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CRISTINA SARALEGUI is a 30-year veteran journalist who is recognized as one of the most influential role models for today’s Hispanic woman.  She is strong-willed, successful, savvy and committed to making a difference.  In August 2005, CRISTINA was named one of the “25 Most Influential Hispanics in America” by Time Magazine and in October of the same year, she became the first Latina to be inducted into the Broadcasting & Cable Hall of Fame, where she joins such television legends as Walter Cronkite, Barbara Walters and Johnny Carson.  CRISTINA sees her #1 role in media and in life as a motivator for women and a champion of a healthy, gracious and self-empowered lifestyle.

In 1989, CRISTINA made her television debut as host and executive producer of “The Cristina Show" on Univision, the nation's leading Spanish-language television network.  In 2007, CRISTINA celebrates 18 years on the air and after 12 Emmys and nearly 4,000 shows, “The Cristina Show” is still one of the highest rated programs on Spanish-language television.  It is also seen throughout Latin America as well as in most European countries.  In the U.S.,“The Cristina Show” airs Monday nights at 10 PM (ET) on the Univision Network.

The Cuban-born media mogul is the first Spanish-language television personality to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.  Additionally, she has received numerous awards such as the Foundation of American Women in Radio and Television’s “Gracie Allen Tribute Award,” AmFar’s “National Community Service Award,” The Simon Weisenthal Center’s 2004 “International Distinguished Achievement Award” as well as The Hispanic Heritage Foundation’s “Arts Award” and the Imagen Foundation’s “Lifetime Achievement Award.”

CRISTINA has also participated in many prestigious events such as the Museum of Television and Radio’s William S. Paley TV Festival and The National Association of Television Producers and Executives (NATPE) Women in Communications panel. CRISTINA and Elizabeth Taylor together addressed The United Nations on the subject of AIDS research and education, one of the many causes for which she passionately works.  She has been presented with proclamations and keys to cities around the world and is also listed in numerous biographical references including "Who's Who in Professional and Executive Women" and “The Top 100 Hispanic Influential People in the U.S.”  CRISTINA’s life story was part of The Museum of Tolerance exhibit:  Finding Our Families/Finding Ourselves, an effort by the museum to highlight our human similarities, especially as it pertains to the multi-racial rainbow of American immigrants.

CASA CRISTINA, A LIFESTYLE BRAND

CRISTINA’s brand name recognition among Hispanics in the U.S. and Latin America is unparalleled and in high demand by leading corporations seeking to tap into the burgeoning Hispanic consumer market.  A 2004 poll conducted by Synovate U.S. Hispanic Market Report found the following perceptions about CRISTINA among Hispanic decision-makers between the ages of 25-54:  CRISTINA Overall Trust Score: 80%; CRISTINA provides styles and fashion to fit your lifestyle:  71%; CRISTINA is a role model (females): 70%; a new line of furniture by CRISTINA would appeal to you:  80%.

During her three decades of entertaining and educating people, CRISTINA’s personal warmth and style have inspired millions of loyal followers who look to her for information on everything from relationship issues to celebrities, family life, home décor and entertaining.  Through her weekly show, her bilingual web site, www.cristinaonline.com, and her new Casa Cristina™ Collection, CRISTINA reaches millions of loyal consumers.

In 2004, CRISTINA created the Casa Cristina Collection, the first complete collection of home furnishings inspired by her personal style.  To date, the Casa Cristina Collection is comprised of furniture, home accessories, lighting, mattresses, bed and bath accessories and kitchen textiles.  In November of 2006, CRISTINA was selected as one of “The 50 Most Influential People in Home Furnishings Style and Design” by Home Furnishings News (HFN).  

Her latest venture in home furnishings involves a dynamic partnership with top national retailer Kohl’s.   The Casa Cristina™ Bed and Bath collection along with her kitchen textiles collection was launched in spring 2007 throughout the 820 Kohl’s stores nationwide and on www.kohls.com.  The Casa Cristina™ Home Décor collection consisting of home accents, candles, and picture frames as well as the Casa Cristina™ collection of dishware, glassware and silverware were introduced nationwide at all Kohl’s stores in fall 2007.

CRISTINA SARALEGUI ENTERPRISES, INC.

CRISTINA SARALEGUI is the granddaughter of Don Francisco Saralegui, a venerated Cuban magazine publisher who had already established several magazines in his native Cuba before the family was forced to immigrate to Miami, Florida in 1960, when CRISTINA was only 12 years old.  CRISTINA attended The University of Miami and began her media career as an intern at the Spanish-language magazine, Vanidades.  CRISTINA quickly moved up the ranks and soon became Editor-in-Chief of Cosmopolitan en Español, sister publication to Hearst’s Cosmopolitan.  She held that position from 1979 to 1989 when she resigned to become Executive Producer and host of her own TV talk show, the internationally famous “The Cristina Show,” which after 18 years on the air, is still one the highest rated programs on Spanish-language TV.

Under the banner CRISTINA SARALEGUI ENTERPRISES, INC. (CSE), CRISTINA and her husband and manager Marcos Avila have built a media company, which is housed at the sprawling Blue Dolphin Studios.   It was inaugurated on May 6, 2001 and consists of state of the art television production facilities with three sound stages available to outside productions.  Blue Dolphin Studios also serves as the home of “The Cristina Show” and as the headquarters for all CSE subsidiaries.

CRISTINA’s bilingual web site, www.cristinaonline.com was launched in October 1998 and has become one of the hottest sites on the Internet, providing access to all of the subsidiaries under the CSE umbrella.  Visitors can access pages for “The Cristina Show,” “Arriba La Vida/Up With Life Foundation,” information on CRISTINA’s highly acclaimed 1998 autobiography My Life as a Blonde, released simultaneously in English and Spanish  by Warner Books, as well as view the Casa Cristina Collection. 

CRISTINA, THE ACTIVIST

Aside from her career as an EMMY award-winning talk show host and CEO of a media and licensing empire, CRISTINA devotes her time to a myriad of social causes.  She and her husband Marcos Avila founded the “Arriba la Vida/Up with Life Foundation” in 1996, a private foundation dedicated to AIDS awareness and education among Hispanics, as well as other AIDS related causes that touch the lives of Hispanics everywhere. The foundation also remains flexible to respond to unique challenges, ideas and projects that fulfill the ideals of service and vision of its founders.  Funding for the foundation’s mission is provided by the personal contributions of its founders, and through a broad range of media-related fund raising activities. 

In September 2005, CRISTINA received the Valor Award from the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) in recognition of her pioneering efforts in educating her viewers on gay and lesbian issues as well as AIDS awareness and education.

CRISTINA is on the Board of Directors of The Museum of Television & Radio and is a member of the National Council of the American Foundation for AIDS Research (AmFar).

Her husband, Marcos Avila, a former musician and founding member of the highly successful musical group, Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine, manages CRISTINA.  The couple, who has three children, resides in Miami.