Serena Williams doesn’t have to worry about life after tennis.
The 27-year-old Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., resident, who was just voted the WTA Tour player of the year, has a lot going on.
On Wednesday, the court superstar/fashion designer launched her Signature Statement accessories collection of handbags and casual jewelry at Crandon Park in Key Biscayne, Fla.
Her ultra-ripped body wrapped in a tight purple satin dress, Serena beamed about her babies – e.g., smart totes with gobs of hardware, silver-plated bangles and chunky rings similar to the good-luck charm she always wears while playing. In order to make the line accessible to us regular folk, Serena had to put aside her love of diamonds (anyone recall that $2.5 million necklace she wore to a recent news conference in Australia?).
“It’s important for me to have the best price point so everyone can wear it,” said Williams, who also has a flashy apparel line called Aneres, her name spelled backward. “No matter who they are or where they are.”
Say, shopping on Worth Avenue, partying in South Beach, or working a racquet at the Sony Ericsson.
“I’m going to be wearing it while playing and sweating,” said the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale grad. “It’s really comfortable and the quality is second to none.”
Since turning pro in 1995, the Michigan native has shown women don’t have to wear the standard polo and skort (case in point: a certain pleather-esque cat suit).
“When I walk out there, everyone is always wondering what I’m wearing,” Williams said. “Just because you’re an athlete doesn’t mean you have to act like a male athlete. I think 20 years ago, women had to look rougher and act rougher. But you can still be a lady on and off the court.”
OK, Serena: What’s harder – designing a fashion label or taking on a match with your biggest competitor, older sister Venus?
“Tennis is way easier!” she said, laughing. “If I fail it’s because of me – my forehand or my backhand – but with this, I put so much heart into it and so much desire, it’s all about me.”
? 2009, The Miami Herald. Source: MCT
