This article was originally published on WWD by Hikmat Mohammed
LONDON — Amesh Wijesekera, a semifinalist for the LVMH prize, has won the U.K. prize for the Circular Design Challenge.
After the winner of the Milan prize is announced, Aijesekera, as well as Hong Kong prize winner Pei-Wen Jin, and finalists from the India prize, including Riddhi Jain, Dhruv Satija, Jinali Mody, Arundhati Kumar and Anish Malpani, will gather at Lakmé Fashion Week to participate in the finals for the prize in October.
Circular Design Challenge partnered with the British Council on choosing a winner. The jury included Phoebe English, Sevra Davis, Sarah Ditty, Megan Doyle, Daniel Whitley and Wilson Oryema.
The final winner will receive the prize money of 14,000 pounds; a Circular Design Challenge trophy; a six-month mentorship, and a solo show at Lakmé Fashion Week.
The jury at Circular Design Challenge.
Orsola de Castro, cofounder of Fashion Revolution and creative director of Estethica, will mentor the winner and runner-up.
“We were hugely impressed by the cohort of designers who came together to showcase their thoughtful collections at the event, all deeply rooted in the principles of circularity and sustainability,” said Hannah Robinson, who is a senior relationship manager for Architecture Design Fashion.
“It has been an exciting journey together with the United Nations in India and Reliance Industries to support the next generation of designers who are shaping the future of fashion and we look forward to seeing the next stage of the programme later this year,” she added.
Circular Design Challenge is a platform in India that encourages a greener fashion industry to those coming up and thinking about a career in the creative spaces.