California StudentsMake First Cut ofDuPont Competition
Students from California Design College, the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising (FIDM) and Los Angeles Trade-Technical College were among the finalists in a recently held design competition sponsored by Wilmington, Del.-based fiber manufacturer DuPont.
“Hosiery has been undergoing significant changes in recent years,” said Sheila Robinson, DuPont marketing communication representative, who noted that the category has seen sales declines over the past 10 years.
Robinson said DuPont wanted to change consumers’ perception of hosiery as a foundation garment.
“We’re trying to drive hosiery as a fashion accessory,” she said, adding, “We need to hear from the fashion designers of the future.”
The students in the competition were asked to create innovative hosiery as a fashion accessory. They were also asked to gather collateral marketing material from their peers regarding perceptions about hosiery. Additionally, the participants were given DuPont marketing materials about the benefits of DuPont’s Tactel and Lycra fibers.
The competition drew 200 design entries from eight design schools nationwide. The students submitted sketches, which were reviewed by several hosiery manufacturers, among them: Wolford, Hue, Givenchy, Levante, Silks, Secrets Gamine, Tennaco, Doris, Phantom, Holt and Kayser-Roth. Several of the designs were made into samples using DuPont’s Tactel, Lycra and Coolmax fibers.
The finalists from California include Sandi Garza, Claire Bellamy, Chris Miyoung Yun, Hye-yeon Cho and Adriana Soy Lane from California Design College; Paul Fan, Morin Brewerton and Amelio G. Custodio from Trade-Tech; and Kenndra L. Lopez from FIDM’s Los Angeles campus and Lakshmi Gopalkrishnan from FIDM’s San Francisco campus.
Of the 31 finalists selected altogether, three will be selected as competition winners by a panel of judges that includes retailers, editors, industry executives and fashion designers. Some of the judges represented such labels as Emma Black, Escada, NM70, Jason Bunin, Yeohlee Teng, Donna Karan, View Collection, Alice & Trixie, House of Fields and DDC Lab.
The three winners of the competition will be announced at an invitation-only event in New York on Aug. 6, where actress Jamie-Lynn Sigler from “The Sopranos” will give out awards.
