Founded in 2013, the LVMH Prize was created to honour and support young designers around the world. Following 4000 applications of 102 different nationalities, today’s finale – held at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris – announced Japanese brand Doublet as the grand prize winner and awarded South Korean born designer Rokh with its special prize.
Presented by Jaden Smith and Emma Stone, the fifth edition of the coveted prize was judged by the likes of JW Anderson, Maria Grazia Chiuri, Nicolas Ghesquière, Marc Jacobs, Karl Lagerfeld, Humberto Leon and Carol Lim. Each of the nine finalists, including A-COLD-WALL*’s Samuel Ross, Charles Jeffrey, Eckhaus Latta and Dazed 100-er, Ludovic De Saint Sernin, competed for one year’s worth of mentorship with LVMH experts.
Masayuki Ino, Doublet’s founder and creative director, took home the top prize of $300,000 as well as a year’s mentorship. Doublet follows in the footsteps of last year’s winner Marine Serre, who has quickly established herself as a force to be reckoned with on the Paris scene following her 2017 victory.
Additionally, Rok Hwang (of label Rokh) will receive $150,000 to build his London-based fashion brand. Soon after his nomination, the young designer told Dazed “I don’t think there will be any chance for me but I’m very happy I came this far and I’m grateful for everything, any exposure and attention.” Clearly, he's been proved wrong, and with the backing of LVMH, it's certain that this pair of young designers are about to make a big mark on the industry – a huge congratulations to them both.