2023: Rhea Daniels

"I am profoundly honored to be named the recipient of the 2023 Nashville Fashion Forward Fund. This grant empowers us to further our mission of style and inclusivity by focusing on professional development, securing federal contracts, and establishing international trade. We aim to expand our presence within the American Armed Forces Exchange Service, bringing our unique fashion solutions to military communities worldwide. This opportunity is not just a milestone for Papierdoll Factory but a step towards a more interconnected and stylish world." – Rhea Daniels, Founder and Creative Director of Papierdoll Factory

Founded in 2018, Papierdoll Factory is dedicated to blending avant-garde resort wear with cultural consciousness. Rhea's upbringing in Clarksville, Tennessee, amidst the rich diversity of a military town, has profoundly influenced the brand’s ethos. Papierdoll Factory strives to celebrate the world's myriad cultures through high-quality, bespoke designs. 

Receiving the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund is a milestone for the brand's journey to elevate global fashion standards. Papierdoll Factory believes in "Style Without Borders" and is passionate about creating fashion that empowers and inspires. Initiatives like Minerva's Closet—a program sponsored by Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated, Nashville Alumnae Chapter—provide no-cost prom shopping experiences for underprivileged teens, showcasing the brand's commitment to community empowerment. Papierdoll Factory is also actively involved and dedicated to the vibrant local fashion scene in both Nashville and Atlanta.

Rhea also serves as a Presidential Donor and Executive Member of the Tennessee State University National Alumni Association, actively contributing to the university's growth and success. Her leadership and vision continue to drive Papierdoll Factory forward, making every piece a celebration of diversity and style.

2022: Haley Maddox

Haley Maddox has been working in Nashville since 2017 after studying fashion design at The Art Institute of Indianapolis and several internships in the bridal industry. She has worked as a production manager for Olia Zavozina and most recently at Workwear Outfitters where she where she was involved in fabric development, technical design and merchandising, to gain experience in all areas of the fashion business before pursing her dream of building her own brand.

Haley has always aspired to have her own line and is in the process of launching MaddLove, a new-age bridal line, in 2023 with Adrienne Love. Adrienne is the owner of The Wedding Studio, the bridal boutique that Haley interned at during college that first sparked her love for the bridal industry. Adrienne currently has four store locations in Indiana and Kentucky with plans to expand to Nashville. What was once a lofty idea between a new bridal boutique owner and her bright-eyed intern is now becoming reality. They are combining the skills of a successful entrepreneur and the industry knowledge of a creative designer to create MaddLove, which is a play on their last names; Maddox and Love. 

“I feel so honored to be this year’s recipient of the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund. My plan is to attend the Global Fashion Summit where I will soak up every bit of knowledge about sustainability I can get. I think there is a sense of responsibility for all of us in the fashion industry to understand how we harm our planet. It is important to me that my line uses new awareness and innovation to ensure I remain intentional with my environmental impact. That is why I am so excited for this opportunity to learn and grow!” - Haley Maddox, MaddLove Bridal

2021: Fifteen NFW Designers FROM Middle Tennessee

The pandemic cancelled Nashville Fashion Week just two weeks before we were to celebrate our 10 year anniversary. Designers who were previously selected to show in 2020 were invited to participate in a digital runway presentation broadcast through the CFDA Runway 360 website in the fall of 2021. Fifteen Middle Tennessee designers were given an innovative platform to present their collections to a global audience. Despite having no revenue stream for two years, Nashville Fashion Week issued each designer a $500 gift from the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund to help them weather the challenging times, but more importantly, to remind them to keep going.

2019: Megan Prange

"I am beyond thrilled to be this year’s Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient! I first learned about Nashville Fashion Week seven years ago and since then have been a huge believer in the amazing opportunities if offers to everyone who participates in it every year. I am honored to be a part of it and am incredibly grateful for the opportunity the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund will allow me."

Megan Prange started Prange Apparel six years ago in response to the demand from independent designers and boutique owners for small batch production. At the time, Megan was doing freelance pattern and sample work for local designers when she noticed the struggle they were having scaling their businesses. They couldn’t keep up with the demand by sewing everything themselves.

She decided to go out on a limb and open a small batch manufacturing business. She started off with just three home sewing machines and a few interns.

Prange now has a full-scale business that employs twenty-five full time employees, has over 30 industrial machines and a client base that spans from coast to coast.

