Cynthia Rowley net worth is $100 million, earned as an American fashion designer. Rowley had an incredibly early introduction to the world of art and design, with her mother and grandparents all being artists. Cynthia Rowley created her first garment after learning to sew when she was only seven.
Early Life
She was raised in Barrington, Illinois, and graduated from Barrington High School in 1976. Rowley then attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where she entered many fashion competitions with varying degrees of success.
She was even kicked out of a fashion show to use wings for one of her creations. Cynthia Rowley would create her fashion label named after herself, with which she would add color and whimsy to the world of fashion.
Inspired by the local climate of Chicago, her first clothing line was full of fuzzy, colorful sweaters.
Rowley wasn’t satisfied with just creating clothing. She wanted to create a world full of whimsical and genuinely unique designs that would break up the bleak, mundane world around her.
After establishing herself as a clothing designer, Rowley began designing accessories such as eyewear. Although her clothing and accessories are normally higher-end, she wanted to expand her dreamy designs into more people’s lives.
| Name | Cynthia Rowley | |
| Age | 49 | |
| Born In | 1971 | |
| Net worth | $100 millions dollars | |
| Current Status | Married |
She teamed up with Target to create a line of home goods styled in her iconic fun and colorful patterns to accomplish this goal. ynthia Rowley often finds her inspiration in what she feels the world needs at the time, which led her to create a line of surfing attire and other athletic wear.
Summary
The fame she has gained from her success in the fashion world has given her a chance to expand her career even further. Cynthia Rowley has built her entire career on her clothing brand, Cynthia Rowley. She is best known for fun, colorful, flowy, feminine styles that are fashionable while still having a child-like wonder about them.
Personal Life
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After creating her first line of fuzzy mohair sweaters, she found a man who was willing to sell her designs around New York City, as long as she would pay for his plane ticket. Rowley agreed to the terms and sent the man on his way to the big city.
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A few days later, he turned to Rowley after finding massive success in New York City. He was able to sell 400 pieces to major stores like Henri Bendel and even to some smaller downtown boutiques looking for clothing pieces that couldn’t be found anywhere else.
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Rowley thanks her carefree attitude as a young designer for the success she found only a little later in her life. Without the fear of what the future would hold or what others thought, Cynthia Rowley was willing to do whatever it took to succeed.
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Rowley acted on her instinct for every business decision after this point. However, Rowley may not have had a business in the first place if she had not been given $3,000 in seed money from her grandparents. Her family knew that design was in her blood, with one of her grandparents even designing the logo for Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.
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They also knew that Rowley had the fearlessness and determination to survive in the world of fashion. This passion for fashion is nearly genetic, with Rowley inspiring her older daughter, Kit Keenan, to create her fashion line called KIT.
Career
It seems that the same passion didn’t transfer to Rowley’s younger daughter, Gigi Powers, who’d rather practice music in her hoodie. In late spring of 2005, Cynthia Rowley released her first line of eyewear with B. Robinson and the Kenmark Group.
The odd, three-way alliance allowed each party to contribute their expertise, making their release as smooth as possible. B. Robinson’s job was to create the glasses and sell the eyewear to non-optical retailers.
At the same time, the Kenmark Group would work on selling the glasses to private optical retailers and select optical service chains. Rowley’s job was to design glasses that stood out from other eyewear options.
Rowley’s biggest complaint with eyewear at the time was that all the frames were so similar that it was difficult even to tell them apart. Many eyewear options just felt like the same five frames with new, normally bland paint jobs.
This collaboration was extremely beneficial for both Rowley and the Kenmark Group. The Kenmark Group only had about 80 individuals working for them but were able to expand greatly after they collaborated with B. Robinson and Cynthia Rowley.
Life Style
However, this wouldn’t be Rowley’s last time designing eyewear. She would later start two of her eyewear collections, Cynthia Rowley Eyewear and Mr. Powers. Cynthia Rowley has also released two eyewear collections with online optical seller Zenni.
