Stella Nina McCartney was born in London, England in 1971to former Beatle Paul McCartney and his photographer wife Linda. McCartney had a normal childhood despite her famous parents. At an early age she started designing clothes. She made her first jacket at the age of 12. At the age of 15 she had the opportunity to work with Christian Lacroix on his first couture collection. Her graduation collection was modeled by her good celebrity friends Naomi Campbell and Kate Moss on the catwalk which brought her immense popularity. She launched her own line immediately on leaving college. She is fondly known as "Stella Steel" and "Unstoppable Stella" in the fashion industry.

In March 1997 McCartney was appointed chief designer at the French couture house Chloe. Many from the fashion world criticized Chloe for choosing her at such a high post. However, her first collection for the house shown in Paris in October 1997 quickly dispelled all the doubts about her talent. Her style of combining sharp couture with humour and sexy femininity was immediately evident in her first collection. McCartney is a strong supporter of PETA and does not fur or leather in her designs. Some of McCartney's designs support her no animal policy like for Adidas jackets which says "suitable for sporty vegetarians" on the sleeve.

In April 2001, Stella McCartney signed a contract with Gucci group and launched her own fashion house under her name. Under this venture she opened three flagship stores in New York City, Mayfair and Los Angeles. In October 2001 her first collection spring/ summer 2002, was shown in Paris. The fashion house also includes products like women's ready-to-wear, accessories, and eyewear. In 2003 she expanded her brand to include perfumes. Stella has also designed for Madonna's wedding dress. She named her collaboration with adidas for women called "Adidas by Stella McCartney". Her adidas collection includes apparel for swim, gym, running, tennis and wintersports as well as bags. She uses a distinct signature style for her designs like a special reflector chain on her favourite collection.In Spring/Summer 2006, the keychain was in the shape of a pink heart while in Fall/Winter 2006, the keychain was in the shape of a gray wolf's head.

To create awareness of her own brand she designed a range of clothing and accessories for H&M. Stella has been very innovative with her designs and collection. She will be adding "Gym Yoga" to her sports range for Adidas. This collection is inspired by ballet and dance. It highlights double-layered tank tops with deep necklines, low-waisted skinny trousers and lightweight rubber shoes. In January Stella Mccartney launched a skin care line called 'CARE'. Her future projects include releasing a line of handbags for LeSportsac. The collection will consist of travel bags, luggage, baby accessories and bags for mothers with infants and toddlers.