In preparation for Sacramento Fashion Week, Kouri is putting in long hours. “It’s crazy. I’m thinking, ‘Why am I doing this?’ I could just not be doing anything and sleep in,” he says. But he says his passion is more important than the extra zzzs. “It doesn’t matter how prepared you think you are, you can still end up stitching designs until the last minute.”

Michael Kouri, a fashion design graduate from American River College and the founder of Nolan Kouri Studios, says being a fashion designer in Sacramento is more affordable than working in a place like New York City but decidedly less profitable.

Local fashion designer Michael Kouri moved back to Sacramento from New York City a year ago so he could focus more time and energy on designing his own pieces. And while based in Sacramento, Kouri, the owner of Nolan Kouri Studios, says he has been able to keep his contacts and brand growing in the Big Apple.

“Sacramento has some amazing talent here,” says Karri Grant, an event stylist for Sacramento Fashion Week, which is happening this month from the 24th through March 7. “We don’t celebrate them, and they can’t make money here so they leave.”

Grant says the main challenge is attracting buyers; “People need to be willing to spend the money.”

Kouri purchased his first sewing machine after watching “Project Runway” not too many years ago. It’s a far cry from his original trajectory; Kouri also has a molecular and cell biology degree from UC Berkeley.

Photography: Ken James (http://www.kjamesimages.com/)
Captions: Mia Lopez — Photography: Ken James (http://www.kjamesimages.com/) Captions: Mia Lopez

Styling Sacramento

Back SNAP Feb 1, 2014 By Mia Lopez

Backstage with local designer Nolan Kouri as he prepares for Sacramento Fashion Week.

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