She recently released her second line with them over quarantine for COVID-19. While spending more time indoors and on her computer, Rowley has found her eyes burn and tire more easily. She has used Zenni’s blue light protection technology, Zenni Bloks, to combat this feeling.
With her, more men-centric eyewear collection, Mr. Powers, wanted to add a fun approach to the world of men’s eyewear. A pair of Mr. Powers glasses will cost $129, and sunglasses cost $99. By the early 2000s, most people knew Cynthia Rowley’s name, thanks to her over-the-top, wanderlust-filled designs.
While not everyone could afford one of her clothing pieces, people wanted an affordable way to incorporate her art into their everyday life. Target approached Rowley about the potential of creating a home goods line for their chain stores.
In 2002, Rowley created her first line of home goods for Target called Swell, based on her books from 1999 and 2002. In 2008, Cynthia Rowley released a summer-themed, outdoor home goods line for the superstore chain, Target.
Goals
In the Whim collection, you could find more than 500 different products that all had Rowley’s signature bold colors and graphic designs. Whim was inspired by Cynthia Rowley, a busy mother with two daughters of her own.
Her goal was to make it easy for consumers to add a splash of bold color or design into their everyday lives for an affordable price. Rowley wasn’t done helping Target customers add as much whimsy as they could into their days.
In 2010, Target sold the Pampers diapers that Cynthia Rowley had designed. Rowley designed 11 different diapers to give parents more options for their children. Since teaming up with Target, Rowley has created a unique line of home goods that even included cleaning supplies like sponges.
Rowley wanted to give parents more options in design and style in every aspect of their daily lives. When you have as busy a life as Cynthia Rowley, you have to find that hobby in life that allows you to remove yourself from stress and take a breather.
Surfing is what Rowley does to get away from the world’s problems and connect the planet. According to an interview she gave with Elle, Cynthia Rowley believes that surfers are the most eco-conscious people in the world because they see the effects of pollution so regularly and rely on the ocean waves to find peace and fun.
Projects
The peace that she has found in the water is something that she shares with her daughters Kit Keenan and Gigi Powers. Powers had become a child surfing instructor, with her starting to give lessons when she was only 14 years old.
In her early years of surfing, Rowley found that wetsuits all looked the same and lacked any sense of personality or individual style. While surfing, a fellow surfer came up to Rowley and complimented her work.
He asked about the potential of having her design surfwear for his company, Roxy. Only then did the fellow surfer reveal himself to be Randy Hild. The wetsuits sold incredibly well worldwide, especially in New York City, Paris, Tokyo, and Sydney.
For her first line of wetsuits, Rowley played around with multiple different cuts that the surfer world had never seen before. Her most popular of these designs were her boy-cut bodysuits. However, Rowley wanted to do more with the design of her clothing.
Cynthia Rowley worked hard to create her first printed wetsuit but completed her goal. That’s when Quicksilver, a fashion production company, gave her one of their factories to make the popular printed bodysuits.
Cynthia Rowley has a fun-loving personality that shines brilliantly whenever she’s on the screen.
That’s why she was the perfect person to have as a judge on televised design competitions such as HGTV Stars, Project Runway, 24 Hour Catwalk, and Project Runway All-Stars.
Other works
On HGTV Stars, eight interior designers went head-to-head in weekly design challenges, with the judges voting to remove one designer each week until only the grand winner is left to receive a prize of $50,000 and their own HGTV show!
Cynthia Rowley was one of the judges in the 2008 run of the show, alongside Vern Yip and Genevieve Gorder. Now, HGTV is bringing the show back with new judges and contestants. Each week, the new judges include Jonathan Adler, Lauren Makk, and a new celebrity judge.
Her second time as a television judge was on the sixth episode of Project Runway All-Stars, for the episode themed around transformations in 2013. he had also appeared as the guest judge on episode 6, season 8 of Project Runway in 2010.
