A celebration of life will be held on Thursday at 4 p.m. at Cobble Hill Chapel in Brooklyn for Gregory Wein, a stylist and a one-time global style director for Abercrombie & Fitch.
Wein, 54, died suddenly on Friday. The exact cause of death has not been determined, according to his stepsister Wendy Leitzer.
For nearly three decades, Wein was immersed in the fashion industry working with magazines to style covers, direct campaigns and collaborate with well-known photographers. Over the years, he worked with such companies as Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Tom Ford, Calvin Klein, Giorgio Armani, Dolce & Gabbana, Bulgari, David Yurman, Amazon Fashion, Estée Lauder, NBCUniversal, CNN, Nike, Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Mercedes-Benz, Victoria’s Secret and the Four Seasons, according to his obituary on the Cobble Hill Chapel website.
Born in Udon Thani, Thailand, Wein grew up in Ohio and graduated from the University of Cincinnati, where he studied marketing and advertising as well as illustration. He moved to New York City in 1998 and joined Out magazine as a fashion and style director, a role he held for 10 years. He moved back to Ohio in 2008 to join Abercrombie & Fitch as global style director, overseeing styling and creative direction for all of its brands before returning to New York two-and-a-half years later to serve as an independent stylist and creative director.
“Gregory’s greatest accomplishment was the people he brought together,” read the obituary written by Leitzer. “Friends became family and introductions became lifelong friendships. He was the thread that connected so many lives, creating a family of choice that extended far beyond blood. His warmth made everyone feel welcomed, valued and seen. He believed deeply in authenticity and creativity, and living with intention. He encouraged those around him to embrace beauty and simply…’do something.’ Those two words became more than a favorite phrase — they became the way Gregory lived.”
Brian Boye, vice president of Nike Communications, said of Wein: “We grew up together in the business and he was always the most charming, most kind and most funny person. Walk into any event or show and if you saw Gregory, you knew it was going to be fun.”
Wein is survived by his father Jerry Wein and mother Alunya “Nok” Lewis; stepfather Donald Lewis; his sister, Sandra Diep, and her husband, John Diep; his nieces, Lauren, Allison, Madeline and Megan Diep; his stepbrother, Ryan Lewis; Leitzer and her husband, Chuck Leitzer, and their children, Jess, Addison, Dayton, Benjamin, Maedeline and Emma.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial contributions be made to Ocean Hill Cats or an AIDS-related charitable foundation.