2018: Van Hoang

Van Hoang is a designer based in Nashville, TN. She has a B.F.A. in Fashion Design & Merchandising from O’More College of Design as well as an M.A. in Design for Sustainability from Savannah College of Art & Design. Her aesthetic is modern yet timeless, versatile, and functional. She is interested in the intersection of sustainability, fashion, and technology and how those fields can work together to innovate solutions and break down barriers to create a more sustainable fashion system. Hoang's mission is to offer an alternative to fast fashion that many have become accustomed to. In the past she created one-of-a-kind gowns with intricate craftsmanship and couture techniques. However, she recently launched her namesake high-end ready-to-wear line that is handmade in Nashville and hopes to build a company with sustainability, quality, and community as it’s core values. Hoang first showed on the Nashville Fashion Week runway in 2015.

“I am incredibly honored to be the recipient of this years Nashville Fashion Forward Fund," said Hoang. "This award will enable me to attend the Copenhagen Fashion Summit which is a global conference about sustainability in fashion and this opportunity will allow me to learn from top leaders in the field. I hope to bring this knowledge back to Nashville and turn ideas into action.”

2017: Maria Silver

Designer Maria Silver has been named the 2017 Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient. A committee from the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee selected Silver from a group of experienced fashion industry applicants with ties to Middle Tennessee. Silver is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York with a bachelor of fine arts in women's contemporary clothing and costume design. Before founding her fashion line Black by Maria Silver in 2011, Silver worked in various costume design positions on Broadway, then moved to Los Angeles as a design assistant, as well as toured with the cult rock band The Ettes. Black by Maria Silver has been featured in Nylon, Bust, Refinery 29, Elle, and others. More recently, Silver designed for the critically acclaimed Nashville Ballet production 7 Deadly Sins, and in 2017, opened her first storefront in East Nashville. Maria has shown more times at Nashville Fashion Week than any other designer.

"I couldn't be more honored to receive the Fashion Forward Fund award from the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee and Nashville Fashion Week,” said Sliver. “The continued support from the Nashville community has been key to my growth. With this award, I hope to explore new ways to improve both my e-commerce presence and brick and mortar storefront, with the end-goal to integrate both in an innovative manner. I believe is the future of our craft and art.”

2016: Brett Warren

Fashion photographer Brett Warren has been named the sixth annual Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient by The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee (CFMT). A committee of the Board of CFMT selected Warren amongst a group of experienced fashion industry applicants with ties to Middle Tennessee. Warren is the first photographer to be selected as a recipient of the Fund. 

Brett Warren lives in a world where anything is possible. While studying design and photography at MTSU, Brett became passionately inspired to present the world as it could be through images that would appeal to the mind and imagination. What started with a dream and a Nikon Cool Pix has turned into a means to convey emotion, and to share untold stories and convictions. Along the way he found encouragement through a personal encounter with Wayne White, a more-than-serendipitous internship with Annie Leibovitz, and invitations to shoot at New York Fashion Week.

Since 2011 he has produced multiple events, spoken at Universities, worked behind the scenes on sets for Vogue, art directed major label music videos, and had his work featured in local and national publications. In addition, Brett has been highly active in the local community by serving on the Nashville Fashion Week Advisory Council, and is an avid supporter of the Nashville fashion community. He has been recognized among his peers, for his “Point of View,” and built long-lasting relationships with those in and out of the fashion world.

Brett moved to NYC in 2018 to work with Oscar de la Rental. While he also has worked with easily recognized brands such as Vogue, W Magazine, Matches Fashion, Billy Reid, Pamela Love, and Manolo Blahnik, he is just as passionate about working with some that may not be as familiar…yet.

Photo provided by Matthew Priestly

2015: ERIC ADLER BORNHOP

Eric Adler Bornhop was selected as the fifth Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient. Bornhop is the first male recipient of the fund and plans to use his award to experience his first New York City trade show.

“Eric Adler Clothing wouldn’t be where it is today without Nashville Fashion Week,” Bornhop said. “It has provided me with a network of peers and resources, expansive exposure and marketing opportunities and the ability to organically plant my roots in my home city of Nashville.  In a rapidly emerging fashion community, Nashville Fashion Week has provided a springboard for an emerging designer like myself to get their foot in the door, one of the hardest feats to overcome in fashion.”

Eric Adler Clothing was born in the mountains of Southern Spain and raised in the hills of Middle Tennessee. In 2012, while living in Spain, he was inspired by street culture to create his own line of clothing. After returning to Nashville, he worked as an apprentice under local legend and fashion designer Manuel Cuevas. Manuel taught Bornhop the art of tailoring and encouraged him to explore his own personal style. Eric developed his own clothing line at night and weekends while working with Manuel. Eric Adler made its debut in 2014 at Nashville Fashion Week after being selected as one of ten featured emerging designers that year. Since then he has opened his own Green Hills studio where he designs and tailors for Alan Jackson, Big Kenny, Shania Twain and more.

