Written by the Fête Chinoise team
photography by George Pimentel

Nomination Categories included: the Womenswear Designer of the Year, the Menswear Designer of the Year, the Award for Emerging Talent and Fashion, the Award for Emerging Talent and Accessories, the Accessory Designer of the Year, the Outerwear Brand of the Year, the Fashion Innovation Award, the Digital Fashion Creator of the Year, the Fashion Design Student Award, the Model of the Year, the Image Maker of the Year, the Fresh Face of the Year, the Stylist of the Year, the Fashion Impact, the Sustainability Award, Makeup Artist of the Year, Hair Artist of the Year, the Outstanding Achievement, the International Canadian Designer Award, the Vanguard and the Changemaker Award.

It was a long awaited night celebrating designers and creatives in the fashion industry, and it was wonderful to see the diversity in the room, both in the audience and on stage, representative of Canada’s cultural landscape.

Red carpet moments

Photographer Justin Wu, Fête Chinoise-featured story in the recent 7th Edition of our magazine took home the Image Maker of the Year Award. Other Asian Canadians who won include Kathleen Chan (Calico) for ehe Fashion Innovation Award, and fashion student, Kevin Quang Thai Nguyen, for the Fashion Student Designer of the Year. Nominees Suki Chow (Nominee for the Fashion Design Student Award) and Ash Foo (Nominee for the Model of the Year Award) also dazzled the event.

Many nominees and winners were also a part of the Fête Chinoise universe and family of collaborators and difference makers, including Justin Wu mentioned earlier (Winner of the Image Maker of the Year Award), RVNG (Nominee for the Award for Emerging Talent, Fashion), Nobis (Nominee for the Outerwear Brand of the Year Award) and Sentaler (Winner for the Outerwear Brand of the Year Award).

congratulations to winners & nominees

Asian representation in all industries is also a large and important topic, especially during this time of standing up against Anti-Asian Racism and all forms of racism. The awards have always strived to recognize and involve a diverse community of movers and makers, from all different backgrounds, truly reflecting the multi-cultural landscape of Canada. Several Asian artists and creatives were nominated and in some cases, took home the hardware!

JUSTIN WU

Winner | The Image Maker of the Year Award

A familiar face took to the stage on Saturday and you have seen his feature story in our magazine, Edition No. 7; Perspective. Justin Wu is a Toronto-based Director and Photographer. After foregoing a conventional career in the sciences and business, Justin was scouted and signed as a commercial & portrait photographer.

Working in Europe with the likes of Vogue, Elle, and GQ, he became an internationally recognized artist. From photography, Justin transitioned into commercial videos, where he found his passion for filmmaking.

His story in our Edition No.7 Magazine can be viewed at the link here.

KATHLEEN CHAN (CALICO)

Winner | The Fashion Innovation Award

Kathleen Chan is the Founder and CEO of Calico, the supply chain OS that powers the $1.4 trillion eCommerce production market from concept to doorstep. Kathleen is a serial founder, previously starting several D2C brands and scaling them from zero to six figures in revenues in the first six months of operations. 

KEVIN QUANG THAI NGUYEN

Winner | The Fashion Design Student Award

making change happen

SAGE PAUL & GEORGE SULLY

Winners | The Changemaker Award

This year, for the first time, CAFA is introducing the Changemaker Awards, created to honour the remarkable achievements of individuals who have spearheaded meaningful, positive, and progressive change within the Canadian fashion industry and beyond.

Indigenous community leader Sage Paul and creator of the Index of Black Designers George Sully were both recognized and honoured with the Changemaker Award. Their work of creating space for others has had a significant impact on the cultural narrative within their communities.

SSENSE (Firas Atallah, Bassel Atallah and Rami Atallah)

Winner | The Outstanding Achievement Award

It was a soulful evening that allowed the audience to take in heartfelt speeches by creators who dedicated their lives to their craft.

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