Tina Bhojwani
This week on Wynne's World we meet Tina Bhojwani, Co-Founder & CEO of
AERA Footwear. I met Tina recently and was so impressed by her genuine warmth, kindness and sincerity as well as her beautiful new line of vegan footwear. Fashion executive Tina Bhojwani has held key leadership roles at global brands including Donna Karan, Theory and Dolce & Gabbana. Throughout her 20-year career, she has seen the impact of fashion on people and the planet and recognizes the need for change not only as a business imperative but more importantly a deeply human one. She built AERA as a platform to address these environmental and social challenges, with the hope of making its practices the new normal in fashion. With AERA, she aspires to show consumers that style, design, and quality can be analogous with sustainability.
Current Project: I am working with my partner, Jean-Michel Cazabat and our team on the next drop of AERA shoes, which will include several styles of boots and is planned to launch in mid-September.
Ann Caruso in her AERA Fuchsia Patent Vegan Leather
Sally Sandals
Currently Reading: I am reading
Compassion Inc: Unleashing the Power of Empathy in Life and Business, by Gaurav Sinha. It was a gift from Alvertos Revach, my other co-founder and investor. It is a book that describes how successful businesses can be a force for good; something I am very passionate about. It is a great read for anyone who believes that businesses should make a greater positive impact as well as for those wanting to live a mindful and compassion-driven life.
Summer Travel: My next trip will be at the end of this month to Italy for AERA. My co-founders and I will visit our two factories in Veneto and also spend time with our materials supplier in Milano. We are constantly looking to innovate on our sustainable materials and processes.
Behind the scenes at AERA’s Italian Factory
My personal favorite -vegan leather python
Italian craftsmanship
Summer Vacation: Later this summer, I will take a personal trip back to Italy where my husband and I have invested in an old farmhouse and vineyard in the Piedmont region. We have started to renovate the property and our dream is to create a sustainable winery there in the future.
Italy
Summer Beauty Essentials: I’m always on the lookout for effective, 'clean’ beauty products. Currently using Supergoop! Serum, Augustinus Bader 'The Cream', and Eighth Day eye renewal cream.
Supergoop Serum, Eighth Day Eye Renewal Cream, Augustinus Bader "The Cream"
Fashion Icon: British fashion designer Phoebe Philo. I admire all the work she has done first with Chloe and then with Celine. I’m inspired by her real and sensitive approach to designing for intelligent women. She creates incredibly chic, minimal and relevant clothes, which can easily serve as a uniform for everyday life.
Phoebe Philo
A favorite moment (among many) was that she chose to use Joan Didion back in Spring 2015 as face of Celine.
Joan Didion for Celine
My final question for Tina was to ask what is meaningful in her life right now and this was her answer: "Gratitude is meaningful in my life. Its about being thankful, appreciative, respectful and kind." I think we could all use more kindness in the world right now and Tina is a power of example through her work and how she treats others. We are wishing her all the success in the world!
