"It’s a starting point, not just a moment": How 'Berlin Curated' Aims to Support Emerging Talents in the Long Term

With the SS26 edition of Berlin Fashion Week, a new format for promoting young talent is launching simultaneously: Berlin Curated, initiated by Christiane Arp and implemented by Sevil Uguz and her agency 0049x. We spoke with the two initiators about how the idea for the platform came about, how the final participants were selected, and what long-term goals they are pursuing with Berlin Curated.

“Berlin Fashion Week is the stage for emerging talents,” says Christiane Arp. With this, the chairwoman of the Fashion Council Germany clearly underlines the intention behind the new format. After all, Berlin Fashion Week has always been a platform for young, up-and-coming talent – a blank canvas for new, disruptive, and forward-looking ideas and concepts. But where has it often fallen short? In strong and, most importantly, sustainable support, the symbolic “helping hand.”

This is exactly what Christiane Arp, with the support of Sevil Uguz and 0049x, wants to change this upcoming season. “I’ve been actively involved in supporting emerging fashion designers from and in Germany for many years. Over time, it became increasingly clear that this support needs to start much earlier. Berlin Curated gives us the opportunity to discover and support young talents already during their studies,” explains Christiane Arp. The core concept was to create an initiative that offers real added value and genuine opportunities for students and alumni. “Based on Christiane Arp’s idea, we thought about how we could establish a format within the Berlin Fashion Week that is both professionally produced and curated, while also creating real visibility and networking opportunities,” adds Sevil Uguz.

These are precisely the aspects that often make it difficult for young designers to get started in their careers: finding spaces where fashion can take place and where people will actually see it. Building relationships with key players, or even just making initial contact. Being able to present their work professionally and in a media-effective way. “Many young talents face the challenge of making their creative work visible in a crowded, fast-paced market. Entering the industry is often marked by uncertainty, a lack of resources, and missing connections. At the same time, platforms that prioritize quality over quantity are rare,” says Uguz. Berlin Curated aims to provide support with all of these large and small obstacles.

Together with creative consultant Sonja Hodzode and stylist Josepha Rodriguez, Christiane Arp is responsible for the project’s content curation. The trio oversees scouting, casting, styling, strategy, and the final selection of talents and their designs. These are tasks that Arp is well-versed in, thanks to her years as curator of the Berliner Salon, jury member of Berlin Fashion Week’s concept competition Berlin Contemporary, and chairwoman of the Fashion Council Germany.

Meanwhile, Sevil Uguz and 0049x are in charge of organizational matters – from implementation and coordination to communications, guest management, and production leadership. The holistic concept of Berlin Curated is based on four pillars: a fashion show, a networking event, a pop-up, and media placement. Uguz explains: “Each of these elements serves a core function: the show provides an international stage, the networking event connects talents with relevant stakeholders, the showroom at PLATTE allows for direct contact with the industry and consumers, and the collaboration with magazines XIER and Hotline ensures lasting media visibility. Only through this interplay does a format emerge that truly prepares young designers for the real world and opens up new paths – creatively, economically, and communicatively.”

The initiators received over 70 applications from across Germany, from which 16 finalists were ultimately selected. The selection process was based on submitted portfolios, existing collections, and individual design styles. “In addition to creative quality, we also valued conceptual depth, innovative spirit, and the designers’ personal perspective on fashion,” says Uguz. Arp adds: “In our curation, it wasn’t about which university the students came from, but solely about their talent. During the scouting process for Berlin Curated, we saw many creative works – it was very impressive.”

Berlin Curated, however, aims to be much more than a one-time opportunity. Arp and Uguz want to establish it as a lasting presence in talent development in Germany, forming the first step in a professional career path. “Many young designers in and from Germany have never received the support they needed. Thanks to the Berlin Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises, we can now implement this support through Berlin Curated in the long term,” says Arp. Uguz adds: “Our goal is to open new doors for talents through participation, whether through jobs, collaborations, visibility, or simply through a strengthened self-concept as a designer. Berlin Curated is meant to be a starting point, not just a moment.”