Karoline Leavitt’s Style Spotlighted by Designer, Scrutinized by Others

The 27-year-old is the youngest White House press secretary in U.S. history.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt wearing a custom suit from Christopher Cuozzo. AFP via Getty Images

For nearly 16 years, the fashion designer Christopher Cuozzo has worked under-the-radar.

But that recently changed due to his now-publicized connection to the White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.

As the youngest person to hold that role, the 27-year-old Leavitt is frequently referenced and photographed in the media, as her predecessors had been. The married mother of one son may stand apart though for her fashion sense — monochromatic pantsuits with spandex tops and bolder colored dresses. Her appearance, as well as her fashion choices, are increasingly being scrutinized and are sometimes copied or criticized.

Leavitt has been photographed in the past wearing designer accessories, incuding a Gucci watch, Jimmy Choo’s $1,125 “Bing 65MM” crystal embellished pumps and Louis Vuitton’s $2,130 “Neverfull MM” bag. Last month after President Donald Trump hiked up tariffs for goods made in China, she faced a backlash in China and in the U.S. for wearing a Self Portrait dress that was made in China, after Zhang Zhishen, the consul general of the People’s Republic of China in Denpasar Indonesia identified it as such on Weibo.

David Loranger, an assistant professor of fashion marketing and merchandising at Sacred Heart University, said Tuesday that Leavitt’s style is scrutinized since she is “the face of an administration that has pushed the re-shoring and the ‘Made in USA’ narrative to eleven. Those on the other side of the podium’s expectations are that the White House will walk the walk,’ when it comes to USA-made products or American brands.”

Suggesting her choices of Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Jimmy Choo and British label Self Portrait are “a bit incongruent and hypocritical,” Loranger offered American alternatives — St. John, Tory Burch, Brooks Brothers, Micheal Kors and Ralph Lauren. “Although they may not be entirely made in the USA, at least they are American companies to which the proceeds flow,” he said.

The Boston-based Cuozzo, whose designs are made in factories globally, is a U.S.-based designer who Leavitt has relied on for work wear. He never set out to get into fashion. While working 9-to-5 at a pharmaceutical consulting firm, Cuozzo started a custom clothing business that was primarily sold to friends and family members as a side hustle for three years before joining a Boston-based retailer with several locations across the U.S. that he declined to identify. He then struck out on his own in 2015.

He never studied fashion or design, instead earning a bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in communications at Merrimack College. “In a nutshell, I took a passion of mine and turned it into a career. I learned how to monetize a passion and that’s what brought me to where I am today,” he said.

Running a private by-appointment office in Boston’s Seaport district, Cuozzo connected with Leavitt in November through a woman he worked with who was friendly with her. Asked if Leavitt is rebranding (in that she has been wearing brighter colors and appears to have had a beauty makeover), Cuozzo said, “I don’t know. That would be a better question for her. I don’t have the answer to that. I think she’s very well-dressed whether she’s in my garments or someone else’s. She presents herself very well.”

Leavitt talks to reporters during a news conference in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on Monday. Getty Images

The designer has created about six suits for Leavitt including black, navy pinstripe, red, stone and green ones — ”Very American, classy, sophisticated and elegant” and in her style — Trump’s front woman is not specific about her design preferences. “She leaves it to me. She’ll look to me for colors and ideas. I’ll send her that and some products that have been modeled by my clients for inspiration. She will say, ‘Yes. No.’ but she leaves the design to me — lapels, buttons and linings,” Cuozzo said.

There’s never been discussion about the significance of her role at the White House or designers that she likes, according to Cuozzo. Known for his custom linings, which could include a collage from personal photographs such an engagement shoot, Cuozzo designed one suit for Leavitt with an American flag lining, “but nothing extravagant.”

The designer said that the recent media exposure about his link to Leavitt has helped his menswear and the womenswear business (which was launched last year). “To be able to put suits on somebody, who is so notorious and who is on television and is very well-spoken is great for my brand. Of course, there’s the flipside, right? Maybe somebody doesn’t like her or somebody, who leans more left, might not be too happy with it, which I somewhat understand. I have plenty of customers, who aren’t as famous as Karoline Leavitt, who lean left. I make suits for them as well. But overall the feedback that I have seen has come across as very well.”

Allowing that there have been some negative comments directed toward him on social media and “on Karoline’s posts, which I’m sure she’s used to given the position that she is in,” Cuozzo said, “Obviously you’re going to get negative feedback. You can’t make everybody happy in life, obviously. But to each his own.”

With factories all over the world, Cuzzo said he sources a lot of his fabrics from Italy, the U.S. and England. He declined to specify, which countries he manufactures in, but said that he has not been heavily impacted by Trump’s tariffs. The designer has also made four suits for Leavitt’s husband Nicholas Riccio, whom he described as “a gentleman, very classy, polite and grateful. His men’s suits start at $995 and increase by 500-dollar increments depending on the fabrics, whereas women’s suits start at $1,495.  With a client base that includes actors, actresses and Boston-based athletes, Cuozzo runs a one-man operation. This year’s sales are expected to exceed $2 million compared to last year’s tally of a little under $2 million.

Karoline Leavitt (second from the left) walks towards the West Wing of the White House wearing Jimmy Choo “Bing 65MM” crystal embellished pumps on Feb. 6. Getty Images