Incubators Are Back — and Good Thing, Because Fashion Really Needs Them
A new wave of accelerator programs is stepping up to solve some of the industry's biggest, most destructive pain points.
CFDA Fashion Incubator
American Designer Thaddeus O'Neil Is Locked in a Nasty Legal Battle With a Surf Brand Over His Name
The five-year-old luxury label of unisex "playwear," which is currently a part of the CDFA Fashion Incubator, is at risk of losing its name — as well as its logo and a season of already produced stock.
Brothers Tim and Dan Joo Unite Form and Function In Their Label to Watch, Haerfest
The CFDA Incubator brand just launched its first women's collection this fall.
Meet the 10 Designers of the New CFDA Fashion Incubator Class
If you don't know their names now, you will soon.
How Quitting Fashion Week Helped Nomia's Yara Flinn Grow Her Business
Five years in, Flinn decided to hit reset on her brand and do things on her own terms — and it was the best decision she could have made.
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For a Young Designer, It Pays to Work for Other People Before (and After) Launching a Brand
The 2016 CFDA Swarovski nominees spoke to Parsons students about how they're scaling their businesses.
How Isa Tapia Launched Her Own Footwear Brand After a Decade in Fashion
The New York-based designer and CFDA Incubator graduate pursued her dreams while juggling other brands and consultant work until just last year.
The CFDA Doesn't Want Young Designers to Feel Pressure to Stage Runway Shows
It's a point that has always been key to the Fashion Incubator program, even before the conversation overtook the industry.
Diane von Furstenberg Says Fashion Is About to 'Change the Most Right Now'
The designer and CFDA chairman was in London last week where she and Mary Katrantzou spoke about growing their eponymous brands.
The Best Advice Graduating CFDA Incubator Designers Received In the Program
Including: "Don't take anybody else's advice."
How Designer Lucio Castro Got Into Saks and the CFDA Incubator Program in Just 3 Years
The menswear designer tells us about how he got into stores like Opening Ceremony and Saks and his plans for a womenswear line.
See Our Favorite Looks from the CFDA Incubator's Graduating Class
These outgoing designers are about to embark upon a pretty major time in their careers -- but not before showing their fall collections.
How Will the New York City Mayoral Election Affect the Fashion Industry?
The mayoral election is less than a week away, and it'll be a big one for New York City residents. After three terms under Michael Bloomberg, a new administration will be an adjustment, if not a major change. And while crime, stop-and-frisk, education, and the current administration's nemeses—sugary beverages—are issues of frequent discussion (and contentious, snark-filled mayoral debates), there's another topic affecting the local economy and industry that's worth discussing, especially now: the future of New York City's fashion industry under new leadership.
CFDA Announces Second Group of Fashion Incubator Designers--See Who Made the List
The CFDA has just announced those 10 promising young designers who will be moving into the CFDA's garment district Fashion Incubator studios next May, WWD is reporting. The program launched in 2010 with a $200,000 grant from the city and is now underwritten by Target. Chosen designers are provided with several hundred square foot studios priced well below market value ($1,500-$2,000). It's a major help for a designer just starting out, allowing them to take the exorbitant amount of money they may have been spending on rent and put it into their business. It's also just a great way for a young designer to get on the CFDA's radar. This year, however, the program will do more than just give designers a place to work, starting with the program's first members, which include Prabal Gurung, Sophie Theallet, Waris Ahluwalia and others. They are the first beneficiaries of a new partnership with NYU's Stern Consulting Corps., a selected group of NYU Stern M.B.A. students who will provide full business mentoring to the incubatees. They'll help the designers develop "full financial statements, cash flow projections and investor-ready business plans." This added business incubation component may prove even more beneficial to the designers in the long term--especially in a time when even the most talented designers can fail as the result of poor business practices. So, who are the lucky 10?
CFDA Fashion Incubator Designers Announced
This morning, WWD announced the 12 designer tenants occupying CFDA's Fashion Incubator, a group of studios at 209 West 38th Street in New York's Garme