On May 13, one team and one student from the School of Graduate Studies received $25,000 Bob Fisch Awards for Entrepreneurial Excellence. Robert (Bob) Fisch, founder and former chairman and CEO of rue21, award-winning author of the bestseller Get a Life: A Roadmap to Rule the World, and an FIT Foundation board member, established the awards to help advance the careers of the students.
Launched in 2021, the Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards are an extension of the comprehensive Bob Fisch graduate student program that celebrates entrepreneurial excellence and intergenerational mentoring through gifts from Fisch that include thesis project completion grants, scholarships for FIT’s Fashion Design MFA and Global Fashion Management (GFM) Master of Professional Studies programs, year-round educational “fireside chats” led by Fisch, and extraordinary one-on-one and group mentoring sessions.
This year’s winners:
- Somdutta Das, Yeasin Mia, and Asif Rahman, all 2026 graduates of GFM and founders of Taati Studio, developed their company to bring the artistry of Bangladesh to the U.S. market. The company offers handcrafted products that blend heritage with modern living. By empowering artisans with a global platform, Taati preserves timeless crafts while connecting consumers to ethically made, culturally rich pieces.
- Delaney Slattery, Fashion Design MFA ‘26, founded SLAT Collective, a woman’s ready-to-wear brand that revolves on the axis where craftsmanship meets wearability—fashions that bring the joys of dressing into everyday contexts.
“I have totally enjoyed mentoring and coaching these graduate students the past two years, helping guide them to achieve their goals and dreams,” Fisch said. “They started their graduate school experience with curiosity and now are leaving being bolder and more fearless, standing up with confidence to take the needed risks to build on their future in business and life experiences.”
“I learned really early on about the incredible generosity of Bob Fisch to this college and the students,” said FIT President Jason S. Schupbach during the event. “He is truly unique and one of the most generous supporters FIT has ever had, and I mean that in many ways—in money, in time, and generous spirit. What he does is so much more than financial. He champions all the students that he works with, and he deeply believes that mentorship is a two-way street.”
The student award recipients discussed the impact the awards will have on their businesses and their lives.
“We’re trying to put in more and have a more focused approach so that we can really have Taati Studio up and running right now because it’s really important, and that’s what the agenda was,” said Das of her team’s win and the resources it is providing. “We didn’t just want a capstone. We wanted something that was real and that would actually work.”
“Our dream was to build something from artisans to U.S. markets, so that’s our next phase,” added Rahman.
“To stand for something it needs courage and we took the courage to stand for our heritage, our culture and our artisans and we always believed in our team, and the best is yet to come,” said Mia.
“I knew that I loved to make clothes but didn’t know where my product sat in the market or where I sat in the industry,” said Slattery. “Through this program I’ve figured that out and figured out that the element of play is something I love about my clothes. My favorite part of every day is getting dressed and that’s what this brand became about.”