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Shantytown seamstresses make mark on catwalk

By CNN's Andrea Armsden

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(CNN) -- Fashion designer Carlos Miele has a store in New York and a global client base but it is the shantytowns of his native Brazil that are also reaping benefits from his work.

Born and raised in Sao Paolo, Miele maintains a strong affinity with his culture.

"I grew up in a very poor neighborhood. There were homeless people on the streets. I didn't come from the elite. I think it's easy for someone who came from that sort of background to understand social problems," Miele told CNN.

Miele not only understands the social problems, he tries to alleviate them.

Rocinha, Latin America's largest "favela" or shantytown, is home to an estimated 200,000 people.

Many find it hard to get work and there are vast social problems: poverty, drugs crime and despair.

The Coopa-Roca sewing cooperative sees women involved in positive initiatives, creating traditional Brazilian techniques for clothing and artwork.

They are supported by end users like Miele.

At the heart of his work is empowering women -- from those who make his designs, to those who wear them.

"The first city that I exported my product to was to London. And then it was amazing to see that at the same time that I bring self-esteem to the people in Brazil," Miele says, adding that upmarket stores Harrods, Selfridges and Browns were among his first clients.

"I could reach these very rich clients. They wanted to buy these luxurious products then I start to understand that fashion is not something for elites, it can be like something that a bridge between elites and people who need jobs."

Miele says labor in China, for example, is a lot cheaper, but he is determined to give something back to his homeland.

"Those who work for me do not work in slave conditions. We give them dignity, we try to pay as much as we can. Although it is so expensive, we pay 10 or 20 times more then we do in China, but it is nice to know that all this work and the price of these dresses are supporting families so that's what makes the whole thing about fashion so beautiful."

His investment in the Rocinha community does not stop there.

Miele bought a block of land to house new production facilities and has paid for an architect and engineer to get the project moving.

Construction is yet to begin. A large funding drive is needed to raise the millions of dollars.

In his hometown of Sao Paolo, Miele supports another project at the local hospital.

He's funded the reconstruction of the children's emergency room, and from chemotherapy equipment to simple first-aid supplies, his support is generous and ongoing.

"I grew up in this neighborhood. When I was 10 years old my family moved to this neighborhood. This hospital is very important to the city because the Brazilian government does not take care of health. Education and health are the biggest problems for Brazil."

Miele found out about the project through a friend who is a doctor. He says he gets very emotional when he visits the hospital.

"He showed me this project ... I thought it was a good opportunity for me to return to society what society given me back. Every time I am here, strong emotions come to me."

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