London’s fashion scene has long been a petri dish for hungry new talent – hardly news to anyone who has sat through a graduate show. New York and Paris, too, continue to turn out their own conveyor belts of bright young things. But this weekend in Doha, it was the MENA region’s moment, as Fashion Trust Arabia convened its expansive creative constellation for an awards ceremony championing emerging brilliance, cultural exchange and cross-border collaboration.
Fashion Trust Arabia 2025 ©Fashion Trust Arabia
Founded in 2018 by Tania Fares and Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, under the patronage of HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, the non-profit has become the region’s most authoritative launchpad. Its mission – to fund, mentor and decisively platform designers from across the Middle East and North Africa – feels increasingly essential. This year’s edition made that clear, presenting a cohort alive with designers interrogating heritage, craft and innovation through sharply individual lenses.
The finalists were evaluated by a jury drawn from fashion’s upper echelons – YOON Ahn of Ambush; Gisele Bündchen; Paloma Elsesser; Duran Lantink; Bethann Hardison; Viktor & Rolf; Christian Louboutin; Remo Ruffini; Veronica Leoni, and many more – before winners were revealed at Saturday night’s gala at the National Museum of Qatar. The awards spanned six disciplines: Ready-to-Wear, Evening Wear, Accessories, Jewellery, Fashion Tech and the Franca Sozzani Debut Talent Award, alongside a newly introduced seventh accolade, the Guest Country Award, created in partnership with India for the 2025 edition.
Giselle Bundchen; Lindsay Lohan ©Getty
The 2025 FTA Prize winners – Youssef Drissi (ready-to-wear), Ziyad AlBuainain (eveningwear), Leila Roukni (accessories) and Farah Radwan (jewellery) – will each receive grants of between $100,000 and $200,000, scaled to the size of their business. They will also embark on a year-long mentoring programme with The Bicester Collection, with designs set to be stocked at Harrods and Ounass for one season.
Miuccia Prada ©Getty
Additional honours went to Alaa Alaradi (Franca Sozzani Debut Talent Award), Fatema and Dalal Alkhaja (Fashion Tech Award) and Kartik Kumra (Guest Country Award). Lebanese designer Zuhair Murad received the Trailblazer Award, while Miuccia Prada accepted the Lifetime Achievement Award with a speech that distilled the evening’s ethos: ‘It’s a symbol of cultural exchange and collaboration,’ she said. ‘And that is very important for us in this moment.’
The gala drew a global guest list of designers, creators and cultural heavyweights, with appearances from Lindsay Lohan, Tyra Banks, Emma Roberts and Adrien Brody.
Henrik Lischke is the senior fashion news & features editor at Grazia. Prior to that, he worked at British Vogue, and was junior fashion editor at The Sunday Times Style.