The three winners of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund had a feeling they could strike gold. Zane Li, founder of Lii, took home the top prize at Tuesday’s announcement dinner, while designers Aisling Camps and Emily Dawn Long were named runners-up after presenting their work and completing in a series of challenges over the last year.
“I’ve been doing this for seven years. I have such a great community. I felt good about [winning],” Emily told The Run-Through host Nicole Phelps the morning after the ceremony.
Each of the three designers has established a distinct brand identity. Lii blends sportswear, eveningwear, and bold color; Aisling Camps draws on her background in mechanical engineering and her Trinidadian roots to create singular knitwear; and Emily Dawn Long’s “Spoiled Boy” repurposed vintage T-shirts have been spotted on the likes of Pedro Pascal and Kaia Gerber. But even with their growing lists of accomplishments, all three designers acknowledge that running an independent label has its challenges. “I have a small and mighty team. There’s only one person full-time, and that’s me. So I want to hire someone in merchandising and development to help me know I’m building a good business,” Aisling said when asked how she plans to use her prize money. “Plus, I think I deserve a tiny raise.”
Earlier in the show, Chioma catches up with Chloe at Vogue’s podcast studio to discuss her low-key trip to New York, where she plans to visit the Taryn Simon exhibition at the Guggenheim. Chloe also talks about Vogue’s November cover featuring Jenna Ortega, photographed by Szilveszter Mako, who has attracted a major following for his painterly photography style.
