By: Jenny Castro
Los Angeles, CA (The Hollywood Times) 08-15-2026
Established in 2020, the Queen of the World Pageant is an international pageant system dedicated to celebrating women from all walks of life and diverse communities from around the world. Based in New York City and founded by attorney and CEO Alice Lee Giannetta, the pageant is known for empowering women and has categories in various age ranges which provides women the opportunity to share their personal journeys, embrace their unique identities, and showcase their talents and leadership abilities through pageantry.
Elaborating more on the pageant’s inception, Giannetta reflects on her personal journey and career, “I’m a first-generation American,” she said. Adding, I was born in Taiwan and immigrated to the United States with my family in 1992 when I was 8 years old and in 8th grade. At the time, I didn’t speak English, so coming to America was an entirely new experience for me and my family as we had to learn a new language, adapt to a new culture, and find our place in American society. It was truly a significant learning curve, but those experiences shaped who I am today. I truly feel that so much of my life embodies the American dream, and I witnessed my parents work incredibly hard and sacrifice so much to create a better life for our family.”
Giannetta’s strong work ethic and values can be attributed to her upbringing instilled in her by her parents as she learned the importance of sacrifice, determination and resilience which would eventually continue to inspire her throughout her life and path to entrepreneurship. Eventually receiving a bachelor’s and master’s in Political Science from Stony Brook University, Giannetta would attend law school at The City University of New York and began a legal career practicing commercial litigation afterward. In 2020, as the world navigated the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic, Giannetta took time to reflect on her interests and explore her passions. This period of self-discovery ultimately inspired her to pursue a new entrepreneurial venture and led to the creation of the Queen of the World Pageant system. With the support and encouragement of her husband, also an attorney, Giannetta drew upon the discipline, professionalism, and strategic skills she developed throughout her corporate law career and built a purpose driven entrepreneurial venture that would evolve into an international platform dedicated to celebrated women from around the globe.
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Speaking more on the Queen of the World Pageant, Giannetta explains the vision, “This system is very unique because it was designed for the modern woman. We have four divisions, making it both inclusive and diverse. Regardless of a woman’s age or marital status, she has a place here where she will be respected, celebrated, and given the opportunity to compete on a professionally produced pageant stage. My passion for pageantry also comes from my own experience as a contestant. I competed in the Mrs. New York America Pageant in November 2016, and I was fortunate enough to win and be crowned Mrs. New York. That experience gave me a firsthand understanding of what it means to be a contestant and ultimately inspired me to create a pageant system that provides women with a welcoming and empowering experience.”
Under Giannetta’s leadership, the organization places a strong emphasis on professionalism and dedicated support to its contestants as she further explains, “I’m so proud of many things about Queen of the World, but I think one of the qualities that truly makes us stand out is how professional, responsive, and hands-on we are with all of our delegates. Our typical response time to a contestant is within 48 hours, and that level of attentiveness starts with me. I like to serve as a mentor to my contestants and make sure they feel supported throughout their experience. I view this as a customer-service business. Our contestants are investing not only their money but also their trust in our program, and we have a responsibility to provide them with an exceptional experience. We want every delegate to feel valued and know that if they have a question or concern, they will be heard and supported. My staff and I are committed to treating every woman with the utmost professionalism and responsiveness.”
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Beyond the competition itself, the pageant places emphasis on prepping and supporting its delegates throughout pageant week. Giannetta explains that the organization hosts an in-person workshop covering areas such as swimsuit and gown presentation, recognizing that contestants come with varying levels of experience. Giannetta also emphasizes that the Queen of the World Pageant is designed to create an inclusive experience where every contestant has the opportunity to feel celebrated. “We really try to level the playing field for everybody,” she explains. “We always host one of our signature events, our Blue to Full Gala, where the ladies wear an outfit of their choice in the color blue. It’s our welcome dinner, and we really make it very cosmopolitan because Queen of the World is based in New York City, and we want the energy of the city to come through. We tell our ladies, ‘Showcase your fashion sense and your individuality. This is your time to shine.’ It’s really a lot of fun.”
Beyond the festivities, advocacy and philanthropy remain an important part of the organization’s mission. “At Queen of the World, we always do a charity event as well,” Giannetta said. “We recently partnered with Children’s Aid, a nonprofit with deep roots in New York City that provides support and services to children and families in vulnerable communities.” The partnership is uniquely special to Giannetta, who previously volunteered with Children’s Aid during her time as Mrs. New York in 2017 and has remained involved with the organization over the years. “I was very honored that they decided to partner with Queen of the World,” she says.
For the collaboration, Queen of the World hosted a confidence workshop for 20 teenage girls participating in Children’s Aid programs. The young women joined the organization’s contestants and queens for an empowering experience focused on confidence, connection, and self-expression. “It was wonderful,” Giannetta reflects.
Words of advice to women out there interested in competing in pageantry, Giannetta says, “Come and give Queen of the World a try as this would be such a great investment in yourself. Your experience at Queen of the World is going to be tremendously positive because you’ll be treated with respect and supported throughout the entire journey leading up to pageant week. We provide our contestants with so much information and preparation material, including a detailed agenda, so they know exactly what to expect. Everything is clearly laid out for them, and we want every contestant to feel prepared, confident, and comfortable. I would also say not to give up on your passion for pageantry simply because you may not have won or found the experience you were hoping for in another system. I encourage women to explore other pageant systems and, of course, I would love for them to discover Queen of the World. But regardless of which system they choose, if that passion and fire to compete is still in their hearts, they should continue pursuing it. There truly is a pageant system for everyone, and women from all over the world can apply. We also have ladies who reside in the U.S. that choose to represent country of their heritage because we have so many ladies that were born in different countries like myself or even our former Mrs. Queen of the World Jennifer Lloyd who represented Korea.”
Winners also receive generous prizes from sponsors, and have the opportunity to attend various events around the country and beyond.
Queen of the World currently has 4 divisions. Next year’s pageant will also take place in New York City from March 30th through April 3rd 2027.
Miss Queen of the World — Ages 18–29, unmarried
Ms. Queen of the World — Ages 30+, unmarried
Mrs. Queen of the World — Ages 18–55, married
Elite Queen of the World — Ages 50+, married or unmarried
Learn more at the Queen of the World official website here.
Official Instagram page here.
