Described as “a rare talent,” “a pleasure to work with,” and “incredibly knowledgeable”, fashionista Leila Shams has made her name in fashion. The designer and consultant boasts the highest levels of talent and quality of product.
Shams has been the design director for some of America’s most beloved brands and celebrities, including DKNY, Bebe, Tommy Hilfiger, and Express. Her edgy, signature style has seen the runway, TV screens, and retailers from high end luxury to Costco.
She has also designed and consulted for some of pop culture’s most famous names, including the Kardashians, Kelly Clarkson, and Nicki Minaj. Now, the entrepreneur is expanding her business to include a line of shaping swimwear, TA3 SWIM.
Designer, consultant Leila Shams wears many hats
Shams’s collections have been worn by stars such as the Kardashian clan, singers Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, Kelly Clarkson, and actresses including Orange is the New Black’s Jackie Cruz.
The ShamsWow Agency website has an album of all these stars and more wearing Shams’s pieces, with bold animal print, edgy rock n’ roll-esque leathers and sheers, and intricate patterns that call back to Victorian designs.
Shams is prolific in her designs. She has appeared on fashion-focused television shows and the most famous catwalks, including New York Fashion Week. Additionally, she participated in Season 1 of the show All on the Line with Joe Zee.
In addition to designing, Shams runs a consulting business, helping fashion startups with product management, design, and more.
Leila Shams gets support from the family
Shams has never minded improvising. In fact, she recalls fixing up and altering her own wedding dress just a day before the wedding.
“The original design had this super intense embroidery at the hem that had skulls and birds and flowers, but by the time I sent the design to my factory they were like ‘yeah, that’s not happening’,” recalls Shams. “So they used an embroidered lace they already had. I didn’t love it so [I] bought a dress on Etsy… and switched the lace with that… the night before the wedding.”
Her husband, Brent Dougherty, certainly did not mind Shams’ last-minute alterations. Shams frequently posts about him and their daughter, Mia, on her IG account.
Her daughter has some of the same artistic impulses, giving them rich bonding opportunities:
Shams also gets love and support from her mother, who she writes used to bring rum cake to her DKNY office and “whip up the most beautiful pieces in the showroom.”
Patent-pending swimwear to increase confidence
With a successful career and supportive family already under her belt, Shams is ready for another leap. This time, the entrepreneur wants to create shaping swimwear.
“I created TA3 because I wanted to feel confident in a swimsuit,” writes Shams. “We should be able to eat & still look hot at the pool or beach! That’s why I named the company TA3 – EAT backwards.”
Shams describes in this Instagram post the painstaking process of making sure the swimsuits were made for real people, modelling on herself and her friends. Furthermore, she demonstrates the real life effect of the shaping suit on her own body here. “I naturally don’t really have a waist shape and I have a belly, and that is all completely snatched in this suit,” she says.
10% of the proceeds from TA3 go to Girls Inc, a non-profit focused on empowering young girls through mentorship to break cycles of poverty and become role models in their communities. Currently three styles are available in limited quantities, and there is a patent pending on the comfortable compression technology in the swimwear.
Peruse and purchase Shams’s swimwear on TA3’s official website.
