Woolmark Prize partners with Fashion Tech Lab

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Oct 26, 2017

The International Woolmark Prize and Fashion Tech Lab have joined forces to create a new prize for designers who embrace future technologies that provide sustainable solutions.

12 finalists will be selected for the Innovation Award, conceived as a mentorship programme that will educate and empower finalists in topics such as sourcing, supply chain and sustainability.

Miroslava Duma, the founder and CEO of Fashion Tech Lab, will be part of the final judging panel and will select the inaugural winner of the prize in January.

The award will celebrate the collection with the most innovative and creative wool fabrication, process or development. The designer with the most exciting approach to help reduce its social and environmental footprint will be crowned winner.

“The ultimate aim of this exciting partnership is to give these 12 finalists - our future ambassadors -the best opportunity to enhance their business through innovation and sustainable processes, so they can meet the discerning needs to tomorrow's customer,” said The Woolmark Company’s Managing Director Stuart McCullough.

“As the award continues to evolve, our aim is to encourage designers to think beyond today and embrace future technologies, which will ultimately provide a positive impact for tomorrow.”

With a mission of “accelerating the fashion industry’s transition to an innovative and sustainable future”, Fashion Tech Lab is a platform that combines an investment company, a multinational incubator, a consulting agency and an experimental laboratory.

It was founded by Russian entrepreneur and style insider Miroslava Duma earlier this year.