FASHION GROUP INTERNATIONAL

   A nonprofit organization founded in 1930, originally comprised of women, whose mission was to increase awareness of the American fashion industry and of women's role in that business. Some of the founding members include Eleanor Roosevelt, Elizabeth Arden, Edith Head, Carmel Snow, Lily Daché, Helena Rubinstein, Claire McCardell, Dorothy Shaver, and Virginia Pope. Mary Lou Luther, a fashion journalist, is the creative director. Today, the organization includes men and has more than 6,000 members worldwide. Each year, FGI honors members of the fashion industry with awards for professional achievement in various areas of the industry, including men's and women's fashion, beauty, architecture, journalism, and humanitarian-ism and also presents its Rising Star Award.