Submissions are pouring in from established and new fashion designers alike for SAINT International’s Jamaica Avant Garde Designer of the Year competition.

The social calendar event, slated for next Saturday, June 1 at the AC Kingston Hotel, has sparked major interest among local makers with distinct style perspectives, and SAINT CEO Dewight Peters is excited by the still incoming entries.

“In terms of the profile of the designer entrants, it’s a wide range of age and experiential demographics,” Peters shared with Our Today during a recent sit-down.

“We have people known in the business and want to keep their names current and others who are fresh talent and it’s a new frontier for them and they are trying to conquer and prove a point, and many who have seen what the competition platform has done for other designers.”

The designing contest which is celebrating its 20th iteration, is the longest running of its kind in the Caribbean region, according to Peters.

“We started in 2004 as a way of tapping into the design creative culture that we believed existed but was never really applauded before. We decided to start this competition to bring new young designers out. Designers like Carlton Brown, Neahlis, and the late Dexter Pottinger began on our platform, and we are proud to see how they evolved over the years,” he lauded.

Fashion designers entering this year’s competition are tasked to create thematic garments centred around the guideline ‘Jamaica 62: Celebrating the resilience, strength and passion of our people’. The winner will walk away with a cash prize of $124,000.

Coming onboard as show sponsors for both the Avant Garde Designer of the Year competition and SAINT’s associated Female and Male Fashion Face of the Caribbean finals are HEART Trust/NSTA and the Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF).

For HEART’s Managing Director Taneisha Ingleton, the collaboration between her institution and SAINT “offers a win-win situation for both organisations.”

The government agency lead rationalised that where HEART provided skilled trainees and services, the modelling agency will in turn, give industry and media exposure, and career guidance for HEART programmes.

“The partnership directly aligns with the Trust’s mandate of human development. By partnering with Saint International, the Trust can provide valuable experiences in fashion hospitality, and beauty to underserved youths, particularly a large number of boys from disadvantaged communities,” she said.

“This will not only equip them with job-ready skills but also empower them to pursue careers in fashion. Our trainees and graduates will benefit from world-class industry experience and incalculable exposure in the social and traditional media sphere. The Trust is also looking forward to showcasing its trainees’ talents and promoting its programmes to a wider audience through the event’s reach.”

HEART cosmetology trainees will utilise their newly acquired skillset with makeovers for select SAINT model aspirants in the Fashion Face competition, execute catering services for lead-up and show night events, and also serve as interns backstage and front of house for various SAINT events in the interim.

Ingleton pointed out that HEART/NSTA Trust provides training and services in many areas aligned with the fashion industry which include fashion design, event planning, photography, jewellery making, and beauty services.

Meanwhile, TEF executive director Carey Wallace told Our Today “we are thrilled to sponsor this competition which marks our inaugural involvement. This sponsorship underscores our dedication to strengthening the tourism industry by supporting its essential supply sectors.”

TEF’s vision, he explained, is “to create a robust ecosystem that nurtures the entire value chain of the fashion industry. This includes generating more opportunities for designers, seamstresses [tailors], and other creative talents, ultimately boosting the sales of local fashion lines. By promoting our fashion industry, we offer visitors yet another compelling reason to choose Jamaica as their travel destination of choice.”

As to last year’s Avant Garde Designer winner Janseen Graham, he shared that the last twelve months have been enriching. Graham gave insight on how the win can impact a local designer’s status. “I remember wanting to get on the Canadian Women Club of Jamaica “Spring in Fashion” show last year, but they didn’t know who I was, so I told them that I was SAINT’s Avant Garde Designer of the Year. This allowed me to showcase one piece and I ended up dressing Miss Jamaica World Sanique Singh.”

Graham also won the Best Designer title in last year’s Jamaica Cultural Development Commission Festival Queen national costume competition. He too, went on to be a contestant on the recently concluded Season 7 of the Television Jamaica fashion designer reality show, Mission Catwalk.

Presently at work on a new collection for the upcoming Sashi Experience Fashion Show, Graham disclosed that within the last year, he created all the wardrobe looks for reggae artiste Romain Virgo’s Gentleman tour alongside stylist Ayana Riviére, and also dressed Bob Marley: One Love actor Hector ‘Roots’ Lewis for the red-carpet premiere of the film.

“The year has been a very amazing one, I can’t really complain,” said the designer who claimed top honours for his entry, ‘Jamrock Fusion’ at the 19th staging of the Avant Garde Designer of the Year. “I most definitely would like to re-enter. It would absolutely be amazing to defend that title with a back-to-back win or even place in the top three.”

Interested designers can Whatsapp text 876-397-5859 or send an Instagram direct message to @saintmodelsja.