International Model of the Year
“The face who mirrors a moment, the inspiration for designers, photographers and stylists, worshipped on social media, fodder for a billion dreams. They are for their moment in the spotlight, the face of fashion. But posterity has proved that they have also acquired the power to be so much more than the mirror of a mere moment.”
Criteria:
- Male or female
- Inclusion in a global brand campaign
- Influence beyond the catwalk
2015 Winner: Jourdan Dunn (British Model of the Year)
2014 Winner: Cara Delevingne (British Model of the Year)
2013 Winner: Edie Campbell (British Model of the Year)
International Designer of the Year- Ready to wear
“A major development of the past few decades has been the way in which fashion has insinuated itself into other creative worlds – art, film, theatre and all the rest. Just as fashion’s profile has risen, so has that of its figureheads, which means the individual selected as international designer of the year has an impact beyond fashion, with the potential to change not just the way we look, but the way we think.”
Criteria:
- Menswear or womenswear ready-to-wear designer
- Creatively pushed boundaries
- Directed the shape of fashion both in the UK and internationally
2015 Winner: Alessandro Michele for Gucci
2014 Winner: Nicolas Ghesquière for Louis Vuitton
International Designer of the Year – Accessories
“God is in the details – it’s just about the most clichéd cliché of our time. But a cliché is formed in the petri dish of truth. How many times in fashion have we had reason to thank God for the details: the hats, the jewellery, the special footwear? As often as an accessories designer is called on to gild genius, it’s also occasionally their challenge to elevate the mundane with their artful weapons of mass distraction.”
Criteria:
- Menswear or womenswear accessories designer
- Creatively pushed boundaries
- Directed the shape of fashion both in the UK and internationally
A new award for 2016
British Brand
“The birth of a brand is a truly collaborative activity. Creativity provides the vital raw material, but it needs a firm business foundation if it is going to flourish and mature. And then the brand's personality needs refining for popular consumption. Each of these levels demands its own kind of vision. When they work in finely tuned synchronicity, you've got yourself the Holy Grail: a clear, convincing brand identity, something that is more important than ever in a noisy, crowded marketplace. Every year, there's one brand that offers us an object lesson in synchronicity. Who will it be for 2016?”
Criteria:
- British based accessories, menswear or womenswear brand that has had global impact this year
- A team effort that has seen product through to campaign execution and store experience deliver beyond all others this year
- Should have multiple stores in international markets and e-commerce
2015 Winner: Stella McCartney
2014 Winner: Victoria Beckham
2013 Winner: Burberry
ACCESSORIES WINNERS:
2015 Winner: Charlotte Olympia
2014 Winner: Anya Hindmarch
2013 Winner: Nicholas Kirkwood
British Designer of the Year – Womenswear
“You only have to look at past winners to see how this particular category writes the recent history of British fashion. Individual accomplishment, sure, but it’s the idiosyncrasy that stands out. You just don’t find it anywhere else. The peculiarly personal nature of Britain’s fashion voices will always cause a unique frisson on the international stage. So the champion in this category joins a very special list.”
Criteria:
- British based womenswear ready-to-wear designer with a global impact
- Minimum of seven years in business or have previously won the emerging talent award
2015 Winner: J.W.Anderson
2014 Winner: Erdem
2013 Winner: Christopher Kane
British Designer of the Year – Menswear
“Of all the subsidiaries of British fashion, its menswear might come closest to the real nature of the British beast, because it is a statement of extremes. Over here are the traditions of Savile Row and eccentric but gentlemanly clothing, over there is high performance sportswear or gleefully extravagant transgression. Fashion cults in the making, each and every one. And, different as they are, they all share a commitment to the heightened individual. The opportunity to be yourself might sound trite, but who could resist that opportunity when presented with it by Britain’s Menswear Designer of the Year?”
Criteria:
- British based menswear ready-to-wear designer with a global impact
- Minimum of seven years in business or have previously won the emerging talent award
2015 Winner: J.W.Anderson
2014 Winner: J.W.Anderson
2013 Winner: Burberry
Emerging Talent Award (UK)
“The heart of the British fashion industry has always been its support for the new, the wayward, the protean. This category is a porthole to the future. From small acorns are growing mighty oaks. We hardly need to list them here. This particular award is about hope, and optimism, and the enthusiasm and energy of the start-up. They combine to create the kind of momentum that will carry a fledgling business through thick and thin. Remember these names. You’ll be hearing them again very soon.”
Criteria:
- A British innovative and directional womenswear, menswear or accessories designer based in the UK
- Emerging as a growing force in the British fashion industry
- 1-6 years in business
2015 Winners:
Thomas Tait
Wales Bonner
Jordan Askill
Business Leader
“Fashion’s history has been shaped more often than not by the relationship between a creative sensibility and a business head. Sensitive business leadership is critical to the fashion industry. The industry has always been awash with creativity. What it needs is the people to pilot it through the storms, and around the rocks, respecting creativity and embedding it within the business strategy.”
Criteria:
- CEO or President of a fashion business that has seen both creative and commercial success
- A leader that nurtures and celebrates the creative talent within the business
- An individual that enables creative freedom that creates excitement and innovation within the industry
A new award for 2016
Creative Influencer
“These are the individuals behind the images, the shows and the campaigns. Tribalism of fashion is one of its most fascinating subcurrents, in the way clothes are used as signifiers, in the way natural cults form around particular designers, but also in the way creative visions are team efforts with the creative talent agent being as integral to the process and finding the talent as the quiet artist delivering excellence behind the scenes or behind the camera. We recognise the name on the label, but attention must be paid to the individuals who burnish that name: stylists, hair and makeup, soundtrackists, casting agents, photographers, set designers and so on. Every court has its king and queen, but it's the courtiers who make the history happen.”
Criteria:
The kingmakers usually behind-the-scenes. Think stylists, hair and make-up artists, set designers, agents, creative directors, casting directors, photographers whose influence has shone this year. Please list your top three.
A new award for 2016
Urban Luxury
“The 21st century has seen fashion evolve to create new life forms, shaped by the dialogue between high and low. Tuxedo, meet tracksuit. The foundation may be sportswear, but the basics are elevated by an appetite for extravagance. Think of it as a 21st century reconceptualisation of luxury, driven by a collaborative mentality that fuses street style and the designer salon.”
Criteria:
- Brand wholly operating in this area or elevating itself through collaborations
- Must have a sportswear base
A new award for 2016