BFC Nominates Kane, Erdem and Saunders as Collection of 2009

The British Fashion Council (BFC) has nominated Christopher Kane, Erdem and Jonathan Saunders as the three candidates for collection of the year in a list of 2009 nominees released Friday.

BFC will unveil this winner along with victors in a slew of some 11 categories on Wednesday 9th December in London at a ceremony to close the British Fashion Council’s 25th anniversary celebrations.

The awards, sponsored by Austrian crystal specialist Swarovski, also covers everything from emerging talent in fashion and accessories to best designer brand and leading model, for all of which categories there are three nominees. The top prize is for designer of the year, though there is no shortlist for this award. Possible winners might, however, approach this recognition with some trepidation seeing how the 2008 winner, Luella Bartley shuttered her business in early November.

The awards ceremony, staged in a gala dinner in the UK capital is designed to recognize the most influential people in fashion today.

For designer brand of the year the shortlist is composed of Burberry, Mulberry, Pringle of Scotland.

For model of the year, which was last year won by Jourdan Dunn, BFC picked out Daisy Lowe, daughter of Gavin Rossdale, the front man for the band Bush and latterly husband of Gwen Stefani, Georgia Jagger, daughter of rocker Mick Jagger, and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, recently named Model of the Year at the 2009 Elle Style Awards.

For menswear designer, which covers both ready-to-wear and bespoke tailoring, Graeme Fidler for Aquascutum, Kim Jones for Dunhill and Todd Lynn get the nod in a category which was won last year by Christopher Bailey, creative director for Burberry.

Emma Hill for Mulberry, Katie Hillier and Nicholas Kirkwood are the trio nominated for accessory designer, which covers leading British talent creating either shoes, jewelry, millinery or accessories within the past year.

In category emerging talent in ready-to-wear the BFC named Mark Fast, Meadham Kirchhoff and Peter Pilotto, while for emerging talent in accessories, it nominated Camilla Skovgaard, Holly Fulton, Jessica McCormack and Maria Francesca Pepe.

The BFC will give out three other awards, for all of which there is no shortlist: beginning with London 25 - created to celebrate the council’s quarter century - for, “an individual who embodies the spirit of London and is an international ambassador for London as a leading creative fashion capital,” the council said in a release.

There’s also the Isabella Blow Award For Fashion Creator, destined for “a British stylist, make-up artist, photographer, art director or producer whose creativity has been a major inspiration and influence in the past year.”

Finally, BFC has an award for Outstanding Achievement in Fashion Design, which recognizes, “one designer who throughout their career has influenced and inspired the global fashion industry.”

Stay tuned for December 9 and the names of the winners, since many of them will subsequently be hired by major league Continental brands keen to tap into the latest UK talent.

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