Lingerie Miami

Celebrating Femininity. Empowering Women Through Microfinance

Renata Mutis Black and Rachel Hunter

If you do one thing this gala season, make sure you get your hands on an invitation to Lingerie Miami, a fundraising event scheduled for February 7, 2009. Bringing to America the first exclusive annual showcase of European luxury designers, Lingerie Miami is dedicated to funding microfinance programs that assist women from around the globe to empower themselves out of poverty.

Hosted by Eva Longoria and co-hosted by Veronica Webb at Miami’s stunning bayfront Vizcaya Museum & Gardens, Lingerie Miami will celebrate femininity in a spectacular fashion show performance where world renowned lingerie designers, Agent Provocateur, Carine Gilson and Fifi Chachnil, will be presenting one-of-a-kind couture pieces made especially for the show.

Deepak Chopra, president of the Alliance for New Humanity and one of Time Magazine’s top 100 heroes and icons of the century, will be speaking on behalf of the microfinance initiative, and Sean Yazbeck, winner of “The Apprentice” Season Five, will be making a special presentation at the spectacular gala event. The show will be produced by Lynne O’Neill, fashion show producer of Sex & the City fame and MTV Latin America.

Making philanthropy sexy, Lingerie Miami will take you on a trip back in time to the decadent elegance of the 1930’s with a sprinkle of the soigné danger of a Bond girl. “A woman is never truly dressed without beautiful lingerie; it is the foundation of every confident and sexy woman. Lingerie Miami, helping to empower women this way is brilliant,” explains Joe Corre, founder of Agent Provocateur.

To truly use business in empowering women, Renata Mutis Black, founder of Lingerie Miami, established “The Circle of 7,” an alliance of American female CEOs, which is made up of Eva Jeanbart Lorenzotti of Vivre; Sabine Feldman of Shape Magazine; Eva Hughes of Vogue Mexico y Latinoamerica; Susan Ivey of R.J Reynolds; Kristi Wetherington of Capital Institutional Services; Elizabeth Funk of UNITUS Financial; and Nina Vaca of Pinnacle Technical Resources. The Circle 7 will act as an advisory body to Lingerie Miami and its microfinance projects. “Uniting the most successful women in business for the same cause will in itself open the doors for women globally,” Black said. “For example, the Circle will help shape the success of our recipients, helping to instill good business acumen through our Mentorship Guild.”

The Beneficiaries

Lingerie Miami seeks to raise two million dollars, the net proceeds of which will be invested in women living on under $1 (US) per day in seven countries including Colombia, the United States, Haiti, Jamaica, and India. The inaugural countries will remain beneficiaries for the life of the brand.

Lingerie Miami is a franchise show and will be produced in New York, Las Vegas, London, and Paris. For more information on the event – or to purchase tickets – please visit www.lingeriemiami.org. For more information on 7Bar, the Black family’s 61 year-old 501(C)(3) philanthropic organization, please visit www.7barfoundation.org.