The 2018 FN Achievement Awards saw plenty of powerful moments — from Launch of the Year Award winner Amina Muaddi speaking about inspiring Middle Eastern women like herself to follow their dreams to Pyer Moss’ Kerby Jean-Raymond telling the room that they all have the capacity to change people’s lives. Check out some of the night’s highlights.
1. Kerby Jean-Raymond on How Reebok Changed His Life
“Everyone in this room has the ability to reach down — just reach down — and you’ll be surprised what you find. Reebok did it, and you guys can do it,” said the menswear designer, who took home the award for Collaboration of the Year.
2. Amina Muaddi’s Emotional Speech
An emotional Amina Muaddi, who took home Launch of the Year for her namesake label, opened up on stage, telling the crowd: “For a girl who comes where I come from — I’m half Jordanian and half Romanian — to be here, to be able to live my dreams and inspire Middle Eastern women to live their own dreams and be able to dress women I could have never imagined I’d be able to dress, it’s an honor.”
3. Chloe Gosselin Dedicating Her Award to the Women who Wear Her Shoes
Chloe Gosselin, this year’s Emerging Talent winner, dedicated her award to the women that wear her shoes following a sweet introduction from fashion legend Diane von Furstenberg. “I want to thank all the women out there who are wearing my shoes,” the designer explained. “I know that you’re fierce, full of dreams and ambition, and I’m honored that you’re choosing to walk through life in my creations,” she said.
4. Anna Wintour Revealing Tabitha Simmons’ Clubbing Shoes
FN’s Designer of the Year winner, Tabitha Simmons, took the stage to give her speech after Anna Wintour shared with the room that Simmons used to go clubbing in ice skates. “Tabitha would dance all night at various Manhattan clubs. She danced in a pair of ragged white Victorian ice skates. She wore them like a pair of comfortable and practical biker boots — never batting an eyelid or complaining that her feet were hurting or even acknowledging that she was on ice skates,” the editor-in-chief revealed.
5. Bruce Nordstrom on Working His Way Up
“I’m a shoe dog. I say that with all my heart. That doesn’t sound like a complimentary title, but that’s me,” Bruce Nordstrom told the room as he took the stage to receive FN’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Nordstrom, who was introduced by his son Erik, reminisced about his four decades-long career and recalled sweeping the floors of his family’s store at 9 years old before he started selling shoes at just 14.
6. Sailor Brinkley-Cook Sharing a Touching Story About Fashion
When supermodel veteran Christie Brinkley and her daughters Alexa Ray Joel and Sailor Brinkley-Cook received their award for Style Influencers of the Year, Brinkley-Cook told a touching story that reminded the room of fashion’s powerful impact. The 20-year-old recalled meeting a homeless woman named Sasha while giving back on Thanksgiving and how upon giving her a makeover complete with a pair of hot-pink Reebok sneakers, Sasha instantly brightened up.
“She was so happy. She just started crying,” Sailor recounted. “She was so grateful to be able to feel that again, to be able to own that identity that fashion gives you and that I think I take for granted every day.”
7. Baker Mayfield Making a Joke About Being Diane Sullivan’s Second Choice
Baker Mayfield gave the room a laugh when he shared a witty remark Diane Sullivan, who he presented with FN’s Person of the Year Award, made before the show. “Here’s the last thing she said to me: ‘Really I wanted a handsome young man to present me with this award, but Tom Brady wasn’t available,’” the Cleveland Browns quarterback said with a laugh.
When Sullivan took to the stage she shared why she chose the rookie quarterback to present her with the award. “I think you embody everything that I respect, which is courage, confidence and that idea that you have a vision about where you’re going to go,” Sullivan said.
8. Alanna Masterson Honoring Her Former Babysitter, Rebecca Minkoff
It was undoubtedly a special moment when “The Walking Dead” star Alanna Masterson presented her former babysitter, Rebecca Minkoff, with the Social Impact of the Year Award. “It’s been a real honor to see her go from babysitter to powerhouse,” Masterson shared. “Rebecca designed her first ‘I Am New York’ shirt in 2001 and donated part of the money to the Red Cross to help with destruction downtown. Since then, she’s continued her mission of giving back.”
9. Grant Hill on How Fila Made Its Comeback
Grant Hill, who revived his Fila partnership this year after signing a lifetime endorsement deal with the sportswear brand, presented the company’s North American president, Jon Epstein, with the Shoe of the Year Award for the Fila Disruptor 2. “To be back with Fila and Jon Epstein is like being back home. For them to be honored here tonight — and for me to be a part of that — is really exciting for the brand,” he shared.
The former NBA player took the time to commend the Fila exec’s work ethic and give him props for the retro sneaker’s success. “At 3 a.m., Jon would pick up the bags of shoes and drive 300 miles to sell them himself. That’s the conviction of knowing a brand’s potential,” he revealed.
For more highlights from the 2018 FNAAs, check out our gallery of this year’s honorees.
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FN to Honor Bruce Nordstrom, Diane Sullivan, Tabitha Simmons + More Big Names at 2018 FNAAs
