Sarah LaFleur (left) and Miyako Nakamura (right), co-founders of M.M.LaFleur.
A “Conscious Uncoupling” with Miyako, My Co-Founder
Introducing a new era of M.M.LaFleur.
I’ve always said that Miyako Nakamura, co-founder of M.M.LaFleur and our Chief Creative Officer since our founding, was my “other life partner” (the first being my spouse). So I’m filled with both sadness and gratitude in sharing that Miyako is stepping down from her position at M.M. to pursue her own artistic dreams.
Miyako and me at our event with Russ & Daughters. Miyako’s outfit: blazer, turtleneck, and pants. My outfit: shirt (available on Second Act) and dress.
Over our fourteen years of partnership, we built so many things together: a beautiful team, a brand we are both proud of, and a genuine friendship that will last forever, even if our business partnership dissolves.
She spoke at my wedding, rode with me in an ambulance after a medical procedure gone awry, stood by me as I pursued IVF while running the business, and then gave me the space to enjoy my maternity leave during the depths of Covid.
I got to watch her fall in love with her husband, Taka, cared for her as she battled morning sickness in Milan while sourcing leather for our first pair of shoes, and witnessed her become an incredible mom, which was something she said she’d never considered when we first started working together.
Back in the early days of M.M.
Over the past 14 years, we have rented U-Hauls and fake phone booths for a photo shoot together, gotten lost in Italy after we accidentally missed our stop in Milan and ended up 90 miles away in the city of Turin while visiting one of our factories, met the venerable Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and created a custom jabot on behalf of her former clerks to celebrate her 20th anniversary on the Supreme Court, and traveled as far as Tokyo to meet some of our VIP customers.
Presenting RBG with the custom jabot Miyako designed for her.
There is no such thing as “work-life balance” when you’re a founder; your personal life is part of your work, and your work is part of your personal life. How lucky we were to have had each other during the transformative time that was our late 20s, 30s, and early 40s.
Posing with Elinor Carucci, who featured the jabot Miyako designed in her book “The Collars of RBG.”
We were an unusual duo. We’re both Japanese—she hails from Kyoto, and my mom is from Tokyo, where I spent a good chunk of my childhood—and that’s about where our similarities end. She’s artistic, introspective, the definition of cool. I’m a business person, extraverted, and whatever the opposite of cool is.
Having too much fun at brand activations.
But as my mother once said to me (in reference to finding a romantic partner, though I think it works in the context of business partners as well), “You want someone who takes taxis at the same rate that you do; not someone so extravagant that they never take public transportation, but also not someone so thrifty that they force you to take the subway when you just want to collapse into the back of a car.” In other words, find someone who shares similar values as you—someone who approaches money and how to spend it (or not) the same way you do; someone who agrees with you on your priorities in life.
We love an outdoor adventure
In this dimension, we were perfectly compatible. We both agreed that money served a purpose, but was not the end goal in life; that working with great people was the greatest gift in your career; that what mattered most in life was you and your health, your family and friends, and then your career, in that order. When we would inevitably get that order mixed up (usually in the form of working too much and sacrificing our own health), we were there to remind each other to put ourselves first; to rest and recover, so we could do the thing that gave us so much joy; to spend time with our friends and family, to work with the people we love, and to pursue our craft.
Miyako during a trip to Laos, where she learned the craft of indigo dyeing to create this scarf.
As someone who was lucky enough to have a long-lasting business partnership, this is the most important lesson I can share about finding a co-founder: If you have similar values about what matters in life, the rest will sort itself out.
Miyako and I both knew when the time was coming for her to take her next step. At some point, the job that she loved so much didn’t give her as much energy as it once had, and her being a true creative—an artist, really—I knew there was nothing harder than that. We started to loosely discuss it maybe a year and a half before we both knew it was the right time. I was sad, but ready, which is probably about the best way you could feel about a co-founder’s departure.
The first person that Miyako thought of as her successor was Jennifer Coté.
We ended up interviewing dozens of candidates, but as always, Miyako’s first instinct was the right one. I feel so lucky to welcome the talented, charismatic, and joyful Jenn as our new Design Director. It was clear when we met that she just knew where the brand needed to go, and that she had a deep admiration and love for the customers we dress. Her CV was pretty darn impressive, too: She hails from Michael Kors, Theory, and DVF, and has worked with some of the design greats. Also: She is a mom of two young boys, so she knows just how time-starved our customers are!
The passing of the torch from Miyako to Jenn could not have gone more beautifully, thanks to the deep respect that Miyako and Jenn have for each other. Miyako’s DNA will always be a part of the brand—she created it, after all—and now, we get to watch Jenn inject her unique magic into it, too.
I will miss Miyako deeply, but our friendship is eternal. Please join me in wishing Miyako all the love, happiness, and success she deserves, and welcoming Jenn into the business as our new Design Director and my new creative partner. May we all find partners who take taxis at the same rate as our own.
