Prabal Gurung

“I just really enjoy life.”

“As someone who started a company with an idea of creating a luxury brand with a soul, I needed to learn more about how I effect change.”

“I'm fascinated by furniture design and interiors, and I want to try designing all that stuff.”

“I decided if it was going to be a mistake to come to New York and try and make a career in fashion, then it was going to be my mistake... But the American dream is real. I'm living it.”

“I would tell any aspiring designer to take the time to experience everything they can to really get a feel for what direction they want to go in. And most importantly, let your passion and your gut lead you.”

“Fashion has always had the ability to affect lives, to touch people. But for the longest period of time, we've said, 'Oh, we're just pages of a magazine; that's what we all look at.' It's more than that.”

“I'm constantly thinking about design, shapes, patterns and colors, so I just want to be more of a blank canvas. But there is a comfort in knowing what you're going to wear, and that probably comes from Catholic school, where I wore a uniform for 10 years.”

“I mean, I can cook, but I'd get very nervous having my food being judged by dinner guests.”

“The woman I design for is very curious. She loves fashion, but she also is passionate about what is happening around the world.”

“The punk era, at its best, celebrated questioning the norm and the promotion of originality. Both concepts have always resonated with me.”

“To me, beauty is inclusion - every size, every color - that's the world I live in.”

“There is undoubtedly a lot of pressure that comes with recognition, which can be a good thing and bad thing all at the same time. But if you stay focused and don't lose sight of what you're doing and who you are, you can rise above it.”

“I know what it's like to turn the page of a magazine and not see anyone like you. It takes a lot, a lot, a lot of talking to yourself to confirm your self-worth.”

“Fashion has a huge responsibility - in what we show on the runway, what we do in editorial, who we dress - to make sure it represents differences. If we don't, we're giving in to the discrimination.”

“It saddens me to see the reality-television shows that are getting so much fanfare that are a celebration of stupidity and the degradation of women. And those women are consistently wearing too short, too tight dresses. I hope the trend of aging gracefully returns.”

“I was in Nepal and I had watched Oprah Winfrey's show. I had no idea, as a kid in Nepal, who she was, but I remember watching an episode of hers about living your dreams.”

“Nothing scares a straight man more than a woman in her full glory.”

“I am not the kind of designer who is racing to the finish line, so while collaborations are important for our growth, each and every one has to be strategic and well-timed with what we have going on internally.”

“I came here because I wanted to live the American dream that I had heard of. And I'm a perfect example. I came to New York; I knew no one. I've made a career, a life, so I still believe in that.”

“I've always found it interesting when I look at a woman, and she's beautiful and everything, but there's an inner strength.”