CFDA and Accessories Council select participants in Elaine Gold Launch Pad

The Council of Fashion Designers of America, in conjunction with the Accessories Council, has disclosed the list of participants in the inaugural Elaine Gold Launch Pad business innovation program.

The new program is a four-year partnership underwritten with a 1.5 million dollar grant to the CFDA.

The award is named in honor of Elaine Gold, an accessories executive who passed away in 2015.

The program is similar to the Vogue/CFDA Fashion Fund in that it helps provide emerging designer talent with mentorship and funding to grow their business. Applicants are not just accessories designers however, they are also in the businesses of apparel, textiles and knitwear.

This year's six designers are Alexis Isabel for her eponymous footwear brand, Emily Adams Bode for menswear brand Bode, Lucy Jones for her accessories brand Ffora, Ali Rose, Jack Burns and Mark Richardson for their optical brand Genusee, Maria Kazakova for womenswear and menswear brand Jahnkoy and Jameel Mohammed for his jewelry brand Khiry.

11 finalists were selected from a pool of 97 applicants, with each finalist receiving a 2500 dollars towards their Live Design Pitch Presentation, in addition to mentorship from Ideo's Sabastien Park.

Participants will be involved in a six-month virtual residency, with micro awards totaling 175,000 dollars. Key business practices will be focused on such as planning, production, finance and brand strategy.