Narciso Jesus Rodriguez III (born January 27, 1961) is an American fashion designer.

One of the leading American designers in the last two decades, Narciso Rodriguez plays a unique role in fashion. In 1996, Rodriguez received international acclaim when he designed the skewed-cut wedding dress that Carolyn Bessette wore at her wedding to John F. Kennedy Jr.

And on November 4, 2008, Narciso Rodriguez became part of a monumental event in American history. To commemorate the triumphant victory of her husband, Barack Obama, as the first African American president of the United States, Michelle Obama chose to wear a dress from the designer's spring 2009 collection.  “It was exciting and exciting”, Rodriguez said, “to be a part of this memorable moment in history was a great honor”. The designer was again honored when the first lady chose to wear Narciso Rodriguez in her husband’s first union state address in 2009 and in her last union state address in 2016.

Today, Narciso Rodriguez’s fashion house is based in New York City, where he shows off his women's ready-to-wear collections.

Rodriguez was born in Newark, New Jersey, the eldest child and only son of Cuban parents. His parents, Narciso Rodríguez Sanchez II, a longshoreman, and Rawedia María Rodríguez. His paternal grandfather was born in the Canary Islands.

He graduated from St. Cecilias High School in 1979, a small Catholic school in Kearny, New Jersey. And he sat at the New School in New York City, at his art and design college, Parsons the New School for Design. His parents were against Narciso’s entry into fashion.

Rodriguez held freelance design work in New York before becoming Director of Women’s Design for the Anne Klein label and later working for Calvin Klein. In 1997, he launched his own brand.

When George magazine went bankrupt after the death of John F. Kennedy Jr., Rodriguez hired Stephanie Mikesell, who had been an editorial assistant there, to be his assistant. He designed her wedding dress when she married Mark Madoff, Bernie Madoff’s eldest son.

In 2003, he launched his first fragrance, Narciso Rodriguez for Her, inspired by a bottle of Egyptian musk oil he won in high school. In 2006, Rodriguez, who had ended his partnership with his brand's manufacturer, Aeffe, owed more than $1 million to his suppliers and needed fabric donations for his spring collection.

On May 5, 2007, Liz Claiborne acquired a 50% stake in the Narciso Rodriguez label. However, in 2008, Narciso Rodriguez bought back Liz Claiborne’s 50% stake for $12 million. On November 4, 2008, Michelle Obama was wearing a dress from Narciso Rodriguez’s spring 2009 collection when she joined her husband, Barack Obama, in appearing for the first time as President-elect of the United States, on stage at Grant Park in Chicago, receiving substantial attention in the press. The dress, originally unveiled at New York Fashion Week in September 2008, came from Rodriguez’s “stress relief” design collection. Rodriguez was a strong supporter in the fashion world of Barack Obama's campaign; in August 2008, he blamed the slowdown in his business on “this Bush mess”. Michelle Obama wore Narciso Rodriguez in her last State of the Union appearance as first lady. In the same year, Rodriguez’s dresses were featured in a runway scene in the feature film The Women, as being the drawings of the character Mary Haines (played by Meg Ryan).

Rodriguez received the prestigious Cooper-Hewitt Smithsonian Award for National Fashion Design in 2014 with First Lady Michelle Obama as honorary patron. Artists Cindy Sherman and Robert Longo presented the designer with their award.  The celebration included the first lady’s annual lunch honoring the National Design Award winners at the White House.  And in 2015, Rodriguez was also honored by the Opportunity Network for his achievement in fashion, his philanthropy, and his support of the organization in helping low-income students develop their potential.

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narciso_Rodriguez