Kate Spade dead at 55: The tragic note she left behind
Kate Spade wrote a note telling her daughter it wasn’t her fault before she took her own life at the age of 55.
The famed designer, who built a fashion empire on her handbags, was found by a housekeeper in the bedroom of her New York apartment around 11am (1am AEST).
Police said Ms Spade wrote a note, which sources say was addressed to her 13-year-old daughter Frances Beatrix Spade.
“At this point, there was a note left. The contents of that note, as well as the physical state of the apartment and the comments of the witness, lend to the credibility that it is an apparent suicide,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea told reporters.
TMZ reports that the note, found near her body, read: “Bea — I have always loved you. This is not your fault. Ask Daddy!”
Ms Spade’s husband, Andy, was also at their Upper East Side home when her body was discovered, while their teenage daughter was at school.
According to sources, the couple were having relationship problems,
“It was over family problems … in her relationship,” a police source told The New York Post.
Ms Spade launched Kate Spade Handbags in 1994, which went on to become a global fashion empire and a favourite accessory of high-profile celebrities, including Kate Middleton.
She sold the company in 2007 to spend more time with her daughter.
There are more than 140 Kate Spade New York outlets in the US, and more than 175 worldwide.
The Kate Spade company released a statement expressing its condolences.
“Although Kate has not been affiliated with the brand for more than a decade, she and her husband and creative partner, Andy, were the founders of our beloved brand. Kate will be dearly missed. Our thoughts are with Andy and the entire Spade family at this time,” Julia Curry, a senior manager for the brand, said.
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