the 1920s, but traveled often to New York. After her mother's death on 27 April 1926, in Nice, Benenson moved permanently to Manhattan, where on 19 March 1931, she married Janusz Ilinski, a Polish nobleman and soldier. Career His father's investments in real estate in New York allowed Fira to open, with her partner Vera Heller, Verben, an exclusive dress shop between 5th and 6th Avenues on 57th Street. In the mid-1920s, the women's boutique focused on classic but cutting-edge fashion for wealthy women of New York. Fira worked as a buyer and relationship builder with couture houses almost exclusively in Paris. When the family fortune took a downturn due to the Great Depression and the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929, Benenson opened a dress shop in New York City, gaining a reputation in the fashion industry. In 1934, she was hired by Bonwit Teller to manage their Couture Salon, traveling four times a year to the fashion markets in Paris. In 1940, with travel restrictions due to the war and the German invasion of France, Paris was closed off to the industry. American designers began to create their own designs, and Benenson launched Fira Benenson Inc. Her plan was not to create haute couture fashion, but rather simple, but elegant clothing in which women could walk and sit, while wearing throughout their normal daily routines. While other designers utilized padded shoulders, Benenson preferred natural lines and silhouettes that balanced a woman's figure. In 1946, the Hoving Corporation made a bid to purchase Bonwit's, which resulted in Benenson's resignation by 1948 to open her own shop. She had become one of the top fashion designers in the United States by 1950, and counted among her clients, Princess Grace of Monaco and Pat Nixon. Increasingly she designed clothes for women over forty, putting out two collections each year for the ready-to-wear market, while still keeping her styles though available in a range of sizes, with the feel of made to order garments. She continued designing through the end of the 1960s. Death and legacy Benenson died at her home at 333 East 57th Street in Manhattan on 23 October 1977. She was influential in giving a start to many young designers during her career, including George Halley and Monte Streitfield. Her sister Flora was the mother of Peter Solomon Benenson, founder of Amnesty International and her sister Manya