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This article first appeared on Vogue.
Fresh off celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Fashion Fund, the Council of Fashion Designers of America and Vogue announced early this morning the group of finalists taking part in this year’s competition. They are: Ashlyn’s Ashlynn Park; Aubero’s Julian Louie; Bach Mai; Bernard James; Don’t Let Disco by Ashley Moubayed; Gabe Gordon and Timothy Gibbons from Gabe Gordon; Heirlome’s Stephanie Suberville; Jamie Okuma; Meruert Tolegen; and Peter Do. The new class features a diverse group of designers across markets — womenswear, menswear, jewellery and accessories — and also at different points in their careers, a reflection of the precarious state of independent labels in the industry.
“Now, entering its third decade, we see just how much the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund has transformed American fashion into a diverse and inclusive industry, and this year’s designers underscore the point,” says CFDA CEO Steven Kolb. “We look forward to seeing how the finalists will make their mark on American fashion.” Along with Kolb, this year’s selection committee included Vogue’s Anna Wintour, Mark Holgate and Nicole Phelps; Instagram’s head of fashion partnerships Eva Chen; founder of the Fifteen Percent Pledge and Brother Vellies Aurora James; model Paloma Elsesser; Nordstrom vice president and fashion director Rickie De Sole; Roopal Patel, SVP of fashion at Saks; CFDA chair Thom Browne; and Zac Posen, executive vice president and creative director of Gap Inc and chief creative officer of Old Navy.
This year’s winner will receive $300,000, and the two runners-up will each take home $100,000, along with business mentorships.
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