Are You The Next Nashville Fashion Forward Recipient?

ARE YOU THE NEXT NASHVILLE FASHION FORWARD RECIPIENT?

This month marks five years since Nashville Fashion Week was forced to make a hard pivot when a tornado devastated Nashville. Just a few weeks later, the world changed forever. So much has happened since then, but through it all, the Nashville fashion community continues to evolve. While our focus has shifted from producing the events you may have attended in the past, we remain committed to supporting our fashion community by continuing to build the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund to ensure its impact endures for years to come.

Some things never change!

We're preparing to launch our 12th Nashville Fashion Forward Fund application in a few weeks, so start thinking about what experience would help elevate both you and your business to where you want to go. 

Established in 2011, the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund of the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee is an endowed fund that supports the next generation of fashion industry professionals with ties to Middle Tennessee by providing a financial reward and resources for EXPERIENTIAL professional development opportunities each year with proceeds from Nashville Fashion Week. ALL fashion industry professionals with ties to Middle Tennesse are encouraged to apply to be our twelvth Nashville Fashion Forward Fund award winner.

Previous recipients include our most recent award winner Rhea Daniels, apparel designers Haley Maddox, Van Hoang, Maria Silver, Eric Bornhop, Lauren Leonard Phelps and Julianna Bass Brea; small batch apparel manufacturer Megan Prange; fashion photographer Brett Warren; accessory designer Ceri Hoover; and content creator Elise Joseph.

Dream big. You could be next! You won't know unless you apply.

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Step into a world where sneaker culture meets artistic expression at the Air Max Art Crawl on March 26, 2025 in downtown at The Arcade Nashville! For the 3rd Annual Air Max Day,  Melissa Watkins, creator of FabGlance, is elevating the experience in collaboration with Arcade Arts Nashville! This unique event brings together local artists, fashionistas, sneaker lovers, and creatives for an unforgettable celebration of style, culture, and community in a one-of-a-kind fusion of sneakers and street art. 

What to Expect

* Live art installations & sneaker-inspired exhibits

* Exclusive sneaker showcases & custom designs

* Music, fashion, and interactive experiences

* A curated space for creatives to connect

We are honored to have you consider the Nashville Fashion Foward Fund as the recipient of your next charitable event. Please complete the sponsorship form at NashvilleFashionWeek.com
to discuss potential partnership opportunties to financially support the Nashville fashion community through The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. We appeciate your continued support. 

Thank you! 

Nashville Fashion Forward Fund Recipient 2023

NASHVILLE FASHION WEEK ANNOUNCES OUR ELEVENTH NASHVILLE FASHION FORWARD FUND RECIPIENT 

We are excited to announce Rhea Daniels, the founder and creative director of Papierdoll Factory, as the 2023 Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient. A committee from The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee selected Rhea from a diverse group of experienced fashion industry applicants based on her impressive submission that adhered to specific criteria established by the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund co-founders in 2010. We will honor and celebrate Rhea at an upcoming Nashville Fashion Week community event.

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. 

"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

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.

The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee is an endowed fund that supports the next generation of fashion industry professionals with ties to Middle Tennessee by providing an annual financial award and resources for experiential professional development opportunities to advance the career of select local talent with demonstrated experience in a fashion-related field based on pre-established criteria.

“At its core, Nashville Fashion Week has always been about supporting the people who bring fashion to life. The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund Award has recognized and celebrated the creative aspirations of fashion industry professionals for more than a decade with financial support to go, do, learn as part of their creative journey."  - Amy Fair, Senior Director of Philanthropic Partnerships, The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee

Connie Cathcart-Richardson, Mclaine Richardson, Rhea Daniels and Marcia Masulla at The Frist Center for the Visual Arts Alexander McQueen Media Preview

"As the fashion and creative economy in Nashville evolves, our vision and mission continue to be focused on creating lasting impact in the ecosystem for the fashion community. Rhea's big picture strategy for her business is both inspiring and a worthy investment for The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund. We are excited to work with Rhea and others in the community on forging a new and fruitful path forward." - Marcia Masulla, Managing Director & Co-Founder + Connie Cathcart-Richardson, Co-Founder, Nashville Fashion Week | Nashville Fashion Forward Fund

Previous Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipients include apparel designers Haley Maddox, Van Hoang, Maria Silver, Eric Bornhop, Lauren Leonard Phelps and Julianna Bass Brea; manufacturer Megan Prange, fashion photographer Brett Warren; accessory designer Ceri Hoover; and Elise Joseph, brand strategist and creative director.

The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund is a component fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee that is funded with charitable donations and proceeds from Nashville Fashion Week. The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund was inspired by the professional development provided by the Council of Fashion Designers (CFDA) through programs such as the CFDA/VOGUE Fashion Fund. The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund ensures that Nashville Fashion Week is not just a single high-profile event to celebrate creativity, but also an ongoing, sustainable focus for philanthropic support of our community for many years to come.

