Luxury men’s online retailer Mr Porter has announced the launch of a menswear designer mentorship programme.
Mr Porter Futures, the first in what promises to be an annual event, aims to conduct a talent search around the world to find three emerging menswear designers for a mentorship programme in design and business. The designers chosen for the year-long programme will work with the buyers, designers and marketers who make up Mr Porter’s in-house team, who will offer mentoring and coaching as well as given the business skills essential in building a brand. Throughout the year, they will also design and develop their own responsibly-sourced collections, working with Mr Porter’s label, Mr P, and the consultancy Create Sustain. These collections will be available on Mr Porter from September 2022.
Potential applicants can apply from 26 April to 6 June for the opportunity, with finalists invited to meet mentors in July. The remaining three designers, or design duos, will begin the mentorship in September.
The selection committee, composed of fashion designers Nicholas Daley and Reese Cooper, stylist Julie Ragolia, Beams & Co director Tatsuo Hino, Centre for Fashion Enterprise Judith Tolley, alongside Mr Porter's own style director Olie Arnold and buying director Sam Kershaw, will assess applicants through an anonymous review process which welcomes those outside the industry mainstream. Coinciding with the retailer’s tenth anniversary, Mr Porter Futures aims to discover new talented voices in menswear design.
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‘We have always been committed to championing a diverse mix of new and emerging designers throughout our decade in business,’ says Mr Porter buying director Sam Kershaw. ‘But if this year has taught us anything, it is that we have the responsibility to use our global platform to give equal opportunities to all new aspiring menswear voices, no matter their experience or background.’
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