Every Inch a Lady: My Amazing Journey from Dear Harlem to Haute Couture and Beyond

Reminiscent of style icon Iris Apfel's New York Times bestseller Accidental Icon and echoes of Andre Leon Talley’s The Chiffon Trenches comes the entertaining and thoughtful long-awaited memoir from the irrepressible groundbreaking fashion powerhouse Audrey Smaltz.

There has never been, nor will there ever be anyone like Audrey Smaltz. Towering six-feet-tall (her superpower) since she was a teenager in Harlem, she has always stood out from the crowd.

Smaltz’s details her colorful journey as a groundbreaking model, Wall Street broker, department store dynamo, fashion coordinator, commentator, editor, and entrepreneur. With her creative vision and business acumen earning her the support of legendary designers and brands such as Giorgio Armani, Jason Wu, Donna Karan, Victoria’s Secret, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Michael Kors, Stephen Burrows, and Vera Wang.

Reflecting on significant people and moments in her life Smaltz’s reveals how she managed to balance life, racism, and the obstacles in her marriage to former WNBA and Olympic silver medalist Gail Marquis.

Forthright and contemplative, Every Inch a Lady is a long-overdue life reckoning from a cultural powerhouse and one of the most important style figures in modern times.

"To use the word “unicorn” with Audrey is an understatement. Her journey and story will educate and inspire generations to come." — Michael Kors (from the Foreword)

"Delicious! Audrey Smaltz is the intrepid Harlem-bred fashionista, who navigated her way through the segregated 1950s into a glamorous career in high-fashion show production, with a trail of dashing lovers in tow. Every Inch a Lady is the dishy, page-turner that only Audrey could tell. " — Teri Agins, fashion industry journalist and author of The End of Fashion and Hijacking the Runway, How Celebrities Are Stealing the Spotlight from Fashion Designers.

“I am so very thrilled that at long last, legendary fashion icon Audrey Smaltz has finally put pen to paper and shared her rich and varied life in this book, Every Inch a Lady. Breaking all sorts of barriers, Audrey paved the way for the many young black professionals who followed in her wake. This terrific book is definitely a page turner, and a must read for any serious student of modern black history and professional entrepreneurship. Get this book and learn history from one who truly made history herself.” — Jeffrey Banks, acclaimed Fashion Designer, and author of Storyteller

"Audrey Smaltz has always been larger than life for this little girl who grew up dressing up and going to the Ebony Fashion Fair every year religiously. Sure the models were gorgeous, the clothes stunning. But it was the sultry Ms. Smaltz who I went to see—her sharp-witted, confidence-building commentary became the primer for how I would then walk through the world everyday with pride and dignity.

When I moved to New York to begin my fashion journalism career, Audrey Smaltz was the first person I boldly sought out. It took several chance meetings for her to finally recognize me and begin calling me “Greenwood” in her signature commanding voice.

Reading Every Inch a Lady is a joy from witnessing her powerful pivot to boss business woman with The Ground Crew to cheering her on when she loved out loud and married her wife." ."—Monique Greenwood, former Editor-in-Chief, Essence, and founder Akwaaba Enterprises

"Every Inch a Lady is what “everyone” wants to read! It allows us to enter the realm of this fashion icon and provocateur's exuberant passion for culture, fashion, beauty, and beyond. Bold and unabashedly authentic, she fearlessly shares her curated life with humor, sparing no detail in this deeply personal and inspirational memoir. Audrey's legendary world stunningly embraces the business of beauty, shows up when and where needed to invent and transform, all while keeping good company. An iconic life well lived, a style that breaks the rules, she shares her triumphs and trials, looking amazing. It’s her own brand of wisdom reflecting on the evolution of the industry and arriving at her final destination of love. You will definitely laugh out loud and understand why it's crucial to live authentically with "flair". A must-read to find out why, without question, she is indeed the G.O.A.T." — Faye Clerk Moseley, Founder, Chair & President, FLAIR (Ebony Fashion Fair Alumni)