Born on April 9, 1963 in New York City, Marc Jacobs graduated from the High School of Art and Design and in 1981 enrolled in the prestigious Parsons School of Design. It was there as a student that he designed his first collection: hand-knit sweaters for the New York clothing store Charivari. He also went on to receive some of the school's top honors: the Perry Ellis Gold Thimble, the Chester Weinberg Gold Thimble and Design Student of the Year.

Hailed as a prodigy, he founded his own label in 1986 at the age of 23. And in the words of Amy Spindler of the New York Times, "He has become the most most consistently strong, individualistic, real, live, kicking designer in New York!"

Additionally, Jacobs has been a driving creative force behind two other legendary brands. He was at Perry Ellis in the late eighties and early nineties. And since 1997 he has been the creative director at Louis Vuitton. His many successes at Louis Vuitton include reinventing their classic monogram handbag: introducing the speedy graffiti line in 2001 and following it with the wildly successful Murakami line that replaced the iconic brown and gold design with 33 different colors on white and black backgrounds.

Needless to say, Jacobs has never been afraid to take chances. As he says, "I love the reaction of love or hate. It's indifference that bores me to death."