Jean Shafiroff On Her Passion for Fashion & Philanthropy
Photos by Udo Spreitzenbarth
Cover photo by Michael Paniccia
Jean Shafiroff is known globally for her philanthropic work, and her dedication to making the world a better place for the less fortunate. She is also known for her great love of fashion and style – and the clothing she wears. Today, the First Lady of Philanthropy, as she is known, is the champion of several causes, focusing on four areas: women’s rights, rights of under-served populations, animal welfare, and health care. She is also involved in supporting causes that support the arts and LGBTQ rights.
Jean serves on the boards of the served on the board of The Jewish Board, a large mental health service charity, for 28 Southampton Hospital Foundation, years and now is one of its Honorary Mission Society of NYC, Couture Council of
the Museum at FIT, French Heritage Trustees. During the Covid-19 pandemic, Jean Society, Casita Maria, the NY Women’s
Foundation, Global Strays and served as the national spokesperson for American Humane’s “Feed the Hungry” Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation Covid-19 program, an initiative that raised Honorary Board. Most recently she joined the Advisory Board of the Historical Society $1,000,000 to provide food for over of Palm Beach County. As a Catholic, she 1,000,000 animals living in 100 different shelters across the United States.
Oscar de la Renta
Jean has been honored several times—by many different charities and organizations. The list honoring her includes the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, American Humane, Southampton Hospital Foundation, Mission Society of NYC, French Heritage Society, Urban Resource Institute and countless others.
She is the host of a TV show called Successful Philanthropy, which airs six times each week on LTV East Hampton. On the show, she interviews celebrities, politicians, executive directors of different charities and fellow philanthropists. “The purpose of my show is for others to hear the stories of those who are involved in philanthropy, so that they may be encouraged to do their own philanthropic work,” said Shafiroff. She encourages others to get involved in causes that they are passionate about and those where they believe they can create change.
Jean Shafiroff is also the author of a book called Successful Philanthropy: How to Make a Life by What You Give, which has an introduction by Georgina Bloomberg. “Philanthropy is multifaceted,” said Shafiroff. “The premise of my book is that anyone can be a philanthropist. If you do not have financial resources to give, you can give your time and knowledge. However, if you have resources, I believe you have an obligation to give.”
Jean Shafiroff first got started in philanthropy at a young age. While attending Catholic school, the nuns taught her the importance of helping those less fortunate. She also counts her parents as good role models; her father was a music school teacher, and her stay-at-home mom volunteered at the local church and school.
Shafiroff studied at Columbia University in New York City, earning a Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy from the College of Physicians and Surgeons and then an MBA in Finance from the Graduate School of Business at Columbia University. In between her undergraduate and graduate studies, she worked for one year at St. Luke’s Hospital, an inner-city hospital in Morningside Heights. There she worked with patients who lived at or below the poverty level. Later, after earning her MBA in finance, she worked on Wall Street for a number of years. Her education has helped her with her philanthropic work. It has helped her become the strong leader and organizer that she is today. Jean states that her MBA in finance and her work experience on Wall Street as an investment banker have helped her become a successful volunteer fundraiser for philanthropic causes.
Dolce & Gabba
Jean Shafiroff ’s desire to be of help to society led her from a young age to volunteer with various charities, and then to start serving on the board of directors of a number of them. She also volunteered at her daughters’ schools.
“When my children went off to college,” said Shafiroff, “I became much more involved in charity work. I started to join different charity boards. Today I serve on seven charity boards, two honorary charity boards, and one advisory board. Each year I chair eight to ten charity galas, and then host and underwrite several large cocktail parties in my homes. I have done a great deal of volunteer fundraising and have raised quite a bit of money for several charitable organizations. It has been hard work; however, it is very fulfilling to know that you are helping by changing the lives of the less fortunate.”
“When you serve on a charity board,” she said, “it is serious business. A charity has to be run like a business. All decisions have to be made in the most professional manner. I am on many boards that receive government funding. I take all charity work very seriously.”
But charity events can be fun and social. “You meet many people who generally have similar values,” said Shafiroff. “The people attending are interested in philanthropy and helping others. They want to see changes made in the world. Charity fundraisers also have to be run like a business. The expenses of an event must be kept low so that significant funds can be raised for the operations of the charity.”
Fern New York
Jean Shafiroff is a fashion lover who is noted for wearing elegant and interesting gowns to different black-tie charity events. Fashion can help elevate an event.
Shafiroff makes an effort to support lesser-known and emerging fashion designers. “If we want to give lesser-known and young designers an opportunity, we have to create a platform for them,” she said. “I realize that part of my job as a member of the Couture Council and the Museum at FIT is to promote different designers. I believe in this and enjoy doing it. It’s just like someone who supports the arts; I support the work of lesser known and emerging fashion designers.”
Shafiroff first got involved in fashion as a vehicle for philanthropy in 2010, when she became a board member of the Couture Council at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology. “All my life, I have loved fashion,” she said.
