Samantha McMillen

Samantha McMillen
Photo courtesy of Samantha McMillen's Instagram

Samantha McMillen is a Los Angeles-based stylist. She began her career working in Public Relations for designers Richard Tylerand Giorgio Armani before transitioning into styling in 2001.

She always knew she wanted to do it, but styling wasn’t a popular profession as it is today. The “traditional list” of fashion jobs didn’t include it, so she opted for an internship at Mirabella magazine. After graduating, the people at the magazine suggested her to try with LA and they also recommended her designer Richard Tyler. After less than a couple years she was recruited by Armani, where she was sort of an in-house stylist, also working with VIPs. Some fortuitous connections along the way helped get her where she is today.

Think about Johnny Depp, it was through another of her clients’ publicist (who was also his) that she got the chance to style him for several years (and also his then-wife Amber Heard when they were a couple).

When she stopped working for Armani to venture into styling, she let managers and publishers know what she was doing, so her work there helped her a lot with that, because eventually clients followed her career far from the brand and asked for her services when they needed them.

Today, her celebrity clientele includes Elle and Dakota Fanning, Johnny Depp, Ryan Gosling, Brie Larson, Evan Rachel Wood, Chris Hemsworth, and Chris Rock.

McMillen has worked on major campaigns and collaborations with Tiffany & Co., Hugo Boss, Gucci, Jimmy Choo, Dior, L’Oreal, Showtime, AT&T, Tag Heuer, Omega, Claritin, Viacom, Kiehls, Warner Brothers, 24 Hour Fitness, Motorola, and Nikon.

Her work has appeared in GQ, Vanity Fair, Glamour, Instyle, L’uomo Vogue, Men’s Journal, Rolling Stone, and Men’s Fitness.

Her way of styling is a collaboration with her client, not an overhauling of style that only she can pull off.

The biggest difference she sees today from her first days is obviously that with social media things go too fast and there is too much need of clothes for every event. People scroll and they may miss an important red carpet moment because everything is too instant and too constant. There isn’t the mystery or the waiting for something to come out in a magazine like it all was back then.

She is very respectful of the people who work for her and also of those who don’t.

She is represented by The Wall Group and you can find her portfolio HERE

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