Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana celebrates innovation with hub and talent grant at Milan Fashion Week

‘A meeting place and cradle of innovative projects,‘ described Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (CNMI) – a non-profit body which supports the Italian fashion industry and organises Milan Fashion Week – of its latest initiative, ’Fashion Hub’.

Coinciding with Milan Fashion Week A/W 2023, which took place in the city last week (21 – 27 February 2023), the hub hosted a packed schedule of talks, projects and events, with a focus on ‘research, experimentation, innovation, sustainability, inclusion and education’. 

‘Our Fashion Hub presents a new format and new concept,’ says Carlo Capasa, president of CNMI. ‘Promoting and supporting emerging talents has always been a fundamental pillar of our association, which in recent years has created and implemented specific projects with a view to enhancing the creativity and visions that new designers bring to the fashion system.’

Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana supports emerging talent at Milan Fashion Week

Taking place at the historic Palazzo Giureconsulti in the heart of Milan – and supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and ITA-Italian Trade Agency – some of the many initiatives comprised ‘The Best Shops Award’ (winners were Cavia and Ascend Beyond), Designers for the Planet (a selection of nine brands based on their attention to sustainability) and MFW Forward (a celebration of brands focused on ‘research, innovation and experimentation’), as well as educational talks, styling suites and VIP Lounge by Kartell.

Another project was helmed by Teneshia Carr – editor-in-chief of Blanc, a Black- and female-owned independent magazine that highlights music, fashion and art from diverse perspectives – who alongside CNMI selected three notable emerging international designers to have their work shown at the hub.

Comprising A.Potts (helmed by Aaron Potts, who was born in Detroit, USA), Diotima (the label of Jamaica-born Rachel Scott) and Torlowei (a label founded in Lagos, Nigeria by Patience Torlowei), the various fledgling brands were chosen to ‘celebrate the work of incredible underrepresented designers on a global stage’ while allowing them to opportunity to cultivate relationships with industry names.

Elsewhere at Milan Fashion Week, CNMI also announced the winners of the second edition of the CNMI Fashion Trust Grant – a platform celebrating made-in-Italy fashion with monetary support, annual business mentoring and one-to-one tutoring with Camera Moda Fashion Trust’s network.

This year’s recipients were Act No. 1, Cormio and Vitelli, chosen by a panel of judges chaired by Remo Ruffini (chairman & CEO Moncler Spa) and including Capasa, Luca Guarini (editor-in-chief Dust magazine), Stavros Karelis (founder and buying director Machine-A), Francesca Ragazzi (head of editorial content Vogue Italia), and more. The winners were chosen for ‘creative merit, strategic vision and attention to sustainability’.

Act No. 1 and Vitelli both received a grant of €40,000, while Cormio received a grant of €15,000 and the opportunity to create a capsule collection with Max&Co, the contemporary brand of the Max Mara Fashion Group.

‘This season, once again, we offer a rich programme of activities that confirm Milan’s leading role in the global fashion scene,’ said Capasa of the wider Milan Fashion Week. ‘Attention to young people, sustainability and issues of diversity, equity, [and] inclusion remain essential foundations that allow us to build a schedule of activities of great cultural value.‘

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