On October 20, the final results of the ‘2026 ISFS Award 4th International Folklore Gift Fashion Innovation Competition’ were announced. The competition’s organizing committee invited judges from universities and industry experts to serve as judges at the Yan'an Road Campus of Donghua University. Participants were asked to design a series of fashion gifts that includes ‘1 cap, 1 scarf, 2 T-shirts, and 2 pairs of socks’. As one of the important events of the Haipai Fashion Season, the 2026 ISFS Award 4th International Folklore Gift Fashion Innovation Competition is based on the theme of “数Algorithm,” encouraging Chinese and foreign students to interpret the essence of fashion that incorporates the cultural characteristics of folklore in all countries through their design work.
More than 300 students from 50 universities across 25 countries submitted designs for the competition. In the final round, 30 design entries from 19 universities across 10 countries were shortlisted for the finals and developed physical products. The competition awarded one ‘Fashion Grand Award’, three ‘Best Creative Awards’, five ‘Best Design Awards’, 21 ‘Cultural Exchange Awards’, as well as awards for the excellent tutor and the best organization.
Among the shortlisted designers, 5 international students were selected from the School of Fashion at Wuhan Textile University. After the design development and production process, at the final award winners announcement, Prof. Tao Hui’s (陶辉) PhD student, RABBI MD (拉比) from Bangladesh (孟加拉国), received the ‘最佳创意-Best Creative Award’. His design focuses on Bangladeshi folk, embodying dynamic movement and expression, and explores it from a cultural exchange perspective. Another 2 international students, SARKER ANANDA (安浩) from Bangladesh (孟加拉国) and RANI KANWAL (可莲) from Pakistan (巴基斯坦), were selected for the ‘最佳设计- Best Design Award.’ Another 2 international students, ARIF WAHEEBA (善雅) and REHMAN TABISH (塔比) from Pakistan (巴基斯坦), were selected for the ‘Cultural Exchange Award-文化交流奖.’ In addition, 4 teachers from the School of Fashion, Prof. Tao Hui (陶辉), Prof. Guo Fengqiu (郭丰秋), Prof. Yin Jun (訚珺), and Dr. S M Minhus (米汉斯), were selected for the ‘Excellent Tutor Award,’ and Wuhan Textile University was selected for the ‘Best Organizing Award.’
Figure 1. Photographs taken during the competition judging process, sourced from the website announcing the final results
Figure 2: List of award-winning students and red-marked WTU international students
Following the event's success, the 4th ISFS Award was organized by the Shanghai Fashion Accessories Society, with the Shanghai Service Industries Development & Research Foundation serving as the Public Welfare Supporter. The competition was supported by Asia Socks Inc., Consinee Group Co., Ltd., and Shanghai Yihu Culture Communication Co., Ltd., and was supervised by the Shanghai International Fashion Innovation Center of the College of Humanities at Donghua University.
Over the years, the School of Fashion at Wuhan Textile University has remained committed to cultivating highly qualified international talent. Drawing on diverse practice-based learning opportunities, the School encourages international students to participate in academic exchanges and design competitions each year. Students have achieved success and received awards, experiences that foster a competitive spirit and promote innovation. Most of the international students at the School of Fashion are from countries aligned with the Belt & Road Initiative. Moving forward, the School will build strong cooperation among Belt & Road countries, continue to strengthen learning through competitions, and cultivate more outstanding, innovative, and practice-oriented talent.
