Yesterday evening (April 2), guests gathered inside Milan’s Palazzo del Ghiaccio to celebrate the International Woolmark Prize 2025. The competition’s artistic director and Dazed’s editor-in-chief IB Kamara was joined on stage by industry legend Donatella Versace, who together, presented this year’s award to Dutch designer Duran Lantink.
“Thank you to all the people who have supported me from the beginning. It’s been a really, really tough ride, so it means a lot to me and to the community that I’ve been collaborating with. I’m very happy and very honoured,” said Lantink in his acceptance speech.
Alongside Versace and Kamara, other judges included DJ Honey Dijon, journalists Tim Blanks, Sinéad Burke and Simone Marchetti, Saks’ Roopal Patel and stylist Danielle Goldberg. Collectively, they had the difficult task of selecting this year’s winner from the eight finalists. For 2025’s edition, this was no easy decision, with an incredibly strong lineup of fashion talent which included: Standing Ground, Luar, Ester Manas, Act No.1, Meryll Rogge, Diotima, LGN Louis Gabriel Nouchi, and winner Duran Lantink.
Ahead of the winner’s announcement, Donatella spoke to Dazed exclusively on what she looks for in emerging designers. She broke it down into three main points: “Confidence in your own ideas – I want to feel you have courage, conviction and belief in yourself. Innovation in your approach – I would love to see something that makes me think, shows that you are a leader and if I see something I haven’t seen before that would be great. Excitement and passion in what you are doing – I want to feel your energy and your dedication to your collection, to your team and to yourself.” Clearly, Lantink ticked all the boxes.
Fashion is in a strange place at the moment; with so much movement throughout the industry and designers jumping between brands, we’re undergoing a major shakeup, which – though has the potential to be refreshing – has also revealed some hard truths. A light has been shone on the lack of women designers at the head of houses, for example, while young talent is being overlooked for the big roles, unlike during the 90s or 00s even, when they were more likely to have been considered. More depressing still, is the backwards direction that inclusivity has taken. On last season’s catwalks, only 0.3 per cent of models were plus-size, dropping by 0.5 per cent since last season.
That said, beneath the shadows of dark statistics, glimmers of hope shine through. Initiatives such as the International Woolmark Prize – which sees the winner receive 300,000 Australian dollars in funding – are more important than ever to the longevity of emerging brands. And while Woolmark gives hope to smaller labels, fashion’s heavyweights find hope in the next generation – Donatella Versace included.
“I am always excited about seeing new emerging designers who are creating their own independent labels,” she explained when we asked what excites her about the industry. “There has been so much movement in fashion in these last months – I am excited and intrigued to see what that movement lands. I hope that creativity is given the chance to shine.”
Since Donatella is feeling hopeful, we thought we’d continue to spread the joy by asking each of the 2025 Woolmark finalists what excites them about fashion right now. Here’s what they had to say…
What excites you about the fashion industry right now?
Duran Lantink: I feel like it’s becoming more experimental again and I feel like there’s more people daring to be wild. That makes me very excited.
What excites you about the fashion industry right now?
Rachel Scott: There’s a new energy, a new independent energy, that I think I’m a part of, that maybe the industry was much more closed to in the past. It feels like there’s an opening.
What excites you about the fashion industry right now?
Michael Stewart: I’m so excited about the possibility of something. How when you develop one thing, it can turn into a million different things. You can develop it and develop it and perfect it. I think that’s so exciting, to think, ‘How can I push what I’m doing to a new level?’ Everything I do I tear to pieces because I want to make it better. Endless possibilities are exciting to me.
What excites you about the fashion industry right now?
Raul Lopez: I just like making clothes and doing shows. I’m very old school. But the young talent that’s coming up, they’re really amazing. The kids are really going off and I love that. They’re experimenting with new things so I’m excited to see the kids that come after me.
What excites you about the fashion industry right now?
Luca Lin: With fashion, you can make people feel emotional, feel beautiful, and can allow people to have a special moment.
What excites you about the fashion industry right now?
Ester Manas and Balthazar Delepierre: Fashion is still a dream factory. Which is quite powerful right now. We need to keep dreaming and fashion is useful for that.
What excites you about the fashion industry right now?
Louis Gabriel Nouchi: That we need to work all the time. It’s seasonal, so every six months I’m doing the same thing – but not the same thing. It’s like a circle, which I really like because I’m a bit obsessive. I love to redo the same thing all the time.
What excites you about the fashion industry right now?
Meryll Rogge: I’m happy that fashion is still a place of inclusivity, where people are celebrated for their differences. Especially in a world like today’s, it’s the most important thing right now.
