Swiss luxury giant Richemont has announced the launch of ‘A Bunch of Designers,’ a new collective initiative that supports six emerging designers from the first edition of ‘AZ Academy: Business for Designers,’ helping them transform their educational experience into a tangible business and market reality, while ensuring that the designers remain fully at the center of their own projects.
After completing the 12-month program, ‘A Bunch of Designers’ prepares designers to develop and produce their first commercial capsule collections. Through this collective initiative, these talents will have the opportunity to present their selected collections with their first authentic market launch in late September, coinciding with Paris Women’s Fashion Week.
Marking the next chapter in the artistic and human legacy left by Albert Elbazas well as the evolution of the AZ Factory label and the AZ Academy: Business for Designers project, ‘A Bunch of Designers’ continues Elbaz’s vision of supporting and sharing independent creativity.
AZ Academy: Business for Designers is based in Milan and is aimed at independent designers in the luxury and fashion sectors; it was developed by Richemont and Creative Academy in collaboration with Accademia Costume & Moda. Born from the legacy of Alber Elbaz and the evolution of the brand he created, AZ Factory, the program offers a 360-degree understanding of what it takes to build and grow a brand today. Students are trained in key disciplines including finance, merchandising, pricing, distribution, production, communication, and brand definition.
The six designers—Brais Albor, Caterina Moro, Liwen Liang, Manon Marcelot, Merle Breuker, and Sandra Jao—were selected in December 2025, distinguished by the strength of their creative vision and clarity of positioning, as well as their commercial potential. Representing distinct yet complementary worlds within women’s and men’s apparel and leather goods, the designers embody the heart of this collective initiative: boundless creativity, extraordinary savoir-faire, and a bold entrepreneurial spirit.
Albor has a unique approach to menswear and pays particular attention to the “bear community.” The young designer combines tailoring and underwear to create oversized yet precise silhouettes. Moro’s style and approach are deeply rooted in his philosophy of “E ART H- The Earth as Art.” She views nature, which she considers the new luxury, as a compass, translating its forms, patterns, and intelligence into a distinctive design language, brought to life through refined Made in Italy garments.
By combining China’s ceramic heritage with contemporary fashion, Liang creates wearable sculptures that blur the boundaries between object and body, fostering a dialogue between tradition, craftsmanship, and experimentation with materials. Marcelot, on the other hand, blends urban life with rural heritage to define a unique vision of “agricultural sophistication” through elegant, finely crafted, and playful leather goods and accessories. His work draws inspiration from farm machinery, landscapes, and everyday tools.
In his modular collection ‘The Lasting,’ Breuker presents design classics featuring convertible and flexible elements. The garments, made from surplus stock, adapt to the wearer’s body, ensuring longevity, repairability, and combinatorial versatility. Ultimately, Jao explores clothing as a form of transformation and emotional expression, combining Japanese technical innovation with Italian craftsmanship. His approach prioritizes form, structure, materials, and construction over mere style.
Richemont and AZ Academy: Business for Designers will provide operational support, coaching, and strategic consulting, with designer lutz Huelle serving as an ambassador to convey the spirit of sharing. Huelle is a former “Amigo” of AZ Factory and a member of the AZ Academy admissions jury.
“At Richemont, we believe that creativity flourishes when promising talents are provided with the right environment, skills, and time to develop. ‘A Bunch of Designers’ reflects this commitment, extending support beyond training,” said Philippe Fortunato, CEO of Richemont’s fashion and accessories maisons, in a statement. Meanwhile, Graziella Valtorta, executive director and CEO of Creative Academy, emphasized that AZ Academy: Business for Designers was created “to help independent designers combine creative ambition with the practical knowledge needed to build a brand today.
“With ‘A Bunch of Designers,’ these six promising designers have the opportunity to put what they’ve learned into practice, supported by a framework that respects each designer’s individuality and the legacy from which the program was born,” said Valtorta.
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