In 2012, Rowley had her fashion competition show 24 Hour Catwalk, where she judged fashion designer contestants with fellow judges Alexa Chung, Derek Blasberg, and James LaForce. ontestants were given only 24 hours to create looks that appealed to a theme and the panel of judges.
All of the judges were extremely passionate about the show and its decisions. Cynthia Rowley explained that the judges would have to express strong opinions about the contestants’ placement in the competition.
Cynthia Rowley appeared on the television show Celebrity Ghost Stories, talking about how she would often see the apparition of a woman with a scarf covering her face. After a fire broke out in the house, Rowley found out the house’s previous owner had been severely burned in a house fire.
About Cynthia Rowley
Cynthia Rowley is a wonderfully creative person who has learned to express herself through many creative mediums. In 1999, she released her first book, Swell: A Girl’s Guide to the Good Life. Rowley wrote her first book alongside friend and style editor Ilene Rosenzweig.
The two advised those who wanted to live dashing lives while learning to go with the flow and not worry about minor problems or hiccups. Rowley and Rosenzweig state that perfection is overrated when trying to become the best host possible.
An imperfect host comes off as more inviting and genuine because imperfect is just a part of human nature. Rosenzweig and Rowley also give practical advice to their readers, such as how to call a taxi, golf term definitions, and even how to hoock a worm.
The book often brings up the idea of “pathological optimism,” which would be a common, occurring topic in Rowley and Rosenzweig’s future books. The same creative duo released Home Swell Home: Designing Your Dream Pad, which advised young homeowners to provide comical anecdotes from Rowley and Rosenzweig’s own lives.
In this book, they discuss how to take creative aspiration and apply practical execuition, how to get paint out of your hair, use fluorescent lights to change the appearance of your walls, how to turn your kitchen into a day spa, and how to wire lights in your trees to create a moonlight-like look.
Cynthia Rowley understands that the most important part of real estate is location, and her favorite location is one of the most expensive cities to live in, New York City. Rowley had owned four houses in the West Village of New York but sold one in 2019. The house was originally built in 1905 and was zoned for commercial and residential use.
The 25-foot-wide townhouse served as a workspace for Rowley, which was perfect for her because the home she and her family stayed in was nearby. In 2014, Rowley had paid $10.995 million for the space and put it on the market for $17 million four years later.
However, it took a year and price reduction before anyone was interested in the house. She sold the 6,000 square feet home for $14 million the following year. However, Rowley still owns a property in the area. Her 19-foot-wide townhouse is home to her New York boutique.
Cynthia Rowley hosts a mother-daughter podcast with her daughter, Kit Keenan, called Ageless. In the show, the fashion family duo talks about their misadventures and their lessons along the way. The podcast releases bi-weekly and has a slew of guests on to talk about the world of fashion, art, business, parenting, and wellness.
They also talk about their beliefs regarding body image, food, justice, and even astrology. Although Rowley and Keenan may have two different personalities and outlooks on life, they still come together to do all the things they love most.
The relationship they’ve formed is on full display in their podcast. The influence from 21-year-old Kit’s fashionable family shows during season 25 of The Bachelor. Leading man Matt James even called her a “little fashionista” during their week 5 one-on-one date.
The contestant and her proud mama are extremely close and host a podcast together called “Ageless.” The mother-daughter duo interviews powerful women about their businesses and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
The New York University student has even followed in Cynthia’s footsteps and has her own clothing company — a hoodie brand called KIT — where she collaborates with artists to create trendy designs. A-list stars, including Jennifer Lawrence and Kate Moss, have been photographed rocking the up-and-comer’s brand.
That’s not to say her life is all glitz and glamour. “Growing up, my mom being such a success story, I think that I was protecting myself and getting in touch with my emotions is something I’ve never practiced before,” Kit told Matt, 29, during their one-on-one date.
