CFDA Fashion Awards 2025

Full Winners List, Red-Carpet Highlights, & Historic Moments From New York

The 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards delivered a night of glamour, cultural celebration, and boundary-pushing fashion, reaffirming New York City’s status as the global capital of style. Held at the iconic American Museum of Natural History, the event gathered the biggest names in design, entertainment, modeling, and artistry — uniting legends, rising stars, and bold innovators under one roof.

This year’s ceremony blended nostalgia, futurism, and purpose, marking a defining moment in American fashion history.

Major Winners & Honorees

Fashion Icon Award

A$AP Rocky
Honored for his fearless style, cultural impact, and his role shaping global street-luxury fashion. His influence bridges music, art, and high fashion, making him one of the most significant fashion figures of the modern era.

Positive Change Award

Donatella Versace
Recognized for her philanthropic work, global advocacy, and push for social responsibility in luxury fashion.

Innovation Award

Jerry Lorenzo — Fear of God
Honored for redefining American luxury with soulful design, craftsmanship, and new business models that merge culture and commerce.

Founder’s Award in Honor of Eleanor Lambert

Cynthia Rowley
Celebrated for an iconic career and continued contributions to creativity, entrepreneurship, and industry leadership.

Eugenia Sheppard Media Award

Sara Moonves
Acknowledged for shaping the fashion media landscape and elevating stories of artistry, identity, and cultural relevance.

Red Carpet Highlights

Amber Valletta’s Historic Style Moment

Amber Valletta stunned the world by re-wearing her iconic green Versace gown first seen in the late ’90s — a bold celebration of sustainability, archival fashion, and timeless glamour.
It was a statement: fashion history still has power, and luxury can be sustainable.

A$AP Rocky & Rihanna — Royalty in Fashion

Rihanna and A$AP Rocky arrived as the undisputed king and queen of fashion.
Rocky, the evening’s honoree, wore refined yet creative tailoring — blending classic sophistication with playful modern twists.
Rihanna brought avant-garde glamour, embracing powerful suiting and sculptural styling — proving once again she dictates the fashion conversation.

Teyana Taylor — A Host with High-Fashion Power

As host, Teyana Taylor commanded the red carpet in dramatic custom tailoring with sculptural, shimmering accents.
Her style fused masculine structure and feminine edge, expressing strength, futurism, and artistic individuality.

Vera Wang — Timeless & Daring

At 76, Vera Wang proved fashion has no age limits.
Her daring black bralette and dramatic white maxi skirt reaffirmed her status as an ageless icon unafraid to challenge expected norms.

Naomi Campbell — Sculptural Elegance

Naomi Campbell graced the carpet in pure white minimalist couture — sleek, powerful, and impossibly regal.
Decades into her career, she remains fashion’s eternal muse.

Historic & Cultural Moments

Sustainability Took Center Stage
Amber Valletta’s archival gown symbolized fashion’s shifting values: glamour with longevity and environmental consciousness.
Hip-Hop Crowned High Fashion
A$AP Rocky’s win solidified the cultural power of hip-hop and Black creative excellence in global luxury.
Women Leading With Purpose
Honorees like Donatella Versace and Sara Moonves highlighted fashion’s evolution toward advocacy, storytelling, and social impact.
Age, Gender & Creative Expression Expanded
From Vera Wang to Teyana Taylor, the night pushed back against traditional boundaries in beauty, age, and silhouette.
New York Remains the Style Capital
With iconic stars, heritage designers, and visionary creatives in one room, the CFDA reaffirmed NYC’s unmatched fashion energy.

Why This Night Matters

The 2025 CFDA Awards reflected where fashion is going:

Sustainability is prestige.
Culture and creativity carry as much value as classic luxury.
Age-defying style is celebrated, not hidden.
Diversity in expression is the new standard.
Fashion is now activism, culture, business, and innovation — not just clothing.

