At Tuesday’s 2025 Latin American Vogue Summit (LAFS) Gala in Miami, Ron Zacapa will honor Patricia Bonaldi, founder and inventive director of PatBo, with this yr’s Visionary of the Yr award. The popularity is a part of Zacapa’s continued partnership with LAFS, marking the third consecutive yr the Guatemalan rum model has celebrated leaders shaping Latin American design.
The Visionary of the Yr title spotlights designers whose work embodies cultural preservation, group impression, and sustainability. Bonaldi, identified for mixing artisanal Brazilian embroidery with modern design, was acknowledged for efforts that reach past style. By her Costurando Sonhos Challenge (“Stitching Desires”) in Uberlândia, Brazil, she supplies free stitching and embroidery coaching to ladies, providing them instruments for financial independence. Since its founding, the mission has supported greater than 500 ladies in growing technical and inventive expertise rooted in native heritage.
“Every part I create begins with the folks round me, the ladies who flip concepts into one thing lovely with their fingers. Supporting them isn’t simply a part of my work; it’s my objective. What Zacapa and LAFS are doing means a lot as a result of they see the worth within the human tales behind each sew. I’m extremely proud to share this recognition with my group and grateful to Zacapa for celebrating the spirit of workmanship that connects all of us throughout Latin America,” Bonaldi informed WWD by way of assertion.
Ron Zacapa, a model deeply linked to Guatemalan custom, has been lively in supporting native craftsmanship by way of its Petate weaving initiative since 1999. This system employs greater than 700 ladies artisans who produce handwoven bands adorning every Zacapa bottle.
Anne Nosko, vp of rum at Diageo North America, stated the award highlights the significance of honoring these “who outline the way forward for Latin design by way of their craft and their heritage.”
LAFS cofounders Samantha Tams and Estefanía Lacayo famous that the continued partnership with Zacapa has helped amplify Latin American designers on the worldwide stage.
Bonaldi will be a part of earlier honorees Raúl López of Luar (2023) and Catalina Álvarez and Mariana Hinestroza of Agua by Agua Bendita (2024).
