Anne Valerie Hash

Could the contemporary brand become even more cool and French?

All the glamour of the Paris shows. All the comfort of your sweat pants.

Thanks to a grand endorsement from Carine Roifeld, Hakaan Yildirim was already a name to know when he received France's prestigious ANDAM award in 2010. “We’re in Harvey Nichols, Colette, Opening Ceremony–it’s nearly 26 stockists internationally!” he told Fashionista at the awards ceremony in Paris last October. Now it's time for another up-and-comer to take advantage of the prize, i.e. €220,000, a mentorship with former Chloe chief exec Ralph Toledano, and the chance to show at Paris Fashion Week. This year's nominees include Jeremy Laing, Adam Kimmel, Anthony Vaccarello, Commuun, Matthew Harding, and Yiqing Yin. The judges? Pierre Berge, Hillary Alexander, Emmanuelle Alt, Nicole Phelps, Sarah Lerfel from Colette, and Humberto Leon from Opening Ceremony, to name a few.

Couture starts this Sunday, in Paris. A few lucky editors will transition through from men's fashion week, the rest are heading to Paris now. Aside fr

Thanks for the questions! I'm sure this isn't the last time we'll chat. What did you do before Fashionista? For the last couple of months I've been f