DYNE and Zaid Affas Win US Woolmark Prize Finals

by Kristen Heinzinger

The Woolmark Prize US finalists are in! This year, Christopher Bevans of DYNE (menswear) and Zaid Affas (womenswear) will go on to rep the US at the international finals, and are taking home AU$70,000. Over the next six to seven months, they’ll work on a six-piece capsule collection made from Merino wool, which will be evaluated at the finals this winter.

On DYNE’s collection, Kate Lanphear, one of this year’s judges, said, “What I loved was the humble way he spoke about the fabric with reverence — that was something that really got my attention. His pieces were so extremely innovative, yet he still spoke so humbly about them and about wool, it seemed holy, and I really liked that exchange.”

The full panel included André Leon Talley,  Lanphear, InStyle EIC Laura Brown, W Magazine EIC Stefano Tonchi, CFDA president and CEO Steven Kolb, fashion consultant and Woolmark Prize mentor Julie Gilhart, Carfrae Consulting founder and mentor Malcolm Carfrae, Esquire fashion director Nick Sullivan, Thom Browne, and Woolmark Company head of Americas Michelle A. Lee.

The winner of the prize will receive an additional AU$200,000, mentoring from the panel of experts, and distribution of their collection through retail partners including Boon the Shop, S. Korea; Boutique 1, UAE; David Jones, Australia; De Bijenkorf, Amsterdam; Harvey Nichols, UK; Hudson’s Bay Company, Canada; LECLAIREUR, Paris; Mytheresa.com; ORDRE and SSENSE.COM. This year, a new Innovation Award will go to a third winner.

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