Forward by Elyse Walker and the CFDA announce rising talent program

By

Obi Anyanwu

Published
Nov 19, 2015

Forward by Elyse Walker and the Council of Fashion Designers in America announced on Wednesday the launch of the ‘Rising Talent Program,’ for emerging luxury fashion designers.

The first participants of the CFDA & Forward ‘Rising Talent Program’ are designers Juan Carlos Obando, Erin Beatty and Max Osterweis of Suno, and Veronica Miele Beard and Veronica Swanson Beard of Veronica Beard. The designers were hand selected by the CFDA and Forward to participate in the program, which begins with a two-day workshop led by Elyse Walker, Revolve Co-founders and CEOs, Michael Mente and Mike Karanikolas, and key executives of the CFDA.
 
Each designer worked with the Forward buying team to produce a capsule collection for the brand that will launch for the Spring/Summer 2016 season. In addition, they will be advised during the program on the best practices for growth through a retail market lens.

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“Forward has always been a champion of emerging designers, and with the current shake-ups in the fashion industry, from e-commerce and fast fashion to social shopping, it’s a challenging time for early talent to achieve that critical next stage in their growth,” said Elyse Walker, Fashion Director, Forward. “As we continually work to support top creative talent in the industry, it was natural to collaborate with the CFDA. This is simply another progression of our mission and we are thrilled to launch this program.”

The capsule collections by Suno and Veronica Beard will be available on the Forward by Elyse Walker website in early 2016.