After considering almost a thousand applications from all over the world, LVMH has unveiled its 26-strong shortlist for its second ever LVMH Prize, which awards a €300,000 annual grant and a year-long mentorship to emerging designers The rundown reads like a Who's Who of global talent, featuring menswear and womenswear designers from ten different countries, from Italy to Belgium and China to Ukraine. London-based designers proudly repping the UK in the competition include Craig Green, Marques'Almeida, Ryan Lo and Faustine Steinmetz.
Delphine Arnault, who heads up the selection committee, said in a statement: "The selection reflects the strong trends of today's fashion. Men's ready-to-wear confirms its creativity, the influence of streetwear is bigger than ever, and womenswear is strong. It is the responsibility of the LVMH Group, as the leader of its industry, to identify and support young designers and I am delighted that we can do so with so many talented candidates."
For some nominees, this year's LVMH Prize also promises a second go at the lucrative award. Craig Green, Marques'Almeida and Jacquemus were all nominated for last year's Prize, which was won by Thomas Tait.
The 26 designers are set to meet a panel of 45 industry experts and insiders on March 4 and 5 in Paris. The esteemed committee will then cut down the shortlist to eight finalists, who will meet an even more select jury drawn from LVMH designers – including Karl Lagerfeld, Raf Simons, Nicolas Ghesquière and Riccardo Tisci – at the end of May.
Applications for the LVMH Graduate Prize are still open: if you're a fashion student graduating in 2015, you can apply to win a €10,000 grant and a chance to work with the design team of an LVMH house for a year. Head here for all the details.
Check out the full shortlist below:
Devon Halfnight Leflufy (Antwerp)
Agi & Sam (London)
Andrea Jiapei Li (China)
Anton Belinskiy (Kiev)
Arthur Arbesser (Milan)
Astrid Andersen (Copenhagen)
Baja East (New York)
Coperni (Paris)
Craig Green (London)
Faustine Steinmentz (London)
Huishan Zhang (London)
Jaquemus (Paris)
Jourden (Hong Kong)
Koche (Paris)
Marques'Almeida (London)
Nabil Nayal (London)
Nasir Mazhar (London)
Off White (Chicago)
Orley (New York)
Ryan Lo (London)
Ryan Roche (Hurley, NY)
Sankuanz (China)
Vetements (Paris)
WrittenAfterwards (Japan)
Xiao Li (London)
XimonLee (New York)
