Cordwainers Footwear Awards 2023 winners revealed

Footwear association The Worshipful Company of Cordwainers has announced the winners of this year’s Cordwainers Footwear Awards celebrating the best in young footwear talent.

The event took place in London on June 7, featuring 15 student finalists from the London College of Fashion, University of the Arts London and De Montfort University, who competed to win the coveted Cordwainers Footwear Award Trophy.

The First Prize was awarded to Jihwi Ahn from De Montfort University, who receives 3,000 pounds, while the award's Second Place, worth 2,000 pounds, went to Daniel Charkow from the London College of Fashion.

Commenting on his win, Ahn said in a statement: “It’s really a privilege to experience this event and to be a winner. It really means a lot to me! I think it will really encourage me to push forward and work in this industry.”

The Worshipful Company of Cordwainers celebrate young footwear talent

This year also included two new awards, a new Sneaker/Athleisure Award recognising innovations in sneaker design and the Sue Saunders Award for Excellence, a lifetime contribution award named after the inspiring footwear teacher and mentor.

The Sneaker/Athleisure Award was won by Bobby Nangla from De Montfort University. He took home 1,500 pounds.

The Sue Saunders Award for Excellence was made posthumously to Sue Saunders herself, in recognition of her “immense contribution to footwear education,” explained The Worshipful Company of Cordwainers. In the future, the award will be awarded by nomination to an individual.

Other wins for the London College of Fashion included Annie Purdy receiving the Sustainable Development Award and a cash prize of 1,500 pounds while Georgia Dalloro was recognised with the First Commendation and Barney Wardlaw the Second Commendation, and both take home 500 pounds each.

The 2023 judging panel included Joanne Jørgensen, footwear design director at Nike's London design studio, Katie Greenyer creative director at Pentland Brands, Joachim Sedelmeier head of design of shoes at Paul Smith, and international footwear designer Charlotte Olympia Dellal.