EDGE Magazine Celebrates Start of Third Year by
Sponsoring Designer Irina Shabayeva at Lincoln Center Event

‘Project Runway’ Star Debuts Fall Collection in Coveted 9 PM Opening Night Slot

(New York, NY — February 22, 2011)   Who said the magazine business is dying? Among a handful of thriving regional publications is New Jersey-based EDGE Magazine, which started turning heads when it burst onto the scene in 2009—and made a major statement in the fashion world as the presenting sponsor of Irina Shabayeva’s Fall Collection at Lincoln Center in New York.

EDGE secured the key 9:00 pm slot on Opening Night of Fashion Week presented by Mercedes-Benz for Shabayeva, whose work first won acclaim on Project Runway a year and a half ago. The celebration moved downtown to the James Hotel, where the 29-year-old designer was feted at an after-party held at celebrity chef David Burke’s rooftop nightclub, Jimmy’s.

“What EDGE magazine has accomplished in two years is frankly astonishing,” says Shabayeva. “It’s an honor to be associated with a publication that connects with its readers the way EDGE does—and which brings fashion to their doorstep.”

The relationship between magazine and designer began in the summer of 2010. HBO True Blood star Rutina Wesley offered to model fashion for EDGE and fell in love with one of Shabayeva’s dresses. The stunning shot made the cover of EDGE and triggered a surge of interest in the magazine—in New Jersey and online, where the EDGE web site (edgemagonline.com) quadrupled its hits overnight.

EDGE is a smart, sexy suburban lifestyle magazine with a circulation of 80,000, primarily in Central New Jersey. The glossy oversized publication hits newsstands six times a year and features an eclectic mix of feature editorial, arts, food, travel, health & wellness stories and celebrity interviews (ranging from NBC’s Brian Williams to soul diva Gloria Gaynor to fashion icon Norma Kamali). In two years its page count has doubled, to 100.

EDGE distinguished itself in a challenging marketplace by shooting its own fashion each issue. According to managing editor Mark Stewart, it’s a gamble that has obviously paid off.

“Our investment in fashion has made people take a serious look at everything we do,” he explains. “What they find is consistently surprising and challenging ideas, sometimes with a raised eyebrow, sometimes with a knowing wink, but always with an EDGE