Fashion designer Kate Spade found dead at New York apartment

FASHION designer Kate Spade has been found dead inside her Upper East Side apartment in New York at the age of 55.

Ms Spade, who built an empire on her famous handbags before branching out into other accessories, was reportedly found in her bedroom by a housekeeper around 11am (1am AEST).

Police said the death was not suspicious.

Police said Ms Spade wrote a note, which sources claim was addressed to her 13-year-old daughter Frances Beatrix Spade.

The designer’s husband, Andy, was home when her body was discovered, according to an AP report. Frances was at school.

NYPD Chief of Detectives Dermot Shea answered questions about her death at an unrelated press conference.

“At this point, there was a note left. The contents of that note, as well as the physical state of the apartment and the comments of the witness, lend to the credibility that it is an apparent suicide,” he said.

Ms Spade was born Kate Brosnahan in Kansas City, Missouri.

She earned a journalism degree before working in the accessories department of Mademoiselle magazine in New York.

In 1994 she started the fashion brand Kate Spade Handbags, which went on to become a global empire. It became one of the biggest names in female accessories, worn by stars including the Duchess of Cambridge, Anne Hathaway and Anna Kendrick.

She met her husband at university while working in a clothing store. His brother is David Spade, the star of SNL and Just Shoot Me.

Ms Spade was the aunt of House of Cards and The Marvellous Mrs Maisel star Rachel Brosnahan.

Despite her meteoric success, she sold her firm in 2007 to spend more time with her daughter, according to TMZ.

It was eventually sold to Liz Claiborne Inc for $US124 million ($162 million) and in May last year, Coach Inc bought it for $US2.4 billion ($3.1 billion).

Spade got back into the fashion game in 2016, launching the luxury footwear and accessory brand Frances Valentine.

There were more than 140 Kate Spade New York outlets in the US alone, and more than 175 worldwide.

Tributes have poured in for the designer from both inside the fashion world and the wider community.

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