We all buy clothes, but no two people shop the same. It can be a social experience, and a deeply personal one; at times, it can be impulsive and entertaining, at others, purpose-driven, a chore. Where do you shop? When do you shop? How do you decide what you need, how much to spend and what’s “you”? These are some of the questions we’re putting to prominent figures in our column “How I Shop.”
Bravo’s “The Real Housewives” franchise has come a long way from its origins, especially when it comes to casting. For the newest season of the Beverly Hills edition, the network brought on one of its most accomplished career women yet, expanding the definition of what it means to be a “housewife” further than ever.
Meet Bozoma Saint John, a former top executive at various billion-dollar companies. As fellow cast member Sutton Stracke says in the Season 14 premiere, “Boz is the real deal. People might pretend to be the boss, but she’s the boss.”
Photo: Courtesy of Bozoma Saint John
After graduating from Wesleyan University in 1999, Saint John went on to lead the music and marketing division of PepsiCo starting in 2005, before joining Apple Music following its acquisition of Beats. She’s also served as the Chief Brand Officer of Uber and most recently was at Netflix as Chief Marketing Officer.
Despite her background in corporate America, Saint John’s style doesn’t reflect that of your average C-suite member. Rather than stick to traditional and conservative office attire, Saint John learned to blend her bold personal style with professionalism and break boundaries in the process.
Though, it didn’t happen immediately: “I did what everybody else does. I looked around me and said, ‘Oh, people are wearing gray suits. Let me wear a gray suit. These people have their hair straight. Let me get my hair straight,” the 47-year-old, now-retired businesswoman tells Fashionista. “I was muted when I wasn’t being expressive. You are not your best self unless you feel your best. So for me, that meant my hair, clothes, lipstick and nails were all things that had to work in concert for me to show up as my best self.”
Photo: Gabrielle Lurie/AFP via Getty Images
Embracing her individualism ultimately led Saint John to one of her most memorable career moments — a presentation on the Apple Keynote stage about the developments of the company’s then-new music streaming service — where she wore a bright-pink, figure-hugging dress and a natural hairstyle.
“Everything I had on was intentional. I wore my hair in a big, curly Afro because I was the first Black person to stand on the stage that Steve Jobs had built,” says Saint John. “My dress was made by Mimi Plange, who is a Ghanaian designer and my shoes were pink Louboutins with a little puff on the back because — hello, feminine! — you know what I mean? It’s important to show up in ways that are defiant of all these societal rules and things that are made up by some man somewhere. I can be successful and wear braids or an Afro. I can do whatever I want.”
Though she retired from the corporate world in 2022, Saint John continues to live this intention-driven lifestyle. “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” brings a new opportunity to showcase designers who share pieces of her background.
Photo: Phylicia J. L. Munn for Bravo/Courtesy of Bravo
“For the promotional shoot for the show, the theme was Old Hollywood. So I did some research,” explains Saint John. “I discovered Zelda Wynn Valdes, who was the first Black woman designer to open a boutique in Manhattan in 1948. I sent images over to Mimi [Plange] in Ghana for inspiration and we collaborated on the final look.”
Most of the outfits Saint John wears throughout the show and during confessionals are custom ensembles by African creatives: “In my everyday wardrobe, I wear a lot of Ghanaian designers. I have a lot of custom-made clothes because that’s how I grew up. It’s part of the culture in West Africa.”
Photo: Courtesy of Eve by Boz
On top of spotlighting Black fashion designers, Saint John is also aiming to highlight and fill a disparity in the Black beauty industry — particularly as it relates to hair — with her new brand Eve, which offers wigs, extensions and more with diverse textures, wide-ranging tones of lace, plus a line of hair-care products.
Ahead, the latest “Beverly Hills” diamond bearer walks Fashionista through the closet staples and hairstyles that make her feel like her best self, how her childhood experiences inspired her admiration for craftsmanship, which of the other Housewives could “give [her] a run for [her] money” when it comes to fashion and much more.
Photo: Courtesy of Bozoma Saint John
“I was born with fashion in my DNA. In the early 1970s, my mother was a model in London. She’s also a trained seamstress and designer, so I always grew up with the hum of a sewing machine in the background or the sound of scissors cutting through fabric or yards just being aired out. Women would come into my mom’s studio in our house trying clothes on and she’d be pinning them and say, ‘Boz, come hold this side!’ My earliest memories are filled with the creation of fashion.
