Discover The Creative Pragmatism Of Tibi
Classic, modern, functional, comfortable – whatever your lifestyle and sartorial disposition, TIBI creates versatile clothing for the woman who knows her own mind and her own style, says LAURA JORDAN
“The Tibi woman knows she doesn’t fit into a box – a typical ‘fashion category,’” says Amy Smilovic, the brand’s founder. “She is curious to understand and show her personal style; and when she adds items to her wardrobe, it’s with intent to better communicate who she is – often to no one but herself.”
Smilovic founded Tibi in 1997 and remains its creative director. So, as well as trying on every piece at every stage of development, Smilovic embodies the busy, curious person that the New York-based brand regularly dresses; fans include Michelle Obama, Tracee Ellis Ross, Kendall Jenner and a whole host of art-world insiders.
Smilovic also embodies the philosophy that drives Tibi’s success. “Just like our customers, I simply don’t subscribe to one definition of our style. We’re not ‘the bohemians’, ‘the modernists’ or ‘the classicists’. Our style, like our personalities, is far more complex and nuanced than that.”
Smilovic’s mindset has a name: ‘the Creative Pragmatist’. It’s the design ethos that the Tibi team subscribe to, alongside a steadfast belief that women don’t want to choose between the conceptual and the functional, artistry and comfort. She wants it all – and Tibi is the brand that gives it to her. “We find it natural to be highly creative but also crave utility – enabling us to go about our lives with a balance of pragmatism,” explains Smilovic. “This is how our customers move through life as well. So when clothing design matches your mindset, you feel very whole – and chic.” Unsurprisingly, it’s a design attitude that resonates with the multi-faceted fans of the brand; women who want their clothes to express but not overwhelm, and who are engaged with fashion but not beholden to trends.
“We find it natural to be highly creative but also crave utility – enabling us to go about our lives with a balance of pragmatism
”Amy Smilovic
Clothes must have a natural versatility; but that doesn’t mean they have to be basic. Indeed, it’s the masterful and unexpected finishing touches – an unexpected color, assymetrical tailoring – that elevate Tibi designs. “Something as seemingly simple as a gray ribbed knit with slits at the wrist has to have all the monikers of the Tibi woman’s personal style – chill, modern and classic all at once – no compromise,” says Smilovic.
Tibi’s ‘Creative Pragmatist’ philosophy was very much in evidence at the brand’s fall/winter ’25 collection. Take the wool-blend gauze cement gray button-down, which has all the formal elegance of shirting offset with the ease of a sweatshirt, thanks to a fluid, lightweight fabric. See too the brand’s true-blue jeans – reliable closet staples taken into unexpected territory thanks to zippers on the knee that also allow you to wear them as shorts. Or the proportion play of ultra-wide baggy gray pants, and the refreshing pragmatism of a maxi skirt in ruffled nylon.
These are clothes that, like the woman who wears them, cannot be contained to rigid categorizations. As Smilovic concludes: “When each piece you own embodies the elements of your personal style, you can’t help but feel like yourself. Your best.”