South African designer Thebe Magugu recently won the 2019 LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) Prize in France.
LVMH is a prestigious fashion prize that will see him walk away with €30,000 (Ksh 3.4 million) and other lucrative deals. This is a first for any African designer.
The award was presented to him by actress and LVMH ambassador Alicia Vikander, who in a statement reported by Vogue said, “The talent in this room is quite simply stupefying, and the finalists represent the future of fashion.”
The LVMH Prize was launched in November 2013. It was created to honour and support young fashion designers around the world. Every year, a young designer and three graduates from fashion schools can claim the prestigious prize.
There are usually two categories in the LVMH Prize; the Young Fashion Designer Prize and the Graduate Prize. Thebe Magugu participated in the Young Fashion Designer Prize where he came out on top beating all other finalists including Nigerian designer Kenneth Izedonmwen.
Selection for this year’s finalists was done during Paris Fashion Week where a team of experts who include designers, stylists and buyers had their picks.
Thebe spoke of the win saying, “As a creative, you’re always questioning yourself, but people around me told me there was no harm trying. I went into it like a child and got the chance to speak to my design heroes like Clare Waight Keller and Nicolas Ghesquière. So no matter the outcome, I already felt like I’d won so many things. This is like the cherry on top.”
Thebe will also receive business mentorship from LVMH for about a year.
