Who are the winners of fashion competitions in 2023?

Louis Gabriel Nouchi won the Andam 2023 Grand Prize, Satoshi Kuwata the LVMH Prize, the Cachí brand took home the AMI x IFM Entrepreneurship Prize this year and Shein rewarded designer Amy Sala with first place for the third edition of its prize. Since the start of the year, fashion competitions have highlighted a large number of (new) creative talents. FashionUnited gives you the full round-up.

International fashion competitions

Andam Prize

Louis Gabriel Nouchi, founder of the men's ready-to-wear brand of the same name, is the lucky winner of the Andam 2023 prize. The winner took home 300,000 euros in prize money. The jury's special prize went to Amsterdam-based designer Duran Lantink and the French duo Ester Manas and Balthazar Delepierre, behind the Ester Manas brand. Ruslan Baginskily was awarded the Fashion Accessories prize, while the Andam Pierre Bergé prize went to French designer Arthur Avellano, each of whom received the sum of 100,000 euros, for a total financial support of 700,000 euros, a first in the competition's history.

The winners also have the opportunity to receive "a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary support programme that now covers all the strategic areas needed to structure and develop their company".

Founded in 1989 by Nathalie Dufour, the Andam competition supports the next generation of creative talent. It has revealed a number of them, including Marine Serre (2020), Y/project (2017) and Botter (2022)

British Fashion Council/ GQ Designer Fashion Fund (BFC/GQ)

The BFC/GQ prize 2023 was awarded to British-Jamaican designer Grace Wales Bonner, who is behind the label of the same name. In addition to the 100,000 pounds (approximately 116,160 euros) in prize money, she was awarded a year's worth of bespoke mentoring and pro-bono legal services courtesy of the Sheridans law firm.

The British Fashion Council/GQ Designer Fashion Fund, which is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year, supports British designers in the development of their brands through "high-level mentoring and bespoke professional services."

BFC NewGen

Since its creation in 1993, the BFC NewGen competition has supported emerging international designers by offering them personalised services, financial grants and a mentoring programme. Past winners have included leading figures in contemporary fashion such as Jonathan Anderson, Kim Jones, Richard Quinn and Alexander McQueen.

This year, the famous prize was awarded to Aaron ESh, Ancuța Sarca, Chet Lo, Conner Ives, Derrick, Di Petsa, Eftychia, Feben, Harri, Helen Kirkum, Kazna Asker, Labrum London, Leo Carlton, Masha Popova, Paolo Carzana, Robyn Lynch, S. S. Daley, Saul Nash, Sinéad O'Dwyer, The Winter House, Tolu Coker and Yuhan Wang.

LVMH Prize

Founder of the Setchu label, Japanese designer Satoshi Kuwata won the LVMH Prize 2023. He received an endowment of 300,000 euros and a one-year mentoring programme from the teams at LVMH. Ukrainian designer Julie Pelipas and her brand Better, and designer Luca Magliano are the winners of the Karl Lagerfeld Prize 2023. Both have been awarded 150,000 euros and a year of mentoring.

On its website, LVMH states that the competition, launched in 2013, helps "the emergence of new talent essential to the vitality and diversity of the fashion ecosystem."

International Woolmark Prize 2023

The International Woolmark 2023 prize went to Lagos Space Programme, a project led by Nigerian designer Adeju Thompson. It received an endowment worth 200,000 US dollars (around 182,000 euros). The Karl Lagerfeld prize was awarded to the Danish brand A. Roege Hove, which won 100,000 US dollars (around 91,000 euros). The Dutch company Byborre won the supply chain prize.

Winners of the award have the opportunity to expand their international presence through the Woolmark Prize retailer network. They can also receive mentoring on concept development and marketing.

Student competitions

AMI x IFM Entrepreneurship Award

The AMI x IFM Entrepreneurship Award, inaugurated for the first time in June 2022, supports student or 100 percent student entrepreneurial projects. In its second year, the award went to the Franco-Argentine ready-to-wear brand Cachí. Its founders Elise Girault and Belén Frias (an entrepreneur from the IFM incubator) worked closely with Emmanuelle Segalowitch, an Executive MBA student at the IFM. They will be mentored for a year by successive members of the jury, including Mademoiselle Agnès and Alexandre Mattiussi, head of the Ami label.

"Ami is working for the future generations of fashion designers with an educational initiative designed to encourage and develop entrepreneurship within the sector. The aim of the prize is to create a space where students' talent and skills can come into contact with the expertise of professionals, encouraging them to propose and develop their own professional project," reads the IFM's website.

Vanguard Education Fund

Net-a-Porter's Vanguard Education Fund mentoring programme, in partnership with the British Fashion Council, has been awarded to Christopher Edward De La Cruz, Izzy McKinlay, Tj Finley and Tahar Al-Shekhly, students at Central Saint Martins.

In addition to a bursary of 12,500 pounds (nearly 14,600 euros) and dedicated mentoring, the final year students are being trained in garment design using 3D technology.

E-fashion awards

Organised by the network of leading fashion schools, and Mod'Art in particular, the E-Fashion Awards competition has been showcasing the innovative projects of young fashion designers and students for over a decade.

"While the E used to express the place of digital technology in fashion, today it also reflects [...] ethical concerns and a commitment to eco-responsibility", says the competition's dedicated website.

This year, Sixtine Martinez, a student at Mod'Art, was the lucky winner in the "Hope for responsible fashion" category, while Solange Hebert Mekontchou took the "Revelation for responsible fashion" prize with her brand Collection Versatile.

Brand competitions

Loro Piana Knit Design Award

Sumin An and Blake Dewitt, from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, won the 2023 edition of the Loro Piana Knit Design Award, launched in 2016 by the luxury house Loro Piana. The winners were offered a scholarship and a work contract within the luxury house.

"Loro Piana is proud of this initiative, which aims to preserve and enhance its know-how, while passing on to younger generations a passion for excellence and facilitating their entry into the job market," said the LVMH Group brand in a statement.

Shein x Challenge

The first place in the Shein x Challenge competition, organised by the brand's incubation programme, went to designer Amy Sala, who took home 10,000 euros.

The winner was able to present her pieces at the Shein fashion show in Paris on June 8. Her collection is sold at knock-down prices on the company's e-shop. She also benefits from mentoring sessions with experts to help her develop her professional career.

Competitions for innovation

LVMH Innovation Award

The LVMH Innovation Award 2023 grand prize was awarded to Save Your Wardrobe, also a winner in the Omnichannel & Retail category, a London-based start-up that connects shop representatives with tailors, shoemakers and restaurateurs to repair clothes, shoes, jewellery or bags.

Save Your Wardrobe is a perfect illustration of our ambition for creative circularity, a pillar of our environmental roadmap, Life 360," said Bernard Arnault, Chairman and CEO of LVMH, in a press release. “I am convinced that their solution will very quickly resonate with the aspirations of our houses and the expectations of our customers."

Founded in 2017 by LVMH, in collaboration with the Publicis group and the media outlet Les Echos, the LVMH Innovation Award aims to reward French and international start-ups who create innovative offers and services.

Andam Innovation Prize

The Andam Innovation Prize 2023 went to Squim, an Italian company specialising in bio-manufactured materials. It pocketed an endowment worth 100,000 euros, the first time this prize has been awarded.

Launched in 2017 by Andam, the initiative encourages technological innovations in favour of the environment, aimed at French and international start-ups wishing to develop their project in France.

This article was originally published on FashionUnited.FR. Translation and editing by Veerle Versteeg.>