2013: ELISE JOSEPH

The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee (CFMT) named Elise Joseph the third annual Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient. Joseph was the first stylist and blogger to be selected as a recipient of the fund.

“It is an incredible honor and privilege to be named this year’s Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient,” said Joseph. “The Nashville fashion community is always giving back, which is what I too hope to do in my home city for years to come. It is an exciting time to be a Nashvillian, and I’m determined to help this town continue to flourish and grow, while maintaining our deep Southern roots, charm and history.”

Joseph, born and raised in Nashville, has made a name for herself as a stylist, a blogger of her largely followed design blog, Pennyweight, and on Pinterest where she has earned over 1.3 million followers. She has partnered with fashion brands such as Steven Alan, Madewell, Equipment, Need Supply, J.Crew, Gap, Warby Parker and West Elm.

Joseph is perhaps best described in the words of one creative director at Madewell: “She has her finger on the pulse of the best indie music, stylish home goods, new shopping destinations – the works. In other words, if it’s artfully cool, you can bet it’s on her well-rounded radar.” She has also been featured on Refinery29, InStyle Magazine, Kinfolk Magazine and Southern Living, and served as Media Director at Nashville’s own imogene + willie.

“My goal this next year is to research, learn, grow and collaborate, while working towards my dream of a brick and mortar shop,” Joseph has stated. “The NFF funds will aid in my travels both domestically and internationally, allowing me the opportunity to meet artists and designers around the world, and to challenge myself both personally and professionally.”

Goodwin, a women’s capsule retail concept launched in September 2016, is the result of her research. Elise partnered with independent, emerging and established artists and designers who share her belief of intentional, thoughtful, and quality design. Each featured piece is uniquely created and produced in limited quantities and available exclusively through the online shop. Elise founded Duende in 2020, to focus on brand identity and expansion, content development, creative direction and special projects and her unique vintage finds. She also shares personal essays and thoughtful interviews through her Substack newsletter.

2012: LAUREN LEONARD Phelps

Lauren Leonard Phelps, the President and Creative Director of LEONA, was chosen as the 2012 Nashville Fashion Forward Fund winner. Leonard was carefully selected from an illustrious group of fashion industry professionals that included designers, hair and clothing stylists, photographers, makeup artists and models.

Lauren founded the women’s contemporary apparel brand in 2007 and quickly grew the business from an idea to company through original product design, effective business planning, individual branding, innovative sales techniques, strong leadership, and creative marketing without the benefit of external capital and sold in 200+ specialty boutique retailers. E-commerce launched in 2010 and she opened her flagship store in Nashville in 2012. LEONA was a featured designer at Nashville Fashion Week in the inaugural year of 2011, and again in 2012 and 2013. The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund allowed Leonard to travel to Paris in the spring of 2014 to meet with fabric and trend vendors and to gather inspiration from around the city for her Spring 2015 collection. 

Lauren closed her business in 2015 when she moved to New York City with her husband. She served as the Chief Operating Officer of BRANDON MAXWELL before transitioning to preserving the magic of childhood through classic commissioned portraits. Visit LaurenPhelps.com to view her beautiful work in 2017.

2011: JULIANNA BASS BREA

The first Nashville Fashion Forward Fund Award was awarded in 2011to Julianna Bass, a Pulaski, Tennessee native and Middle TN State University alumna who moved to New York City to study fashion and costume design at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She was named designer of the year upon graduation and went on to develop her skills while working at luxury brands Bill Blass, Elie Tahari, Eugenia Kim and Marc Jacobs. Julianna has been awarded placement in the Gen Art Style Awards two years in a row and has executed several successful design collaborations, including the design of a print for Diet Coke that was sold in Target Stores across the U.S. 

Julianna attended the Bread and Butter trade show in Berlin, Germany as her Nashville Fashion Forward Award experience.  Her primary goal for the experience was to initiate expansion of her eponymous women's clothing line into an international market. She was so taken with the culture, art and fashion of the city that the following year she moved from Brooklyn to Berlin to further develop her creativity and design perspective. "My time in Berlin gave me an incredible mix of freedom and focus." says Bass. I'm able to design from my authentic self." Julianna has since returned to New York City after making her runway presentation debut at New York Fashion Week AW15. 

Vogue stated "Bass designs speak to the woman who isn't afraid to embrace classic style on her own terms". Since the collection's debut, Julianna Bass has received accolades from prominent U.S. and international publications including Vogue (Germany and U.S.), Women's Wear Daily and New York Magazine. 

Julianna moved to Nashville in 2022 after 20 years. She is currently consulting with fashion and interior start-ups, heritage brands, and fine artists to elevate their product offerings and solve creative problems through purpose driven design, branding and sustainable manufacturing while rebranding her Julianna Bass label.