The NYU master of retailing began his fashion career at Miller Rhodes department store in Richmond, Virginia as a buyer and merchandiser.

Only-child Perry Edwin Ellis fashioned his women’s sportswear label—Portfolio—in 1975, a few years later launching his namesake company, Perry Ellis International, and later the wildly-popular Perry Ellis Menswear Collection of "non-traditional, modern classics."

Perry became known for his notorious “skip down the runway” during shows, typifying his flirtatious sense of humor. His spirited and graceful approach to life and fashion lives on in his fashion and fragrance collections: 360, America, Perry, Perry Ellis and Portfolio. New York’s 7th Avenue Fashion Walk of Fame honors Perry with a plaque on 7th Avenue.