Mary Quant was one of the best-known designers of the Swinging Sixties, a creative and commercial trailblazer who put London fashion on the world map.
Synonymous with defining styles of the era, including the miniskirt and hot pants, her colorful and unashamedly sexy clothes for a drastically changing world were adored as much by celebrities like Twiggy and Audrey Hepburn as they were by young girls on the street with new feelings of freedom. Emerging at the time of feminism’s second wave (after suffrage), Ms. Quant, who died on Thursday at 93, helped wipe out British postwar drabness and create a bold new way of dressing.
Bazaar, the King’s Road store she opened in 1955 with her husband, Alexander Plunket Greene, was an instant hit, turning the street into a fashion mecca for affluent young shoppers. Later, she became an early adopter of mass production for her designs like colorful opaque tights and PVC plastic raincoats, and global licenses for products including bed linen and carpets.
Beyond her clothes, Ms. Quant became a recognizable figure in her own right, frequently photographed with her signature Vidal Sassoon five-point bob and almost always wearing a mini, including when she received her Order of the British Empire in 1966 at Buckingham Palace.
Ms. Quant was not just an early high-profile female fashion designer; she was also a powerful role model for working women.