Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim Features Style, Sophistication And Safety

Mercedes-Benz returns to sunny South Beach Miami as the title sponsor of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim where the latest trends in style and design make their debut including Mercedes-Benz collection of new 2010 E-Class vehicles ranging from the E63 AMG sedan to the E-Class coupe. From July 15th – 19th, the art-deco Raleigh Hotel is the epicenter for fashion insiders looking to see the 2010 collections of leading swimwear brands including Red Carter, True Religion Swimwear, Ed Hardy Swimwear, Cia.Marítima and this season’s Mercedes-Benz Presents Designer, L*Space by Monica Wise.

“Each season is a new opportunity to showcase trends from the worlds of fashion and Mercedes-Benz automotive design,” said Lisa Holladay, Manager Brand Experience Marketing for Mercedes-Benz USA.   “From the cutting-edge safety features of the new E-Class to the most innovative designer collections, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week incorporates the best in style and sophistication on the road and runway.”

Style and Sophistication

This season, Mercedes-Benz premieres its 2010 E-Class vehicles, the E63 AMG, the E350 coupe and the E350 sedan. The ninth generation E-Class represents the essence of the Mercedes-Benz mark and distinguishes itself with iconic characteristics such as the three-dimensional front grille and twin headlamp face.  The new design of the E-Class captures timeless style and sophistication drawing from the past with rear fenders reminiscent of the famous 1953 “Ponton” Mercedes and combining it with trapezoidal shaped headlamps to create a bold, avant-garde appearance. The muscular body is defined by several convex surfaces and taut lines including one that follows each rear wheelwell to shape the contours of the rear fenders. Connecting further with classic Mercedes-Benz design paradigms, the new E-Class coupe includes side windows with a sleek pillarless design and a front grille featuring the Mercedes-Benz three-pointed star at its center.

The special launch color for the new E-Class coupe Olivine Grey is proprietary combination of olive green and grey and is one color trend that can be seen in many genres this season from the limited-edition Chanel Kaleidoscope nail polish to swimsuits from Mercedes-Benz Presents Designer, L*Space by Monica Wise to one of the color palettes utilized by Maurice Villency for the Mercedes-Benz Star Lounge at the Raleigh Hotel. The unique color aims to create a sense of calm and blend chic modernity into the timeless art-deco environment.

"Fashion designers share a common thread with automotive designers and that realization comes to life at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. Both the vehicles and the garments consistently reflect fashions trends, movements and craftsmanship," said Fern Mallis, Senior Vice President of IMG Fashion.

L*Space by Monica Wise will feature an African-inspired capsule collection in partnership with OmniPeace, a humanitarian fashion brand founded by entrepreneur Mary Fanaro, where 25 percent of profits will go to charities promoting peace, human rights, education and the end of extreme poverty in Africa by 2025.

Safety Innovations

The new E-Class features cutting-edge safety technologies with the very latest assistance and protection systems conceived and developed on the basis of real-life scenarios. These safety innovations make the E-Class an "intelligent partner" that can monitor driver inputs and surroundings to help avoid traffic accidents or minimize their consequences.

The new E-Class’ ATTENTION ASSIST drowsiness detection system that recognizes drowsy driving patterns and emits an audible and visible warning in the form of a coffee cup icon and a “time for a rest?” message in the instrument cluster. Adaptive Highbeam Assist uses a camera behind the windshield to recognize oncoming traffic and vehicles driving in front of it, and adjusts the headlamps to maximize the amount of light at all times. Lane Keeping Assist, aimed at preventing accidents caused by drifting across lanes, recognizes when a driver of the new E-Class is leaving his lane unintentionally and prompts the driver to counter-steer through vibrations in the steering wheel. Additional E-Class safety features include Blind Spot Assist and Night View Assist PLUS.

The new E350 coupe is priced at $48,925 and the E350 sedan is priced at $49,475. Launching in the second half of 2009 is the E63 AMG sedan, the E350 4MATIC sedan & E550 4MATIC sedan. In 2010, Mercedes-Benz will release the next iterations of the E-Class with the E350 BlueTEC and the E350 4MATIC Wagon and the E-Class cabriolet.

ABOUT MERCEDES-BENZ

Mercedes-Benz USA, headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey, is responsible for the sales, marketing and service of all Mercedes-Benz and Maybach products in the United States. In 2007, Mercedes-Benz USA became the title sponsor of IMG's Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York and Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Swim in Miami.  Mercedes-Benz is also the title sponsor of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin. For more than 40 years, MBUSA takes pride in its commitment to the customer by providing superior quality luxury vehicles coupled with outstanding customer support. More information on MBUSA and its products can be found at www.mbusa.com and www.maybachusa.com.

ABOUT L*SPACE

A favorite with Hollywood’s hippest – from Cameron Diaz to Jessica Alba—L*Space by Monica Wise has graced the covers of countless magazines.  Known for extraordinary silhouettes and flattering fits, Monica’s much-coveted designs easily go from beach time to play time. L*Space by Monica Wise is available at Saks Fifth Avenue and specialty boutiques around the world.  For more information, please visit www.Lspace.com.

ABOUT OMNIPEACE

OmniPeace was founded by Mary Fanaro, a humanitarian entrepreneur.  The Los Angeles based humanitarian fashion brand donates 25% of all its profits to efforts committed to charities promoting peace, education, human rights and ending extreme poverty in Africa by 2025.  For more information, please visit www.omnipeace.com.

ABOUT MAURICE VILLENCY

Maurice Villency is renowned for its craftsmanship and design, always creating pieces that are functional and stylish.  For more information, please visit www.mauricevillency.com