South African Designer Thebe Magugu Wins the LVMH Prize
This year’s LVMH Prize goes to South African designer Thebe Magugu. The ‘special prize,’ now renamed the Prix Karl Lagerfeld was awarded to Israeli designer Hed Mayner for his gender-neutral collection.
Launched in 2013, the LVMH Prize honors and supports the young designer by offering them a grant of 300,000 euros and technical and financial support from the Group for a year. The grand opportunity to launch their own brand and platform has launched the careers of previous winners, like Simon Porte Jacquemus and his eponymous brand. This year saw a record number of 1700 applicants from 100 countries. The jury this year included a group of prestigious artistic directors and executives from LVMH brands like Kris Van Assche, Maria Grazia Chiuri, Marc Jacobs, Clare Waight Keller, and others. The competition also has applicants Daisy Yu joining Louis Vuitton, Juliette Tréhorel joining DIOR, and Alice Paris joining Givenchy.
Thebe Magugu took most of the spotlight as a young designer from Johannesburg focused on embodying the values and everyday life of African women. He has been quoted saying that, “together with our pillar values of quality, novelty and culture, we constantly seek new ways of presenting women with clothing that both complies with and enhances the everyday.” Magugu is working to create “sleek, forward-looking design intersects with motifs from our continent’s storied past, providing smart, multifaceted clothes as valuable as their woman.” He tells stories through his vibrant pieces as an ode to his Tswana/Sotho tribes heritage.
