Which Of These Fierce Fashion Females Are Already In Your Closet?
You've heard of Gucci, Yves Rocher, and Prada, but what about Ahluwalia, Hodakova, or Hanifa? These are just some of the jaw-dropping female-led labels that have entered the fashion world in the last decade. While the established fashion houses will always hold their sway, a fresh current of creativity is surging, powered by some fiercely talented women who are finally challenging long-standing conventions and redefining beauty standards. Here are 20 of the most innovative female designers to keep your eye on right now.
1. Sinéad O'Dwyer
Irish designer Sinéad O'Dwyer is making leaps towards inclusivity in the fashion world. Her designs are known for challenging conventional beauty standards and she always features models of all shapes and sizes at her runway shows.
2. Karoline Vitto
Karoline Vitto is a Brazilian fashion designer whose garments are redefining feminine beauty standards by accentuating "imperfections" instead of hiding them. Her designs are made for women who wear US sizes 6 to 24 and her runway shows feature curvier women.
3. Claire Sullivan
NYC-based fashion designer Claire Sullivan is known for her whimsical, theatrical avant-garde pieces that play with themes of nostalgia and hyper-feminity. She gained notoriety in 2023 when her Sarah Jessica Parker “newspaper dress,” a playful homage to Carrie Bradshaw's look, went viral.
4. Ellen Hodakova Larsson
Swedish designer Ellen Hodakova Larsson started her label Hodakova in 2021 with the goal of reimagining sustainability and challenging fashion conventions. She designs avant-garde garments using discarded materials and embeds stories and personal meaning into each piece.
5. Dimitra Petsa
Dimitra Petsa is a Greek designer best known for her "wet look" clothing which uses an innovative sewing technique to create the illusion that the garments are clinging to the body as if drenched. Her designs celebrate feminine sexuality, and body inclusivity, and refer to mythology.
6. Hanifa Mvuemba
Congolese-American designer Hanifa Mvuemba founded her label Hanifa to celebrate each uniquely beautiful shape and curve found on a woman's body. She is a self-taught designer known for her use of bold colors and unique and exceptionally flattering silhouettes.
7. Grace Ling
Singaporean designer Grace Ling is known for her innovative approach to design, utilizing 3D printing and CGI in her process which enables zero-waste creation. Her designs are known for their surrealist aesthetic, blending wit and elegance.
Konstantin Mishchenko on Pexels
8. Paolina Russo
Paolina Russo is a Canadian designer whose namesake label pays homage to her suburban upbringing blended with elements of French folklore. She's known for her innovative knitwear designs that display holographic visual effects and using upcycled and unconventional materials.
9. Caroline Zimbalist
Caroline Zimbalist's work bridges the gap between art and fashion. She is best known for her work in creating new bioplastics which she uses to create three-dimensional forms for garments. Her "wearable sculptures" turn the human body into a canvas.
10. Supriya Lele
Supriya Lele is a British fashion designer of Indian heritage whose design aesthetic is deeply rooted in her cross-cultural identity, blending London's contemporary youth culture with traditional Indian fashion. She's partnered with the likes of Victoria's Secret and Bentley Motors.
11. Masha Popova
Masha Popova is a London-based Ukrainian designer whose designs are largely informed by her experience growing up in post-soviet Ukraine. Her aesthetic has been described as "couture sportswear" blending the casual, somewhat grungey, and raw qualities of early 2000s aesthetic with high-fashion techniques.
12. Isabel Wilkinson Schor
Isabel Wilkinson Schor launched the label Attersee in 2021 with the goal of creating classic and timeless looks that are inviting and easy. Sculpted vests, cashmere, linens, and pleated dresses are just some of what's in her repertoire.
13. Margherita Maccapani Missoni
Being the heiress to the famous Missoni fashion house, Margherita Maccapani Missoni grew up immersed in this world. She was appointed creative director of her family's brand until forging her own path with the launch of her label Maccapani in 2023 which focuses on feminine beauty and comfort.
14. Aleali May
"Queen of Sneakers," Aleali May is one of the only female designers to create sneakers for the Jordan brand and the first woman to design unisex Jordans. Her aesthetic which is deeply rooted in LA blends streetwear, high-end fashion, and 90s hip-hop.
15. Andrea Mary Marshall
NYC-based designer and artist Andrea Mary Marshall founded the luxury fashion brand Salon 1884 in 2021. Her label focuses on sustainability and explores themes of power, identity, and femininity.
16. Rachel Scott
Jamaican-American designer Rachel Scott is best known for her modern take on crochet. Her brand Diotima was launched in 2021 and many of her brand's garments are handmade by artisans in Jamaica. In 2024, she became the first Black woman to win the CFDA Award for American Womenswear Designer of the Year.
17. Ancuța Sarca
Ancuța Sarca is a Romanian designer best known for her upcycled footwear line. Her distinctive sneaker-hell hybrids have garnered a huge following, being celebrated for their juxtaposition of masculine and feminine, old-school and modern elements.
Photo taken by RanchoRosco on Wikimedia
18. Priya Ahluwalia
British-Indian-Nigerian designer Priya Ahluwalia founded the label Ahluwalia in 2018. Her design aesthetic is focused on her unique heritage mixed with her London upbringing and she has a strong focus on sustainability and storytelling through fashion.
19. Veronika Kant
Veronika Kant is a Swedish fashion designer who founded BITE Studios in 2016 with the aim of merging high-quality fashion with sustainability and ethical practices. Her designs are minimalist, timeless, and sophisticated.
20. Tolu Coker
Nigerian-British designer and artist Tolu Coker's design aesthetic is inspired by her unique heritage and her family's activist history. She launched her namesake brand in 2021, showcasing her largely unisex, sustainable, and high-quality designs.
