public utility; With some juice from Jil Sander, energy honcho Desiree Rogers proves that executive and chic can coexist.

Byline: Mark Holgate

Tackling the challenge of making Jil Sander's two-tone trench coat her own wasn't exactly a leap of imagination-or faith-for Desiree Rogers. "I must have at least ten of her coats in my closet, yet they are all so different," says Rogers, who was made president of Chicago's Peoples Energy Corporation's two utility companies in July. "Even in the space of one season, you can buy three Jil Sander coats and none of them will look alike." While Rogers admits that this coat was "a little more visually stimulating than I would normally go for," she did approve of the graphic severity of black on white, and of the textural contrast between the leather and the canvas. "I love a coat to make a statement by itself," Rogers says, "and I love the moment when you take it off and reveal what's underneath. With this trench, I wore my own black pants and orange sweater to add a touch of color. Minus the coat, the look underneath is less in-your-face, but it's just as pulled together."

In a moment of spooky fashion synchronicity, Rogers has to break off from chatting. Her assistant is trying to get her attention. "Someone's calling me," she says, distracted. A few seconds later: "It's the Jil Sander store? Take a message!" The store was calling to tell her that they had received some of the new collection. Rogers, who's partial to what she calls "pop-ins," makes a note to drop by this weekend. It may only be July, but like a lot of other women across America, she's already way over summer and straight on with fall.

A recent business trip to Los Angeles meant a pop-in to Maxfield to pick up some Prada. She walked out with "a couple of tweed jackets and some box-pleat skirts with velvet-ribbon lacing at the hem. They also had the perfect caramel boots, which can be hard to find. I grabbed those! They would have been gone in Chicago! ...