PARIS — Will the second time be the charm for some of the 2026 ANDAM finalists?
Come July 1, former 2025 finalists Zomer and EgonLab will once again face the jury of the annual talent contest, helmed this year by 2013 winner Alexandre Mattiussi, whose brand Ami Paris is celebrating its 15th anniversary.
They will face fresh competition from Belgian designer Marie Adam-Leenaerdt, who joined the official Paris calendar in 2023; Paris-based womenswear label Fidan Novruzova, and London-based French designer Pauline Dujancourt.
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Vying for this year’s Pierre Bergé Prize, which focuses on young French companies, are self-taught Parisian designer Anthony Calydon, who launched his eponymous knitwear brand last year; Boyarovskaya, the nine-year old label created by Givenchy and John Galliano alumna Maria Boyarovskaya with fashion photographer Artem Kononenko, and Maitrepierre.
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In the accessories category, 2025 finalist Phileo is throwing its hat, or rather its shoes, back in the ring opposite Mara Paris, the jewelry brand of trained architect Ayça Özbank, and leather goods brand Bonastre.
“These 11 houses embody a new fashion scene that is at once creatively demanding but also real projects in terms of business, culture and society,” said Nathalie Dufour, ANDAM’s founder and managing director.
She added that “what is important for the Grand Prize is a strong development potential as well as stylistic singularity” and that the solidity of the projects was key for the top and runner-up Special Prize. Meanwhile, “a stronger and culturally precise vocabulary” were key for those in the running for the Pierre Bergé Prize.
Having returning competitors was a reminder that the ANDAM was not “the prize for an aesthetic crush but also [one] of the very concrete realities of the industry,” she continued.
For Dufour, the ANDAM accompanies designers and brands “at different stages as they build houses” so it stands “a test of what a fashion house can become, so it’s never 11 companies we don’t know, it’s an ecosystem that has come together.”
Mattiussi called his role as jury president “a very beautiful gift” from Dufour that built on the experience of coming on board as sponsor of the awards and mentor of the Pierre Bergé Prize.
This role, as well as the brand’s position as sponsor of the Cannes Film Festival’s Critics Week and the IFM Entrepreneurship Prize, had him “always at the start of beautiful stories,” he added.
As mentor, the Ami founder will guide the Grand Prize and Special Prize winners over the course of a year, advising on both creative direction and business strategy.
But he already had a piece of advice for competitors: to relax.
“They are already winners because being selected is a victory in itself and on the long run, [participating] may be a first attempt — the losers of this year may already be next year’s winners,” he said. “So they should really be relaxed because we aren’t there to judge them critically, we are here to observe, accompany them.”
Other winners will also receive targeted mentorship. Frédéric Maus, director general of trade fair organizer WSN, will support the Pierre Bergé Prize recipient, while Lacoste creative director Pelagia Kolotouros will mentor the accessories winner.
As is customary, although the winners walk off with six-figure purses, all 11 finalists will have access to deadstock materials provided by Balenciaga and Longchamp, and they also can enjoy privileged access to Swarovski’s showroom to discover the creative possibilities of crystal.
They will also receive a broad-reaching support program that includes Karla Otto’s expertise in positioning, press visibility and strategic development; an OTB-run workshop on best practices in sustainable design, and Zalando’s strategic mentorship program aiming to translate their creative visions into sustainable brand development across Europe thanks to the retailer’s expertise in digital distribution, consumer intelligence and operational scalability.
Additionally, finalists based in France have privileged access to the Institut Français de la Mode fashion school’s accelerator program, and financial advice from the Institute for the Financing of Cinema and the Cultural Industries, which supports cultural industries in France.
This year’s jury includes designer Burç Akyol, who won the Pierre Bergé Prize last year and is mentored by Mattiussi; model Jeanne Cadieu, and “fashion agitator” Lyas. Alongside them are Inès de la Fressange; creative directors Lolita Jacobs and Jean-Baptiste Talbourdet-Napoleone; visual artist Théo Mercier; former fashion and luxury consultant Jean-Jacques Picart; Ami Paris chief executive officer Nicolas Santi-Weil, and writer and critic Sophie Fontanel.
Created in 1989 by Dufour, with the support of the French Ministry of Culture and the DEFI, a body that promotes the development of the French fashion industry, and with the late Pierre Bergé as president, ANDAM has been a springboard for designers who have gone on to achieve international recognition.
Past winners include Viktor&Rolf, Christophe Lemaire, Jeremy Scott and Marine Serre. Meryll Rogge, now the creative director of Marni, scooped the 2025 Grand Prize for her eponymous brand.
ANDAM also awards the Innovation Prize to an ecological-focused tech startup in the fashion sector. This year’s award went to AI-powered data analytics company Alphalyr.