Undoubtedly, it’s been a good year for Givenchy’s designer Clare Waight Keller.
Firstly, she became the world's most famous wedding-dress designer, when she created the gown worn by Meghan Markle for her wedding to Prince Harry. Then, last night she was named British Designer of the Year – Womenswear at the Fashion Awards in London, and her prize was presented to her by a pregnant Duchess of Sussex, who made a surprise appearance. In addition to the award-giving, Meghan also caused a minor scandal when she broke Royal protocol and wore dark nail varnish.
Designer of the Year went to Valentino’s creative director, Pierpaolo Piccioli. Read our exclusive interview with him in this month’s Luxury magazine, out on December 13.
Other winners included Balenciaga’s Demna Gvasalia, who collected the award for Accessories Designer of the Year, beating Gucci, Prada, Loewe and Dior, while the title of British Designer of the Year – Menswear went to the relatively unknown Craig Green, who beat Jonathan Anderson (JW Anderson), Riccardo Tisci (Burberry) and even Kim Jones (Dior Men).
The prize for Best Emerging Talent – Menswear went to A-Cold-Wall’s Samuel Ross, who wowed at last season’s London Collections: Men during London men's fashion week, while the title of Best Emerging Talent – Womenswear went to Richard Quinn, who famously had none other than Queen Elizabeth sit front row at one of his shows.
Brand of the Year went to Gucci.
Meanwhile, Kaia Gerber picked up the gong for Model of the Year, while Off-White won the Urban Luxe award.
To mark her contributions towards sustainable fashion, Vivienne Westwood was awarded the Swarovski Award for Positive, while the founder of Parley for the Oceans, Cyrill Gutsch, collected the Special Recognition Award for Innovation for his pioneering work removing plastic from the sea. The award created in memory of Isabella Blow, the Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator, went to the fashion photography duo of Mert and Marcus.
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Read more:
Best dressed at the Fashion Awards - in pictures
WATCH: Imperfection is celebrated in Valentino’s first Tokyo show
Chanel bans pelts: are exotic skins the new fur?
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All the winners and nominations
Category: Accessories Designer of the Year
Winner: Demna Gvasalia for Balenciaga
Alessandro Michele for Gucci
Jonathan Anderson for Loewe
Maria Grazia Chiuri for Dior
Miuccia Prada for Prada
Brand of the Year
Winner: Gucci
Balenciaga
Burberry
Off-White
Prada
Trailblazer
Kim Jones
British Designer of the Year – Menswear
Winner: Craig Green for Craig Green
Jonathan Anderson for JW Anderson
Kim Jones for Dior Homme
Martine Rose for Martine Rose
Riccardo Tisci for Burberry
British Designer of the Year – Womenswear
Winner: Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy
Jonathan Anderson for JW Anderson
Roksanda Ilinčić for Roksanda
Simone Rocha for Simone Rocha
Victoria Beckham for Victoria Beckham
British Emerging Talent – Menswear
Winner: Samuel Ross for A-Cold-Wall
Ben Cottrell and Matthew Dainty for Cottweiler
Eden Loweth & Tom Barratt for Art School
Kiko Kostadinov for Kiko Kostadinov
Phoebe English for Phoebe English
British Emerging Talent – Womenswear
Winner: Richard Quinn for Richard Quinn
Matty Bovan for Matty Bovan
Natalia Alaverdian for A.W.A.K.E.
Rejina Pyo for Rejina Pyo
Sofia Prantera for Aries
Business Leader
Winner: Marco Bizzarri for Gucci
Jonathan Akeroyd for Versace
José Neves for Farfetch
Marco Gobbetti for Burberry
Michael Burke for Louis Vuitton
Designer of the Year
Winner: Pierpaolo Piccioli for Valentino
Alessandro Michele for Gucci
Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy
Kim Jones for Dior Homme
Virgil Abloh for Louis Vuitton
Model of the Year
Winner: Kaia Gerber
Adut Akech
Adwoa Aboah
Bella Hadid
Winnie Harlow
Urban Luxe
Winner: Off-White
Alyx
Marine Serre
Palace
Supreme
Outstanding Achievement Award
Miuccia Prada
Swarovski Award for Positive Change
Vivienne Westwood
Special Recognition Award for Innovation
Cyrill Gutsch for Parley for the Oceans
Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator
Mert & Marcus
