We meet the budding talents who made the cut as 2025 finalists and speak to Alpha's director Ane Lynge-Jorlén on the process and merits of the coveted prize
All over the world there are schemes that help support and nurture the fledgling talents of fashion. Today in Copenhagen, the finalists of the Alpha Prize (formerly Designer’s Nest) were announced. This group of 10, selected by a jury, are recent BA and MA grads of schools in the Nordic region. Though they are facing an increasingly challenging landscape, none of them have chosen to take the safe route. There are no traces of quiet luxury here, but there are references to folk costume and active sport.
Alpha itself is changing things up; whereas the finalists’ collections have traditionally been presented in a group show during Copenhagen Fashion Week, “for reasons of sustainability and innovation,” this year’s finalists will be presented throughout the year via different formats.
Here, Ane Lynge-Jorlén talked me through the selection process, the challenges faced by designers in the region, and how Alpha can help.
What are the criteria you use in selecting the panelists?
Design skills, collection coherence, originality, creativity, and responsibility.
Have those metrics changed over time?
It’s become increasingly difficult for designers to start their own labels, and it’s become more about going to work for others. Their design skills and creativity have become more relevant than ever as they must be able to solve actual tasks for other labels.
Many Covid-era collections were focused on identity and trauma. Do you feel this has changed?
Identity and trauma are still a strong focus (Mandegar, Lähderinne, for instance), but there’s also a strand that focuses on technical experimentation (Yeruul Ariunsansar, Yu-Chen Yu-Chen Lin, Kathrine Kirk).
You write that the focus of this group is on shape and material. Can you give some examples?
Kathrine Kirk uses upcycled packaging and turns cheap cardboard packaging boxes into high-quality garments with geometric shapes, wrinkly textures, and bulging surfaces. Yeruul Ariunsansar has incorporated metal boning into knitted materials and shaped them into sculptural forms and added layers of latex coating to preserve the shapes. Petra Lehtinen merges design and sustainability by incorporating various techniques. She has added a layer of preservation to the pieces, leaving a lasting imprint of a clothing archive on the actual garments. A refugee from Afghanistan, and a child laborer in sweatshops in Pakistan, Abbas Mandegar incorporates the tools of fashion – scissors, pins, and sewing machine bobbins – into his garments as symbols of his struggle and survival.
What are the particular challenges facing Nordic designers?
We are such a small region, and there aren’t enough jobs, so we encourage them, and help them, to go abroad. In addition, we’re also a mid-market region, and if they want to work in high-end fashion, they should begin by working for international labels to build their skill sets, network, and understand the business.
Is the support Alpha provides intended to help these designers become brands?
Yes and no. We empower them and help them gain a footing, and we encourage them not to start their own from the get-go. Some of them are hoping to launch a brand, and we help them with mentors, showrooms, and retail connections. Some designers want to work for other brands, and we connect them with labels and recruiters.
What’s the blueprint for building a brand in this challenging environment?
Understanding the business, having a business plan, being authentic and creative, connecting with community, and being responsible.
Yeruul Ariunsansar, The Swedish School of Textiles
One of the designer’s “wearable knitted sculptures.”. Photo: Umberto Fratini / Gorunway.com
Asger Beyer, The Royal Danish Academy
On their Instagram, the designer describes the “denim trompe l’oeil process [pictured here and consisting of] 4 layers of tulle (two sky blues for the bleached denim effect, one ivory tulle for the cotton yarn, one navy blue to create a twill effect) piqued onto a layer of cotton organdie for support and comfort.”. Photo: Umberto Fratini / Gorunway.com
Lauri Greis, Aalto University
A look from the designer’s “Karelian Sportslore” collection, the starting point for which was his grandmother’s folk costume. . Photo: Sofia Okkonen / Courtesy of Alpha
Kathrine Kirk, The Royal Danish Academy
The designer’s double-bonded cotton Two Box Dress. Photo: Umberto Fratini / Gorunway.com
Enni Lähderinne, Aalto University
On Instagram, the designer describes this look as a “monofilament knit gown and pants [with] iron waist jewel and silver earrings.”. Photo: Sofia Okkonen / Courtesy of Alpha
Petra Lehtinen, Aalto University
Petra Lehtinen took consumerism and clothing storage as archive as the starting point for her collection. Photo: Sofia Okkonen / Courtesy of Alpha
Yu-Chen Lin, Aalto University
Image may contain Adult Person Clothing Footwear Shoe Blonde and Hair Knitwear and repair informed Yu-Chen Lin’s collection. Photo: Sofia Okkonen / Courtesy of Alpha
Abbas Mandegar, The Swedish School of Textiles
Titled Made in Pakistan, this collection was based on Mandegar’s own, painful experience in the garment industry and through it, he wrote, “I express these intense emotions and share a part of my journey from a child laborer to a designer.”. Photo: Umberto Fratini / Gorunway.com
Jens Nilsson, Beckmans College of Design
The designer describes this look thus: “Needle felted mohair embellished inside out duffle cape, with striped jersey fringe dress, knitted tubular headpiece, and carica 3D-printed eyewear.”. Photo: Mathias Nordgren / Courtesy of Alpha
Pierre Westerholm, Beckmans College of Design
A look made using a plant-based material, BioPuff by Ponda. Photo: Peter Hakansson / Courtesy of Alpha