The first stripes Nikki Kule remembers wearing were on a t-shirt her parents, Gene and Arlene Kule, bought her in Portofino, Italy. Anyone familiar with her eponymous clothing brand knows the classic print made a lasting impression — as did her parents’ love of fashion.

“My parents both worked in the fashion industry and appreciated craftsmanship, so it was deeply rooted in me from childhood,” she told The Center Magazine. Together, they founded the brand Happy Legs — credited with bringing bell bottoms to the U.S. — in the 1970s, earning Gene the legendary nickname, “King of Pants.”

And if Gene Kule was the King of Pants, Nikki Kule is the Queen of Stripes.

She founded Kule in 2001 as a luxury childrenswear brand and went on to take a role as creative director for kids at Brooks Brothers. Although she still creates cheerful collections for kids, she relaunched Kule in 2015 with an eye on womenswear — and, more specifically, striped pieces that were both playful and timeless. “After focusing on kids for so many years and then my own kids growing up, I decided to focus on women's clothing and what was missing from my own wardrobe,” she said.

What was missing most of all was the perfect striped tee. “We worked on perfecting our tee for years,” Kule said. “The shape of the tee and the quality of the cotton is most important.” All Kule tees are made of soft, light cotton sourced from a family-owned company in Portugal.

While t-shirts are a staple, Kule appreciates stripes in all forms, including totes, dresses, and even men’s socks. She nods to the fashion icons who have turned to the print time and time again, through vastly different eras. “Picasso, Coco Chanel, Chloe Sevigny, Sofia Coppola, and Timothee Chalamet wore stripes,” she said. “Trends repeat themselves, and stripes have surpassed the gimmick of a trend; they have no expiration date.”

They work as well in a city as they do on the beach, Kule said, making her store a natural fit for Rockefeller Center, which she calls “the heart of the city and a hub for tourists and locals alike.”

Shoppers will find new colorways and sweaters in store this fall, but first, there’s plenty of time to sport Kule’s summer pieces in a sunny destination. “Stripes in the summer remind me of beach umbrellas and striped awnings,” she said. “Stripes are fun. There's no way around it.”

Here, Kule shares how to have fashionable fun with stripes this summer and beyond.

Kule is open at 610 Fifth Avenue (in the Channel Gardens) Monday through Saturday, 11am to 6pm, and on Sunday from 11am to 5pm.