As London gears up for the summer Olympics, New York City got an early start awarding record-breaking athletes on Monday at the 34th Annual AAFA American Image Awards. Presented by the American Apparel & Footwear Association, the event lauded Olympian Michael Phelps for his dedicated worked with the children of the Madison Square Boys & Girls Club and for the creation of his own charity, The Michael Phelps Foundation. Along with kids from the club, two-time Olympic gold medalist Donna de Varona awarded Phelps on stage with the Humanitarian Award.
Nearly 450 industry executives and media attended the gala, which raised over $730,000 for the Madison Square Boys & Girls Club. Celebrity stylist, Robert Verdi, emceed the ceremony held at Manhattan’s iconic Cipriani event planners dramatically filled with sky-high cherry blossoms.
Additionally, Designer Yeohlee Teng was presented the Fashion Maverick Award; Footwear Brand of the Year was given to President & CEO, Daniel Schwartz of Schwartz and Benjamin; President and CEO Steve Tanger of Tanger Outlets received the Excellence in Retail Award; Lifestyle Brand of the Year was awarded to Kate Spade New York’s Creative Director, Deborah Lloyd and CEO Craig Leavitt; President and CEO Helen McCluskey of Warnaco Group accepted the Excellence in Global Leadership award.