What is so phenomenal about the likes of Shantall Lacayo is not that she is the new winner of Project Runway 19. It’s that she is someone who works so hard, she doesn’t take no for an answer, and she lets nothing get in her way. She is fearless, she is bold, and she is the kind of woman that other women aspire to emulate. She’s a force with which to be reckoned, and the world should make it a point to get to know her better. She’s got so much to teach those in the fashion industry that you don’t have time not to pay attention.
1. She Was on the Show Twice
Well, kind of. You see, when she was asked to participate in this season, she was excited to do so, but she had one small setback. She was already on the Latin America version of the show – and that meant she might not be able to be part of the show. Fortunately for her, making it to the finals without taking home the win wasn’t the terrible thing it seemed like at the time – it meant she could come to America and participate in this version.
2. She Learned
She is not a woman who gives up hope. Shantall Lacayo didn’t win Project Runway when she was on the Latin American version, but she used it to her advantage. She used the contacts she made, the things she learned from the show, and the many things she picked up from working closely with other designers, and she built her brand.
3. She’s Living in Miami
It’s been more than three years since she came to the states. She and her husband both knew that her brand needed to be here to grow at the rate she wanted it to grow, so they came to the states. They made Miami their new home, and they’re thriving there.
4. She Stuck it Out
Moving from one country to another is difficult, and she felt that when she left Nicaragua for Miami. They found that things were not easy. Imagine leaving your home, your friends, your family, the things that are you comfortable and familiar with and leaving not only the area but the country. She felt the difficulties, but she stuck it out and she did not give up.
5. She Didn’t Want to Do Project Runway A Second Time
It was hard the first time she did it, and she did not feel as if she wanted to bother with it a second time. She continued to live her life, she decided it was a no, and she told her husband she would pass. Ultimately, however, she decided that it was a bad idea to pass it up – and thank goodness she did!
6. She is Leaving Miami
The winnings she earned from taking home the top prize on this show is giving her the edge she needs to continue to move her brand up to the level it needs to be. She took the quarter-million she won and she is using it to take the family from Florida to New York where she can really hone in on what her brand has to offer.
7. She’s Been Learning Fashion Since Four
She was only four when she began to learn the ins and outs of creating her own fashion. She learned to sew. She learned to stitch. She learned to draw her ideas and bring them to life. This is something she’s been working on her entire life.
8. She is Facing Backlash
Fans of the show seem rather upset that she took home the title in 2022. They called her designs good, and many admitted that she absolutely deserved her place in the top finalist selection. However, many were rooting for another designer whose designs they thought were superior.
9. She’s Always Been an Entrepreneur
Once a business mogul, always a business mogul. This is a designer who was savvy enough to start her own fashion line when she was only 13. She made clothes, she sold them to her friends at school, and she was already making a name for herself as a designer before she was even old enough to drive. She’s savvy, all right.
10. She Studied Marketing
Her dreams of being a fashion designer weren’t something she could easily manifest living in Nicaragua. It’s just not something that happens there, so she decided that marketing would be the next thing she focused on. She studied, she went into marketing, and she later realized her designer dreams. However, we imagine her own marketing skills allow her to better market her own business…it’s always a good thing to know marketing.
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