She was limited in what she could wear for a good part of her life. Shafiroff spent 12 years in Catholic schools where she was required to wear a school uniform. Then when working on Wall Street, “I had to dress the part,” she said. “Maybe that’s why I developed a real interest in fashion – because I was so limited in what I could wear while in school and then at work.”
As a member of the Couture Council of the Fashion Institute of Technology, she makes an effort to buy the clothing of lesser-known designers and also emerging designers. In 2008, she started buying the couture of the very talented young designer, Victor dE Souza. He is now a highly regarded Argentinian/American designer based in New York City.
Malan Breton
“In 2008 I remember buying a pink gown of his that I wore to the French Heritage Society Gala. Bill Cunningham put my photo in The New York Times, probably because of the gown I was wearing,” she remembers.
In 2009, she attended Victor dE Souza’s runway show during New York Fashion Week and fell in love with the finale gown on the runway. It was a cranberry-hued, one shoulder silk gown covered with tiny flowers. “At the end of the show, I went to Victor, and I said, ‘I’d like to buy that gown,’ and he said, “Okay.” He sold that very gown to me,” she recalls. “I love that gown and now have it in my collection.”
Bill Cunningham, the late New York Times fashion photographer and documenter, captured Jean Shafiroff at galas frequently. “Mr. Cunningham seemed to recognize the work of lesser-known and emerging designers, and tried to give them a platform,” she said. He also liked to highlight the work of the women and men who were very involved in philanthropic causes. Today, The New York Times, WWD, Forbes, Vogue, Park Magazine, LookOnLine, NY Social Diary, Avenue Magazine and many other publications do the same—they help promote both philanthropy and fashion. I am most grateful for their support.”
As she became more involved in philanthropy, Jean Shafiroff began purchasing more and more gowns from independent designers, but also continued to purchase beautiful gowns from designers such as Carolina Herrera and Oscar de la Renta.
In 2012, she started to buy and wear the couture of B Michael, a fashion designer who was born and raised in Connecticut and studied millinery at the New York Fashion Institute of Technology before working under Oscar de la Renta and then launching his own brand in 1999. When she co-chaired the Mission Society of New York City’s Bicentennial Gala at the Pierre Hotel in 2012, she wore his gown. She continues to buy his clothing and wears it to many events she chairs and attends. B Michael is a highly talented designer, known for dressing legends like Whitney Houston, Cicely Tyson, Beyonce and Lena Horne. He is especially known for his unique styles and beautiful fabrics.
Jean Shafiroff also wears the designs of Malan Breton, a very talented Taiwanese-born designer who is a Goodwill Ambassador to Taiwan, and a former Ambassador to the UK Parliamentary Society for The Arts, Fashion and Sports. He has held runway shows in different cities around the world. Most recently, he held fashion shows at New York Fashion Week and Paris Fashion Week. He has dressed stars for America’s Next Top Model, the Golden Globe Awards and the 73rd Tony Awards. Shafiroff met Breton many years ago at a charity event, and they became friends. “I think he’s a wonderful human being and an extremely talented fashion designer; Malan has become a close friend,” said Shafiroff.
Jean has often worn gowns by Malan Breton to the Viennese Opera Ball in New York City, an event she has chaired for many years. She also wore a striking black couture gown of Breton’s to the American Ballet Theater Gala and then a beautiful golden green gown to the recent Carnegie Hall Gala. “I generally save couture gowns for special occasions; I don’t necessarily wear a dress designed by a fashion designer as soon as they come out,” she said. “It’s crazy, but I buy them in the season, and I sometimes wait a season or two later to actually wear them.”
Another young highly talented designer she has supported along the way is Esé Azénabor. Ese was born in Nigeria and grew up in Canada. A self-taught bridal designer, she recently opened her latest boutiques on Madison Avenue and in Southampton. Shafiroff first discovered Azenabor’s designs when she sauntered into the designer’s Southampton boutique one summer day. “I loved her clothing, and I bought a big pink hand-painted gown that I wore to the Angel Ball in 2023,” said Shafiroff, who recently walked in the runway for Azenabor’s New York Fashion Week show at the Rockefeller Center in September 2024, wearing a white gown covered in a rainbow of floral patterns.
She also supports the work of Venezuelan designer, Nabys Vielman. “He moved to New York City a few years ago and slowly we’ve developed a friendship,” said Shafiroff. “He is very talented, and I like to support his work.”
Most recently she started to purchase the work of self-taught fashion designer, Ron Dyce. Ron creates a new modern look. I now also consider Ron Dyce a wonderful new friend.
Jean Shafiroff also supports the work of a number of FIT graduates. Recently she wore a gown by young designer Ashley Plasse, who uses the art and craft of embroidery in her designs. Jean Shafiroff wore her dress as she walked down the runway at a New York Fashion Week event entitled Catwalk FurBaby, an Elysian magazine initiative to raise funds for different charities. All the models walked down the runway with dogs. Shafiroff was no exception. Her dog, Rosita, walked the runway with her. Rosita was also clad in an outfit designed by Ashley Plasse.
