Avery Dennison Retail Branding and Information Solutions (AD/RBIS) will sponsor the WGSN Global Fashion Awards, including offering a new award in support of emerging apparel designers and the successful development of their independent fashion brand. The Avery Dennison Emerging Fashion Brand Award will not only give these rising talents the opportunity to showcase their work in front of an international jury of 50 prominent fashion designers, opinion leaders and journalists, but will also fund €12,000 to help the winners further develop their brand.
A global leader in apparel branding solutions, Avery Dennison empowers designers with the latest innovative product branding solutions which enable design creativity, brand integrity, and ultimately the ability to tell a compelling brand story. With these solutions, Avery Dennison works with leading global apparel brands to enable designers to create high-impact brand graphics and distinctive finishing touches as part of a garment’s design.
Branding is essential to the appeal of a garment to the consumer and the success of any apparel company, and the more integral branding becomes to the apparel design process, the more effectively a company can communicate its brand values. This is why Avery Dennison has challenged the WGSN finalists to unleash their creativity and create an inspiring brand story for their collection by considering the conceptual application of the company’s full complement of branding solutions and tools – from woven and printed labels, to standout heat transfer embellishments, and sustainable hangtags and packaging solutions.
To qualify for the awards, brands or designers must have their own independent label, which should be no more than two years old as of 30 June 2013. Entries are welcome from around the world; however, the award is not open to currently enrolled students. The best submissions will also benefit from being posted on Arts Thread, the only creative graduate website which aims to promote new talent on a global scale. Through their partnership with Arts Thread, Avery Dennison and WGSN will increase visibility of the award among the emerging designer community.
Judges will consider not only the independent designer’s collection branding but also his or her collective brand vision, from the website through to their marketing. The brand with the most coherent and creative vision will win the award.
“Converting hard-earned recognition on the catwalk into building a successful brand is the biggest challenge facing every designer,” says Tim Voegele-Downing, global creative director, Avery Dennison RBIS. “We are looking for a designer who is not only capable of creating an inspired fashion collection, but who also truly understands the importance of product branding and is capable of telling a compelling brand story.”
Lauretta Roberts, WGSN Global Fashion Awards director, says: “Avery Dennison is a leading expert in apparel branding, something that is key to success in modern retail. Together we’re looking for someone we believe has a long future in fashion demonstrated by the vision they have for their brand.”
“We work on a regular basis with design teams from some of the world’s largest apparel brands, and we are excited to partner with WGSN and Arts Thread to bring our insights to emerging designers and help them understand the importance of product branding in realizing their vision,” said Tracy Van Hoven, vice president, global marketing communications, Avery Dennison RBIS. “Branding is such a vital part of the fashion industry, and we are excited to see how these talented designers integrate our unique branding solutions into their collection and their marketing vision to effectively compete.”
The Awards take place on October 30, 2013 in London. Entries for the award are now open at www.globalfashionawards.com/categories with a closing of Wednesday, June 12th.
Judges for this year’s WGSN Global Fashion Awards include designers Giles Deacon, Bora Aksu, Stephen Jones and Rebecca Minkoff, model and writer Laura Bailey, Eco-Age founder Livia Firth, blogger Bip Ling, singers VV Brown and Kate Nash, Tim Voegele-Downing, and Mr Porter editor-in-chief Jeremy Langmead.
For more information, visit www.averydennison.com.
