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Pinto also will offer non-clothing items on Kickstarter: $25 signed note cards, $75 for a print of one of her limited edition paintings, $5,000 to spend an afternoon with her in her studio or $10,000 to host a party with Pinto for 50 friends at the Chicago restaurant Sepia. Kickstarter backers will be listed on Pinto's website and receive special access to design previews of her future collections. Pinto is in a position where she has to reinvent, and in ways reintroduce, herself to customers because she has been out of the spotlight, said Marshal Cohen, chief retail industry analyst with market research firm The NPD Group. "They've discovered other brands and other products and are spending in a different way," Cohen said. "That's why redefining who she is and who her target audience is, is critical." Pinto attended the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and launched her own label in 1991 after a stint working with the late draping master Geoffrey Beene. She closed her business in 2002 for health and business reasons but reopened in 2004. Her clothing has been available at department stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue and other boutiques. Retailers have expressed interest in her new collection, Pinto said, but she wants to see what happens first with Kickstarter. It's business, but for Pinto, it's fashion too. "Ever since I closed I needed a break, but I also realized that designing is a lifeline," she said. "If I don't design, I don't breathe." ___ Online:
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