This aligns powerfully with the current global fashion movement championing:

Upcycling and ethical design
Cultural storytelling
Inclusive representation
Innovation and community impact

Final Thoughts

The 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards weren’t just a celebration of garments — they were a celebration of evolution.

It was a night where legacy met future, glamour met activism, and the world witnessed fashion expand beyond the runway into culture, purpose, and global influence.

New York didn’t just host fashion —

From the moment guests stepped onto the red carpet, expertly hosted by the ever-stylish Jenna Lyons, it was clear this would be a night to remember, a definitive chapter in the story of the 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards.

The Crowns of the Evening: Lauren, Browne, and The Row Secure Top Honors

American Womenswear Designer of the Year:

Wes Gordon for Carolina Herrera

Rachel Scott for Diotima

Daniella Kallmeyer for Kallmeyer

Ralph Lauren – WINNER

Tory Burch

American Menswear Designer of the Year:

Mike Amiri for Amiri

Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta for Eckhaus Latta

Ashley Olsen and Mary-Kate Olsen for The Row

Thom Browne – WINNER

Willy Chavarria

American Accessory Designer of the Year:

Ana Khouri

Catherine Holstein for Khaite

Raul Lopez for Luar

Ashley Olsen and Mary-Kate Olsen for The Row – WINNER

Tory Burch

Celebrating the Vanguard: Emerging Talent and Honorees Shine

Google Shopping American Emerging Designer of the Year:

Taylor Thompson for 5000

Ashlynn Park for Ashlyn – WINNER

Julian Louie for Aubero

Bernard James

Colleen Allen

2025 Honorees:

Isabel Toledo Board of Directors’ Tribute: Andre Walker

Founder’s Award in honor of Eleanor Lambert: Cynthia Rowley

Geoffrey Beene Lifetime Achievement Award: Ralph Rucci

Media Award in honor of Eugenia Sheppard: Sara Moonves

Fashion Icon Award: A$AP Rocky

Positive Change Award: Donatella Versace

Innovation Award Presented by Amazon Fashion: Jerry Lorenzo

International Designer of the Year: Pieter Mulier

The Ceremony and the Crowd

One of the most compelling aspects of the 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards is how the invited guests read like a cross-section of today’s cultural moment. Presenters included Olivia Dean, Addison Rae, Amber Valletta, Julianne Moore, Naomi Campbell, Jennifer Lawrence, Ava DuVernay, Anna Wintour, Donatella Versace, and more—an eclectic mix that mirrors fashion’s porous borders with music, film, activism, and media.

The setting contributed to the magic. The museum’s halls lent the night a gravitas that replaced typical ballroom glamor. Guests moved through pale stone corridors, beneath ceilings high with naturalist motifs; it felt less like a show and more like a statement—fashion in dialogue with history and space.

And then there were the red carpet moments. Teyana Taylor, as host, wore a striking ensemble by Thom Browne with oversized rhinestones and bold silhouette choices. Meanwhile, Amber Valletta turned heads by rewearing the iconic Versace jungle dress from 1999—a perfect tribute to Donatella Versace’s evening honor.

Why the 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards Matter

In an era when fashion breaks borders and defies categories, the CFDA Fashion Awards 2025 feels especially resonant. The ceremony pushes past spectacle to highlight stories: emerging voices, transformative social impact, and designers refining legacy in real time. It also reaffirms how much American fashion relies on both tradition and reinvention.

Tonight, the winners and honorees will be recorded in archival footnotes, but their influence will shape the coming seasons, collections, and cultural conversations. The winners list already reads like a ledger of relevance. The 2025 CFDA Fashion Awards is a live reflection of who we are, where fashion comes from, and where it’s going.

As the final applause faded beneath the museum’s vaulted ceilings, it was clear: this was more than a ceremony. CFDA Fashion Awards 2025 turned a New York night into a cultural marker. For designers, creatives, and fans alike, it’s a moment to mark, remember, and follow what comes next.