Adrian Cheng

Adrian Cheng, the Hong Kong-based founder of K11 Group and C Ventures, is the first CFDA global ambassador with the mandate to help emerging and established American designers expand their international businesses. Adrian Cheng’s Ambassadorial role has four main components:

The Adrian Cheng Fellowship, Students

The CFDA will work with Cheng to set the selection criteria and participate in the selection committee, naming a fellow under their existing CFDA Scholarships program. Cheng will also serve as a special advisor to the recipient, and there is opportunity for the Adrian Cheng Fellow to collaborate and share design-thinking with Harvard’s Cheng Fellows.

The Adrian Cheng Apprenticeship, Post-graduate designers

Together with the CFDA, Cheng will select one or two emerging designers from a group of 50 students who will reside in Asia for an immersive hands-on experience. The recipient will be placed in a design-oriented role within Cheng’s portfolio companies, such as K11 Musea in Hong Kong, Victoria Dockside, or his retail space in China. The recipient(s) will be selected from the Future Fashion Graduate Program.

Elaine Gold Launch Pad – The Adrian Cheng Venture Prize, Emerging designers

The 23-week creative program for five emerging designers aims to encourage creative entrepreneurship across sustainability, innovation and technology through various workshops and programming in New York. As part of the curriculum, Cheng will be leading workshops and select one recipient to receive the Adrian Cheng Venture Prize.

CFDA x K11 Retail Lab, Established designers

This will be a pop-up shop hosted at K11 Musea in Hong Kong for four designers, per year. The first Retail Lab will open in November of 2019.