Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/304023
THE BASICS. I grew up in Dallas, went to Highland Park High School and started undergrad at TCU, moving to Texas A&M University, where I graduated summa cum laude with a BBA in finance. It was there that I met my husband, Wayne. We were engaged after only four months and moved to New York to be investment bankers — Wayne with Solomon Smith Barney (Citigroup), and I became an analyst in the Energy Investment Banking group of Bear Stearns. I left investment banking after I had my first child. We now have three precious children: Holden, 10; Gwyn, 8; and Gretchen, 5. GIVEN YOUR BACKGROUND, WHAT SIMILARITIES HAVE YOU NOTICED BETWEEN THE WORLDS OF FASHION AND FINANCE? I am a perfectionist — I go hard or not at all. That's really the only similarity between the two jobs. You have to grind to make it work and be successful. I worked with a great team of smart people at Bear Stearns. I gained a very strong work ethic and definitely learned a lot about valuing companies. Fashion is a 180-degree turn from finance — it's creative, not quantitative. Cover is a creative outlet for me, and I really put a lot of myself into it. I love what I do. AFTER LEAVING THE WORLD OF FINANCE TO BEGIN YOUR FAMILY, WERE YOU CONSCIOUSLY SEEKING A NEW CAREER? Cover was entirely unplanned. I took a few years off when I started having babies. In my mid-20s, I began filling some free time with charity work and ended up falling in love with the Dallas Theater Center. I served on their board of trustees for six years. I also worked on the Cattle Baron's Ball Committee and am still active in the Dallas Museum of Art. Cover was born out of a basic need that wasn't being met in the marketplace. I was spending long days in the fiery summers swimming with my little ones. It was hard enough trying to keep them slathered with slimy sunscreen, so I pretty much neglected my own skin. I have Native American heritage and have the capacity to get extremely tan. However, I get unsightly freckles on my chest when I get too much sun exposure. I scoured the web for options, and when I couldn't even find a men's swim shirt at a beach hotel, I decided to make it myself — a chic swim shirt. I enlisted the help of a family friend, Robyn Stevens, and we formed Cover in 2007. Also, my father is a very successful entrepreneur, and he has been a major influence and support while starting my business. A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE COVER CUSTOMER. Cover is meant to be the modern woman's solution for chic and easy sun protection, in and out of the water. Our silhouettes are made with a woman's body in mind — flattering hip length, extra-long sleeves to provide the option of covering the hands. I wanted to be able to wear my swimsuit every day without tiring of it, and I wanted it to last. It took us about a year of research and development before we launched our first collection of cover-ups in 2008. The brand had grown organically and transitioned to include a health focus after my sister developed a melanoma at age 23. It also has evolved to become an innovative swimwear brand. YOU TOOK YOUR TIME TO REALLY LEARN THE TRADE BEFORE LAUNCHING. CAN YOU SPEAK ABOUT THE ORGANIC NATURE OF ITS GROWTH AS A COMPANY AND HOW THIS PATH BENEFITTED THE FIRM IN THE LONG RUN? We definitely took our time, and that was a luxury. Nothing was forced, as it has never been about making money. We realized we were launching a completely new concept along with a new brand during a full-on financial crisis. The collection was very well-received from the beginning, but buyers simply did not have the budget set aside for the product we were offering. Starting slowly allowed us to hammer out the problems and climb up the extremely steep learning curve of fashion design and manufacturing before we started building relationships with major retailers like Neiman Marcus and shopbop.com. ON THE IMPORTANCE OF BUILDING SOLID RELATIONSHIPS: SPECIFICALLY, HOW YOU GOT PEOPLE TO BELIEVE, AND THE ROLE THIS PLAYED IN BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR YOUR BUSINESS. Neiman Marcus and Forty Five Ten have been truly amazing, very supportive. To be so established as premier luxury fashion institutions and to take the chance on a small brand and new idea is remarkable. I'm not saying it was easy. I tried for a couple of years before they seriously considered the line. But once Cover was in, it proved itself. The buys have consistently increased ever since. I work directly with our buyers, and their success with our brand is an important focus of mine. ON STYLE AND CREATIVITY. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE AESTHETIC OF THE COVER LOOK? WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DESIGN? The focus is chic functional swimwear. We want women of all ages to get a lot of use out of Cover. It's about the woman wearing the piece. If she chooses a white swim shirt, for example, you can still see the color and pattern of the swimsuit she chose to wear underneath. Innovation is also BY STEVEN HEMPEL. PRODUCED BY MICHELLE AVIÑA. PHOTOGRAPHY SHAYNA FONTANA. STYLIST CARLOS ALONSO-PARADA FOR ON SET MANAGEMENT. HAIR AND MAKEUP KATE YANCEY. LISA MOORE COVERING ALL ANGLES Lisa, wearing a vintage 1940s dress from Dolly Python, sits against a vintage rosewood hutch in the dining room. S elf-professed workaholic Lisa Moore's life is a modern-day cocktail: a frothy blend of family, talent and a passion to succeed that has elevated her progressive women's fashion brand Cover Clothing to national prominence. Launched in 2007 with co-founder Robyn Stevens, Cover Clothing was one of the first brands to recognize the modern woman's need for chic, easy-to-wear lifestyle apparel that protects from UV radiation.