David Wolfe, fashion trend forecaster, artist and former creative director at The Doneger Group, passed away at his home in Visalia, California, on April 17 attributable to natural causes related to Parkinson’s Disease. Wolfe was 82.

“Everybody loved David,” said Abbey Doneger, chief executive officer of The Doneger Group, the research, consulting, trend and merchandising firm. “He was kind, interested, interesting, supportive, a mentor for many individuals throughout the industry, whether it was a teen in college or a senior business leader.

“Because the creative director of our company for 25 years, he was instrumental in the expansion of our business and was a frontrunner internally,” Doneger added. “Not only was he an important trend forecaster, but he was involved in all points of our business, from making presentations and leading seminars to taking up big projects with our corporate clients. He had an encyclopedic knowledge of fashion and designers that he articulated in his presentations. They were all the time entertaining and really informative.”

Wolfe was widely quoted within the media and routinely outspoken on fads and future trends. He would tackle subjects as varied as aging, demographics, shifting fashion silhouettes and color comebacks. He was equally adept at critiquing a spring season of graphic prints and ultralight fabrics to predicting the long run for artificial intelligence and robotics, and in lots of cases, his predications got here years before a trend or technology was widely adopted or discussed. Fashion insiders from every level of the industry consulted with him commonly.

Wolfe was born in Cleveland. As a toddler, he was excited about fashion. The Cleveland Plain Dealer once quoted him as saying: “Once I was within the second grade, I got into serious trouble. I not only said I desired to be a dress designer, but I drew an image of a hula girl with a navel. I assume I knew low-risers were coming.”

His first job was within the promoting department of Carlisle’s, which sold hard and soft goods, where he rose to fashion director. His interests in fashion and art, in addition to travel, led him to relocate to London throughout the Swinging ’60s. It was there that he paved his approach to a profession as a fashion illustrator, working for high-end designers, manufacturers and retailers. His illustrations were featured in such periodicals as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar and WWD. 

Within the ’80s, Wolfe traveled extensively and lectured incessantly. His interests also led him to edit fashion magazines. Eventually, he joined The Doneger Group, where he cemented his profession as a top forecaster.

Upon retiring in late 2017, Wolfe returned to his first childhood hobby, paper dolls. He illustrated greater than 20 paper doll books that were published.

Wolfe is survived by his husband, Francisco Murillo; his sister, Sally Biondi, and his three children, Lynette Seebeck, Nicole Smith and Zack Wolfe.