Kay Cohen
Kay Cohen (born Kathleen Siddall on 31 December 1952 in Levin, New Zealand) is an Australian fashion designer and business woman based in Sydney, Australia. Cohen has led a number of lingerie design brands, most notably as Founder and Creative Director of Pleasure State and as General Manager and Creative Director of Elle Macpherson's Lingerie label Elle Macpherson Intimates, also Cohen is known as the inventor of the Biofit uplift bra.
Early Life and Education
Cohen was raised on a farm and first discovered fashion at the age of 12. She attended Wellington Polytechnic (now Massey University) in nearby Wellington, majoring in Clothing and Textile design. After graduation, she qualified and continued as a lecturer at the school, instructing fellow Australian Fashion Designer Collette Dinnigan. The first 15 years of Cohen's career were spent designing fashion outerwear.
Cohen later qualified with an MBA from Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.
Lingerie beginnings
Cohen transitioned to Lingerie design in 1992 when she joined Triumph International, in Brisbane, Australia. At Triumph she was responsible for creative direction for brands including Triumph, Sloggi, and introduced Valisere to the Australian market. In 1997 Cohen returned to New Zealand and was appointed Group General Manager of Brands for the New Zealand Lingerie group Bendon. At Bendon, Cohen was known for her creative direction and successful reshaping of Elle Macpherson's Lingerie Label: Elle Macpherson Intimates as well as heading creative for labels Bendon, Bendon Man, Hey Sister and Expozay swim.
