Mercedes-Benz Bucharest Fashion Week launches the second edition of NEXT GENERATION – Fashion Talent Award, a program dedicated to young designers in their final years of study or recent graduates of fashion universities in Romania. This year’s edition opens a new framework for creative exploration, inviting participants to engage in an open dialogue on identity, form, and contemporary expression.
X–Identity, the theme proposed for this edition, is about freedom. About the desire to experiment, to build unexpected volumes, to simplify the silhouette, and to introduce new methodological perspectives. X–Identity views identity as an open space, where plurality and transformation are natural processes of creation.
Inspired by the way Constantin Brâncuși reduced form to its essence at the beginning of the 20th century, the theme invites young designers to liberate the line from decorative excess and to explore volume as a form of expression. Participants are invited to enter the competition with three outfits developed around the X–Identity theme by May 10, proposing a personal interpretation of identity as an independent visual language, adapted to a constantly evolving contemporary context.
The partnership with Polimoda, one of the world’s most prestigious fashion schools, continues this year as well, strengthening the international dimension of the program. Italian creative director Massimiliano Giornetti, Director of Polimoda, returns as mentor and will oversee the creative development of the 10 selected designers.
At the same time, Next Generation reaffirms its connection with the local academic environment, continuing its collaboration with leading art and design universities, such as the National University of Arts Bucharest, the University of Art and Design in Cluj-Napoca (UAD), and the West University of Timișoara, thus strengthening the dialogue between academic training and the fashion industry.
A key moment of the edition is March 24, the first day of Mercedes-Benz Bucharest Fashion Week, entirely dedicated to NEXT GENERATION. The day begins with the Next Generation Conference, hosted by ASE, a platform for dialogue between young creatives and industry professionals, focused on the designer’s journey in today’s context. The conference addresses both the creative dimension and the professional realities of fashion, from building an identity and a brand to challenges related to business, retail, and the operational framework of the industry. Perspectives are shaped through contributions from representatives of Banca Transilvania and Fashion Days, partners of the project.
Following the conference, the program continues at Promenada Mall Bucharest with the Creative Lab Sessions, an applied format designed as a “learning by doing” experience. For one afternoon, the retail space becomes an open creative campus, where participants work directly in real-world contexts alongside industry professionals. Workshops led by Polimoda professors, together with sessions developed in collaboration with MAC Cosmetics and Musette, offer concrete insight into creative, styling, beauty, and production processes, connecting design concepts with market realities.
The day concludes with a party powered by IQOS, a celebratory moment dedicated to the Next Generation community. Students, influencers, and guests are encouraged to wear their own creations or designs made by their peers, as a symbolic gesture of support for the new generation. The evening will include screenings of graduation collections and will become an informal meeting space between education, industry, and the public.
The competition finale will take place in October, when the 10 selected designers will present their collections on the main stage of Mercedes-Benz Bucharest Fashion Week, in front of an international jury composed of industry and academic representatives. The winner of the NEXT GENERATION – Fashion Talent Award will receive a nine-month master’s program at Polimoda, complemented by an internship at an international brand. The program thus reaffirms its mission to create real bridges between education, industry, and the global fashion scene. In addition, all 10 finalists will benefit from commercial visibility, with one outfit from each collection to be listed on the Fashion Days platform.
The winner of the previous edition, Mara Popa, is currently continuing her academic journey at Polimoda, where she has begun the Master’s program in Collection Design. This experience marks an important stage in her professional development, offering direct access to an international educational context and an intensive work rhythm focused on research, construction, and the definition of a personal creative language.
Next Generation thus remains more than a competition: a training platform, a space for dialogue, and a manifesto for a generation that defines its identity through freedom, courage, and experimentation.
The full competition regulations and the application form are available online on the official Mercedes-Benz Bucharest Fashion Week website.