Thom Browne Named CFDA President

CFDA opted for another Thom.

Thom Browne has been named the next president of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, effective January 1 and will be responsible for leading the organization in a rapidly changing landscape.

The CFDA Board of Directors unanimously elected Browne to the position for a term of two years. The 57-year-old designer succeeds Tom Ford, who completed a three-year term at the end of May. Since then, Steven Kolb, CEO of the CFDA, has served as interim president and will continue to do so until December 31.

During his tenure, Ford diversified the board; launched new programs to help bring much-needed diversity, equity and inclusion to the fashion industry; partnered with brands to help provide access to hundreds of jobs, opportunities and mentorships, and launched A Common Thread with Vogue, which has distributed over $5 million in humanitarian relief to businesses fashion during the first two years of the pandemic.

"I am very pleased to take on the presidency of the CFDA," Browne said. "I feel a huge responsibility working with Steven and the CFDA team to continue the positive and important work of Tom, Diane [von Furstenberg] and Stan [Herman]. I also think it's important to give back to an industry who has supported me so well over the past 20 years.I am so proud to be an American designer…there is so much going on in American design today that the world really needs to see, recognize and really appreciate. »

Browne started his business in 2003 with five gray suits at a tailor shop in West Village in New York, creating a perfectly tailored uniform consisting of a jacket and trousers paired with a gray cardigan, white Oxford shirt, gray tie and silver tie clip, and classic black brogues. Known for its shrunken tailoring, it has since expanded to include full collections of ready-to-wear and accessories for both men and women, the latter being introduced in 2011. The designer has also become famous for his runway presentations very conceptual. His company has been owned since 2018 by the Zegna Group, which went public on the New York Stock Exchange late last year. Browne achieved a turnover of 264 million euros last year, an increase of 47%, as indicated.

In 2005, Browne became a member of the CFDA. He was the recipient of the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year award three times: in 2006, 2013 and 2016.

This year Browne was again nominated for the menswear designer award from the year of the CFDA, in competition with Emily Bode Aujla for Bode (2021 winner), Jerry Lorenzo for Fear of God, Mike Amiri for Amiri and Willy Chavarria. The CFDA Awards will be held November 7 on Cipriani South Street at Casa Cipriani in Manhattan.

Browne was also a 2005 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist. administration of the CFDA, Browne is a former member of the organization's admissions committee and sits on the selection committee of the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund. Browne has received the GQ Designer of the Year award, the FIT Couture Council Award, as well as the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award.

His designs have been exhibited in museums around the world, including the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art , the Museum of Modern Art, the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Costume Museum at Bath and the Mode Museum Antwerpen. Its brand is present in more than 300 department and specialty stores in 40 countries and in 96 retail, flagship and shop-in-shop stores in key cities...