Episode Details

Anita Bitton is one of the fashion industry's most iconic and leading drivers of talent. Anita is the Founder and CEO of The Establishment, the go-to casting director for brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Bottega Veneta, Marc Jacobs, and Balenciaga. She was instrumental in the rise of Alexander Wang.

Anita was born in South London. She was raised by foster parents. She modeled as a kid to find a way out of London and a better option than her job at TGI Friday's. For this episode Anita invited host Fran Racioppi to her Brownstone on Manhattan's Upper West Side for a chat in her parlor about defining trends, being bold and disruptive, evaluating talent, resiliency in life and business, raising kids in New York City and her dedicated Spotify channel.

Read the full episode transcription here and learn more on The Jedburgh Podcast Website.

Highlights:

-Anita defines the fashion industry, it’s meaning in society and how designers are artists whose style represents their current attitudes and feelings about society.

-Fashion is a subjective industry. As the coordinator and facilitator Anita must define what is actually fashionable while bringing out the best in people.

-Anita describes the importance of being bold and creative; driving clients to explore new and different ways to represent their visions, but without being pushy.

-Fran challenges Anita to describe disruption, fighting the mundane and how growing up in South London with foster parents and adversity shaped her drive and accountability as she consistently looked for ways to move to New York City.

-Anita explains the good and bad of social media, how luxury brands use the platforms, the ease of access and the hard work required to make a name for yourself. 

-Resilience is a key component of success. Anita shows us the importance of rejection in our growth and evolution; which allows for our longevity. 

Quotes:

-”When I think about fashion…it dictates the era that we have been through. It predicts the future that we are going into.” 

-”Fashion leans into politics. It leans into identity. I