“I was a model, and I enjoyed wearing Ashley Plasse’s dress,” said Shafiroff. “In the show, I represented the New York Women’s Foundation. In a way, I was also representing FIT by wearing a dress created by one of their very recent graduates. The dress was just beautiful.”
Malan Breton
Jean Shafiroff has also worked on a photo shoot with Fern Clausius, an evening wear designer who founded her own brand called Fern New York. Fern graduated from FIT in 2019. “I’m constantly going on the websites of young designers and checking out their work,” she said.
One way that she has discovered new designers is at an annual event she hosts. Over the past six years, Shafiroff has hosted Times Square Fashion Week. The annual event shows the work of emerging designers. “We have a big runway show in Times Square, New York; the designers come from all over the world” she said. “We showcase emerging designers and promote diversity at this exciting event.”
She isn’t just a model on the runway, but a model in life. Many women look up to Shafiroff as someone they aspire to be. “I love the philanthropic work I do; it has created purpose in my life, and I believe it’s what I should be doing,” she said. “Philanthropy is my life, and I plan to be involved with it for the rest of my life.”
“For young men and women, I suggest, getting involved in philanthropy slowly,” said Shafiroff. “Follow your passions. If you’re working full time, do what you can. Perhaps you can volunteer once or twice a month. Next try to become involved with some junior groups, because you’ll probably enjoy being with people your own age. Look for charities that are well run, and where you’ll be treated with dignity and respect. All of this is in my book Successful Philanthropy, How to Make a Life By What You Give.”
Jean Shafiroff owns a large gown collection. She plans to donate this collection to a museum one day. “The gowns are all pieces of art. Many are couture gowns. Fashion is art,” said Shafiroff. “I think they tell the story about my love affair with philanthropy and fashion.”
Ese Azenabour
Jean Shafiroff has already been in touch with a few museums about her couture collection. In 2016, she loaned an Oscar de la Renta gown to the de Young Museum in San Francisco for a retrospective about the designer. This year, she donated a dress to the Richard and Pat Johnson Palm Beach County History Museum in Palm Beach, Florida. The gown was one of many featured in an exhibition called “Endless Summer: Palm Beach Resort Wear,” which ran earlier this year.
She plans to write a book that blends the world of fashion and philanthropy, outlining her relationship with fashion designers. For sure, it will be most interesting. P
Jean Shafiroff has over 1.2 million Instagram followers where she promotes philanthropy, positivity, and fashion. She can be followed @JeanShafiroff
To learn more about Jean Shafiroff, go to JeanShafiroff.com
Fashion Designers on Jean Shafiroff
Fashion Designers who have designed dresses for Jean Shafiroff speak to Park magazine about why the First Lady of Philanthropy inspires their designs and work.
MALAN BRETON
“Jean Shafiroff is one of the kindest, most loving people in fashion. She is a marketing genius, who has given her life to philanthropy, and is known for her beautiful fashion aesthetic. She has a caring heart and uses it in aid of many. She is also a muse to many designers that she sees potential in. She is a forever friend, one of my dearest, and someone who inspires many with unconditional love, great style and compassion. I am grateful for the many moments I have had the honor of sharing with her. One of my most favorite moments with Jean is her spring 2023 cover of Harper’s Bazaar Vietnam, she was the first to wear this gown in the media, and the last. As it will stay in our archive as a very special moment with Jean Shafiroff. The gown, cut in glass fibers and glass bugle beads, with crystal detailing all made by hand, could never be worn better by anyone else. That is the power of Jean, she has a sensibility about fashion and the creation of a garment that no other muse could ever understand.”
ESE AZENABOR
“Jean Shafiroff inspires me for many reasons! She is a wonderful, classy woman with a heart of gold. Jean is one of our VIP clients, she is a philanthropist and lives life with values that completely embody the Esé Azénabor woman. Art is so multifaceted, and for Jean I believe collecting couture is the same as collecting paintings, wearable art that has a story behind it. It’s my honor to dress someone like that.”
NABYS VIELMAN
“Jean Shafiroff is not only an inspiring woman, but a beautiful lady with nobility of soul. Indeed, she radiates a bright light on those of us who’re privileged to be around her. Thus, what a great pleasure it’s for me to have designed a few couture looks for this woman who’s a symbol of New York.”
FERN CLAUSIUS
“For years I’ve watched Jean at galas and red carpet events in larger-than- life gowns that truly catch the eye. When she asked me to dress her for this photo shoot for Park magazine, she took a risk that I really admired. With my background in couture lingerie design, much of my work is corsetry- based and a bit less conservative—very different from the other beautiful, classical gowns that I typically see Jean wear. However, she was not afraid to try a new style, be daring, and lean into a different side of herself. It was inspiring to see her transform and connect deeper with her inherent femininity when she wore my designs.”
