Sully Bonnelly designer for the houses of Bill Blass and Eli Tahari before starting his own collection in 1998, retailing at Saks Fifth Avenue, Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman and other stores around the globe. Later in his career, he returned to Oscar de la Renta as creative director for the O Oscar Collection. Bonnelly, a native of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, grew up with fashion being an intrinsic part of his identity.He studied architecture at UASD before moving to New York where he graduated from Parsons School of Design and began his career in fashion as Oscar de la Renta’s
Carolyne Roehm before becoming an assistant designer. De la Renta became a mentor and father figure to her, even threatening her then-significant other, Henry Kravis, when he did not immediately propose to Roehm upon his divorce to his first wife. In 1985, after ten years working for Oscar de la Renta, Roehm became a fashion designer at the age of 34 when she launched her own fashion house. Roehm’s high-end clothing was designed for women with money, active lifestyles and calendars filled with social engagements and work outside the house. Although it received accolades, she shut down the line in 1991. While