Nick Verreos

Nick Verreos (born February 13, 1967, in St. Louis, Missouri) is an American fashion designer, fashion commentator, former Project Runway contestant, educator and author.

Verreos was born in Missouri on February 13, 1967, to a Greek-American father and a Panamanian mother. Though born in St. Louis, Missouri, he spent his early childhood in Caracas, Venezuela. Verreos and his family moved back to the United States when he was 10, and he finished elementary and high school in San Francisco, California. He began college at UCLA, studying Political Science and International Relations, but after graduation, turned his interest to fashion design and pursued additional work at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) in Los Angeles. He completed the Advanced Fashion Design Program at FIDM in 1993.

After graduating from FIDM, Verreos worked for a variety of companies in Los Angeles before launching his own high-end label, NIKOLAKI, with partner David Paul in 2001.

NIKOLAKI dresses and red carpet gowns designed by Verreos and Paul have been worn by a number of notable celebrities, including actress/singers Beyoncé, Katy Perry, and Carrie Underwood, Project Runway host/supermodel Heidi Klum, Academy Award-winning actress Marlee Matlin (who wore a NIKOLAKI gown to the 80th Annual Academy Awards in 2008), Desperate Housewives cast members Eva Longoria and Brenda Strong, actress/comedian Kathy Griffin, Dancing with the Stars co-host Samantha Harris and judge Carrie Ann Inaba, and former Miss USA and TV Guide Network Fashion Wrap host Ali Landry.

In 2013, Verreos launched a second label, NV Nick Verreos. The collections in this line are created with the philosophy that every woman deserves a red carpet moment. While initially available exclusively through EVINE in the United States, NV Nick Verreos is now also available through QVC (UK), QVC (Italy) and The Shopping Channel in Canada.

Verreos began teaching at FIDM in 2003 and has been associated with the school ever since. As of September 2016, he continues to serve as a FIDM instructor and spokesperson.

After his Project Runway appearances (see below), Verreos began to appear on screen as a "red carpet" fashion commentator. In February 2008, he hosted three fashion segments on E! Countdown to the Academy Awards, and covered the red carpet arrivals on SOAPnet.com for the Daytime Emmy Awards in June 2008 and Primetime Emmy Awards in September 2008. Verreos was also one of the regular panel members on TV Guide Network's Fashion Wrap, which covered the Oscars, Grammys, Golden Globes, Emmy Awards and Screen Actors Guild Awards in 2012 and 2013.

In January 2008, Verreos appeared on an episode of the CW show Crowned: The Mother of All Pageants to help the mothers and daughters with their pageant gowns and choose which team had the best outfits.