Latinx Networking Event Speaker Bios
Fashion Culture Spring 2024
Thursday, April 11, 5:30–7 pm
We invite you to an evening of socializing and career building. It will start with a panel discussion with fashion professionals of Latin American heritage who will share stories about their experiences in fashion, followed by a reception to network with presenters and other attendees. Refreshments will be served. This event, organized as collaboration of The Museum at FIT with the Social Justice Center at FIT and is funded by the college’s Diversity Collective, is open to the FIT community and industry professionals.
Renata Quijano
Mexican marketer, content creator, model, fashion expert and makeup artist. She has dedicated her entire 11 years of career to the beauty and fashion industry. Her passion for creating communities and advocating for inclusion & diversity has led her to Univision where she is the fashion and beauty editor for its digital lifestyle platform “Atentamente Victoria”. Through content creation Renata aims to empower latinas and inspire them to be their most authentic selves.
Grismar Bueno
Is currently Senior Director of Global Merchandising at Calvin Klein. She has a Master's Degree in Global Fashion Management from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. She serves as community lead for the Latin Excellence business resource group at PVH which promotes engagement, cultural awareness, diverse recruitment, and career development for the Latinx community.
Mellány Sánchez
Mellány Sánchez is a creative director from the borderlines of Queens and Brooklyn. Studied and passionate about the history of her city, community, and their futures, she works to honor these legacies through her ongoing curatorial hero research project Aquí Me Quedo. She has also worked in wardrobe styling, brand direction and consulting. Sánchez received her Bachelor of Science from New York University in Media Culture and Communications.
Aldo Araujo
Aldo Araujo is a first-generation Ecuadorian American based in New York City. With eight years of professional experience at the Council of Fashion Designers of America, his work in marketing, communications and editorial focuses on bridging industry gaps and creating lasting connections through nuanced multicultural strategies.
Edgar A. Garrido
Co-Founder of Collective & Atelier TIEMPO DE ZAFRA, Based in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. After 3+ few years of apprenticeships in the NYC garment district and shortly after honing his skills running a creative agency he co-founded with friends, Edgar and his partner Stephanie Rodrigues relocated to the Dominican Republic where he trained as an Industrial Pattern Maker at Mercy Jacques institute. In 2017 together they opened their studio and Atelier Fusing together their interests for fashion, photography, story telling, and clothing production. TDZ started as a response to the amount of clothes and waste they would see in the second hand markets they frequented as well as the excess thrown away by local tailors and factories in the area. Engaged in the community and environment they work in, TDZ aims to highlight the potential in the things that are overlooked, transforming them and giving them new life through their process.