A legacy that dates back to 1989, it was Martin Margiela who won the first ANDAM prize winner – only one year after creating his design house. Proving that ANDAM is just as influential as it was 30 years ago, the Grand Prix has gone on to change the careers of every winner from Anthony Vaccarello (2011) – artistic director for Yves Saint Laurent - AMI (2013), Pigalle Paris (2015) and Wanda Nylon (2016), influencing and defining the contemporary fashion scene.
A prestigious award, the ANDAM jury represents the highest echelons of fashion expertise, with private partners and government bodies combining professional acumen with official decree. This year, the jury is comprised of Xavier Clergerie, founder of the trade show Premiere Classe, Caroline de Maigret, producer and model, Guillaume de Seynes, executive vice president of Hermès, Bruno Pablovsky, president of Chanel global fashion, François-Henri Pinault, chairman & CEO of Kering and Nadja Swarovski, member of the executive board for Swarovski.
This board of industry insiders will select and crown the next big name in French fashion. Are you an aspiring candidate? The next edition of the ANDAM awards is open to participants from January 2019! To be considered for the Grand Prix, simply submit your application form for the 2019 ANDAM Fashion Awards - including company information (structure, team, turnovers, points of sales, …) lookbooks of previous collections, as well as a dossier describing your business and creative strategies for the next two years.

If selected, the jury will study your final project and a range of prototypes – as well as a business plan – developed thanks to the ANDAM financial support and privileged mentoring scheme. In addition to gaining financial support and global brand awareness, winners also benefit (since 2015) from mentoring partnerships with industry leaders – guiding designers on the structure and development of their business model.“ The goal is to encourage designers to ask questions about brand strategy, offering guidance and help to ensure they’re going in the right direction. ” Said Nathalie Dufour to Figaro. Grand prize winner in 2017 and mentored by Francesca Bellettini (president & chief executive of Yves Saint Laurent), Glenn Martens from the brand Y/Project explains,“ It’s important to have a good mentor as you’re going to have loads of questions as you grow. Having the ability to talk about your projects and get feedback from a woman at the head of an important fashion house gives you enormous amounts of confidence. ”

For the 29th edition, 14 finalists presented their creative and business strategies to the 24 members of the jury. The Grand Prix, which is worth € 250 000, was presented to Antonin Tron – founder of Atlein. A graduate from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Antwerp), Antonin Tron cut his teeth at Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and Balenciaga before launching his own brand in 2016. In addition to the cash prize, he received mentoring from Pierre-Yves Roussel, executive committee member at LVMH for the next two years. Winner of the Creative Label, which comes with its own €100 000 investment was Ludovic de Saint Sernin, the progenitor of androgynous design at Balmain. The prize for fashion accessories and €50 000 went to Stéphanie D’Heygère. Learning her trade at Maison Margiela, Dior & Y/Project, she launched her solo career with a range of ‘accessorized accessories’.

Our favourite piece? A pair of customisable hoop earrings with interchangeable charms that range from flowers to fag butts! Finally, the prize for innovation and €30 000 was awarded to Colorifix, a specialist in environmentally friendly dyeing processes.

Founded 30 years ago with the ambition to turn Paris into a podium for international design, ANDAM has become a semaphore for success. Today, more and more young designers flock to France for its savoir-faire par excellence, helping to make the luxury Made in France industry even more dynamic – an evolution that L’Exception celebrates every season!