Kim Bolufé named IAOTP Top 25 Global Impact Leader

The International Association of Top Professionals will honor Bolufé at its annual gala in New York City in December 2026, recognizing her rise from a childhood sewing factory job to founder and CEO of Bolufé Designs. The award highlights her decades-long business growth, media visibility and work helping clients build confidence through fashion.

Why it matters: - The IAOTP recognition puts Kim Bolufé’s entrepreneurial journey in front of a national audience at a time when her brand is expanding through media, partnerships and product growth. - The honor also reinforces Bolufé’s positioning as a fashion entrepreneur whose business is built around confidence, transformation and empowerment. - IAOTP will feature Bolufé in Volume 3 of its Top 25 Global Impact Leaders publication.

What happened: - IAOTP selected Kim Bolufé, founder and CEO of Bolufé Designs, LLC, as one of its Top 25 Global Impact Leaders for 2026. - IAOTP will honor Bolufé at its Annual Awards Gala in December 2026 at the Plaza Hotel in New York City. - Bolufé’s story will appear in a dedicated chapter in the publication. - Bolufé says the recognition caps an American Dream journey that began in New York City and grew into a global fashion business.

The details: - Bolufé was born in Hong Kong, immigrated to the United States at age four and was raised in New York City. - She began working with her mother in a New York City sewing factory at age 10½ and spent about seven years learning the fashion trade. - At 19, Bolufé started designing hand-made semi-precious jewelry with $267 and sold the pieces from a $10 folding card table in New York City subway stations. - Bolufé Designs was formally established in 1993. - The business later expanded into multiple boutique locations across South Florida and built a global clientele that includes CEOs, executives, entrepreneurs and public figures. - Bolufé Boutique’s headquarters is on Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach, Florida. - Bolufé was recently filmed for two TV features set to air in 2026: Lifetime Television’s Elevate – Empowering Women and PB à la Mode on Lifetime Real Women. - She has appeared three times on the NASDAQ billboard in Times Square, with a fourth appearance scheduled for December 2026. - Bolufé is a contributing author to The Top 50 Fearless Leaders, Vol. 5 and appeared on the cover of TIP Magazine in 2024. - Her media work includes fashion styling and image consulting for Entrepreneur Magazine’s Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch and Billion Dollar Showdown. - Bolufé and her daughter and business partner, Alexandria Bolufé, have hosted more than 300 episodes of The Kim Bolufé Show. - IAOTP previously recognized Bolufé as Top Entrepreneur and Celebrity Fashion Stylist of the Year and Empowered Woman of the Year in 2024. - IAOTP named her Top 50 Fearless Leaders and Top Celebrity Fashion Stylist of the Decade in 2025.

Between the lines: - The announcement leans heavily on Bolufé’s origin story to frame her as a self-made founder who built credibility through persistence rather than outside capital or a formal business roadmap. - Her media appearances and Times Square exposure suggest the brand is now operating as both a fashion business and a personal platform. - The company’s digital shift during the pandemic points to a broader move in retail: smaller lifestyle brands are relying more on content, e-commerce and direct audience engagement to stay relevant.

What's next: - Bolufé will be honored in December 2026 at IAOTP’s gala in New York City. - Her chapter in IAOTP’s publication and the scheduled television features are set to extend her visibility later in 2026. - Bolufé plans to keep expanding the Bolufé brand through media, storytelling, products and partnerships.

The bottom line: - IAOTP’s award adds another layer of recognition to a career built from a sewing factory floor, a subway card table and decades of reinvention.