APLF just announced MOYA London‘s founder, Moyang Yang, the global winner of its renowned DESIGN-A-BAG AWARD 2023. APLF is the world’s leading trade fairs for leather goods supplies, and hosts the design award annually since 2007.
On March 14th, 2023, Yang was sponsored a trip to Dubai and participated in the final round of the competition along with 2 other finalists. Her winning design was a crochet tote, named CARE Bag, that was inspired by the beauty and strength of women of colour. “People are the driving force of eco-fashion, and I want to make them the centre of my designs.” Yang explained to the judges during her presentation.
“The CARE Bag carries strong sustainability messages while telling beautiful stories of the women behind.” commented Olivier Vedrine, lead judge at the competition and co-founder of Paris-based design agency [o,o].
Yang self-taught handbag design during maternity leave in 2021. “I was breastfeeding my baby with one hand, while drawing bags with the other.” the entrepreneur recalls. A year later, she quit her job at the fashion retail giant, NET-A-PORTER, and launched her own handbag brand, MOYA London, to focus on sustainable accessories. The brand has since been featured on British Vogue and The Independent.
Launch event for the award-winning CARE Bag is due to take place in April, London, enquire at [email protected].
DESIGN-A-BAG AWARD is a global online competition and the only bag design award of its kind. Every year, hundreds of applications are submitted from independent designers and students around the world. Three finalists are selected, including Yang this year, and are sponsored a trip to Dubai or Hong Kong for the final judging.