Nicole Richie Says to “Stick To Your Own Closet”

Nicole Richie in Calvin Klein Collection at the FIT Future of Fashion runway show. Photo: Getty Images

Celebrity fashion lines often crash and burn… but not Nicole Richie’s. Her accessories label, House of Harlow 1960, has been a commercial success since 2008, propelling the 33-year-old into the same fashion space as Victoria Beckham and the Olsens—and making her a business whiz, too.

So when Richie admitted she was “excited, very honored, and a little nervous” to host FIT’s Future of Fashion runway show, you got the sense that it wasn’t because of stage fright—it was because she genuinely wants to support the style community.

Spoiler alert: Richie’s keynote speech onstage went smoothly…and so did her Yahoo Style interview backstage, where she discussed her family, her philosophy on borrowing clothes, and the reason she has Alexander Wang on speed dial.

Yahoo Style: It seems like every fashion editor in New York has at least one House of Harlow ring…

Nicole Richie: Are you wearing one right now? That’s so nice! I like to wear two [House of Harlow rings, side-by-side. Not that I’m trying to make you spend any more money on my designs… but if you wanted to, I wouldn’t be mad. Just saying.

YS: A lot of celebrities try to have fashion brands, but yours is a huge success. Why?

NR: The secret to the success… you know what? When I’m designing and creating, I’m thinking of the girl who wants to celebrate fashion and individuality in a really exciting way. I always put the girls first, and I hope they’re picking up on that.

YS: Hollywood’s impact on fashion keeps growing. So do these FIT kids need celebrity clients in order to become successful designers?

NR: I don’t think they need a celebrity to launch their labels. But I know in any business—fashion, television, anything—it’s really nice to have not only a mentor, but somebody to hold your hand and let you know that once, they were going through the same thing. It’s important to know you’re not alone. You need someone to hear about your struggles, for sure. I’m really lucky, because I’ve grown up around the fashion industry, and so I was able to be next to some really amazing designers that also have great business minds. And that’s extremely important.

YS: Can you tell us which designers have mentored you personally?

NR: Oh, sure! John Varvatos, Alexander Wang, Olivier Rousteing at Balmain, and Anthony Vaccarello. They’ve been amazing to me.

YS: Your teen sister, Sofia, just scored her first magazine cover. What advice have you given her about the industry?

NR: She’s already got a good head on her shoulders. And she’s very blessed. She has a close family around her, and that’s the most important thing… She’s a smart girl, but she’s also extremely mature. She’s more mature than I am, sometimes!

YS: You live pretty close to your sister-in-law, Cameron Diaz. Have you raided her closet yet?

NR: [Laughing] I haven’t stolen anything from anyone’s closet lately! The older I get, the more I realize, everybody has their own taste, and their own look, and it’s not going to be yours. So my thing, lately, is, “stick to your own closet.”

Related: Nicole Richie Talks Bright Hair, Being a Fashion Designer, and Raising Chickens (Really)!

Related: 10 Things to Know About Sofia Richie, Fashion’s New It Girl