Sonia Dubey Dewan, AICI CIP, the founder of India’s premier Image Management training institute, Indian School of Image Management, was awarded the highly coveted Image Makers Merit of Industry Excellence Award (IMMIE) for Philanthropy on June 6, 2021 in the biennial AICI (Association of Image Consultants International) Global Conference 2021.
The prestigious philanthropy award, recognized Ms. Sonia Dubey Dewan’s extensive social work and efforts contributing to the education, training and welfare of underprivileged children and women in rural regions of India.
Sonia is an Entrepreneur, Image Consultant, a Keynote Speaker and the first Internationally Certified Image Professional (CIP) in India by AICI. With over 12+ years of experience in the field of Image Management, Personal Branding & Training India’s top companies & startups are among her corporate clients along with many C-suite executives, entrepreneurs, celebrities & politicians are her personal clients. Sonia is the first to bring in Internationally Accredited Education in India, and have trained 170+ image consultants & soft skills trainers from all around the world in 3 years.
Along with her decade long progression in the Image Management training domain, Ms. Sonia simultaneously contributed through her work as the treasurer of VISHIPSA, an NGO that works in empowerment, education skill & image training for underprivileged women and children in India since 2005. She also worked rigorously to build a new school for the Chanchwad School in the district of Dahanu, Maharashtra. Since 2016, as part of her ‘Joy of Giving Initiative’, she has organized multiple events where she would regularly collect items such as books, toys, clothes, accessories, and electronics to distribute them amongst the needy. She also donated her fully grown hair for cancer patients as part of the Hair for Hope India.
The Image Makers Merit of Industry Excellence Award is given out biennially at the AICI Global Conference, and was conceived in 1989 to give recognition to image consultants, to inspire achievement and to create unity within the industry. It is awarded in four categories namely Education, Innovation, Inspiration, Philanthropy. This year at AICI Virtual Global Conference, Ms. Sonia Dubey Dewan was awarded the Image Makers Merit of Industry Excellence Award in Philanthropy, making her the first Indian to achieve this remarkable feat.
Speaking to Sonia on this moment of honor, she quotes, “Giving back to society is a part of my value system. At a very young age, my mother showed me with her actions that to help others, you just need intent and a big heart. Although coming from a humble background, she dedicated her life to social work, and this award is dedicated to her. It gives me immense honor to continue her legacy of empowering the less fortunate. This year we are focusing on providing life management skills to young girls through EduGLife, an initiative where we are running projects in collaboration with Child Right Commission, Madhya Pradesh, and Anandi Foundation, and more.”
