Soulful and modern, yet steeped in heritage. The creations by 20 young designers from South-East Asia, as presented at a recent fashion week, showed that there is no lack of talent to be found within the region.

All of the exciting designs that walked the runway highlighted an Asean theme. They were part of the finale for this year’s AirAsia Runway Ready Designer Search competition.

It saw Tran Thi Tu from Vietnam announced as the grand winner. She walked away with a long list of prizes, including a confirmed show segment to showcase her full collection next year.

Twenty-four-year-old Tran joined the competition with her collection named Dat Viet (the land of Vietnam). She reportedly drew inspiration from the modernised Vietnamese traditional dress, ao dai.

Tran (left) incorporated Vietnamese traditional elements into her designs to emerge as the winner. The designers presented designs that drew inspiration from their heritage.

Brunei, Singapore, Myanmar, Indonesia, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia and the Philippines were also represented in the competition. All of the finalists were selected after a region-wide audition tour.

The search kicked off in April in Manila before moving on to Bandar Seri Begawan, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City, Yangon, Jakarta, Bangkok, Vientiane and ended in Phnom Penh in June.

Chief executive officer of AirAsia Berhad, Aireen Omar, said that Asean has great potential. She added that the company is impressed with what has been witnessed on the runway.

“We believe that, with continuous support and guidance from fashion industry leaders, business owners as well as members of the media, the fashion industry can flourish across the region.”

The two Malaysian finalists in the competition were Andrew Low, 26, and Phynix Tan Pek Han, 22, who represented Raffles Kuala Lumpur and Lim Kok Wing University, respectively.

This is the AirAsia Runway Ready Designer Search’s third year. In 2015, it was launched as a platform to discover young Malaysian design talents, but expanded its reach to neighbouring countries the following year.

Last year’s Search winner, Anuruk Jaidee from Thailand, also made a special appearance and showcased his full collection on the runway during the 2017 finale.