Latest news with #StevenKolb
Vogue
3 days ago
- Business
- Vogue
Meet the 10 Finalists of the 2025 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund
The finalists for the 2025 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund 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, jewelry, 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,' said 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; the model Paloma Elsesser; Nordstrom vice president, fashion director Rickie De Sole; Roopal Patel, SVP of fashion at Saks; CFDA chairman Thom Browne; and Zac Posen, executive vice president and creative director at Gap Inc and chief creative officer at 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.
Fashion United
02-05-2025
- Business
- Fashion United
New York Fashion Week's new partner KFN outlines plan to uplift event
KFN, a strategic partnership created by KF Fashion and N4xT, has outlined phase one of an initiative intended to bolster the presence of New York Fashion Week. The plan was revealed during an industry event attended by designers associated with the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) and various media, which then reported on the news. According to WWD, which was one platform in attendance, the first phase is centred around The Venue Collective, a network of multiple venues built to cater to operational and financial needs in order to make NYFW more accessible. Designers will be invited to choose one of the venues to host their show with no costs for hiring the site, while support like technical floor plans, model dressing and backstage equipment rental will also be backed by KFN. Designers are thus asked to commit to three consecutive seasons of NYFW in order to help support the calendar, while further allowing them to deepen audience awareness. Applications for the initiative are to be submitted to KFN, which told WWD that both established and emerging names have already signed up. Phase one of the plan is expected to already launch in September, with the platform to be fully realised by the end of 2026. Future phases will expand on the idea of a fashion and entertainment platform, with features like cultural programming, public activations and nightlife events anticipated. In its final form, the centralised digital platform hopes to bring the NYFW community together. Speaking at the event, Steven Kolb, chief executive officer of the CFDA, said: 'We welcome what KFN is doing to support the industry at large, which is aligned with the mission of the CFDA. This model makes NYFW more accessible and efficient and helps designers overcome logistical hurdles while freeing them to focus fully on their creative potential.' KFN is made up of KF Fashion, an extension of media and entertainment firm Kilburn Media, and N4xt Experiences, the organisation dedicated to creative direction and event programming that acquired LA Fashion Week in 2022. KFN itself launched in February 2025 during the most recent NYFW, when it was revealed that the organisation's intention was to establish an event platform for the biannual runway shows. The launch rang in the start of a multi-year engagement between KFN and NYFW organiser, CFDA, which said it would 'support efforts to strengthen the fashion week's infrastructure and create new avenues for American designers to showcase their work'.
