ITS 2025: Maximilian Raynor wins jury prize at Trieste’s international fashion competition

The 22nd edition of ITS, founded by Barbara Franchin in 2002, embraced this year’s theme, Borderless. The competition has solidified a new format, introduced last year, where all ten finalists automatically receive the ITS Creative Excellence Award 10x10x10. Among them, the jury gave Raynor a special mention, awarding him the ITS Jury’s Rewarding Honour. Patrick Taylor also stood out, winning the Modateca Deanna Prize and the Pitti Tutoring & Consulting Award.

Derbyshire-born Maximilian Raynor, 26, has lived in London for a decade and studied at Central Saint Martins before launching his label in 2022. His designs quickly gained industry attention, dressing celebrities. He debuted his first London runway show with an ITS grant in February.

His award-winning collection, praised by the jury, featured opulent sculptural pieces drawing inspiration from multiple historical eras. Each look embodied a character from an imaginary purgatory set in a haunted mansion—a surreal backdrop for his designs.

“I design my pieces as if they were costumes for a film, theater production, or novel. Storytelling is essential to my creative process,” said Raynor, who advocates for genderfluid fashion as a challenge to patriarchal norms.

Sustainability remains a core focus. Raynor sources recycled fabrics and employs zero-waste construction techniques. With experience at JW Anderson, he blends textures and materials, working with shredded tweeds sculpted into dramatic gowns, Victorian dresses mixing gingham patterns, and voluminous knitwear adorned with bells. He also experiments with leather, crafting bold outerwear, including a red military coat with metal stud embellishments.

 
Born in London, Patrick Taylor, 25, lived across Singapore and Dubai before settling in New York, where he graduated from Parsons School of Design. Passionate about textiles and knitwear, he merges these two worlds into a collection that fuses sportswear aesthetics with intricate knitting techniques. His vibrant, innovative silhouettes captivated the jury.

Taylor’s collection is inspired by his childhood memories, shaped by outdoor adventures with his siblings, often led by his sports-loving father. His key influences—skiing, and sailing—are reflected in his designs, which translate the movement and posture of these sports into fluid, dynamic garments.

Entirely knitted in merino wool, the collection also includes cotton-knit jeans that mimic denim’s texture. “I focused on comfort but also on the performative aspect of the garments,” said Taylor.

His designs include oversized knit T-shirts with asymmetrical sleeves, one dramatically extended to evoke the motion of a sail in the wind. His pants, shaped with forward-bending knee panels, mirror the stance of a skier in motion. The jury was particularly impressed by Taylor’s ability to blend nostalgia with technical precision, as well as the cozy, desirable appeal of his accessories.

Other finalists in this year’s competition included French designer Macy Grimshaw, who crafted paper dresses resembling true works of art, earning both the Swatch Prize and the Fondazione Sozzani Award. Chinese designer Zhuen Cai, known for integrating traditional craftsmanship with circular design methods, received a €5,000 scholarship from the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana.

Scholarships and industry recognition for all finalists

All ten finalists were awarded a €10,000 scholarship, a ten-day residency at the ITS Arcademy—a creative hub and the first museum dedicated to contemporary fashion—and the opportunity to exhibit their work there for ten months. Additionally, they participated in an exclusive industry visit and training day with the Italian fashion group OTB, founded by Renzo Rosso.

“We chose to forgo the traditional runway show and instead offer financial support to all the finalists. There are fewer of them, but each one walks away with €10,000. This shift represents a major change in how fashion competitions operate. The stress of competition is gone— instead, we create an environment that fosters collaboration and creative exchange,” said Barbara Franchin, who noted that the 2025 cohort bonded closely, even co-writing a manifesto on the future of fashion.

One of the defining themes of ITS 2025 was fashion’s ability to reflect emotional and physical suffering. Several designers explored how garments can serve as therapeutic expressions.

Among them, French designer Naya El Ahdab, awarded by Wrad, presented designs influenced by her experience with limited mobility since infancy. Meanwhile, Macy Grimshaw translated her grandmother’s battle with Alzheimer’s into delicate, memory-inspired paper dresses, symbolizing fragile yet enduring memories. “What was once kept inside is now being brought to the surface as a public conversation. This marks a true social evolution,” concluded Franchin.

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