In High Esteem
FIG’s Man of the Year talks about the importance of giving
Richard Clareman, coowner of Los Angeles-based junior label Self Esteem, has been named Man of the Year by the Fashion Industries Guild of Cedars- Sinai and will be honored by the organization at a sold-out event on Oct. 5 in Beverly Hills, Calif.
An industry veteran, Clareman got his start at Spring Industries in New York. In 1986, he moved to the West Coast, where he worked for several California manufacturers, including Fritzi of California and Chorus Line, where he was president of the Jazz Sport division. In 1997, Clareman launched Self Esteem with the concept of delivering fashion-forward junior apparel with a positive message.
Self Esteem is no stranger to charity work. The company and its employees have been supporters of such local organizations as the City of Hope, Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Los Angeles and Inner-City Arts. Last year, the company raised more than $25,000 for the Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Clareman has been working with several key Self Esteem employees since the beginning of the year to organize the upcoming Fashion Industries Guild gala, which will raise funds for the Neo-Natal Intensive Care Unit at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. This marks the 46th year the Fashion Industries Guild has been supporting the medical center.
Over the years, the group has raised more than $15 million for it.
Clareman took time out of his busy schedule to talk with California Apparel News executive editor Alison A. Nieder about being honored, the event and the importance of supporting causes such as the Neo-Natal Intensive Care Unit.
How did you get involved with the Fashion Industries Guild?
They are the premiere charity—[along with] the City of Hope— out here on the West Coast. Ruth Bregman was really a big supporter of the Fashion Industries Guild and one of the key board members. She really got me involved at a very early stage in my career and I’ve just been doing it ever since. It’s really wonderful. Their Neo-Natal Intensive Care Unit—which the Fashion Industries Guild funds—is great. Having children, I can appreciate that.
How do you balance the time demands of philanthropic work with the demands of running Self Esteem?
I could not have done it without the help of a lot of people. My forte is merchandising and selling the Self Esteem line and brand and I couldn’t take my eye off the ball. But I had a great support staff on this event—it’s all because of them that it’s sold out.
Obviously, your employees are also involved in charity work. How do you encourage their involvement in philanthropic work?
The key employees that have gotten behind me, we went on a hospital tour and they really took it on as a personal mission after seeing the Neo-Natal Intensive Care Unit of Cedars-Sinai. They all came to me and made the plea if they could help in as big a way as possible. They [offered to] spend as much time as they could to help because they truly believe that it’s a wonderful cause.
Does being named Man of the Year give you an increased sense of obligation as far as your philanthropic work is concerned?
I want to give more of my personal life to philanthropy, I just have to find the time. I have two young kids and the traveling [I do] for the company, it takes up so much of it. I have a total sense of responsibility. I realize you have to give back—it’s so important.
