Trigger Warning: This article discusses topics related to suicide and self-harm. If you are experiencing thoughts of suicide or self-harm, please call or text the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. You are not alone, and there is help available.
Seven years after the tragic loss of Kate Spade, her best friend and business partner, Elyce Arons, is sharing the story of the fashion designer in a new memoir, We Just Might Make It After All. The book offers a deeply personal look at their friendship, the partnership that helped build one of America’s most beloved fashion brands, and the reasons behind her death.
Spade and her husband, Andy, were trying to mend their relationship before she died in 2018. The couple lived apart for ten months but stayed in daily contact and never filed for legal separation. Andy described their bond as a close, loving friendship spanning over 35 years and noted that Kate had been battling depression and anxiety for many years, actively seeking treatment before her death.
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Arons emphasizes the private nature of Kate Spade and the stigma surrounding mental health, which suggests that even close friends were unaware of the full extent of her struggles.
Arons and Spade
Spade died by suicide on June 5, 2018, in her New York City apartment. Her death shocked the fashion world, but for Arons, it was a deeply personal loss; she’d lost her best friend, someone she’d been close to since they first met as college freshmen at the University of Kansas.
To honor Kate’s memory and raise awareness, Arons co-founded Frances Valentine and has launched a special tote bag in support of the Hope for Depression Research Foundation.
Reflecting on her grief, Arons encourages others to cherish their loved ones and remember Kate for her life and accomplishments rather than her untimely passing.
The memoir is set to be released on June 17.
