Latest news with #FashionFund
Vogue
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Vogue
Louis Shengtao Chen Resort 2026 Collection
Louis Shengtao Chen was crowned the winner of the 2024 edition of the Vogue China Fashion Fund last October. Since, he's taken a step back to, as they say, get all his ducks in a row. He stepped away from the runway for spring 2025, and put together a lookbook (and a very good collection at that). He skipped the fall 2025 season altogether, and now he's back to launch his first-ever pre-collection, a two-punch effort to expand his commercial footprint and gear up for the spring 2026 season and his return to the runway. Chen said that this collection is a sort of 'part one' to the main event coming in the fall. If that's the case, he put together a rather appetizing amuse-bouche: semi-sheer tailored coats in powdery pastel colors, cutesy floral separates with funky but cool askew seams and cascading ruffles, and a couple of fabulous multi-layered pencil skirts and slips with full godets that make them as flattering as they are weird. Ditto a couple of balloon-hemmed skirts and trousers, its top layers sheer and the under ones cut in white for a vintage-y x-ray look. In some, he's even encapsulated strings of pearls within. Chen cuts a mean dress; the clear evidence seen in prim and proper embroidered tea-length ball gowns and skirts or sinuously cut sheaths. The novelty this season is tailoring, a category Chen has somewhat explored in the past but never wholly committed to. Here he's made elongated waistcoats, some proper office trousers, and a great single-button blazer. Chen has been a particularly interesting designer to follow since his debut. His exuberant style and often explosive, mind-boggling silhouettes have made him a darling of the Shanghai Fashion Week scene, but it often left his followers wondering which parts of his world they'd actually be able to buy into. This past year has clearly afforded him a newfound maturity—he's kept his delightfully bizarro signature style but found ways of making it commercially viable. These are cool, fun clothes. Should he make the jump to Paris during the upcoming ready-to-wear season, as he's previously hinted, he should make sure to continue down this path.
Trade Arabia
15-04-2025
- Business
- Trade Arabia
Arab Fashion Council launches $500,000 fund to support emerging designers
The Arab Fashion Council (AFC) has unveiled a new initiative set to reshape the future of fashion in the region and beyond: the AFC Fashion Fund, a $500,000 biennial commitment to support emerging designers. Unlike traditional awards or cash prizes, the AFC Fashion Fund is a four-season brand-building accelerator designed to scale a visionary ready-to-wear (RTW) designer into a globally recognised force. A future-first model With only one designer selected every two years, the fund ensures unparalleled depth of support and personal investment. The chosen talent embarks on a two-year transformative journey, guided by global mentors, empowered by strategic market access, and supported by world-class production, retail, and media platforms, said the council. What sets this fund apart While most fashion funds offer a moment, the AFC Fashion Fund builds a movement — transforming designers into enduring global brands through a 360° framework that includes: * Four seasons of global runway and market access: The fund provides designers with three fully produced runway seasons by AFC, encompassing every aspect—from casting and styling to content creation, public relations, and social media amplification. It also ensures showroom representation in Paris during pre-season markets, aligning seamlessly with the Resort and Pre-Fall calendars. Additionally, designers benefit from exclusive introductions to key buyers in strategic markets. *Strategic e-commerce and regional expansion: To strengthen market reach, the fund supports tailored capsule collections, especially for key cultural moments like Ramadan and Eid in the Middle East. It also facilitates integration into prominent retail networks and platforms across the GCC, while developing bespoke e-commerce and digital marketing strategies to grow direct-to-consumer sales. * Global collaboration challenge: One season is dedicated entirely to an exclusive collaboration with a globally recognised brand. This initiative, co-strategised by the AFC, is designed to enhance the designer's credibility and open up significant commercial opportunities, positioning them for long-term success. * Continuous mentorship and brand strategy: Participants gain access to an elite advisory board made up of industry-leading editors, investors, buyers, and creative visionaries. The fund offers ongoing business coaching, guidance on pricing and collection planning, and support on intellectual property—ensuring designers grow not just creatively, but strategically. Biennial format Opening only once every two years, the AFC Fashion Fund is deeply selective and intentionally structured to create a high-impact journey for one designer at a time. This approach allows for meaningful investment, personalisation, and the cultivation of a prestigious alumni network that continues to shape the future of fashion. Applications for the first cycle of the fund will open in June 2025, with the winner announced in October 2025. The selected designer will then begin their two-year journey, culminating in four runway seasons and global visibility by 2027. 'This is not a prize. It's an evolution. The AFC Fashion Fund is about turning a promising designer into a sustainable, export-ready brand that carries the spirit of our region onto the global stage,' said Mohammed Aqra, Chief Strategy Officer, Arab Fashion Council.
