A Cold Wall wins 2019 BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fashion Fund

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Jun 11, 2019

British designer Samuel Ross of cult fashion brand A Cold Wall has won the UK’s biggest menswear prize for emerging talent, the BFC/GQ Designer Menswear Fund.

Announced at a cocktail reception hosted at Annabel’s, London on Monday evening, Ross will receive a £150,000 cash prize and 12 months high-level mentoring to accelerate his business’ growth and global reputation.

He was competing against some of today’s brightest menswear talent, with Cottweiler, Edward Crutchley, Liam Hodges and Wales Bonner also in the shortlist for the 2019 prize.

Winning the prestigious fund, supported by China’s JD.com, will bring further boost to a brand that has already found a strong following in the thriving streetwear market. The former protege of Off-White’s Virgil Abloh, Ross was previously a finalist for the LVMH Prize and also worked at Kanye West’s Yeezy brand.

All shortlisted designers participated in a mentoring programme where they received guidance on topics including, strategic planning, branding, leadership, commercial retail, e-tail and wholesale and digital innovation.

Explaining why A Cold Wall was crowned winner, Dylan Jones, BFC chair of menswear, said: “Samuel Ross demonstrated intelligent design and business acumen during the judging process that propelled him to the top of the talent pool and it was a unanimous decision from the judging panel.

“I look forward to seeing Samuel’s business grow and become the next big international menswear brand.”

Caroline Rush, chief executive of the British Fashion Council, added: “The judging committee was impressed with the quality of work, thought process and determination of the talented 2019 shortlist. Each designer has a bright future ahead of them. There can only be one winner and Samuel proved to be the strongest candidate with the most comprehensive business strategy and decisive plans on how to use the fund to his best advantage to propel and cement A Cold Wall on the global stage.”

Ross launched his menswear brand in late 2015 aged 25 and the label is estimated to make more than $1.7 million in sales. A Cold Wall is stocked in major fashion retailers including Barneys New York, Selfridges in London and Dover Street Market in Beijing.