Nate Stern has long been fascinated by the way clothing communicates identity. To him, what you choose to wear is one of the clearest forms of self-expression. Yet despite this fascination, he never initially imagined fashion as a career. In 2016, he graduated from Occidental College with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and set out on a more conventional path, spending two years at a marketing agency in Los Angeles. Eventually, the disconnect between a corporate career and the creative work he truly wanted to pursue became impossible to ignore. He left his stale salaried position and committed himself to becoming a designer.

After gaining experience through several freelance opportunities in Los Angeles, Nate sought a more rigorous foundation in the technical side of fashion. In the fall of 2019, he began studying Menswear Design at FIT, immersing himself in garment construction, patternmaking, sewing, fashion illustration, and collection development. Despite the disruption of COVID-19, he developed a strong command of the mechanics of menswear while continuing to sharpen his creative vision. Most importantly, FIT removed a longstanding barrier between his ideas and their execution: he could finally sketch, pattern, and sew his own designs and bring them to life.

Upon graduating, Nate began his professional menswear career as an Assistant Designer at Perry Ellis America, the recently revitalized heritage brand. After a year designing across a broad range of apparel categories and accessories, he moved into an Associate Designer role at Lucky Brand. Across these and subsequent positions, he has managed the design and development of numerous product categories across a variety of retail channels, gaining a comprehensive understanding of what it takes to bring a product from concept to market.

Yet for Nate, the most rewarding part of being a menswear designer remains making clothes by hand—from the initial idea through the final stitch. He has completed bespoke commissions for friends and clients, but creating one-of-a-kind pieces for himself has been particularly fulfilling. Perhaps the clearest expression of this is his wedding tuxedo: a hand-crafted, 100% wool, single-button jacket with a large satin peak lapel, matching trousers, and a satin cummerbund-inspired Gurkha waistband, which he spent nearly a year creating.

Nate's approach to design is shaped by a belief that curiosity across disciplines makes for a stronger creative practice. His background in economics, marketing, fashion, entrepreneurship, and humanitarian work has taught him to approach problems from multiple perspectives and to value both analytical rigor and creative instinct. Whether producing a New York Fashion Week presentation with two other designers in less than three weeks, starting a clothing company at nineteen, tackling rigorous economics coursework at Occidental, or helping raise millions of dollars for humanitarian campaigns, each experience has contributed to the designer—and person—he is today.

That balance is also reflected in Nate's family. His mother, an independent designer with nearly five decades of experience, has been a profound creative influence and source of inspiration. His father represents a different but equally important influence: an analytical mind grounded in kindness and generosity. Nate considers himself fortunate to have inherited elements of both, and he brings that same balance of creativity, curiosity, discipline, and character to his work.