Rihanna Will Help Judge Who The Best Young Fashion Designer Is

This morning, LVMH announced the eight finalists in the running for the organisation’s seventh Prize for Young Fashion Designers. Originally a group of 20, all eight designers were hand-chosen based on their collections by a committee made up of fashion’s most elite, including  British Vogue’s Editor-In-Chief Edward Enninful, Gigi Hadid, and Bergdorf Goodman’s Linda Fargo. On June 5th, the jury of judges will choose one 2020 Prize winner. 

Making the cut are London-based menswear label Ahluwalia by Priya Ahluwalia, menswear brand Casablanca by Charaf Tajer, Chopova Lowena by Emma Chopova and Laura Lowena, Nicholas Daley of London, New York’s Peter Do, South African label Sindiso Khumalo, Supriya Lele of London, and Tokyo’s Tomo Koizumi. 

The inclusion of Sindiso Khumalo, known for her prairie-style dresses and use of bold patterns, marks only the second time that a designer from South Africa has made it this far. Last year, South Africa’s Thebe Magugu and Nigeria’s Kenneth Ize were the first from their respective countries to be named as semi-finalists, ever. In fact, it was Thebe Magugu who took home the final Prize, paving the way for South African designers like Khumalo to follow in his footsteps. 2020 also marks the first time that a Bulgarian designer, Emma Chopova, is being considered for the award.

Today’s announcement also included the news that three new judges will be added to the already prestigious jury in charge of deciding this year’s Prize winner: Robyn “Rihanna” Fenty, Virgil Abloh, and Stella McCartney. “The Prize is an incredible opportunity for these young designers to be appraised by [the jury] and to enjoy their advice,” Delphine Arnault says in a press release. 

The twelve judges will together crown the winner of the 2020 LVMH Prize for Young Designers, and with it, €300,000 (approximately £262,813) the opportunity to stock his or her collection at 24S and MatchesFashion, and a yearlong bespoke mentorship program from LVMH. Past winners of the award include Marine Serre, Marques'Almeida, Jacquemus, Rokh, and Grace Wales Bonner.