Tenth NFFF Recipient: Haley Maddox 2022

NASHVILLE FASHION WEEK ANNOUNCES
THE TENTH NASHVILLE FASHION FORWARD FUND RECIPIENT 

We are excited to announce Haley Maddox, co-owner and designer of MaddLove Bridal as our 2022 Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient. A committee from The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee selected Haley from a diverse group of experienced fashion industry applicants based on specific criteria set by the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund co-founders. We will honor and celebrate Haley during our April 2023 festivities.

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 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.

“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

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. 

The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee is an endowed fund that supports the next generation of fashion industry professionals with ties to Middle Tennessee by providing an annual financial award and resources for experiential professional development opportunities to advance the career of select local talent with demonstrated experience in a fashion-related field based on pre-established criteria.

“The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund Award represents an investment in the creative and inspired individuals looking to expand the perspectives that will contribute to their personal growth and the growth of their role in the fashion industry. Haley joins a terrific and ever growing list of talented individuals who’ve put their vision to paper for a compelling experience that inspired the Award selection panel.”  - Amy Fair, Vice President of Donor Services, The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee

Previous Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipients include manufacturer Megan Prange, apparel designers Van Hoang, Maria Silver, Eric Bornhop, Lauren Leonard Phelps and Julianna Bass; fashion photographer Brett Warren; accessory designer Ceri Hoover; and Elise Joseph, brand strategist and creative director.

The establishment of the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund in 2010 by the co-founders of Nashville Fashion Week was inspired by the professional development provided by the Council of Fashion Designers (CFDA) through programs such as the CFDA/VOGUE Fashion Fund. The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund is a component fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee that is funded with charitable donations and proceeds from Nashville Fashion Week. The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund ensures that Nashville Fashion Week is not just a signature high-profile event to celebrate creativity, but also an ongoing, sustainable focus for philanthropic support of our community.

Nashville Fashion is Moving Forward

BUILDING AN ECOSYSTEM:
NASHVILLE FASHION IS MOVING FORWARD

It's been a very productive few weeks. Last week, Nashville Fashion Week hosted and collaborated with the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) President, CaSandra Diggs and CFDA Connects Consulting Director Elliot Carlyle to align and build the foundation for a viable fashion industry ecosystem in Middle Tennessee.

Nashville Fashion Week has invested over $1.4 million into Nashville's fashion community over the past twelve years. This was accomplished with the heart and hustle of an all-volunteer led and run organization that has relied solely on sponsors and ticket sales to produce events and activations while providing experiential opportunities to nine Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipients through The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.

Fashion is one of the most influential drivers of culture, a beloved art and entertainment form, but we have not taken advantage of the fact that it is also one of the largest economic forces in the world. Now is the time for Nashville to change that.

The Nashville Fashion Week team, including new Nashville Fashion Forward leadership team member David Fischette of Go West Creative, invited and met with a curated group of community leaders, elected officials and organizations at W Nashville on Wednesday, May 4. The focus of the event was to present a proposed new direction for Nashville Fashion Week and to lobby for the Nashville fashion industry securing resources and financial support to build the foundation for a fashion industry ecosystem.

The following community and industry leaders attended the event with commitments to continue the conversation on how to support moving Nashville fashion forward. The individuals highlighted below in pink made statements to the group in support of the mission of moving Nashville fashion forward:

Office of Mayor John Cooper
- Courtney Pogue - Director of Economic & Community Development
- Mrs. Laura Fitzgerald-Cooper

Metro Nashville Council Members
- Kyonzte Toombs, District 2
- Jeff Syracuse, District 15
- Freddie O’Connell, District 19
- Joy Styles, District 32

Nashville Convention & Visitors Corporation
- Heather Middleton, SR Vice President Of Marketing

Nashville Chamber of Commerce
- Hannah Holmes, Manager of Member Value
- Victoria Quigley, Director of Small Business Growth

Supermodel, Entrepreneur, Artist, & Activist
- Karen Elson
- Bonnie Dee Bowden - Karen Elson, Inc.

