United Front.

Byline: Anna Wintour

This month we announce-not in this issue but at a gala party in New York on the 16th-the winners of the 2006 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund award. The ten finalists (who are featured in these pages) are all exceptionally creative and professionally promising talents, and it's a great pity that we cannot offer each of them the main cash award ($200,000) and the year of mentoring (priceless).

These aren't empty words. In only the third year of the competition, we know that to win a first or a runner-up prize is to receive a very substantial professional boost. The inaugural winner, Proenza Schouler, is now one of the most important collections in New York, and its moving spirits, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, were nominated for Womenswear Designer of the Year in 2006 by the CFDA. Last year's winner, Trovata, has just launched a terrific handbag line (page 198), and its recent presentation was one of the most clever, charming, and commercially persuasive moments of New York Fashion Week.

The runners-up, who receive $50,000 and a year of mentoring, have also thrived. Thom Browne, in addition to growing his own brand, is now the guest designer for Brooks Brothers. Michael and Nicole Colovos of Habitual have moved on to become

creative directors of the relaunched Helmut Lang (page 151). Alexandre Plokhov of Cloak has opened a freestanding store in SoHo and is the name on everyone's lips whenever a top menswear job is on offer. And Derek Lam has just showed a spring collection that took his line to a whole other level and, I think, reflected the invaluable influence of his CFDA/Vogue mentor, ...