Lagerfeld at the Mint... Prada Links In... Eileen Fisher Honors Women...

EILEEN FISHER HONORS WOMEN: Eileen Fisher has chosen the recipients of its fifth annual Business Grant Program for Women Entrepreneurs: Loyale, a New York–based apparel brand that uses organic and sustainable fabrics, as well as factories with fair labor practices; The Goat Patrol, a Durham, N.C.–based start up that provides an environmentally friendly alternative to removing unwanted vegetation with the use of cross-bred Boer goats for targeted grazing; Simplyneutral, a Minneapolis-based company that makes nontoxic cleaning products; Strong Healthcare, a health care provider in Richardson, Tex., which provides affordable health care to low-income children, and Twisted Limb Paper, a Bloomington, Ind.-based firm that creates handmade 100 percent recycled paper for invitations, thank-you notes, stationery for school and nonprofit fund-raising. All women-owned businesses that combine the principles of social consciousness and sustainability, each firm will each receive a $10,000 grant, expertise from Eileen Fisher’s internal departments, and be recognized in New York City early next year. More than 125 business women applied. “With the credit market tightening and small businesses finding it increasingly difficult to secure financing, it is important to support woman entrepreneurs more than ever,” said Amy Hall, director of social consciousness at Eileen Fisher. “We’ve heard past recipients tell us the check arrived just as their business was moving to the next level and the grant has been a bridge to their future success.”