The winner for the International Woolmark Prize 2020 was announced on 17 February, during London Fashion Week. The award recognises young designers' outstanding ability to showcase the beauty and versatility of merino wool.

The winner was Richard Malone (pictured second from right), who created a collection inspired by his upbringing in Wexford. The collection considered functional and beautifully made garments that minimise harm to our environment and works towards creating a circular, sustainable fashion system. He won with a cash prize of 200,000 Australian dollars. 

Richard was named the winner by a panel comprising of Tim Blanks, Hamish Bowles, Sinead Burke, Edward Enninful OBE, Kim Jones, Takashi Murakami, Holli Rogers, Anja Rubik and Shaway Yeh. 

Emily Adams Bode was named the first-ever winner of The Karl Lagerfeld Award for Innovation and was praised for her outstanding creativity and innovation. The award was presented to Emily by Carine Roitfeld, the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of CR Fashion Book.

Their winning collections will have the opportunity to be sold globally at high-end department stores including Harvey Nichols, Lane Crawford, Hudson’s Bay and online.

Photo credit: woolmarkprize.com.