“Being here and letting those walls down is the first time I’ve ever really had to be vulnerable. So, I think that’s the hardest part, is knowing once one wall is down, you get to see all of me.” The New Yorker talked about her image on the reality dating show, including her job title of “socialite,” during an appearance on Rachel Lindsay and Becca Kufrin’s “Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast on Tuesday, February 2.
“[The viewers are] only getting a one-dimensional character of who we all really are,” Kit explained to the hosts. “I definitely came in strong night one with the whole Gossip Girl vibe and all of that.”
Cynthia Rowley was born in Illinois in 1958 and designed her first dress at the age of 9.
She attended the School of the Chicago Art Institute and designed her first dress as a professional as a senior. The fashion world has been able to react to her talent by awarding her the new Fashion Talent Award (CFDA). Not only for the design of women’s clothing, but she also began to design men’s clothes and went into the design world.
The USA, Europe, and Asia boutiques also include a wide range of accessories, signature scents, and more than 50 boutiques. A cosmopolitan article says Cynthia was brought up in an art environment by her parents, Ed and Clementine Rowley. She took up her love for beautiful clothes that she is currently making from her mother’s eye.
Education of Cynthia Rowley
In 1981 she obtained her graduate degree from Barrington High School and a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts from the Chicago School of Art. But you knew her first show didn’t go exactly as planned and that she showed the door? She clashed with the faculty about her design using exuberant wings, which led her to escape.
“I got booted from my Junior Show — not that I have a resentment or anything,” she said to the Chicago Tribune. She also took on several shows, including The Today Show, Good Morning America, Oprah Winfrey Show, Gossip Girl, and David Let’s The Late Show.
“My mother was all painters from the family. My grandmother has done many self-portraits,” the New York Times said Cynthia. “Even though she was only 100 percent Italian, she used to wear Chinese dresses like that. It was an excellent education, with theme rooms and stuff,” she said.
With $3,000 of the seed money of one of her grandmothers, Cynthia Rowley started her career. Rowley launched its first collection in 1988 of women’s wear, handbags, lenses, color cosmetics, scents, bathrobes, furniture, bedding, office accessories. Info about this collection.
She also created a range of Swell’s home accessories based on her 2003 Target debut book series, which she co-wrote with friend Ilene Rosenzweig. In 2011, Rowley presented a limited men’s wear range called Bill Powers, its husband.
Kit developed a podcast called Ageless, together with Cynthia and her daughter, in 2019.
She has taken on several shows, including The Today Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Gossip Girl, and The Late Show with David Letterman, as a guest.
Frequently asked questions
Here is some frequently asked questions related to the article Cynthia Rowley net worth
Is Kit Keenan the daughter of Cynthia Rowley?
Kit Keenan, a contestant on Matt James’ season of The Bachelor and the daughter of esteemed fashion designer Cynthia Rowley, is the first to admit she’s lived a privileged life — but that doesn’t mean she’s not down to cook dinner at home in her sweatpants now and then.
Who is Cynthia Rowland?
Cynthia Rowland is a business and tax lawyer who helps philanthropists, including private individuals and for-profit and non-profit organizations, who wish to make the world a better place.
Who is Kit’s dad?
The kit is the daughter of Cynthia Rowley—a New York city-based fashion designer who makes clothes so beautiful (and so expensive) that my heart weeps. Kit’s dad, William Keenan Jr., is a sculptor.
How old is Kit from The Bachelor?
When The Bachelor aired its new season starring Matt James earlier this year, fans met 21-year-old Kit Keenan during the introductory limo entrances. Kit lives in New York and is the daughter of famed fashion designer Cynthia Rowley.
Conclusion
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Cynthia, 62, who founded the Cynthia Rowley Collection in the '80s, is worth an estimated $100 million. In addition to women’s clothing, the Illinois-born designer expanded her brand to include shoes, cosmetics, perfume, handbags, and eyewear. In addition, she’s the author of four books and has appeared on shows like Project Runway, America’s Next Top Model, and yes, even Gossip Girl.