Setchu, Mokoo, and Lessico Familiare Are the 2022 Winners of the Who Is On Next? Talent Prize

The fashion energy in Rome is surging as high as the mercury at this moment. Elsa Schiaparelli, born in the capital, is being celebrated with an exhibition in Paris, while Gucci’s Alessandro Michele and Valentino’s Pierpaolo Piccioli (who closed the fall 2022 couture season with a double exclamation point of a show on the Spanish Steps) are proving that the city is indeed eternal.

Both designers were in attendance as the finalists in the 18th edition of the Who Is on Next? talent competition, sponsored by Alta Roma and Vogue Italia, presented their collections, all’aperto, in the ancient and breathtaking Piazza del Campidoglio. What a way to make a debut for the two accessory designers and nine brands who participated. This was the most diverse group to take part to date in the program, which supports the Made in Italy concept. Five of the participants are foreign born and chose to work with Italian artisans.

Chosen by a jury of 19 that included Michele, Silvia Venturini Fendi, Stella Jean, and Vogue Italia’s Sara Sozzani Maino and Francesca Ragazzi, this year’s winners of the Franca Sozzani Award are Satoshi Kuwata of Setchu, Bum-mo Koo of Mokoo, and Lessico Familiare, designed by Riccardo Scaburri, Alice Curti, and Alberto Petillo. Menswear designer Alessandro Marchetto, who creates ethical menswear through a queer lens, and shoemaker Karim Daoudi are recipients of the Pitti Imagine Tutoring and Consulting Award.

As with last year’s winners, almost all of the participants are “young” with fledgling labels, but few are just out of school. Most took the route of honing their skills through experience until they were ready to fly solo.

Born in Japan, Kuwata’s interest in fashion was awakened by exposure to his grandfather’s clothes and the output of his aunt, a couturier. He studied at Central Saint Martins and worked with tailors on Savile Row and then set out to explore different aspects of the industry around the globe, working for Edun in New York, with Riccardo Tisci and Kanye West in Paris, and for various houses in Italy. Kuwata launched Setchu during the pandemic. His well-cut jackets, which fold for easy packing, expand origami-like construction from 2D to 3D, and his customizable button dresses borrow from kimono construction. “I’m trying to mix East and West together, so it’s super simple,” he said after the show. “And maybe in the future I can do African, too.”