“I got my own sewing machine for Christmas when I was 16. I was so happy with it. For my prom, I wanted to design my dress. It wasn’t like, ‘Okay, let me go to Macy’s or Dillard’s and go buy a dress.’ I was creating. I wanted to wear a tuxedo with my midriff out because, look, the abs have always been popping. So, I partnered with my mom. She cut the pattern, we made the dress and that’s what I wore.
“For my wedding, it was a no-brainer. Why would I go to a store and buy a dress when I could create what I wanted specifically for me with all of the details I wanted to express? My wedding dress had embroidery of Gye Nyame — an ancient symbol — on it that was made in Ghana. It basically means the greatness of God. I felt like a queen that day.
Photo: Courtesy of Bozoma Saint John
“I remember being in one of my first meetings for Netflix with about seven other C-suite members. When it came my time to talk about my side of the business, I also wanted to tell a little bit about my personal story and Ghana clearly has a big influence on that. So while everyone else around the table was wearing muted colors, I was out here in brilliant colors. I find that I am always expressive in the way I dress because my culture is like that.
“When I wear something and I walk into a room, even if you don’t know the story that goes behind it, you feel it. So I walk in, my shoulders are back and my chin is high because I know the intention of what I’m wearing. [Clothes] are like another character in the story. This isn’t just ‘Oh, special occasion. Let me do a promo shoot for “Real Housewives.”‘ Intention goes into what I’m wearing every day.
Photo: Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
“Creating my brand Eve was a very intentional [project] for me…the lace that most wigs or closures are made on is tailored to lighter complexions or white women even though 80% of the industry is Black women and women-of-color consumers. You’ll find millions of videos on YouTube or TikTok where Black women are dying their lace or using foundation to correct it. And I’m like, ‘Why can’t we just take it out of the packaging and put it on like white women do?’ I’m not saying we shouldn’t have [lighter lace], but why can’t we have this too? Why can’t [wigs] just be curly out of the box versus straight? Creating Eve has felt like such purposeful work.
“I feel my most confident when my hair is in curls and it’s like a crown on top of my head and you can see the length of it. That makes me feel fabulous and like the queen I am.
“A lot of my work is done from my home office now. So you’ll see me in a fluffy robe with fluffy slippers on too. Right now, my favorite robe is Skims. They are really, really soft and they remain in their shape, which I like.
“When I’m doing school drop off or running to the grocery store, I usually love a good matching set. Whether that’s a sweatsuit or a three-piece matching crop top, pant and jacket. It’s so funny. People always think that you put so much effort into it simply because it matches. And I’m like, ‘No, girl. I just put that on and the matching things matched and that’s why it looks amazing.’
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“I am a spontaneous shopper. Whoever is doing the window dressing in stores, know that I am your customer. I drive by stores, I see a full outfit in the window, pull over and say, ‘Where can I find that outfit?’
“I like to drive down Melrose because I think there’s a good mix of designers. Of course, everyone loves Rodeo, but for me, that’s only if I really have a burning desire to go see what’s happening in Chanel or something. In New York, I’m not walking down Fifth [Avenue]. I’m more in the downtown Soho area.
Photo: Griffin Nagel for Bravo/Courtesy of Bravo
“I watched ‘The Real Housewives of Atlanta’ more religiously than any other [Bravo] franchise, but I’ve always loved ‘New York‘ and I did watch ‘Beverly Hills.’ But more recently, ‘Dubai.’ They know how to talk about fashion. Chanel Ayan, that girl can do no wrong in my eyes. Her fashion sense is top-notch. It’s outrageous and bold. She couldn’t care less what you think and I love every minute of it.
“In the first episode of Season 14 [of ‘Beverly Hills’], we go to a gala and I literally looked at Erica [Jayne]‘s outfit and thought, ‘That bitch! Man, I’m supposed to win!’ I loved her look. I think she’s the only one who gave me a run for my money as far as fashion sense, but she’s not going to win.
Photo: Taylor Hill/Getty Images
“I shop on Instagram a lot. I am the person who falls for Instagram ads, 100%. I bought a gold breastplate that I wore to a Forbes event. I wore it under a suit and I didn’t button the suit. I was like, ‘Look, here’s my gold breastplate.’
“I love a Balmain suit because they’re a little off-center. There’s always big gold buttons or a flare leg or something that just makes it feel a little extra. Olivier [Rousteing] cuts so well. I love his design.
“I’m not sure what I’ll buy next. I think that’s the excitement of fashion. I’ll find out tomorrow. But, you know what, I actually don’t have custom shoes. I love the silhouette of Jessica Rich shoes. She has these stiletto mules that are just gorgeous. I’d love to work with her and design some for myself.
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Source: Fashionista.com