Speakers

BIO

Alia Qureshi (formally known as Alia Khan), began her career at New York’s famed Fashion Institute of Technology, after which she formed her own company by the fall of 2000 and launched the very 1st South Asian mail order catalogue in North America.

She has since launched a successful, elite custom design service through her website, www.AliaQureshi.com and her vast fashion show resume has had her share the world’s runways alongside a slew of A-List Eastern designers such as Ritu Beri, Suneet Varma and Manish Malhotra but to name a few, as well as A-List Western designers such as Diane Von Furstenberg, Donna Karen, Betsy Johnson, Carolina Herrera, Tommy Hilfiger & Ralph Lauren. One of her key design inventions, the Azara is a fusion, fairytale wedding gown which has remained her most requested creation the world over.

Alia has also garnered much notoriety in the media, with coverage on CNN Live, NY1, Society Magazine, Times of India, Zinc Magazine, ANOKHI Magazine, and the list continues to go on and on.

In terms of some key highlights in her career thus far, she has been awarded Fashion Designer of the Year 2006 in Los Angeles at the SASA convention, as well as the ANOKHI Sexy & Successful 2008 Excellence in Fashion Design Award in Toronto.

In addition to this, she has been immortalized in the 1st ever edition of Roshni (2006), a book that highlights the most prominent South Asians in the world. Also the same year, one of her designs was used in a national campaign for Cheerios across the US.

To note, she is the only South Asian designer in the world to have been invited twice consecutively to design for New York Fashion Week’s famed celebrity charity show, the Heart Truth Red Dress Runway Show in 2005 & 2007 respectively, and her innovative designs have been worn by a diverse range of celebrities such as The Cosby Show’s Phylicia Rashad, Bollywood’s John Abraham and Neha Dhupia, and even royalty, as she designed his Royal Highness, the Aga Khan’s 50th Jubilee gown upon personal request.

Alia is the designer of four very different collections: ALIA QURESHI Signature Bridal – her most luxurious line; ALIA QURESHI Signature Fusion – a high-end fusion, red carpet couture collection; ALIA QURESHI Signature Western – a moderate, innovative high street collection; Shannalina – a budget friendly collection of boho chic tunics, Kaftans and dresses.

PHOTO CREDIT

Tony DiLorenzo Photography