The Bay creates advisory board for BIPOC fashion fund

By

Jennifer Braun

Published
Oct 22, 2021

The Bay unveiled on Thursday the advisory board members of its newly developed Fashion Fund. 

Members include six of the country’s leading industry and societal change-makers: Vanessa Craft, Mina Gerges, Sandy Kaur Gill, Grace Mahary, Corey Ng and George Sully, who will all serve on the board. 

First announced earlier this year, The Fashion Fund is an initiative that will both mentor and support up-and-coming BIPOC designers in Canada. Each year, beginning May 2022, The Fashion Fund will award one BIPOC designer with a $25,000 grant, in addition to an extensive three-year mentorship program. 

As advisory board members, the newly formed committee will steer the criteria, application and selection process for the successful Fashion Fund recipient. They will equally work with The Bay to conceptualize and steer the developmental stages of the initiative to ensure a robust and successful program.

“It is our honour to introduce The Bay Fashion Fund’s Advisory Board, which comprises six incredibly talented individuals,” said Tyler Franch, VP fashion director at The Bay. 

“Each board member brings a wealth of knowledge and invaluable expertise in their respective field. We are excited to nurture the diverse design talent we have in Canada and support their development with this accomplished group.”

Vanessa Craft is head of content partnerships at TikTok Canada and previously editor-in-chief at Elle Canada; Mina Gerges is an Egyptian plus-size model, actor, and TV personality, recognized as an outspoken advocate for change and inclusivity; Sandy Kaur Gill (SKG) also known as TheSandyLion is a stylist and designer with the goal of helping people look and feel the best about themselves; and Grace Mahary is an Eritrean-Canadian model, sommelier and global activist who has walked runway shows for names including Chanel, Christian Dior, Valentino and Balenciaga.

Finally, Corey Ng, is an award-winning stylist who has worked alongside some of the country's most reputable names, while George Sully is best known as the original maker of the Star-Trek 'Discovery Starfleet' boot. 

Additional information on candidate criteria and the application process for The Bay Fashion Fund will be shared in the coming months.

The Bay was spun off from Hudson’s Bay as a separate business, earlier this year. The Hudson’s Bay now operates its full-line locations, while The Bay operates thebay.com including Marketplace, which welcomes over 500 new sellers and significantly-expanded product categories.