NEW YORK — Casey Bush, founder and executive director of Headwear Information Bureau here, died of cancer on Dec. 12 in her home in Greenwich Village, according to her family. She was 81.
A passionate promoter of the category, Bush established HIB in the mid-Eighties to generate buzz, preview collections and show how much fun wearing hats could be through fashion events at venues such as the Russian Tea Room and Tavern on the Green, and the Fifth Avenue Easter parade. She was often the hat spokeswoman of choice for the media.
“She contributed greatly to the industry by being a catalyst,” said headwear designer Eric Javits, one of the first HIB members and a winner of its annual Milli Awards. “Many of us, especially new designers, benefited from her hard work. She put you on the right track.”
Since joining HIB more than a decade ago, Jim Caparosa, vice president of sales for Dorfman Pacific, a men’s and women’s headwear company in Stockton, Calif., has always participated in its group fashion shows. “Casey never stopped finding new ways to promote hats,” he said.
Born in Youngstown, Ohio, Bush studied English at Youngstown University and worked as a ready-to-wear buyer for a local department store before heading to New York, where she landed a research position at McCann-Erickson advertising. The company transferred her to its public relations division and she worked on the Millinery Institute of America account because of her penchant for wearing hats. When that organization folded, she created her own Millinery Information Bureau, changing its name later to accommodate men’s headwear.
She recalled in interviews how hats defined milestones in her life: “I got off the train in New York in a hat, got hired in a hat and got married in a hat.”
Known to keep 50 hats on hand for every season, Bush established April as national Straw Hat Month and September as Fall Hat Month.
“Casey said nothing completed an outfit like a hat,” said Vicky Gamez, Bush’s assistant since 2001 and HIB’s new executive director. She plans to expand HIB’s presence into youth-oriented markets like streetwear.
Survivors include two sisters, Ethyl Siefert and Kathryn Sanders.
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A memorial service is planned for Jan. 27 here.