NEWS: The newly developed Munich Fashion Award recognizes European fashion and accessory designers with a focus on sustainable innovations
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Fashion Council Germany
Berlin, January 10, 2024: The state capital Munich In May 2025, the Munich Fashion Award will be held for the first time under the motto "The European Sustainable Fashion Award With A Tech Twist." The competition is aimed at emerging fashion and accessory designers from across Europe who combine aesthetics and sustainability in a market-oriented way in their collections and products. The goal is to increase the visibility of these designers and to provide the award winners with access to innovative technological solutions that contribute to creating a more sustainable and equitable fashion system. The Fashion Council Germany is supporting the Munich cultural and creative industries' team of experts in organizing the competition and its communication efforts.
The inaugural Munich Fashion Award in May 2025 will recognize designers with sustainable concepts in the two categories of Contemporary Sustainable Fashion and Accessories. The award includes not only prize money – €25,000, €10,000, and €5,000 for Contemporary Sustainable Fashion and €10,000, €5,000, and €3,000 for Accessories – but also comprehensive communication services, access to licenses, and a mentoring program.
Emerging fashion and accessory designers with a company headquarters in the EU, the UK, Scandinavia, and other countries (see the terms and conditions for a complete list) are eligible to apply. Companies with at least two and no more than ten years of experience in the market and a maximum of 30 employees are encouraged to apply. A jury of experts will select the five most compelling applications in each category, giving them the opportunity to present their innovative ideas during the two-day event on May 15th and 16th, 2025 , in Munich. The jury will then choose the three winners in each category, who will be announced during the award show at a red carpet event. The two-day event will also include a conference with renowned industry experts and an exhibition showcasing the finalists' designs. The exhibition will be open to the public on the second day. Applications for the Munich Fashion Award are now being accepted until February 23rd, 2025, HERE .
“I would like to thank the Munich City Council, which commissioned the Department of Labor and Economic Development to create a sustainable fashion award with international appeal. I am delighted that, with the support of many local, national, and international partners, we will now be fulfilling this mandate with the first edition of the Munich Fashion Award in May 2025, following two years of intensive preparation. We have given the MFA a European focus in order to make an effective contribution to the transformation of the textile value chain and to promote Munich as a key fashion location,” explains Dr. Olaf Kranz, Head of the Cultural and Creative Industries Competence Team of the City of Munich.
Scott Lipinski, CEO of the Fashion Council Germany, adds : “The collaboration with the Munich Fashion Award is an important step for us in promoting sustainable and innovative fashion talent across Europe. Together we are creating a platform that not only puts the creativity but also the future-oriented approach of the designers in the spotlight and gives them the visibility they deserve.”
To ensure the professional quality and independence of the prize, the City of Munich has established two advisory bodies that operate independently of each other: the Advisory Board and an expert jury. Members of the twelve-person international Advisory Board include Christiane Arp (Chairwoman, Fashion Council Germany), Lisa Lang (Director of Policy & EU Affairs, Orchestrator EIT Climate KIC), Tobias Gröber (Executive Director of Consumer Goods, ISPO Group, IAA Mobility & INHORGENTA), and Muchaneta Ten Napel (CEO & Founder, Shape Innovate). The jury appointed by the Advisory Board, comprised of renowned international experts in fashion and sustainability, includes Louise Xin (Fashion Designer & Human Rights Activist), Maria Intscher-Owrang (CEO, Simplifyber), Veronica Bates-Kassatly (Analyst & Consultant for Sustainability), and Troy Nachtigal (Chaired Professor of Fashion Research and Technology, HVA).
Further information about the Munich Fashion Award can be found at: www.munichfashionaward.com/