PARIS — Christopher Esber is the Grand Prize winner of the 2024 ANDAM Fashion Award, marking the 35th anniversary edition of the prize.
Esber, who is based in Sydney, has won fans including Zendaya and Dua Lipa with his minimalist summer styles.
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In addition to being mentored by jury president and Saint Laurent creative director Anthony Vaccarello, Esber scoops up the top prize and its cash award of 300,000 euros less than a year after making his debut at Paris Fashion Week.
He beat out fellow finalists Meryll Rogge, Marie Adam-Leenaerdt, Ruohan and Charles Jeffrey Loverboy.
Taking home the runner-up Special Prize and its 100,000-euro purse is 3.Paradis, the 10-year-old label founded in Canada by French designer Emeric Tchatchoua.
His genderless line, known for its signature dove motif symbolizing peace and unity, has been worn by the likes of Billie Eilish and Justin Bieber. It staged its first fashion show in Paris in 2023 and recently showed its spring 2025 collection during men’s week.
Candidates for ANDAM’s grand prize can be of any nationality, but must own a French company or set one up during the same year as the receipt of the fellowship.
The Pierre Bergé Prize went to Paris-based Pièce Uniques, a clothing brand founded by Edmond Luu that beat out fellow contestants Boyarovskaya, created by designer Maria Boyarovskaya and fashion photographer Artem Kononenko, and Vaillant, designed by Alice Vaillant.
The accessories prize went to Maeden, an Amsterdam-based leather goods brand under the creative direction of Christian Heikoop, while the innovation prize was taken home by Alternative Innovation.
Blackpink’s Rosé, who was among the 13-strong guest jury chosen by Vaccarello, said she was honored to “witness the rise of another groundbreaking group of talent this year.”
“As a fellow creative, I am thrilled to hear the stories and see the innovative visions,” she told WWD. “I look forward to the remarkable contributions these designers will bring to the fashion industry.”
Past winners include Vaccarello, who took the top prize in 2011, as well as Viktor & Rolf, Christophe Lemaire, Jeremy Scott and Marine Serre. French designer Louis-Gabriel Nouchi scooped the award last year.
The guest jurors also included model and singer Carla Bruni; actress and musician Charlotte Gainsbourg; models Anja Rubik and Alek Wek; former Saint Laurent campaign faces Béatrice Dalle and Rossy de Palma; director Gaspar Noé; actor Niels Schneider; actress Virginie Efira; writer Virginie Despentes, and stylist Emmanuelle Alt.
Rounding out the group was journalist Augustin Trapenard, who hosts Saint Laurent’s Talks podcast.
Created in 1989 by Nathalie Dufour with the support of the French Ministry of Culture and the DEFI, a body that promotes the development of the French fashion industry, and with the late Pierre Bergé as president, ANDAM has been a springboard for designers who would go on to achieve international recognition.
ANDAM — the French acronym for National Association of the Development of the Fashion Arts — is supported by large corporate sponsors, which now include Balenciaga, Bureau Betak, Chanel, Chloé, Fondation Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint Laurent, Galeries Lafayette, Google, Hermès, Kering, Lacoste, Longchamp, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, L’Oréal Paris, Meta, Mytheresa, OTB, Premiere Classe, Saint Laurent, Swarovski and Tomorrow.
The French Ministry of Culture and the DEFI, a body that promotes the development of the French fashion industry, are also key historic public partners of ANDAM.
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