Tonight at Crane Club, Zane Li, of Lii, is the 2026 winner of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund.
The evening began with Vera Wang, Henry Zankov, Wes Gordon of Carolina Herrera, Christopher John Rogers, and Tory Burch gathering to toast to a new generation of talent. Settling into dinner, Thom Browne, Chairman of the CFDA, recounted the hard work and tenacity that it took to build his business in the 2000s. “I loved it more than anyone else,” he said in his speech. “I knew that someone would eventually understand what I was doing.” Vogue’s Head of Editorial Content Chloe Malle and model Mona Tougaard then took the stage to congratulate all 10 of this year’s CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalists before Tougaard announced the results.
The Chongqing-born, New York-based designer Li has had quite the year. In April, he took home the Fashion Trust US Ready-to-Wear Award, and in September, he was declared the winner of the Karl Lagerfeld Prize at the LVMH Prize ceremony in Paris.
Li rounds out 2026 with a third cash prize, $300,000 from the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund, and further mentorship from industry experts.
Aisling Camps
Photo: Michaella Jelin
Emily Dawn Long
Michaella Jelin
At the start of the CVFF finalist process, Li spoke of the financial challenges of running a young brand. “The business side [is the difficult part],” he said. “When you start to consider the income, the revenue, the loss, and the money you spend, suddenly you’re turning your interest into a job. The most rewarding part: You get to control everything. You get to pick your show music, which is my favorite part of doing a show. You get to pick what the color of the carpet is at your show space, and you get to decide what kind of styles you want to sell.”
Of his win, Li added: “It’s really surreal, but at the same time, because it’s been a crazy year for us, I think it’s a good ending spot. I came to the states when I was 18—I never thought about going to do fashion in Europe. New York is the starting point where I challenged myself, and it’s the first step to really know fashion.”
