\n\tAmong those competing for the 400,000-euro grand prize are Belgian brand Julie Kegels, Sweden\u2019s Petra Fagerstr\u00f6m, French designer<\/a> Gabriel Figueiredo\u2019s brand De Pino, Ponte by British designer Harry Pontefract and Spanish designer Daniel del Valle\u2019s label The Vxlley.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tRounding out the group are Institution by Galib Gassanoff from Georgia, Chinese designer Zane Li\u2019s label Lii, U.S. designer Colleen Allen and Kenya-based Yoshita 1967 by Anil Padia.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe finalists demonstrated a singular creative vision while offering highly sophisticated interpretations of traditional craftsmanship,\u201d said Delphine Arnault<\/a>, the force behind the initiative and a key talent scout at family-controlled luxury conglomerate LVMH Mo\u00ebt Hennessy Louis Vuitton<\/a>.<\/p>\n At the LVMH Prize showroom<\/a> held during Paris Fashion Week in March, the executive \u2014 who is chairman and chief executive officer of Christian Dior<\/a> Couture \u2014 noted that many of the designers have experience working for major houses.<\/p>\n Figueiredo freelances for Dior<\/a>, while Pontefract is a member of Glenn Martens\u2019 team within Maison Margiela\u2019s Artisanal haute couture division.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tKegels has worked at Ala\u00efa, F\u00e4gerstrom at Balenciaga, while Allen cut her teeth at The Row and Calvin Klein before establishing her label. Meanwhile, Padia\u2019s online CV includes stints at Paco Rabanne, Y\/Project, Jacquemus and Ellery.<\/p>\n \n\tJoining the jury of this year\u2019s edition are Michael Rider, creative director of Celine, and Loewe designers Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, following their runway debuts last year, as well as Camille Miceli, artistic director of Pucci since 2021.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tThe finalists of the 2026 LVMH Prize for Young Designers. <\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourtesy of LVMH Prize<\/p>\n \n\tAlso new is Pietro Beccari, chairman and CEO of Louis Vuitton, who last December expanded his remit to become CEO of LVMH Fashion Group, the entity that includes Fendi, Celine, Loewe, Givenchy, Kenzo, Marc Jacobs, Pucci and Patou.<\/p>\n \n\tHaving sat out last year\u2019s edition following her departure from Dior, Maria Grazia Chiuri is back in her capacity as chief creative officer of Fendi. She succeeds Silvia Venturini Fendi in the seat.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThat brings the total number of jury members to 17, versus 12 last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThe annual design prize has helped propel the careers of such talents as Marine Serre, Thebe Magugu, Simon Porte Jacquemus and Grace Wales Bonner. Last year\u2019s winner was Soshiotsuki by Japanese designer Soshi Otsuki<\/a>, who has gained cult status for his oversize suits inspired by 1980s-era Giorgio Armani.<\/p>\n \n\tThe grand prize winner receives a 400,000-euro endowment and mentorship by LVMH teams in such areas as sustainability, communications, marketing, legal, production and finance. The winners of the Karl Lagerfeld Prize and the Savoir-Faire Prize each receive a 200,000-euro allocation plus one year of mentorship from LVMH experts.<\/p>\n \n\tTo qualify, designers must be between the ages of 18 and 40 and have at least two commercialized womenswear, menswear or genderless collections under their belt. In addition, three fashion school graduates are to be awarded 10,000 euros each and a one-year placement in the design studio of an LVMH brand.<\/p>\n \n\tThe finalists were selected by a committee of leading fashion industry figures including Fabien Baron, Carmen Busquets, Eva Chen, Edward Enninful, Adrian Joffe and Natalia Vodianova. \u00a0<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t![\"The](\"https:\/\/wwd.com\/wp-content\/themes\/vip\/pmc-wwd-2021\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\")
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