Some hire publicists to help decide which events to attend. Although using a personal publicist to advance one's social rank is not exactly new — Babe Paley is believed to have had one — publicity agents have become ubiquitous. Although having a publicist was once looked down upon as the mark of a true social climber, today's socialites are able to avoid the stigma by hiring the publicist to promote their businesses. If their personal profile ascends in the process, so be it.
Beracasa persuaded her boss at Circa, the estate jewelry company where she works, to hire the publicist Nadine Johnson, whose clients have included IMG Models and Larry Gagosian. "There isn't much I do without asking for Nadine's advice," Beracasa said. That includes drawing up the guest list for parties, like one she gave over Labor Day weekend in Bridgehampton with Chris Del Gatto, the chief executive of Circa, at which she dressed as a glamorous acrobat.
Beracasa, 30, has stock in Circa, which Del Gatto said he hoped to take public in a couple of years. He said that as the company positions itself as a luxury brand, "it's important to have someone like Fabiola who is representative of our clients, someone who is international, very smart and may have inherited or have jewelry that they no longer use."
In fact, Beracasa first came to the company as a client, seeking to unload a Rolex watch. (Circa buys from the public and sells to private clients, unlike other estate jewelry companies, which do the opposite.)
Given her background, why does she bother to work? "Life can be very vapid if you have everything," she said. In her early 20s she may have been content to travel and shop full time, but that gets old. "I think a grown-up can understand you need to accomplish things in life to feel good about yourself," she said.
"I see myself building an empire," she said, emphasizing that she hopes always to work with Circa in some capacity. And though it's unclear exactly how one builds an empire out of tweaking the image of an estate jewelry company, that doesn't seem to matter at this point, when there is still an endless round of parties to dress up for. Some skeptical observers of high society doubt the seriousness of today's self-branding players. Zani Gugelmann, an oft-photographed jewelry designer of Filigrana by Zani, said that women who go out nightly and say it is to promote their businesses are a bit disingenuous. "People can say it is work-based," she said, "but many times that's just an excuse."
Columbia doubts that women who are truly privileged really understand the demands of the workplace. "Rich girls find ways of getting someone to do everything for them," he said.
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