman Marcus in Beverly Hills, Galeries Lafayette in Paris, Selfridges and Harrods in London, Harvey Nichols in Dubai, and Lane Crawford in Hong Kong and mainland China. As of 2023, AMIRI has standalone flagship stores in Beverly Hills, New York, Las Vegas, Miami, Chicago, Houston, Atlanta, New Delhi, Shanghai, Tokyo, Nanjing, and Dubai.^[5]

Music and the Californian lifestyle have reportedly inspired Amiri and his brand. Amiri’s designs have been noted in media coverage for being worn by several musicians and actors.

In 2018, AMIRI debuted at Paris Fashion Week.^[6] The brand has presented bi-annual collections in Paris each year. Vogue Runway has noted that the brand's presence at Paris Fashion Week indicates its presence in the global luxury market.^[7] In February 2022, AMIRI presented a runway show in Los Angeles in collaboration with the contemporary American artist, Wes Lang.^[8]

Since 2018, Mike Amiri has been a member of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA). He was nominated for the Swarovski Award for Emerging Talent at the CFDA Fashion Awards.^[9][10] Amiri also won the Emerging Talent Award at the 2018 Footwear News Achievement Awards. In 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2023, Amiri was nominated for the Menswear Designer of the Year at the CFDA Fashion Awards^{[citation needed]}

In 2019, OTB Group, founded by Renzo Rosso, acquired a minority stake in AMIRI.^[11] In 2020, AMIRI opened its first flagship store on Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills.^[12]

In 2021, Amiri launched the AMIRI Prize, an initiative to support emerging fashion designers.^{[citation needed]} The inaugural prize winner was Philadelphia-based fashion brand Lou Badger.^[13] The winner of The AMIRI Prize in 2023 was the South African designer Lukhanyo Mdingi.^[14]

In 2023, AMIRI appointed Adrian Ward-Rees, the former SVP at Burberry and Managing Director of Dior Menswear, as Chief Executive Officer.^[15]

Personal life

Mike is from Iranian descent and has been married to Shirin Amiri for 17 years, and they have three children.^[16][17]