MANILA, Philippines - That Benetton ad is forever etched in our minds — that of a young, beautiful Mai Mai Cojuangco clad in a colorful striped Benetton shirt and jeans sitting cross-legged on the floor. That was the famous billboard that started it all — and sent Mai Mai on her way to becoming Manila’s original It girl, with her fresh face and exuberant style visible everywhere in the ’90s, its seems. More ads followed, including a TV commercial, before she segued into the Segue line. Here we track Mai Mai’s style evolution, from the first time she came out in public to shortly before she left to live in Italy.
From Benetton model to It girl to bag designer
Mai with Elsa Klensch (center) and Virgie Ramos at the launch of Klensch’s book Style, also in 1995.