Launch TN
- Ashley Currie, Marketing & Communications Director

BrainTrust
- Sherry Deutschmann, Founder & CEO

The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee
- Amy Fair, Vice President of Donor Services

OJAS Partners
- Lizzy LeBleu, Real Estate Advisor

oneC1TY
- Caitlin Arnold, Marketing & Development

Middle Tennessee State University
- Rick Cottle, Associate Professor of Fashion & Apparel
- David Foster, Director of Marketing & Communications

Vanderbilt University
Deanna Meador, Director of Entrepreneurship, Wond’ry - Vanderbilt’s Innovation Center

Go West Creative
- David Fischette, CEO & Chief Creative

Nashville Fashion Forward Fund Recipients
- Megan Prange, Prange Apparel (2019)
- Maria Silver, Black by Maria Silver (2017)

Nashville Lifestyles
- Alison Abbey, Editor In Chief
- Brian Barry, Publisher

Tennessean
- Sherah Ndjongo - Business Reporter

In addition, both Kelly Helfman, Commercial President of Informa Markets Fashion - Organizers of MAGIC, and Fern Mallis, the creator and founder of New York Fashion Week and long-time Nashville Fashion Week advisor, shared their support through written statements. MAGIC Fashion Events also made a significant monetary contribution to support the vision of moving Nashville fashion forward. The gathering was a pivotal moment for the future of Nashville Fashion Week and for Nashville's fashion industry. Followup meetings and planning are in the works. The Nashville Fashion Week email list will receive updates as progress ensues.

View photos from the Meeting HERE.

The conversation was continued at an in-person fundraising event and live stream recording of Moving Fashion Forward - A Conversation with NFW + CFDA featuring CFDA President, CaSandra Diggs and NFW Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Marcia Masulla on Thursday, May 5. The interactive and engaging program included a dynamic customized Nashville Fashion Week branded set with high-level professional production presented in partnership with Go West Creative. Guests also enjoyed savory bites from The Pink Hermit of The Hermitage Hotel and refreshments from Tito's Handmade Vodka and Love & Exile Wines while they mingled prior to the recorded conversation.

Screen the conversation from your laptop or mobile device at NashvilleFashionWeek.com.

View photos from the Conversation HERE.

Thank you for your continued support and feedback as we plan to make an impact for the future of fashion in Nashville together. Stay tuned! #WHYNFW

How Can NFW Best Serve The Middle Tennessee Fashion Community?

Nashville Fashion Week was conceived in 2010 to foster Nashville's heralded community spirit and concentration of creative, fashion-forward and entrepreneurial talent, to create a one-of-a-kind five day event that is uniquely Nashville. Since then, the world and our city have changed. The fashion industry has changed. And we have changed. Rather than moving forward with "business as usual" with our schedule of events in April, we are working to determine and restructure what will best serve our fashion community now and in the future.

Over the past twelve years, Nashville Fashion Week has:

• Supported 180 Designers

• Awarded Nine Nashville Fashion Forward Fund Recipients

• Booked close to 700 Models

• Showcased over 60 Unique Locations

• Hosted nearly 430 Retail Events

• Scheduled timely Learning Labs and Other Educational Opportunities

• Become a Member of the Council of Fashion Designers of America CFDA Connects

• And Invested over $1.3 million in our Fashion Community

LET'S BE CLEAR: We aren't going anywhere. We are evolving Nashville Fashion Week's scope of work with a renewed focus that best supports the future of Nashville fashion.

Your feedback is invaluable. Please take 5 minutes to click and complete the survey above by Tuesday, March 8 to insure that your voice is heard. We appreciate your support and insight as we rethink and navigate this new phase of our Nashville fashion community together. Thank you!

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NOW ACCEPTING:
NASHVILLE FASHION FORWARD FUND 2022 APPLICATIONS THROUGH APRIL 8

All Fashion Professionals With Ties To Middle Tennessee Are Encouraged To Apply For This Award.

Designers, Photographers, Stylists, Models, Hair and Makeup Artists, Retailers, Content Creators
and MORE!

Nashville Fashion Week invites you to submit your application for the 2022 Nashville Fashion Forward Fund award to The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee now through April 8. Established in 2011, the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund of the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee is an endowed fund that supports the next generation of fashion industry professionals with ties to Middle Tennessee by providing a financial reward and resources for experiential professional development opportunities each year with proceeds from Nashville Fashion Week. ALL fashion industry professionals with ties to Middle Tennesse are encouraged to apply.

Previous recipients include small batch manufacturer Megan Prange; fashion photographer Brett Warren; accessory designer Ceri Hoover, content creator Elise Joseph; and apparel designers Van Hoang, Maria Silver, Eric Bornhop, Lauren Leonard Phelps and Julianna Bass.

Detailed instructions for application submission can be found at NashvilleFashionWeek.com. Applications must arrive at The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee's office at 3833 Cleghorn Avenue by 4:30 p.m. CST on Friday, April 8, 2022. The 2022 recipient will be announced early summer.

Award recipients are selected by a committee of the Community Foundation board based on pre-established criteria inspired by the CFDA/VOGUE Fashion Fund to advance the career of select local talent with demonstrated experience in a fashion-related field. The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund ensures that Nashville Fashion Week is not just a signature high-profile event to celebrate creativity, but also an ongoing, sustainable focus for philanthropic support. #whyNFW