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Reinforcing BCBGMAXAZRIA as a premiere American fashion brand, Azria successfully launched his collection on the runway for the first time during New York's Fall 1996 Fashion Week. The following season, The New York Times hailed, "Mr. Azria imbued his collection with worldly elan." In February 2006, in response to both his critical success and the needs and aspirations of his most discerning customers, Azria launched an exclusive runway designer collection called Max Azria. The collection allows Azria to explore his creativity full force, ultimately resulting in a line of directional, sophisticated designs in the most luxurious fabrics. Celebrities such as Angelina Jolie, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Rachel Bilson and Eva Mendes have become fans of the brands and list BCBGMAXAZRIA and Max Azria as staples in their wardrobes.

At the other end of his design spectrum is Azria's highly exclusive collection of couture gowns, launched in February 2004 under the label Max Azria Atelier. Taking inspiration from the glamour and sensuality of Hollywood, Azria creates opulent and elegant one-of-a-kind gowns for celebrity clients and red-carpet events. Sharon Stone, Halle Berry, Demi Moore, Beyonc Knowles, Lucy Liu and Fergie have walked the red carpet wearing Max Azria Atelier.

In 1998 BCBGMAXAZRIAGROUP acquired the Herve Leger fashion house, marking the first time in history that a French couturier had been absorbed by an American designer. Azria relaunched the Herve Leger label in early 2007 with his own designs, which have since been embraced by celebrities such as Kate Winslet, Victoria Beckham, Alicia Keys and Catherine Zeta-Jones. For Fall 2008, in addition to showing BCBCMAXAZRIA and Max Azria during New York Fashion Week, Azria presented his Herve Leger by Max Azria collection. This marked the first time that an American designer produced three major fashion shows for three distinct collections during one New York fashion week.

The Fall 2008 season also witnessed the merging of the BCBGirls and To The Max collections to create one, comprehensive, young-contemporary lifestyle brand named BCBGeneration (pronounced BCBG Generation), which is designed for women of all generations seeking fashion that balances a feminine, sexy aesthetic with an eclectic and urban sensibility. In Fall 2009, Azria again expanded the Group with a new collaborative collection with teen superstar Miley Cyrus named Miley Cyrus & Max Azria. Available exclusively at Walmart, the new brand offers customers affordable and trend-right apparel for Fall 2009. Arriving in stores in early August, the line includes tops, pants, graphic tees, shoes and accessories, all priced below $20.

On the business front, late August 2005 saw two strategic acquisitions important for the Group's future growth: the France-based designer and distributor Alain Manoukian (renamed Manoukian in 2007) and the Spain-based designer and distributor Don Algodon. Both companies served as valuable springboards for the Group's European expansion. Continuing the company's rapid domestic growth, in February 2006 BCBGMAXAZRIAGROUP acquired G+G Retail, which operated over 400 stores in the United States and Puerto Rico under the names Rave, Rave Girl and G+G.

Throughout his career, Azria has personally received a multitude of awards, including California Designer of the Year (1995), Atlanta Designer of the Year (1996), the Fashion Performance Award (1997) for outstanding performance and influence within the fashion industry, and the prestigious Spirit of Life Award (1997) from the City of Hope. In 1998 Divine Design honored Azria as Women's Designer of the Year, and General Motors selected him as their spokesperson for Concept:Cure, an internationally renowned charity to support breast cancer research and awareness. Azria was further honored with the Otis Fashion Achievement Award (2000) from Otis College of Art and Design, Hollywood Life's Breakthrough Award (2004) for outstanding achievements within the entertainment industry and the Dallas Fashion Award (2005) for excellence in the contemporary category. In 2007 he was presented with the Wells Fargo Century Fashion Achievement Award at the L.A. Fashion Awards and with the Woodbury Design Award in acknowledgement of his vision and innovation. In recognition of the successful relaunch of the Herve Leger brand, Azria was presented with the 2008 Fashion Excellence Award at the 33rd Annual Dallas Fashion Awards.

In June 2007, Max and Lubov Azria co-chaired with Kate Bosworth the Fifth Annual Art Party benefit celebrating the Whitney Museum of American Art's Independent Study Program (ISP). The Azrias now have served as co-chairs of the event for three consecutive years. They hosted the 2008 Art Party with Rachel Bilson and produced a special Herve Leger collaboration with artist E.V. Day. In 2009 they hosted with Camilla Belle and collaborated with artist Mark Fox on a specially designed umbrella celebrating the twentieth anniversary of BCBGMAXAZRIA.

Adding to his list of successes, Azria has become a retail giant, owning and operating over 550 BCBGMAXAZRIA retail boutiques throughout the world, with each serving as a consummate showcase for his women's ready-to-wear and accessory collections. Within the United States, there are currently over 180 BCBGMAXAZRIA boutiques. On an international level, BCBGMAXAZRIA opened its first two European boutiques in 1999, located in the most significant shopping districts in Paris. With additional international boutiques located in Canada, Venezuela, Chile, Portugal, Greece, Bahrain, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Russia and other countries, the retail network is now present throughout the world.

To complete the retail phenomenon, Azria's collections are also sold in specialty stores and in-store shops in major department stores across the globe, including Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdale's, Macy's, the UK's Harvey Nichols, Hong Kong's Lane Crawford, Taiwan's Mitsukoshi and Singapore's Takashimaya stores.

Over the past twenty years, Max Azria has succeeded in building an impressive portfolio of twenty-two brands: BCBGMAXAZRIA, BCBGMAXAZRIA Runway, Max Azria, Herve Leger by Max Azria, Herve Leger Couture, Max Azria Atelier, BCBGeneration, BCBG//Attitude, Miley Cyrus & Max Azria, Max and Cleo, To The Max, Tex by Max Azria, Manoukian, Maxrave, Street Beat, Parallel, Maxime, Noon, Don Algodon, Dorothee Bis and Dorotennis. Azria has evolved BCBGMAXAZRIAGROUP into one of the most diversified fashion houses in the world, offering some of the most sought-after collections on the market. While his immediate objectives include the further expansion of BCBGMAXAZRIAGROUP product categories and retail boutique locations globally, Azria's long-term goals are to continuously grow his fashion empire and further establish BCBGMAXAZRIAGROUP as a worldwide powerhouse of style.

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