AirAsia Runway Ready Designer Search, the regional fashion designer competition kicked off its first round of auditions with Jerome Tayao, 21, and Maria “Esme” Palaganas, 23, chosen to represent the Philippines to the Grand Finale in Kuala Lumpur in August.
The AirAsia Runway Ready Designer Search 2017 has expanded to cover all 10 Asean countries this year, and will provide aspiring designers the opportunity of a lifetime to compete on a regional level and showcase their collection on a professional runway during the KL Fashion Week Ready to Wear.
A total of over 50 participants were shortlisted from a pool of online submissions with representations from top fashion schools across the Philippines such as De La Salle University of St. Benilde, Fashion Institute of the Philippines, and School of Fashion and the Arts.
Hannah Serrano, head of Crewing for Philippines AirAsia says, “The great turnout signifies how AirAsia Runway Ready Designer Search has evolved into a powerhouse competition for aspiring fashion designers from across the region to compete. The local designers we met have some very bold and fresh perspectives to the Asean-inspired theme. Surely, it will be a tough competition and we are sure that the Top 2 selected today will do the Philippines proud during the Grand Finale in August.”