November 4, 2025 |
What is American fashion in 2025? It’s a question that the Council of Fashion Designers of America sought to define as they presented this year’s awards. The answer reflected both the past and present as stalwarts were honoured for their continued contributions while new talent were given their moment in the spotlight. Presented by Amazon Fashion at the American Museum of Natural History, Teyana Taylor played host, changing into four different Thom Browne looks throughout the evening, and was joined on the red carpet by the likes of Rihanna and A$AP Rocky, Lily Allen, Jennifer Lawrence, Addison Rae and more.
While normally saved for the end of the evening, the night started off with one of the biggest awards: the American Womenswear Designer of the Year. Presented by Naomi Watts, the honour went to Ralph Lauren, a well-deserved moment for arguably the king of American sportswear for the last fifty plus years. To follow came American Accessory Designer of the Year as announced by Benito Skinner and Jennifer Fisher, which went to Ashley Olsen and Mary-Kate Olsen of The Row, another brand that’s been dominating the cultural consciousness with their designs – you only need to Google “Margaux” for proof.
Speaking of Google, the most heartwarming moment of the night was when Rae and Christopher John Rogers revealed Ashlyn Park of Ashlyn as the winner of the Google Shopping American Emerging Designer of the Year. Park, who has staged two strong runway presentations in 2025 is redefining sculptural minimalism through a Korean American lens and will be one to watch in the future. To round out the major prizes, Dao-Yi Chow and Maxwell Osborne handed Thom Browne the American Menswear Designer of the Year award.
While the CFDAs are designed to honour American fashion, it also recognises international talent and this year’s honourees were among the most talked about during fashion month. For his creative, exciting take on womenswear Pieter Mulier of Alaïa was given the International Award by Naomi Campell. Finally, Amber Valletta and Ariana DeBose presented Donatella Versace with the Positive Change Award, with Valletta clad in the green dress that single-handedly launched Google Image Search.
Other notable nods included Anna Wintour gently roasting A$AP Rocky (clad in Chanel) as he was named Fashion Icon. Sara Moonves, editor-in-chief of W Magazine, was honoured with the Eugenia Sheppard Media Award, with a surprise dedication from Lawrence, with both dressed by The Row for the occasion. The normally under the radar Jerry Lorenzo of Fear of God was recognised for his work by Ava DuVernay, who presented him with the Innovation Award presented by Amazon Fashion while Cynthia Rowley was given the The Founder’s Award in honour of Eleanor Lambert by Julianne Moore for her decades of brand building. In the same vein, Nicole Phelps presented the Isabel Toledo Board of Directors’ Tribute to Andre Walker for his impact on the creative community while Thom Browne bestowed The Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award to Ralph Rucci. A fitting end for a night that celebrated American talent over the decades.
Photography courtesy of the CFDA.
